CRACK. The sound of reality shattering deafened the night.
High upon the apex of the Whispering Hollow, the Elven King's eyes widened. His face drained of all color. Beside him, the Queen gasped, her voice trembling. "How...?"
The King didn't answer. He knelt beside the mangled remains of the barrier scout and his dying falcon knight. Slowly, the shock in his eyes melted away, replaced by the hardened, burning fire of a sovereign backed into a corner.
"Blow the war horn," the King commanded, his voice a dangerous rumble. "Warriors of Tamaskrit... welcome to hell."
He turned sharply to his wife. "Secure the kids. Stay inside the Whispering Hollow, no matter what! The lunar night has snapped our elemental connection. We fight with steel today."
The Queen nodded once, her expression tight, before striding back inside the colossal tree toward the children's balcony.
"My eyes!" Astraea gasped. She fell backward onto the polished wooden floor, squeezing her eyes shut against the blinding golden flash, clutching her pet Ghosty protectively.
"Stay back!" Kaelen, the eldest brother, barked.
Beside him, Crown Prince Orion drew his blade. The swords, usually humming with vibrant elven magic, were dead and silent.
"Ilyndra, what's happening?" Astraea cried, her eyes teary.
Ilyndra knelt, helping Astraea to her feet. "I don't know," she whispered grimly.
"Get inside!" Kaelen ordered, leaving no room for argument.
"But... but brother—"
"Shut up!" Kaelen spat, his eyes locked on the burning horizon.
The other sisters didn't wait. They pulled the sobbing Astraea inside the safety of the Whispering Hollow and slammed the heavy doors shut. Astraea buried her face in Ilyndra's dress. "What's happening?" she sobbed.
And then, they heard it.
The ancient war horn of the Elves bellowed from the apex, its deep, mournful vibration rattling the dust from the ceiling.
Moments Prior, at the Edge of the Great Barrier...
The biting wind fluttered through Eris's hair. She stood at the precipice of the broken wall, staring down at Cael's lifeless body with a completely detached expression.
Beneath her boots lay the glowing dust of the shattered mana core.
She lifted her gaze to the horizon, watching the nightmare of Tamaskrit approach: cavalry, siege machines, catapults, and dark gliders blotting out the stars.
Directly below her, six Tamaskrit Princes were casually wiping elven blood from their armor. Vane looked up, caught her eye, and offered a playful wink and a wave.
Slowly, Eris waved back.
She knew exactly what she had just done. She had destroyed her family and doomed her kingdom. Yet... there was no regret in her eyes. At least, not yet.
"Finally... I am free," she whispered to the wind.
Suddenly, an intense gaze pierced through her, sending violent tremors down her spine. She looked further down the wall.
It was Aurelius.
The Vile Prince stood over Cael's corpse, looking up at Eris through the dark visor of his helmet. A chilling golden glow radiated from the metal slits.
Without breaking eye contact, Aurelius dropped to one knee. He unfastened his dark metal gauntlet. With surprising gentleness, he reached out and closed Cael's lifeless eyes.
"Your love was absolute," Aurelius muttered into the wind. "A pity she was unworthy of it. Sleep now, unbroken."
The rushing wind snatched the words away before Eris could hear them.
Spreading her glider, Eris leapt from the wall, landing softly in front of the six brothers. She bowed flawlessly. "Welcome to Athervale. I hope my little gift makes your conquest entertaining."
The brothers nodded, exchanging amused, arrogant words as she continued her subtle flatteries.
Behind them, Aurelius remained kneeling. His hands curled into tight, trembling fists—a rare surge of emotion. But by the time he stood, his composure was a flawless sheet of ice.
The Tamaskrit army finally reached the perimeter. Catapults fired massive iron hooks into the stone of the Great Barrier.
The Earth Prince stepped forward, slamming his palms into the ground. The earth groaned and violently shifted upward, forming colossal, grinding ramps of soil and rock for the invasion force.
Eris slowly approached Aurelius. The oppressive aura of death clinging to him made her voice shake. She dropped to one knee behind him.
"I pledge my loyalty to the Crown," she said.
Silence stretched between them. Then, a low, rattling chuckle echoed from within the dark helmet. It was so cold it caused the other six brothers to instantly tense.
"Loyalty?" Aurelius said, looking down at her. "From a woman who betrayed her husband and her kingdom?" He shook his head. "I am not a fool."
Eris froze. "But... but I did this because I wanted freedom."
"Freedom, you say?" Aurelius towered over her. "Do you even know what freedom is?"
Before she could answer, the booming screech of the Elven war horn echoed from the distant Whispering Hollow.
Aurelius turned his back and walked away.
"Wait!" Eris scrambled to her feet, running to catch him. "Tell me... what is freedom?"
Aurelius paused at the base of the ramp. He didn't look back.
"A myth."
Within seconds, he had scaled the massive wall, disappearing into the smoke.
Eris stood paralyzed. She snapped out of her daze only when Vane casually placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't mind him," Vane smirked. "He's different sometimes."
Vane leaped onto the stone ramp, summoning a massive wind current that blasted through a Tamaskrit horn, unleashing a screeching metallic roar.
The vanguard surged forward. It was an absolute massacre.
Cavalry and foot soldiers lunged over the walls, crushing ancient shrines beneath iron boots. The beautiful canopies of Athervale were set ablaze by fire arrows, guided by Vane's violent winds.
The Flame and Electricity Princes incinerated the elven defensive lines, pushing the survivors back to the massive roots of the Whispering Hollow.
But there, the Tamaskrit forces hit a wall.
The ground beneath the invaders suddenly ruptured. Colossal, violent roots as thick as siege towers breached the earth.
The agonizing shrieks of Tamaskrit soldiers pierced the smoke as the roots coiled around them, dragging them violently down into the crushing dark.
One massive root whipped around the ankle of the Electricity Prince. He snarled, static sparking wildly, but a blistering arc of fire severed the root entirely.
The Flame Prince landed beside him, his sword dripping with molten sap.
"For God's sake," the Electricity Prince cursed, raising his hands as the sky crackled.
Far away from the screaming, Eris sat on the cold stone edge of the Great Barrier.
She looked out over the burning expanse of Athervale, her face a mask of detachment.
"The view seems painfully beautiful... isn't it, darli—"
Eris paused. She looked to her right. It was just empty space. The spot where Cael had always stood was just cold stone.
For the very first time, a strange, suffocating weight pressed against her chest. Was it guilt? Remorse? She violently shook her head, trying to dislodge Aurelius's parting words.
A myth.
"It's not a myth. You are free," she whispered to the ash-falling wind.
The words felt incredibly hollow. The absolute silence beside her was louder than the war raging in the distance.
Slowly, she raised a trembling hand and struck the side of her own head.
"Okay... I made a mistake," she admitted to the empty air, her voice cracking. She pulled her knees to her chest, the horrific reality of the burning world reflecting in her eyes. "But everyone makes mistakes. It won't really make me..."
Unforgivable.