The darkness slowly receded.
At first, Luca could hear nothing except the violent pounding of his own heartbeat, each beat reverberating through his skull as though his body itself were desperately trying to drag him back into consciousness. Then came the wind, carrying the bitter smell of smoke and blood, followed by the distant roar of explosions that shook the earth beneath him.
His eyes slowly opened.
The battlefield was still there.
It stretched farther than his eyes could comprehend, an endless landscape of destruction beneath a sky drowned in black clouds. Towering pillars of smoke rose from burning fortifications, while distant mountains were partially hidden behind the haze created by countless fires. The ground beneath Luca was soaked with blood, churned into thick mud by the countless feet, hooves, and weapons that had crossed it.
Broken swords protruded from the earth.
Shattered shields lay scattered between bodies.
