The morning sun barely cuts through the thick mist.
Kaelion, Sylena, and Raik trek through the dense forest, moving carefully.
Their goal is to find a safer place to rest — but something feels wrong in the air.
Raik suddenly stops, holding out a hand.
"Wait... you hear that?"
(his voice low, serious)
A faint rumble vibrates through the ground —
like the heartbeat of a giant beast.
Kaelion, now more connected with his Earth Stone, feels it too —
heavy... powerful... countless footsteps.
They push forward, climbing a steep hill.
At the top, they crouch low, peering through the thick trees down into the valley below.
And what they see freezes them cold.
The Soul King's Army
Below them, the forest is torn apart —
marching through the ruined land is an entire army of Soul Knights.
Soul Knights in dark silver armor, their stones glowing faintly in their chests.
Soul Archers, lighter armored, moving in formation — black bows in hand, soul energy arrows crackling faintly.
Soul Mages, cloaked figures walking among them, small flickers of fire and healing light in their hands — but their magic is unstable, weak after too many battles.
Soul Beasts — massive, mutated animals created by the Soul King, pulling siege carts and heavy supplies.
And leading them all...
A towering figure, nearly twice the size of a normal man.
A Soul General —
black battle armor with a blood-red cape, an enormous double-headed axe slung across his back.
His body glows faintly green from the soul power inside him, and his helm has jagged horns like a demon.
"That's not just a normal knight..." Sylena whispers.
"That's a Soul General."
Kaelion's fists tighten.
He can feel the oppressive weight even from here.
Raik looks deadly serious for once:
"If they reach the towns..."
"They'll slaughter everyone."
Kaelion swallows hard.
He knows now —
this isn't just about him anymore.