The light grew brighter, blindingly so, until it ruptured in a deafening roar.
Asher barely had time to register the sound before it hit. From the heart of the town square, a colossal sphere of condensed flame erupted, so dense, so tightly packed, it resembled molten liquid more than fire. It surged outward like a living entity, devouring all in its path. Buildings, stone, steel, everything vanished, incinerated in an instant beneath the tide of infernal force.
A blastwave struck Asher's ears like a hammer. And then—nothing. The town was gone.
Erased.
As though it had never existed.
Yet the destruction hadn't stopped.
The flames expanded in rippling rings of molten fury, heat and fire sweeping outward with unrelenting hunger. They came for him, unstoppable, all-consuming.
"Nephis, you madwoman!" Aaron roared. His voice cracked with both fury and desperation as he spun around and bolted, blasting through the air at his full speed.
But it was too late.
