The sky split in two.
One half burned red, the other drowned in shadow.
At the center of the sundered world stood Kieran, the Supreme reborn — the God of War himself.
And facing him, the demon newly awakened, Mara, still wearing Dew's face twisted in monstrous transcendence.
The earth itself recoiled between them.
Flames crawled through the cracks like veins of molten light; shadows rose like serpents to swallow them whole.
Every breath was thunder.
Every heartbeat, an explosion.
Inside the blood ward, the air trembled.
The wolves crouched low, whimpering, their instincts screaming submission.
Even the vampires' knees buckled under the weight of divine power.
William pressed his palm against the shimmering barrier, his sigil blazing crimson.
"Supreme..." His voice trembled with something between awe and terror. "He's no longer holding back."
Magnus exhaled a curse, shielding his eyes from the searing light. "That's not the Supreme anymore. That's Kieran. The one the old texts warned about."
Est, clutching a crate of antidotes, looked up at the sky where two titans collided, his voice cracking. "Then who the hell is supposed to stop that?"
No one answered.
Even air dared not move.
Outside, in the heart of the storm — light and shadow collided.
Kieran moved first, faster than thought. His crimson hair whipped through the air as he struck, his sword forged from his own blood and moonfire.
When it met Mara's claw, the impact shattered the sound barrier.
A wave of raw energy rolled outward, uprooting trees, leveling what was left of the battlefield.
Mara laughed — a voice like cracking stone. "Still the same, Kieran. Always fighting for something you're destined to lose."
Kieran's eyes glowed with gold and scarlet, his voice cold, divine.
"I've already lost everything. That's why you'll never win."
They clashed again.
Each strike carved the world apart —
mountains crumbled, rivers boiled, the moon above dimmed as if terrified to witness.
Mara's shadows swarmed, thousands of screaming faces spiraling from his body, devouring everything they touched.
Kieran's response was pure light — moonfire exploding from his wounds, wings of burning gold and crimson unfurling from his back.
The world stood between their wrath — life itself burning as collateral.
Inside the ward, silence broke into chaos.
The wolves howled, pressing their foreheads to the ground.
Magnus' tone was grim. "If he keeps going, there'll be nothing left of this continent."
William's jaw clenched. "He's doing this on purpose."
Est turned to him sharply. "What?"
"He's drawing Mara away from us," William whispered. "He's containing the destruction to himself. He's—"
A violent tremor cut him off. The entire field outside lit up like a second sun.
They all looked up.
For one suspended heartbeat — everything stopped.
Kieran stood with his blade buried in Mara's chest.
But Mara only smiled — and drove his claw through Kieran's abdomen.
Blood. Light. Shadow. Everything imploded.
And in the far north, Sky's —
his sigil blazing, his bond screaming through his veins.
He felt it.
The wound.
The pain.
And for the first time, the Guardian's mark burned bright enough to reach the stars.
---
The battlefield was unrecognizable.
A wasteland of flame and shadow.
The air itself cracked — alive with fury and ruin.
Kieran staggered forward, blood dripping from his mouth, his wounds glowing with molten light instead of red. Every step left a scorch mark on the ground. His sword — no longer metal, but living moonfire — trembled in his grip, howling for another strike.
Across from him, Mara — the thing that once wore Dew's face — grinned, his form growing larger, darker, every breath birthing more chaos. His skin split open with black sigils pulsing beneath, his voice layered with thousands of screaming souls.
"Bleed, Kieran.
Let me drink your divinity.
You cannot cage what the gods themselves abandoned."
Kieran wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand, the motion slow, deliberate.
"I caged death once," he whispered, his eyes glowing like twin eclipses.
"I can do it again."
Then Mara raised both his hands.
The earth screamed.
Dark energy tore through the sky, ripping a hole into the void — and from that void, the creatures poured out by the hundreds. Crawling, flying, slithering — every one of them born from shadow and venom, shrieking in unison.
They swarmed toward the blood ward like locusts.
Inside the ward, chaos broke.
The ground shook as the first wave of creatures slammed into the barrier — black ichor splattering against the crimson veil of Supreme's magic.
William and his guards braced.
"The ward's holding!" shouted Magnus, his blade already drawn.
"For how long?" Alexander snarled, his fangs bared.
William's hands shook as he poured his own energy into the blood ward, reinforcing it with layered sigils. "The strength of the ward depends on the caster," he hissed, voice trembling. "If the Supreme weakens—"
Est cut him off sharply, "Don't say it, Will."
But everyone knew.
If Kieran fell, the ward would fall with him.
Outside, the god of war was being swallowed by his own legend.
Kieran's breath came ragged.
Each inhalation seared his throat, each exhalation poured fire.
But he did not stop.
Could not stop.
He hurled himself at Mara, his sword cleaving through the air — arcs of light slicing through dozens of creatures that leapt toward him. His wounds wept fire; the sigils on his body flickered, burning through his flesh as if divine light could no longer bear its own vessel.
Mara only laughed — a low, echoing sound that seemed to warp the very fabric of the world.
"You're weakening, Kieran. Your blood burns you. Your curse eats you alive. Do you even know which pain belongs to you anymore?"
Kieran's eyes snapped open, brighter than the sun.
"I stopped feeling pain the day she died."
He lunged.
The collision between light and shadow sent out a wave that flattened entire armies — creatures and corpses disintegrated under the pressure. The blood ward itself flared violently, trembling at the edges.
Inside, the vampires and wolves shielded their faces as the world outside turned into a storm of blinding light and black fire.
Magnus's voice broke through the roar. "He's losing control!"
"No," William said quietly, eyes fixed on Kieran's silhouette through the wall of flame.
"He's choosing to burn."
Est's lips parted, trembling. "Why?"
William's gaze darkened.
"To make sure Mara dies even if he burns the world with him."
Outside, Mara smirked, stepping through the sea of flames like it bowed to him.
He raised his hand, a swirling mass of darkness forming in his palm — his voice thundered with ancient incantation:
"By the covenant of forgotten gods, by blood and betrayal, by soul and sacrifice—
awaken, my legion!"
The ground erupted.
From beneath the charred soil, more creatures clawed their way up — hundreds, then thousands, a tide of darkness that blotted out the burning horizon.
They hurled themselves at the blood ward.
Claws and teeth cracked against divine light, the sound like rain on glass — relentless, maddening.
Kieran did not turn.
He knew what Mara was doing — dividing his focus.
But his eyes remained fixed on the demon before him.
Every muscle in his body coiled, his aura spiraling outward, breaking the air itself.
"You can throw the world at me," Kieran whispered, his voice low and dangerous.
"It won't save you."
Mara's grin widened. "Then let's end this, god of ruin."
The two surged forward, and when they met again —
the heavens shattered.
---
The explosion tore through the clouds.
A shockwave of divine and infernal power collided, swallowing the sky in white fire and shadows.
Then — silence.
Only the wind, trembling through the blood-soaked ground.
And the first crack splintered through the Blood Ward.
The crimson barrier wavered, its light flickering erratically like a dying pulse.
Sigils that once pulsed with Supreme's power began to fade, their strength slipping away with every drop of blood Kieran shed outside.
William felt it first. A jolt through the soul-bond that tied him to his master. His breath hitched.
"The Blood Ward... it's failing."
Magnus turned, his massive sword dripping black blood. "He's overextending it. That damn fool—"
A second crack — louder this time — raced across the barrier, red lightning crawling through the air.
The wolves howled in distress, and even the earth trembled beneath them.
Inside the ward, Alexander barked orders to his remaining soldiers. "Hold the line! Don't let a single one near the breach!"
The Blood Ward shimmered again, thin now — fragile. Beyond it, they could see Kieran — crimson and divine — fighting Mara in a storm of ruin. Every impact of their clash sent waves that fractured the ward further.
PP and Felix weren't here — they were far north with Sky. No one could patch the ward now. The last defense depended only on the one casting it.
And the one casting it... was dying.
"Est," William said quietly, his gaze still on the cracking barrier.
Est looked up at him, eyes wide. "What's happening?"
"The Supreme's blood is the ward. If it breaks completely, this place becomes a slaughterhouse."
Est shook his head. "Then we fix it!"
William almost smiled — a small, tired, beautiful thing. "There's nothing left to fix. All we can do is buy time."
Another quake hit. The air filled with screams and the metallic tang of fear.
Outside, thousands of creatures clawed at the edges of the ward, their roars echoing through the ruins.
William turned to Est again, voice steady but eyes soft. "You need to go. Now."
"No!" Est's voice cracked. "You think I'm going to run while you—"
"Est," William said, and this time it wasn't a command — it was a plea.
"Please."
For a heartbeat, the world stilled.
Then Est grabbed William by the collar and kissed him — hard, trembling, desperate.
It was messy and raw and filled with all the words they'd never had the courage to say.
Gawin blinked in pure shock.
Joss gawked. "Oh. My. Moon."
Magnus — even covered in blood — huffed. "About damn time."
Alexander rolled his eyes but smirked. "They do pick the most inconvenient moments."
Est pulled back, eyes glistening. "Don't die. Please."
William managed a smirk, the faintest ghost of humor in the storm. "Not planning to. But no promises."
Est bit his lip, turned, and ran toward the inner castle. Joss and Gawin followed, weapons drawn to guard his retreat.
Outside, the Blood Ward shattered.
The sound was like a scream — piercing, endless.
The light died.
And the darkness rushed in.
Magnus lifted his blade, eyes burning red. "Here they come!"
Alexander's voice thundered beside him. "Then we make them regret it."
William drew his sword, the sigil of his house flaring across his chest. "For the Supreme. For all of us."
The creatures poured through the breach — a tide of shadows, claws, and teeth.
And as the first of them leapt through the shattered light, the defenders stood their ground —
three generals against the end of the world.