Entry #28

The Sweep was a battlefield alive with fury.

From the horizon, the endless hoard of Xeolstors stretched like a tide of shadows, clawing their way across the grasslands. But standing firm at the head of the rebel forces were two gods—Vishap and Odei—pillars of fire and resolve.

“If this is where we die,” Vishap said, gripping his blade, “then we’ll die fighting.”

“It’s not the end of everything, Vishap,” Odei replied, igniting his hammer with an embered flare. “Just enjoy yourself while it lasts.”

Vishap turned to their troops.

“On my mark!”

A tense silence.

“Fight!!!”

The grasslands roared to life as soldiers screamed their battle cries and surged forward.

“Remember!” Vishap shouted. “We started this! There’s no turning back! Let your hearts scream! Let your rage burn! FIGHT!”

High atop the frigid peaks, Ilazki and Ama-Lurra watched from a ledge overlooking the battlefield. Snow crackled beneath their boots as a cold wind swept around them.

“Odei and Vishap have charged,” Ilazki said, watching flames ignite in the distance. “And Aide has begun her advance from the south. If either front succeeds, they’ll converge on the Heart.”

Ama-Lurra nodded.

“All fire element users—advance with me! Burn through anything that stands between us and the castle!”

The mountaintops lit up with fiery brilliance as mages raised their hands, answering her call.

Farther west, Olentzo surveyed the calm before the storm.

“Of all our assignments,” he muttered, “ours might be the hardest.”

His tone was grim as he looked toward Louis, who stood beside him, inspecting his weapon.

“Lamia is no longer a mere apprentice,” Olentzo added. “She is the new master of water… and her blade can cleave through the hardest steel.”

Just then—a sound. A scream through the air.

A blur cut through the ranks. Soldiers fell in an instant—sliced cleanly in half by something too fast to see.

One darted straight toward Louis, but Mira flung up a glowing shield, her magic absorbing the blow.

“Great,” Gabriel muttered, sword drawn. “She’s here.”

The blur landed. A figure draped in sea-colored armor, blood staining her hands.

Lamia.

Her eyes were distant, hollow, her face unreadable beneath drying streaks of red.

Olentzo stepped forward, pain in his gaze.

“Of all of us,” he said quietly, “you were the last one I thought would betray us.”

Lamia said nothing. She simply drew her blade.

“You were once a student,” Olentzo said. “Now you stand here as our enemy?”

“Last time we met,” Lamia replied coolly, “I was a learner. Now... I am the master.”

She lunged, but Olentzo stopped Louis from intervening.

“No,” he said. “This is my fight.”

The battle between master and former student ignited.

Olentzo unleashed a flurry of snowstorms, each wind laced with ancient magic, but Lamia carved through them like paper. She danced through the frost, her strikes fluid and relentless.

He slammed his staff into the ground. Ice constructs rose up, towering like frozen titans—but Lamia tore through them, slashing, leaping, spinning.

They clashed midair—blade against elemental might.

Then, Olentzo caught her sword with his fingertips, freezing the weapon with sheer force of will.

“There has to be a reason,” he said, shoving her back. “Louis’ reasoning for leaving made sense… but you? What was it?”

Lamia growled and transformed—her body twisting into a massive, serpentine water dragon. She lunged, jaws wide, but Olentzo summoned a towering ice golem to intercept.

It snapped her jaw with a thunderous crack. She fell, reverting back to her human form.

Breathless. Shaking. Bloodied.

Her hand trembled as she held her jaw, tears springing from her eyes—yet her blade still pointed forward.

“Be careful,” Louis warned. “We can’t trust her yet.”

“I do,” Olentzo said, stepping forward. “I’ve known her since she was just a shy little dragonling, eager to prove herself.”

Lamia raised her weapon… but it wavered.

Joaquin tossed her a healing potion.

She drank, her voice hoarse.

“You’ve bested me again, Master… I can never reach your level. I’m not even a real god.”

Her tears spilled.

“I only betrayed you because I was afraid... I didn’t want to lose more friends. I lost my first master, and I couldn’t go through that again.”

Olentzo wrapped her in a hug.

“I’m proud of you, Lamia. You came a long way.”

“Even after I took your leg?”

“We all make mistakes. You were scared. You chose wrong. That doesn’t make you unworthy—it makes you human.”

“They’ll never forgive me…”

“Then earn it back,” Louis said gently. “I left too. I ran from my duty. But we came back. We learn. That’s how we grow.”

Lamia sniffled and nodded.

“There, there…” Olentzo whispered, stroking her back. “Welcome home, Lamia.”

Back on the icy northern path, Ilazki’s and Ama-Lurra’s troops reached the castle walls. They established camp and prepared for the final push.

A scout arrived, panting.

“Lady Ama-Lurra! Lords Odei and Vishap are overwhelmed in the grasslands. They request assistance.”

“What about Aide?”

“She’s wiped out most Xeolstors in her sector with aerial bombings. She’s en route to assist the others.”

“And Olentzo?”

The scout hesitated.

“No updates... I’m sorry, Lady Ama-Lurra.”

Ama-Lurra turned away, worrying, shadowing her face. Ilazki placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t lose faith, sister. Soon… Father and the others will finally rest in peace.”

She nodded.

The battlefield was chaotic.

Vishap fought like a tempest, his blade carving arcs of flame as he shouted over the screeching of beasts. Odei laughed amidst the madness.

“This is fun!”

“We’re dying, Odei!”

“Then we’ll die in style!”

Suddenly, airstrikes erupted across the field. Wind-infused bombs tore through the Xeolstors, shattering them into dust. Vishap raised an earthen dome to shield them from the blast.

“Airstrikes inbound!” Aide called from above, wings of magic keeping her aloft.

Smoke cleared.

“We had it under control,” Odei grinned, brushing dust off his shoulder.

“Clearly not,” Aide replied, unimpressed.

“Are you two alright?”

“Slightly,” Vishap muttered, holding his bruised arm.

“Let’s advance. You can rest when we reach the Heart.”

Louis, Lamia, Mira, Gabriel, and the others set up a small base at the foot of the Passage.

“We’ll wait here,” Louis said. “The others will join soon.”

Lamia looked at him curiously.

“I thought you’d chain me.”

“We have some decency,” Olentzo said with a smirk.

Mira snapped her fingers, conjuring a gentle flame.

“Thanks,” Louis said. “You’ve improved a lot.”

“When we face Tenebrae,” Mira asked quietly, “can I fight her too?”

Louis’s face darkened.

“I won’t risk your life. None of yours. We’ll face her together.”

But then—a dark pulse shot toward them from the treeline.

Mira threw up a shield just in time, the force colliding like thunder.

Everyone stood, tense.

“They’ve found us,” Louis muttered.

“Then we stand our ground,” Gabriel said.

Entry# 28 End