Kael's breath came ragged. Blood traced his lips, and his limbs quivered under the weight of their own failure.
Every strike from the Sovereign came like a decree from a higher realm — impossible to block, harder to endure. Kael's body was past resistance. Each blow rang deeper, not just into flesh and bone, but through his very spirit.
"Not enough," he thought as another impact twisted his torso mid-air. "I should've pushed harder."
He hit the ground hard. Something cracked. Then another blow descended before he could even groan.
"Leiya… Arlan… Elandor… everyone…" The thought wavered as pain swallowed him whole. "I let them all down."
Another strike. This time to his side, Essence-cloaked and reinforced with conceptual weight. It broke past his defenses like they never existed.
"All the promises I made. So confident…" He gasped as the next hit struck his spine, and he couldn't even cry out. "Now empty. Broken."
Kael no longer stood. No longer resisted. He was slumped in the crater, barely able to raise his head as blood soaked into the ruined ground.
The Sovereign stood tall above him, power incarnate.
"HA! THIS IS THE MOST PATHETIC VERSION OF YOURSELF." His voice echoed like thunder cracking through glass. "THIS IS THE STRONGEST YOU'VE BEEN — AND YET THE FIRST TIME YOU'VE GIVEN UP THIS PATHETICALLY."
The next strike shattered what was left of Kael's Essence shell. The Sovereign grabbed him by the hair, lifting his limp body like a puppet.
Kael's eyes blurred, still in his head unfocused and unaware of his surroundings.
"Let's see," he said, eyes gleaming with cruel joy, "how badly I can break you."
In the blink of an eye, they vanished.
—
The shattered skyline of Elandor stood calm, peaceful — for a moment.
Then a ripple tore across the sky.
Kael's warded barrier flickered.
In the central keep, Leiya and Arlan froze. The glow around the protection seal dimmed for just a heartbeat — but they felt it.
"No…" Leiya whispered, voice trembling. "He's…"
Arlan's hand tightened around his sword hilt, his jaw clenched. "It's not over. He'll pull through. I know he will."
He tried to reassure her, even as the pressure built in the air.
"Kael's the toughest kid I've ever known," Arlan muttered. "Even when he was younger. Even when I tried to train him to be an adventurer and he'd refuse — he always stood up for people. He didn't need to be told. He just was a fighter. He was always—"
"Thank you, Arlan," Leiya said softly, the faintest smile on her lips. "I know he'll be o—"
A thud interrupted her.
They turned — and saw him.
The Sovereign stood in the center of the room. Kael's body dropped at his feet like discarded meat, broken and barely breathing.
"Come on," the Sovereign sneered, voice sickly with amusement. "Tell them you're winning, Kael. Give them some good news."
Leiya's scream tore from her throat before she could stop it. Her knees buckled, hands flying to her mouth as tears spilled down in torrents. Arlan stood frozen in place, eyes wide, disbelief in every line of his body.
Then fury overtook him.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY LITTLE BROTHER?!"
He charged. Essence burst from him, sword drawn, scream primal.
The Sovereign didn't even blink.
He extended a hand. A single pulse.
Arlan vanished backward. His sword disintegrated mid-swing, and his body slammed into the far wall, arm ripped clean off. He didn't even have time to scream.
"ARLAN!!" Leiya sobbed.
Kael's eyes finally flashed back to life after hearing his brother scream
"Huh? Arlan? Leiya…?"
He saw his brother, bleeding and unconscious. Saw Leiya, weeping and helpless. Something broke open inside him.
"No…"
"No. No, why can't I move? Body, please—move—PLEASE—!"
His voice cracked out in a rasp, but no strength came with it.
"I promised… I PROMISED THEM THIS WOULD NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN—"
Inside, Kael raged.
Outside, he couldn't even lift his head.
The Sovereign laughed.
He stepped forward. Slowly. One step at a time, deliberate.
Kael screamed inside. "DON'T. DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER."
He pushed. Every muscle protested. Every nerve was on fire.
Hand on his knee, he tried to rise.
He made it halfway up—
The Sovereign turned and blasted him back into the wall with a mere gesture.
"Sit there," he whispered, "and watch."
The air grew quiet.
All Kael could hear… was the Sovereign's steps.
Step…
Step…
The sound echoed like drums of war in Kael's ears.
He wanted to move.
Wanted to scream.
Wanted to burn the world to stop him.
But nothing moved.
Step…
Step…
The Sovereign drew closer to Leiya.
Kael's breath hitched. His heart raced. His soul pounded against the walls of his body like a prisoner.
"PLEASE."
Step…
Step…
The world blurred. Nothing else mattered.
And then—
The sound.
The spray.
The scream.
Kael saw the blood before he registered the motion.
Saw her collapse.
He didn't move.
He didn't scream.
He didn't even breathe.
He simply… broke.