The mirrored field shimmered, fractured by heat and motion.
Jessa breathed heavily, holding back the last of her flame. Her illusions flickered at the edges now,less sharp, less stable. Bran parried another thrust, pushing his attacker back with a grunt. Blood trickled from a shallow cut above his brow.
Kae had fallen into a rhythm taunt, dodge, strike but he wasn't invincible. One enemy illusionist nearly caught him in a reflected trap, a looping false movement layered within a broken mirror.
Only Aven's whispered echo timed just right disrupted the light, causing the illusion to misfire. The trap shattered. Kae gave a sharp nod in thanks and lunged forward, knocking his opponent into the pool.
Victor stepped carefully across the fractured water.
The brute who had faced him earlier had recovered. His hammer crackled with energy again. The silence thread that had muted him was gone, but his voice trembled now when he barked a command.
Victor tilted his head.
He could hear it clearly more than the words.
The fear.
The weight behind the tone was uneven. Bluster wrapped around panic.
Victor's eyes narrowed.
*Fear echoes louder.*
The brute charged again.
Victor didn't flee. He moved with minimal effort, sidestepping each strike not dodging, simply adjusting.
One swing clipped his sleeve. Another grazed his side. The blows weren't fatal but they were close.
Victor breathed in.
He raised his hand. The air bent slightly.
Another silence thread lanced out narrower this time, focused directly on the brute's feet.
The sound of his footsteps vanished.
The hammer dropped a fraction too early. Timing disrupted. Momentum off.
Bran moved in.
His blade sliced through the distracted attacker's guard, and the brute dropped.
Two enemies remained.
One tried to flee toward the far edge of the arena, weaving between fractured mirror walls. The other charged Jessa, hoping to knock her down while her flame flickered.
Victor didn't pursue.
Instead, he whispered. A soft breath, not even a word.
The fleeing enemy skidded to a stop. Confused. Echoes spun around him, feeding back into his own steps. He looked behind him, disoriented by phantom sounds his own footfalls chasing him.
He turned, too slow.
Kae crashed into him, elbow first.
The last attacker leapt toward Jessa, teeth bared.
She lifted her blade but not to strike.
A burst of fire erupted in the mirrored ceiling above. It formed a massive, flickering version of herself eyes burning, sword raised.
The enemy looked up instinctive. Distracted.
Bran swept his leg out.
The enemy dropped hard.
The flames died down.
So did the echoes.
The mirrored world stilled.
*"Victory: Duskwatch Academy."*
Victor blinked once.
From the sidelines, Selene exhaled. "Not overwhelming," she said. "Not fast."
"But effective," Kieran finished.
Talon's voice was quiet. "He's not the strongest."
"No," Selene said. "But he's *dangerous*."
Above the battlefield, the dream-forged glyph shimmered again.
A new ring began to form.
And with it one name pulsed.
---