The battlefield trembled as Marlic raised both hands, shadow coiling tighter around him. His ember eyes blazed, and the smoke thickened until it swallowed the stars.
"You think fire can burn shadow?" His voice thundered across the camp. "Then see what shadow truly is."
The ground split, smoke pouring upward like a tide. From it rose figures—warriors forged entirely of shadow, their forms solid, their blades gleaming with darkness. They moved in silence, but their presence pressed like a storm against the Ashbound.
The Ashbound faltered, torches sputtering. For every flame they raised, a shadow warrior struck it down. Their numbers doubled, tripled, overwhelming the camp.
Elira's crown pulsed violently, visions flashing—armies consumed, fire extinguished, loyalty broken. She staggered, the blaze threatening to collapse inward.
Kael caught her arm, steadying her. "Stay with me. We fight together."
Elira clenched her fist, forcing fire outward. Her flames struck the shadow warriors, but they did not dissolve like the Smokebound. They endured, their blades cutting through fire.
Marlic's laughter echoed, sharp and cruel. "This is the power you cannot burn. This is the memory you cannot erase."
The Ashbound fought desperately, but losses mounted. Warriors fell, torches extinguished, morale breaking under the tide. The camp was no longer a battlefield—it was a graveyard in the making.
Elira's chest tightened. The crown whispered: Give more. Burn brighter. But she felt the danger—the fire would consume her if she obeyed.
Kael's blade cut through shadow, his voice fierce. "Don't let it take you. We'll find another way."
Elira steadied, fire blazing at her fingertips. "Then we fight until dawn. Flame and steel. No matter the cost."
The battle raged, shadow warriors pressing harder, fire struggling to hold. Marlic stood at the center, his power unleashed, his laughter echoing. The war had shifted—and the Ashbound were breaking.