The battle erupted like a time bomb detonating.
It wasn't just a brief clash — it was a **magical earthquake**, tearing the air in half. Professor Shadowcraft raised her hands in a swift motion, as if drawing a map of death, and unleashed a wave of black shadows that suddenly twisted into a **giant serpent**, slithering through the air at lightning speed.
Its eyes burned like twin embers, devouring every trace of light in its path as it lunged toward Professor Stormhammer.
At the same moment, Victor surged toward me like a starving wolf, his sword cloaked in dark energy, flashing with vicious intent as it sliced the air with a **piercing whistle** that stabbed into the ears.
The darkness around the blade coiled like shards of sharp glass.
"Ember, fire wall!"
I screamed with everything in my lungs, my voice trembling with panic.
A golden wall of flame burst up before me, rising like a colossal fire tree — its leaves made of blue fire, its branches gnashing the air with fury.
But Victor's sword pierced through it with terrifying ease, as if cutting through thin mist. A black spark crawled along the blade like burning worms, melting the fire from within, releasing a sharp sound like glass shattering underfoot.
He was far stronger than the last time we fought — as if his body had been forged into a weapon designed to destroy everything I built.
"Surprise!"
Victor roared, striking me with the hilt of his sword with enough force to throw me off balance.
The blow hit my chest like a lightning strike, knocking the air from my lungs in an instant. "I've trained hard since my last humiliation!"
Rex attacked Draken from the side in a motion as fast as an arrow.
His red flames twisted into a **fire serpent** that coiled around his sword before clashing against Draken's metal blade.
Sparks exploded into the air like falling stars, each one making a high-pitched screech, like metal screaming under unbearable pressure.
"Sorry, Draken! Nothing personal!"
"Everything is personal when you betray your friends!"
Draken shot back, defending with skill, but his eyes clearly reflected pain as his arms trembled under the force of the blows.
It was obvious Rex was stronger — every movement from his body sent waves of heat that made the air around him shimmer like it was under a midday sun.
Elyana was in the worst position — one of the masked men attacked her with ice magic that shot from his hands like fangs of ice growing at terrifying speed.
Each ice arrow released a sharp sound, like glass breaking in the air.
Though Luna shielded her with barriers of light that glowed like stage spotlights, they were cracking under the relentless pressure. Every hit carved a new fracture in the shield, forcing Elyana to retreat step by step, her face etched with real terror.
Professor Stormhammer was locked in an epic duel with Professor Shadowcraft — fire magic against shadow magic — every move sending tremors through the tower.
Golden flames battled black shadows in a merciless war, devouring walls and scorching the ground beneath their feet.
Meanwhile, most of the warriors Stormhammer had brought were fighting the other masked men in individual duels — a deadly dance where blade met blade and blood splattered across the stones.
"This isn't going well,"
I muttered, dodging another of Victor's strikes with a quick spin.
I felt the heat of his blade graze my body as it passed by.
Suddenly, a massive explosion roared from below — as if a nuclear bomb had detonated beneath our feet.
The entire tower shook violently.
Cracks split the walls, dust rained down from the ceiling like gray rain, and glass shattered in every direction as we scrambled to hold onto anything stable.
"What was that?!"
Elyana screamed, clutching Draken's arm to keep from falling.
"Reinforcements!"
one of the masked men shouted with a mix of joy and madness, his eyes glowing like a beast's.
"Phase two of the plan!"
Phase two? What phase two?
The answer came quickly.
Through the broken windows, I saw red lights blazing across the academy like demon eyes, and the sounds of screams and battle rising from the main buildings — a death chant.
I saw the Alchemy Building burning like a giant candle, students leaping from windows into the scalding pond below.
"No!"
Professor Stormhammer screamed, her voice breaking, the first time I'd ever seen true fear on her face.
"They're attacking the academy!"
"Exactly,"
Professor Shadowcraft said with a wicked smile spreading across her face like an open wound.
"While everyone was focused on your little trap here, our real forces were sneaking into the academy."
"Your forces?"
Professor Stormhammer asked, stunned, her hands trembling with rage.
"We are the Red Shadow Organization,"
Shadowcraft declared with pride so heavy it felt like a physical weight.
"And our goal is to create an army of spirit controllers, completely under our control."
The Red Shadow Organization!
I remembered the name from the game — a terrorist group trying to dominate the empire by controlling powerful sorcerers, turning them into mindless puppets.
"So all of this was a trap from the beginning,"
I realized, bitterness flooding my mouth like poison.
"You weren't trying to capture us — you were trying to lure the strongest defenders out of the academy."
"Very clever,"
Victor sneered, raising his sword toward my neck, the darkness around the blade coiling like glass shards.
"And now, while the academy burns, we'll take your power and add it to our army."
But before he could strike again, something unexpected happened.
One of the walls exploded with immense force, as if struck by a cannonball. Dust and sparks filled the air, and then, through the gap, emerged a familiar small golden dragon — his wings flapping with majestic slowness, his eyes glowing like two blazing fires.
"Oriolus!"
I cried, joy flooding through me like I'd been given a second life.
"Hello, young Shadowind,"
the dragon said in his deep voice, heavy with power and wisdom. "I heard you were in trouble."
"How did you know?"
"Ember called me,"
Oriolus said, glancing at my small fire spirit, who was glowing like a miniature sun.
"The bond between you is so strong it reached me deep in the forest."
It was astonishing. I hadn't realized my bond with Ember was this powerful — as if we had become one being.
"A dragon?!"
Professor Shadowcraft gasped, shock turning to horror.
"Impossible! How dare you interfere in human affairs?"
"When evil humans threaten nature and peace, my intervention becomes necessary," Oriolus boomed, his voice like thunder. Then he exhaled a powerful fire breath toward the enemy group. Golden flames erupted like a miniature sun exploding in the tower.
The masked men scrambled away in desperation, but the fire incinerated most of their magical gear in an instant.
The darkness they carried turned to black smoke as they screamed in pain.
"Fall back!"
Shadowcraft shrieked, real terror in her voice for the first time.
"This is more than we planned for!"
"But the plan!"
Victor protested in anger, his sword trembling from the thunderous force.
"The plan has changed!"
she snapped, opening a magical shadow portal that looked like a wound in space.
"We retreat and regroup!"
Rex hesitated for a moment, looking at us with a complex expression that carried a thousand unspoken words.
"I... I'm sorry," he whispered before jumping through the portal with the others — his words dissolving into the air as if they'd never been.
In seconds, they were all gone, leaving behind only destruction and countless unanswered questions hanging in the air like explosion dust.
"The academy!"
Professor Stormhammer said, her voice tight with heart-wrenching worry.
"We must return!"
We climbed onto Oriolus' back — a terrifying and exhilarating experience — and flew at lightning speed toward the main buildings.
Cold wind cut through my skin as we soared, the wind whispering in my ears like it carried ancient secrets.
The view from above was devastating.
Several buildings were burning like giant candles, and flashes of battle lit up the grounds like falling stars.
But the defenders seemed to be holding the line — I saw Professor Firestone launching fireballs that destroyed attackers one by one.
We landed in the main courtyard, where Professor Firestone was leading a group of teachers and older students in a fierce fight against masked attackers.
The courtyard was a scene of devastation — the ground covered in blood and sparks, the air thick with the smell of smoke and death.
"Professor Firestone!"
Professor Stormhammer called, flames flickering in her eyes.
"Under control now!"
Firestone replied, launching a powerful fireball at a group of enemies. The orb exploded like a miniature sun, consuming everything in its path. "But it was a coordinated attack. They hit multiple points at once."
"Where are the other students?"
Elyana asked, her voice tight with heart-wrenching concern.
"Safe in underground emergency halls,"
Firestone said, casting another spell, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "But we have several injured."
We spent the next few hours helping to extinguish fires and treat the wounded. Elyana used Luna's healing powers to aid the injured students, each movement of her hands releasing golden light circles that slowly mended wounds. Meanwhile, Draken and I helped search for any remaining attackers, moving through the rubble like we were in a dark dream.
By dawn, the attack had ended, but the damage was clear.
Several buildings were severely damaged, about twenty students and professors were injured, but thankfully, no one had died.
The courtyard was covered in blood and ash, like the stage of a tragedy written thousands of years ago.
"How did they know about our plan?"
Professor Stormhammer asked, sitting in her partially destroyed office, her face marked by exhaustion and sorrow.
"There's another spy," I said, utterly drained, my voice heavy with despair. "Or Professor Shadowcraft was watching us through magical means."
"Shadowcraft,"
Firestone muttered, bitterness filling his mouth like poison.
"She worked with us for five years. How could we not have noticed?"
"Betrayal always comes from within"
Oriolus said, having shrunk to the size of a large cat to fit in the office, his eyes glowing with ancient wisdom.
"That is an old lesson."
"What do we do now?"
Elyana asked, her eyes a mix of fear and hope.
"We rebuild, and strengthen our defenses,"
Firestone said with ironclad resolve. "And most importantly, we make sure nothing like this ever happens again."
"And Victor? And Rex?" Draken asked, his voice carrying a quiet fury.
"We will find them,"
Professor Stormhammer said, her voice as hard as steel.
"And we will bring them to justice."
But deep in my heart, I knew it wouldn't be easy.
The Red Shadow Organization was bigger and more dangerous than we'd imagined, and this attack was just the beginning — just the spark that would ignite the real fire.
"My friends,"
Oriolus said, looking at us with wise eyes glowing like twin fires.
"This battle is over, but the war has just begun. You will need to become stronger than you can imagine."
I nodded, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on my shoulders like a heavy stone. We were no longer just students learning magic — we had become warriors in a real war against the forces of darkness, a war that showed no mercy and knew no truce.
Ember sat on my shoulder, radiating warm, comforting light. Our bond had grown stronger than ever, and that was a good thing — because we would need every ounce of strength we could gather, every spark of our fire, every shadow we could control.
"Together,"
I whispered to my friends, looking at Elyana and Draken, my eyes filled with unbreakable resolve.
"Together,"
they replied, their eyes holding the same determination I felt, the same unquenchable fire.
The next challenge would be harder than anything we'd faced so far — but we wouldn't face it alone.
We would face it as a family, as a team, as friends who carried unquenchable flames in their hearts.
And somewhere in the distance, the Red Shadow Organization was already planning their next move. But we would be ready for them. Stronger. Wiser. More united.
At least, that's what I hoped.
And that's what we would make real.