CHAPTER <b>121 </b>


    The new shadows lunged again, faster than ever, and I felt the Sorcerer’s power thrumming through them like a heartbeat I could almost hear. My ws red, the light sizzling with energy, but no matter how fiercely I struck, the darkness kept reforming, relentless and hungry. I stumbled backward, breath ragged, sweat stinging my eyes, and for a moment–just a fraction of a second–I felt doubt. The air around me thickened, heavy with menace, and a cold shiver ran down my spine. Every instinct screamed to fight, to resist, yet the shadows whispered promises of despair, wing at my resolve with each impossible strike. I gritted my teeth, refusing to yield.


    And then it came.


    A pulse, deep inside me, unlike anything I had felt before. Not just light–a resonance with the shadows themselves. I felt their movement, the way they twisted and obeyed the Sorcerer’s will. And I realized, with a thrill of fear and hope, that I could bend them, redirect their motion, force them against him. The sensation was intoxicating and terrifying all at once, a raw power humming beneath my skin. Every shadow around me seemed alive, waiting for mymand, responsive to my intent. I could feel the Sorcerer’s influence weakening as my control strengthened, a dangerous, exhrating edge sharpening with every heartbeat.


    “Elias!” I shouted, gripping his arm. “I can–watch!”


    He looked at me, uncertainty flickering across his face. “Lyra–careful! That’s risky!”


    The new shadows lunged again, faster than ever, and I felt the Sorcerer’s power thrumming through them like a heartbeat I could almost hear. My ws red, the light sizzling with energy, but no matter how fiercely I struck, the darkness kept reforming, relentless and hungry. I stumbled backward, breath ragged, sweat stinging my eyes, and for a moment–just a fraction of a second–I felt doubt. Fear whispered in my mind, urging me to retreat, but somewhere deep inside, a stubborn defiance burned. I clenched my fists, forcing my pulse to steady, and prepared to strike again, knowing this battle would not end until one of us fell.


    The Sorcerer’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Impossible! You… you cannot!” His hands waved frantically, trying to regain control, but the shadows shrieked, spinning out of hismand. Theyshed at him, striking with a fury he had intended for us.


    The new shadows lunged again, faster than ever, and I felt the Sorcerer’s power thrumming through them like a heartbeat I could almost hear. My ws red, the light sizzling with energy, but no matter how fiercely I struck, the darkness kept reforming, relentless and hungry. I stumbled backward, breath ragged, sweat stinging my eyes, and for a moment–just a fraction of a second–I felt doubt. Fear whispered in the edges of my mind, urging me to falter, to let the shadows overwhelm me, but deep inside, something stubborn and defiant


    < CHAPTER 121


    stirred, refusing to surrender, demanding I rise again despite the impossible odds.


    +25 Points


    “Keep going! Don’t let up!” Elias shouted, driving a wave of fire into the shadows still resisting <ol><li>me<b>. </b></li></ol>


    I felt the surge of power, intoxicating and terrifying. My body trembled, ws burning, every nerve alight with raw energy. But this wasn’t just strength–it was control. For the first time, I wasn’t reacting to the Sorcerer. I was leading him, dictating the flow of the battle, shaping it with every thought, every heartbeat. The very air seemed <i>to </i>bend to my will, charged with the promise of what we could aplish.


    The Ash Queen moved beside us, her hands steady, her gaze fixed on him. She didn’t <i>need </i>to speak. Her presence bolstered me, pushed me further, amplified the light coursing through my veins. I realized then that our magic was not separate–it was intertwined, a single current of power flowing through four of us, focused, unstoppable, as if the universe itself had aligned to our purpose. Together, we were more than formidable; we were inevitable. <fn3463> For original chapters go to fin?novel</fn3463>


    The Sorcerer stumbled, trying desperately to reim his control. His voice cracked as he yelled, “No! You cannot–this power is mine!”


    I felt the final resistance in the shadows falter. The enormous tendrils twisted, writhing, and then, under mymand, they surged at him, striking with the force of his own darkness turned against him. He screamed, stumbling back, the energy that had once obeyed him now tearing at him, consuming his control. Sparks of shadow clung to his robes, hissed through the air like living fire, and for the first time, I saw fear flicker in his eyes—a wild, desperate panic. Every movement he made was met with relentless opposition, his own power rebelling, twisting, and crushing him from within.


    Elias pressed forward beside me, a burst of me igniting the remaining shadows. “Now, Lyra! Finish it!”


    I gathered every ounce of light, shaping it into a final, brilliant surge, weaving the shadows themselves into a spear of pure energy aimed at the Sorcerer. His eyes widened in horror as he realized his defeat was imminent. He tried to flee, tried to shield himself, but it was useless–the shadows obeyed only me now, and the light was unstoppable. The air crackled with power, every molecule trembling under the force Imanded. Even the ground beneath us seemed to recoil, as if the world itself recognized the inevitability of his downfall. His desperate cries echoed, fading into the overwhelming brilliance that consumed the space between us, leaving <i>no </i>corner untouched by its searing, unrelenting force.


    With a final, deafening roar, the Sorcerer waspletely engulfed, his twisted, dark form dissipating under the relentless twin assault of my brilliant light and the thrashing, manipted shadows. The chamber shuddered violently, stones cracking and dust raining from the ceiling, air vibrating with residual, lingering energy, and then, slowly, an eerie, tense


    < CHAPTER 121


    silence fell over the ruined hall.


    $<b>25 </b>Points


    I dropped to my knees, chest heaving<b>, </b>ws dimming as exhaustion swept over me. Elias staggered to my side, sweat streaking his face, his eyes wide with awe, and for a moment we simply breathed together, the weight of what had just happened settling around us like a heavy, silent shroud. Our hearts pounded in unison, each beat echoing the danger we had narrowly escaped.


    The Ash Queen stepped forward, her presence calm butmanding. “You have done what few could. You have discovered the true extent of your power, Lyra. You have learned not only to wield light, but to bend darkness itself.”


    I looked at her, still trembling. “I… I didn’t know I could… I just… I had to protect-”


    Her gaze softened. “You have a purpose greater than you realize. That purpose will guide you, and your power will grow. But remember this–he will return, and he wille stronger. This is only the beginning.”


    “Yeah. It’s always just the beginning.” I scoffed.


    Elias let out a shakyugh. “Well… intense is one word for it.”


    I smiled, though exhaustion weighed heavy on me. “Yeah. Intense is one way to put it.”


    But deep inside, a spark of certainty burned brighter than ever. We had survived, and now I truly understood the depth and scope of the power that pulsed within me, raw and untamed. The Sorcerer had underestimated me, underestimated us all, blind to the strength we carried. And when he returned, there would be no mercy, no hesitation–I would be ready, every step calcted, every strike precise.


    Because now, for the first time, I was not just defending. I wasmanding, shaping the battle itself. I was leading, unstoppable and unyielding. I was a force he could not control, a storm he could not predict, and the very air around me seemed to hum with my newfound authority.