Chapter 20

Jade scanned the silent forest uneasily, sensing an ominous energy crackling in the shadows. Around him, High King Santiago's elite Hallow Hunters strained to interpret the soul detectors' flickering tracker gems as they sought their quarry - the dreaded Košmaro.

 

Since the hollow's brazen attack during the coronation, Santiago had become fixated upon bringing Košmaro to justice. Caution and reason fell on the new High King's deaf ears when it came to avenging this personal grudge.

 

Jade knew Santiago's motives were not wholly just. The High King seemed almost eager at the chance to bloody his hands against the creature that had tarnished his long-awaited glory. Thoughts of growing dissent and daily duties of the state were eclipsed by vengeful obsession.

 

Only Lux could perhaps reach Santiago now, calm his volatile temper before ambition devolved to tyranny. But the newly crowned Sovereign's pleas for restraint went unheeded, his gentle counsel brushed aside. Santiago would not be deterred from the hunt.

 

Thus, Jade now found himself tracking through the haunted forest, leading the Hallow Hunters despite his foreboding. The flickering gemstones in their palms remained dark and cold - no sign of Košmaro yet. But Jade sensed they were drawing nearer, moving ever deeper into the gnarled woods.

 

The detectors blazed crimson when the trees abruptly gave way to a misty clearing. Košmaro awaited them ahead, hulking form half obscured by fog. Yet making no move to attack or flee. The hollow's confidence chilled Jade's blood. They were being baited into something, but there was no turning back now.

 

At Santiago's signal, the Hunters formed up ranks, soul tech weapons glowing ominously in the mist. Jade raised his staff as Silver hefted his spear, prepared to meet whatever trap had been laid for them.

 

With a ragged roar, Santiago charged forth heedlessly. But before he could reach the motionless Košmaro, the ground exploded upward, showering earth. Massive vines erupted all around, ensnaring the Hunters and pinning Santiago helplessly. As Jade struggled against his bonds, ragged tree creatures pulled themselves from the soil, creaking and groaning.

 

"It's a Desecrated Grove - turn back!" Jade shouted in warning. But Santiago slashed violently at the vines, madness glinting in his eyes. Jade's heart clenched. The prince's hatred had driven him into ruin. They were all doomed.

 

As the warted guardians closed in, spectral figures drifted from the trees - vengeful ghosts come to reclaim their defiled resting place. Jade bowed his head, praying Lux and Zaria's dream might somehow endure past this tragedy. Santiago had gambled with their lives, and lost all.

 

The pale spirits encircled Santiago, reaching with wispy hands. Jade expected them to smite the prince, but they gently lifted the royal crown from his golden hair instead. Santiago thrashed against the hollowing vines to no avail, cries of protest going unheeded.

 

The ghosts turned and solemnly crowned the wraithly form of Košmaro instead, who rasped an eerie dirge. Jade stared in dismay as the creatures bowed before the newly exalted Hollow King, vines tightening around Santiago until the prince fell limp and silent.

 

Jade awoke with a sharp cry, skin slick with cold sweat. Beside him, Silver stirred, murmuring sleepily. "Just a nightmare..." Jade assured his partner. But deep in his heart, dread lingered.  He pulled Silver close, taking what solace he could find in the night.

Jade's footfalls echoed ominously through the silent throne room. Santiago had become increasingly volatile, ignoring all pleas for restraint in pursuing vengeance against Košmaro.

 

Steeling himself, Jade approached the imposing golden throne where Santiago sat brooding. The young High King cut an imposing figure clad in ceremonial armor, fingers drumming the hilt of his jeweled sword. But Jade detected the frenzied gleam in Santiago's eyes that betrayed his unraveling sanity.

 

Halting before the steps, Jade spoke firmly. "Your Majesty, I must object to this ceaseless hunt. Košmaro goads you into reckless pursuit."

 

Santiago's gaze snapped to Jade, icy and dangerous. "You overstep, Hunter. Or have you forgotten your vow of fealty?"

 

Jade stood his ground. "My oath is to safeguard Zaria's future, not enable one man's madness."

 

Santiago surged to his feet with a snarl. "You dare accuse your king of madness? I will have your rank for such insolence!"

 

"Then so be it," Jade replied calmly. "But first, you will hear me out for Zaria's sake."

 

Santiago's blade glinted as he descended the steps. Jade braced himself, prepared to fight to make the High King see reason. But then a clear voice rang out.

 

"Husband, stay your hand!" Queen Camila emerged from the shadows, her piercing eyes fixed on Santiago. "Jade speaks wisdom you must heed, even in anger."

 

Santiago froze, wavering. Camila turned to Jade. "Leave us. I shall make my stubborn lord see the light."

 

Jade bowed gratefully before departing. If Camila could not sway Santiago from his destructive wrath, none could. For Zaria's future, Jade prayed her intervention was not too late.

 

Later, Silver found Jade pacing their quarters anxiously. "Any word on Santiago?" Jade asked. Silver shook his head grimly.

 

A knock interrupted their brooding. A royal page entered, face pale. "The High King requests your presence, Sir Jade."

 

Jade steeled himself, then followed the page back to the throne room. Santiago sat rigidly upon his throne, Camila at his side. His face was grave as he beckoned Jade forward.

 

"You were right to reproach me, Jade," Santiago pronounced solemnly. "In my haste for vengeance, I lost sight of wisdom. Košmaro seeks only to bring division and chaos."

 

He met Jade's eyes. "No more Zarian blood shall be spilled chasing shadows. Our focus must be on building unity and protecting the people."

 

Relief washed over Jade. "A wise and just decree, Your Majesty."

 

Santiago nodded wearily. "There may be struggles ahead. But so long as we stand together, we shall defeat the darkness on our own terms."

 

Camila clasped her husband's hand proudly. Hope swelled in Jade's heart. Zaria's dream still endured, so long as brave souls held fast when shadows loomed. Together, they would stand resolute against the coming night.

---

Silver's gut churned with dread as the black mass on the horizon took shape in the dim light. Košmaro had marshaled the full might of his hollow forces for this final gambit to crush Zaria's defiant dream.

 

But the shadowy behemoth at the horde's helm turned Silver's blood to ice - a hulking dragon wreathed in malefic smoke. Košmaro had shed his monstrous façade to reveal a true form so terrible Silver's mind recoiled from fully beholding it.

 

Beside Silver, Sovereign Lux trembled, his delicate features stark with fear. Yet the newly crowned Sovereign did not flee. He stood resolute, pale flames wreathing his hands as he steeled himself for the assault.

 

High King Santiago rode up and down the battlements on his white charger, rallying the defenders with rousing words. But Silver saw the flicker of doubt in the prince's eyes as he beheld their doom lumbering closer beneath Košmaro's obsidian wings.

 

The hollow dragon spread its jagged maw wide, blasting liquid darkness like a hideous mockery of Glacies' ice. With a sickening sizzle, the oozing wave crashed against Zaria's shimmering soul barrier. Cracks spiderwebbed across the magical wall's surface from the corroding impacts.

 

Mages struggled to reinforce the buckling barrier, but their expressions were haggard. Košmaro's vile dragon breath rotted spells and souls alike. Even if the wall held this day, Zaria's defenders were woefully outmatched now.

 

Watching the hope guttering in Lux's eyes, a defiant spark flared in Silver's breast. He would not cower meekly as darkness extinguished the dream so many sacrificed for. If this were their end, they would face it with courage.

Staring down the ravenous maw of Košmaro's true form, Silver blinked sudden tears away. Come what may, he was honored to make this stand alongside true and loyal friends, united if just for a fleeting moment more.

Gripping Lux's shoulder, Silver raised his spear high, letting his rallying cry ring out. "Stand fast, Zaria!"

 

All along the battlements, weapons lifted in answer, voices joining the bold chorus. Lux's delicate features steeled into a look of grim resolve as he unleashed volleys of searing light against the shadows.

So, Silver stood steady as destiny hurtled toward him, content that he had kept faith until the end.

 A bestial roar from Košmaro shattered the ominous calm before the storm. At the hollow dragon's snarling cry, the horde of shadowy beasts below surged forward as one, claws and fangs ready to tear through flesh.

Let death come; Silver and Zaria would greet it unbowed.  So, he tightened his grip on his spear as the wave crashed against Zaria's barriers. The magical walls shuddered under the endless assault, their golden glow dimming. It would not be long before the enchantments failed, and the true carnage began.

 

Around Silver, Santiago, and Lux led the Zarian defenders in serenading the ancient battle hymns of their people. Though their voices trembled from the effort of holding the protective barriers, the songs seemed to reinvigorate flagging spirits. Lux's pale flames burned radiant as he poured the last of his waning energy into the spells.

 

Watching the Sovereign stagger exhaustedly into Santiago's supporting arms, Silver knew Zaria could not endure the onslaught much longer through magical means alone. Their only remaining hope lay in risking open warfare on the battlefield.

 

As the barrier finally splintered with a sound like shattering crystal, Silver braced himself for the awaited signal. Santiago's blade sliced through the air in one swift motion. The command blazed clearly through their resonant bond - advance and attack.

 

With a mighty roar, Zaria's knights, artificers, and artifacts surged as one from the smoking ruins of the barricades. They crashed against the hollow tide in a discordant symphony of screams and clanging steel.

 

The lines quickly devolved into utter chaos as the forces mingled in a vicious dance of hacking blades and spilling blood. Silver twirled and slashed tirelessly with his spear, denying the hollows any ground. Zaria's dream would not die defenseless this day.

 

High above the fray, the draconic Košmaro beat his smoldering wings, blotting out the sun as he dove, again and again, to strafe the defending army with destructive blasts. Silver cried out in anguish as lives were snuffed out around him by the murderous shadow.

 

But Zaria fought on desperately, even as the hollow horde's frenzy threatened to overwhelm them through sheer ferocity. Let it never be said they did not make the monsters pay dearly for each fallen comrade.

 

Gritting his teeth against despair, Silver battled fiercely alongside his friends and countrymen. The pounding of his heart matched the cadence of clashing weapons, accelerating as the moments ran out.

 

This was the rhythm of their defiant last stand. Whatever awaited beyond the veil, Zaria's faithful would march ahead together, souls linked in brotherhood. Let the poets sing of their courage in ages yet to come.

---

Lux gazed up at the monstrous draconic form of Košmaro, dread chilling his blood. The hollow that had haunted them for so long had finally revealed its terrifying true face. This was a foe like none they had encountered before.

 

Beside Lux, Santiago sat astride his ivory charger, grasp white-knuckled on his sword hilt. But his eyes blazed with vengeful purpose.

 

"This cursed beast has tormented Zaria long enough," the High King declared. "Let us finish what was started on our coronation day."

 

Lux nodded shakily, kindling his pale inner flame. Together, they had defeated Košmaro's lesser form before. Perhaps unified once more, they could pierce even this greater darkness.

 

Santiago spurred his horse forward, charging directly at the lumbering dragon as Lux provided covering fire, blasting searing beams of light. But Košmaro shrugged off their blows as mere pinpricks against his hulking frame.

 

When the hollow reared back, shadowy energy coalescing in his fanged maw, Santiago rushed to intercept, slashing with all his might. Yet even Santiago's consecrated blade could only chip away at the thick obsidian scales.

 

Košmaro unleashed his vile breath in retaliation, blanketing the area in choking darkness. Santiago retreated, features contorted by hatred and dismay.

 

"Stand strong, my king," Lux urged, though doubt flickered through him. "Our people still need us."

 

Santiago's expression hardened with renewed resolve. "You speak true, as always. We shall fight on together."

 

Lux and Santiago repeatedly struck side by side, searching for any weakness in Košmaro's dread form. Jaws snapped at them furiously while lashing claws gouged the earth, but they dodged the chaotic swipes.

 

Yet for every glancing blow landed, Košmaro answered with terrible force, flinging Lux and Santiago back like rag dolls. Lux could taste blood and failure in his mouth. But still, Zaria needed them.

 

As Košmaro reared up once more, Santiago extended a hand towards Lux. In that gaze, Lux saw reflected his own bone-deep weariness and flickers of despair. Yet Santiago's eyes remained determined.

 

"Now, we make our final stand, dear one," Santiago pronounced solemnly. "Let our merged strength strike this fell beast down."

 

Lux steeled himself and clasped Santiago's hand tightly. Then, the High King began to sing the resonant notes that would join their souls into one unstoppable force.

 

The Song rose over the cacophony of battle as Lux shifted painfully into Santiago's blessed golden sword. Wielding their combined might, Santiago turned to face Košmaro's baleful gaze. Zaria's fate now hung in the balance.

---

Santiago barely raised their golden blade in time to deflect the crushing force of Košmaro's claws. The impact jarred through his bones, nearly forcing the High King to his knees.

 

Around him, the battlefield was chaos as Zaria's forces struggled to hold the line against the endless tide of hollow beasts flowing from Košmaro's dark dimension. The future Santiago had sacrificed so much to achieve now hung by a perilous thread.

Letting loose a ragged cry, Santiago carved a burning path through the seething hollow mass, Lux's blade form purifying the fiends to ash.

It was a doomed effort, yet they fought on. Košmaro would not claim Zaria's dream uncontested —Santiago and Lux slew scores of hollows in their defiant final stand.

 

As the High King hacked the last beast down, a vast shadow loomed overhead - Košmaro, wings spread wide to eclipse the already darkened sky. His fanged maw yawned mockingly at Lux's blood-slicked form.

 

"Now you face oblivion, mortal king. No fame or fortune in your cherished histories will save you from my jaws."

 

Santiago spat at the dragon's words, raising his blade in challenge. "Do your worst, fiend. We will not bow before the bitter end."

"Take courage, dear one," Santiago murmured. "We light the way for dawn's coming." Santiago rushed forward with their combined strength. Their blade glowing with their might, the dragon simply took the might full-on and counterattacked.

Agony blazed through Santiago as Košmaro's talons raked his side, piercing straight through his armor. The High King collapsed to his knees, blinded by pain. Beside him, the golden sword that was Lux clattered limply from his grasp.

 

Santiago heard the dragon's guttural laugh through the ringing in his ears. "Foolish mortals. Did you think your paltry magic could stop my tide of darkness?"

 

Santiago tried to rise and grasp Lux's hilt again, but his traitorous limbs would not respond. Their most powerful sacred arts had scarcely scratched Košmaro's dread form. Santiago's hatred and confidence wavered at the realization they were, in the end, only vulnerable flesh and bone before this eternal evil.

 

As Košmaro loomed closer, eager to finish them off, Santiago's blurring gaze met Lux's. In those beloved blue eyes, Santiago glimpsed a flicker of understanding pass between their weary souls. Lux's spirit seemed to whisper: We must become something more.

 

With the last of his strength, Santiago began hoarsely singing the Song of fusion, notes resonant with all the love and hope of Zaria's dream. Lux joined the melody through the bindings of the ritual, their essences intertwining.

 

Santiago felt himself come undone - flesh transmuting, skull reforming, cries of agony melding into one shared voice. Where two stood before, now there was only Lutigo, guardian of light.

 

The fused form rose on shimmering wings of silver and gold, regarding Košmaro with unified eyes that blazed with holy fire. Lutigo's voice echoed with sacred authority.

 

"Creature of darkness, your reign ends this day."

 

Košmaro roared his defiance, spewing forth a torrent of black flame. But Lutigo ascended unharmed, radiance growing until the empty sky shone like dawn.

 

Raising their blessed sword, wrought from Santiago's unyielding will and Lux's kindness, Lutigo plunged the blade down into Košmaro's fiery crown. Light erupted, piercing through wicked claws and scales.

 

The dread dragon thrashed and screamed hatefully even as he came undone, smoldering from within. Lutigo watched impassively as their ancient foe at last dissolved into ashes scattered by the wind.

 

As silence fell over the ravaged land, Lutigo bowed their head, expression serene yet sorrowful. So much was sacrificed, so many lost. But Zaria's long night was ended, and radiant souls could rest.

 

Turning to the weary warriors gathered below, Lutigo stretched out shimmering wings in benediction. Santiago and Lux's voices spoke as one:

 

"Take heart, brave ones. Dawn comes again for this cherished dream called Zaria."