The forest dome pulsed like a living heartbeat. Shadows writhed against flames, and above, the colossal black eye glared down, unblinking. Its gaze pressed against Rihan's chest like iron chains.
Yet he refused to kneel. His fire raged higher, not as Draemir's vessel—but as his own will forged in battle.
"Sirena! Together!" Rihan shouted, his sword burning scarlet.
Sirena nodded, Moonblade raised, silver light carving through the suffocating dark.
The assassin laughed, spinning his twin blades in a deadly dance. "Yes, yes! Struggle harder! The more you resist, the sweeter your despair will taste when the truth consumes you!"
---
⚔️ The Dance of Blades
The clash erupted like thunder.
CLANG! Rihan's flame struck down one curved blade.
SHHHK! Sirena's silver slash forced the assassin back.
But his movements were terrifyingly fluid—like shadows made flesh. He twisted between their strikes, violet energy dripping from his blades with every swing.
"Too slow, too heavy," he taunted, striking low at Rihan's side.
CLASH! Rihan blocked, sparks flying, but the assassin used the rebound to whirl and kick him in the chest. Rihan staggered back, the world spinning—
CRASH! Sirena intercepted the follow-up, her blade locking with his.
"Rihan, focus!" she barked.
Gritting his teeth, Rihan steadied his breath. He could still feel the whispers clawing at his mind, but Sirena's voice grounded him.
Not Draemir's flame. Mine.
He roared, charging again.
---
🌑 A Crack in the Mask
For the first time, Rihan's flame forced the assassin to stumble back. His violet aura sizzled where the fire clung, eating at the shadows.
Sirena followed with a strike so precise it grazed the assassin's mask.
CRACK! A thin fracture appeared across the bone-like surface.
The assassin froze for a heartbeat. Then, laughter.
"Ah… you almost touched the truth."
He retaliated with furious speed, blades flashing violet arcs that cut the ground itself. Trees fell, roots lashed, shadows screamed.
But Sirena and Rihan stood firm, side by side, pressing forward through the storm.
---
⚔️ The Final Exchange
The three warriors collided in a final, desperate clash.
The assassin's twin blades blurred like storms of violet lightning.
Sirena's Moonblade shone like a silver comet, cutting through darkness.
Rihan's fire surged with a new brilliance, not chaotic but steady—his will burning pure.
Their weapons struck in a single, world-shaking clash.
CRAAACK!
The assassin's mask shattered.
Fragments fell to the ground like broken porcelain.
---
😨 The Face Beneath
Silence fell.
Beneath the mask was not the face of a stranger—but a boy. Barely older than Rihan, with sharp features twisted by exhaustion and madness. His eyes, however… were the same burning violet as Draemir's whispers.
Elira's voice echoed faintly through the barrier, horrified.
"By the gods… he's just… a child…"
The assassin grinned, blood dripping from his lips.
"No… not a child. A herald."
He dropped his shattered mask and spread his arms, violet flames erupting around him.
"Do you see now? We are the same, Rihan. Chosen, cursed, reshaped. Vessels of Draemir's will!"
Rihan's chest tightened. For the first time, he saw not just an enemy—but a reflection of what he might become, if he gave in.
---
🌑 The Escape
Before Rihan could answer, the forest dome split again with thunder. The colossal eye in the sky burned brighter, and a voice—deep, ancient, soul-crushing—shook the ground.
"My vessel awakens. My herald falters. But the Eclipse will rise."
The assassin's violet aura erupted, forming a cocoon of shadow around him.
"No!" Sirena lunged, blade flashing—
But the cocoon collapsed inward, and with a burst of black lightning, the assassin vanished.
Only the shattered fragments of his mask remained.
---
🔥 Aftermath
The dome of shadows dissolved. The forest returned to silence, though the air still trembled with Draemir's echo.
Elira and Kael rushed in, faces pale.
"Rihan! Sirena! Are you—" Elira's voice broke when she saw the broken mask.
Sirena picked up a fragment, staring at it grimly.
"He wasn't lying. Draemir is moving… and he has others like him."
Rihan clenched his fist, flame flickering weakly. His body ached, his mind still echoed with the assassin's words.
Forged by Draemir. Vessel of his will.
But as he looked at his friends—Sirena's steady gaze, Elira's worried eyes, Kael's silent strength—he drew a shaky breath.
"No," he whispered to himself. "I'm not Draemir's vessel. I'm Rihan. And I'll fight him to the very end."
---
🌑 Cliffhanger
Far away, beyond mountains and kingdoms, Draemir's cult gathered in a ruined temple.
The assassin, now kneeling in shadows, clutched his side where fire had burned him. Despite his wounds, he smiled.
"My Mistress… I have delivered the message. The vessel awakens."
From the darkness, a woman's voice replied, cold and soothing like venom.
"Good. Then the Eclipse truly begins."
Her eyes opened—twin pools of violet flame.