Despite a lifetime of rivalries, conspiracies, even that first assassination attempt that had marked the beginning of their relationship, Rovenna had never imagined that her enmity with Eldrin would reach such an irreversible point. In some corner of her mind, she had always believed that something more than rancor remained between them, a spark of respect, perhaps even a vestige of the friendship of their first moments training with their magic.

That man with the bloodied face before her now was but a shadow of that young Acolyte enthusiastic for knowledge who had at first dazzled young Rovenna.

However, even with one eye missing, Eldrin had become even more dangerous because there was no longer anything to stop him from holding back. His position as Leader, his honor, his own name. Everything he once cared about had been lost. He was consumed by a deep darkness and turned into a creature driven by a rage that she knew could consume them both if she didn't act careful.

She wanted to appear confident, but her body was betraying her. The long ride had left its marks; she felt the weight of fatigue in every muscle and a sharp pain in her back. Her breathing, though controlled, was heavy, and a slight tremor in her hands indicated her accumulated fatigue that had worsened after the first attack. It was the wrong moment to be in such a state.

But there was no more time to hesitate.

After uttering her warning against Eldrin, the Master Arcanist gritted her teeth to prevent a hint of doubt from escaping them in the form of a tremor.

A glint of mockery flashed in Eldrin's eye.

“Everything you are now, Rovenna, is thanks to me and that unworthy elf you managed to seduce.”

In response Rovenna's lips curved into a contemptuous smile.

“You may be right, as far as Narthoss is concerned, but as for you I surpassed you long ago.”

“You've been nothing but lucky so far.”

“Tell that to all the wizards who saw you eat the dust in our last fight.”

With a sudden movement, Eldrin extended both hands towards the ground. A rumble echoed through the earth, which began to shake violently beneath Rovenna's feet. In a matter of seconds, deep fissures snaked toward her like hungry predators, seeking to destabilize her. Chunks of rock and earth rose into the air.

With barely enough time to react, Rovenna stretched out her arms and with a smooth gesture summoned the force of a rising whirlwind whose force floated her into the air as it expanded pushing away the chunks of rock and Eldrin himself who needed to create a shield to prevent the whirlwind from sweeping him away, while being followed by sharp particles that almost smashed into him.

Rovenna turned her head for a moment to where Olivia and Silas were supposed to be, but she could barely see them through the dust and debris swirling around them. Still she sensed the energy emanating from the chimera now turned human, much to Rovenna's confusion who barely had time now to reflect on such a discovery.

Despite the force of the whirlwind, Eldrin managed to position himself so that he concentrated his power on a point right in front of him, creating an invisible repulsive barrier that deflected the force of the wind in all directions. Upon contact with the whirlwind, the energy wave caused a burst of energy that forced Rovenna to create a shield to protect herself. That caused the wind to disintegrate, and a cloud of dust and debris fell on them.

Rovenna's heart thumped against her chest as if it wanted to shoot out. She took a deep breath as she looked at the heaving chest of Eldrin who had also been affected by the exertion of the attack.

“You know... if we keep going... neither one of us can... hold on like this... for so long,” she told him.

“Then... we will fight... until we both... fall.”

Without wasting any time, Eldrin extended an arm to fire a dark orb at Rovenna. It wasn't as powerful as the first one, but it was fast enough that she had to react quickly and summon a shield. She didn't want to waste energy so as long as she could she would stay on the defensive.

But Eldrin, knowing that and taking advantage of the time it took Rovenna to blast the orb against his shield, brought both palms together and then spread them apart in one swift motion. A golden, sparkling net expanded with astonishing speed, unfurling in the air like a death trap in which each thread of light vibrated with a lethal intensity that promised to cut and trap its prey.

Before being hit by the net, Rovenna, with a gigantic effort, summoned a second shield to protect herself. The golden net slammed into the shield with a deafening sizzle, enveloping it with strands of energy that began to press hard, seeking to penetrate Rovenna's defense. She felt the pressure building, the golden strands pressing harder and harder, threatening to tear through her protection and capture her in an instant.

Eldrin did not stop his attack there. As Rovenna struggled to maintain the shield, he turned his wrist with a decisive gesture, and the golden net began to pulse, increasing the pressure and generating small energy discharges that sought any weakness in his opponent's barrier.

Rovenna knew she couldn't keep it up forever and that her shield, though strong, was beginning to give way under the relentless strain.

While she was deciding on her next attack, a huge stone shot towards Eldrin who had no difficulty dodging it and was pulverized against the golden strands.

Rovenna turned her head to meet the determined gaze of the chimera Silas still standing next to Olivia's sleeping body. The boy grabbed another stone with that huge bear hand that stood out against the rest of his human body and continued shooting at Eldrin without stopping.

The Master Arcanist never thought she would ever see the day when a chimera would care for a human in such a way, let alone one trying to help her, albeit unknowingly, just her, a descendant of chimera hunters.

They are young, she thought, and the young always think they can change things.

And that was exactly why she had to do everything she could to survive Eldrin or die along with him.

She could no longer hold back.

She closed the fist of her left hand where several decades ago the elf Narthoss had made a cut with a dagger from which she still had a small scar, almost imperceptible to everyone but her.

In the end, Narthoss, I will not be able to keep my promise.

There was a reason why humans could not reach the same level as a magical creature. It was not that they lacked the potential to achieve it, but that their bodies were not prepared to handle such an extreme level of magical energy. In the face of the power of the Ethereal Codes, humans were like leaves floating dangerously above the flames.

Had it not been for Narthoss, she would never have been able to reach that limit.

But now she had to cross it, and there was no elf to protect her.

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In an act of calculated desperation, she closed her eyes for an instant and stretched her hand skyward, channeling her energy into a single point. From her fingertips emerged a beam of pure light, which quickly solidified, taking the form of a glowing sword.

The midday sky above them darkened.

With fierce determination shining in her eyes, Rovenna gripped the sword with both hands and brought it down in a swift and precise arc. The luminous blade came into contact with the golden net, and a blinding spark lit up the entire battlefield as it sliced through the threads as if they were mere strands of silk that vanished into thin air, disintegrating into particles of smoke.

Even so, Eldrin did not seem surprised by this demonstration of power that she had been keeping up her sleeve for so long.

“You have not been the only disciple chosen by elves.”

After saying this, Eldrin himself extended his hand towards the sky in a movement identical to Rovenna's and from his hand emerged a sword of light identical to hers.

That was when she understood it all.

“All this time... you have been conspiring together with Daephennya.”

Eldrin wielded his sword in Rovenna's direction.

“Before you die, you must know that I have forgiven you.”

“You? Forgive?”

“If Narthoss had not chosen you, I would never have been accepted by Lady Daephennya, who is undoubtedly superior to her brothers.”

Rovenna could not help but escape a bitter laugh

“You and I are but pawns in the elven game.”

“Perhaps... but of the two of us it is I who serves the winner of this game.”

After uttering a defiant shriek, Rovenna lunged towards Eldrin. The blades of light sizzled in the air as they met. The impact resounded like thunder, causing a shockwave that forced both wizards to brace themselves tightly, sword against sword, to keep their balance.

“If you want us both to be consumed in fire, so be it.”

Rovenna did not wait to try to thrust her sword into Eldrin's chest but Eldrin deflected the attack at the last instant. The light from his own blade traced an arc through the air as he blocked the thrust and countered with a series of swift, lethal blows, each one aimed with cold, calculated malice. The duel became a frenzied dance of flashes that enveloped the two fighters.

Rovenna was forced to retreat, blocking and deflecting his attacks, but each move required a huge effort. The weight of battle was beginning to take its toll on her exhausted muscles, and though her determination was unwavering, she knew they were both fighting against time. She launched an upward slash, seeking to break Eldrin's guard, but he blocked it with ease, turning on his heels and launching a swift lunge towards her abdomen.

Rovenna barely had time to dodge it, feeling the heat of the blade graze her side. Seizing the momentum, she spun again and launched a series of quick strikes, trying to take advantage of any gaps in Eldrin's defense. One of her attacks finally found its mark, cutting Eldrin's tunic and leaving him a wound from which a significant amount of blood began to flow.

For a moment, hope swelled Rovenna's chest.

But Eldrin showed no signs of pain. With a cruel smile, he lunged forward with renewed ferocity, his sword descending in a relentless arc. Rovenna raised her sword to block, but the force of the impact staggered her. Eldrin took advantage of her hesitation and launched a lunge straight for Rovenna's heart.

She deflected the attack in time, but Eldrin, having foreseen that, quickly released a hand from which a small tip of light emerged and plunged hard into Rovenna's abdomen.

Time seemed to stand still as Rovenna felt her body split in pain and darkness began to envelop her as the energy from the lunge spread through her exhausted, old body. Her arms dropped like stones on either side of her body and her sword of light vanished into the air in tiny sparks.

She closed her eyes. She had lost. Now at least she wished to leave in peace by sparing herself the image of triumph that shone in Eldrin's one eye.

Someone else would have to take over the kingdom from now on.

As her soul sank into the shadows, she heard a soft voice calling out to her.

Rovenna...

“Ha...”

It couldn't be, after so many years, in the end, she was going to die thinking about him.

“Narthoss...”

What are you doing, Rovenna? I told you never to risk yourself like that. You have a duty to come back to me.

“You know I couldn't stand by and do nothing... In the end, we'll just have to wait until the end of time to see each other.”

Don't claim victory yet.

The heat finished spreading throughout Rovenna's body. Before long, her body would be consumed by flames and it would be as if she had never walked the face of the earth.

However, the sensation was far from being as searing as she had feared. Perhaps it was death's own mercy that spared her from experiencing that ultimate suffering.

She felt Eldrin's body crawl towards her, but she did not care.

Now she could only feel peace.

“What's this?” her adversary's voice sounded puzzled. “An elven seal?”

Hearing those words, Rovenna was able to open her eyes just in time to observe how at the very spot where Eldrin had wounded her floated a golden seal, inside which were intertwined ancient symbols that Rovenna was unable to read but which reminded her of the books she used to study in the library of the White Tower as a young woman. The symbols formed an intricate pattern of finely drawn curves and lines that slowly moved, as if they had a life of their own, shifting position and forming new patterns as the circle spun like an intricate lock.

She could not finish studying them because at the same moment that the mechanism seemed to stop, several flashes shot out like arrows and embedded themselves in various parts of Eldrin's body, which fell to the ground emitting a choked shriek.

Stunned, Rovenna watched as the arrows exploded into flames that completely engulfed her rival's body until it was consumed like a piece of parchment that had been thrown into the fireplace.

Eldrin screamed, but his voice faded in the roar of the energy that in a few seconds turned him into a silhouette of smoke and ashes that rose in spirals towards the sky and ended up dispersing until there was no trace of their existence.

Having accomplished its task, the elven seal on Rovenna's body reduced its intensity until it became a soft glow that was healing her wounds as she slowly felt her body regain strength.

She then pressed a hand to her eyes.

“Damn Narthoss...” she moaned feeling a mixture of indignation and gratitude as she understood that the elf had been secretly experimenting with her body.

Behind her, she felt footsteps approaching.

“He's gone...” Silas said.

Rovenna sighed as she rose from the ground.

“He's gone back to the Origin.”

The boy let out a snort.

“Even he can return to Origin?”

She gave a wry grimace, understanding his indignation.

“As I understand it, we all come from the same place where we will one day return. That cannot be changed. I hope, at least, that he finds the peace he never had. Now...” Rovenna turned to Silas. “My subordinates were helping with the fire that spread through the village but it won't be long before they find us. You must leave now. I will try to delay my mission as long as I can, so as not to catch up with you.”

“I'm not going without Olivia.”

Rovenna narrowed her eyes.

“You know what Olivia's role in all this is, don't you?”

The boy didn't answer, and Rovenna sighed.

“Well, I guess I owe you that.”

“What does that mean?” Silas asked as Rovenna approached Olivia's body, still unconscious on the floor.

“My name is Rovenna, and I belong to the Astra family.”

“That name means nothing to me.”

“Someday it will, and when that happens you will have to decide what to do with me. In the meantime, I will continue to work to atone for all the sins of my family,” Rovenna extended a hand towards Olivia's head. “My healing methods are not as effective as those of the sirenians but I can help her wake up.”

It took longer than she thought, but after several minutes, the girl's eyelids began to twitch until her two blue eyes widened.

“Silas?”

“Olivia!”

“You are safe... Spark?”

“She saved me.”

“Where are we now? You...” Olivia turned her startled eyes to Rovenna. “Ma... Master... Arcanist?”

“Lady Olivia of Shadowrock” Rovenna smiled. “The last time I saw you, you were a innocent child and now you are a fugitive.”

“What are you going to...?” Olivia didn't have time to finish the question because Rovenna, with her recovered strength, lifted her off the floor.

“You will not be taken to the Council... although I would like to find out a couple of things... But there is no time. Your friend will explain everything to you, “having said that, Rovenna whistled shrilly until hoofbeats were heard approaching. “You will ride my horse, in that direction,” she pointed a finger to the east. “Don't stop for anything, not even after dark, until you reach Stormbrace. I will see to it that someone will assist you once you get there.”

As soon as their horse reached them, Rovenna helped them on.

“I'd get that hand back to normal as soon as possible if I were you,” she gestured to Silas with her head.

“I...” the chimera shook his head as Rovenna slapped the horse's haunches hard and it bolted off with Silas holding the reins and Olivia, still weak, sitting in front of him for support as he guided the horse.

“May the Nymph and the Dragon protect them,” Rovenna muttered, sitting down on the ground to wait for the arrival of the rest of the wizards as she watched the fugitives fading away in the distance.