🔥 Chapter 6 — Siege of the Highlands
The valley below smoldered with the first signs of the Harrowed King's army. Iron Sentinels moved in formation, shadow flames curling around their armor, while enormous Riftspawn clawed through the cliffsides, leaving jagged scars in the mountains.
Kael stood atop the ridge, Ember glowing along his arms, muscles tense. "There's too many of them. We can't hold them all."
Rhyne adjusted his grip on his silver sigil blade. "Then we don't hold them all. We control the chokepoints. Force them through passes, thin their numbers, and strike with precision. Remember what we trained for."
The first wave of Sentinels emerged from the northern pass. Kael raised his hands, flames spiraling into sharp tendrils, cutting through the air like whips. The creatures shrieked as fire struck them, but they pressed on relentlessly.
Kael's focus was tested as more Sentinels poured in. Each strike required perfect timing—too slow, and the Ember would overextend; too fast, and he could miss the core. The fire pulsed along his veins like a living thing, guiding his hands, warning him, urging him to trust it.
Rhyne moved beside him, striking joints, breaking formations, and creating openings for Kael's Ember to pierce. The synergy was brutal and precise, each attack echoing like thunder across the highlands.
Then came a shadow larger than any Sentinel—a Harrowed Lieutenant, towering, black armor fused with glowing veins of violet energy. Its massive weapon slammed into the ridge, throwing Kael and Rhyne backward. Dust, rubble, and embers filled the air.
Kael felt the Ember flare violently. This one is… different, he thought, as the fire hummed in warning. The Lieutenant's core pulsed like a dark heartbeat, stronger and more chaotic than anything he had faced before.
Rhyne's voice cut through the chaos. "Kael! Focus! Bind the Ember! If you fail, the pass will fall, and the highlands with it!"
Kael gritted his teeth. The Ember responded to his will, coiling around him in a swirling inferno. He stepped forward, fire erupting in a concentrated spear aimed at the Lieutenant's core.
The battle for the northern highlands had escalated. And Kael was learning—every strike, every surge of the Ember, would not just determine victory, but survival.