Darius stood at the edge of the war table, his gauntleted hands gripping its edges tightly. The spy who had delivered the grim news knelt before him, his cloak tattered and his face pale with exhaustion.

  "Are you certain of what you saw?" Darius asked, his voice sharp.

  The spy nodded, his breath still labored. "Yes, Commander. Kael's forces are preparing for something monumental. He's gathered followers from all corners of the land—many are corrupted, but some... some are just desperate people."

  Arthur leaned against the wall, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. "Desperate for what?"

  The spy hesitated before answering. "For hope, I think. Kael's promises are seductive—freedom from the old ways, power for the powerless. He spoke to them like... like he believed every word."

  Arthur frowned, his jaw tightening. The idea of Kael rallying people not just through fear but through belief was a thought he didn't want to entertain.

  "What about the ritual?" Darius pressed.

  "It begins tonight," the spy said. "The Mire itself is changing—resonating with the corruption he's unleashed. He's using conduits—people—willing to give their lives for his cause. If he succeeds..."

  The room fell silent.

  Roderic, standing near the map, adjusted his spectacles. "If Kael is using conduits, he's likely amplifying Resonance through their bodies. It's a reckless approach, but... effective."

  "And dangerous," Darius added.

  Roderic nodded grimly. "If the ritual works, Kael could fundamentally alter Resonance itself—shifting it from a force of balance to one of pure chaos. It would undo everything the champions and the kingdom have worked to preserve."

  Arthur pushed off the wall, his voice low but firm. "Then we can't let it happen."

  Darius looked at him, his eyes steely. "We won't. But charging in blindly won't stop him."

  Kael's Perspective: Origins in the Kingdom

  Kael stood within the depths of the temple, the air around him alive with the pulsing energy of Resonance. He reached out, tracing his fingers over the glyphs carved into the walls. The knowledge of the precursors, their warnings and failures, had fueled his vision. Yet, in the stillness of the chamber, his mind drifted to a time before all of this—a time when he had believed in the kingdom.

  Once, he had been a promising officer in the king's guard, a figure admired for his discipline and intelligence. He had dedicated his life to protecting the kingdom, believing in its ideals of unity and justice. But over time, those ideals had begun to crumble before his eyes.

  He remembered the starving peasants in the outer districts, begging for scraps while nobles feasted in their marble halls. He remembered the cries of those abandoned during Resonance outbreaks, left to die because they were deemed expendable. He remembered kneeling before the champions, pleading for intervention, only to be dismissed with hollow words about balance and the greater good.

  Balance. The word was like ash in his mouth.

  Kael clenched his fist, the memory of that moment still raw. "Balance is a lie," he murmured to himself. "A pretty word they use to justify inaction."

  The breaking point had come when his village—his home—had been consumed by an outbreak of corruption. He had begged the kingdom to send aid, to save the people he had grown up with. But the champions had decreed the risk too great, and the village was abandoned. Left to rot, like so many others.

  Kael had stood among the ashes of his home, his heart hardened and his faith shattered. That day, he made a vow: if the kingdom would not change, then he would destroy it. And from its ruins, he would build something better.

  Darius straightened, pointing to the map spread out on the table. It was crude, a hastily drawn sketch of the Blighted Mire based on the spy's descriptions.

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  "Kael's forces are concentrated here," Darius said, indicating the temple at the heart of the Mire. "It's heavily fortified, and the corruption makes a direct assault impossible. But there's a weakness."

  Roderic stepped forward, tapping a specific point on the map near the temple. "Kael's ritual relies on conduits—living vessels amplifying Resonance. If we disrupt even a few of them, the ritual will destabilize."

  Arthur frowned. "And how do we do that?"

  "With these," Roderic said, pulling out a small pouch and setting it on the table. Inside were fragile-looking vials filled with a shimmering blue liquid.

  "Resonance dampeners," Roderic explained. "They temporarily suppress chaotic Resonance in a localized area. They won't last long, but they'll give us a window to neutralize the conduits."

  Darius nodded. "Arthur and Alexander, your job is to get inside the temple and place these dampeners near the conduits. Disrupt them, and Kael's ritual collapses."

  Arthur's brow furrowed. "You're splitting us up?"

  "We don't have a choice," Darius said firmly. "Roderic and I will create a diversion to draw Kael's forces away from the temple. That will give you the opening you need to get in."

  "And if we encounter Kael?" Alexander asked, his voice calm but sharp.

  "You won't engage him," Darius said, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Your mission is sabotage, nothing more. If you see Kael, you run."

  Arthur exchanged a glance with Alexander, who gave a small nod.

  "It's risky," Alexander said, "but it's doable."

  Darius placed a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "You've come far, Arthur, but you're not ready for Kael. None of us are. That's why we fight smart. Trust in the plan."

  Arthur nodded, his hand brushing the hilt of his sword. "I'll get it done."

  Kael ascended the steps to the temple's central platform, where his followers had gathered in solemn anticipation. The conduits knelt in a circle around the ritual site, their faces calm despite the knowledge of what was to come. Each one radiated Resonance, their bodies already attuned to the chaotic energy of the Mire.

  Lyssa approached him, her expression resolute. "The conduits are ready, my lord. We can begin at your command."

  Kael looked out over the crowd, his gaze sweeping across the faces of his followers. These were not mindless zealots. They were men and women who had suffered under the kingdom's rule, who had been cast aside and forgotten. He had given them purpose, shown them a vision of a world where they would no longer be powerless.

  "Today," Kael said, his voice carrying over the assembled crowd, "we take the first step toward liberation. The kingdom calls us corrupted, monsters—but we know the truth. We are the future. The champions cling to their crumbling order, but we will rise from its ashes. And we will reshape this world."

  The crowd erupted in cheers, their voices echoing through the temple. Kael turned to Lyssa, his expression calm but resolute.

  "Begin the ritual."

  Arthur and Alexander crouched at the edge of the temple's perimeter, their eyes fixed on the gathering below. The air was thick with tension, the hum of Resonance so intense it seemed to vibrate in their bones.

  "Are you ready?" Alexander asked, his voice low.

  Arthur tightened his grip on his sword, the runes glowing faintly in response. "As ready as I'll ever be."

  Darius's signal came from the eastern flank—a burst of light and a deafening roar as he and Roderic launched their diversion. Kael's forces began to move, drawn toward the commotion.

  "This is it," Alexander said. "Let's move."

  The two slipped into the shadows, their mission—and the weight of its consequences—hanging heavy over them