Ervin's knee hit a stone. Blood ran down his arm in a steady stream, sizzling when it touched the lightning still sparking around his fingers. His fortress lay in ruins, pillars shattered, the crater a smoking pit.
Across from him, the winged commander spread his wings again. Blackened. Ragged. Yet they spread. Violet fire rekindled along their edges. His voice was hoarse but steady.
"You will not cage the sky."
Feathers ignited, hundreds of them, violet razors ready to descend.
Ervin's chest heaved. His veins screamed. He tightened his grip.
["If I fall first, the line breaks."]
The duel surged again.
★★★
Vael bled.
Every breath dragged fire through his ribs. His right dagger was chipped, his left slick with his own blood. Across from him, the scaled brute laughed.
Two axes whirled in his hands, each swing strong enough to split wards, stone, and bone in a single motion. He had chased Vael across half the battlefield already, carving trenches where his strikes landed.
