Elira's fire blazed outward, weaving into the torches of the Ashbound. But her gaze locked on one of the champions—a warrior whose face she knew. Ralen. His eyes were hollow now, his torch twisted into a blade of shadow.
Her chest tightened. He fought for me once. He should not fight against me now.
She raised her hand, the crown pulsing in harmony with her heartbeat. "I will not burn you, Ralen. I will free you."
Flame leapt from her palm, not as a torrent but as threads of light. They wrapped around the champion's blade, around his chest, around the hollow in his eyes. For a moment, the shadow faltered. His torch flickered—half flame, half smoke.
The Ashbound gasped. Kael's voice rang out, fierce. "She's breaking the chains!"
But Marlic's roar split the battlefield. "You dare unmake my weapon? You dare steal shadow from me?"
He surged forward, spear of smoke lashing with fury. The storm thickened, pressing harder, heavier. Elira staggered, her flame flickering as she poured strength into Ralen.
The champion's blade trembled, shadow peeling away—but Marlic struck, his spear crashing against her shield of fire. Sparks rained down, the ground trembling.
Kael leapt to her side, steel blazing, but Marlic's storm pressed harder. His laughter was sharp, cruel. "You cannot free them. You cannot bind what is mine. Shadow endures, Flamebearer—and flame will break."
Elira's fire faltered, her crown pulsing violently, visions flashing—herself consumed, Kael falling, the Ashbound scattered. She clenched her fist, forcing flame outward, but Marlic pressed harder, nearly overwhelming her.
Kael's blade cut through shadow, his voice desperate. "Hold, Elira! Don't let him take you!"
The duel spiraled—flame against shadow, loyalty against grief. For a heartbeat, Ralen's torch flickered with fire again. But Marlic's storm swallowed it, his power pressing harder, heavier, endless.
Elira gasped, her fire dimming. The war was not ending—it was only deepening.