The Soul of Light

A soft light rippled through the overcast sky and illuminated a flock of white arclifts that were flying through the air. From the ground, the quad-winged birds resembled bright dots flickering in hues of amber and white as they gracefully soared through the lazy clouds, slow yet majestic in their flight towards the dawn. It would soon be daybreak. The blue moon had set some time ago and the golden sun - its twin companion, was about to rise in the sky from the other direction, heralding the dawn of a vibrant day.

A small rabbit was slowly trotting on the bare ground in search of food, but there were no grass or shrubs in sight. The landscape had not always been so barren. There was a time when luscious green meadows and crystalline springs painted the plains of Arohan with the colors of life. Then slowly, the streams had started retreating, leaving the fertile terrain without the lifestreams required to provide nourishment to the rich biosphere, which eventually retreated back into slumber. Most flora and fauna were wiped out, and now only a handful survived in the landscape which was desolated by a terrible blight.
Suddenly, the rabbit raised its head and peered back at the distant horizon. A silvery afterglow was shimmering along the line where the moon had disappeared some time ago. At first glance, it looked like a massive cloud that was slowly rising in the sky, but then something startled the rabbit. The wary animal sniffed the air a few times and froze, and then a few seconds later, started leaping towards the other direction as fast as possible. A few moments later, it was joined by a grey icehound; mortal enemies by birth but united in their desperate attempt to escape an enemy which had pushed their survival instincts on overdrive. More animals followed as they ran through a copse of dead trees from which a flock of ravens lurched into the sky, and started flying away from the unknown enemy heading their way.

A thin strip of black shadow appeared just above the horizon - darker than charcoal and then, started spreading across the heaven and engulfing the last rays of the blue star which was teetering just beneath the field of vision. The terrified creatures increased their speeds. They had no directions, no goals, and no leaders but an immense urge to survive the decadence that was slowly devouring the sky. Survival was the only thing that mattered to them.
The miasma snuffed out the last rays of the moon and proceeded to swallow the flocks of birds that were flying towards the morningstar. Back on earth, the frightened animals joined in large groups and raced towards the source of light, the horizon from where the golden yellow star would appear, but heaven was slowly closing its eyelids. In a desperate attempt, the flock of ravens flew towards the sky. Perhaps they could reach the sun, just before the sky would be devoured forever. The animals took a sharp turn to avoid a large rock formation hindering their escape. A giant nightcrawler effortlessly executed the maneuver by swinging its spiked tail in the other direction to counterbalance the sudden shift in momentum, but then it hit the rabbit and flung it towards the ground behind it.

The penumbra devoured the last light of the dawnstar and drew curtains on the sky, and ended the era of light. Desperate howls came from the direction where the animals had raced ahead, leaving the small rabbit behind. They had lost their vision when the sun left this world a moment ago, and now, blinded and confused, they finally lost their way.
Behind the footsteps of its former companions, the wounded rabbit was struggling to rise up on its legs. After a frantic attempt, it managed to get up and limp away towards a faint light that was coming from a small hole beside it. In absolute darkness, that faint aura somehow reassured safety to the frightened creature. The rabbit burrowed into the hole and awaited salvation.

Ominous red lightning flashed in the dark sky, and with each strike, promised to bring forth a terrible curse that this land had not witnessed since eternity. Soon, drops of black rain started drizzling down from the opaque backdrop, hitting the ground with hissing noises and burning holes into the surface.
Pungent smoke filled the air as the earth groaned in a vain attempt to defy the supernatural force that was destroying the very essence of life. Before long, the toxic fluid collected in puddles and overflowed into streams that raced along the ground, burning it into a cinder. Here and there, small animals ran in frenzied attempts to seek safety, but the toxic rivulets eventually engulfed them, winking out the last pulses of life flowing through their veins, and silencing their desperate howls.

Where once crystal clear water flowed along with the earth and brought forth life in all its glory, now only the decadence raged through the ravines. Dark as night and wild as a raging storm, the foul rivers of corruption carried the seeds of destruction to the farthest lands, killing every living being in its wake. The wind stopped blowing as the ancient trees guarding the earth slowly froze and crumbled to dust, their husks rotting and dissolving into the inky black fluid and returning to the ground. It was unstoppable. The decadence moved along the valleys and canyons, finding helpless preys and devouring them as it proceeded to destroy the world, once and for all. Soon, the earth was covered in eternal darkness.

But somewhere down below, a circle of light was glowing brightly amidst the endless mirth like a million candles in the night. The corruption flowed around the ring, unable to overcome the resistance that was guarding a forgotten kingdom - the last bastion of light in this dark world. In ancient myths, the barrier was known as the light-shield; a construct far older than the ancient city it harbored within its walls. And here, the decadence was finally stopped by the most powerful weapon ever forged in the history of mankind; Hope.

A lone man was slowly walking on the massive bridge that spanned the large moat circling the city. Ahead of him lied a gateway that was carved into the wall made of crystallized light. The liquid darkness was flowing behind him and falling into the trench and filling it up. At this rate, it would soon overflow its momentary prison and start pushing against the barricade guarding the holy city of light. Time was running out. With wariness, the man noticed the thin fractures that were spreading on the surface of the platform where the light had already faded away. The magnificent columns supporting the bridge were also breaking apart. Soon, the structure would collapse, and then the corruption would start eating away the light-shield, and then cut into the city or whatever was left of it. After a brisk walk, the man reached the end of the bridge and took a deep breath. Then he stepped through the shimmering gateway and walked into a prophecy.

All around the entrance he could see the aftermath of a terrible battle fought between humans and an ancient enemy the likes of which this world had never seen before. The perpetual war had finally been concluded here, and the victor was clearly evident from the scars they had left behind. Foul corruption crept along the broad roadways that were once home to the majestic light-spires, but now, only burnt husks of the ancient trees welcomed the man to his home. The city was utterly ravaged.
The tired man wasn't expecting any survivors, but the silence still pained him when he recalled the busy streets of his hometown, bustling with people from all corners of this land. After their nations had been consumed by the unstoppable blight, they had arrived here in droves to save themselves and their families from the eternal night, but most of them couldn't escape their fate in the end, or rather, they had embraced it.
Facing imminent extinction, the elder council had ordered the evacuation of the woman and children to the southern realms, but the men were given a choice; to accompany their families to the caves down south, or to stay with the knights guarding the city. To the councils' utter surprise, most of them had chosen to stay, and fight for their survival. And as expected, none of them had made it past the twilight.

Mangled human bodies were scattered all around the road. They resembled the unfortunate citizens who had participated in this battle with nothing but pitchforks and wooden sticks and perished when the capital had fallen. But what about the defenders? The man noticed that none of the bodies donned the magnificent armor that he was wearing at the very moment. Had the guardians abandoned the city on the wake of destruction? 'Not possible,' the man hoped.

After spending a few minutes in a futile search for survivors, he gave up and walked down the light-path towards the center of the city. On other days, it would be filled with thousands of people going about their daily chores. Children would be racing beside large wooden coaches carrying food and supplies from the far south, hoping that a fruit might drop off the wagon and land in their hands, and their laughter would ring in the air when their wishes were fulfilled, more often by a kind coachman. But now, only broken vehicles and an unfamiliar silence ruled the road to salvation. There was no one left to smile in this kingdom anymore.

Soon the man reached a burnt garden which reminded him of an extraordinary night from a few years ago; he recalled the tall light-spire tree that was rising over the gleaming water. Beneath the phosphorescent canopy, a young boy was kneeling in front of a young girl, their eyes full of hope and dreams about their future. The memory was from a long time ago but still brought a smile to his face, 'No, not everything was lost.'

A few steps later, he reached the plaza and stopped. There was a large fountain situated at the crossing where the ten roads of radiance emerging from the light-shield had united. Together, they resembled a wheel with ten spokes, with the light-shield making up the perimeter and the point of convergence of the roads making up the central hub. The man looked at the light-core and gritted his teeth in frustration at their greatest failure.
Standing next to it, he could finally see the rotting fluid that was gushing out of the broken sculptures present around the fountain. It was the same corruption that was thrusting against the light-shield outside at the very moment. Part of the ground beneath the spring was cracked wide open, and a few charred human bodies and an odd looking hulk were lying next to the chasm. He had seen these beasts before.

It was evident now that the corruption had started poisoning the ground even before the hoard of monstrosities appeared for the first time in the distant lands. But the council had missed the signs. They did receive warnings long ago when farmers from the northern realms had reported the rivers retreating and their crops dying out from a strange blight which had no cure. However, the elders had ignored the information and sent their Knights to battle the aberrations in the distant North. With the bulk of the army gone, there were only a few defenders left to protect the city when the monsters burrowing through the soil had arrived in silence and attacked the fortifications from beneath. The capital fell within a day. By the time the messengers reached the forward army, it was already too late to turn back.

Almost all of the structures in the city were destroyed, some of them pulverized into the ground, and others broken and then scattered all over the place. 'The indestructible constructs of the radiant kingdom has finally been broken, I wonder if the citadel survived...' the man glanced towards his left to identify the crystal struts of the palace. Instead, he only found a few irregular shapes vaguely resembling the remnants of a massive tower. The land around it was utterly devoid of any other buildings. And that answered the question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time; 'No, the city was not left to fend for itself.'
The fabled knights of radiance had stood their ground here and fought beside the residents, and together, they had defended this city until their dying breath. But there was a reason why their armored bodies could not be seen anywhere.

'We were never meant to survive,' the man smiled bitterly at the thought of his lost army. He knew that every one of them had accepted the terrible cost of rebellion when they were summoned their duties, but he was sure that none of them had expected fate to come and collect it in person in their own lifetimes. No, the radiant knights were not cowards. They had carried their burdens with honor, fighting against the strange abominations until the last noncombatant could be evacuated safely.
Outnumbered a million to one and with no chance of victory, they had drawn the enemy to the steps of the castle, buying enough time for the residents to escape through the southern gates, and then they had relinquished their blades and burnt their foes to the ground along with their own bodies and souls. Such was the price of ascendance.

After crossing a small hill, the man finally found the symbols he was looking for. The area around the annihilated castle was riddled with strange hollows, the likes of which were only spoken about in the myths. It was unfortunate that the world would never get to know the final sacrifices made by the radiant knights on the fields of their last resistance. The enormous scorched craters spread around the battlefield carried stories of their own in each of their burned hearts - 'The Lotus of Shinvoy, The Fang of Ishar, The Cross of Radeon, The Sword of…'

"NO!" The man shouted when he found the strange depression on the ground. There was no mistaking the symbol he had known from the bottom of his hearts. He ran breathlessly down the edge of the pit and almost crashed into the ground when he identified the body lying in its center.
"No. Please no. Not her," the man cried out in a broken voice as he kneeled and slowly lifted the frail body in his trembling arms. It belonged to the woman who had stolen his heart a million times in the past, a feat that would never be repeated because she was apparently dead. But what was she doing here?
Her appearance did not make any sense - she was ordered to evacuate, she was supposed to survive, and she was destined to shield the survivors of this fallen kingdom from the twilight. But here she was, lying motionless within the shattered remains of a city that no longer existed. With her gone, the last remnants of humanity were as good as dead. But nothing mattered to that man anymore, because he had lost his first pulse of light to the desolation. The young boy had truly lost everything.

After taking the gauntlets off, the man tenderly ran his hand over the face of the woman and pushed her matted hair away. Then he looked at her face and gasped in surprise. She still looked as pretty as the first time he had seen her walking towards him with hope in her eyes. And even in death, she still managed to take his breath away.

Almost a decade ago, the royal court of Pulsar ruled over one of the most powerful empires along the northern borders of Arohan. Their airships could traverse vast distances in days, carrying within them their armies who could drop out of the skies and strike their enemies before they had a chance to organize a response. But even then, they were helpless against the blight that killed their crops and brought forth a terrible famine lasting for years. Eventually, they would be the first nation to fall to the desolation, but they would not surrender without a fight.

In a desperate attempt to survive, they sent their emissaries far across the land in search of allies. Everyone had refused, citing their own troubles, until one airship arrived in this city and found aid at long last. That was the day when the young boy had first laid his eyes upon the girl who would become his reason to live and fight. A lifetime later, on the footsteps of the brightest light-spire tree, the young boy would swear an oath to protect the beautiful girl until his dying breath. But he had failed to uphold his words. There was no greater failure to a Knight than a broken vow.

The fallen Knight removed his great-helm and stared at the woman lying in his arms. She always appeared the same, beautiful yet firm. Even at the wake of war, when they had to bid farewell to each other in their darkest moment, she had remained calm and confident. She always believed in her heart that she would return to her Prince one day, but this wasn't the reunion the man had imagined.

"Why didn't you leave?" he gently whispered to the girl who was destined to become his Queen.

Of course, she did not want to leave the boy who was destined to become her King, but someone needed to escort the refugees to safety and help them rebuild their kingdom once the war was over. And who would be able to guide them better than the heir to the Pulsar throne? So the council had decided to send the daughter of the Primark of Pulsar along with the citizens towards the asylum. It was, after all, the duty of a Queen to save her subjects from harm. But they had actually doomed themselves in the process.

No one thought about the monumental mistake they were making by separating the Prince from his betrothed, for they had never realized their true potential. The unstoppable sword and the unbreakable shield were severed, and the world was doomed in hellfire when the weapons could not save each other, and in turn, their subjects. But it wasn't the fault of the Knights. They had carried her honor until the gates of Hell itself, where she had left along with the refugees heading for the southern realms. But then she had somehow found her way back to this doomed purgatory. Perhaps she wanted to see her love for one last time, so she returned to the place where they had first seen each other. And now, the two halves of the most powerful weapon were reunited again, but it was already too late.

The man muttered, "Please wake up, please. I…"
He could no longer speak; instead, he felt his eyes filling up with tears as beads of regret kept falling on the face of the one soul he had genuinely loved in the world.

With a massive rumble, an enormous structure behind them crashed into the ground and blew fine particles of light everywhere. The city was slowly disintegrating into dust which was made of ultrafine particles of cold starlight, the fundamental constituent of the magical structures that had made up this legendary kingdom. Somewhere in the distance, a part of the radiant light-shield collapsed, and a torrent of corruption flowed into the city and started devouring the relics of a history that would be forever lost in the pages of time.

Suddenly, the man felt a crushing sensation inside his heart. He shivered as he recalled this familiar feeling of dread and destruction that he had felt on the night when everything changed. The council never listened to him, until the reports came in a few days later. On that cursed night, strange humanoid beasts with long fangs and serrated teeth had climbed out the canyons of Helgate and attacked the distant villages. And now, something was befalling; the Knight braced himself.

If to prove his senses right, a dense pillar of darkness descended from the sky and landed right in front of him with a soundless implosion and evaporated the gleaming haze that was drifting in the air. The pillar of corruption slowly contracted in length until something vaguely resembling a man was left in its place. It spoke in an otherworldly voice, "Envoy of light! You thought you could escape your fate?"

The unusual call sent a shiver down the man's spine. But this was not the first time. Even back in childhood, he had heard mysterious whispers coming from the dark corners of his home, speaking in a language that made no sense. The voice had disappeared on the very day the Princess had stepped foot in this kingdom. And now it was back.
No one had listened to his plea back then, dismissing them as the imaginations of a mere child. But it was not their fault. Because, not even in a million lifetimes, they could have imagined the shade to have possessed sentience, but here it was, speaking to its victims in a tone that felt like whispers reverberating inside a forgotten prison. The night was alive. The humans had underestimated the true capabilities of their enemy, but it was already too late to make amendments to their combat strategy.

He asked, "Who are you?"
"Oh, you know who I am. You have asked me this question before, boy," the figure floated towards the man, trailing an umbra darker than the deepest depth of the cosmos.
"I… have never seen you," the man shook his head and glanced down on the woman clutched in arms.
"But I have. This is not the first time you have tried saving them, boy. Nor is this the first time you have faced me. But this will be the last." The shadow was looming in front of the man now. It spread its arms to the side and roared, "This world, this… putrid excuse of a civilization you hold so dear, founded in the remnants of borrowed time. You wanted to save these worthless fools?"
"They are my people."
"But she wasn't?" the figure raised a thin crooked arm towards the Princess. Then it added, "Of course, it didn't matter in the end. You failed all of them, just like in all your previous lifetimes."

The abomination laughed, its sinew like arms trembling in mockery of the futile struggle made by humans to save their world. But the decadence was inevitable. The champion of light could not even save his greatest weapon, let alone the millions of worthless humans he had struggled so hard to defend. And now, it was time to return the light to where it belonged.

The phantom leaned in and whispered, "But you can still save her."
"LIES! SHE'S ALREADY GONE," the man shouted and spread his left arm. A faint glow pulsed in his fingertips and disappeared. Dumbfounded, he looked at his fist and searched for the blade that should've appeared, but there was nothing. He couldn't even feel the light anymore just as he couldn't feel the lifeforce of the woman lying in his right arm. Were they somehow connected?

The darkness came closure, its shapeless face hovering a mere foot away from the man, and whispered, "Light has abandoned you, boy. But the night remembers. Yield to me, and I will return her to you."

The man finally bowed his head and started sobbing. The dark figure laughed in triumph; the eternal war had finally chosen its victor. Now, this world would be devoured and then recreated in the essence of the night, just as it was meant to be.

"Come," the crooked figure extended an arm to his champion.

The Last Knight looked up, fury burning in his eyes and uttered his final oath, "...And ride the stairways to divine light."

The city was set on fire.

Brilliant columns of light extended from the ground throughout the city and exploded towards the heavens, destroying the shadows on their way and then crashed into the dark curtain hovering in the sky. But they didn't stop there. Thin reeds of bright streaks grew from where the pillars met the penumbra and swirled along the sky in geometric patterns, covering the heavens with incredible speed.

The earth swayed as the dark figure staggered back and shouted, "What have you done?"

There was no response. Instead, the Knight smiled at his Queen and embraced her as an incandescent tower of sheer white light engulfed them. The column expanded and consumed the dark figure and proceeded to burn away its existence. The specter shrieked in agony, wailing like a thousand knives slicing through flesh. Then it looked down and reached for his prey. The couple was nearly gone now, their skins becoming translucent and diffusing into the dazzling radiance. The shadow was almost there, its spine like claws were lingering right next to the Princess lying in the arms of the Knight. They must be separated before the restraint was released. But then its arm disappeared along with the humans.

The figure summoned the shade to shield it from its eternal nemesis, but the light was exploding through the darkness and shredding it to ribbons. They could not reach their master. Around them, the other radiant pillars were emancipating the heaven and earth from the last remains of the penumbra. Liquid light spilled out from the ground and washed away the decadence that was invading the city. Across the land and sky, everywhere the light reached, it obliterated the shadows and burnt through the corruption and continued towards the far horizons. The advent of dawn had begun. Millions of stars started sparkling in the sky as the cryptic veil was gradually forced back to the edge of the world from where it had appeared from.

The sinister figure was almost gone now. It muttered a final promise just before being vanquished by the light; "You think you have defeated me, child? You fool! I am endless, I am eternal, I am the night. And I shall devour this world, like the countless realities I have consumed since the beginning of time. YOU CANNOT ESCAPE YOUR FATE!"

The world was washed away in a deluge of brilliance.

Sometime later, the morning star appeared and bathed the world in a warm glow of light, but it paled in comparison to the city that was shining like a newborn star, without a single soul left inside it to call it home. The era of the Knights had come to an end.

But hope still walked the earth. At a distance from the warzone, a lone rabbit climbed out of its burrow and stared at the bright sun hovering above the horizon. It was time to start a new life. A faint glow kept radiating from the hole it had left behind, waiting for the next era to begin.

A/N: Unvanquished is one of the most expansive projects I had ever conceived. I've spent months working on this fantastic world, and its magnificent creatures and majestic knights and of course, its unique magic system. The story will be based on Mileven, but apart from their connection, every other aspect will be my original creation. You'll find various elements of fantasy in the upcoming chapters, ranging from ancient prophecies and leading all the way to the grandest battle encompassing the essence of creation itself. This is my small tribute to the epic fantasy genre, hope you'll enjoy this as much as I am enjoying writing the chapters.

This Novella is part of my Stranger Things universe, the true connection will be revealed at the very last chapter as I turn myths into reality. But for all practical purposes, this can be read standalone.