The sky over the capital had turned the color of old blood.
Ash floated like snow through the air. Bells tolled in warning — not to wake the city, but to mourn it. For what was coming was not war. It was erasure.
And at the center of it all, Kael stood at the gates, shadows swirling at his feet, his cloak in tatters, and eyes glowing with the light of three Veins.
Behind him, broken stone and shattered time.Ahead of him, the royal court.And somewhere within, the man who destroyed everything: Thorne.
⚔️ Kael vs Lyra: Reunion or War?
She stepped into view.Her hood down. Her dagger drawn. Her expression unreadable.
Lyra.
"You weren't supposed to come this far," she said.
Kael's voice was calm, too calm. "And yet here I am. With three Veins. And too much blood on my hands."
"Then stop. Before it consumes you."
"It already has."
Silence.
Then Lyra struck first.
Their clash wasn't rage. It was grief. Two people who had trusted, failed, and returned with pieces missing.
Kael's shadows blocked, parried, snapped.
Lyra moved like memory — swift, elegant, full of regrets.
Each strike was a question.Each parry, an apology.
And then finally — their weapons locked, eyes inches apart.
"Tell me it's still you," she whispered.
"I don't know anymore."
They stood there, breathing, bleeding, unsure of who lost.
🕯️ Flashback: The First King
A black chamber. A crown. A scream.
The First King stood over a body — his brother. The man he loved more than any throne.
"They made me a weapon," he said, hands shaking. "And now they call me a monster."
The Godshards were shattered that night. And the curse of Shadowblood was born — not from evil, but from betrayal.
The King fell. His blood burned the earth. And his last words were a warning:
"All kings lie. Even to themselves."
🏛️ Present: Inside the Royal Court
Thorne stood before the empty throne, the glass crown in his hands.
He turned to the nobles.
"Your prince returns. And with him, doom. But I… I offer you power."
He placed the crown upon his head — and the truth unraveled.
His skin split. His form twisted.
Because Thorne was never human.
He was a vessel, created centuries ago by the Hollow King — a walking prophecy to break the empire from within.
"The throne was never yours," a voice echoed.
Kael stepped inside, dragging the shadows of broken kings with him.
"It was mine to burn."
💥 Battle of the Palace
What followed wasn't a fight.It was a collapse.
Kael and Thorne collided in the center chamber — magic, shadow, blood, and fire.Veins clashed like storms. Floors cracked. Statues wept.
But Thorne had one thing Kael didn't.
The Hollow King.
From the sky, it descended — tall, faceless, and stitched together with silence.Every word it spoke became a curse.Every movement twisted time.
"You are not the heir," it whispered. "You are the weapon."
Kael fell.
His Veins flickered.
His breath slowed.
💔 Lyra's Choice
She ran to him.
Even as the palace crumbled.
Even as the Hollow King raised its hand.
She knelt beside Kael and did the one thing she swore she'd never do —She opened her soul.
And something ancient responded.
The Vein of Time awakened in her chest.
Time froze.
Wind stopped. Flames paused. Even death waited.
And in that silence, Lyra saw the truth.
Kael would not survive the seventh Vein.But he could still be saved.
She rewound just ten seconds.
Enough to move his body.Enough to take the blow instead.
The Hollow King's curse struck her instead of him.
Time resumed.
And Lyra collapsed.
🩸 Kael's Awakening
He opened his eyes to blood.
Her blood.
"No…"
The Hollow King smiled.
"Pain unlocks power. But grief… grief forges gods."
Kael's eyes ignited.
Not with power.With clarity.
He stood. Shadows howled. Veins burned.And from his back… wings of void burst out.
"You want a weapon?" he whispered."Then you'll get one."
He summoned the shattered Crown of Silence.It floated. Whole. Waiting.
"But it will cost you," the shadows warned."You'll lose her forever."
Kael reached out…
🕳️ End Scene – One Week Later
The empire is broken.
The Hollow King has vanished.
Thorne is dust.
Kael has disappeared.
And Lyra…lies in a glass coffin in the ruins of the cathedral. Not dead.Not alive.
The monks call her "The Time-Sleeper."Waiting.
The sky over the capital had turned the color of old blood.
Ash floated like snow through the air. Bells tolled in warning — not to wake the city, but to mourn it. For what was coming was not war. It was erasure.
And at the center of it all, Kael stood at the gates, shadows swirling at his feet, his cloak in tatters, and eyes glowing with the light of three Veins.
Behind him, broken stone and shattered time.Ahead of him, the royal court.And somewhere within, the man who destroyed everything: Thorne.
⚔️ Kael vs Lyra: Reunion or War?
She stepped into view.Her hood down. Her dagger drawn. Her expression unreadable.
Lyra.
"You weren't supposed to come this far," she said.
Kael's voice was calm, too calm. "And yet here I am. With three Veins. And too much blood on my hands."
"Then stop. Before it consumes you."
"It already has."
Silence.
Then Lyra struck first.
Their clash wasn't rage. It was grief. Two people who had trusted, failed, and returned with pieces missing.
Kael's shadows blocked, parried, snapped.
Lyra moved like memory — swift, elegant, full of regrets.
Each strike was a question.Each parry, an apology.
And then finally — their weapons locked, eyes inches apart.
"Tell me it's still you," she whispered.
"I don't know anymore."
They stood there, breathing, bleeding, unsure of who lost.
🕯️ Flashback: The First King
A black chamber. A crown. A scream.
The First King stood over a body — his brother. The man he loved more than any throne.
"They made me a weapon," he said, hands shaking. "And now they call me a monster."
The Godshards were shattered that night. And the curse of Shadowblood was born — not from evil, but from betrayal.
The King fell. His blood burned the earth. And his last words were a warning:
"All kings lie. Even to themselves."
🏛️ Present: Inside the Royal Court
Thorne stood before the empty throne, the glass crown in his hands.
He turned to the nobles.
"Your prince returns. And with him, doom. But I… I offer you power."
He placed the crown upon his head — and the truth unraveled.
His skin split. His form twisted.
Because Thorne was never human.
He was a vessel, created centuries ago by the Hollow King — a walking prophecy to break the empire from within.
"The throne was never yours," a voice echoed.
Kael stepped inside, dragging the shadows of broken kings with him.
"It was mine to burn."
💥 Battle of the Palace
What followed wasn't a fight.It was a collapse.
Kael and Thorne collided in the center chamber — magic, shadow, blood, and fire.Veins clashed like storms. Floors cracked. Statues wept.
But Thorne had one thing Kael didn't.
The Hollow King.
From the sky, it descended — tall, faceless, and stitched together with silence.Every word it spoke became a curse.Every movement twisted time.
"You are not the heir," it whispered. "You are the weapon."
Kael fell.
His Veins flickered.
His breath slowed.
💔 Lyra's Choice
She ran to him.
Even as the palace crumbled.
Even as the Hollow King raised its hand.
She knelt beside Kael and did the one thing she swore she'd never do —She opened her soul.
And something ancient responded.
The Vein of Time awakened in her chest.
Time froze.
Wind stopped. Flames paused. Even death waited.
And in that silence, Lyra saw the truth.
Kael would not survive the seventh Vein.But he could still be saved.
She rewound just ten seconds.
Enough to move his body.Enough to take the blow instead.
The Hollow King's curse struck her instead of him.
Time resumed.
And Lyra collapsed.
🩸 Kael's Awakening
He opened his eyes to blood.
Her blood.
"No…"
The Hollow King smiled.
"Pain unlocks power. But grief… grief forges gods."
Kael's eyes ignited.
Not with power.With clarity.
He stood. Shadows howled. Veins burned.And from his back… wings of void burst out.
"You want a weapon?" he whispered."Then you'll get one."
He summoned the shattered Crown of Silence.It floated. Whole. Waiting.
"But it will cost you," the shadows warned."You'll lose her forever."
Kael reached out…
🕳️ End Scene – One Week Later
The empire is broken.
The Hollow King has vanished.
Thorne is dust.
Kael has disappeared.
And Lyra…lies in a glass coffin in the ruins of the cathedral. Not dead.Not alive.
The monks call her "The Time-Sleeper."Waiting.