The River of Red stretched before us,
its waters glowing faintly in the dying light-
a silent witness to centuries of secrets, blood, and betrayal.
I remembered it as a river of spring once,
its waters pure and calm, reflecting the sky and laughter of long-forgotten days.
Now it mirrored the crimson stain of the past-
the pain, the loss, the scars left by fathers, teachers, and brothers.
Lucian stood across from me,
blade in hand, eyes like obsidian burning with memories I wished I could forget.
Every movement, every stance, every swing-it was a mirror of my own training,
yet sharper, colder, forged in years I had never shared.
"I... you?" My voice trembled.
"Brother... how? Why... what-"
He didn't answer.
A swing of his sword split the air.
Steel screamed. Sparks flew.
Time slowed.
I parried, blocked, struck.
Every motion was fire, every breath a memory.
The first mission. Me. Merlik. Melken.
The Academy. The betrayal. The teacher who had tried to kill her-Elara.
And Lucian... who had struck him down with deadly precision,
revealing to me the shadow of what he had always been capable of.
"Answers," he growled between strikes,
"are given in blood... and the sword... and the river remembers."
The fight tore through the village, through the trees,
through echoes of the past that screamed louder than any battle cry.
He was precise.
Every stance I thought I hid... he exploited.
Every flaw I never revealed... he knew.
My heart pounded, rage igniting in every muscle.
Years of pain, loss, and unanswered questions funneled into my strikes.
I attacked with everything I had, every blow an accusation,
every parry a demand for truth.
Lucian's eyes narrowed.
"Your father... was weak," he spat.
"He knew... yet chose silence. You suffered because he could not act. Because he was... a coward."
I lunged, met his blade, sparks flying with every collision.
"Stop blaming him! Stop blaming anyone!" I shouted.
But he only smiled faintly, eyes reflecting the river's red glow.
The River of Red flowed at our feet, carrying the weight of history.
And as we clashed again, swords ringing against each other like thunder,
I realized this was no ordinary fight.
This was blood.
This was legacy.
This was the truth carved into steel.
Lucian paused.
Blade leveled at my chest.
Breathing hard. Eyes burning.
"Everything... happened because of her," he said.
"And now... it ends."
I raised my sword.
He raised his.
Two brothers.
Two swords.
And centuries of secrets waiting to spill.