The duel between Kaelen and Aelis shook the foundations of Mount Vareth. Brother against sister. Steel against flame.
Kaelen's blade, Virelion, flared with cold white light each time it clashed against her fire. She moved like lightning, striking with magic and fury. He fought with precision, with pain in his heart, and with every memory of the girl she used to be.
The Cindermind roared behind her, a god-shaped inferno awakening.
"You don't understand!" Aelis shouted. "This world is broken! The kings are corrupt, the gods are gone! But the fire... the fire is pure!"
Kaelen ducked a flaming arc and drove his blade into the stone beneath her feet, sending up a shield of rock. "Purity without mercy is just destruction!"
Aelis hesitated.
That moment cost her.
Kaelen swept forward and struck the Crown from her brow. The circlet fell to the stone and shattered—releasing a shockwave that tore through the mountain.
Aelis collapsed, and the Cindermind let out a scream that shook the heavens.
Kaelen caught her before she hit the ground.
The fire went out.
The mountain grew silent.