Arkhan (2027)

The girl screamed and charged, her blade leaving a streak of gold in the darkness. Arkhan met her strike. The collision of light and dark created a shockwave that sent soldiers on both sides stumbling backward.

They traded blows that illuminated the night. The girl was fast and driven by a desperate courage, but Arkhan was a master of a thousand wars. He deflected her strikes with brutal efficiency, slowly wearing her down. Arkhan

"I was once like you," Arkhan said, stepping forward. "Full of hope and righteous fury. But the world does not bend to the will of the pure. It bends to the strong." The girl screamed and charged, her blade leaving

With a powerful overhead smash, Arkhan shattered her guard and sent her sprawling to the ground. Her sword flew from her grip, landing in the shallow river water. Arkhan stood over her, the dark energy of his blade crackling. They traded blows that illuminated the night

Then, the crowd parted. Standing before him was the young warrior the scout had mentioned. She was clad in silver armor that glowed with a pure, brilliant light, holding a sword that seemed to be forged from a fallen star.

"Do it," she whispered, looking up at him without fear, her eyes filled with tears of frustration. "Kill me."

He was not born a tyrant. Once, he was just a man with a desperate dream to unite the warring clans of the North. But power has a way of twisting noble intentions. To save his people, he had made a pact with an ancient, nameless entity. It gave him immortality and unstoppable might, but it stripped away his humanity. Now, he felt neither joy nor sorrow—only an endless, driving urge to conquer.