The sun had long since broken through the ash-filled sky, painting the battlefield in pale gold and crimson. The air was thick with the stench of scorched earth, blood, and something far older… darker. Yet above it all—silence. The kind of silence that only comes when the chaos has ended, and victory, however fleeting, has been claimed.
I stood in the center of the broken field, armor scorched and stained, blood trickling from my brow and down my cheek. My hands trembled—not from fear, not from exhaustion… but from the weight of what I held.
Maximus.
Or rather… what was left of him.
His head, still encased in that cursed black helm, now broken and bloodied, dangled from my hand by its hair. His lifeless eyes stared blankly into the void, no longer burning with the dark flame that had consumed so many lives.
I raised it high above me.
The remaining soldiers of his corrupted legion—those not turned to ash by my blade—froze in place. For a moment, time itself held its breath. Then it came: the scream of panic, the frenzied retreat, the sound of thousands of undead and corrupted warriors fleeing like shadows before the rising sun.
"Your master is no more!" I shouted, voice hoarse but unshaken. "Run back to your pit! And pray the light never finds you again!"
The ground beneath my feet trembled slightly as the last of them vanished into the far horizon. I dropped Maximus's head at my feet.
Around me, the defenders of Dawn Fortress emerged from cover, wounded and weary—but alive. Some cheered, some fell to their knees in disbelief. Others wept for the comrades we had lost.
I didn't celebrate. I couldn't.
Maximus was only a piece of the darkness.
Something far worse was coming.
And somehow… I knew this was only the beginning.
Hades's Fortress, Beneath the Underworld
The throne room of shadows groaned as if in sync with the ancient stone walls, alive with unholy whispers. The obsidian flames of the braziers danced unnaturally in the corners of the grand hall, reacting to his rising aura. A deep growl rumbled from Hades's throat, low and vibrating like thunder rolling across an empty abyss.
Crack—Boom!
Far above, in the realm of mortals, lightning split the sky. It echoed down through the layers of reality like an omen... or a celebration. His lips curled into a crooked, malevolent smile.
"Hah… lightning?" he scoffed aloud to no one, lounging lazily in his massive throne carved from the bones of forgotten titans. "So even the sky cheers for you, Tang Su Yan."
He leaned forward, resting his sharp chin against a gauntleted knuckle. The hollow echo of retreating dark forces still rang in the black crystal mirrors surrounding the throne. Maximus had failed—spectacularly. And yet, Hades was thrilled.
A low laugh escaped him, dry and sharp like blades sliding across bone.
"What a funny predicament…" he mused. "Is she one of your bastards too, dear brother?"
"Tell me, Zeus—how many demigods must crawl the earth before you finally learn to keep it in your robes?"
He rose from the throne, his cloak of shadows rippling like liquid darkness behind him. His eyes, ancient and burning with deep red fire, focused on a flickering vision of Su Yan standing triumphant atop the battlefield—Maximus's severed head at her feet, lightning dancing above her like a crown.
"So... the vessel of hope bares her fangs."
"Rebellious. Unbroken. Divine blood and mortal spirit intertwined..."
He let the thought hang.
"How utterly delicious."
The castle rumbled slightly as his malice stirred the dead that slept far beneath the fortress. Hades turned, stepping deeper into the shadows, voice dropping into a whisper only the damned could hear.
"Let's see how long that hope burns, little goddess."
"Because soon… I'll snuff it out with my own hands."
----
Inside the Overseer's Hideout – Deep Underground
The chamber was cold—metallic and humming with unnatural energy. Rows upon rows of cylindrical tanks stretched endlessly into the dark, each one filled with a flickering, semi-living mass. Human vessels. Some twitched in their sleep, others were hollow-eyed husks… but all were part of the Overseer's cruel experiments.
A soft click echoed.
Su Ah's fingers flicked once, a delicate motion.
Her eyes fluttered open—empty, lifeless... yet aware.
She sat upright slowly, movements calculated and mechanical. Her once vibrant expression now void of emotion, her will bent, twisted by the Overseer's influence.
A voice pierced the silence.
"Ah… it's good to see you awake, Sister-in-law," the Overseer purred with amusement.
He stepped from the shadows, cloaked in regal robes etched with void-born symbols, his eyes gleaming with arrogance and malice. The teasing lilt in his tone echoed mockery, but beneath it, an obsessive undertone simmered—obsession for Tang Su Yan.
He circled Su Ah, inspecting her like a craftsman admiring his masterpiece.
"You move beautifully now. Controlled. Efficient. A shame you resisted for so long."
"But now… now you will help me capture my beloved."
Su Ah's face twitched—only slightly—as if something deep inside her flickered. But it was gone in a breath. Like a machine, she rose from the examination table and bowed with robotic grace.
"Yes… Master Overseer," she spoke, her voice flat, hollow.
"Good girl." His smile widened into something monstrous. "Bring me Su Yan. I want to break her... gently."
With that, Su Ah turned and walked out of the chamber, the doors hissing shut behind her. The faint echoes of her footsteps disappeared into the silence of the underground.
And in the deepest part of her shattered soul… a single, muffled whisper echoed.
Su Yan... I'm sorry…