The battlefield was silent except for the distant rumble of winds, the air heavy with the weight of the impending clash. In the courtyard of Orlith, the two brothers stood, facing one another, their eyes locked in a shared moment of anguish and defiance. Helios, the king of flames, his presence radiating power beyond belief, stood at one end, while on the other, Darius, his younger brother, stood shrouded in an aura of stormy rage. The wind whipped around him violently, mirroring the turmoil within his heart.
Despite the overwhelming tension, neither brother moved for several heart-stopping moments.
Then Helios spoke, his voice steady but pained. "I never wanted this, Darius. You were my brother. I never wanted to see you like this."
Darius's eyes burned with a cold fury, a wound too deep to heal, even with the years that had passed. "You never understood, did you? All you've ever seen is the world through your perfect ideals. Always saving people. Always doing what's right, even when it meant sacrificing yourself for others." His voice cracked, and the wind around him grew more erratic, howling in agreement with his pain. "You still think there's a way to fix this world. But you're wrong. You've always been wrong."
Helios's fists clenched, his flames flickering as the heat around him intensified. "And you've let your grief turn you into something else entirely. I understand pain, Darius. But you're not the only one who's lost. I lost someone, too." His eyes narrowed. "But I refused to let that pain shape me. I refuse to let it destroy everything I've worked for."
Darius's expression twisted with bitterness, as his voice shook with unrelenting sorrow. "You think I want to destroy everything? No. I've seen what this world does to those who are weak. I've seen how it chews people up, and spits them out. It took her from me, Helios. The woman I loved. She died in the war we fought together. She died because of the same cruelty we once fought to stop." His voice faltered, but he pressed on, his hands clenched at his sides. "And now I see—I see it all so clearly. You're a hero. You always have been. But I'm not a hero anymore. I'm a king. And if I have to destroy this kingdom to make it right, I will."
With a roar, Darius thrust both hands forward, summoning the full force of the wind. The air twisted and buckled, and in an instant, a storm erupted around him, the violent winds howling with a force that could tear apart mountains. The ground beneath their feet cracked, and the entire courtyard seemed to shift, as though nature itself had bent to his will.
Helios stood firm, his eyes flickering with golden light. With a single motion, he raised one hand, and the flames around him exploded into a pillar of blazing fire that could rival the sun itself. His power surged forward, meeting Darius's storm with an intensity that shattered the ground beneath them. The heat of his flames clashed against the cold, destructive winds, sending shockwaves across the battlefield.
"Is this all you have?" Helios roared, his voice commanding, yet tinged with sorrow. "I will not let you destroy this kingdom, Darius. You're still my brother. You're still the man I fought beside."
But Darius was relentless, and his anger gave him strength. The winds twisted around him, a violent vortex that sought to consume everything in its path. The air was filled with the sound of crackling power as Darius pushed forward, forcing Helios back with the sheer force of his wind magic. The flames fought against the storm, but the winds battered them, nearly snuffing out the fire king's power.
"You think you can stop me?" Darius spat, his voice breaking through the roar of wind. "You think you're the only one who's suffered? I've seen the truth. There is no saving this world. There's only one way to end the endless war, the endless suffering. You've seen it, too. You just refuse to admit it."
With a sudden, blinding motion, Helios's flames erupted into a vast, sweeping wave of fire, slamming into Darius's windstorm. The explosion was deafening, the ground shaking with the impact. Darius was thrown back, his body crashing into a stone pillar, but the wind around him caught him, allowing him to rise again. His eyes burned with unrelenting rage.
"You were always the perfect hero, Helios." His voice trembled with bitterness and grief. "Always the one who did what was right. But I've seen what you've refused to see. The world is broken. And you've tried to fix it with kindness and hope. But all you've done is waste your time. I will bring peace, by any means necessary."
Helios staggered to his feet, his body bruised and battered from the assault. His flames flickered, but they still burned bright, fueled by the weight of his emotions. "I'll protect this kingdom until my last breath, Darius. And I'll never stop fighting for what's right."
With a final, powerful thrust of his hand, Helios unleashed a torrent of flame, a wave of heat and destruction that engulfed the battlefield. The flames exploded outward, crackling with such intensity that the air itself seemed to warp and bend in response. Darius tried to counter with a massive wind blast, but the flames were too much. The force of the attack shattered the storm, sending the wind scattering into the air.
But Darius wasn't finished. He raised his hands, summoning a final cataclysmic burst of wind, a final assault that threatened to tear the world apart. The ground cracked, and the sky above darkened as Darius summoned the full wrath of the storm. The wind howled like a thousand beasts, a swirling vortex of chaos that was impossible to resist.
Helios, his body nearly broken from the battle, braced himself. He pushed his flames forward one final time, igniting the entire courtyard with a blinding inferno. But as the flames surged forward, Darius's wind met them head-on, pushing them back. And then, with one last desperate cry, Darius launched his final attack, a cataclysmic blast that enveloped Helios completely.
The earth trembled beneath their feet. The flames and wind collided with such force that the shockwave sent a roar through the air, and the ground cracked beneath the sheer power of the collision. Helios's flames fought valiantly against the wind, but in the end, the overwhelming force of Darius's attack crushed through. And as it did, Helios saw the storm approaching, knowing that his flames could not withstand it.
In a desperate moment of clarity, Helios realized what he had to do. Darius's attack would destroy the entire kingdom—his people, his legacy—if it wasn't stopped.
With a painful roar, Helios stepped forward, pushing the last of his power into a final burst of flame. He chose to take the brunt of the attack head-on, sacrificing himself for the safety of his people. The flames around him surged one last time, clashing against the cataclysmic storm. It was a selfless act, one that took every ounce of his strength.
And as the attack struck, Helios stood tall, his body breaking under the force, but his spirit unyielding. The flames around him roared in defiance, a final stand to protect his kingdom.
"I will protect this kingdom until my last breath… for my people… for the future."
With those words, Helios collapsed into the dust, his body burned and broken. The cataclysmic winds that Darius had unleashed slowly faded as Helios's final burst of flame smothered the storm.
For a long moment, there was nothing but silence.
Darius stood over his brother, staring at the broken form of Helios, his face twisted with guilt and heartbreak. "I knew you would do that," he whispered, his voice trembling. "You were always the perfect hero… always the one who sacrificed everything. But I've seen the truth now. There's no place for men like us in this world."
The wind was silent now, the air still as the ground smoldered from their battle. Darius looked down at his fallen brother and whispered one final, sorrowful promise.
"I never wanted this… I never wanted to lose you."
With that, he turned away, leaving the wreckage of the battlefield behind him.