Feet rooted to the earth.
Muscles locked.
Breath shallow.
Somewhere in the distance, I hear them arguing—my mentor, my trainer—voices rising, clashing, but it all feels far away. Muffled, like I’m underwater.
All I can see is the Gorganthe. The sheer size of it pressing down on me like gravity—like I’m about to becrushed.
My brain keeps saying this is just training. But to my body, it doesn’tfeellike training.
The Gorganthe starts to move, its legs like pillars—strong enough to carry the weight of destruction. Every step makes the groundtremble, cracks spidering out from beneath its feet.
“Amara!” Thane’s voice cuts through the haze. “Move! Fight!”
Thane’s voice snaps me back into my body.Fight. Strike. Block. Again.The repetition of training, of drills shouted over sweat and bruises, crash into me all at once.
And just like that—Imove.
My palms slam the ground andpullfor the Element that’s been part of me since birth. The earth answers—rising up on either side of me like giant hands. Massive, taller even than the Gorganthe itself. Stone and soil surge skyward, groaning as they grind against one another.
The ground trembles beneath me, but I don’t falter. I don’t wait for the monster to strike first—I bring thefightto it.
I thrust my hands forward and the massive walls of earth slide toward the Gorganthe, grinding across the ground.
The Gorganthe lets loose a deafening roar as the stonecloses in on it. I slam my hands together—fingers locking, arms shaking with effort.
With a deafening crack, the two massive slabs crash inward from either side, slamming into the monster with the force of a collapsing mountain. Dust and debris explode into the air. The ground shakes. And for a breathless moment—everything is silent.
But the Gorganthebreaks free.
With an earsplitting roar, it shatters the stone trap—earth exploding outward in every direction.
In my peripheral vision, I see Thane react instantly—throwing up a wall of fire around himself and Valen. Flames roar to life just as debris slams into it.
I throw up my own shield—air swirling in a tight vortex around me. Chunks of stone and dirt bounce harmlessly off it, the wind howling in my ears.
When the dust clears, the Gorganthe is still standing, but it’s not unscathed. It moves slower now, staggering under its own weight. Black blood oozes from its nose, arms, chest—thick and tar-like, streaking down its hide. Battered and bleeding, but not beaten.
It lumbers towards me and swings a giant hand. Even through the enchantments, the blow launches me off my feet. I slam onto my back, air ripped from my lungs. Spots burst across my vision, the world tilting sideways.
Through the haze, I glimpse Valen holding Thane back at the field’s edge, his palms raised in restraint.
The Gorganthe bellows, a sound that rattles my bones and shakes the ground beneath my back.
Thane’s voice cuts through the chaos. “Get up and fight, Amara!”
I drag myself up, lungs burning, settling into a low crouch. The monster charges.
It lashes out again, claws tearing at the air—but this time I’m ready. I roll under it and spring to my feet behind the monster, sprinting to widen the gap.
It roars in frustration and turns, its reaching hand swiping. I feel the air whip past my arm, the Gorganthe’s claws inches from me.
Just then, heavy drops of rain begin to fall. One. Two. Thenall at once.
Within seconds, the skies open. A full downpour crashes over us—soaking the earth, flooding the field. Water iseverywhere.I’m drenched, strands of wet hair plastered to my face. Mud already clinging to my boots. But I keep running.
The Gorganthe still moves—slow, but relentless. Each step a tremor.
