The first light of dawn did not come golden but gray, heavy with smoke. Solaris smoldered beneath it, streets cracked and blackened, the air thick with ash. Every breath stung, carrying the metallic tang of blood and the stench of charred flesh. Lanterns flickered dimly, some buried under rubble, others raised stubbornly by soot-covered hands. From somewhere distant, bells tolled a broken rhythm.
Andy moved through the ruins with blades heavy at his sides. His armor was scarred, the plates warped and burned. His wings flickered like fading embers, each beat sending sparks that died too quickly. Nia walked beside him, her staff held tight. Her robes clung with soot, sweat streaked her temple, but her eyes remained clear—steady, resolute. Survivors stopped to look at them, their gazes filled with equal parts awe and despair.
[Quest Update: Protect Solaris Until Dawn — Complete]
[Public Sentiment: Stabilized]
[Bond Level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆☆ | 50%]
The words rang hollow in Andy's mind. Quest complete? The streets still screamed. Mothers wept over covered shapes. Children cried for fathers that would not return. Soldiers sat slumped against walls, armor blackened, their eyes empty.
The ground shuddered. From the heaps of ash and molten stone, black tendrils coiled upward. Fiends crawled out, their bodies dripping like tar, mouths filled with teeth of burning glass. Their screeches tore across the plaza, and panic rose again.
The Free Army staggered into position, shields warped, spears bent. Civilians scrambled, clutching lanterns against their chests.
Andy gritted his teeth. His hand went to the Phoenix Feather Fragment, pulsing violently at his belt.
[Item Activated: Phoenix Feather Fragment]
[Skill Prototype: Blazing Resonance]
[Status: Unstable]
[Warning: Mana Drain Severe]
Fire burst along his blades—white-red, alive with phoenix fury. He swung once, and the world melted. Fiends screamed and dissolved in seconds, the street hissing molten.
But the flames leapt further. They climbed walls, rushed too close to wounded soldiers. Shouts erupted. Fear, not relief.
Andy's stomach clenched. No—!
"Andy!" Nia's cry broke through the chaos. Her staff struck the stone, sigils of light spreading like roots. Wards snapped up, bending the wild fire, caging it. The backlash slammed into her chest, knocking her down. She coughed blood, but rose again, forcing the inferno skyward.
Andy's hands shook. "I can't control it—"
"You will," Nia said, her voice iron despite the tremor. "Because I'm here."
He looked at her, saw light burning from her eyes, unwavering. Together, they forced the flames into focus. Fire folded into light, reshaped into a clean arc that swept the fiends away without touching a single civilian. When silence fell again, soldiers stared at him—not only with awe, but with fear.
Later, in the cracked hall that served as command, nobles argued among broken pillars. Some hailed Andy and Nia as saviors. Others spat accusations. "The beast came for them. Without them, Solaris would not burn!"
The words stung. Andy felt his fists tighten at his sides.
Captain Elra slammed her spear down. Sparks burst. Her voice rang over the din. "Without them, Solaris would be nothing but ash. They stood. They fought. You live because of them."
The Free Army roared agreement, spears lifted, voices raw but united. The nobles faltered, their alliance split down the middle.
[Influence Level: Growing]
[Faction Split: Nobles 47% Loyal | 38% Opposed | 15% Neutral]
Andy stood among them, every gaze pulling at him, heavier than any blow Ashens had dealt. To fight a god was one burden. To hold together a city in ruin was another.
When night fell, Andy sat on the broken edge of the plaza, blades across his knees. The glow of lanterns flickered faintly through the smoke. The feather fragment pulsed by his side. He stared at it, guilt gnawing his chest. If I had been stronger, faster… how many more would still live?
Nia's steps were quiet. She lowered herself beside him, her hand brushing his without words. She let her light mingle with the dim embers in his blades, sitting in silence until his shoulders loosened.
"You try to carry it all," she whispered. "But you don't have to. Not when I'm here."
His voice cracked. "I almost burned them, Nia. Our own men—"
"You didn't." She slid her fingers fully into his, firm and unyielding. "Because you trusted me. Because we stand together. That's our bond. Not just power. Us."
He turned, forehead pressing to hers, the faintest smile breaking through. "Then let's keep standing. No matter what comes."
[Bond Level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆☆ | 55%]
[Emotional Anchor Strengthened]
Later, in a chamber lit by lanterns, she tended his wounds. Steam rose from the basin, cloth gentle against burns that still throbbed. The Phoenix Feather Fragment pulsed nearby, its heat tempered by her presence.
[Phoenix Feather Fragment Integration: 15%]
[New Skill Unlocked: Blazing Resonance (Unstable)]
They stood together on a rooftop, Solaris sprawled in ruin yet still alive. Lanterns glimmered in every home, faint but defiant. Ashens' shadow lingered at the horizon, wings faint but undeniable.
"This was only the first night," Nia murmured.
Andy's grip on his blades tightened. "Then we'll be ready for the next."
[Quest Complete: Protect Solaris Until Dawn]
[New Quest Generated: Defend Solaris — The Battle for Tomorrow]
The System faded. The lanterns themselves whispered now, their flames rustling in the breeze. Solaris had survived, scarred but unbroken.
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