The Empire's Fall
Vandemir, once a beacon of civilization, now lay in ruin. Its streets, once bustling with merchants and nobles, were now filled with ashes and silence. The palace, which had stood for generations, was now a tomb, its golden banners replaced by sigils of the Black Sun.
Kaelen stood at the heart of the devastation, his black cloak billowing in the cold wind. The scent of burnt stone and steel lingered in the air.
His warriors stood behind him—silent, disciplined, and unstoppable. They had conquered their first kingdom, but this was merely a step toward something far greater.
A single city would not be enough.
He needed an empire.
A World in Fear
Word of Vandemir's fall spread like wildfire.
Messengers fled to neighboring kingdoms, their horses running until their hearts burst. Across the continent, kings and queens gathered in their war rooms, speaking in hushed tones of the unstoppable force that had emerged from the abyss.
Some dismissed it as mere legend.
Others knew better.
The Black Sun was not just a conqueror's mark—it was an omen. A prophecy foretold that when the Black Sun rose once more, the world would burn.
And now, that prophecy was unfolding before their eyes.
The First Resistance
Kaelen's next target lay to the north—a kingdom called Velkanis, a land of warriors and fortresses, where the rulers prided themselves on their military strength.
They did not kneel.
They fought.
As Kaelen's army approached the Velkanis border, they were met with resistance. Thousands of armored knights, archers, and war mages stood on the field, their banners raised in defiance.
Upon the high walls of their fortress, their king stood—a man clad in black and gold armor, his silver eyes unshaken even as he gazed upon the abyssal army before him.
King Edric Velkanis.
A warrior-king. A man who had never known defeat.
He raised his sword, his voice carrying across the battlefield.
"You may have taken Vandemir, but you will find no easy victory here."
Kaelen watched from atop his war beast, his expression unreadable.
This was different from the last battle.
Velkanis was not ruled by a coward.
It was ruled by a king.
And Kaelen would break him.
The Battle Begins
With a single motion, Kaelen lowered his hand.
The Black Sun's legions charged.
Warriors of shadow and steel surged forward like a tidal wave. Archers loosed their arrows, war mages unleashed storms of flame and lightning, and monstrous war-beasts crushed the ground beneath them as they stormed toward Velkanis's walls.
The defenders fought like lions.
Arrows rained down. Explosions shook the battlefield. Velkanis knights, their blades glowing with enchanted runes, carved through the shadow warriors with precision and skill.
Kaelen's forces met resistance, but he was unmoved.
This was expected.
This was war.
And war… was his domain.
From atop his war beast, Kaelen raised his hand toward the sky.
The Black Sun pulsed.
Dark energy surged outward, swallowing the battlefield in an unnatural eclipse. The sun itself faded behind a curtain of swirling void.
A shadow fell upon Velkanis.
The true battle had begun.
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The Eclipse of Velkanis
The Sun Fades to Black
The battlefield trembled as the Black Sun cast its unnatural shadow over Velkanis. The once-bright sky dimmed, and an eerie twilight settled over the land. The soldiers of Velkanis, who had fought bravely beneath the midday sun, now found themselves standing in darkness.
Their flames flickered and weakened.
Their enchanted weapons, once burning with divine light, now diminished.
King Edric Velkanis, still standing atop the fortress walls, felt an unfamiliar sensation—dread. He had faced countless battles, slain countless foes, but never had he felt the presence of something beyond mortal understanding.
The man in black, the conqueror from the abyss, Kaelen.
This was no ordinary war.
This was an execution.
A New Kind of War
Kaelen stood at the edge of the battlefield, his black armor reflecting the dim light of the dying sun. His forces held their ground, waiting. Watching.
Then, he moved.
With a flick of his hand, the abyssal forces surged forward once more—but this time, they did not charge blindly.
They moved like a shadowed tide, slipping through gaps in the Velkanis ranks, weaving through the defenders' formation like smoke. The Velkanis knights swung their blades, but their weapons found nothing but air.
Then, the screaming began.
Dark tendrils coiled around soldiers, dragging them into the blackened earth. War beasts leapt over barricades, tearing through the archers on the walls.
Kaelen himself stepped forward, raising his blade of shadows high. The moment it touched the air, a pulse of abyssal energy erupted outward.
Stone shattered.
Flames died.
And the gates of Velkanis collapsed.
King Edric's Stand
The great doors of the fortress lay in ruins, but King Edric Velkanis did not flee. He descended from the walls, landing in the midst of the battlefield with the force of a meteor. His blade, forged from the heart of a fallen star, burned with golden fire.
He charged.
Kaelen met him, their swords clashing with a force that sent shockwaves through the battlefield.
Light against darkness.
Edric swung with the strength of a hundred warriors, his blade carving arcs of divine fire through the air. Kaelen met every strike, his movements effortless, calculated, unstoppable.
The two clashed again and again, their blows carving trenches into the earth, sending waves of raw energy across the battlefield.
The soldiers on both sides stopped fighting.
They could only watch.
A King's Fall
Edric gasped, his movements slowing. His divine blade, once brilliant, now dimmed in Kaelen's presence. The Black Sun's energy devoured its light, unraveling the very magic that had once made him a legend.
Kaelen tilted his head, watching as the once-mighty king struggled to breathe.
"Your gods have abandoned you," he said, his voice calm, absolute.
Edric fell to one knee, his strength fading. The power that had once made him a warrior-king had been consumed.
Kaelen raised his sword.
And in one swift motion—Edric Velkanis, the last hope of the north, fell.
His army collapsed in despair.
Velkanis was lost.
The Black Sun Rises Higher
As the fortress fell silent, Kaelen turned to his army. The city burned behind him, its proud walls now crumbling ruins.
Another kingdom had fallen.
But he was not done.
He turned his gaze east, toward the next kingdom that had yet to kneel.
"We march," he declared, and the legions of the abyss roared in unison.
The world had tried to resist.
Now, it would learn the truth.
There was no escape from the Black Sun.