Chapter 14: The Eclipse Beast
The world had ended a hundred times before this night.
But never like this.
The Blood Moon turned the sky into a burning ocean, flooding every city with its red light. The clouds pulsed like veins, thunder growled like dying gods, and the air was thick with screams.
Eclipsera was gone.
Now it was Ground Zero — the last battlefield between humanity, vampires, and the walking rot.
Ren Arclight sprinted across the shattered bridge, his combat armor scorched, his rifle glowing blue from overheating.
Behind him, his squad struggled to keep up — bullets useless against the endless wave of undead pouring through the ruins.
"Reload! Reload! Don't stop!" Ren shouted, blasting another mutant zombie through the skull. "We hold this line or the entire sector falls!"
A blood-soaked explosion ripped through the sky — a crimson streak, followed by the sound of thunder made of screams.
Then came the Vampire King.
Riven landed on the bridge like a meteor, sword dripping scarlet fire. His eyes glowed a deep, feral red. Each slash sent waves of blood energy, slicing through dozens of zombies at once.
He didn't fight for glory. He fought because his blood demanded it.
"Human commander," Riven said, turning toward Ren. "Fall back. You can't handle what's coming."
Ren smirked, loading his rifle. "Then I'll die shooting."
Before either could move again, the ground beneath them cracked — a black spiral opened, spreading like wildfire. The temperature dropped. The red moonlight twisted.
From the depths of that abyss, it rose.
The Eclipse Beast.
Its form was impossible — half bone, half molten shadow. Its wings spanned across the city, each flap tearing buildings apart. Dozens of screaming vampire heads were fused to its torso, their eyes glowing in agony. Its claws dripped liquid night.
Even Kael, the Zombie King, froze as he emerged from the opposite side of the battlefield, his soldiers crawling up from the ruins.
"What… is that?" Kael muttered, his usually calm voice trembling.
Riven's eyes narrowed. "Something that doesn't belong in any world."
The Eclipse Beast roared — a sound that cracked the air and shattered windows across miles.
Its energy pulsed outward, infecting both zombies and vampires nearby. Their eyes turned black, their veins glowing red — neither Kael's control nor Riven's command could reach them.
Ren slammed his palm onto his comm-link.
"All units, Code Crimson! Fall back to Defense Line Theta!"
But his voice broke as he looked up — hundreds of infected hybrids were already descending from the rooftops.
Kael snarled, shadow energy erupting around his fists. "Then we fight."
Riven smirked. "At last, we agree."
The Vampire King and the Zombie King leapt into battle.
Riven sliced through the air, his blade leaving trails of red lightning, severing dozens of monsters. Kael slammed his hands into the ground, causing waves of undead to explode from beneath, devouring their corrupted kin.
Ren commanded the human artillery.
"Target the wings! Don't let that thing fly!"
Dozens of missiles launched into the sky — the night lit up like war fireworks. The Beast screamed as fire and silver collided with its flesh, but it didn't die. It absorbed the energy, growing larger.
"Impossible," Ren whispered.
Riven's sword cracked. Kael's arms bled black. The Beast's power warped reality around them — every shadow twisted into claws, every drop of blood turned to fire.
And still, they refused to kneel.
Riven charged up his final strike — Crimson Nova.
Kael unleashed Eternal Rot Surge — an explosion of decaying force that tore through the ground.
The two powers collided midair, forming a shockwave that lit up the sky brighter than any sun. The Beast screamed — not in pain, but in hunger.
Ren screamed into the comm, "NOW! Activate the Bloodflare Core!"
From the human fortress, a giant cannon fired — a beam of ultraviolet energy so bright it turned the night into day. It pierced through the Beast's chest, splitting it open in a burst of red and blue light.
The explosion sent everyone flying.
Silence followed.
Only the fire whispered in the ruins.
Riven stood, his sword shattered. Kael rose, his hands trembling. Ren fell to one knee, coughing blood but alive.
And above them… the Blood Moon flickered, dimming slightly, as if watching.
Kael looked at the glowing sky. "We stopped it."
Riven shook his head. "No… we delayed it."
Because from the ashes of the Beast, thousands of blood-black crystals began to rise — floating, pulsing. Each one was alive. Each one a seed of the Eclipse Realm.
Ren's eyes widened. "It's not over."
Riven lifted his broken sword. "Then let it begin again."
The Blood Horizon burned once more.
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