The sky still bled fire.
Though one Seraphim Engine had fallen, two remained. Their presence choked the stars, cast endless shadows across Duskfall, and filled the air with a constant hum of looming judgment.
But Duskfall had learned to fight back.
Not just with blades.
But with voices.
With memory.
Underground Transit Ruins - Early Morning
Selene led the infiltration team through the shattered tunnels beneath the old leyline depot.
Beside her, Raan held a resonance pack—a bomb, yes, but one powered by recollection magic, designed to overload the Seraphim's core link.
They reached the shaft beneath Beacon Two.
Raan checked the charge. "This thing's humming like a bard on market day."
Selene smirked. "Then let's give the heavens something to remember."
Sky Above Duskfall
Altharion soared.
Not on wings, but on raw will, wrapped in a cocoon of forged spell-thread. He streaked toward the second Seraphim Engine, dodging rays of annihilation and storms of silence.
The engine reacted to him now. It had learned.
But so had he.
He screamed an ancient word—one that bent light and fate—and hurled a spear of living memory into the engine's shoulder.
It staggered.
Below, the resonance bomb activated.
Seraphim Engine Two - Interior Core
The heart of the machine pulsed like a dying star. A single thread linked it to the Dome's control spire.
That thread snapped.
Memory flooded the system.
Thousands of names.
Forgotten festivals.
First kisses. Lost friends. Cracked teacups and lullabies.
The machine screamed.
Not in pain.
In awareness.
And then it exploded.
Celestial Dome - Control Chamber
Helios felt the rupture before the alarms sounded.
He gripped the command nexus, knuckles white.
"Second Engine down," a magister whispered.
Helios didn't blink. "Redirect all remaining power to Engine Three. Prepare the Final Decree."
The magisters gasped. "That hasn't been activated in over—"
"Do it," Helios barked.
Outside the chamber, black snow began to fall.
Forgehouse - Hall of Names
The names of the fallen were inscribed on floating crystal slates. More were added every hour.
Children read them aloud.
Over and over.
So that none would be lost again.
Selene entered, bruised but smiling. "We did it. The second's gone."
Kael looked up from the ledgers. "The third one's moving. Different pattern. No more surgical strikes."
"What then?"
He turned the scroll.
"Obliteration."
Altharion's Chambers
He sat alone, sharpening a blade he hadn't used in centuries.
Not for war.
But for endings.
Selene entered quietly. "Helios will burn the city to kill you."
"I know."
"We could run."
He looked up, smiling faintly.
"We don't run. We remain."
She stepped forward. "Then let's make this last one count."
He nodded.
"I'll need the Ember Codex. The old one. The one they swore didn't exist."
Her eyes widened. "You're going to rewrite a god."
"No," he said. "I'm going to remind him."
Sky - Duskfall's Final Hour Approaches
The last Seraphim hovered above the city, core glowing red.
Below, every disciple, every child, every elder stood outside, staring up.
No fear.
Only defiance.
And then, from every corner of the city…
They sang.
Together.
In a hundred dialects.
One song. One flame.
The engine paused.
Just for a breath.