This was not what the Guardians were fighting against. Aarun was an earth god; his power immense and his mastery of stone and ground beneath them nearly unthinkable. Aiden, Lyra, and Caelum fought with all their might, but each blow was chomped up by the very ground itself.
Aarun raised his massive arms, shaking the very cavern. Boulders and rocks shook from the ceiling and came crashing down upon them. The earth ground beneath their feet cracked and buckled beneath them, looking as though it would swallow them whole.
"We have to break his connection to the Heart!" Lyra shouted, her voice barely audible over the chaos.
Aiden nodded, his heart pounding in his chest. "We have to break the crystal, or he'll never stop!
But by the time they reached the pedestal, Aarun's power was growing stronger. He swung his massive fist, and they went flying across the cavern. Aiden struggled to his feet, blood running from his lip. The earth god's power was too strong.
"Caelum, now!" Aiden shouted.
He steps forward, his staff shining with bright magic. "I'll need a moment," he said, his voice straining. "Hold him off!"
Lyra and Aiden were pounding in tandem as hard as they could against Aarun. His stone skin was a perfect match against their weapons. He laughed and it echoed through the cavern-it was a vibration of their bones themselves.
"You will never win," Aarun declared loudly. "I am earth itself. I am immortal.".
But before Aarun could swing for the third time, Caelum completed his casting of the incantation. Magical energy shot out from his staff, flinging light toward Heartstone. Light struck the Heartstone with a deafening crack that made the cavern shudder.
"No!" Aarun bellowed, but too late.
The crystal shattered and the power of the earth god started to unravel. The final shudder of the earth and all was quiet. Aarun's abomination of a body crumbled to dust and the cavern was quiet again.
Aiden, Lyra, and Caelum stood there panting, battered but triumphant. The land was safe once more, but at a tremendous cost.
He was gone, the earth god and balance of Eldoria restored-for now-but the Guardians knew that this peace, like all others, would be fleeting.