POV: Commander Vael of the Obsidian Order
The clearing reeked of sulfur and burned blood.
Commander Vael dismounted slowly, his boots crunching over blackened leaves and scorched soil. The air here still shimmered with residual magic—wild, raw, and unnatural. His men stayed back. Even seasoned killers flinched at this kind of scene.
"What in the gods' rot happened here?" murmured one of the scouts.
Vael didn't answer.
He walked forward, inspecting the scattered remains. Dozens of Shadowborn—burned beyond recognition. One of the gnarled spines twitched in the heat, still hissing with holy fire. The trees were scarred, slashed through by something massive. But it was the center of the clearing that drew him.
The Warden was gone.
Or rather—shattered.
Armor fragments lay scattered like broken teeth. Its scythe, twisted and cracked, stuck upright in the earth like a grave marker. Even in ruin, its cursed edge radiated dread.
Vael knelt by the ashes.
He touched a patch of charred grass—and recoiled as it whispered to him in a voice not meant for mortal ears.
"He lives."
His jaw clenched.
"Kael…"
They had all read the prophecies. The Fire-Binder. The Forsaken Son. The one who would rise from betrayal and bind the seven marks of ruin to remake the world.
But it wasn't real. It wasn't meant to be real.
A soldier stepped forward, pale. "Commander. This was no ordinary fight. There was… another presence. Celestial."
Vael stood.
"Find the survivors. Anyone who saw what happened. Anyone with a tongue and breath left in their lungs."
He turned toward the northern cliffs.
"He's not hiding. He's gathering. The harem's already begun."
The soldier hesitated. "Shall I alert the Black Council?"
Vael's eyes narrowed.
"Not yet. If the Council learns he's risen, they'll panic. They'll do something foolish."
He drew his blade and pointed north.
"No—let me hunt him. I'll sever the prophecy at its root."
Far behind him, in the smoking ruins of the forest, the Warden's shattered chestplate trembled—and a small black serpent slithered out from beneath it.
Watching. Waiting.