Caelan's POV
Get down! I shouted, tackling Aria to the floor as another boulder crashed through the temple wall.
Stone and dust exploded everywhere. My ears rang from the impact. Through our bond, I felt Aria's terror mixing with my own rage.
This was supposed to be a siege. A slow attack. We were supposed to have time.
But Marcus knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to destroy the temple and the Heartstone before we could mount any real defense.
Dante! I called out. How many impacts can this building take?
Maybe ten more! Dante shouted back from his position at the window. The outer wall is already crumbling!
We need to do something, Aria's panicked thought crashed through my mind. The Heartstone can't survive this!
She was right. I could hear it through our bond a high-pitched whine that only we could perceive. The Heartstone was screaming as each impact sent shockwaves through the temple.
Elira ran up to us, her face pale. I can try to reinforce the walls with healing magic, but I'm not a combat mage. I don't know if
Another boulder hit. This one smashed through a window, missing Dante by inches.
We can't just sit here and take this! Aria's thought was fierce now, not scared. Determined. We have to fight back!
With what? I demanded. There are two hundred soldiers out there!
With me.
I felt her resolve harden like steel. She stood up, pulling me with her because of the chain, and ran toward the main entrance.
Aria, what are you doing? I shouted.
Something I should have done three years ago, she thought back. I'm done hiding.
She threw open the temple doors and stepped outside.
I had no choice but to follow, the chain pulling me along. Dante and Elira ran after us, weapons drawn.
The army spread out before us. Two hundred soldiers in perfect formation. Siege weapons being loaded. And at the center, two figures I recognized even though I couldn't see them.
Marcus Vale. My former best friend, now Commander of the Royal Guard.
And beside him, a woman whose magical signature I could feel from here Lyra Silvane.
Well, well, Marcus called out, his voice dripping with false warmth. The blind man actually came out to play. I'm impressed.
Lyra laughed, cruel and sharp. And my dear sister brought friends. How touching. Four against two hundred. The odds have never been better.
Aria raised her hands. Magic crackled around her fingers not just the small spells I'd seen her use before. This was different. Bigger. More dangerous.
Through our bond, I felt what she was planning.
Don't, I thought urgently. That much magic will kill you!
Better me than the whole world, she shot back.
She was going to channel everything she had all her power, all her life force into one massive spell. It might take out half the army.
But it would definitely kill her.
No, I said out loud, grabbing her wrist. We do this together, or not at all.
Aria looked at me really looked at me. Through the bond, I felt her surprise. Her confusion. Why would I stop her from saving everyone?
Because you matter, I said simply. Your life matters. And I'm not watching another person I care about destroy themselves.
You... care about me?
Yes, you stubborn, self-sacrificing mage. I care about you.
Something shifted in the air between us. The magical chain connecting our wrists flared bright goldnot the usual silver, but warm and brilliant like sunrise.
The Heartstone responded. Even from inside the temple, I could feel it reacting to us. To our connection.
Marcus must have sensed it too. Now! he screamed. Kill them now before
Aria and I moved as one.
She channeled her magic into me. I channeled my battle awareness into her. The bond between us didn't just connect our minds anymore it connected our power.
I could suddenly see. Not with my eyes, but through Aria's magic. I saw the army through her perception, saw every soldier, every weapon, and every threat.
And Aria could suddenly fight like a warrior. My combat instincts, my training, my muscle memory all of it flowed into her through the bond.
We became something new. Something neither of us could be alone.
We attacked.
Aria's magic exploded from both our hands walls of fire, spears of ice, storms of lightning. I guided every spell with warrior precision, hitting exactly where it would do the most damage.
Soldiers scattered. Siege weapons exploded. The organized army dissolved into chaos.
Marcus screamed orders, trying to regroup his forces. But we were unstoppable.
Dante and Elira fought beside us. Dante's blade sang through the air, cutting down anyone who got close. Elira's healing magic kept us all standing, closing wounds before they could slow us down.
But there were still too many soldiers. And Lyra hadn't made her move yet.
She stood at the back of the army, hands raised, and gathering massive amounts of dark magic. The air around her turned black.
Sister! Lyra's voice rang out. Let's see if you can block this!
She unleashed everything. A wave of pure destruction, dark and terrible, racing toward us.
We can't stop that, Aria thought desperately.
We don't have to stop it, I said. We just have to redirect it.
We raised our joined hands together. Our combined magic formed a shield but not to block the attack. To reflect it.
Lyra's spell hit our shield and bounced back, twice as strong.
Her eyes went wide with shock. She tried to dodge, but she'd put too much power into the attack. There was no escaping it.
The dark magic slammed into Lyra and half her own army. Soldiers went flying. Screams filled the air.
When the dust cleared, Lyra was on the ground, unconscious. Maybe dead.
Marcus stared at his fallen ally, then at us. His face twisted with rage and fear.
Retreat! he screamed. Fall back! Everyone retreat!
The army broke. Soldiers ran in every direction, abandoning their commander, abandoning their mission.
Within minutes, the battlefield was empty except for bodies and broken weapons.
We'd won.
I collapsed to my knees, utterly exhausted. Aria fell beside me, breathing hard. The chain between us pulsed with fading gold light.
We did it, I said in disbelief. We actually did it.
We're alive, Aria thought, equally shocked.
Dante helped us both up, grinning despite his own wounds. That was incredible! I've never seen anything like that combined magic!
Elira was crying happy tears. You saved the temple. You saved the Heartstone.
But as she said it, I felt something wrong through the bond.
The Heartstone wasn't celebrating. It was dying.
Aria and I ran back inside, following the pull of our connection to the stone.
When we reached the chamber, my heart sank.
The battle had taken everything out of it. The cracks had spread across the entire surface. The blue glow was barely visible now, just a flicker.
No, Aria whispered in my mind. We were supposed to save it.
The Oracle appeared beside us, her ancient face grave.
You did save it, she said softly. You gave it a fighting chance. But the damage is too severe. The Heartstone is failing faster than expected.
How long? I demanded.
Hours, the Oracle said. Maybe less. Unless...
Unless what? Aria and I said together.
The Oracle looked at us with sad, knowing eyes. Unless you complete the bond. Fully and permanently. The same way the original creators did.
My blood ran cold. What do you mean?
The Heartstone was made by two lovers who gave everything their magic, their lives, their very souls to seal the void. If you do the same, if you bind yourselves to each other and to the stone completely... She paused. You could save it. Save everything.
But we'd die, Aria thought, understanding immediately.
Not die, the Oracle corrected. Transform. Become part of the Heartstone itself. Living, but not as you are now. Together forever, but no longer human.
The chamber fell silent.
How long do we have to decide? I asked quietly.
The Oracle pointed at the Heartstone. As we watched, another crack split across its surface.
You have until it breaks completely, she said. Which will be very, very soon.
Then she vanished, leaving us alone with the dying stone and an impossible choice.
Die and save the world.
Or live and watch everything burn.