The dawn was not kind. Smoke rose from the city's outskirts, a grim curtain across the horizon. Adrian stood on the highest balcony of the ruined palace, his stormlight flickering faintly, reflecting off shattered walls. Below, his new army gathered, small but determined, their faces marked by both hope and fear.
Selene moved beside him, shadows writhing lightly along her arms. Her gaze swept over the troops. "They're brave, but inexperienced. Kaelith's lieutenants will not hesitate to strike first. We cannot afford mistakes."
Adrian's fists clenched. "Then we teach them to strike like lightning. Every move must be precise, every step planned. We strike before Kaelith can consolidate his forces."
The first report came by messenger—scouts who had slipped through the outskirts under cover of night. Kaelith's agents were moving, assembling in the abandoned fortress at the northern ridge. Adrian traced their path on the map, lightning flaring faintly around his hands.
"We move at nightfall," he said. "We hit them before they even know we're coming. Selene… shadows and reconnaissance. I need eyes everywhere."
Selene nodded. Her shadow-hounds slithered along the walls, forming tendrils of darkness that extended into every alley and street, feeding her vision. "I will see everything. Every approach, every hidden blade."
---
Night fell. The army moved like a single pulse through the city's ruins, silent and disciplined. Lanterns glowed dimly, reflections dancing across broken cobblestones. Adrian walked at the front, lightning barely flickering, a warning and promise to all who would dare attack.
The northern ridge loomed, jagged and imposing. Smoke from Kaelith's camp rose in thin spirals, but no fires blazed—he was patient. He had chosen the high ground, the advantage of observation, and likely traps that would punish every misstep.
Selene's shadows scouted ahead. She returned with whispers carried on the wind. "Traps, ambushes… and the lieutenant guarding the ridge is stronger than any soldier in the city. They call him Malrik, the Iron Fist. He commands a squad of berserkers loyal only to Kaelith."
Adrian's jaw clenched. "Then we take him first. Shadows and lightning together. We remove the threat before the main force sees us."
The army split silently, moving in precision as Adrian and Selene led the vanguard. Shadows slipped through cracks, over walls, while Adrian's stormlight illuminated their path just enough to avoid missteps.
---
The first clash was sudden. Malrik's berserkers descended from a hidden ridge, weapons raised. A roar echoed, steel striking steel. Shadows met iron as Selene's tendrils twisted around legs and arms, yanking soldiers off balance. Adrian moved like living lightning, blade cutting through steel and bone, arcs of electricity ripping through armor.
The army behind them pressed forward, following the vanguard's lead. It was chaos contained, every soldier's movement coordinated, but the fight was brutal. Malrik proved formidable, his strength enhanced by Kaelith's dark blessings. Lightning met iron with sparks flying, shadow striking muscle, but he was relentless.
Adrian realized something dangerous—Malrik's power was drawn from the same prophecy Kaelith had mentioned. Adrian's bloodline gave him strength, but Malrik's augmentation made him unpredictable. One wrong strike could mean death.
Selene's shadows hissed, twisting around Adrian mid-battle. "Use me. Focus your stormlight through my shadows. Amplify it. You can break him."
Adrian nodded, channeling the lightning through the abyssal threads. A massive strike tore through Malrik's defenses, throwing him backward into the rocky ground. The berserkers faltered, and the army surged forward, crushing the remaining opposition.
---
But victory was short-lived. From the ridge, a crimson glow erupted. Kaelith appeared, not in the heart of battle, but above it, crimson fire licking his form like a demon risen from the ruins. His gaze swept the battlefield. "Adrian… you move like a child playing with fire. Do you believe you can contain the storm you barely understand?"
Adrian raised his blade. Lightning pulsed around him, his body trembling but unbroken. "I don't need to contain it. I need to use it. And I will stop you, Kaelith, before the empire falls entirely."
Kaelith laughed, the sound rolling like thunder through the valley. "Then let the storm begin."
Flames erupted along the ridge, molten and cruel. Kaelith's lieutenants emerged—shadow-imbued warriors, creatures of fire and darkness that had never been seen before. They descended on the army with precision, and chaos consumed the battlefield again.
Selene's shadows twisted and struck, protecting soldiers as Adrian moved like a hurricane. Lightning met shadow, storm met fire, as the battle escalated beyond any comprehension. Every step they took was measured, but Kaelith's forces pressed relentlessly.
---
The night dragged on, the battle stretching endlessly. Selene and Adrian fought side by side, their powers combining in a way that neither fully understood but instinctively trusted. Every strike of lightning through shadow felled enemies, but for each one defeated, two more seemed to rise.
Adrian's vision blurred with exhaustion. His stormlight faltered, his body screamed, but he could not stop. Selene's whispers in his mind guided him, her shadows reinforcing his strikes, binding enemies long enough for him to cut through them.
Then Kaelith descended. He landed among them like a god of fire and death, blade sweeping through soldiers, leaving arcs of crimson flame and smoke in his wake. Every attack carried the weight of his power, and yet Adrian and Selene met him head-on, shadows and lightning entwined in a desperate dance.