Dust settled in the crypt after the explosion. All of the nearby undead were, well, dead. Omazz shook her head, clearing it from the concussive blast. Stillness. Omazz let herself feel a glimmer of hope.
Then, two red dots emerged in the darkness.
She was not alone...
The King led Alessia, Landar, and Nimbus down the hallway. He asked, “Is it really as bad as he says? Our realm?”
“Worse,” Alessia said.
“I’m sorry.”
Alessia looked at him. Eyes searching. Finally— “I know how it feels to make a mistake. One that costs the people you love dearly. We all make them. It’s about what we do next that matters.”
“You don’t understand. My wife and I, we had an arranged marriage. My subjects wed for love, but, as my mother told me, ‘The monarchy needs stability.’ I was so afraid, my hands sweat profusely. I met my wife on the day of our nuptials. When I saw her, looked into her eyes—I instantly fell in love. We shared hushed whispers between songs and prayers. She made me laugh. Oh gods, how she made me laugh. But I was still nervous. Then her hand found mine under the table. Holding it, looking into those emerald eyes... I finally felt like everything was going to be okay.”
There was a quiet moment as everyone absorbed what he said. Then he continued, “So I’m sorry. Because I can’t let you take that from me.”
He turned and attacked, kicking Landar back and punching Alessia right in the face. Alessia drew her sword, but before she could attack—
The Mad King’s back exploded, and four tentacles wriggled out.
A tentacle slapped around Landar, wrapping him up and choking him. The Mad King kicked Nimbus in the stomach.
The other three tentacles whirled and struck Alessia. She took a few blows to the face but got her shield up to block the rest.
Alessia counter-attacked, swinging her sword and chopping the ends off tentacles.
Each tip that hit the ground burned into a shadow.
The shadows scurried across the ground, plunging into Alessia like ink spilled on a sheet of paper.
Alessia screamed in agony.
Tentacles wrapped around Landar, squeezing him with so much force it looked like he was going to fucking pop.
The King looked at Alessia. “I’ll kill him to keep my wife.”
“Keep. Huh.” Alessia said. She charged and slammed into both of them with her shield, sending everyone tumbling.
Nimbus climbed to his feet. With his good hand, he thrust a bolt of light that hit the Mad King in the chest, sending him sprawling.
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Korr and Ex Vis came running inside—
“We heard scre—” Ex Vis saw the Mad King. “WHAT THE HELLS?!”
Ex Vis wasted no time and unloaded a barrage of arrows into the Mad King.
Alessia hacked tentacles, freeing Landar. Shadows attacked. Her sword smote them, but the shield was useless. The team defended Landar.
The Mad King’s skin peeled off and burned away like ash, revealing the Monstrosity underneath. “Fools! My bargain was for more than my wife’s soul. The demon gave me the power to keep it forever.”
It shrieked—a discordant pulse that nearly split everyone’s eardrums. The Monstrosity went into a frenzied state, recklessly attacking with dozens of new shadow tentacles.
The maw of death came wheeling toward Korr. Landar whispered a quick spell, hurling a shield that protected the barbarian.
The Monstrosity slammed against the magical barrier.
Alessia wasted no time—she was upon the monster in a flash. Her heavenly sword carved through the beast with ease. But every cut seemed to make things worse. A hydra of nightmares.
Nimbus held his hand over his heart, chanting. His words danced with golden light, infusing power into the team.
“Time to go blood crazy,” Korr said.
Korr slammed the backs of his axes into his forehead. Blood poured down over his face. He licked it.
“Oh shit,” Ex Vis said. “I’m gonna...” He backed up.
Korr let out a battle yell and charged toward the Monstrosity. He was in a blood fury, and god-fucking-help whatever got in the way.
Korr’s blades spun fast and deadly, sliding out of his hands occasionally to be swung by the ropes keeping them attached to his wrists, becoming whirlwinds of death.
Ex Vis let the light from Nimbus wash over him. He fired his bow around Korr in a blur of murder.
Alessia dropped her shield and went full attack.
Their combined might sent the shadow monster retreating. Pieces of flesh, darkness, and sin spewed everywhere.
There was a quiet moment as the Monstrosity lay on the ground.
The group tentatively walked toward it.
It sprang up and attacked with a vengeance that was hard to understand.
The Monstrosity tossed the heroes like rag dolls. Weapons separated from wielders. Buckets of blood removed from bodies. Violence struck like lightning.
The team tried to make sense of what was happening. Landar got a flash of an idea and ran.
The rest bunched up. Backs to each other. Feeling hopeless.
“He’s more full of pain and hate than I could have ever imagined,” Nimbus said.
Ex Vis breathed heavy. “There’s got to be something we can do.”
Korr roared and attacked—still in a blood frenzy.
Ex Vis shook his head. “That’s not exactly what I was thinking...”
The Monstrosity slapped Korr away. It wrapped its tentacles around Alessia. Choked her.
“You thought you could take her from me. You thought I would care that the realm of men would die. You thought I cared about anything other than my Queen. You were wrong.”
Alessia was starting to turn purple. Dying.
“Indulf...”
The Monstrosity turned to see Landar standing with the Queen. His grip loosened on Alessia, and she coughed, catching her breath.
“What’s going on?” the Queen asked.
The Monstrosity was at a loss for words. His body started to morph back into his human shape. Hard to tell which was the facade anymore.
The Queen’s emerald eyes welled with tears. “What... are you...”
“Your piece of shit husband here won’t let you go,” Alessia said, “and now the whole world is in danger.”
The Mad King looked between everyone. “How could you... See me... Like this...”
The Queen moved to him and put her head on his shoulder. “It’s time to stop... whatever this is. It’s time to let go.”
Tears welled in the Mad King’s eyes. “But you’ll die.”
“I already have.”
“You must hate me.”
“Only if you don’t say goodbye.”
The Mad King looked at the shimmering bubble along the wall.
“I know how hard it is to let go,” Alessia said. “I can tell you that this isn’t something you can clench your way through. The only path is release. Let your muscles loose. There will be so much pain that washes over you, it will seem unbearable. But you can do it. You have to.”
The King burst into tears. The Queen held him. The air was thick with sadness. Finally— “Even if I stop now. It’s too late.”
Alessia put a hand on his shoulder. “We can handle it from here.”
The Mad King kissed his wife. “Goodbye, my love.”
“May our souls meet in the great beyond.”
The Mad King jumped into the bubble. It popped. The Queen disintegrated into suds that floated away. Existence shimmered. Cosmic energy flowed out, blowing away the illusions of the Mad King, leaving behind charred ruins.
The formerly corrupt lake caught on fire.