Chapter 14
The night in the canyon was thick and cold, the air heavy with a silence that pressed against the skin.
The campfires burned low, and the refugees began to settle into uneasy sleep.
That was when the sound began.
A low, dragging shuffle. A thousand hollow moans weaving together into a terrible chorus.
Several of Vaelor's knights hurried to investigate, but moments later their shouts rang through the canyon.
"Undead! Thousands of them!"
The ground trembled as an endless tide of rotting warriors emerged from the mist, their weapons rusted but their movements unnaturally swift.
On the ridge above the camp, Kael stood unmoving, the twin flaming blades crossed behind his back. Beside him, Nyx and Astrili watched in silence, their eyes faintly glowing in the dark.
Vaelor's voice roared through the camp. "Form ranks! Protect the civilians!" He caught sight of the three figures on the ridge — not moving, not helping — and a spark of rage burned in his eyes.
"Why aren't they…?" he muttered under his breath, tightening his grip on his sword.
The undead crashed into the defenders like a black tide. Steel clashed, bones shattered, screams tore through the night.
Still, Kael didn't move.
Still, Nyx didn't blink.
Still, Astrili's expression remained unreadable.
Vaelor's knights fell one by one. Their formation broke. The dead surged forward.
And then — the air shifted.
From the far side of the battlefield, a figure emerged.
Cloaked in tattered black robes, its face hidden beneath a helm carved like a skull, the Gravekeeper walked with slow, deliberate steps.
The aura he exuded was suffocating — heavy, ancient, and cold enough to freeze the breath in your lungs. Even the undead seemed to bow as he passed.
Vaelor's men fought desperately, but it was hopeless. Within moments, only Vaelor remained standing, bleeding, his sword trembling in his grasp.
The Gravekeeper stopped before him, raising a massive, rusted scythe. The curved blade gleamed faintly in the moonless dark.
"This is where it ends, knight."
The scythe began to fall—
—And Kael moved.
A single step, and the world seemed to blur. One heartbeat, and he was there, his flaming blade slicing toward the Gravekeeper's neck.
The strike would have taken the head of any mortal man, but the Gravekeeper twisted away at the last instant, the scythe coming up to block in a shower of sparks.
His voice was low, gravel grinding against stone. "So… you were here."
He summoned his strongest undead — towering, armored abominations with spears crackling with unnatural fire.
Nyx stepped forward with a lazy grin. "I'll take the tall one."
Astrili's voice was cold. "The rest are mine."
The clash was brutal, the ground trembling with each blow. Nyx's shadows shredded armor like paper. Astrili's silver magic tore through the undead like they were made of dust.
Kael and the Gravekeeper fought like two storms colliding — scythe against twin flaming blades, each strike heavy enough to shake the canyon walls.
And then, with a sharp twist and a burst of purple aura, Kael shattered the Gravekeeper's guard.
The scythe fell to the ground.
The Gravekeeper dropped to his knees, Kael towering over him, his purple eyes burning like twin stars, his shadow stretching unnaturally far behind him.
From the side, Vaelor shouted, voice shaking with fury.
"Why?! Why would you let my people be slaughtered before stepping in?! You could have stopped this from the start!"
Kael didn't look at him. His voice was calm, almost soft.
"If I had come out early… the Gravekeeper wouldn't have shown himself."
Vaelor's fists clenched, his teeth grinding, but he had no words left.
Kael finally spoke to the kneeling figure before him.
"Tell me about the center."
The Gravekeeper's hidden gaze lifted. "At the center lies a power… and a being long erased from history. So strong that even the gods united against her. They destroyed her body… but fragments of her survived."
Kael's expression didn't change.
"One of those fragments," the Gravekeeper continued, "found a host… inside you. The voice you hear — it belongs to her."
Nyx tilted her head, eyes narrowing slightly. Astrili's gaze lingered on Kael, searching for some reaction.
There was none.
Silence stretched between them until the Gravekeeper bowed his head lower.
"I was defeated. I am yours to command. My army, my power… they are yours."
Kael stared down at him, the purple light in his eyes flickering once.
"Then rise," he said. "We have work to do."