The village center burned like a beacon against the night sky. Flames clawed at the wooden beams of homes and market stalls, collapsing them with thunderous crashes that sent splinters into the smoke-choked air. Children screamed, their cries piercing above the roar of fire and clamor of fleeing villagers. Dust and ash swirled with smoke, filling every street and alley, coating the cobblestones in a dark, gritty film. Law Kael moved cautiously through the chaos, red scarf tugging against his shoulders, swords drawn. His boots crunched against the charred wood and sand, every step measured, every movement deliberate.
From the shadows of alleyways, mirror-eyed husks emerged. Their grotesque faces reflected the firelight in shattered shards, eyes glinting with unnatural awareness. Their movements were jerky, like puppets with broken strings, yet precise in their malice. They reached for villagers with clawed hands, dragging the defenseless into darkened corners, breaking the air with glasslike screeches.
Darkness doesn't always arrive with nightfall, Law thought, scanning the smoke-laden streets. Sometimes… it's born inside the people you once trusted.
Law turned a corner and froze. Through the haze of smoke and flames, a soft, golden glow pierced the darkness. It was subtle at first—a shimmer, a glint—but it grew as he approached. Behind a collapsed cart, a cluster of children huddled, their eyes wide with terror. Radiant threads of light formed a protective barrier around them, pulsing gently like a heartbeat, holding the monsters at bay.
Standing before them was a girl, her posture calm and commanding despite the chaos. Liora, fifteen, her sword in one hand, shield in the other. Light wove around her arms, flowing like ribbons that twisted and pulsed with her intent. Her gaze was serene, unshaken by the fire and carnage.
"Sister Liora… the monsters—!" one child cried, trembling.
"Stay close," she said, her voice unwavering. "Light will not abandon you."
The husks surged forward, drawn by the scent of fear. Liora moved with fluid grace, raising her shield. Threads of light spiraled outward like a dome, forcing the advancing husks back with a ripple of energy. They collided with invisible force, bouncing off as if hitting solid stone.
With a flick of her fingers, delicate and precise, the threads tightened, slicing through two husks with elegant arcs of glowing energy. Her sword followed naturally, each strike disciplined, purposeful—never wasteful. She moved as though dancing with the fire, protecting the innocent rather than seeking destruction.
Law observed, silent for a moment, thoughts racing. She moves like she's practiced this her whole life. Not fighting to kill… fighting to protect. His echoes flickered at his side, waiting for his command.
A husk broke from the group, aiming for a cluster of villagers fleeing through a narrow alley. Law's body responded before his mind did. He flicked his wrist, activating Echo Step. Ghostly duplicates of himself surged outward, intercepting the threat. Blades flashed, claws shattered, and the husk collapsed into shards of reflective glass.
Liora turned sharply, narrowing her eyes as she observed the afterimages. "You—! With me. Guard their backs," she ordered, voice firm but commanding.
Law gritted his teeth. "I don't take orders."
"Then take responsibility!" she snapped. "They'll die if you hesitate."
He froze for a heartbeat, scarf tightening instinctively around his neck. The weight of her words, her authority, pressed on him, echoing his grandfather's lessons from years past. Slowly, reluctantly, he nodded.
The next wave came without warning. Husks poured from alleys and broken houses, their mirrored faces reflecting firelight in fractured patterns. Law's afterimages surged, slicing through enemies, misdirecting them with blinding speed. Liora cast glowing barriers behind him, sealing off escape routes. Law watched, astonished, as her shields moved in perfect timing with his echoes, binding and striking exactly where his duplicates would appear.
A husk lunged toward him. In the same instant, his sword severed its arm, while Liora's light threads coiled around another, immobilizing it. She… trusts my echoes? Even I don't trust them fully, he thought, marveling at the precision and synchronization.
One husk nearly broke through to the children. Law moved instinctively to strike it down, but Liora intercepted, shield shimmering, holding it back with divine clarity. She scolded him mid-battle, her voice cutting through the roar of fire and chaos.
"You aim to cut everything down," she said, teeth gritted. "But sometimes, light shields more than it destroys."
Law froze briefly, shaken by the memory her words invoked. He remembered his grandfather's last stand, the sacrifice, the lesson of patience and protection. This was a different kind of fight—one that demanded care as much as skill.
The chaos reached its climax as a massive corrupted husk emerged from the flames. Its armor-like skin reflected firelight in jagged shards, its mirrored eyes flickering with whispering glass fragments. It dragged a shattered bell tower chain behind it, each link rattling with ominous force.
Law's eyes widened. "That… thing's not like the others."
Liora raised her shield, light pulsing and weaving around her arms. "Then we hold here. Together."
Law nodded, determination hardening within him. His scarf glowed faintly, a tether of focus and resolve, echoing in rhythm with his heartbeat. Ghostly afterimages circled him, ready to strike in synchronization, but he knew that without Liora anchoring their teamwork, the echoes were meaningless.
The village burned around them, smoke curling into the night sky. Children huddled safely behind barriers of light. Flames licked at collapsed buildings, sparks drifting like fireflies in the chaos. Husks gathered in greater numbers, reflecting the fire in their mirrored eyes, whispering silently to one another, orchestrating an advancing tide of destruction.
Law gritted his teeth, eyes scanning for openings, calculating angles. Liora's movements were precise, controlled, her shields a living extension of her will. Together, they formed a fragile wall against the darkness.
Echoes mean nothing without someone to anchor them, Law thought, older voice echoing in memory. He could feel the weight of the responsibility settle on his shoulders, heavier than any blade, heavier than any battle he had faced alone.
As the corrupted husk braced itself to strike, the ground beneath it cracking under its weight, Law and Liora met each other's gaze briefly—a silent pact, a mutual understanding. They would fight. They would protect. And if they failed, they would fail together.
The fire roared, the night trembled, and the first sparks of a war that would engulf more than this village ignited in their midst.