Chapter 53 Diane's Forsaken Empress Awakening
The wind whistled through the desolate valley, carrying in its cold embrace the scent of ancient decay and forgotten bloodshed. History was heavy in the air, speaking of a past tale of those who rose and fell in the name of power.
Before the ruins of the Forsaken Vanguard Clan stood Diane, her crimson eyes narrowing in on the crumbling stone walls that once stood tall, now little more than the remains of an empire long forgotten. The ruins stretched for miles, with broken pillars and shattered battlements casting jagged shadows beneath the pale moonlight.
Itself, the earth appeared to grieve. Wind whined a keening-like wail as if from disembodied spirits, while the sky, shrouded over with thick oppressive gray, refused to let events go by in forgetfulness.
Diane placed her hand against one of the engravings on the wall, tracing the ancient symbols with her fingertips. Despite the passing of time, the carvings still held power, depicting a saga of warriors clad in obsidian armor, standing unyielding against an unseen enemy.
Her heart pounded.
"This place… it feels so familiar."
A sudden gust of wind sent dust spiraling through the air, and then—she felt it.
A presence.
The air compacted, thick with the charge of something ethereal, and before her stood an appearance.
Tall. Powerful. Imperial.
A woman clad in a battle-worn cloak, her hair flowing like molten moonlight, her crimson eyes ablaze with a spirit unbroken.
Diane's breath hitched in her throat.
This was no ordinary specter.
This was a ruler.
A warrior queen.
"You have come, child. The blood of the Forsaken Empress runs in your veins."
It was a voice soft and yet absolute, a whisper that compelled by the weight of undeniable authority.
Diane straightened, clenching her fists. "Who are you?"
The woman's gaze did not falter. "I am Seraphina, the last Empress of the Forsaken Vanguard. My soul lingers to guide those who carry our bloodline."
A chill crawled down Diane's spine.
She had heard whispers of Seraphina-a legend lost to time.
A ruler of unparalleled strength, a woman betrayed by those she trusted most.
Seraphina took a step forward, and her phantom presence was palpable, as if the very ruins responded to her will.
"You seek power. But are you prepared for the weight that comes with it?"
She met Diane's gaze with steadfast eyes. "I don't have a choice. The world is going to burn, and I must be strong enough to save those few dear ones that surround me."
Seraphina let her lips curve in a bitter smile. "Power is a curse if not handled with good will. Our clan was the strongest in power, yet it was backstabbed. Are you sure you'll bear the fallen dynasty on your shoulders?"
Diane took a long, slow breath as her fingers curled into her palms.
"I can. I will."
---
The Trial Begins
With her words spoken, Seraphina lifted her hand, and the world shifted.
A chilling coldness, which seemed to seep into the bones, rolled over Diane.
The sky blackened; the stars fell back into an abyss. The ground beneath her cracked, and she was pulled by an unseen force onto a fictional battlefield.
Screams tore through the air.
A great war unfolded before her.
Thousands of warriors clashed, their swords ablaze in crimson and gold, their banners drenched in blood. The insignia of the Forsaken Vanguard shone on their armor, yet amongst them—traitors moved like shadows, striking down their own kin.
Diane reeled, the weight of despair and fury crashing into her like a tidal wave. She could feel their agony, their rage—their betrayal seeping into her very soul.
Her breath came in ragged gasps.
The battlefield smelled of death.
Bodies cluttered the earth, warriors whose eyes still had that fire for a fight at their death.
Diane was on her knees as a voice cut through the illusion.
"This is your legacy," Seraphina's voice echoed. "Can you bear it?"
Her body erupted into flames.
But not normal, mere fire - Forsaken Flames.
They hiked up to her arms where her skin under turned gold, red from scalding.
Her bones crackled, her veins seared, her mind teetered on the edge of oblivion.
But she refused to break.
She screamed, but it wasn't a scream of pain.
It was a battle cry.
And the flames did not devour her.
They forged her.
The battlefield shattered, and abruptly she found herself standing in a golden throne room, surrounded by pillars of fire.
Seraphina sat upon the massive golden throne, eyes unreadable as she stared at her.
"You have endured the agony of our past. But power is not just about suffering. It is about command. Can you wield this strength as an Empress should?"
Diane was breathing hard, her body trembling from the experience, but she stood tall.
"I can."
---
The Awakening of the Forsaken Empress Physique
The throne room disappeared, and Diane found herself back in the ruins.
But she was no longer the same.
The radiance of golden red shrouded her bodily form.
The scarlet manes cascaded down like a flow of silky flames, casting an ethereal glow on the skin. Upon her forehead gleamed the divinely marked symbol of the Forsaken Empress.
Seraphina stepped forth and laid a hand on Diane's shoulder.
"Then let it be now, Forsaken Empress; you are beyond just a simple warrior. You are the inheritor of the forgotten dynasty.
A surge of power erupted through Diane's veins, her aura expanding like a tempest of divine fire.
She could feel it-the authority of an Empress, the ability to command armies, to bend battle itself to her will.
She exhaled, steadying herself.
This was not just power.
It was ascension.
---
Diane's Transformation-The Forsaken Empress Physique
Diane raised her hand, feeling the raw strength coursing through her veins.
Her once slender frame had turned into perfection, sculpted to exude elegance and might.
Her waist was narrower, her hips more accentuated, her whole being commanding without even trying.
She was no longer just Diane.
She was royalty.
A force of nature.
And then—
She thought about Jason.
A soft smile danced on her lips.
"Now… I am truly worthy of him."
Before, she had admired him from afar, always wondering if he ever saw her as more than a comrade.
But now?
And now she could stand beside him, as his equal.
The recognition came to her mind the instant her fingers traced the divine mark on her forehead.
"I was never unworthy; I just had to awaken my true self."
She clenched her fists, crackling with her finally awakened power.
The Forsaken Flames in her soul burned and became a symbol of her will that wouldn't bend, not an apocalypse of evil and destruction.
The world had yet to find the real Diane.
And when she saw Jason again-
She would make certain he perceived her anew.
No-as an Empress.
The Forsaken Empress had awakened.
And the world would never be the same.