Book 1 Throne of ash : Rise of the demonborn
Chapter 28 – The Signal of Shadows
The battlefield outside Theronox was drowned in war cries, steel clashes, and divine chants. The sky above had darkened—not with clouds, but with the pressure of too many sacred relics humming in unison. The 24 heroes stood in a half-circle before the ruined gates, behind them a sea of soldiers and priests.
Kael stepped through the broken archway, wings half-unfurled, his pale eyes dull but sharp. His aura—what little remained—still made even the bravest flinch.
"Kael the Vile!" cried the High Priest. "Your end is written. This time, you will not escape the light."
Kael said nothing.
He raised a single hand.
The ground split.
Chains of light shot from the priests and wrapped around his arms and chest. Holy blades sliced across the air. The Fire Hero led the assault, arrows tipped with blessed flame. Kael deflected, countered, and weaved. Each step he took cracked the stone. Each spell tore sky from earth.
He fought—not with rage, but precision.
But he was outnumbered. And weakened.
As the final artifact—a seal shaped like an hourglass—descended, Kael let it strike. Light engulfed him.
But not before he whispered one last spell…
A column of black and red fire burst into the sky, splitting clouds like glass.
Miles away, on a cliff overlooking Theronox, Maraith's eyes widened.
"The signal…"
She activated the rune.
Darkness from the forest, the city, the soil itself was sucked into the rune like a vortex. Even the light dimmed. Soldiers froze. Heroes staggered.
Kael's presence… vanished.
Gone.
Completely.
Maraith felt it—and turned.
Tears ran down her cheek, but she ran. As ordered.
She disappeared into the forest's edge, whispering, "Master… it's done."
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