CHAPTER TWELVE — THE NIGHT THE CHURCH BURNED
A single whisper left Arcturus's mouth:
"Now."
The world changed.
Across every kingdom, every city, every province, every shadow where his clones, agents, Vampire Lords, Lycans, assassins, bandits, pirates, dwarves, merchants, and hidden children waited…
That command echoed.
And blood answered.
THE FIRST STRIKE — THE FROST KINGDOMThe Radiant Church cathedral in Frostholm was a fortress carved into ice — tall icy spires, divine flame braziers, wards of holy light illuminating the snow-covered courtyard.
Priests conducted evening rituals.
Paladins patrolled the frozen walls.
Clerics recited hymns.
Then the ground trembled.
A howl tore through the night.
A Lycan arrived.
Not one.
Not ten.
Fifty.
The pureborn Lycans — Arcturus's original creations — burst from the snowy woods like a wave of black fur and crimson eyes.
Paladins shouted to form a line—
But the first Lycan leaped twenty meters in a single bound and crushed a knight's skull beneath its claws.
And the infection began.
A bitten priest screamed—
Convulsed—
Snapped—
Then rose as a lower Lycan, mindless but obedient, jaws dripping frozen blood.
The infection spread like wildfire.
Within minutes, hundreds of priests and acolytes were transformed.
From the front of the cathedral steps, the Arcturus clone stood watching, arms folded behind his back.
Darek, leader of the Black Pine Legion, approached.
"…This is brutal," he muttered.
The clone didn't blink.
"They chose their faith. We choose our survival."
The cathedral fell in under an hour.
The north belonged to Arcturus.
THE SUN DYNASTY — THE MERCHANT GUILDS MOVEThe Sun Dynasty's greatest cathedral was built from white stone and gold.
It burned in silence.
The clone inside the Azure Sun guild office lifted a finger.
That was all it took.
Dozens of Nightborn assassins — children trained by Arcturus — slipped through vents, shadows, servant passages, rafters.
They slit throats.
Applied poison.
Cut tendons.
Removed guards without making a sound.
In the outer courtyard, the six Vampire Lords walked through crowds of panicked worshippers like phantoms.
Selene whispered:
"Drink."
And the massacre began.
Whenever a priest screamed, Selene silenced them with a blade of blood.
Whenever a paladin charged, Varian ripped their armor apart.
Whenever a cleric begged the Radiant God to save them, Lucien stepped behind them and snapped their neck.
Within minutes, they had created over three hundred Blood Acolytes — newly turned, weaker vampires, lacking sunlight immunity, but bound utterly to Arcturus.
Kael knelt before the clone.
"All churches in the desert provinces have been taken."
The clone nodded once.
"Good. Burn the remains. Leave no relic. No scripture. No survivor with a tongue."
THE WESTERN ISLES — THE BLACK TIDE ARRIVESCathedral by the sea.
Built atop cliffs.
Protected by naval fleets.
It didn't matter.
Fog rolled in.
Black Tide ships emerged like ghosts.
And when the fog lifted…
The entire harbor was aflame.
Cannons roared.
Flaming bolts slammed into church ships.
Pirates loyal to Arcturus swarmed onto the docks.
From the flagship, the clone watched with a cold gaze.
When enemy inquisitors tried to flee, the clone raised his hand—
And the sea itself rose, pulling them under.
Moments later…
A Vampire Lord landed beside him, drenched in saltwater and blood.
"Captain," Varian said with a savage grin, "the coastal cathedral is secured. The priests turned easily."
The clone nodded.
"All coastal Churches?"
"Destroyed."
"Burn the bodies," the clone ordered. "Leave the sea red."
THE DWARVEN UNION — FORGE FIRE & BLOODIn the underground forge-city of Grimdural, the Radiant Chapel was built deep into the mountain — sanctified, warded, protected.
It didn't survive the dwarves.
Dwarves rarely bowed to gods.
Now they bowed to Arcturus.
The Iron Breakers guild stormed the church with war hammers, enchanted axes, and rune bombs. Holy wards cracked beneath their blows.
The clone — King of the Forge — watched impassively as dwarves smashed pews, crushed paladins, and tore apart sacred artifacts.
An Iron Breaker elder approached him.
"Done," the dwarf said. "Naething left but rubble an' regrets."
The clone nodded.
"Good. Begin reforging the divine metals. They belong to us now."
THE CENTRAL KINGDOMS — NIGHTBORN SILENCEAcross three central kingdoms, smaller Radiant churches collapsed from within.
A priest walked into the dark storage room.
A child's voice whispered behind him:
"Forgive me."
And a blade slid into his spine.
Nightborn everywhere acted simultaneously.
No cathedral was spared.
No bishop escaped.
No holy vault survived.
This part was clean.
Precise.
A silent purge.
VALTARUS — THE BLOODY REPORTAt dawn, Arcturus entered the royal war room.
Aldric and Alistair were already waiting — but nothing could prepare them for the aura of cold, divine-among-monsters power that followed him.
Arcturus sat, placing a sealed scroll and several blood-crystal memory stones on the table.
Father and son stared.
Arcturus began without ceremony.
"All Radiant churches across all kingdoms have been destroyed."
Aldric blinked. "…All?"
"Every one," Arcturus answered calmly. "Large and small. Cathedrals. Chapels. Secret meeting halls. Pilgrimage outposts. Priest dormitories. Relic vaults."
Alistair leaned forward.
"How many of your forces moved?"
Arcturus's eyes glowed faint crimson.
"All of them."
Aldric exhaled.
"…Report."
Arcturus raised his hand — six blood memories ignited above the table, projecting visions.
REPORT 1 — THE NORTHArcturus narrated:
"The pureborn Lycans attacked the Frost Kingdom's main cathedral. Once bitten, priests transformed into lower Lycans."
Aldric's eyes widened slightly.
"How many?"
Arcturus answered steadily:
"Thousands. And growing."
Alistair felt his spine chill.
"Father… if those spread too far…"
Arcturus interrupted:
"They will only obey me."
The king nodded slowly.
"Good."
REPORT 2 — THE SUN DYNASTY"The Vampire Lords moved through the desert provinces," Arcturus continued. "We turned priests into Blood Acolytes. Controlled. Loyal. Their minds… simple, but useful."
Alistair whispered:
"You turned an entire clergy into vampires…"
"Correct."
Aldric rubbed his forehead, muttering:
"…Ancestors save us…"
Arcturus added:
"The Acolytes will form our first wave — disposable but dangerous."
REPORT 3 — WESTERN ISLESThe flames of burning ships reflected across the war-table.
Arcturus narrated:
"The Black Tide has sunk every Church fleet in the isles. Ports are crippled. The region belongs to us now."
Aldric clenched his fist.
"That… is enormous."
Arcturus nodded.
"It was necessary."
REPORT 4 — DWARVEN UNIONImages of dwarves smashing statues flickered in the air.
Arcturus spoke:
"The dwarves destroyed their Church. They have pledged their forges to me. Grimdural is ours."
Alistair's jaw dropped.
"Brother… that is an entire city."
"Yes," Arcturus said simply. "A strong one."
REPORT 5 — CENTRAL KINGDOMSNightborn masks gleamed in the projection.
"Assassinations," Arcturus said. "Clean. Efficient. Every Church agent in those regions is dead."
Aldric leaned back, breath shaking.
"…You wiped them out."
"Yes."
THE DEEP CONVERSATION — FEAR & STRATEGYSilence hung over the room, heavy as a storm.
Alistair was the first to speak.
"Arcturus…"
His voice was low.
Uneasy.
A little afraid.
"You've destroyed the entire Radiant Church outside the northern empire."
Arcturus met his gaze.
"Correct."
Aldric swallowed.
"And you unleashed monsters."
"Soldiers," Arcturus corrected. "Mine."
Alistair stared.
"You created Lycans and vampires—"
"Yes."
"And turned priests into beasts and acolytes?"
"Yes."
Aldric exhaled heavily.
"My son… this is war beyond anything our kingdom has ever touched."
Arcturus stepped forward, shadows thickening behind him.
"We are no longer fighting a religion, Father. The Empire behind the Church will come. Their saints. Their armies. Their divine beasts. Their champions."
He paused.
"We need numbers. We need terror. We need shadows. So I built them."
Aldric nodded slowly.
"I see… and your control?"
"Absolute."
Alistair frowned.
"What is your plan now?"
Arcturus projected new formations across the table.
TACTICAL DEPLOYMENT — THE SHADOW WAR1. LycansArcturus tapped the Frost Kingdom map.
"The pureborn Lycans will lead packs of lower Lycans. They will infest Church territories like wildfire, spreading infection behind enemy lines."
Aldric nodded grimly.
"Chaos before the crusade arrives."
2. Vampire LordsArcturus tapped the Sun Dynasty map.
"The Vampire Lords will lead Blood Acolyte swarms at night, targeting command camps, priests, and siege engineers."
Alistair muttered:
"Decapitate leadership…"
"Precisely," Arcturus said.
3. Black Tide Armada"They will patrol the coast," Arcturus said. "Sink reinforcements. Capture supply ships. Strangle the Church's logistics."
Aldric smirked.
"Good. Starve them."
4. Black Pine Legion"They will ambush northern armies, slow their march, and bleed them with guerrilla tactics."
5. Nightborn"Assassinations," Arcturus said. "Every day. Every night. Kill officers. Kill clergy. Kill scouts. Kill morale."
Alistair nodded slowly.
"…You're building a perfect shadow war."
Arcturus corrected softly:
"I am building extinction."
Father and son froze.
THE REVEAL — PRIMORDIAL ARMYArcturus lifted his hand.
The Vampire Lords entered — six pale figures kneeling before Aldric and Alistair.
Then the Lycans entered — towering eight-foot beasts, silent but respectful, bowing their heads.
Aldric's breath caught.
Alistair staggered back.
Arcturus spoke calmly:
"These are my creations. Loyal. Deadly. Intelligent."
He gestured behind them.
"And the thousands of acolytes and lower Lycans now answer to them."
Alistair whispered:
"Brother… you've built… an army."
Arcturus corrected:
"A legion."
Aldric's voice trembled.
"And this… this will fight for Valtarus?"
Arcturus placed a hand on the table.
"For you," he said softly. "Always."
The king's eyes softened with pride and terror.
"You are a gift… and a calamity."
Arcturus smiled faintly.
"Yes."
THE PLAN — UNLEASH THE HORDEArcturus's voice dropped into a low, ancient command:
"When the Church's crusade reaches our borders…"
The Vampire Lords knelt deeper.
The Lycans growled with anticipation.
"We will not merely fight them."
Alistair swallowed.
"…What then?"
Arcturus's eyes burned crimson.
"We will drown them."
He continued:
"I will unleash the lower Lycans and Blood Acolytes. They will swarm the crusade in the night. Tens of thousands. Under the command of the Vampire Lords and Lycan Alphas."
Aldric stared in awe.
"You will destroy their army before it reaches us."
"Yes."
The Demon Prince stepped back.
"And then…"
His shadow spread across the room like wings.
"We march on the Church."
The room fell silent.
No fear.
No doubt.
No hesitation.
Only acceptance.
And the beginning of the true war.