The world no longer whispered about Kael. It roared.
From the golden towers of the Celestial Dominion to the blood-soaked halls of the Shadow Guild, every power that had once warred against each other now turned their eyes to a single enemy.
Kael.
Meetings in smoke-filled war rooms and divine sanctuaries carried the same grim tone.
> "He is too powerful."
"He is neither mortal nor god."
"If we do not act, he will unmake us all."
For the first time in centuries, enemies set aside their rivalries. A coalition formed—an alliance of light and shadow, soldiers and assassins, mortals and divine. Their one purpose:
The fall of Kael.
Back at camp, Kael and his companions felt the shift long before the messengers brought word. The air carried tension like a blade against skin. Birds no longer sang. The ground no longer rested.
Lyra's eyes glowed faintly in the dim light as she whispered, "They're moving against us. Armies, assassins, hunters. The whole world wants your head, Kael."
Arion slammed his blades into the ground, sparks flying. "Good. Let them come."
But Selene's voice shook with something deeper than fear—it was sorrow.
"They don't just fear you, Kael. They believe you've already fallen. That you're no longer… you."
Kael stood silent, his back to them, his wings half-shadow, half-light, swaying in the wind. He didn't deny it. He couldn't.
The abyss stirred within, whispering its poisonous comfort.
> "They will betray you. Strike first. Rule before they rise.
For the first time, Kael didn't argue with it.
That night, as his companions tried to rest, Kael walked alone through the camp. His presence made the torches gutter, shadows stretching unnaturally long. He passed Selene, who slept uneasily, her hand clutching her pendant. Lyra's shadows twitched even in dreams. Arion lay with his blades crossed, as though ready to rise at any moment.
Kael looked at them each in turn. His voice was low, almost mournful:
"If it comes to it… will you still stand by me?"
None of them answered.
But the silence cut deeper than any blade.
The fire crackled low, painting long shadows over the camp. Kael sat apart, his wings folded tight, his gaze fixed on the horizon where storm clouds gathered. His companions huddled together near the flames, but their closeness felt more like fear than comfort.
Arion's voice broke the silence. Rough. Bitter.
"We can't keep doing this. Every day the abyss eats at him more. Every day he slips further from who he was."
Lyra's shadows stirred uneasily, reflecting the conflict in her heart. "And what would you have us do? Abandon him? He's the only reason we're alive."
"He's the reason the world wants us dead," Arion snapped, his blades glinting in the firelight.
Selene flinched at his words but said nothing. Her silence was heavier than any accusation.
Later that night, while Kael's eyes burned dimly in restless half-sleep, a figure rose quietly.
Arion.
His hand lingered on his twin blades before moving instead to a sealed scroll, hidden deep in his pack. A contract. A message he had sworn never to use.
But fear had a way of breaking vows.
He whispered under his breath as he unfurled it, words glowing faintly in crimson script. A binding oath to the Shadow Guild. One he had abandoned long ago—until tonight.
> "Kael has grown too strong. If he loses himself fully, none of us will survive. I need allies. Send blades. Send hunters. I'll lead you to him."
The shadows around the parchment rippled, as though listening. The contract drank his words in silence before vanishing into ash.
Arion stood trembling, guilt warring with conviction.
"It's the only way," he muttered, though even he wasn't sure if he believed it.
Unseen in the dark, Lyra's eyes opened. She had felt the shift in the shadows. She had seen him.
But she did not speak. Not yet.
Because in her heart, she wondered if Arion was wrong… or if he was the only one brave enough to do what had to be done.