Tark Island trembled beneath the weight of shadow.
Broken siege engines smoldered across the shore, their twisted frames half-swallowed by flame and mist. The lagoon hissed violently as dark beasts crawled from its depths, claws scraping stone, eyes burning with hunger. The Resistance fought with everything they had—but Koroba moved through them like a living storm, his cursed blade splitting shields and hope alike.
Adaeze lunged first, blade flashing with desperate precision.
Koroba met her without mercy.
His strike tore across her side, shadowed steel biting deep. She cried out as she was hurled into the dust, blood blooming across her cloak, breath ragged and uneven.
"Fall back!" someone shouted—but it was already too late.
Imade charged next, iron rod raised high. Sparks exploded as iron clashed against shadow, the impact ringing across the battlefield. For a heartbeat, she held him back.
Then Koroba struck.
The blow was brutal. Imade was flung aside, her rod skidding across the ground. Pain ripped through her as she tried—and failed—to rise.
Koroba loomed over her, eyes blazing with obsession.
"Prophecy belong to me!" he roared. "Tonight, I go tear dawn and dusk from this world!"
His blade pulsed violently, shadows crawling up his arm as he raised it for the killing blow.
A body slammed into him.
Nkem.
Bloodied. Broken. But unyielding.
He threw himself between Koroba and Imade, taking the full force of the cursed blade. Shadowed steel pierced his chest. Darkness hissed and writhed as it consumed him.
Nkem collapsed to his knees.
Yet his voice—though weak—rang clear.
"I burn villages for you before," he said, breath shallow. "I betray balance. But tonight… I die for her. I die for choice."
Imade's scream tore from her throat. She reached for him as tears blurred her vision.
"Nkem… why?"
He smiled faintly, blood staining his lips.
"Because shadow no fit hold me again," he whispered. "Balance don call me home."
His body fell forward, shielding Imade as life left him.
Koroba sneered.
"Fool. Sacrifice no go stop me. Shadow Pathway still dey open!"
He raised his blade again.
Then—
The earth shook.
Flames erupted. Waves surged violently across the lagoon.
Kafé and Taye stepped forward together, their marks blazing, pulsing in perfect rhythm. No words were needed. They nodded once—brother to brother.
"You no go touch her again!" Kafé thundered.
Taye's flames roared to life, wrapping around Kafé's crashing waves. Dawn and dusk collided—not in opposition, but unity.
Fire and water surged as one.
The force slammed into Koroba, tearing through mist and shadow. His blade shrieked as darkness recoiled, the whispers rising in panic.
Still, the shadow fought back. More beasts surged forward. The Resistance faltered.
The twins pushed harder.
Flames burned hotter. Waves struck heavier. The lagoon itself convulsed beneath their power. Their marks burned painfully, bodies shaking as strength drained away.
Still, they refused to stop.
At last, the shadow beasts dissolved into mist. Koroba's soldiers scattered, fleeing in terror. The cursed blade screamed.
"Retreat… retreat… vessel breaking…"
With a final, furious roar, Koroba staggered backward and vanished into the mist.
The siege was broken.
The twins collapsed to their knees, gasping, their marks dim and flickering.
Silence fell over Tark Island.
Smoke drifted across the lagoon, mingling with steam where fire had kissed tide. The ancient serpent murals glowed faintly once more, cracks spidering across their stone faces.
Imade knelt beside Nkem's body, her hands trembling as tears streamed down her face.
"You save me," she whispered. "You save all of us."
Adaeze pressed a hand to her wound, guilt heavy in her eyes.
"His death no go waste. We go honor that sacrifice."
Seyi stepped forward, blade shaking—but his voice held.
"I dey afraid," he admitted. "But I go still fight. Nkem don show us say choice strong pass shadow."
The twins lay weak, breaths shallow.
"We push too far," Kafé murmured.
"But we force shadow back," Taye replied faintly. "This victory dey heavy… but the cost heavy pass."
Zoba lifted her pendant. Its glow was dim, trembling.
"Balance dey fragile," she whispered. "Power dey sweet—but the price go dey bitter. Koroba go soon feel am."
The elder raised his staff, voice shaking but resolute.
"Hidden verse don clear. When shadow begin eat its vessel… dawn and dusk must hold tighter."
The lagoon darkened unnaturally, waters reflecting warped faces. The serpent murals trembled violently, cracks splitting their twin heads as fractured light spilled across the cavern.
Then came the roar—ancient, beastly, unnatural—rising from beneath the lagoon.
Above it all, Orunmare's laughter drifted through the air, cold and triumphant.
This was no longer just a battle.
Prophecy itself was breaking.