Her arrow found purchase in a swathe of black.

In a fraction of a second, the ballroom was flooded in a sea of dark magic that clung to every seam and crack in the ancient building. All she could do was watch in horror as time began to flow normally again.

Her flame laced arrow was absorbed by the wall of darkness, extinguishing the very essence of her Trait. All the confidence she had in her Timekeeper abilities shattered the moment the bystanders began to get caught in the fray.

"Shadow Traited."

The words hung hollow in the air, her angry hiss of acknowledgement even as the swirling dark flames collided within the tiny space. Her concentration lapsed from panic. The unfamiliar reactions of Trait made her hesitate a moment too long. She had to help them. She had to do something.

"Damn it all to Hellgrind."

Ixis fully ignited her Fire Trait. A burning, blazing hot creature of fire began to clash against the darkened skies, the fiery claws beneath her unable to grasp anything tangible but that didn't matter. She had to make a statement. There was no bigger statement than a Firestorm phoenix. She had to hope someone would see it.

"Go!"

Her creation spread its wings, the white hot beacon of light almost burning her vision but she willed it to remain tangible. The heat made her head swim but the form she had pictured in her mind stretched its long neck out and fought to soar upwards into the sky. It whirred the air beneath it, the heat causing it to rise as the screams of terror receded with every surge of its mighty wings.

Ixis took a deep breath, the seconds trickling by as the people around her began to flee a little quicker than before. She tried not to cough from the smoke of the disaster and dared to look down. The collision of earth and fire had created molten hot craters beneath her. Large slabs of jagged stone jutted out of roads and pavements, an entire street of houses ripped apart by the impact.

Everything exploded.

Ixis was vaulted from her hiding place, her flame bursting forth like a raging dragon in an attempt to force her Fire Trait into a passable shield. The impact sent her slamming into the side of a balcony, attempting to drag herself up and over the flimsy structure. Still the darkness followed her.

Ixis stuck out her arm to repel it to no use. She was out of Trait. It extinguished the rising flame with abandon and attacked the stone below long before she could do anything about it. Barely able to catch her breath, Ixis dropped into thin air and hoped as she watched the world collapse around her.

"Please. Please, work for me."

Ixis' eyes followed each individual crack breaking into chunks of rubble that veered achingly slow towards her head. With every flash of flame that led to the future she clenched her eyes tight, not wanting to see her own demise play out in slow motion.

Everything was bathed in an amber hue.

Bodies were sent tumbling into the volatile mass of dark flame, the colliding Traits of fire and shadows shattering the glass windows lacing them with shrapnel just as the explosion hit. The infamous domed ceilings of Scholar's Keep crumbled around her, sending the once pristine white marble splintering into flecks of hideous grey rubble.

Ixis' green eyes stung with more than tears. They burned painfully under the weight of witnessing so many fellow Traited falling to their death and succumbing to the same fate they all did. The curse of the Eternal Death.

"I don't...I don't want to die."

Ixis' tears blurred her vision, the scenes of destruction fading into individual moments of time that would always stick with her. A much older man shielding his injured dragon from harm, a large spike of metal protruding from his chest even as his leg faded to ash from his partner's injuries.

They reached for one another, neither being able to remain alive without the other so all they could do was smile before the end. A young couple who had reunited in the fray, clinging to one another despite the teetering ballrooms foundations that had trapped them within the attack.

Ixis could see the tell-tale anxieties of a Traited without their partner, the lifeline for survival dwindling with every step. But despite that the couple kept their arms still linked together, their voices still carried over the wind to try and find other survivors.

Her stomach clenched without realising it, young children caught in the crossfire as their friends faded into ash but leaving behind a gift of a small childlike spirit to guide them. An Oathed contract. Just like her. Just like every Traited who dared to wield their own power.

Despite their fading limbs and tear streaked faces, the little glowing ball of light willingly bonded with them to keep them from suffering the same fate. The young girl took it and stood to meet it.

Even her hatred for the darkness slowly ebbed away, the sight of a young Shadow Traited using their skills to guide a cluster of people to a safer destination filling her with hope. Her people embracing under the shadow of a broken city covered in the ashes of their loved one's.

Ixis let out a laugh, soundless but leaving her nostalgic and choked up even as the orange tinted view began to flicker. Her power to control the flow of time could only last for so long. She could sense it. The ground would meet her soon.

She had seen so many people suffer for her mistake. Once she had thought she was invincible. Until her arrow exploded on impact. Dying would only be running away. Tonight wasn't about survival. It was about rebirth. But the sight of so many left her with one, unending thought that would last as long as her Timekeeper ability did. Traited never gave up.

Timelines crashed together.

Dizzying speed met the inevitable pull of gravity.

A familiar roar made her heart leap.

Ixis closed her eyes and hoped.