---
Dawn broke like a blade across the Sapphire Coast. Kael's army stood poised on the cliffs above Altherion, their black banners rippling in the salt wind. Below, the city's shipyards bustled with activity — galleons, cutters, and warships readying for sea.
> [System notification: Altherion fleet strength — 70% operational. Deployment imminent within 48 hours.]
Kael's eyes narrowed as he surveyed the harbor. The Heart of the Storm pulsed along his sword's hilt, eager for bloodshed.
> "Varnak. Are the fire ships ready?"
Varnak's grin was savage.
> "Aye, my lord. Fifty hulls packed with pitch and oil, rigged to burn."
Kael raised his sword, lightning crackling from its edge.
> "Tonight, we set the sea ablaze."
---
By moonrise, the first of Kael's fire ships drifted silently into Altherion's harbor. The enemy's sentries noticed too late — alarm bells clanged as the ships burst into flame, consuming docks and vessels in an inferno.
> [Quest progress: Destroy Altherion's fleet — 50% complete. +5,000 XP. Enemy morale -20%.]
The sky turned crimson with reflected fire.
---
Kael and his elite struck as chaos reigned, shadow-stepping through burning wreckage onto the docks. His blade lashed out, cleaving through sailors and marines as lightning danced with each strike.
Selene fought at his side, twin daggers flashing like silver fangs.
> [Duel initiated: Admiral Ceyren — Power level: High]
The admiral, clad in sapphiresteel plate, met Kael at the dock's end. Their blades clashed, sparks and lightning mingling. Ceyren's greatsword swung with brutal strength, forcing Kael back step by step — until Kael feinted, shadow-stepped behind him, and drove Tyrant's Fang through his back.
> [Victory: +8,000 XP. +Altherion Naval Seal acquired. +Naval Command skill unlocked.]
---
As dawn rose over a smoldering harbor, the Sapphire Seas belonged to Kael.
> [Altherion fleet destroyed: +10,000 XP, +Altherion treasury seized: +350,000 gold. Quest complete.]
Kael turned toward the inner city where the Sapphire Lords trembled behind their walls.
> "The sea burns. Now the city falls."
---
The gates of Altherion's inner city loomed ahead, scorched by the fires of the docks, but unbroken. Sapphiresteel chains held them fast, enchanted by the city's high mages to resist siege.
Kael dismounted Nightfang and strode toward the gates, his black armor slick with salt spray and blood.
> [System hint: Sapphiresteel Gates — damage resistance: high. Vulnerable to: arcane disruption, concentrated lightning.]
Kael grinned, lightning crackling down his blade.
> "Then let the storm tear it asunder."
He raised Tyrant's Fang high, channeling the Heart of the Storm. Thunder boomed overhead as lightning lashed down upon the blade and leapt toward the gate in a blinding arc.
> [Skill activated: Stormbreaker — massive lightning damage. Cooldown: 24 hours.]
The gates shuddered. Enchanted chains burst apart, molten shards flying. The massive doors cracked, then collapsed inward.
---
> [Altherion inner defenses breached. +2,000 XP. Enemy morale: -50%. Chance of mass surrender: moderate.]
Kael's forces surged through the gap. Shadowbeasts led the charge, tearing through panicked defenders.
Selene fought like a demoness, her daggers finding gaps in armor, her eyes alight with the thrill of conquest.
> "They're breaking, Kael! The city is ours!"
Kael strode through the chaos, cutting down those who dared stand.
---
In the Sapphire Palace, the remaining lords gathered in desperation. They offered treasures, oaths, anything for mercy.
Kael stood before them, his gaze hard.
> "You had your chance to yield. Now you will serve — or perish."
> [Choice: Execute lords (+fear, +treasury), or enslave (+loyalty chance, +resources).]
Kael's smile was cold.
> "Chain them. Their cities will rise again — under my banner."
> [Sapphire Lords enslaved. +500,000 gold. +Sapphiresteel craftsmen now serve your forges. Morale: your troops +10%.]
---
As night fell over the conquered city, Kael stood atop the palace, gazing east.
> "Two cities down. Three to go."
And the world trembled as the Tyrant's shadow spread.
---
The dawn after Altherion's fall was silent but for the crackle of dying fires and the moan of the defeated. Kael's banners now flew from the sapphire towers, the black serpent on crimson field casting its shadow over the bay.
Kael stood on the palace balcony, the Heart of the Storm glowing faintly in his sword's hilt.
> [System update: Altherion conquest complete. Bonus reward: +Epic Title — Sea Tyrant. Naval units gain +15% speed and +20% damage under your command.]
A rider approached below, dusty and breathless.
> "My lord! Scouts report the Sapphire Alliance has rallied at Mirath's Wall. All remaining forces — and their high mages — await you there."
Kael's grin was savage.
> "Then we crush them all at once."
Selene joined him, eyes gleaming.
> "Mirath's Wall is a fortress of legends, Kael. And their archmage wields the Staff of Stars."
Kael's blade crackled as he raised it to the dawn.
> "Legends fall like any other. And I will have that staff."
---
The War Council
That night, Kael's commanders gathered.
Varnak stabbed a dagger into the map atop Mirath's Wall.
> "We strike here at dawn. I say we launch the fire ships up the river — burn them from below."
Selene shook her head.
> "They'll expect fire. We need the shadow mages to shatter their wards first."
Kael surveyed them, then spoke.
> "Both. We'll unleash storm, fire, and shadow together. No mercy. No escape."
> [New Quest: Break Mirath's Wall — reward: +25,000 XP, +Legendary Relic (Staff of Stars), +territory expansion.]
The council rose as one, bound by his will.
---
The Tyrant's March
Kael's army moved at nightfall — shadow mages cloaking their advance, fire ships hidden beneath enchanted mist, siege engines dragged overland by direbeasts.
> [System notification: Enemy awareness low. Surprise factor: +30%.]
Atop a hill, Kael paused, gazing at the distant glow of Mirath's wards.
> "Tomorrow," he whispered, "the last of the Sapphire Cities falls. And my empire rises."
Lightning crackled in the storm clouds gathering above, as if the heavens themselves answered his call.