The Rift of Dracolys roared, a tempest of light and shadow that tore at the valley’s heart, its jagged edges pulsing like a living wound. Ten stood frozen, the Tear of the Last Dragon blazing in his hand, its azure light searing his palm as the mysterious figure loomed before him. Its form was neither human nor dragon, but a shimmering amalgam of both—scales of radiant silver, eyes like twin stars, and a presence that pressed against his mind like a mountain. Its voice, a chorus of ancient echoes, lingered in the air: The Tear was never yours alone.Liora gripped the dragon scale, its golden runes flaring, her face pale but resolute. The shadow-beasts, moments ago a writhing horde, stood unnaturally still, their eyeless forms quivering as if bound by the figure’s will. Kenal’s figure, its obsidian scales glinting, hesitated, its mist-blade lowered, its red eyes flickering with uncertainty. The valley trembled, rocks splintering, the ground cracking beneath the Rift’s relentless hum.He

Dust swirled in the Glitch slums’ training yard, packed dirt hard underfoot. Huts leaned, their walls patched with rusted metal and torn cloth. Fires burned low, smoke curling with a sour tang. Sticks clacked as scavengers sparred, their shouts sharp in the hollow air. Beyond the broken fence, shadows crawled like spilled ink, reaching closer with every heartbeat.Ten stood at the center, chest heaving, sweat streaking his brow. The Tear pulsed at his side, light straining against the dark tide. Liora was beside him, her fingers clenched white around her dagger, eyes locked on the looming mass that rose from the pit—an ancient shadow given form.And above it, wings spread wider than the yard itself, the dragon stirred. Its scales were silver shot with blue fire, its gaze older than stone. When it spoke, the ground shivered.---“Two souls… bound in fracture,” the dragon’s voice rumbled, deep and resonant, carrying across the ruins. “One flame, one shadow. One must yield, or both be de

The Rift of Dracolys writhed as though alive, its jagged mouth stretching wider with a thunderous crack, vomiting streams of light and shadow that twisted the very air into spiraling distortions. Ten planted his boots against the trembling rock, yet the invisible hand of the void dragged at him relentlessly, pulling him closer with each breath. The Tear of the Last Dragon blazed in his palm, the heat biting through his skin until it felt as though his bones would scorch, its azure light flickering under the Rift’s suffocating pressure. Inside his head the shadow-self laughed, a sound that was not his own but carried his voice, a mocking echo that blurred the line between thought and intrusion. We are one, it hissed, again and again, weaving itself into the rhythm of his pulse.Liora’s grip held him steady. Her fingers entwined with his in a bond forged from desperation and trust, while the dragon scale in her other hand pulsed with golden fire that pushed back against the encroaching

The valley quaked, its jagged cliffs shuddering as the Rift of Dracolys unleashed a tempest of light and shadow, the air crackling with raw energy that stung Ten’s skin. He stood at the edge of the radiant bridge, the Tear of the Last Dragon pulsing in his hand, its azure light now fused with the shadow-self’s essence, a volatile mix that burned through his veins. The shadow-self’s voice, once a mocking whisper, now roared within him, a tidal wave of doubt and power.We are the Rift’s heart, it declared, its tone a blend of triumph and menace, urging him to embrace its strength. We are storm, we are ruin, we are the only truth that remains when hope collapses.Liora gripped his hand, her touch a steady anchor against the chaos, the dragon scale in her palm blazing with golden light that flickered with the starlight woman’s merged essence. Her eyes, reflecting the shattered council chamber, held a fierce resolve, though her face betrayed the weight of their choice. She whispered, “Ten,

The Primal Awakening towered above them, a shape that was not a shape, an enormity that seemed to stretch beyond sight. Its wings scraped the heavens, carving trails of burning glass across the firmament. Its voice was not sound but rupture, each syllable cracking bone and bending air.“YOU CALLED ME FROM SILENCE. NOW BE SILENT FOREVER.”The companions staggered, yet none fled. Torin lifted his blade though it shook in his hands. “If death is the only gift we can give, then let it be carved into this monster’s flesh!”He charged, striking against the beast’s vast limb. Sparks blazed, steel screaming, and Torin was hurled back like a broken arrow, skidding across the stone. Helena darted forward, catching him before he fell into a crevice, her breath ragged.“Stand, Torin! If you fall, who else will hurl curses at me?” she cried.Torin spat blood but laughed hoarsely. “Then I’ll stand, if only to spite you.”Sari and Lira raised their palms together, twin arcs of flame spiraling skywar