The courtyard lay in ruin. Broken marble, burning banners, and soldiers' bodies littered the ground. At its center stood the abomination—towering, cloaked in living shadow, its armor pulsing with black flame.
The Shade Champion's hollow eyes locked on Rihan.
"Vessel of Eclipse… kneel."
Its voice was not a voice, but a thousand whispers worming into his skull. Rihan staggered, clutching his head as the Eclipse Flame inside him roared.
"Yes… serve him. He is power. He is eternity. Submit."
For a heartbeat, his knees buckled. But Elira's blade slashed across the Champion's arm, forcing its attention away. Sparks of shadow sprayed into the night.
"Stand, Rihan!" she shouted. "You're not his slave. You're mine—our ally, our fighter! Snap out of it!"
Her voice was an anchor. Rihan forced himself upright, gripping his sword.
"No… I'll never serve Draemir."
The Flame answered with a furious surge. His blade erupted in blue-black fire, shaking the courtyard.
---
⚔️ Clash of Flame and Shadow
The Champion moved first—faster than Rihan expected. Its claw descended, leaving a trail of black fire. Rihan blocked with his blade, but the impact sent shockwaves through the ground, hurling him backward.
Elira darted in, her sword glowing with runes, slashing across the Champion's chest. The cut smoked, but instead of bleeding, shadow poured out and sealed again.
"It's regenerating!" she cursed.
Rihan skidded back onto his feet, fire spiraling around him. "Then we don't give it time."
He charged. Their blades met in an explosion of fire and darkness, each strike tearing chunks of stone from the courtyard. The Flame screamed in his mind, wanting more, demanding to consume everything.
"Let me loose. Stop holding back. Burn the city, and he will fall."
"No!" Rihan roared, forcing the power into his sword, not outward. For once, the fire obeyed.
The Champion hissed, staggering under the blow. Its armor cracked, shadow leaking like smoke.
---
🌓 Elira's Bond
But the Shade retaliated. It unleashed a wave of shadow spikes, spearing the ground in every direction. One pierced through a soldier's chest; another grazed Rihan's arm, burning with cold fire.
Elira shielded him, her runes flaring, deflecting a barrage.
"Rihan, listen! Don't fight the Flame—guide it. Shape it like I shape my runes. Will it, don't deny it!"
Her words cut deeper than the enemy's claws. For too long, he had resisted the Flame like an enemy. What if… he treated it as a weapon instead?
He closed his eyes for a breath, feeling the fire swirl. It screamed, it hungered—but it also responded. Like a storm waiting for a captain.
When he opened his eyes, his blade burned sharper, steadier. The fire no longer lashed wildly—it wrapped around him like armor.
---
🌑 Turning Point
The Shade Champion snarled and lunged, its claw tearing toward Elira. Rihan stepped between them, intercepting the strike. His sword cut through the claw with a burst of Eclipse fire, scattering the shadow into ash.
Elira's eyes widened. "You… you're controlling it."
"Not fully," Rihan panted. "But enough."
They moved as one. Elira's precise strikes carved runes into the Champion's armor, slowing its regeneration. Rihan's flames burned through the gaps, devouring the shadow inside. Each hit was heavier, faster, more desperate.
But the Champion wasn't finished. It drove its fist into the ground, summoning a vortex of darkness that swallowed half the courtyard. Screams echoed as soldiers were dragged into the void.
The vortex surged toward Rihan.
---
🔥 Eclipse Break
He could feel it pulling him under. The Flame screamed inside him, not in rage but in harmony. For the first time, it wasn't resisting—it was offering.
He raised his sword, fire blazing brighter than ever.
"Eclipse Break!" he shouted, swinging downward.
A crescent wave of black-blue fire split the courtyard, colliding with the vortex. The shadows shrieked, dissolving in a storm of sparks. The Champion staggered, half its form ripped apart.
But the attack left Rihan gasping, trembling. His body wasn't ready for that much power.
The Champion steadied itself, shadow reforming around its core. It hissed in rage, raising its remaining claw.
"You cannot resist forever. You will fall to the Master."
Rihan dropped to one knee, chest burning. His sword flickered.
---
🌒 Elira's Stand
Before the Champion could strike, Elira leapt forward. Her runes flared brighter than ever, her blade glowing white-hot. She carved a sigil midair, slamming her sword through the Champion's chest.
For a moment, the world went silent. Then the Champion howled, its form cracking, shadow spilling in streams.
Elira landed beside Rihan, panting.
"It's not dead," she said grimly. "We hurt it—but it's retreating."
True enough, the Champion dissolved into a whirl of shadows, its voice echoing as it vanished into the night.
"The Vessel awakens… soon, you will beg for release."
And then it was gone.
---
🌌 Aftermath
The courtyard was a graveyard. Soldiers lay dead, flames smoldered across the walls, and the nobles who had gathered watched in stunned silence.
But their eyes were not on the cultists' destruction. They were on Rihan. On the fire still burning faintly across his body.
Whispers rose.
"He's too dangerous…"
"He'll burn us all…"
"Maybe Varus was right…"
Rihan clenched his fists, heart sinking. Even in victory, he felt chains tightening around him.
Elira placed a hand on his shoulder, grounding him. "Don't listen. You fought for them. I saw it. I believe in you."
For a moment, her words were the only thing holding him up.
But in the shadows beyond the ruined courtyard, unseen eyes were watching. The Shade Champion had failed, but its report would reach Draemir.
And Draemir… was waiting.