Chapter 93 up
The Heart of Velkaris burned brighter than ever before.
The crimson sphere hovered above the shattered pillar like a dying star, its light pulsing violently through the ruins of the temple. Each pulse sent waves of energy through the broken structure, shaking dust and fragments of stone from the walls.
Elara could feel the power rushing through the pillar beneath her hands.
It was too much.
Far too much.
The ancient runes carved into the stone glowed like molten fire, struggling to contain the surge of energy flowing through them.
Behind her, Kael shielded his eyes from the blinding light.
“That thing looks like it’s about to explode.”
Corvin’s voice trembled as he stared at the burning sphere.
“That’s exactly what we need.”
Outside the temple, the city of Velkaris was collapsing.
Stone streets shattered as the enormous creature beneath the ruins forced its way upward. The plaza had become a jagged crater of broken rock and falling debris.
A massive claw gripped the edge of the chasm.
The Devourer was climbing.
Kael glanced toward the creature again.
Its black scales scraped against the fractured foundations of the ancient city. Each movement shook the ground like an earthquake.
Its eyes opened fully now.
Two massive spheres of dim, ancient fire staring into the world above.
“Yeah,” Kael muttered. “Let’s hurry.”
Another crack split the pillar beneath Elara’s hands.
The fracture spread like lightning through the ancient stone.
Corvin shouted.
“It’s breaking!”
Elara gritted her teeth as the energy surged harder through the runes.
“We need more power.”
Kael stared at her.
“More?”
“Yes.”
Corvin looked between them nervously.
“The Heart still contains most of its energy. If we force it to release everything at once—”
Kael finished the sentence.
“The cavern collapses.”
“Yes.”
“And hopefully that thing goes down with it.”
Another deafening roar rose from the plaza.
The Devourer pulled more of its body free from the shattered ground.
Its enormous head emerged from the darkness, scales black as volcanic glass. Jagged ridges ran along its skull like the crown of some ancient demon.
Its breath rolled across the ruins in waves of heat.
The creature turned its massive gaze toward the temple.
It had noticed them.
Kael pointed his sword toward the pillar.
“Alright, Elara.”
She glanced back.
“Ready?”
“Absolutely not,” he said.
Then he stepped closer anyway.
Corvin moved to the opposite side of the pillar, placing his hands against the glowing runes.
“On my mark,” he said.
Elara nodded.
The Heart pulsed again.
The light pouring from the sphere began to grow unstable, flickering like a storm trapped inside glass.
Outside, the Devourer roared and began pulling the rest of its massive body from the cavern beneath the city.
The ground trembled violently.
Ancient towers toppled.
The ruins of Velkaris were falling apart.
Corvin inhaled deeply.
“Now!”
Elara pushed.
Energy surged from her hands into the pillar.
Corvin focused every ounce of strength he had into the glowing runes, forcing the ancient symbols to flare brighter.
Kael stepped back slightly and watched the sphere.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then the Heart changed.
Cracks of red lightning split across its surface.
The glowing sphere trembled as its contained power struggled to break free.
The air inside the temple became thick with heat and pressure.
Kael’s eyes widened.
“Uh… guys?”
The Heart began to scream.
Not with sound.
But with energy.
Blinding light exploded from the sphere as the ancient prison began tearing itself apart.
Corvin shouted.
“It’s working!”
Outside the temple, the Devourer sensed the change immediately.
The massive creature froze.
Its ancient eyes turned upward toward the burning light above the ruins.
For the first time since its awakening—
It hesitated.
The cavern beneath Velkaris began to tremble violently.
Cracks spread across the plaza like a spiderweb of destruction.
The ground was beginning to collapse.
Kael backed toward the temple entrance.
“I think we should run soon.”
Elara’s voice strained.
“Not yet!”
The Heart pulsed again.
This time the cracks across its surface deepened.
The red light inside the sphere swirled faster and faster, like a storm spinning out of control.
Corvin shouted over the rising roar of energy.
“It’s about to break!”
Outside, the Devourer roared in fury.
The creature lunged forward, its enormous body climbing fully into the ruined plaza. Black claws tore through ancient stone as it dragged itself toward the temple.
The ground beneath it crumbled with every movement.
But the monster kept coming.
Kael looked over his shoulder and swore.
“It’s coming for us!”
Elara didn’t move.
The Heart was seconds away from shattering.
The energy surging through the pillar was almost unbearable now.
The ancient runes began exploding one by one as the seal collapsed.
Corvin yelled.
“Elara! Now!”
She nodded.
“Everyone back!”
Kael grabbed Corvin’s arm and pulled him away from the pillar.
They barely cleared the center of the temple when—
The Heart broke.
The crimson sphere shattered in a silent explosion of blinding light.
For one terrifying instant, the entire city of Velkaris was illuminated like daylight.
Then the energy released.
A massive wave of crimson fire erupted outward from the temple, blasting through the ruins in every direction.
The ground beneath the city collapsed instantly.
The ancient cavern holding the Devourer gave way.
Stone crumbled.
Entire sections of Velkaris fell into the abyss below.
The creature roared as the ground vanished beneath its claws.
It tried to climb forward.
Tried to escape.
But the explosion had shattered the foundations of the entire district.
Massive slabs of rock and broken buildings crashed down around the monster.
The Devourer vanished into the collapsing chasm as thousands of tons of ancient stone buried it beneath the ruins.
Inside the temple, Kael slammed into a fallen column as the shockwave knocked him off his feet.
Dust filled the air.
The world roared with collapsing stone.
For several long seconds, the entire canyon shook like the earth itself was breaking apart.
Then—
Slowly—
The rumbling began to fade.
The light from the shattered Heart dimmed.
The ruins of Velkaris settled into silence once more.
Kael groaned as he pushed himself up from the rubble.
“Well,” he coughed.
“That was unpleasant.”
Nearby, Corvin staggered to his feet, brushing dust from his cloak.
“The cavern collapsed,” he said, staring toward the destroyed plaza.
Elara slowly stood beside the broken pillar.
Her hands were still glowing faintly with traces of the Heart’s energy.
She looked out across the ruins.
The plaza was gone.
In its place lay a massive crater where half the city had fallen into darkness.
Kael walked to the edge and peered down cautiously.
“Well…”
He paused.
“I don’t see the giant monster anymore.”
Corvin joined him.
“That much stone would bury anything.”
Kael nodded slowly.
“So we actually did it.”
Elara didn’t answer immediately.
She was staring at the faint red embers still drifting through the air where the Heart had shattered.
Something about it felt wrong.
Corvin noticed her expression.
“What is it?”
She spoke quietly.
“The Heart wasn’t just a prison.”
Kael frowned.
“What do you mean?”
Elara looked toward the dark crater where the Devourer had fallen.
“It was also a warning.”
Silence hung over the ruins.
Then—
From deep beneath the buried city—
A faint tremor moved through the earth.
Very small.
Very distant.
But unmistakable.
Kael slowly looked down into the darkness again.
“…Please tell me that was just falling rocks.”
No one answered.
Far below the ruins of Velkaris—
Something shifted beneath the mountain of stone.
And the darkness moved.