The battlefield roared with the chaos of war, but at the center of it all, two figures faced each other in a silence charged with tension. Uriel stood several meters from Jerom, his carefree smile contrasting with the contained fury in his enemy's eyes.
"You know?" Uriel said, tilting his head with an irritating lightness. "You were right about what you said when we first fought."
Jerom frowned, his grip on his sword tightening instinctively.
"What are you talking about?"
"When you said I wasn't afraid of darkness," Uriel continued, his voice soft but clear. "No, I was never afraid of darkness. What terrified me was delving into its true depths. I feared being consumed by it, losing myself in that bottomless abyss and never returning."
The confession hung in the air like an uncomfortable truth. Uriel lowered his gaze for a moment, observing the shadows dancing at his feet.
"But now I understand something important."
He looked up, and his eyes shone with a determination Jerom had never seen before.
"I have allies. I have dreams and goals. As long as I maintain those bonds, as long as I have reasons to return, I trust I can tame the darkness. I don't need to fear it. I need to rule it."
Jerom tightened his grip on his sword even more. He noticed the change in Uriel's attitude. He was no longer fearful of his presence. The doubt that had clouded his eyes had completely dissipated, replaced by an unshakeable certainty.
Fear had died.
"Do you think that by reaching a simple enlightenment you can stop me?" Jerom laughed, his voice laden with disdain. The dark creatures around him roared in response, like a choir validating his power. "I have lived for millennia. I have devoured entire kingdoms. I have seen countless mortals like you have their moments of clarity before being crushed by my strength."
Uriel smiled. A wide, genuine, almost amused smile.
"I can do it," he responded calmly. "And I will. After all, I am the master and lord of darkness. My will over it is absolute. Even a creature like you has no choice but to kneel in my presence."
The words resonated with a power that went beyond the physical. Darkness itself seemed to bow before Uriel, the shadows swirling around him like reverent subjects.
Jerom felt a shiver run down his spine, and that enraged him even more.
"Blasphemy!" he roared, his form expanding with dark energy. "You are nothing more than a simple mortal who has touched a power he does not understand!"
"Perhaps," Uriel admitted, raising his sword with elegance. "But I'm learning fast."
The Sword of True Darkness reacted to his will. The black blade began to vibrate, and from its surface emerged eight replicas of itself. Each sword was identical to the original, but with a slightly different glow, as if each possessed a fraction of the mother weapon's consciousness.
The eight swords flew across the battlefield, cutting through the chaos of war with surgical precision. Each found its destination among Shadow Garden's transcendents, stopping before them.
Scarlet was the first to receive hers. She took the sword with both hands, feeling a wave of energy course through her body. Her wounds began to close, and the exhaustion that had been consuming her for a month vanished as if it had never existed.
"This is..." she murmured, her eyes opening with surprise.
"A gift from Lord Dark," Lyra said, holding her own sword. The tears that had been threatening to fall finally rolled down her cheeks, but this time they were of relief. "I can feel his power."
Frost, Kael and the others also received their swords. Each experienced the same sensation of renewal; their exhausted bodies were revitalized, their connection to their abilities strengthened, and in their minds resonated Uriel's voice.
"The ability is called [Parasite]," Uriel explained, his voice reaching all of them through the shared connection. "Each copy of the true sword of darkness grants a blessing to its bearer. Not only will they heal faster, but their powers will be amplified as long as they wield these weapons. Consider this my gratitude for having fought for so long."
The transcendents exchanged glances. The wounds and fatigue disappeared from their faces, replaced by renewed determination.
"That's pathetic," Jerom spat, watching the scene with disdain. "Do you think giving your subjects toys will change anything? They're insignificant. They're all ants before my power."
Uriel turned to face him, his smile still present.
"Ants, when working together, can bring down a giant. But don't worry, I don't need them to defeat you. I just need them to keep your army busy while..."
"While what?" Jerom asked, his voice a growl.
"While I show you who the true ruler is."
The words were the starting signal.
Uriel and Jerom launched into a devastating combat that began to shake the entire battlefield. The impact of their clashes created shockwaves that knocked down trees, broke rocks and sent the nearest creatures flying through the air.
This time, Uriel would fight holding nothing back.
His mind was clearer than ever. The doubts that had pursued him since his awakening had vanished. The fears that bound him to a past of uncertainty had dissolved. Only he remained, his darkness, and the iron will of one who has accepted his destiny.
They exchanged blows at speeds mortals could not follow. Jerom attacked with the fury of millennia, his sword cutting through the air with the intention of destroying everything in its path. But Uriel moved like a shadow, dodging, countering, always one step ahead.
"What happened to you?!" Jerom roared, feeling his attacks blocked time and again. "Before you could barely keep up with my pace!"
"I changed," Uriel responded, his voice calm amidst the storm. "I accepted who I am. I accepted what I can be."
"Nonsense!" Jerom launched a devastating attack, a thrust that should have pierced Uriel's heart.
But Uriel vanished, becoming shadow for an instant, and reappeared behind Jerom with lightning speed.
"It's not nonsense," he whispered in his enemy's ear. "It's the power of truth."
His sword cut through Jerom's armor, leaving a wound that bled darkness. Jerom spun furiously, but Uriel had already moved away, his posture relaxed, his breathing controlled.
In the heat of battle, a question passed through Uriel's mind. That entity that had imitated the monarch of shadows, the one that had tormented him in his dream... had it done something to his soul? Had it manipulated his memories, his emotions?
But then he shook his head.
It didn't matter.
If his soul had been touched, if his thoughts had been altered, that was irrelevant. At this moment, he would fight with everything he had. For Shade, for his subjects, for Doom, for the future he wanted to build. If that entity had plans for him, it would have to wait. Now, only the battle mattered.
Jerom attacked him again, and Uriel responded with a counterattack that sent his enemy several meters backward.
In the distance, Scarlet observed the scene. She saw how Uriel faced Jerom without hesitation, how his power flowed with a confidence he hadn't possessed before. She smiled with pride.
"Shadow Garden!" she shouted, raising her parasite sword. "Lord Dark is fighting for us! Let's not let his effort be in vain!"
The transcendents nodded. The forms of their weapons changed, adapting to the styles they were most familiar with, but now infused with the power of true darkness.
Even if they adopted their transcendent form, the parasite swords transformed into a deadly aura that continuously strengthened them. Each felt how their abilities were amplified, how fatigue faded, how hope was reborn.
Scarlet gave the order:
"Attack! Destroy the enemy!"
The battlefield became an inferno of light and shadow. Shadow Garden's transcendents launched themselves against Jerom's hordes with renewed vigor, their swords shining with the power of blessed darkness.
And at the center of it all, Uriel faced Jerom once more, his carefree smile but his eyes shining with the fury of the true ruler.
"You see?" Uriel said, his words cutting through the air like his sword. "This is my kingdom. This is my darkness. And you... you are just an invader who has overestimated his place."
Jerom roared with fury, but his screams were lost in the chaos of battle.
---
The fight between Uriel and Jerom intensified with each passing second. The ground beneath them cracked and split, unable to withstand the force of their confrontation. The sky above them darkened, as if even the heavens feared to witness what was unfolding.
Jerom's attacks grew more desperate, more erratic. He had lived for millennia, had conquered countless worlds, had devoured the essence of gods and mortals alike. And yet, this mortal—this insignificant creature who had barely touched the surface of true power—was matching him blow for blow.
"How is this possible?!" Jerom screamed, his voice cracking with a mixture of fury and disbelief. "You were nothing! A flea! A speck of dust in the grand scheme of existence!"
"Maybe I was," Uriel admitted, his sword meeting Jerom's with a clash that sent sparks of darkness flying in all directions. "But fleas can learn. Fleas can grow. And fleas can become... something more."
He pushed forward, his strength surprising even himself. The Sword of True Darkness hummed in his hands, feeding on the abundant darkness surrounding them, growing stronger with each passing moment.
Jerom stumbled back, his eyes wide with shock. For the first time since their battle began, he looked... afraid.
"You're not just a mortal," Jerom whispered, his voice trembling. "You're... you're..."
"I'm what?" Uriel asked, his voice soft but carrying an edge of steel.
Jerom's eyes darted around the battlefield, searching for something—an escape, a weakness, anything. But all he saw were his forces being pushed back by Shadow Garden, his creatures falling to the blessed swords, his empire crumbling around him.
"You're an aberration," Jerom finally spat. "A mistake of existence. You should not have this power. You should not exist!"
"Maybe," Uriel said, raising his sword for the final blow. "But I do exist. And I'm not going anywhere."
The Sword of True Darkness descended, its blade cutting through the air with the finality of death itself. Jerom tried to block, tried to dodge, but it was useless. The blade found its mark.
And for the first time in millennia, Jerom screamed.
---
Scarlet watched from a distance as Jerom fell. She saw the darkness that had defined him for so long begin to unravel, his form flickering like a dying flame. She heard his scream, a sound of pure agony and disbelief.
"It's over," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the chaos of the battlefield.
"Not yet," Kael said, appearing beside her, his winds still howling around him. "Look."
She followed his gaze. Although Jerom had fallen, his army of darkness creatures still fought on. Without their master, they were mindless, driven only by instinct and hunger. But they were still dangerous, still numerous.
"Right," Scarlet said, raising her parasite sword. "Then let's finish this."
She launched herself back into the fray, her flames blazing brighter than ever. Around her, Shadow Garden followed, their blessed swords cutting through the darkness like beacons of hope.