UNITY

The two mighty weapons crashed into each other at frightening speeds. Both Blaze and Sazir's blades met forcefully at the center of the ruins of the burning schoolhouse.

The former pressed his battle axe deeper into the curved blade of ice, attempting to win the clash quickly.

Damn it...

Blaze thought to himself as he was forced to push off the ground, launching his body backward to avoid a fatal chest slash.

He landed on the lower side of the hill, about twenty meters away from Sazir.

The ice general regained his posture quickly after missing a strong horizontal swing aimed at the orange-haired man's chest.

Blaze stood up from his crouching position and slowly stepped toward the second-in-command of the Frostfang army.

He focused all of his physical energy into his legs and then shot forward toward the man coated in ice.

Flames surged around the soaring man, eradicating everything in the vicinity.

The ground began to burn, and ash rained from the sky, turning the dark night into an eerily beautiful scene of flame, ash, and darkness.

Blaze brought his raging axe down on the man of ice.

A loud clang of metal echoed seconds later. Sazir had deflected the axe with a perfectly timed block of his curved blade.

Flames and snow swirled around the men as their blades clashed; however, Blaze was not as focused on the battle as his opponent.

How come I still feel his presence?

Blaze quickly swung his axe to his right, knocking Sazir's blade out of his defensive range.

Blaze shot forward again, but this time, instead of a downward strike, his body lit up like a powerful brazier.

Blaze radiated with flames as he slammed the dull side of the blade directly through Sazir's defense and straight into his chest.

Sazir recoiled in pain, stumbling back from the knockback of the attack.

However, before Sazir could even react, Blaze was once again upon the general, dark orange flames burning in the eyes of the man out of time.

Worried thoughts continued to plague Blaze as he and Sazir traded blows, deflecting and avoiding each other's strikes.

As a sudden realization dawned on the sickly father, he sidestepped a downward slash from the fierce general of ice.

I need to somehow buy myself a minute...

Blaze quickly tried to think of a way to distract Sazir, but the frozen savage was just too much for him.

Sparks and bright flashes painted the sky as the two mighty warriors' destructive fight turned the once-beautiful village into a small crater filled with ruins and debris.

Fire and cold clashed as an idea flashed in the far reaches of Blaze's mind.

Blaze closed the distance in yet another rapid shot toward an exhausted Sazir.

As he flew through the air, Blaze dug his inferno battle axe into the ground, slowing his momentum, but allowing the tip of the axe to hook onto a jagged rock within the ground.

He pulled with all his might, ripping the ashen rocks from the ground and sending them flying in Sazir's direction.

Blaze shot himself through the debris within seconds of the small explosion.

He quickly reached Sazir through the dust and immediately swung his enflamed axe without hesitation into the blinded Sazir.

Flames quickly ate at the man's impaled limb. The blade was not strong enough to break through his armor entirely; however, the damage was done.

The tip of the axe had buried itself horizontally into Sazir's left arm.

Sazir's eyes widened as he blinked, only to see Blaze in front of him, attached to the flame and iron that had penetrated his flesh.

Sazir's twisted smirk quickly turned into a violent scream as he tried to rip the axe from his arm.

Blaze pulled the axe back in a full range of motion, sending Sazir flying about thirty meters behind him while freeing the axe from the savage's arm.

Now that he stood alone and temporarily unbothered, Blaze took the blade of the axe and tore through his own right forearm.

He winced in pain as he pulled a bright white octahedron-shaped gem from under his bloody skin.

Blaze lifted the shard above his head and began to pour his elemental energy into it.

He could feel the Shard of Frost attempting to vacuum the life force out of his soul due to his affinity incompatibility. Blaze smirked, feeling confident he had finally found a way for both him and Chase to survive this terrible night.

A bright white beacon shot into the sky, revealing the position of one of the rarest resources on the continent to the entire village and beyond.

The distraction was flawless. Shortly after, a powerful aura radiated over Blaze.

The air was sucked from Blaze's lungs as the world seemed to grow cold.

"Lady Rhysara..."

Blaze said with a sigh as he felt any hope of living through this die.

She had arrived—the Queen of Frostfang...