Episode 17: The Blade of Judgment

Mira’s breath hitched as the blade cleared its sheath.

A terrible silence fell over the chamber.

It wasn’t just the absence of sound it was as if the very fabric of the Lost Land held its breath.

The shadow before her now stood completely still, his fingers wrapped around the hilt of his sword, the tip hovering inches above the ground. The blackened steel hummed with something ancient, something terrifying.

Mira felt it instantly.

Death.

That blade had ended countless lives. It carried a weight that pressed against her very soul.

Her body was screaming. Her ribs were shattered. Her arm hung uselessly at her side. Her leg throbbed with unbearable pain. But none of it compared to the fear crawling up her spine.

This was different.

This wasn’t just another fight.

This was an execution.

And she was the condemned.

The shadow moved.

Mira barely saw it.

One moment he was standing before her, sword lowered the next, a flash of black steel came hurtling toward her throat.

Her instincts took over.

She twisted her body just in time the blade grazed her cheek, carving a deep, burning line across her skin. She staggered back, barely keeping her footing.

Too fast.

She didn’t have time to think.

Another strike.

She barely dodged. The air whistled as the sword sliced past her neck, missing by mere inches.

She lashed out with her good arm a desperate punch aimed at his side

But it was useless.

Before she even completed the motion, the shadow moved again.

This time, he didn’t strike with his sword.

This time, he used his foot.

A single, effortless kick to her wounded ribs.

A deafening crack.

White-hot pain.

Mira’s vision blurred. She collapsed onto her knees, gasping as agony exploded through her body. Blood spilled from her lips. She clutched her side, feeling the bones shift unnaturally beneath her touch.

She had never felt pain like this before.

She couldn’t win.

Her mind screamed the truth, but her heart refused to listen.

She forced herself to rise, wobbling on her broken leg, her breath ragged. She had to keep fighting.

But the shadow only watched.

As if waiting.

His glowing eyes locked onto her, studying her battered form. And then he sighed.

It was the first sound he had made.

Mira’s blood ran cold.

His grip tightened around the sword.

And then he disappeared.

No.