Elira's knees gave way, her flame sputtering. The crown pulsed violently, its fractured light tearing at her chest. She gasped, her vision swimming, and then darkness claimed her.
Kael caught her before she struck the ground. "She's falling—carry her!"
The Ashbound surged forward, torches blazing as they shielded her from Marlic's storm. Together they lifted her, their voices rising in defiance. "Flamebearer does not fall alone!"
Marlic's laughter split the battlefield, sharp and cruel. "See? She collapses. She cannot hold flame and shadow. The crown will consume her, and shadow will reign."
But as Kael carried her, the horizon shifted. A faint glow touched the edge of the storm. The first light of dawn pierced the darkness, fragile but steady.
Elira stirred, her breath shallow. The crown pulsed in harmony with the rising light. She whispered, weak but resolute, "I endure… even broken, I endure."
Marlic's ember eyes widened, his storm faltering. "No… not now. Not dawn."
The Ashbound's torches blazed brighter, their flame strengthened by the morning light. Kael's blade gleamed, fire and shadow entwined. "Your night is ending, Marlic. Dawn threatens your storm."
Marlic roared, his voice shaking the battlefield. "Shadow does not hide! Shadow endures!" But the storm wavered, the light pressing against it, unraveling its endless grip.
Elira rose slowly, carried by Kael's strength and the Ashbound's loyalty. Her flame flickered, weak but alive, bound to the dawn itself.
She whispered, steady despite her exhaustion: "Your storm cannot last forever. Dawn will break you."