Magus closed his hand. "Explode."

The inferno folded in on itself and detonated. The air split. The ground shuddered. For a long heartbeat everything was white light.

When the glare thinned, a figure knelt at the storm's center. Ronan, face bowed, chest heaving. He sucked in air like a drowning man. Breath by ragged breath he pushed himself up. His eyes locked on Magus. The purple in them flared hard. His grip on the sword tightened until his fingers ached.

"That won't finish me," he spat. He took a step forward, ready to charge.

Magus shook his head, calm as a grave. "You're wrong. Surviving that was only phase one. Get ready for phase two."

He raised his hands. The stray sparks from the blast began to gather. They pulled together, twined, and formed into tiny orbs

.... fist-sized balls of concentrated flame. Dozens. Hundreds. Thousands. The air filled with red heat.

Ronan's throat went dry. He had not landed one real hit on Magus. Every time the dark emissary struck he'd nearly died. Every move had to be recalculated in the space of a heartbeat. How do you survive an attack you can barely see coming?

The fire-orbs pulsed, humming with imminent detonation. They hovered on the ground, clung to the air, swallowed the horizon. One touch and they would explode. Millions of explosions in an instant.

Ronan spat, forced his fear down. He had training. He had scars and tutors who had bent him into a weapon. He had a cursed ward and a skill only a madman would grant. If any man could do this, it was him.

So he moved.

He cut the first orb. Blade through ember. It split and screamed, but did not detonate. He moved to the next, then the next. Steel flashed faster than breath.

Each cut sent shockwaves of flame beating against his armor. Each time a ball detonated near him it hammered his ribs and rattled his teeth. Blood touched his lip.

He did not stop. Stopping was death. A single lost second and he would be ash.

For every three he cleaved, one blew up and rocked him. The dread armor around his body thrummed, holding the worst of the heat at bay. He felt its strength ebb. It would not hold forever.

Still he cut. Still he pushed forward. He had to end this. He had to kill Magus and break the storm.

Ronan carved through another cluster. The roar of dying flames filled his ears. Breath burned his lungs. The crown's glow flickered.

If the armor failed....if it collapsed....everything would end in a single supernova of red fire.

He swung again.

Not long at all. He had to end this.

With a sharp twist of his body, Ronan lunged into the air, blades crossing into an X.

"Vibrant Slash!"

The strike tore forward at insane speed, ripping straight for Magus. But Ronan wasn't stupid, he expected Magus to dodge or counter. The moment the slash was loosed, he unleashed three daggers that ripped through the air, all locked on Magus.

Magus floated upward, letting the X Slash rip past like it was nothing. His wind barrier shoved aside two daggers, but the third cut straight for his face. At the last second, his hand shot out, catching it clean.

He tilted his head, eyes narrowing at Ronan down below.

Ronan looked right back and smiled. Not wide, not mocking, just enough to make Magus' heart skip for a split second.

Too late.

The dagger exploded.

A blinding flash swallowed the sky, hurling Magus downward. The ground split as Ronan warped forward, blades raised high, striking with everything he had.

"Die now!"

Both swords slammed down on Magus' chest....

"Explode."

The single word from Magus was enough. His body glowed violently, and a brutal explosion roared outward. The shockwave cracked the air itself, throwing Ronan down like a ragdoll. He slammed into the earth with a deafening boom, fireballs collapsing into nothing.

Seconds ticked by.

Magus hovered above, not a scratch marring his flawless face, not even a breath out of place.

Ronan, meanwhile, forced himself back to his feet, coughing, body trembling. His energy was still burning, but his health was low. Too low. He stared at Magus, who calmly raised a hand, a bolt of lightning swelling in his palm, crackling with annihilation.

"Goodbye. You fought well," Magus said softly.

The thunderbolt ripped through the air, screaming down at Ronan.

Ronan looked at his two broken blades, then the cracked armor clinging to his body. Could he really survive this? Doubt clawed at him for the first time.

But before the bolt could reach him....

A blue wave of energy tore across the battlefield, smashing into the thunderbolt and snuffing it out like it was nothing.

A silver sword followed, cutting for Magus' throat....only for him to casually destroy it with a gust of wind.

Ronan turned.

Three figures walked toward him. Balor. Silver Wing. Shae. They closed in at his side.

And then....another. A tiny figure leapt down from Balor's shoulder, swelling, shifting, until he stood at full height, a man once more.

His face broke into relief.

"Yeah, finally," he said, voice heavy with conviction and relief. "Now this is a battle we'll gladly join."

---

TO BE CONTINUED…

AUTHOR'S NOTE

That's the chapter, everyone!

If you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote with your Power Stones, drop a Golden Ticket, and leave a comment or review, it really helps the story grow and keeps me motivated to deliver more chapters for you all.

Your support means everything, so let me know what you think:

✨ Who's your favorite character so far?

✨ What do you think will happen next?

✨ Any wild theories? I love reading them!

Stay tuned, the next chapter is coming soon.

That's the chapter, everyone!

If you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote with your Power Stones, drop a Golden Ticket, and leave a comment or review, it really helps the story grow and keeps me motivated to deliver more chapters for you all.

Your support means everything, so let me know what you think:

✨ Who's your favorite character so far?

✨ What do you think will happen next?

✨ Any wild theories? I love reading them!

Stay tuned, the next chapter is coming soon.

– Ultra

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