The morning light barely broke through the ash-choked sky, yet the stronghold trembled as if the world itself had been hollowed by fear. The Heartstone glowed with a steady golden pulse, yet it seemed almost anxious, as though sensing the approaching storm. Across the horizon, the shadows coalesced into vast, writhing armies of monstrous shapes—twisting, morphing, and surging toward the stronghold like waves of living darkness.
Aric stood atop the highest battlement, sword in hand, the amulet his father had left pulsing violently against his chest. Golden-violet energy radiated from him, flames of his bloodline intertwining with the Heartstone's light. Each heartbeat echoed the rhythm of the stone, and with it, his determination surged.
"Elara! Lyra! Alara!" he called, voice sharp and commanding. "This is it. The final wave. Hold the walls, protect the Heartstone, and trust me—we end this today!"
Elara's staff shone brilliantly as she responded, "The wards are holding, Aric! But their coordination—someone is orchestrating it. Not just monsters—they're guided!"
Lyra's golden aura expanded like a protective dome over the soldiers below. "We keep them alive, and the Heartstone safe. Together!"
Alara's eyes narrowed, scanning the battlefield. "Stay focused! Hit their weak points! We move as one!"
And then the figure appeared. High on the ridge beyond the battlefield, shrouded in shadows, commanding with a simple gesture the massive army of darkness. Her presence radiated power, control, and familiarity. Aric froze, a chill running down his spine. Something about her…
A soft, melodic voice echoed across the field. "Aric… you've grown. But strength alone is meaningless without understanding. Today, you will learn everything… and I will be free at last."
Aric's heart twisted. Recognition flared, yet he could not place it fully. Anger and confusion surged, but he shoved them aside. "Then I'll learn! And I will stop you!"
The shadows surged. Massive beasts lunged at the walls, tendrils tearing through steel, stone, and magic alike. Aric leapt forward, energy flaring, cutting through creatures that should have been invincible. Each strike pulsed with golden-violet arcs, illuminating the battlefield, while his bloodline instinctively guided him to every weak point.
Elara moved alongside him, weaving barriers and binding spells to cut off tendrils from reaching the soldiers. Lyra's aura flared, deflecting attacks and bolstering their defenses. Alara moved like liquid silver, her strikes precise, removing threats with surgical accuracy.
But the monsters adapted. Shadows bent mid-strike, split into smaller forms, and surged unpredictably. The scale of the battle was overwhelming. Aric could feel it—every monster, every movement, every pulse of the battlefield was influenced by her. The presence of the figure on the ridge was tangible, oppressive, commanding the chaos.
Suddenly, a massive, jagged beast lunged directly at Alara, faster than anything Aric could anticipate. Before she could react, its claws tore through her guard, sending her flying toward the wall.
"Alara!" Aric yelled, eyes blazing. Golden-violet energy flared as he surged forward, faster than thought, intercepting the monster midair. He slashed his sword, arcs of energy erupting like lightning, disintegrating the shadow at the last possible moment. Alara crumpled to the ground, breathing raggedly, her side scorched and bleeding.
Aric knelt beside her, gripping her shoulder. "Stay with me! Don't you dare give up!"
She coughed, trying to stand, but her injuries were severe. "I'm fine… thanks to you." Her voice was weak, but her eyes held determination.
"You almost died!" he shouted, chest heaving. "Do you understand? I won't let anyone—anyone—hurt you while I'm standing!"
The surge of anger and protectiveness unlocked a new depth of power in him. Golden-violet arcs blazed across his arms, pulsing with the Heartstone's energy. He rose, towering, his aura magnifying tenfold, sending tremors across the battlefield.
Then the direct confrontation begin , Aric rush towards her she uses her shadows to trap him but with his mighty powers and aura he surpass it and reach very close to her but fails in landing an attack
Grabbing the situation in her favour she immediately uses some strange power reflecting from her eyes that deflect Aric and he falls back for a moment
But Aric doesn't stop he steps in turns his Guardian Flame on , an Aura starts coming around him then," Echoing Nova!!!!!!!!!!" the energy and force came out from this attack was like a star exploding , there was a huge blast on the battlefield , annihilating almost every soldier from the women's army , due to the Guardian flame Aric's allies were safe from the impact.
For a second he thought that he won but the next moment the women come behind him and...."Resonant Bind" she says in a cold voice, suddenly shadows appear from the ground and bind Aric tightly but this wasn't enough suddenly a chill broke out on the battlefield a area of 50 cm wide covering Aric and Herself got filed with violet-silver light , the next moment Aric sees her , he couldn't stop shaking by her overwhelming Aura he saw the real fear for the first time
Aric was about to be draw into the light
suddenly we see a flashback of Aric and his Father
"Fear is not the weakness of a person, it's the momentary feeling which makes the inner true self of the person in this world"
The women notices a strange thing that Aric's Aura started turning from Golden yellow to Pure blackish Purple, his eyes glows purple , his suit turns into black , the magic casted by the Women suddenly bursts and vanish.
This action shocks her , with this we witness the dark Aura floating around Aric with wings at his back and a cold expression on his face .
Aric's appearance shocks everyone, "is he our Aric?" Elara was very shocked to see that his friend was looking like this
The commander understand something was wrong but from her vision everything was becoming blur too, some memories were clicking her over and over again but before she could take any action . she noticed that the time became still as it was moving with Aric's heartbeat, all the corrupted magic around them gets shattered away, trapped souls starts coming down from the ground , the dark aura with souls around Aric comes into his blade and with a sharp violet light the strike of the strongest lost magic type "Soudar" comes at the woman, " I am not Dying until i find my mother!!!!!!" an explosion takes place covering the whole battlefield, with this explosion the time gets back to normal, and we listen only one thing echoing through the ground "Soul's Aria" the ultimate skill of Aric's "true inner from"
everyone was confused that what happened here, Aric comes back to his senses ,but was extremely injured from the attack
But still the eyes were on only at one thing the shadow commander who was Alive and unharmed with little scratches, even after the ultimate attack , she was fine , shocked Aric too much as he was not in the form of fighting.
Then the scene shifts to a black room , a women sitting on the dark surface covered in shadows, suddenly the shadows vanishes and we see a beautiful women with silver eyes, and A regal twilight cloak that blends dark blues, purples, and silver threads and Beneath, light armor forged of blackened steel with etched resonance patterns glowing faintly violet, A pendant resembling a crescent moon over a sun, glowing silvery-golden
In front of her was a glowing violet light, where she was going but stops as she was about to step in and gets a spark in her brain, a flash of memories starts appearing of a kid and a Man when it becomes clear we see 6year old Aric and his father, then tears starts falling from the women's eyes " i am sorry , for everything now it's all gone", the women than uses her powers and destroys the violet light scattering the darkness away from the room and light taking place , in front of the women we see a glowing light where she enters .
In the real world-
The shadow commander stepped forward. Aric's heart stopped for a moment as her form became clear—shadows falling away, revealing the woman from his fragmented memories, her eyes now silver glinting with both strength and sorrow.
" Wait No... Mother…" he whispered, disbelief and raw emotion choking him.
"Yes… Aric. It's me," she said softly, her voice carrying both authority and love.
" you've grown big"
" but how?", " how can it be , if you are really mother why you did this all"
" i am your mother", "Everything you've endured… it was forced. My memories were fully erased and i was covered in the darkness . My absence… my actions… were never my choice. Only your strength could free me."
"your memories were erased?, attack on us was never your choice?" Anger surged, making his hands tremble. "You risked everyone! You abandoned me!"
Her violet gaze softened, eyes glimmering with tears. "I never abandoned you. my memories were changed, they were erased."
Aric's breath caught. Rage, sorrow, and love collided within him. "And now?"
"Now… now you are strong and because of this it all has ended now. my memories are back, And I can finally stand beside you, not as a shadow, but as your mother."
" i... am... sorry my son" Aric's mother's eyes glowing with happiness and tears started falling from her eyes.
The final wave of shadows surged, and with it, the battlefield erupted into chaos once more. Aric, though was not in the sate of fighting got fueled by rage, love, and power, charged forward with his injured state. and laid the remaining blows and killed some of the monsters but he soon laid onto the ground.
but his friends came into action,
Elara unleashed a torrent of magical bindings, immobilizing clusters of shadows. Lyra's aura expanded, deflecting attacks and protecting injured soldiers. Alara, wounded yet unyielding, moved with unmatched precision, her strikes weakening the remaining monsters.
Aric's mother joined the fray directly, her violet energy came back. Each strike was cataclysmic, shaking the walls, tearing at the earth, sending shockwaves across the battlefield.
Aric watching all this lieing down smiling beneath from his heart.
Alara staggered nearby, injured, and the next beast lunged for her. but Aric's mother in time slashed the monster with just energy slash from her hands , " Are you Alright?"
" yes, Thank you Aunt"
The mother stepped fully forward, shadows falling away.
The remaining creatures dissolved into darkness, the battlefield settling, leaving only the golden glow of the Heartstone and the four heroes, exhausted but victorious.
Aric lieing on the ground, trembling. "Mother… I… I didn't know… I…"
She knelt beside him, embracing him fully. "I was fully changed due to loosing my memory, Aric. But always… I loved you. Always."
Tears streamed down his face. "I… I missed you so much."
Her hand cupped his cheek. "And I am here now. Forever. No more shadows, no more hiding. Together, we will rebuild… and protect this world."
The Heartstone pulsed steadily, its light now golden, pure, reassuring. The stronghold survived. Soldiers emerged from rubble, their awe and relief mirrored in their eyes.
Elara, Lyra, and Alara approached, smiles of exhausted triumph lighting their faces. The mother nodded to them, gratitude in her gaze. "Thank you… for protecting him, for surviving, for believing."
Aric rose, taking her hand. "Together," he said firmly, eyes blazing with determination and relief. "We protect each other… and this world."
The sun rose fully, casting light over the stronghold. The shadows were gone, the monsters vanquished. Aric and his mother finally stood united, their bond stronger than ever. She would stay with him, caring for him, guiding him, loving him—not as a distant figure, but as the mother he had longed for.
The storm had passed. The Heartstone pulsed peacefully, a symbol of hope, courage, and the unbreakable bonds of family.
And for the first time, Aric truly felt complete.