When the dust settled, only one enemy remained.
The golden figure didn’t flee.
It waited.
Lilith stepped forward, cloak torn, eyes blazing.
"He was once my student," she whispered. "The first who betrayed the flame."
I stared at her. "Why didn’t you say anything?"
"Because I hoped he’d die forgotten."
She raised her hand, fingers trembling.
"I taught him everything. And now I’ll unmake him."
She looked at me one last time.
"If I fall..."
"You won’t," I said.
But part of me knew she might.
Because love doesn’t always win.
But it always chooses.