The darkness in the tunnel was as thick as tar; they heard a blade scraping against stone. Then a second, slow strike. Heavy, rhythmic footsteps.

“Target located” — the voice echoed, inhuman, as if the steel itself were speaking.

Kael drew his sword. Noah raised his hands, and fire flared in them.

“Commander of the elite warriors." — Kael whispered. — “One of these can wipe out an entire company.”

“Then the two of us will take him.” — Noah said with a crooked smile.

The warrior struck first. Despite his heavy armor, he moved with a speed he shouldn’t have possessed. The blade came down on Kael like lightning. Kael parried the blow, but the force of the impact sent him flying several meters back.

Noah struck his opponent’s side with a wave of fire. The flames engulfed the armor… but it didn’t crack. The rune on the breastplate glowed menacingly, extinguishing the fire.

“Anti-magic shield.” — Noah hissed. — “Great, so you’ve got steel left.”

Kael raised his sword with both hands and charged. The blade sliced through the air, but the Warrior blocked it with a single motion. A spin — and a kick that sent Kael to his knees.

Noah gathered fire in his hands, this time as dense as molten metal. He hurled it, aiming for the seams of the armor. The explosion flashed blindingly. The Warrior took a step back — for the first time.

“It works!” — Noah shouted.

“Now it’s my turn!” — Kael sprang up, striking the same spot. The steel cracked, but only slightly.

The warrior roared and swung his blade in a wide arc. The blade sliced through the air so close to Kael’s face that he felt a gust of wind. He regained his balance at the last moment.

“He’s learning…” — Noah muttered, stepping back. “He’s analyzing our every move.”

The warrior lunged forward. Noah dodged, creating a wall of fire in front of him that swirled into a vortex. The heat was so intense that the stone walls began to crack. Kael plunged into the vortex with him — the fire didn’t burn, but it shielded him from his opponent’s gaze.

“On three!” — Noah shouted.

“One!” — Kael positioned himself to strike.

“Two!” — The fire thickened, forming a corridor.

“Three!” They both leaped out of the vortex at the same time — Kael from above, Noah from the side.

The strike was coordinated. Kael’s blade struck the previously slashed spot on the armor, and Noah’s fire burst through the gap. The internal mechanisms of the anti-magic shield exploded.

The warrior took two steps back, letting out a sound resembling pain for the first time.

“We’ve got him!” — Kael charged forward, but his opponent suddenly flung aside his sword… and extended two curved blades from his forearms.

“I didn’t think I’d have to use this.” — the warrior said coolly

“Now the real fight begins.” — he added.

The Warrior’s movements became even faster. He attacked from both sides, forcing Kael to dodge constantly. Noah had to abandon his offensive to cover him. Waves of fire deflected the blows, but every centimeter of the tunnel turned into a battlefield.

At one point, the Warrior struck so hard that Kael’s blade snapped right at the hilt. Kael landed on his back, unarmed.

Noah immediately leaped between them, drawing on every last reserve of power. Fire exploded in the shape of a dragon’s maw, which closed in on the Warrior.

“Now, Kael!” — he shouted.

Instead of looking for a weapon, Kael grabbed a fragment of the broken sword, saturated it with Noah’s fire, and thrust it straight into the exposed joint beneath the helmet.

The red light in the Warrior’s eyes went out. The body staggered… and collapsed onto the stone floor.

Silence. They both stood there, panting heavily.

“That was…” — Noah began.

“Too close.” — Kael finished, wiping the sweat from his forehead. His hand was burned.

Noah kicked the Warrior’s dead body.

“One down. But if he was here alone… I think I know what that means.”

From the darkness behind them came the sounds of running. This time, not the metallic footsteps of a single warrior, but the pounding of many feet, the clang of armor, the clatter of weapons.

Kael narrowed his eyes.

“The Imperial Army.”

Soldiers burst out of the tunnel — a dozen or so, maybe more. Armed with spears and swords, and behind them, mages with runic staffs.

Noah smiled wryly, raising his hands, in which fire flared up once more.

“Well, I guess it’s time… to make some noise.”

To be continued in the next chapter…