CHAPTER 182: A Sacred Vault Is Where the Moonstone Blade Is Stored Forever

CHAPTER 182: A Sacred Vault Is Where the Moonstone Blade Is Stored Forever

 Soft twilight colors shimmered in the sky above the new kingdoms.  Although balance had been restored, it was brittle against the weight of history, like spun glass.  The merging and healing of the worlds had not come without a price.  The remaining leaders now understood that the most important reminders of their former dominance needed to be buried.

And the Moonstone Blade was the most revered and the most lethal.

Selene held the antiquated weapon tightly.  The furious energy that had previously glistened on the blade vanished.  It pulsed now, like a star in grief, but with a softer, more melancholy glow.

Rowan came stealthily up behind her.  Selene immediately knew he was there, even if his footsteps were almost imperceptible.

He only said, "They're ready."

Selene turned the blade over in her hands again and nodded.  "Something feels wrong," she said.  "To conceal it."  after all that it has done for us.

Rowan lightly stroked the hilt.  "Its time is up.  It will be sought after if we leave it in the world.  Overcame.  And one day, it could be used by someone weaker than us.

Kael watched the black horizon from a distance with his arms folded.  Gruffly, "Let's not pretend," he remarked.  "There is too much blood on that sword.  Perhaps some tranquility is in order.

Selene gave a little grin.  "Maybe we all do."

Deep under the Eclipse Citadel was the Vault of Elys, a hallowed space that is said to have existed before even the earliest world.  It wasn't just concealed.  Ancient seals, blood wards, and magic woven into the world's fundamental foundation served as its defenses.

The vault could only be opened by three beings: one tied by Celestial right, one by Eclipse blood, and one by wild instinct.  The first three in history to be able to fulfill those criteria was Selene, Rowan, and Kael.

It was a lengthy, quiet drop.

With tales of the early wars, fought with ignorance and fury, when magic was as wild as a fledgling storm, torches glowed against carved stone walls.

A strong earthquake rocked the ground as they arrived at the last gate, an obsidian door adorned with silver inscriptions.

Selene tensed.  "What was that?"

With keen eyes, Rowan pulled his smaller sword out of its sheath.  "Difficulty.  Nearby.

Kael grinned.  "Without it, it wouldn't be us."

Nevertheless, they continued on.

Lifting the Moonstone Blade, Selene inserted its tip into a tiny indentation in the middle of the door.

Blindingly vivid, the runes flashed.

A deep, multi-layered voice reverberated around the room:

"Do you surrender the Blade of Balance, knowing it may never return?"

Selene made a snap decision.  "I surrender it."

Once again, the voice said:

"Will you bear the scars of its absence without faltering?"

With a calm voice, Rowan replied.  "We will."

"And will you accept the price of its loss?"

Kael smiled furiously this time.  "We already have."

With a moan, the door parted in two, exposing the Vault of Elys a huge room of stone and crystal, illuminated by a pulsating, unsettling light.

A black marble pedestal stood in the middle, awaiting the blade.

With her hands shaking from the enormity of what they were about to accomplish, rather than from fear, Selene took a step forward.  The Moonstone Blade was set on the pedestal by her.

Nothing occurred for a second.

Then the sword disappeared silently as it slipped gently into the stone.

They all took a step back as it vanished, as a burst of energy swept through the vault.

With a loud boom, the door of the Vault slammed behind them.

The Moonstone Blade had vanished, permanently sealed.

Or so they believed.

The earth shook once again, more violently.

Selene muttered an expletive.  "That isn't normal."

Ghostly, then substantial, individuals started to emerge from the shadowy recesses of the Vault.  Warriors wearing armor from antiquity.  Although visors obscured their faces, they were clearly visible.

With his sword drawn, Rowan said, "They're not alive."  "They are remnants."

Kael's knuckles cracked.  Perhaps they are unaware that the worlds have joined.  Let's introduce ourselves.

The ghostly fighters struck.

They had never fought a war like it.  The phantoms delivered chilly blows that stole energy rather than inflicting physical harm.  Selene cut through one, but a few seconds later, it reformed.

In order to keep the spirits at bay, Rowan battled beside her.  "The Vault is testing us," he said, as he gasped.  "Testing if we're worthy to leave."

With a shout, Kael blasted through two more shades.  "I'm tired of tests!"

A glimmer of terror passed through Selene.  Three spirits seemed to rise for each one they knocked down.  Their vitality was rapidly ebbing away.

She said, "We need to figure out how to stop this."

Rowan's gaze flitted over the room.  "The runes are buzzing on the walls!  They have a connection to the guardians.

Selene made a snap decision.  "Destroy them!"

Kael smiled viciously.  "Finally, something simple!"

Punching his sword deep into the stone, he flung himself for the closest rune.  Two of the ghost warriors instantly vanished into mist as it shattered.

"That’s it!"  Rowan gave a bark.  "Keep going!"

Kael, Rowan, and Selene ran quickly, avoiding ghostly attacks and cutting through runes.

More guards vanished each time a rune broke.

However, when Selene swung her blade in the direction of the last rune

A voice rumbled through the Vault, deep and gritty.

"Enough."

The marble pedestal split open from the middle of the chamber, where the Moonstone Blade had disappeared.

And another weapon sprang from it.

The Moonstone Blade wasn't it.
 With veins of blood-red light coursing through it and a blade as black as a starless night, it was heavier and darker.

Selene gasped for air.  "What is that?"

The Oracle reappeared, her appearance obscured by the seals, this time outside the Vault.

There was fear in her voice.

"That is the Duskfang the blade of the Betrayer King."

Kael muttered curses at himself.  "I thought he was gone!"

The Oracle gave a fierce shake of her head.

"A seed was left behind by him.  A weapon concealed.  You awoke another sword by sealing the first one.

Humming with evil energy, the Duskfang hovered above the broken pedestal.

And slowly, with black tendrils extending toward the three, it started to make a decision.

Rowan tightened his jaw.  "We have to destroy it before it chooses one of us."

Selene took a step forward, her pulse racing.  "Or before it chooses someone worse."

However, the Duskfang lunged even as she was speaking.

not in their direction

but beyond them.

In the direction of the surface.

Up to the recuperating worlds, toward the weak.

Helplessly, they stared as the black sword sliced through the last barrier and disappeared into the world.

With a harsh voice, Selene turned to face Rowan and Kael.

Whispering, "We didn't just seal away the past," she said.

"We unleashed a new future."

Thunder cracked outside.
 And a new star, dark and blazing, sprang out in the sky far away.