Roop arrived unannounced. It wasn't typical for sovereigns to announce their arrival; their power could be sensed from far away, radiating a formidable presence.
However, Roop was different. It wasn't sheer battle prowess she brought, but a sense of mystery. Nothing was known about her, and there were no records of her feats. She had intervened only a handful of times in the past.
Such lack of information, combined with the presence of another sovereign, unhinged Amawas. Deep, crippling fear settled upon her cold heart. She looked at Aatish, her mind racing with scenarios of facing these adversaries, but death felt absolutely imminent.
No matter how formidable the sisters had grown over the years, the sovereigns represented a whole other level of power that they could not dream of achieving unless they succumbed to the corruption of their souls.
Even Qatan had to rely on that corruption to kill the sovereign of oceans, Inara.
Amawas stuttered and stepped back, prompting Aatish to turn around.
There was no time for words; an attack could come at any moment. But seeing her sister in such a state of crippling fear dimmed their hopes.
Years ago, it all began with a cryptic scroll that Shahrukh sent to the Empress. Moments after its arrival, the scroll became one of the kingdom's most valuable assets, for one simple reason.
It stated that the immortal and unexploitable sovereigns had flaws within their cores.
This was different than just defeating them. If the flaws could be understood, the cores could be tamed.
Only the Empress knew Shahrukh's movements. Over the years, he had become her most trusted advisor and an invaluable asset to the kingdom.
Shortly after, the Empress laid siege upon Shargh. Many deemed the plan ludicrous. As a result, the already diminished high table grew smaller still, with the King of Cloudflouds isolating his kingdom on bitter terms from the Empress.
Shahrukh had not only included a brief description of the sovereigns' inner flaws but also detailed the deep political rifts that separated them.
With this information, the decision to lay siege upon Shargh was made. Meticulous planning followed, from selecting Rohaan as the sacrificial entity, unbeknownst to the Queen of Light, to recruiting local mercenaries who had resisted the corruption and held influence in the societies.
Shahrukh affirmed that the other sovereign ruling over Shargh would not intervene with Wasl.
This was all the information the carrier brought to the Empress. But the arrival of Roop was unanticipated.
Amawas closed her eyes as she hesitantly picked up the scythe, which had fallen from her hands, and raised its blade towards Roop, challenging her.
There were only a few heartbeats left until pure chaos would be unleashed upon Shargh. The anticipation was killing some, quite literally, as some soldiers from Aatish's army faded.
Roop moved, but before she could act, a golden shadow covered the entire sky.
A vicious gale swiftly cleared the scene of debris and dust. Everything fell still. In those moments of surprised idleness, a bird of prey lunged down towards Lara, glowing with a metal beak and talons, all suffused with dim radiance and covered in runic magic.
#212 dropped onto the ground, exuding a new sense of authority and power, even in front of the sovereigns. He did not care to glance at them. He graciously lifted the Queen of Light between his talons.
Lara was paralyzed, her strength faded. Upon lifting her, wisps of light flew away from her body, rising to the sun, and slowly but steadily, colors returned to the world.
Roop dared not move anymore.
She knew what was happening. The least she could do was to retrieve Wasl and escape.
But that was impossible. Aatish still had her knife against the throat of the prince. Wasl did not care. As the sunlight painted the world vivid, the stone demoness's true stature was slowly revealed.
It was a colossal giant made of crimson and old stone, carved in the shape of a demoness. Its bends and curves perfectly complemented her horrific beauty. The stone seemed even sturdier than metals, unwilling to bend, unbreakable.
Wasl towered hundreds of meters high, with two vicious horns bending backward from her head.
Above, the golden shadow still loomed, painting the world in dim golden light.
The entire scene looked ethereal, like a painting. Aatish and Amawas stood in front of the Titanic stone giant. Beside the giant was another figure covered in flying ribbons, looking at them with searing anger. Surrounding them were spectators—the remaining army—watching everything with dreadful curiosity. Above, the Golden shadow loomed.
Then everything fell apart. As quick as the wind itself, before even Roop could react, two talons pierced the Titanic giant's chest. Wasl fell back, summoning Desire, but she was too slow. The wind did not obey her; it belonged to the adversary in front.
Roop breathed in as the ribbons surrounding her slowly unwrapped, but a gaze from the Empress shut her down.
Empress Golden continued pushing the paralyzed demon back. She was the same size as the demon, but the difference in might and strength was unfathomable.
Wasl tripped, then fell to the ground. Then something horrible happened.
A shriek that could reach the deepest corners of one's soul resounded in the air. The fallen sovereign scurried back, but it was too late. The seemingly impenetrable stone started breaking.
Wasl quickly moved her head towards Rohaan, her eyes filled with fear.
She lifted her hand and tried to reach out, but the hand broke.
She shouted helplessly, "ROOP SAVE M—" but her face shattered into a thousand pieces, leaving only a corrupted vile core of pure crimson.
Empress Golden looked up from Wasl to Roop.
Then she swiftly descended to the ground, her eyes fixed on the vile core. It was huge and cracked, with crimson blood swirling around it, trying to protect it.
The blob of blood aimed at the Empress anxiously swirled around the core.
Empress Golden stepped aside, giving it a thorough look. The core moved towards the prince at an alarming speed, trying to latch onto him, but it was caught between the Empress's talons.
She lifted it high into the air.
Before departing, she addressed Roop, "It's still not too late."
Then she vanished.
Roop was left befuddled. She could not dare attack anyone in the Empress's absence. Everyone simply ignored her.
She lifted high into the air and left towards Kehkashan.
'This had to be reported; something had to be done about Golden.' She thought
*************
The sudden defeat and the arrival of the Empress herself left all those who witnessed the magnificent event completely stumped. They could not believe that two of the mightiest powers, which had ruled over them for millennia, were simply defeated.
Cheerful shouts and jeers rose into the air. Aatish dropped the knife and lifted Rohaan, looking extremely embarrassed. She dared not look at him directly.
"I'm sorry," she said.
A sting rose deep in Rohaan's soul. He gritted his teeth but kept it to himself. After a brief pause, he said, "We won, Aatish."
"Yes, we did, Rohaan," she replied.
It had been a remarkable step towards the complete liberation of Shargh, and the time for celebrations was here.