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Part 27: The Sins Of The Father, The Strength Of The Daughter

Meanwhile above the prison...
The battlefield, once roaring with clashing powers, now fell into an eerie silence — broken only by the sound of Sylvia's sharp breath and the crackling of Arson's dying flames. 
  
Dune stood firm, his sandstorm swirling protectively around him, though his gaze now held something more than fury — a deep, unresolved pain.

Arson wiped blood from the corner of his mouth, glaring at Dune. "You really think you can stop us? Kairo has allies now — and one of them is Yuki."

The moment Yuki's name left Arson's lips, Dune's composure shattered. His jaw tightened, his sandstorm faltered for a split second, and his eyes burned — not with rage, but with something far more personal.

"Yuki..." Dune's voice, usually so commanding, broke into a whisper before hardening again. "She should not be allowed to exist here."

Sylvia stepped forward, refusing to back down despite her injuries. "Why? Because she's a blind woman who defied your rules? Or because she dared to form a bond with Kairo?"

Dune's fists clenched at his sides, sand spiraling violently around his feet like a living thing responding to his emotions. "You don't understand... none of you do."

Arson scoffed. "Then make us understand."

Dune's face darkened. "Yuki... is my daughter."

The words hit Sylvia and Arson like a tidal wave.

Sylvia's mouth parted slightly. "Your... daughter?"

Dune's gaze seemed distant now — as if staring into a painful past only he could see. "Yes... my daughter, born blind — an undesirable in the eyes of the Sand tribe." His voice was heavy with bitterness. "Her birth... cost me my wife's life."

Even Arson, ever the prideful destroyer, found himself momentarily speechless.

Dune continued, his voice steady but laced with sorrow. "I tried to raise her... in secret. No one ever knew she was my child — not the tribe, not even Yuki herself. To her, I was always just Lord Dune."

Sylvia's heart twisted. "So all this time... she never knew?"

Dune shook his head. "I couldn't tell her. It would have made her a bigger target. By the time she was eight, the whispers grew louder — the tribe was growing restless. They saw her as a symbol of weakness — a curse. If they discovered she was my daughter, it would have cost both of us our lives."

Arson clenched his fists. "So you abandoned her?"

Dune's eyes flared. "I exiled her — for her protection. I sent her to the outskirts of the district, forbidding her from ever returning. But I... I still watched over her. I visited her in secret — as often as I could. She was a gem — a gentle, kind girl — but an undesirable by the tribe's law."

Sylvia's heart ached for Yuki, and for Dune — a father who had to love his daughter from the shadows. "And now... you want to kill her?"

Dune's voice cracked. "I don't want to. But the law demands it." His jaw tightened again, the storm around him intensifying. "She broke the rules when she entered the district... and when she sided with Kairo."

Arson stepped forward, his flames reigniting despite his exhaustion. "So what — you think killing Kairo will 'fix' her? That it'll make her 'undesirable' again in your tribe's eyes?"

Dune's eyes darkened. "If Kairo lives... Yuki will remain a target — seen as a traitor and an object of desire for a dangerous conqueror. If he dies... the tribe may finally forget her."

Sylvia's voice trembled with anger. "You think killing the man she loves will save her?"

Dune's silence was louder than any words could be.

Sylvia shook her head. "You're wrong, Dune. Killing Kairo won't save Yuki — it will destroy her."

Dune's face remained cold, but his fingers twitched — a tiny, involuntary reaction to the truth he was trying to suppress.

Arson's flames roared higher. "You want to protect your daughter? Then fight for her — not against her."

Dune's sandstorm grew stronger — but for the first time, it seemed more chaotic, more unstable — as though the storm in his heart was tearing him apart.

And deep below the fortress, Glacius, Peggy, Yuki, and a barely-standing Kairo were inching closer to freedom — but the storm of Dune's conflicted soul threatened to bury them all.

The air within the prison walls was thick — not just with dust and the scent of blood, but with a suffocating tension. Glacius, Peggy, and Yuki hurried through the tunnel, supporting a barely-conscious Kairo between them.

His body, though still dripping with blood from his wounds, seemed heavier with every step — the chains that had suppressed his power now broken, yet the damage they had done lingered.

"Hold on, Kairo," Yuki whispered, her voice soft yet urgent. She clung to his arm, her fingers trembling as she felt the sticky warmth of his blood. Even though she couldn't see him, she could feel the way his breathing came in ragged gasps — the pain he tried to suppress.

Glacius, leading the group, kept his senses sharp. "We don't have time to stop," he muttered, his ice-cold eyes darting from shadow to shadow. "Dune's forces will realize we've escaped any moment now."

Peggy, floating slightly above the ground with her fairy-like agility, glanced back nervously. "And Sylvia and Arson... they're still holding off Dune."

Kairo, his voice a broken rasp, coughed out, "Sylvia... and... Arson?"

Glacius nodded, his grip on Kairo tightening to keep him steady. "They're stalling Dune, buying us time to get you out of here."

Kairo chuckled weakly, though it sounded more like a pained sigh. "Arson...too?... sounds about right..."

Yuki's hold on his arm tightened. "Don't talk like that — just focus on getting out."

Suddenly, the corridor ahead began to shift — the sand-infused walls rippling unnaturally. The ground trembled, and a deep growl echoed from the distance.

"Dune." Glacius muttered. "He's trying to lock us in."

"Then we move faster!" Peggy snapped, grabbing Kairo's other arm to help Yuki drag him forward. "We can't get stuck here!"

As the walls groaned and sand began pouring into the tunnel like a slow, rising tide, the group pushed through, every step harder than the last. The exit wasn't far — a faint sliver of daylight visible ahead.

But just as they neared it, a group of Sand Tribe soldiers appeared at the entrance — spears drawn and sand crackling in their hands.

"Stop right there!" one of the soldiers barked. "By Lord Dune's command, the Aqua prince is not allowed to leave this prison — alive."

Kairo smirked, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. "Looks like... I'm popular."

Glacius stepped forward, ice forming at his fingertips. "Peggy, Yuki— stay back. I'll clear the way."

"Like hell you're fighting alone," Peggy snapped, her wings glowing as magic flared at her fingertips. "We're in this together."

Yuki, clutching Kairo's arm protectively, spoke softly. "We need to break through for Kairo."

Glacius grinned — a cold, dangerous smile. "Then let's make this quick."