The morning came slowly, though the air felt heavy with urgency. Mist clung to the valleys beyond the wasteland, curling around the broken trees like restless spirits. The ruin's stones seemed to hum faintly beneath her feet, an echo of the bond she now carried fully in her blood.
Elowen had not slept.
She could feel every heartbeat of the land around her, every shift in the bond, and every flicker of Kael's presence. He had not left her side, not once, and she did not ask him to. Even as exhaustion weighed on her limbs, there was a clarity now that frightened her as much as it comforted.
"We cannot stay here forever," Kael said quietly, breaking the silence. His voice was low, deliberate, almost a warning. "The crown will come for us. And soon."
Elowen turned to him. Her expression was calm, but her eyes glimmered with something sharper. "Let them come. They will not know what to expect."
Kael's hands flexed at his sides, the fire within him ready to ignite at the slightest provocation. "They will bring more than soldiers. The Inquisition will not send anyone who cannot die."
Her stomach tightened at the reminder. She had faced one of them already and she had chosen to kill him. Deliberately. Without hesitation. The memory of that power coursing through her veins both terrified and exhilarated her.
"They underestimate what blood remembers," she said softly.
Kael's eyes flickered toward her. "And what it demands."
A roar of movement echoed in the distance. Dust rose from the horizon as the first of the crown's forces appeared. Mounted soldiers, heavy with armor and bearing the sigils of the Inquisition, advanced with terrifying precision. Behind them, a column of banners marked the King's personal regent, commanders who would see her dead for daring to survive.
Elowen felt the bond pulse sharply, urging control, precision, not hesitation. She exhaled slowly and raised her hand.
The air trembled.
The earth beneath the soldiers cracked, fissures forming instantly, forcing them to stumble and halt. Arrows misfired, some even lodging into the ground harmlessly, deflected by a subtle, unseen force.
Kael exhaled, fire beginning to coil along his arms. "You are pushing it," he warned. "They are too many."
"I know," she said. "And that is why we will make them afraid."
The first column of soldiers faltered as the bond pulsed again. A wave of sensation rippled outward, making every heartbeat in the enemy ranks feel like a drumbeat of fear. Panic stirred at the edges of their formation.
The commander in black and gold, a man whose expression was carved from steel, raised a hand. His voice carried effortlessly over the distance. "Ashbearer! Surrender or die!"
Elowen stepped forward, letting the bond flow freely. The earth beneath her pulsed with her intent. She could feel every heartbeat, every flicker of fear, every small hesitation. She could see it all, and it gave her power.
"I will not surrender," she called back, her voice ringing with authority. "And if you come for me, know that you will meet what your crown fears most!"
The soldiers froze. Some fell to their knees, clutching at their chests. Others looked at each other, uncertainty spreading like wildfire. Kael's fire flared brighter, echoing hers, a perfect combination of fury and control.
The commander's jaw clenched. "So be it," he said through gritted teeth. "Bring her down."
The first wave surged forward. Arrows flew. Steel clanged. The ground itself seemed to rise and fall beneath the weight of Elowen's will. Soldiers were thrown off balance, stumbling into each other, terrified eyes wide with confusion and fear. The bond pulsed with every attack, amplifying the terror and confusion.
Kael moved like a shadow beside her, fire lashing out, not to kill but to control, to shape the battlefield. Every movement between them was seamless, unspoken, dangerous. They were bound not just by blood but by instinct, and their enemies felt it.
Amid the chaos, one soldier broke through, blade raised high, charging toward Elowen. She raised her palm and the ground rose beneath him, forcing him to stumble forward uncontrollably. Kael stepped in, fire coiling around the man like a living whip, stopping him without breaking bone. The bond hummed approval, and Elowen realized with a chill thrill how much control she could exert when she acted with intent.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she stepped forward, closer to Kael. The heat radiating from him was almost unbearable. Every instinct told her to lean into it, to let the bond guide them closer but this was not the time.
Not yet.
The commander signaled another wave, this one larger, stronger, backed by reinforcements who had heard the rumors of what the Ashbearer could do. Kael glanced at her, eyes dark and knowing. The fire within him pulsed with anticipation. "You cannot do this alone."
"I do not want to," she said, voice low and dangerous. "I want us to survive it together."
The words made the bond surge. Desire, fear, control, power, all mingled and coiled, heavy and electric.
Kael took her hand, his grip firm, unyielding. "Then we end this."
They moved forward in perfect synchrony. Fire and will, blood and intent, shaping the battlefield. Every step they took sent soldiers scattering, every glance across the bond communicated instinctively, dangerously, intimately.
The commander's eyes widened as he realized the Ashbearer was not alone. The girl he had underestimated was paired with the prince who had burned an entire battalion for her, and together, they were unstoppable. Fear rippled through the ranks. The soldiers faltered. Chaos spread faster than steel.
Elowen exhaled, focusing the bond, amplifying the fear and control, feeling every ounce of power respond. She looked at Kael, whose gaze burned into hers. Their hands were still linked, and the energy between them was not just magic, it was something far more dangerous.
Desire. Obedience. Devotion. And the promise of ruin if either misstepped.
The crown's forces broke. They fled, not just from the magic but from the certainty of what the Ashbearer and her conduit could do.
Elowen let the tension in her body release just slightly. She had won. But the victory was only the beginning. The world would not forget her name, nor would it forgive Kael for standing beside her.
She turned to him, voice trembling with exhaustion and something unspoken. "They will come again."
He smiled, dark and grim. "Let them. We are ready."
And as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the wasteland, Elowen realized something terrifyingly clear:
The war had begun.
And she had already won the first battle.
But victory was only the first step in the path that could either crown her or burn everything she loved.