The roar rattled the air, a deep, bone-grinding sound that made the ground tremble beneath their feet.
Somewhere among the shattered towers, heavy footfalls drew closer, accompanied by the clink of chains dragging over stone.
"Move," Serenya ordered, already pulling back her cloak to reveal the full length of her curved blade. Red light pulsed faintly along its edge.
They darted between broken walls, keeping low, but the thudding steps closed the distance fast. The Hunter wasn't just tracking them — it was herding them, driving them deeper into the ruins.
Elara risked a glance back. That's when she saw it.
The Hunter was not entirely human.
Its body was tall, nearly twice the height of a man, wrapped in armor blackened by fire and warped into unnatural shapes. Its helm was fused to its skull, a twisted mask of scorched steel, and from its back sprouted jagged, bone-like protrusions. In its right hand it carried a chain ending in a cruel, spiked hook; in its left, a sword so wide it looked like a slab of iron.
The worst part was its eyes. Two burning coals, locked directly on her.
It moved faster than something that size should have been able to, leaping over debris and swinging the chain. The hook tore through the air, smashing into a wall just behind Elara and shattering it into dust.
Kastor yanked her aside just as the chain whipped back. "Keep moving!"
Serenya didn't run. She stepped forward, blade raised. "Hold it still," she called.
Kastor snarled, "Are you mad?"
"Do it!"
He darted left, drawing the Hunter's attention, while Elara moved to the right. Serenya advanced from the center. The Hunter roared again, swinging its massive sword at Kastor. The strike split the street in two, sending shards of stone flying.
Elara's pulse pounded in her ears. The shard in her pouch burned hotter with each heartbeat. It was calling to her, like a whisper she couldn't quite understand.
She pulled it free.
The moment the shard touched the open air, the Hunter froze mid-strike. The burning in its eyes flared, and it turned fully toward her. The whisper in her head sharpened into a single, unyielding word:
Strike.
Her hands moved without thinking. Red light surged up her arm, wrapping her blade until it blazed like molten steel. When she brought the sword down, the air cracked like lightning.
The blow didn't just cut — it tore through the Hunter's armor, searing a glowing line across its chest. The creature roared in pain, staggering back for the first time.
Serenya was on it instantly, her curved blade slashing across the same wound, widening it. Black, ash-like dust poured out instead of blood.
The Hunter swung wildly, forcing them apart. Its chain lashed out, wrapping around Serenya's arm and yanking her off her feet. She hit the ground hard, the blade skittering away.
"Serenya!" Elara shouted.
Kastor leapt forward, severing the chain with a two-handed strike. Serenya rolled free, clutching her shoulder.
The Hunter stumbled again, but its eyes burned hotter than ever. It raised its sword high, the tip crackling with strange, dark energy.
The shard pulsed harder. Elara felt her knees weaken under the force of it, but the voice whispered again — urgent this time.
End it.
She charged. The Hunter's sword came down, but the molten light around her blade flared bright enough to blind. She met the blow head-on, the clash sending a shockwave down the street.
The Hunter's weapon shattered.
Her strike followed through, cutting deep into the creature's chest. The red glow seared through its body, and the Hunter let out one final, deafening roar before collapsing to the ground in a cloud of ash.
Silence followed, broken only by Elara's heavy breathing. The glow faded from her blade, leaving it plain steel once more.
Serenya rose slowly, eyes fixed on the shard in Elara's hand. "So… it's true. The Heart Shard still answers to its bearer."
Kastor's gaze was harder. "And that was only a fragment of its power."
Elara looked at them both. "Then we need to find out what it's capable of before someone worse comes for it."
Serenya smiled faintly. "You're assuming someone worse hasn't already started the hunt."