The Guardian's maw split wide, a storm of molten fire pouring forth like the wrath of a burning sea. The disciples screamed, scrambling for cover as the plateau cracked beneath the torrent.
Arhaan planted his feet, crimson-gold chains lashing outward to form a barrier. The heat seared through him, blood dripping from his lips, but he held fast.
If I falter here… everyone dies.
Kael stepped into the inferno without hesitation. His aura flared, crimson-black tendrils drinking greedily from the firestorm. To the disciples' eyes, it seemed as though the flames bent to him, shielding him like a chosen son of heaven.
Their voices rose in awe.
"Kael resists the beast's flames!"
"He's… he's the one leading us through!"
---
Collision
The Guardian lunged, claws crashing down like falling mountains.
Arhaan's chains snapped upward, catching the blow with a deafening clash. The impact rattled his bones, his knees nearly buckling, but he held.
At the same instant, Kael struck. His palm thrust forward, a lance of shadow tearing into the beast's obsidian hide, ripping deep where Arhaan's chains had held it still.
The beast roared in fury, molten blood spraying across the plateau.
For a heartbeat, their powers intertwined—chains of light and tendrils of shadow striking as one, their clash of wills etched into the wound carved into the Guardian's chest.
---
Heaven Trembles
The mountain shook as the beast staggered, its molten mane dimming, its thunderous roar echoing like a collapsing sky.
Disciples stared in stunned silence.
"Together… they wounded it!"
"Arhaan and Kael… side by side…"
But neither man looked at the beast.
Arhaan's gaze met Kael's, sweat and blood dripping from his chin. His chains rattled, alive with defiance.
Kael's eyes gleamed crimson, his calm mask unbroken. "How fitting," he murmured, voice low enough only Arhaan could hear. "You struggle with everything you have… only to pave the way for me."
Arhaan tightened his fists. "No. I'll climb to shatter heaven itself—not to be a stepping stone for you."
The Guardian roared again, rearing for another strike, its wounds glowing molten bright.
And as the firestorm rose once more, so too did the storm between the two men destined to clash.