"Desire. It dwells within us all, lurking amidst the darkness of our hearts and filling our minds with inescapable delirium. There is no escaping it, for desire is what builds the foundation for human purpose. For ambition. I lost the object of my desire long ago, and now, all that's left is their dream left unfulfilled. There is nothing left for me but to build atop the abandoned remnants of their legacy. If not, then it is my fate to be reduced to naught but an empty husk. No desire. No purpose. No aspiration. I shall become deprived of what makes me human."

Xeros, Grand General of Nox Caelum

———

Xeros

Thump...thump....

The heartbeat ceases. The world resumes its rhythm once again. Now, only Xeros remains.

His throat is filled with ice. Fatigue and exhaustion consumes every fiber of his body, and a muddled spout of blood is violently coughed out of his mouth, eyes hollow and face gaunt with paleness, but Xeros pays no heed to the pain. All that matters is that he has won. He has broken free of the wretched fate forced upon him by the unknown puppeteer. Their treasured pawn has been vanquished, the armies of Polus have lost their leader, and it is only a matter of time before Xeros regains enough strength to repel the invading forces. Even if Lorelai is still alive, the death of their King will leave Polus utterly paralyzed and ripe for culling. Truly, there is nothing more satisfying than foiling the plans of scum who toil away in the shadows.

Alas, his jubilance does not last for long. As he moves to withdraw The Corvid's Maw, a ray of lilac-tinged light emits from within the creature's head. It starts with a trickle, a faint beam undistinguishable amidst the blood-hued sky, but then it grows stronger, clearer, and soon hundreds of rays pierce through the feathered skull.

Ascalon is still alive. Invulnerability...what a vile power it is. Xeros has tried every method, every scheme, to discover a method around his authority, but it has all lead to nothing. There is no bypassing Ascalon's aegis: it's useless.

Although his aura isn't limitless, Xeros has long since been depleted of his own source. For every second The Corvid's Maw remains manifested, The Grand General becomes weaker and weaker. He will break free soon, and the moment he does shall mark the end of Xeros's life for good.

Is there truly nothing he can do? Perhaps it is time to call upon The Thing...no, not until the bitter chill of Ascalon's blade touches the tip of his neck will Xeros summon that horror into this world.

There is but a single remaining manifestation left. It is a vile, disgusting entity, but he must-

"Xeros."

...It has been an age since he has been tormented by that voice. It is thick and gruff, tone filled with a roughness ill befitting that of a leader, yet it comforts him nonetheless. It echoes a song of wisdom belonging only to those who've suffered under the hand of oppression, but also carries an innocent heart unwilling to look away from the light. Why must she haunt him now? After so long of being free from her chains?

A calloused hand touches his shoulder, fingers course and nails dirty from endless nights spent in the forge, and though he knows it is but a phantom of his consciousness, he can't help but let himself become loose under the touch.

"You promised me," the voice whispers. "After all the suffering it caused, after all the lives it took, that you would never fully manifest The Corvid ever again. I know you're better than this, Xeros. I know a seed of love still exists within you, no matter how deep you try to bury it. I know the true you is still full of kindness."

A promise. It really is a childish thing, for such oaths only exist to be broken.

"I am not like you," he says, words devoid of warmth. "You are naive, Luxmi. That is why you failed. That is why you died. Do you really think I would uphold a vow only bound by false words?"

"And what of the words in your heart?" she cries out. "Do they not cry out to you? Do you not hear their pleas?"

Of course he hears them. "But I have forsaken my heart long ago. This is my resolution, and I will not let a feeble wraith like you stay my hand."

He grips the phantom's throat and crushes it with all its might. It shatters into sparkles of crystalline dust and trails off into the skies above. That is where she belongs, and for him, he has unfinished matters on this earth. If Ascalon's invulnerability cannot be pierced, then Xeros will remove his power by the source.

The Grand General closes his eyes and lets darkness spur forth to every corner of the land. The sky becomes covered in an endless veil of twilight, and with a sudden jolt, his body becomes entirely consumed within red lightning. From the soft flesh of his eyes to the boiling blood beneath his nails, everything is consumed by the thunderous bolt.

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And with a guttural croak, a disfigured beak bursts forth from Xeros's chest.

"Once upon a time, in a faraway land

There lived a corvid, with feathers oh, so grand

The Corvid's voice cries out in anguish, wailing to the Stars as it tears out of Xeros's body like a fleshy mound of clay, while its ravenous maw waters and froths from hunger, putrid bile spewing through its jagged fangs.

One day, while the bird was tinkering away with a pebble

It was approached by a peddler, vowing to make no trouble

A blood-soaked eye emerges out into the open, pupils twitching in jittery, erratic movements. The Corvid grows larger, and larger, and larger still, until the entire city is trapped beneath its baleful gaze.

The peddler saw potential in the bird, and with it, the scent of profit

For who could ever imagine a bird with such pristine talent?

A talon springs out. Then two, then three, until its entire, malformed claw wretches out of the cage of flesh, baring its malice for all to see. The knights stop their charge and stare at the malevolent figure growing above, for The Corvid's presence has left them stunned and completely frozen in fear.

'Aren't you tired of that plain old pebble,' the man had said. 'With your skills, I'm sure, even steel will sparkle'

And so the bird joined the peddlers journey, heart full of boundless cheer

A bewitching melody invades the ears of all who walk amongst the soil of Nox Caelum. The shifting of formless flesh and the heartbeat of a blackened heart merge together to form a sinister, rhythmic cage. All are subjected to its spell, all must follow along to the pulse, and for those who cannot resist the call of the damned, madness burrows into the brain until nothing is left but a delirious, broken shell.

But, in the end, all it was met is the bitter touch of despair

With a scream, The Corvid fully emerges from what remains of Xeros's withered vessel. His skin has long since turned into dust, sockets filled with naught but darkness, and his once flowing hair is now but frail strands of grey and white. It tears the hollow vessel into two and steps out into the world with a gnarled hook, crushing the hills below into a desolate pile of sundered earth.

There it lay, feathers plucked and body crushed, waiting for the tender embrace of death to claim its weary husk

But as its body began to ascend to the Stars above, it cried out in rage, begging for anyone to answer its grudge

The darkness dissipates, the clouds part, and there, shining under the pale glow of the moonlit night, is a divine being covered in blinding light. The Corvid is no longer blanketed in an ebony black. Now, glistening white feathers cover every surface of its body, untarnished by neither filth nor corruption.

'Let none ever fool me with promises of sweet nothings!" And thus it was granted eyes, so that it may view the world for what it truly was

'Let my body never forget the yearnings of my soul!' And thus it was granted a mouth, so that its desire would forever remain confined within the bottomless maw

'Let my enemies know true suffering for all the harm they have wrought!' And thus it was granted talons, so that it could savor the screams of the nefarious

'Let my heart never waver before the words of the fools!' And thus it was granted a heart, so that it could forever march to the rhythm of its own beat

And after all of its pleas were so graciously answered, it begged for one last, parting gift of succor

While all stand in awe before the being of pure desire, it opens its beak and prepares to engulf everyone within a gleaming beam of ruination. All shall be welcomed within the light. All shall enter the hallowed halls of paradise.

'I am nothing, a bird without a soul, so please grant me an identity. Something to call my own!'

And thus it was given a name, a name pure as the morning dew

'You are The Corvid. You are the lord.'

'From henceforth, your name shall be'

'Luxmi'

And may she prosper, forevermore"

The Polus knights collapse onto their knees, ready to accept their fate. But just as the wave of destruction is released and the shadow of death hangs high, a flash of lilac bolts ahead of them and collides straight into the bottomless light.