A deafening silence followed the collapse of the temple walls. Dust spiraled upward, mingling with the acrid scent of scorched earth and shattered stone. Ethan stumbled to his feet, blood trickling from a cut above his brow. The light from his sword flickered weakly, casting desperate shadows against the ruined battleground. His breaths were ragged, each inhale a struggle against the weight of exhaustion pressing on his chest. "You can't fail now," Ethan whispered to himself, his grip on the hilt of his sword tightening. The fallen allies came into his mind: the sacrifices they had made for him to get to this point. He owed them victory. Behind him, the colossal figure of Ignis roared defiantly, flames reigniting despite the thick darkness pressing in. The dragon’s wings beat against the air, scattering fragments of corrupted shadow beasts that lunged from every direction. Beside Ignis, the armored knight swung its gleaming blade, carving through tendrils of black energy that sough

The battlefield was silent for just a moment.Then, the darkness roared back to life.Ethan's sword struck true, a blinding arc of light carving through Noctis's form. For a split second, the shadowy warlord's armor cracked, splitting apart like shattered obsidian. But instead of falling, Noctis let out a guttural laugh."Fascinating," he murmured, his voice dripping with amusement.Then, the world exploded.A shockwave of dark energy shot outward, flinging Ethan through the temple's ruins. He smashed through stone and debris, his body battered and bleeding. His vision blurred, but he pushed himself to concentrate, blinking away the dust and blood.His friends Ignis, the knight, and the lion remained bound up by corruption that seemed to be devouring their bodies. Their eyes flashed between fierce resistance and fawning submission, locked in an internal battle raging against the shadow infecting each of them.Ethan ground his fists together. He could not lose them. Not now. Not ever.

The sky remained split, golden radiance spilling from the heavens like a divine wound in the fabric of reality. The armored figure descended with a deliberate grace, their spear of light crackling with untamed energy. Ethan felt the sheer power radiating from them a force beyond anything he had encountered before.Noctis narrowed his eyes, his grip on his blade tightening. "So, the gods finally intervene," he murmured, his voice laced with disdain. "How predictable."The figure touched the ground, their luminous eyes locking onto Ethan. "Rise, warrior. This battle is far from over."Ethan gritted his teeth and pushed himself up, ignoring the searing pain in his side where Aiden’s corrupted blade had pierced him. Blood stained his clothes, but he refused to falter. "Who? Who are you?""I am Lysara, Warden of the Celestial Accord," the figure declared. "The abyss has defied balance for too long. It ends now."Before Ethan could respond, the Harbinger of Oblivion shrieked, its colossal f

The battlefield was a nightmare of fire and blood.Ethan’s breath came in ragged gasps as he stood amidst the carnage. His sword, its once-pristine blade now cracked and dripping with black ichor, pulsed with unstable energy. Around him, the remnants of the corrupted army lay in twisted, smoldering heaps, but the battle was far from over.The Abyssal Devourer loomed in the distance, its many faces contorted in agony and rage. Its limbs, grotesquely elongated and pulsating with darkness, reached out hungrily, devouring the very essence of the fallen warriors. Beyond understanding that's what this creature was. A living nightmare. A thing that shouldn't exist in this world.Ethan wiped the sweat and blood from his face, his mind racing. His companions Ignis, the armored knight, and the lion were still standing, but barely. Their forms flickered, their energy dangerously low. The battle had pushed them beyond their limits, and yet their greatest enemy still towered before them, unscathed

Darkness. Silence. An endless abyss.Ethan floated in the void, weightless, his body suspended between existence and oblivion. His heartbeat was faint, each pulse slower than the last. Memories flickered before him his past, his friends, the battles he had fought. Then came the voice. Low. Ancient. Cold."You are not the first to fall. You will not be the last."A sudden force yanked him downward. The darkness twisted and coiled, forming grotesque hands that clawed at his limbs. Ethan struggled, thrashing against the invisible chains that pulled him deeper into the void. A crimson glow pulsed beneath him, illuminating the abyss in sickly light.Then he saw them.Hundreds no, thousands of warriors, all clad in tattered armor, their hollow eyes staring into nothingness. The remnants of those who had come before him. Those who had wielded the artifact’s power… and failed."Ethan! Wake up!"A distant voice shattered the void. Lena.The abyss convulsed. The ghostly figures shrieked as ligh