The siege had begun, and Lin City trembled.The first barrage struck like thunder. The Eastern Gate shuddered under the weight of modern steel, ancient stone coughing dust into the air. Sparks from collapsing torches scattered across the battlements as men stumbled, shouting over the roar. Ares planted his boots, steadying those around him with a hand, his gaze locked on the horizon where fire blossomed.“Shields up!” Reyes barked, his arm already bleeding from the last strike. “You hold or you die - there’s no second chance!”Below, the enemy surged. Armored vehicles crawled forward like iron beasts, their engines belching smoke, soldiers pouring in behind them with a relentless hunger. The smell of fuel and blood mixed into something acrid, something that clung to the back of the throat.Ares gripped his sword tighter. He felt every vibration through the hilt, like the city’s heartbeat was syncing with his own. Hawk slid beside him, rifle cocked. “If they hit us again with those can

And for the first time in years, the war didn’t feel endless.It felt winnable.But Ares knew better than to linger in that thought. Wars were never won in a single chamber, with a single death. They were battles layered upon battles, each one costing more blood than the last.He lowered his sword slowly, the steel heavy in his grip. Elijah had drifted back into half-sleep against his chest, his small breath warm through the grime and sweat on Ares’ shirt. Mira stood beside him, her hand still on his arm, her face streaked with soot and tears that had dried into faint lines.The silence that followed the commander’s fall stretched long, filled only by the occasional drip of water from cracked stone. Then Reyes cleared his throat, breaking it.“You’ve shaken them,” he said. His voice was tired, his body leaning heavily against the broken wall, but his eyes were sharp. “Word of this will spread. Soldiers talk. And when soldiers talk, cities listen.”Hawk snorted, dragging one of the bou

The path swallowed them whole.At first it was only darkness. Damp earth under their boots. The heavy smell of wet bark. No birds, no insects, nothing. Just a silence that felt too heavy, as if the forest was holding its breath.Ares led the way. His shoulders were tense, every step deliberate, eyes sweeping the shadows as though expecting them to move. Behind him, Mira walked close, one arm around Elijah, guiding the boy when the roots grew too thick.Elijah whispered, “Mama, it’s scary.”Her throat tightened. “Stay with me,” she murmured, squeezing his hand.Then Ares stopped. He lifted one hand. Mira froze instantly, heart leaping to her throat.“What is it?” she asked.He didn’t turn. His voice was flat. “We’re not alone.”And then it came.A voice drifted between the trees -low, mocking. “So the great God of War has learned how to creep. Tell me, Ares, how does it feel, dragging your chains with you? A woman who doubts you. A child who fears you. That’s all they are - chains.”El

Chapter 179 – The Enemy WithinThe fire was almost gone, just a scatter of red coals and thin smoke curling into the dark. Mira held Elijah close, his small breaths warm against her collarbone. Ares stood apart, arms folded, staring past the fire into the black beyond. He had spoken - love, not blood, would define him. He believed it, or wanted to. But belief and reality were never the same. Blood had a way of clawing back.Mira’s voice broke the stillness, steady but laced with doubt. “You speak of love as if it shields you. Men like Wu’s allies, men who live off chaos - they don’t care what you carry in your heart. They’ll press until you bend or until you break.”Ares turned, crouching beside her. Elijah stirred faintly, his fist tightening around Mira’s sleeve. Ares brushed the boy’s hair back, voice low. “Then let them come. I’ve carried war before. But this time, it’s not for pride. Not for revenge. I fight for him. For you.”Her eyes searched his. For once, no sharp words came.

“Tomorrow,” Ares whispered, “we remind them whose city this is.”The words lingered, heavier than the night air. Hawk’s grin faded into grim purpose. Reyes stood with his arms folded, a man carved from stone, yet his eyes betrayed the unease he never voiced. Mira remained silent, her face unreadable, but her fingers clenched around her cloak until her knuckles whitened.The courtyard emptied slowly. Men dispersed to their posts, whispers trailing after them like smoke. Ares stayed behind, alone with the shadowed city walls and the distant echo of that enemy horn.He thought of Fallujah. Of the nights before battle when the air seemed to buzz with something that wasn’t fear, not quite hope, but a charge that lived in the marrow. The same hum filled Lin City now. Only this time, Elijah’s small tunic was clenched in his fist....Inside the hall, Mira found him later, staring at the map again, as though sheer will could rearrange the lines of war. She walked up quietly, but he didn’t loo