Kael's breath came in gasps, the coppery taste of blood sharp on his tongue.
The ground beneath him was uneven, the rocks made it harder for him to move freely.
His muscles burned, his arms ached from deflecting countless strikes, and his fragment pulsed in his palm.
The Skybreaker captain loomed over him, his glowing blade humming with energy. Behind him, the other Skybreakers formed an wall blocking the only path out.
Kael stood alone, wounded and cornered, but his resolve was still strong.
"You've fought well," the captain said, his voice echoing through the ravine. "But you've reached your end. Surrender, and I'll make it quick."
Kael tightened his grip on his blade, his knuckles white. "I don't surrender."
The captain's lips twisted into a cruel smirk. "Then you'll die here."
He swung his massive sword in a wide arc, the sheer force of it kicking up dust and rocks. Kael barely managed to leap back, his boots skidding against the loose stones.
A second strike came immediately after, and Kael brought up his blade to block. The impact rattled through his arms, forcing him to his knees.
"Lira... run," Kael whispered under his breath, hoping his sister had gotten far enough away.
The Skybreakers advanced, their weapons glowing brighter as they closed in.
Kael's mind raced, searching for an escape, a miracle, anything that could keep him alive for another moment. His fragment flared erratically, its energy pulsing in bursts.
'This is it', he thought. 'This is where I die.'
Then, out of nowhere, a voice filled his mind.
"You are stronger than this."
The voice was soft, it was like music to the ears. It was beautiful, otherworldly, and Kael's first thought was Astraea.
"Astraea?" he muttered aloud, his voice cracking.
"There's no time for questions," the voice said, gently. "You carry Lyra's fragment. It is time you understood its true power."
Kael's heart pounded. "What do you mean? What power?"
"It would seem you gone mad, talking to yourself like that kid." The captain said as charged in again, his sword raised high.
Kael barely managed to roll out of the way, the blade crashing into the ground where he had just been.
"Focus," the voice urged. "Feel the fragment's rhythm. Let it guide you."
Kael staggered to his feet, clutching the fragment embedded beneath his wrist. Its pulse was wild but as he closed his eyes, he began to sense a pattern beneath the chaos—a faint melody, like an instrument's melody.
"The fragment is not just a weapon," the voice continued. "It is a force of creation and destruction. Channel it. Command it."
Kael opened his eyes, a newfound clarity washing over him. The fragment's pulse had steadied. For the first time, he did not feel overwhelmed but instead empowered.
The captain hesitated, noticing the change in Kael's stance. "What is this?" he growled.
Kael didn't answer. He raised his blade, and the fragment in his wrist area flared to life, its light spreading through the veins in his hand and into the weapon. The blade glowed with a brilliant, otherworldly energy.
Kael took a deep breath and stepped forward, his movements calm but intimidating.
One of the Skybreakers lunged at him, but Kael's blade moved faster than his thoughts. It sliced through the man's armor with ease, a flash of light erupting as the fragment's energy consumed him.
Another Skybreaker charged, his halberd glowing fiercely. Kael dodged with an elegance that felt new to him, as though his body were being controlled by the fragment itself.
He countered with a strike that sent a shockwave rippling through the air, the Skybreaker's weapon shattering on impact.
"What is this power?" Kael murmured, awe creeping into his voice.
"Harmony," the voice replied. "Lyra's essence is balance—between creation and destruction, chaos and order. Harness it."
The remaining Skybreakers faltered, their confidence shaken as they watched Kael defeat their comrades with an ease that defied logic. But the captain's fury only grew.
"Cowards!" he roared. "Press the attack! He's just one man!"
The Skybreakers moved closer to each other, then surging forward in a coordinated assault. Kael's fragment pulsed in warning, but this time, he welcomed the chaos.
He moved like a dancer, his blade an extension of his will. Each strike sent ripples of energy cascading through the battlefield, disarming and disabling his foes with precision.
"Impossible," one of the Skybreakers muttered before Kael's blade cut him down.
The captain charged again, his massive sword crackling with energy. Kael met him head-on, their weapons colliding in an explosion of light and sound. The ground beneath them cracked, the air vibrating with the force of their clash.
"You can't win!" the captain snarled, his strength pushing Kael back.
Kael gritted his teeth, sweat pouring down his face. "We'll see about that."
As the captain pressed using his strength, the voice returned, calm and steady.
"You cannot overpower him through force alone. Use the fragment's true potential."
Kael's mind raced, the fragment's melody was the only thing in his thoughts.
He closed his eyes for a brief moment, focusing on the harmony he had felt earlier. The fragment's energy surged, spreading through his body as quick as a wildfire would.
When Kael opened his eyes, they glowed with an ominous white light. He stepped back from the captain, raising his blade high.
"Lira," he whispered, his voice now ethereal. "I hope you're far enough away."
The fragment in his palm flared brighter than ever, its energy radiating outward in waves.
The Skybreakers hesitated, their weapons lowering as they stared in awe and fear.
"What are you doing?" the captain demanded, his voice held a tinged of unease.
Kael didn't answer. He thrust his blade into the ground, and the fragment's energy erupted in a blinding flash of light and power that shook the very air.
The Skybreakers cried out as the wave of energy pushed them away, a force of destruction and balance that threatened to consume everything in its path.
Kael stood at the center, his figure silhouetted in the blazing light. The fragment's power coursed through him, and for a brief moment, he felt invincible.
The light surged forward, and the captain's eyes widened in shock and fury. "No!" he bellowed, raising his sword in a futile attempt to block the blast.
The energy reached its peak, the ravine illuminated in a brilliant white.
And then, everything went silent.