Naval's laughter was ragged, torn through broken ribs, but it rang with pride. "Hah… Look at 'em. The Tower's not theirs anymore. It's every climber's. Every damned step they tried to erase is back to spit in their crowns' faces."
Roman leaned forward, sweat and blood pouring off him, but his grin was feral. "Good. Then Leon's not alone at the top. He's got an army of echoes—an army they can't unwrite."
The heavens convulsed. The procession of crowns shivered as though struck by an unseen hand, their angles folding and unfolding in frantic rhythms. Their unified decree faltered. What had been ONLY THRONE now echoed with discordant undertones—cracks of defiance carried on the embers below.
Milim spread her arms wide, violet fire spilling from her skin like molten chaos. Her eyes shone with manic glee. "YES! Do you hear them?! A billion flames, a billion screams, and not one bends! HAHAHA! Burn it all, Leon—make the whole sky bleed fire!"
