Kael floated in the air, his eyes burning like molten stars.
He raised his hand, and the gravity thickened until the very air screamed.
"Stay down," he growled.
The force slammed Charles and Viridion into the courtyard floor.
The ground split apart, stone slabs cracking, walls shattering as if the kingdom itself bowed under Kael's will.
Screams echoed in the distance as the shockwaves spread through the capital.
Kael landed on the broken rubble, his boots crushing dust and shards.
His chest heaved, his body bloodied, but his presence only grew heavier.
From beneath the ruins, Viridion roared.
Roots as thick as towers burst upward, lashing wildly, tearing through stone and soil.
The courtyard trembled as an enormous hand, rough and bark-like, rose from the crater.
Each finger was the size of a palace spire.
The earth quaked as Viridion dragged himself up.
His colossal form blotted the sky, roots spiraling like endless serpents.
When his foot struck the ground, the shockwave rattled windows across the kingdom.
The people felt it an ancient terror waking, a calamity that carried the weight of nature's wrath itself.
Charles stood at the edge of the crater, his body battered, blood running down his arm.
Yet he smiled, his eyes fixed not on Viridion, but on Kael.
"Show me, boy," Charles said, voice steady despite the chaos.
"How much of that cursed blood do you truly wield?"
Kael gripped his sword, the blade trembling under the crushing aura he carried.
His face was a mask of fury and resolve.
Kael planted his sword in the fractured courtyard, boots sinking into jagged stone.
Blood ran down his brow, streaked across his face, but his stormlit eyes were focused, sharp.
"You crawl into my world," he said, voice cutting through the chaos.
"I was just having a drink… and now look what you've done.
What is it you want to achieve?"
Charles' smirk widened as he stepped forward, the ruins crunching beneath him.
Viridion reared again, roots coiling, ready to strike.
"Balance," he answered simply. Kael's crimson eyes narrowed, lightning crawling across his skin.
"Then I'll show you what balance really means."
The courtyard shook as the battle truly began.
Viridion's roar split the sky as his titanic form surged forward.
Charles followed at his side, his eyes blazing with battle-hunger.
The ground broke beneath their charge, a storm of stone and fire racing toward Kael.
Kael did not rush.
He walked toward them, each step echoing like a drumbeat.
Charles raised his hand, flames bursting from his palm.
A massive hand of fire, so vast it blotted out the sun, descended from the heavens.
The air itself turned to ash under its weight.
Kael looked up.
His lips moved, a whisper only he could hear.
"Hand to hand, then."
He planted his sword into the shattered ground at his feet.
The earth groaned.
As the burning palm fell, Kael swept his hand outward.
Wind roared to life, a spiraling storm born in an instant.
The tornado clashed with the flame-hand, devouring it, twisting fire and wind together into a single blazing storm.
The sky burned red, sparks raining down across the courtyard.
At the tornado's peak, Kael floated, his figure wreathed in light and shadow, his eyes flickering with threads of lightning.
Viridion and Charles did not yield.
They lunged from opposite sides Charles sweeping in with speed and fury, Viridion's colossal roots tearing the ground apart as he came crashing down.
Kael stood between them, unmoved in his storm.
Above the clouds, lightning coiled.
The heavens split open.
Two tridents formed one colossal, the size of mountains, the other sharp and precise, like a weapon forged for a king.
Kael bent his knees, fists pulling back. His body tensed, then surged forward as he struck.
The tridents answered his motion, One hurled downward with unstoppable force, tearing through Viridion's body.
Roots split, sap and stone erupting in a storm of destruction.
The other trident pierced Charles, driving into his gut with searing speed.
Flames scattered, his laughter twisting into a scream.
The city shook as the twin strikes landed, thunder rolling like war drums across the kingdom.
And in the center of it all, Kael stood inside his storm, eyes burning brighter than ever.
Charles wiped blood from his lips, laughter rumbling in his throat.
"You've grown.
But tell me…" His eyes glowed with cruel amusement. "…how much of that strength can you truly control?"
Kael's blade pulled free from the ground, gravity surging around him once more.
His voice cut sharp through the storm.
"Enough to take your heads tonight."
Viridion roared, pulling Kael's attention for a heartbeat, roots flailing wildly.
Charles' flames rose higher, swirling with murderous intent.
The air itself became a battlefield of collapsing stone, roaring fire, and cracking thunder.
And high above it all, the people of the capital looked on terrified, desperate as gods and monsters turned their city into a graveyard of ash.
The alarm bells shrieked across the capital, metal clanging against the chaos.
From atop the royal walls, the king's generals watched, faces set in stone.
"The citizens are safe in the courtyard?" one shouted, sweat streaking his ash-covered face.
"Mostly, Your Majesty!" another replied, pointing toward the fleeing masses.
"But the calamities have split the city in three east, west, and south.
We must act now!"
Drums pounded as riders galloped through streets, their banners snapping in the violent wind.
The Air Kingdom army surged from barracks like a living tide.
Shields glinted, spears poised, and crossbows clicked in readiness.
Smoke and ash churned around them, yet every soldier held formation, eyes blazing with resolve.
From the eastern wall, Captain Darius barked orders.
"Hold your lines!
Drive the Colossus back!
Move as one!"
Soldiers tightened their shields, pushing forward against the tremors caused by Obryxis' steps.
The ground quaked under the titan's weight, but the army pressed on, steady and relentless.
Aelina led her contingent to the west, wind whipping her hair into her face.
Her guards mirrored her movements, cutting currents through Cryoveth's icy storm, carving safe paths for the terrified citizens fleeing the frozen alleys.
Every slash of her blade sent arcs of wind spinning, deflecting shards of ice and glass alike.
From the southern districts, Shadowair Commander William stalked silently.
Shadows pooled around him, lifting him slightly from the ground.
Morvane's stench filled the streets, but William moved like a predator among panicked prey, setting traps and guiding the soldiers into lethal positions.
Above them all, Kael floated in the shattered courtyard, his eyes flickering with electricity, surveying the battlefield.
One heartbeat, and the army would face the fury of the calamities unleashed.
The drums of war rolled.
The soldiers advanced,
Shields locked,
Spears bristling.
Every step was a countdown.
Every breath carried the fear of failure.
And as they pressed forward, the city held its breath.
To be continued....