Opening – Return to Ashes
The return journey is heavy.
The strike team, bloodied and battered, arrives at the ruined camp late at night. The once-vibrant site now looks more like a graveyard—scattered remains of their comrades, burned wreckage, and the skeletal remains of their former lives.
Kaelen stands at the edge of the camp, staring into the dying firelight. His eyes are hollow. His mind is still lost in the echo of Zarxes' voice—"When the Flame rises again, it will face itself."
The Awakened gather in silence, eyes heavy with questions.
Seren, too, is lost in thought. Her gaze is distant, not just from the battlefield but from the weight of the decision ahead.
The Tension Builds – A Fractured Leadership
As the group regroups, the Awakened Council convenes in the central ruins. Among them: Taryn, who has become more vocal in his criticisms of Kaelen's leadership; Rhoan, the battle-hardened strategist who trusts Kaelen implicitly; and Calyra, the voice of diplomacy within the group, who stands between the two factions.
Kaelen stands before them, his face grim.
"We found it. The source of the Hounds. Zarxes isn't just creating soldiers—he's trying to recreate the Awakened. Us—but loyal only to him."
A murmur runs through the Council.
Rhoan steps forward, fists clenched.
"That's impossible! No one can replicate the Spark. It's too deep. Too pure."
Kaelen's gaze hardens.
"He's trying. He doesn't care about the purity. He's manipulating the memories—our memories—to make us his soldiers. His puppets."
Taryn sneers.
"And what do you suggest we do now, Kaelen? Go on some doomed crusade to stop him while more of us die?"
Calyra raises her hand, silencing the argument before it escalates.
"Let him finish, Taryn. We need to hear this."
Kaelen nods, then looks to Seren, who stands just behind him, eyes filled with regret.
"We lost people," Kaelen continues, voice low. "I saw it. A whole field of us—discarded. Recycled. Made into things they can control."
Rhoan frowns, stepping closer to the central fire.
"Then we destroy the source. All of it. We go back to the facility, finish what we started."
Kaelen shakes his head.
"It's too late for that. Zarxes is already building an army. He's more advanced than we thought."
A long silence fills the air as the Council looks to one another, uncertainty hanging between them like a storm cloud. Then, Calyra speaks.
"If we're going to stop Zarxes, we need more than just destruction. We need something to counter his creations."
The Political Divide – Loyalty Tested
The argument erupts again, louder this time.
Taryn slams his fist onto a nearby table.
"We don't have time to play with theories! We either fight—now—or we die."
Calyra counters, her voice calm but sharp.
"And if we fight without a plan, we risk losing everything we've fought for. We need more than just rage. We need unity."
Rhoan steps in, trying to mediate.
"Kaelen, you've always been our guide. But now—now we need more than just a leader. We need direction. We need something more than the next fight."
Kaelen's jaw tightens, the weight of leadership bearing down on him. The group is fracturing before his eyes—two sides that can't agree on what the next step should be.
Kaelen looks to Seren, seeking some kind of clarity. She's as torn as he is, her eyes haunted by the memories of what they've seen.
Finally, Kaelen speaks—his voice a razor.
"We either stand together now and find a way to beat Zarxes or we fall apart. I don't care if we fight with rage or with strategy. But if we can't agree—if we can't unify—then we're already lost."
The room goes still.
Then Calyra steps forward, meeting Kaelen's gaze.
"Then we'll work together. We'll find a way to use his methods against him. But if you're wrong, Kaelen… if this path leads us to ruin…"
"Then I'll take the blame," Kaelen replies, his voice unwavering. "But I'll take the first strike, not you."
The Calm Before the Storm – A New Resolve
As the debate fades, a new sense of unity—if fragile—settles over the Awakened. They don't have all the answers. But they have something more vital: resolve.
As the night grows darker, Kaelen stands at the edge of the camp, looking out over the horizon, where the first hint of a new dawn flickers.
"Zarxes wants to see if we'll break," he mutters. "He'll find out soon enough that we're not his."
A figure approaches him—Seren. She stands silently beside him for a moment, before speaking.
"What now?"
Kaelen turns to face her, his eyes hardened.
"Now, we find his weakness."