Dust settled. Flux crackled. The crater's edge smoked.
Drenn stood dead center, Blastcore afterglow fading from his veins—orange pulses dimming like cooling lava. Flux at 60% reserve. No injuries. Perfect landing. His eyes locked on Elior, 20 meters out, Hearth aura flickering around the Verdant leader like a strained bonfire.
"Come on, healer," Drenn spat, cracking knuckles. "Show me that paradise touch."
Elior shoved Mira behind him, Hearth flaring full—golden warmth radiating, steadying his stance, mending micro-fractures from the blast. "You bomb fields. Kill farmers. This isn't war—it's butchery."
Drenn laughed. Charge-up initiated. Chest glows bright—3-second window. "Butchery wins."
Fight start.
Elior moves first—smart play. He's not a brawler; Hearth's a support Brand, mid-range sustain (10m radius max). Charges forward, palm extended—Morale Surge hits Drenn like heatwave. Enemy aggression dips 20%, hesitation creeps in. Drenn's Blastcore charge stutters half-second—Flux turbulence from foreign reinforcement.
"Tch—feels like warm mud." Drenn powers through, self-shield hardening skin. Detonation: 8m radius. Launches at 2m range—BOOM. Concussive sphere erupts, air igniting white-hot. Elior dives, Hearth aura tanking 60% force—burns his arms raw, but morale holds, no stagger. Ground craters deeper, Mira shielded by Thread-bound allies yanked clear.
Elior's counter: Contact essential. Closes gap weaving debris, Hearth self-boost pumping endurance. Touches Drenn's arm on the slide—direct contact amp. Drenn's muscles tense involuntarily (+15% density), but Blastcore rejects it mid-charge. Overload backlash: Drenn coughs blood—foreign Flux clashes, his veins bulge orange-red.
"Support crap won't save you!" Drenn roars, max charge detonation. Grapples Elior point-blank—1.5m sphere, shrapnel mode. Explosion personal: shreds clothes, scorches flesh. Elior's Hearth flares desperate—injury reversal loop, pulling damage into Flux buffer. Survives charred but standing, morale unbroken. Weakness exposed: Drenn's 3-sec glow telegraphs everything—if Elior had range, he'd kite forever.
Mid-fight analysis: Drenn dominates burst (90% kill confirm vs squishies), but Elior's sustain warps the math. Hearth heals 2x faster under morale high, turning 1v1 into endurance match. Drenn's Flux dipping to 35%—overuse risk rising (internal rupture at 0%).
Drenn adapts—smart killer. Feints low blast, baits Elior in. Self-shield up. Elior commits—dual-palm Hearth burst, flooding Drenn with reinforcement. Drenn tanks it grinning: "Gotcha!" Point-blank overload. No charge-up—raw Flux dump, spherical pulse shreds Elior's aura, hurls him 15m into dirt. Ribs crack. Hearth flickers dim—Flux critical, morale cracking first time.
Mira screams, Thread snapping to pull Elior back. Reach reinforcements swarm—low-tier Brands (Vinebind, Dustveil) buying time.
Drenn pursues, chest glowing again. "One more—lights out." But Elior rises, bloodied, Hearth reigniting faint. Ultimate play: Touches ground—terrain amp. Soil hardens underfoot, morale surges allies 50m out. Reach line holds.
Drenn halts. Flux at 20%. Backlash tremors in arms—veins leaking smoke. "Not today, preacher." Airship recall signal flares. He vaults skyward, final micro-blast covering retreat—shockwave scatters pursuers.
Elior collapses to knee, Mira stabilizing. "He'll be back."
From the watchtower, Joren's Echo replays every pulse: Drenn's predictable glow. Elior's clutch sustain. War's new rule—Brands don't win alone. Matchups do.
Shattered Sky ain't over.