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Chapter 15 - Chapter 15 – The Chain That Binds the Void

⸻ Executer Creation Facility "The Forging", 5 Years Earlier ⸻

He didn't scream anymore.

There was no point. The air had long since stopped listening.

Onyx sat hunched in the corner of his cell, muscles limp, violet eyes dulled into an ashen glaze. The once-proud flame of rebellion within him had been reduced to a single ember—quiet, stubborn, but nearly choked out.

Chains, engraved with divine runes, coiled around his wrists and ankles like sentient serpents. His once ebony locs were matted and coarse. He hadn't spoken in days. Or had it been weeks?

The door screeched open, not with sound—but with dread.

The Voice of Genesis stepped in, hands clasped behind their back, dressed in flowing divine silk so white it seemed to reject shadow itself. A grin stretched across their face—not of joy, but of triumph.

"Time to be forged," they said with syrupy venom.

Onyx didn't raise his head.

The Voice tsked. "Still no protest? No more threats? No 'I'll never bow to you'?"

Nothing.

The Voice leaned closer, whispering. "Good. Then walk."

Onyx stood, sluggish but unresisting.

They walked in silence through divine halls of silver light and invisible screams—downward into something far less holy.

⸻ The Dwarf Realm of Vyrrgash ⸻

"This realm," said the Voice of Genesis with pride, "was carved by my own hands."

They gestured to a massive onyx gateway ahead, shaped like a molten jaw. Lightning coiled above the stormy horizon. The wind howled unnaturally. The very land groaned beneath divine law.

"It's where lost souls are reshaped," they continued. "You'll be fighting artificial beings pulled from your own memory. Weapons shall form in your hands through sheer thought—another gift from me."

Onyx blinked slowly, silently.

"Oh, and don't get clever," Genesis added with a smirk. "You can't die here, no matter how hard you try. Design feature. Wonderful, isn't it?"

The gate opened with a single swipe of their finger.

Then, with no ceremony, no final words—Genesis kicked Onyx through it.

"Have fun," they cackled.

The plane was a battleground of eternal dusk, churning wind, and lightning barely held back by trembling skies. Onyx staggered upright. Thunder rumbled through his chest like a distant war drum.

Two figures stood at the far end.

His breath hitched.

It was them.

Ryu and Luto.

But they weren't. Their faces were colder. Their eyes hollow. Copies formed from agony and stolen thoughts.

He stepped forward.

The torment began.

⸻ Present Time – Divine Execution Grounds ⸻

The false world of Terrosia was crumbling.

The divine illusion had nearly collapsed, revealing splinters of the real execution grounds beneath. Runes flickered in the sky like cracks in glass. Memory dust rained across warped terrain.

Luto barely shielded himself with time fractals. Onyx—Voidwrath—descended with the weight of death, black flame clinging to every movement.

But Ryu stood tall.

Bruised. Burned. Smiling.

"You're not gonna kill us," Ryu said. "Not because you're weak. But because you still feel."

"SHUT UP!" Onyx roared.

A pulse of rage exploded from him. A black shroud burst from his feet like a tsunami, stretching across the ground. The void tore open.

From it, emerged over 100 void beings—shapeless at first, then sculpted by nightmare.

Ryu gritted his teeth. "Oh hell…"

But three stood apart:

• Velgrath, the Hollow Fang – A wolf-faced beast clad in bone armor, wielding dual cleavers that screamed with trapped souls.

• Kessira, the Whispered Thorn – Slender, veiled in shadowy petals, her gaze caused hallucinations and her blades bloomed toxins of despair.

• Gravemind Doruun – Towering and chained to an obelisk. When he moved, time itself flinched.

Ryu blinked. "Bro… you fought that thing?"

"Not the time to be impressed!" Luto shouted, unsheathing Nulvyr.

Doruun roared, lifting his obelisk.

"Obelisk Smash!"

It crashed into the earth, warping space—exposing raw terrain beneath the illusion. Time stuttered.

Ryu barely dodged, the aftershock shredding his coat. All the lesser void soldiers charged. Three more void beasts lunged at his blindside—he ducked, parried, burned two with his fists, but the third clipped his shoulder.

Ryu was ready to meet the oncoming onslaught, but Luto threw an arm in front of him. "No time to play!"

He took a deep breath channeling his energy into Nulvyr.

Blue cosmic lightning burst across the field.

"Heavenlash: Circuit of Judgment!"

Lightning webbed outward, paralyzing dozens.

He inhaled sharply.

"Overclocked Crescent!"

A blade of surging electricity burst forth in an arc. Onyx and his elites dodged—but Doruun, too large, took the hit.

His leg exploded into void mist.

"He's real," Luto muttered. "But he's… draining Onyx's energy."

Above, Ryu had vanished.

Then—

BOOM.

He slammed a punch into Doruun, sending him flying back into the void.

Ryu landed next to Luto, panting. "That leaves two."

Velgrath and Kessira stepped forward.

"Clear a path," Ryu said, not looking at his brother.

Luto frowned. "If you try to hold back—he'll kill you."

"We won't know if we don't try," Ryu replied.

Luto looked at him again. His brother—the one with the dumb jokes and reckless grin—was shaking. Not in fear.

In pain.

"…idiot," Luto muttered, walking forward. Sparks danced across Nulvyr's twin blades.

He vanished.

Kessira shrieked, blocking the strike but still sent flying.

Velgrath lunged—Luto slammed his blade into the ground, releasing another AOE shockwave, knocking Velgrath back.

From the side, Onyx watched.

But by the time he noticed the heat at his side—

BOOM.

Ryu slammed a fiery punch into his ribs, sending him hurtling backward.

Luto side-eyed his brother.

He's not gonna last like this…

The void warriors regrouped. Velgrath and Kessira advanced. 

Before he could finish, Velgrath was in his face, cleavers clashing against Nulvyr. Sparks flew. Luto parried one—barely—before eating a headbutt that sent him reeling.

"Ngh—damn it!"

Kessira reappeared dashing in with speed behind him, blades glinting. Luto spun, creating a field of distortion to knock her back, but her petals exploded in his face, nearly blinding him. He skidded backward, coughing violently.

"They're coordinated," he growled. "Ryu!"

But Ryu was locked in a brutal hand-to-hand with Onyx now, dodging gravepike strikes that created shockwaves on impact.

Onyx's speed was ruthless. His form—elegant but violent.

Ryu blocked one thrust, another, parried, rolled—but a low sweep cracked his ribs. He slammed into a cliff and coughed blood.

Luto fought defensively, trying to decipher their abilities, but a scream tore through the air.

Not theirs.

"Ryu!"

The smoke cleared.

Ryu's hands were trembling, gripping Onyx's gravepike.

The jagged tip was mere inches from his heart.

Tears ran down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry…"

"…What?" Onyx rasped.

"I'm sorry… for leaving you… for not saving you…"

Onyx's divine glyphs pulsed faintly.

Luto fought back a sob as he held Velgrath at bay. "Stop holding back! You'll die!"

Ryu's crimson aura erupted. His dreadlocks shimmered with red fire. Cosmic heat poured out of him as he gritted his teeth…

And stepped forward—pushing past the weapon.

Then, with every piece of his soul, he shouted:

"I DON'T CARE WHAT ABOUT WHAT YOU DID—YOU'RE STILL OUR BROTHER!!"

The world shuddered.

"If you can't walk—we'll carry you! If you fall—we'll fall with you! If the gods want to take you…"

Ryu pressed his head against Onyx's chest.

Onyx stood stunned as he lowered his gaze to look at Ryu.

"…then we'll fight creation itself to bring you back."

He stepped back.

"SO WAKE UP!!"

He swung.

CRACK.

Not armor.

Not earth.

Something inside.

Onyx flew backward, crashing through the terrain.

He stumbled.

Varkal'Zir trembled in his hand.

Onyx's lips parted as he struggled to regain his footing.

"…Ryu?"

A whisper.

A heartbeat.

A memory.

Luto froze. Velgrath's claws halted inches from his neck.

"It's working…"

⸻ Two Years Ago – Vyrrgash Realm Exit ⸻

Onyx emerged from the gate—covered in blood, barely breathing. His skin cracked with seared divine script. His eyes hollow.

The Voice of Genesis clapped mockingly.

"Splendid performance."

Onyx collapsed to one knee.

"You learned, didn't you? That it wasn't artificial. Oh, no. Those were real beings. The ones who defied the gods. Given a 'chance' to live if they won."

Genesis laughed like the world was a joke.

"They were never going to live, Onyx. But you could die. Fair, yes?"

Onyx didn't respond.

He had seen them.

Infants. Elders. Innocents forced to mimic memories.

He had destroyed them all.

Not because he wanted to—

But because there was no choice.

⸻ Present – Battlefield ⸻

Ryu stood shaking, battered, fists clenched.

Onyx… blinked.

Something cracked deeper.

Luto, eyes burning, dropped Velgrath with a pulse slash. He turned.

"…Let's bring him back."

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