Chapter 13 - THE MARCH TO THE OBSIDIAN REACH
The journey toward the Obsidian Reach was unlike any campaign the North had ever undertaken. The landscape shifted from pristine snow-covered peaks into jagged, obsidian-black rock formations that spewed plumes of toxic sulfur into the grey sky.
King Cedric rode at the absolute front of the vanguard, his dark warhorse stepping carefully over the treacherous terrain. Beside him, Isolda wore heavy protective leather armor, her silver-blonde hair braided tightly down her back, and her amethyst eyes scanning the horizon with supreme, focused authority.
As they approached the massive canyon known as the Devil’s Gate, the rocky walls above them suddenly shifted.
"Ambush!" Torstein roared, raising his shield just as a shower of obsidian-tipped arrows rained down from the cliffs.
The northern vanguard formed a tight, impenetrable wall of steel and fur, deflecting the volley with practiced ease. But from the shadows of the canyon archways, a figure stepped forward.
He wore intricate silver armor adorned with ancient Valoria markings, his face half-hidden beneath a heavy iron helm.
"Isolda of the True Blood!" the figure shouted, his voice echoing off the canyon walls with supernatural resonance. "You sit upon a stolen throne! The crown belongs to the subterranean lords of Valoria! Step down, or watch your northern mutts burn in the sulfur pits!"
Isolda urged her mare forward, stepping out in front of the northern line. She did not cower. She raised her chin, her luminous amethyst eyes blazing with an ethereal light that illuminated the dark canyon.
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"I stole nothing!" Isolda’s voice rang clear and commanding, carrying across the entire battlefield. "The bloodline flows through me because the Moon Goddess herself chose it! If you claim to serve Valoria, then drop your weapons and kneel before your true sovereign!"
The rebel leader laughed bitterly, lifting a glowing artifact high into the air—a dark obsidian prism that began to pulse with a sickly green energy, threatening to crack the tectonic stability of the canyon floor.
