Sparks danced like fireflies around Tobin as he clashed blades with the horned enemy. The temperature spiked, Tobin's sword engulfed in flames that hissed with every strike. The air was thick with heat and tension as the cloaked figure—Zer'Kravul—parried each blow without moving his feet.
But then—
SNAP.
Tobin's blade vanished.
No sound. No shatter. It simply ceased to exist mid-swing.
Tobin staggered back, stunned, staring at his now-empty grip.
"What…?"
Zer'Kravul's grotesque, eye-covered arm twitched once.
Then, in a heartbeat, he lifted it—and unleashed a beam of condensed light and shadow, like a focused scream from the abyss.
BOOM.
The beam punched clean through the mountain, carving a hole the size of a house through solid rock. The air howled, pulled by the vacuum left behind.
The earth trembled beneath Ryle's feet.
And yet, he stepped forward calmly, dust trailing off his coat.
He raised a hand.
"Excuse me, gentleman…"
Zer'Kravul turned to him.
"What are you?"
The man tilted his head, his voice quiet but layered, as if a dozen echoes spoke at once.
"I don't have a name," he said, "but you can call me Zer'Kravul. Last of the Fiend. Chosen by the Demon General of Fiend, to reclaim what is rightfully ours."
His eye-covered arm twitched again. Some of the eyes blinked in rapid succession.
Tobin, still regaining his balance, muttered, "Fiend…? As in the demon race?"
Zer'Kravul nodded. "Yes. The Fiend Race—we were born from the ashes of chaos. Once, we did nothing but fight… not enemies, but each other. Constant battles. Death was our evolution. War was how we learned."
He stared into Ryle's eyes.
"Because we were born with one purpose—to become the best servant to our General. The one who leads us all."
Ryle's brows furrowed. "And who is this 'General' of yours?"
Zer'Kravul's face shifted. A flicker of something—fear? admiration?
"No one knows his name. Not even me. But he's watching."
A crack of thunder rolled across the sky, though no clouds loomed overhead.
Zer'Kravul's stance changed. He flared his monstrous arm outward, all the blinking eyes glaring at the warriors surrounding him.
A low hum filled the air.
Then came the storm.
Dravenith lunged forward, fire crackling through her veins as she roared and sent a wave of molten energy surging toward Zer'Kravul.
Kessia struck from the side, her claws spinning like circular saws.
Thea, with Twinlight flashing, darted forward in bursts of speed, seeking to strike between the eye-blinks.
Tobin had conjured a flaming spear in place of his sword and hurled it with all his might.
But it was futile.
Every strike.
Every movement.
Every spell—
Blocked.
Parried.
Evaded.
Zer'Kravul didn't flinch. His eye-covered arm twitched rhythmically, reacting before the attacks came.
He moved like a dancer with a script memorized in his flesh.
Because he could see everything.
Kessia growled in frustration. "He's not dodging—he's anticipating! Those damn eyes!"
Ryle narrowed his eyes, scanning the fight.
The blinking.
The reactions.
The way Zer'Kravul twitched whenever someone attacked from a bright angle.
Then it clicked.
"Thea!" Ryle shouted. "The eyes—they react to light!"
She hesitated mid-swing. "What!?"
"Use light magic! Shut them all down at once!"
Without hesitating, Thea vaulted backward, raising her hands.
She whispered a spell—Twinlight shimmering—and then—
BOOM!
A pulse of radiant light burst from her, bright enough to blind even the gods.
Zer'Kravul howled. The eyes on his arm snapped shut, flinching violently.
"Kessia—NOW!"
Kessia grinned savagely. "Finally!"
She darted forward in a blur, claws glowing.
With a bloodcurdling screech, she sank her hands into the grotesque arm, raking through the blinking eyes, slicing, tearing, burning with every strike.
Zer'Kravul staggered, blood spraying from the wounds. The ground shook as his concentration wavered.
But even blinded and bleeding—
He retaliated.
A sphere of warped energy gathered in his hand, growing larger.
He snarled, throwing the arm forward.
A beam burst out—crackling, unstable, and far more furious than before.
Aimed straight at Thea.
She was still blinking away the aftermath of her flash.
Eyes wide. Vision blurred.
She couldn't move in time.
Ryle turned.
"THEA!!"
The beam screamed through the air—