Running through the hallowed hallways, the man’s pants sounded abnormally loud in the silent corridors. He was covered from head to toe in plate armor, yet the only sound that could be heard was his shortness of breath as he sprinted towards the massive doors at the end of the passage. Bursting through the doors, the man managed to get five meters before several white orbs were shot at him. Moving faster than the armored man could react, the white orbs hit his hands and knees. Nearly at the same time, they shot towards the ground, pulling the man into a kneeling position.

“How DARE you barge into her Holiness’ presence without announcing yourself! I should have you drawn and quartered for this act.” Walking quickly towards the now kneeling man, a rather portly man in a deep blue robe raised his staff. The metal tip of the staff was cast in the shape of an hawk, and its eyes started to glow with power as the mage started to chant a spell.

“Keeper, there is no need for such punishments. Our situation is dire enough as it is.” With a wave of her hand the woman seated on the throne dispelled the binding magic holding the armored man down. “Knight-Magus. Please give me your report of the situation outside.”

Taking a deep breath, the man remained kneeling as he rubbed his sore wrists. No matter how hardy he was, binding magic always left him sore afterwards, especially when casted by one of the most powerful mages in the land.

“Your Holiness, the Conduits of Storm and Earth have breached the outer walls. The Common, Market, and Guest Districts of the city have erupted with fierce fighting in the streets as the Guard struggle to turn back the invaders.”

Sighing, the woman leaned back into the throne. Within the same instant, a man seemed to materialize from the air next to the throne. He was in a rather strange outfit. It was impossible to tell if it was a outfit of armored plates or leather. The silver outfit seemed to hypnotize slightly all those who gazed at it. On his face was a mask, with the design of a six pointed star on it. Leaning towards the woman in the throne, his voice was a whisper that only she could hear.

“Do you wish to leave? My men have already secured a direct passage from here to the Ocean District. Your Holiness could be gone from this situation within the hour.” Even though the mask hid the man’s line of sight from the woman, she could feel his penetrating gaze. They had known each other for nearly their entire lives. He was her personal Shade, the bond-guard that every Conduit was given when they reached the age of five. Bond-guards grew up with their masters, many becoming irreplaceable friends to the Conduits. The act of binding a Bond-guard to a Conduit was an incredible strain on their souls, so much so that the bonding could only be completed once within a lifetime. The masked man, as the Shade of the Prime Conduit, is the very best that the entire Empire could offer. His lineage was even more heavily selected than even hers, as Prime Conduits were chosen from birth by the Gods themselves. Commoners and Nobles alike had equal chances to be the Prime Conduit, talent and potential were the only factors in deciding the Prime Conduit.

“No, it is my fault that the state of the Empire has deteriorated enough as it is. Keeper! Send one last message requesting an ceasefire from the Conduits of Storm and Earth.”

“As you command.” The Keeper’s face was subservient even as he was doubtful in his heart. The insurrection by the High Conduits had lasted nearly half a decade. With a majority of the Empire turning against the Prime Conduit, it was a testament to the strength and determination of the loyalists that the civil war had even lasted this long.

Feeling the Keeper’s doubts, the Prime Conduit smiled. “There is no need to feel doubtful, old friend. The Prime Conduit has never been overthrown before, and I will not be the first. Send my message asking for peace.” Her smile fading, the Prime Conduit’s voice grew frosty instantaneously. “But do let them know that this is the last time I will offer a truce. The power of the Prime Conduit has not been exercised in full for nearly a millennium since the last Uprising.”

“Your Will be done, Holiness.” The Keeper’s face was reverent, but his back was cold with sweat. He had forgotten that the Prime Conduit had access, if they chose to, to the emotions and memories of any nearby person. He had once heard it described as effortless for the Primes, as if they had to actively try to not eavesdrop on the thoughts of others. It certainly made diplomacy easy for the Primes of yesteryear, before the Empire spanned the world. Knowing the thoughts of your opponents at the negotiating table was certainly a huge advantage, thought the Keeper.

With a short chant, the Keeper conjured a hawk out of mana. Hovering in the air directly in front of him, the Keeper imbued the hawk with enough mana for its trip and the message from the Prime. With a nod, the hawk flew in the direction of the rebellious High Conduits besieging the capital.

“Mm. It is done. Thank you, Keeper. I suppose there is nothing to do now but wait. I expect that I will receive their reply shortly.” Putting her hands on her lap, the Prime Conduit sat back against the throne. The Prime’s throne was something of an oddity in the Empire. For such a nation of riches and decadence, the Prime’s throne had always been a huge single piece cut out of moonwood. Moonwood is a curious substance. Hard as reinforced steel and naturally fortified against nearly all forms of magical attack, it was easily made by the Primes. Rather, it was sung into form by each Prime after the took their mantle at the head of the Empire. Each moonwood throne as a result was unique, and yet another subtle reminder of the absolute power of the Prime Conduits. No other Conduit was able to make moonwood respond to their manipulations, or at all for that matter.

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After a short while, that felt like hours instead of mere minutes to everybody but the Prime, a cyan cormorant flew through the wall and halted in front of the Prime. Looking disdainfully at her, the cormorant opened its mouth.

“Hahaha, is this how low the Prime Conduit has fallen? I would never have thought that the Prime Conduit herself would suggest a ceasefire. Then again, I don’t think any Prime has been as incompetent as you before. There will be no ceasefire, I can see the Citadel itself from the supposedly impregnable walls of the Capital. The time of the Prime Conduit is over. We, the High Conduits, are sick and tired of having to govern the Empire in your name. The Gods must agree with us, since our powers have not vanished yet. I expect that we will meet in person shortly, your Holiness.” The Conduit of Storm’s message finished, the cormorant squawked and disappeared in a cyan puff.

After the message was delivered, a deathly silence befell the throne room. The various guards and Keepers were in paralyzed with shock, rage, and some with fear. Sighing, the Prime Conduit stood up.

“I guess we have our answer. It seems that this is the end for the Empire as we know it.” With her hand outstretched in front of her, a golden staff materialized as if from nowhere and landed lightly in the Prime’s palm.

“We...we have ways of getting out of the city unnoticed. Your Holiness, please reconsider! Your life is the most important thing in the world. The Divine Will flows through your veins. If you are lost...then the world is lost.” Kneeling prostrate on the ground, the Keeper robed in blue as well as everybody else in attendance except for the Shade bowed deeply.

“I will not run from this.” Her face set in a hard line, the Prime tapped her staff on the throne room’s floor. A huge surge of mana came from the Prime’s body and sunk into the ground. As her mana flooded the room, the throne room’s huge rune array started to light up. In an instant, the entire room was flooded in six different colors, one for each of the different Gods of the Empire. “They have made their choice, and now so have I. They do not know the Gods as I do, they know not where their power truly comes from. I have let the High Conduits run amok for far too long in an attempt to keep the peace. Perhaps...never mind. There is no need to think of what may have been, only what that should happen going forward.”

Turning towards the Shade, the Prime sadly smiled. “It seems that this is where we must part. Dear friend, I thank you for your years of service and friendship.”

Cocking his head ever so slightly at an angle, the Shade seemed perplexed. “This isn’t goodbye. What are you talking about? All you need is to activate the capital’s Destruction Array, and the interlopers would be destroyed. We should be fine.”

Although the kneeling Keepers and guards also had their doubts, they did not dare to voice them. In their hearts, however, they envied the Shade. Only he was able to speak so frankly to the Prime. Good men and women have died for less than that in the Empire.

Shaking her head slightly, the Prime sighed as runes began to light up across the streets of the city. From Quarter to Quarter, arcane patterns on the streets of the city began to light up as the Prime’s mana poured like an unending tsunami into the city. The High Conduits, witnessing this, desperately gave orders to their men to pull back from the city. The Destruction Array was an ancient defensive measure put in place by the first Prime himself as a way of completely wiping out all opposition within the city. The Array would kill every living thing in the city, regardless of affiliation. Only the Citadel itself was safe, but only the High Conduits and the Prime knew about the extent of the Array.

“This rebellion is a symptom of Empire. It will repeat itself in cycles until the Prime is overthrown. There is no way around it. We have conquered the world itself. When there are no challenges for the people, they look for challenges within. Our people are bored, and I couldn’t bring myself to make fake enemies of the state and scapegoating others for the sake of stability.” The Prime’s eyes started to tear up as she spoke.

“Regrettable.” The Shade brought his right arm horizontally to his chest as a salute. “Do as you think best, you know that I will always support you. “Divinus Vult!”

“Hahaha, look at you. You’re so stiff. Where has my friend gone? This isn’t goodbye. I will see you soon.” The Prime laughed as she channeled even more mana into the city’s formations. His shoulders sagging a little bit, the Shade knew that the Prime was not activating the Destruction Array. As the Royal Shade, he got the same book education that the Prime herself received from the previous Prime. The Destruction Array did not require this much mana to activate. What the Prime was actually doing must be something even more serious. He knew that this could very well be the last time he saw the Prime. Standing straight once more, the Shade resolved to witness the last act of the Prime.

Steeling herself, the Prime Conduit and the Shade exchanged one last, forlorn look. To the two, it was as if time stood still for just a second. Their bond could not be described with just words. It was as if they were related by blood, even if that was impossible.

With a final surge of mana, the spires of the Citadel lit up the sky. It was late into the evening, but the blinding light from the spires lit the plains surrounding the capital up as if it was day. With a shout, the Prime Conduit put the last of her mana into the capital’s Array. A second sun blossomed from the tip of the Citadel’s spire.

For miles around, loyalists and rebels alike were enraptured in sheer amazement by the display of magical prowess coming from the Citadel. The magically adept knew from the heart that the only person capable of unleashing such might would be the Prime Conduit. In their camps outside the city, the High Conduits’ faces were ashen. They knew not what this spell was, but they felt in their gut that it was the end for them.

The newly made sun lingered for just a moment.

The Prime collapsed as her body lost its strength.

The Shade caught the Prime before she hit the ground, holding her in his arms, he stared at her now pale visage.

Smiling weakly, the Prime reached up and touched the tip of her finger to the Shade’s mask.

“I dub thee...Lazarus Rhodes. Ad astra, old friend.”

The golden sun exploded, and time stood still.

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The wind whistled through the ruins of a city long lost to time. Nature had reclaimed the plains and turned into a deep forest. Fey creatures now wander the ruins, preying upon those foolhardy enough to try and seek treasure from the depth of the ruins.

Deep within the ruins, there is a giant silver throne. Despite the countless years, it has not decayed a single bit. In front of it, there is a curious sight. What appears to be a badly sculpted statue of a kneeling man is positioned directly in front of the throne, as if he is presenting something to it.

Suddenly, the statue cracked. The next moment, pieces of rock exploded in all directions as the statue collapsed. Standing up from the dust, a masked man looked at his hand. Holding a locket, the man’s eyes reveal his confusion.

“Who am I?”

The silence answered him.