In the ethereal shadows of the ancient Ember Tree, Glefnir and Elgard confronted the truths that had long simmered between them, shrouded by fate and dark intrigues.
Klade thought, 'The parents of Rothgar…'
Elgard's arrival, marked by the elemental fury of his twin axes ablaze with red fire and pulsing electricity, was as startling as it was foreboding. "Tch. You look at me as if seeing a ghost, Glefnir. Remember, I was forbidden to enter the old world, yet I ventured forth because I foresaw the devastation that our kin, cloaked as gods, would bring upon us all," Elgard declared, his voice tinged with both pain and defiance.
"Fool. And yet, in your foresight, you sought the forbidden embrace of the Ember Tree's blessing. You planned for your survival against the wrath of our family," Glefnir responded, her tone mixing admonition with a complex sorrow. "You ran to the arms of Elma, the deity involved with the Oracles of Light, children of Elaris."
'The deities of the old world…' Klade thought, clenching his fist.
"Yes, because I believed then, as I do now, that survival means nothing if it but serves the continuation of our family's dark dominion. The Ember Tree's gift was my only safeguard—a trump card against their decree of death upon me," Elgard countered, gripping his axes tighter as their teeth-like extensions slowly grew, ready for battle.
Glefnir sighed deeply, her gaze fixed upon the spectral lights dancing around the hallowed tree. "You misunderstand the depth of my actions, Elgard. The souls blessed by the Ember Tree, those you see as merely tools for our family's immortality, hold a greater purpose. Elma, the creator of this sacred tree, derived her power from the very essence of growth and the conquering of fear. These souls embody that power—the potential to change, to challenge even the decrees of gods."
Elgard's fiery eyes narrowed. "Yet you keep these empowered souls confined here in Carnage, a hidden realm to feed a tree that sustains our curse of eternal life. How does hoarding this power challenge our kin's reign of fear?"
Glefnir stepped forward, her voice earnest, striving to bridge the chasm that had grown between them. "Because, Elgard, it is not merely about opposing our kin outright but reforming them from within. Rothgar, though led astray by ambitions, still respects my counsel. By influencing him, by using Carnage as a stronghold of both power and protection, we can steer the family towards redemption, not just confrontation. The Serpent goes out and collects the dead, and brings them here, a serpent who was once a guardian of the tree, formerly tamed by Elma herself, he has now succumb to us."
Elgard shook his head, his axes sparking with increased ferocity. "And what of the embryo of the avatar of light? Our family thrives for this child who is said to rule with righteousness over all worlds. How can you align with those who seek to control such purity for their own ends?"
"I align not with their methods but their potential for change. Rothgar left me in charge here because he trusts my vision—a vision that includes using the avatar for peace, not dominion. These Ember-blessed souls are key, not just pawns but beacons of the change we need." Glefnir's expression hardened with determination.
Elgard's stance softened slightly, the energy around his axes pulsing thoughtfully. "Your trust in their capacity for change is a gamble, Glefnir. One that I cannot share. I cannot stand idly by while our son, and our family, tread further along this dark path."
Glefnir reached towards Elgard, her hand almost touching his. "You may not stand with us, but remember, my love, the path to salvation is as twisted as the roots of the Ember Tree itself. Do not forsake us yet."
"You've already been forsaken, dammit."
Klade stepped up, saying, "Wait.."
Glefnir replied, "Oh? It's you…the one who gave Grendell trouble."
Elgard was shocked, "He defeated Grendell?!"
Klade nodded, "I did. But the bitch came back with a vengeance. This royal family of yours came to this world and took the essence of the demigods who were defeated by me and the other fighters, and then you waged war with the gods above them, and took their power as well…"
Glefnir smiled, "He's smart. Have you been to the old world?"
"I have. I fought there. And I killed a majority of the demigods."
"Majority, though some were not killed, or haven't been found by you. The ones known as the Oracle of Shadow."
"Yeah I know them. Or I've heard of them."
"Hmm. You're interesting. Tell me what you know."
'She wants to test me. She's planning something else..'
"In the beginning, the old world was a formless void, a canvas for the divine. From this void emerged two primordial beings: Elaris and Orion, twin deities of creation and destruction. Elaris, the embodiment of purity and light, sought to create a harmonious world brimming with life. Orion, the harbinger of chaos and shadows, desired a realm of endless conflict and power. To balance their opposing natures, Elaris and Orion crafted the Oracles, divine beings of immense power and wisdom. These oracles were divided into two factions: the Oracles of Light, loyal to Elaris, and the Oracles of Shadow, followers of Orion. For eons, these two groups coexisted, maintaining a delicate balance. The peace was shattered when a prophecy foretold the coming of a child who would ascend to godhood, tipping the scales in favor of one faction. This prophecy ignited fear and ambition, leading to the Great Schism—a cataclysmic war between the Oracles of Light and Shadow. The Great Schism was a cataclysmic event that fractured the once-united Pantheon of the old world. It was triggered by a conflict between Elaris and Orion over the mortal realm's fate. Elaris wished to protect and nurture the creation, while Orion saw trials and destruction as necessary for growth and evolution.The clash between creation and destruction caused a rift, splitting the Pantheon into the Oracles of Light and Shadow. The Schism had profound effects on the mortal realm, causing natural disasters, wars, and the rise of dark entities. It also led to the creation of the Summons, powerful beings bound to the will of the gods."
Glefnir smiled, "And in this case, The Serpent being Elma's summon."
Klade thought, 'The Oracle of Shadow was mentioned in the old world, but only through notes and runes on the walls. Many players like myself thought the DLC would have us fighting the Oracle of Shadow, but we were wrong. Seems based on the prophecy, the royal family want to take advantage of it by creating their own child and searching for an embryo for their future king to make them hatch and ascend to godhood. So these bastards killed them off and stole their power and essence and used Elma's Ember tree to sustain immortality. They must've come from another world or something, and the true purpose behind their motives…I don't even know. The Oracle of Light was then corrupted in the old world after the game started with Elaris dying to Orion. Her followers then started blaming each other for her death. Which led to them waging war against each other, and taking lives if the mythic beings and races and humans in the game. And that's where we came in, and we were tasked with killing all of the demigods, all of the Oracle of Light members. But Elma…she was a character everyone loved, all the players. But she died due to the fact that she was giving out too much blessing from the Ember Tree which drained her. The domain of a god in the game was connected to them like a link. But she knew what she was doing. And did she know this was gonna happen..? And I plan on killing the entire royal family who's taken the essence and power of the gods from the old world…I have to escape..and make it on the surface to the new world. The world they call Centurion..'
Glefnir chuckled, "Yeah you've been in the old world alright. But that's good. That's really good."
Elgard scoffed, "What are you planning to do with the blessed ones?"
"Tame them as I have tamed the Serpent. Especially this one." Glefnir pointed at Klade. "He even defeated Grendell, who hadn't been beaten in 100's of years. That's amazing."
Klade's heart sank and he began to sweat.
"I'm not going anywhere with you." Klade said.
Elgard stepped in front of Klade, still gripping his axes, "You cannot tame this brat, Glefnir."
"Oh please. If I tamed Elma'a Serpent, then this kid is no challenge. And if he refuses then will of possession, then I'll kill everyone who was the blessing. They don't get a third chance at life."
Klade was trembling, almost dropping to his knees, remembering how everyone died around him at the castle by the hands of Rothgar.
'She'll kill the others if I refuse..I don't want to make the same mistake of having blood on my hands. I won't. Does taking her offer help me escape? Maybe, but I won't be myself. Will of Possession. It's a skill from a demigod boss I killed before in the old world. That bastard spammed that attack over and over until he possessed you. If I'm possessed, I can't take out my revenge, kill the bosses in the world of Centurion, and go back to the real world…'
The moon hung heavy in Carnage's sky, casting ghostly shadows across the ever-twisting mists as Glefnir and Elgard faced off. This was more than a clash of former lovers; it was a battle for the future of realms both seen and unseen.
Elgard said to Klade, "You're scared, of course you are. Hell, I am too. But whatever you do, the only way to leave is to—."
THOOM!
Glefnir dashed forward at light speed to Elgard, catching him off guard. Elgard charged forward, axes swinging in a vicious arc. Each blade, alight with black and dark grey electricity mingled with red frost, carved through the air with precision. Glefnir, nimble and light, teleported just a meter back, leaving a trail of light behind her, causing Elgard's strike to sever a nearby shadow of light instead of flesh.
Emerging from light particles, Glefnir countered swiftly, her white scythe slicing down in a brutal attempt to cleave Elgard in two. He parried with one axe, the clang of their weapons sounding like a death knell, while his other axe swung low, aiming for her knees. Glefnir leaped, flipping backward, her scythe swinging downward to force Elgard to duck.
Klade backed away, alongside the couple hundred people who were blessed by the Ember tree.
"What do we do?!"
"How do we escape?!"
Klade was breathing fast, he was fearful. But he said, "Alright. Alright…"
Klade turned to everyone, saying, "I know this is crazy, but run. It's the only thing we can do. We don't stand a chance against any of them."
"Are you insane? Think it would be that easy? Just to try and run?"
'What was I thinking?! Okay, okay. Wait..'
Klade closed his eyes, taking deep breaths, and he started running away.
The others exclaimed:
"He's running?!"
"Is he crazy?! They'll kill him again!"
Klade said, "What am I doing? What am I doing? What am I doing?"
He kept running, his feet splashing in the water. And at that moment, the embodiments of death that were near Glefnir started to pursue Klade.
And Klade turned around, saying, "Fuck.."
'I'm leading them away from everyone, was it suicidal? That'll buy them time to figure something out. But while I was thinking of them, I should've considered myself as well…'
Landing softly, Glefnir spun, dragging her scythe in a tight circle. Elgard rolled forward, evading the blade, and sprung up, slamming both his axes down. Glefnir sidestepped, her hair fluttering from the close call, and thrust her scythe straight forward. Elgard twisted away, the tip grazing his armor. Elgard retaliated with a series of explosive slashes, dark grey electricity sparking upon impact with the ground, throwing chunks of earth at Glefnir. She danced between the flying debris, her movements a blur as she appeared beside Elgard, scythe arced to decapitate. Elgard's axes crossed above his head, blocking just in time, the collision sparking red frost that briefly coated both weapons.
Elgard said, "Sad it had to come to this."
Glefnir responded with a sigh, "I've always loved you. But you know I struggled with how to be a good parent. And I took our son's side because of it. If I do what he wants, he'll grow to trust me even more as he even trusted me with a realm he created on his own. Maybe in the future he'll learn from the mistakes. But until he does, I'll be with him. I won't be like his father, who abandoned him when he needed us most."
"Don't pin this shit on me! He'll kill everyone at this rate! Once the child is born, the avatar of light, he'll forget about us. He'll only worry about the child. You didn't even think about it, did you? He'lol cast us aside."
"Liar…you're a liar!"
Pushing him back, Glefnir manipulated the light to create a full moon above her, unleashing a devastating beam of destructive radiance. Elgard dove into a crater for cover, narrowly avoiding the beam as it obliterated everything in its path, the ground smoking and sizzling from the intense heat, water splashing in the air high.
L Surging from his makeshift cover, Elgard unleashed a fury of blows, axes spinning and weaving around him in a deadly ballet. Glefnir countered fluidly, her scythe's blade parrying and clashing with each strike, her movements graceful yet deadly, a dance of death under the eerie moonlight.
They locked weapons at close quarters, faces inches apart, breathing heavily. In a sudden move, Elgard headbutted Glefnir, breaking the lock. She staggered back, a trickle of blood running down her forehead. Seizing the moment, Elgard sent a flurry of chops aimed at her torso, each strike parried barely in time. Glefnir vanished in a flash of light, reappearing behind Elgard. Her scythe came down hard, aimed at his back. Elgard spun, his axe meeting her attack, the force of their weapons' clash sending vibrations through the air. Glefnir pressed forward relentlessly, forcing Elgard to retreat step by step.
Elgard feinted a retreat then reversed his momentum, his axe arcing towards Glefnir's midsection. She deftly jumped, flipping over him, and attempted a decapitating strike from behind. Elgard ducked and rolled away, the scythe missing him by mere inches. Regaining his footing, Elgard roared, a primal sound of war and wrath, as he unleashed an explosive attack. His axes slammed against the ground, sending a web of cracks racing towards Glefnir. She leaped, using pieces of upturned earth as footholds, closing the distance and slashing diagonally in a move aimed to wound him severely.
Dodging sideways, Elgard's axes danced in his hands, red frost flaring with each swing, attempting to encase Glefnir in an icy prison. She broke free using a burst of radiant heat from her scythe, the steam created momentarily obscuring her form. From within the mist, her silhouette struck like a ghost, her scythe a streak of death. They broke apart, circling each other warily, both panting and covered in wounds. Elgard's once pristine armor was dented and sliced; Glefnir's robes were torn, revealing armor beneath that was scored by near-fatal blows. The air was thick with the electric charge of their powers, the ground scarred and fractured from their battle.
As the moon cast its cold, indifferent light on the ravaged battlefield, the outcome remained uncertain, the only certainty being the brutal dance of two formidable warriors, each driven by a fierce determination to protect what they cherished, even if it meant destroying the other.