The ground shook beneath us, sending ripples through the earth as if some monstrous force was awakening from a deep slumber. Seraphina and I exchanged a quick glance, her crimson eyes mirroring the alarm I felt.
The Brotherhood's leader, his body battered and bloodied, stood in the center of the courtyard, his twisted smile growing wider as the dark energy swirled around him. He had summoned something—something powerful and ancient.
The air grew thick with tension, the very atmosphere charged with electricity as the sky darkened above us. The shadows lengthened, stretching out like grasping claws across the courtyard, and the temperature dropped, a cold chill creeping into my bones.
"Prepare yourselves!" Seraphina shouted, her voice cutting through the ominous silence that had fallen over our forces. Her hand ignited with a blaze of red flames, casting an eerie glow across her determined face. "Whatever he's bringing, we're ready."
