“Eternal void,” I whispered and swung my blade, cutting right through the Dark Lord’s armor.
The man gasped as pain struck through him, and he dropped to the floor, heaving in pain. “You,” he grunted, his voice strained, but dripping with anger. “You!”
A circular outline of white lit up under him, and lines formed within it, creating many runes of mysterious shapes. A hum sounded a second later and blast of pure silver light summoned from within the circle, surging high into the air and into the depths of the sky.
Dark Lord’s silhouette trembled within the light, parts of it quickly dissolving away.
“You haven’t gotten away with this, Diablo,” I heard his voice yell as the last bits of him began to disappear. “The Dark Lord never forgets a grudge. I will come after you.”
The blast cut off abruptly, the circular runes on the ground no more. The light vanished from the earth and sky, disappearing to a place I did not know.
I collapsed to the ground, my lungs heaving, gasping for air. Tears stung my eyes and my sorrowful heart ached in pain, more so than my sore body.
“It’s finally over,” I whispered. “I ended it.”
“Indeed, Diablo,” Nyx said. “You can finally live in peace again.”
“Peace?” I chuckled at the amusing thought. “Peace is something I will never have.”
***
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
I’d like to say life went on, that everything turned back to normal, that everyone lived happily ever after.
But reality hardly ends that way.
Though the battle seemed to have ended in a flash, it took me quite a while to get over the fact that I’d used such a terrible move to defeat the Dark Lord. I had made one bad to prevent a worse one. I was thankful to Nyx though. He was the one who told me about Dawnbreaker’s Blood Drive mode, a mode where the weapon obtained the ability to execute the apex moves in its class.
The activation to the mode was a little sick though. A hundred people had to be killed by the weapon in order for Blood Drive to activate. It felt evil, it felt wrong, but I told myself it was okay. It was the only way I could have defeated the Dark Lord and prevented even worse horrors from occurring.
The events right after our battle were quite a mess to be frank. Me and Freya made a break for it the moment we were aware everything had ended. I wasn’t risking giving the Alliance of Light another chance to come after us and make things worse for everyone.
Viola never realized who Freya really was. I secretly wondered if she knew and just didn’t bring it up given the situation. But either way it didn’t matter. With my final move of attacking the Alliance of Light, I’d cut my last connections with her.
In fact, the brown-eyed woman had gone back to the Kingdom’s capital, probably to regroup and come after me soon. Markus Goodfield was yet to make a statement on all this, and I wasn’t even sure if he was going to, given how disastrous the whole event had turned out for his side. Freya was the one who was somehow getting all this information to me, probably after getting it through a few friends she still had in the kingdom.
There hasn’t been much news on the Dark Lord as such. I knew my attack was strong, and that it had killed him, but it was obvious the man was not yet dead. He was the same as me, an Eternal with a Resurrection ability. He had probably weakened quite a bit, but him being dead was an impossibility at this point. I found it weird that both the Alliance of Light and the Dark Alliance had kept quiet about his existence, especially since they were the ones who were there to witness him reappear.
Then again, I had a feeling they knew that if they ever admitted that he’d come back, it would cause a lot of problems. As far as I knew both the Dargonian Empire and the Kingdom of Aingard were still facing repercussions for announcing my existence. It always put a smile on my face to think about that, of how either side thought I was with the other, while in reality I was with neither. It put an amusing twist on what was otherwise quite an intense tale.
The Dargonian Empire still had to face with the fact that Asterion had been killed in battle, but with the kind of leadership changes that they usually made, I figured it wouldn’t be too big of a problem.
In the end, me and Freya decided to come back to Ijyela’s house, the only place we really knew well enough honestly. We were unsafe in either kingdom now. Well I was at least. Freya’s normal form was still not under threat. Either way, we decided to stay there, simply because we weren’t really sure where to go at the moment.
“So that’s what happened,” Ijyela said, sitting in her rocking chair as usual, listening to our entire story from beginning to end. I was a little surprised, not expecting her to react so eased to the fact that I was the Phantom Lord and that the Dark Lord had made an appearance back as well.
“You seem quite…comfortable with all this,” I said, feeling a little weirded out.
“Ijyela is always like that,” Freya sighed as she walked into the room. She was no longer in a hooded tunic and pants but rather a dress of pristine white, intricate patterns of golden flowers weaved onto them with beautiful delicateness. Her dark hair flowed down her back, a flower of radiant purple tucked behind her ear, the petals glowingly dimly.
I stared at her for a moment, a little taken aback to see the sword-carrying, tough-fighting elf dressed like this.
“That looks beautiful on you, Freya,” Ijyela smiled.
“It’s comforting to wear an elven dress after so long,” she smiled and sat onto the chair beside the elven witch, letting out a long sigh. “It feels so relaxing.”
“Well, what are your plans after this?” she asked.
“Us?” Freya asked, looking at me. “I don’t think we have any plans for now.”
“Yeah,” I sighed. “We don’t even know what to do after this now. There are still a ton of questions that we need to have answered, but we don’t really know how to even begin looking them up.”
“I believe time is the best solver of problems,” Ijyela said. “Just live long enough and you’ll get all the answers you need.”
I smiled, amused that she had said that. I had lived the longest by far between the three of us, and even then, I was the one with the least knowledge of anything going on.
“To me it’s pretty clear what we have to look at first,” Freya said. “We still don’t know anything about that seal of yours and of this Phantom Lord rampage Asterion spoke about.”
Ah, I thought, recalling what everyone had said about the rampage I had gone on. Is that true Nyx?
“I… do not remember those times well, Diablo, forgive me,” Nyx said. “It has been quite a while since I was last put to sleep.”
I understand, I said.
“I will look and see if I can find any documents that can help us,” Ijyela said.
“That’d be great,” I said.
“This whole situation is very intriguing,” she said. “I presume you are going to try and break the rest of the seal now?”
“That’s what I hope,” I smiled. “Though I’m still not sure how. I don’t even know where to start.”
“I might be able to help with that,” she chuckled. “Don’t worry.”
“What?” I stared at her.
“There is a lot I have to say about where you should begin your search. However, that conversation can wait for later,” the witch stood up. “Freya, it’s time.”
“Already?” Freya asked.
“Time for what?” I blinked, feeling left out of the conversation.
“It’s a surprise,” the elves smiled and walked out of the house, leaving me to follow them cluelessly. I stepped out into the darkness, into the pocket of forest with black within it.
“This is what you wanted me to see?” I asked, confused.
“Shh,” Freya said, a teasing smile on her lips.
“Be patient, Diablo,” Nyx chuckled.
Wait you know about this to? I asked.
“Watch.”
I looked
ahead of me and a second later, I knew exactly what they were talking about.
From within the darkness sprouted colors of all kinds, the fiery reds, the lively greens, the paranormal purples and the enriching blues. Flowers and petals bloomed into existence, their glowing shapes illuminating the shroud of forestry that we were in, sending the darkness around us into oblivion, replacing it with a rainbow of flowers.
I smiled to myself, amused at how much had changed. I’d woken up a mile or so from this very spot, in utter darkness, in completely disarray, alone, hurt and scared. It hadn’t been even two weeks since then and here I was, in the presence of the lady who arguably saved me when it was most important, watching the colors of the forest shower their light as they bloomed from within the darkness.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Freya asked, standing next to me, watching the flowers with joy.
“It is,” I smiled, standing in this pocket of greenery, gazing on the best of what nature had to offer.
I couldn’t help but sigh quietly to myself, thinking about all the problems I’d faced to get here. But I felt good about them as well, for I could tell I was no longer at war with my past, I was no longer at conflict with what I was told about who I was. And that to me, was the greatest thing I could have settled amongst everything that had happened.
I smile lay on my lips as the colors lit up my eyes, a sole thought illuminating my mind.
My name was Zoran Diablo.
And I was the Phantom Lord.
IF YOU ENJOYED THIS BOOK…
…I would really appreciate it if you would help others enjoy it too. Reviews are like OP pixie dust and help novels skyrocket to great success and popularity. Even a single review can make all the difference in the world! I would be immensely grateful if you could please spare a bit of your time and let me know what you thought of my novel. Thank you!
ASTERION’S AMBITION
Sign up to my newsletter to grab your copy of Asterion’s Ambition - the prequel short story to the World of Ga’em series - as well as copies of ConQuest and ZeQuest, the first two books from my other series, the Quest Saga, all for absolutely free. All you need to do is let me know which email address to send your freebies to and you’re good to go!
Click here to grab your free books!
SNEAK PEAK - THE ETERNAL: DRAGONBORN
CHAPTER ONE
A flash of darkness struck the air, like lightning descending the sky. A thunderous blast spilled into the winds, resonating for a second before the sounds of silence took over. A squadron of goblins collapsed to the surface, their bloodied bodies resting against the forest floor, their eyes void of life.
“Well, that takes care of that,” I sighed, my arm holding a sword of black, a glowing jewel of mystic purple embedded where the blade met the hilt.
“What do you mean that takes care of that?” Nyx said, his voice reverberating within my subconscious. “That was like the umpteenth Goblin squadron we’ve had to take on, Zoran. If anything, there’s going to be a lot more of them.”
And as if on cue, an impish cry came from beyond the trees and eyes sprung from the darkness. A pack of goblins rushed out of the shadows, their legs moving with blazing pace. I casually went for my sword, letting it swing gently just as the creatures jumped at us. The blade went clean through their small bodies, throwing their severed sections against the tree bark, killing them long before impact.
“Okay maybe you have a point,” I said as I flicked my weapon, letting goblin blood slip off it. “These things are going to keep coming at us for as long as they can.”
DING!
A screen of translucent white appeared before me.
Congratulations! You have defeated Goblin Horde Lv (70). Rewards: 100000 XP. Rewards 80000 Sol.
Ugh, that XP won’t even take me even 1% closer to my next level, I sighed. It was insanely hard for me to level up at the moment. I’d tried all sorts of ways to speed up the process but none seemed to be working.
My thoughts broke when I heard more sounds and I looked ahead, the orange of the evening sky contrasting the darkness I saw before me.
I focused harder and activated my Night Vision skill. The blackness between the trees washed away, letting me see clear images of goblins running in from ahead, wooden clubs and metal spears in their hands.
I surged to them, sword in hand, and a few quick swings later their bodies all lay frozen on the forest floor, lifeless and silent.
“You could just purge them all at once you know?” Nyx said. “A single spell and they’d all be done for. It’s kind of sad to watch the Phantom Lord go after each goblin one by one.”
“Well, for one, casting a mass spell like that might take down the whole forest, which I’d prefer not to do, and second, I’d rather take the goblins out physically with my sword than cast an overpowered spell. I need to work on using all my skills more.”
“Fine,” he mumbled, unimpressed.
A thud sounded, sending tremors along the ground and small rocks skittling off the surface. I perked up, a smile on my face. Something big was closeby. I rushed towards the sound, my feet tapping over the ground with silence. A few seconds in I noticed a small field in the middle of the forest.
And there, on the grassy enclave, was a giant goblin. The creature stood about ten feet high, weird chains of rock and teeth around its neck, a massive club of metal and wood in its arm. Its eyes were a sharp green, and its skin many shades darker.
The beast was looking around the field, as if it were searching for something. I stayed in my position for a few seconds longer, trying to gauge what was going on before stepping into this battle. It wasn’t like I couldn’t take this beast out if I wanted to, but just that I’d rather know what it was doing instead of just killing it in an instant.
As strong as I was however, I still needed to be wary of the enemy. No matter how weak an attacker was, an assault to the vital region of a person, regardless of how strong they were, could cause massive damage, potentially killing them.
I diverted from my thoughts and focused on the giant’s head, using my Analyze skill on it.
DING!
Race
Goblin Warlord
Level
125
Health
2790
Mana
500
Stamina
2670
Goblin Warlord, I thought as I read the words off the screen. And he’s quite strong too.
“Strong?” Nyx scoffed. “That’s a joke coming from someone like you.”
I know I know, I smiled quietly.
So far I was quite curious about why these goblins had come after me in the first place. The forest we were in, Tigrea, was not one that goblins frequented, and so it seemed quite odd that these creatures were attacking us now. It all seemed very unnatural.
“Didn’t Ijyela tell us the shadow of darkness has increased every since…” Nyx said.
She did, I replied.
“That’s probably why these creatures all have much higher levels than we’d expected.”
Yeah, I said.
The Goblin Warlord grunted and hunched low, his eyes glaring through the trees. It caught sight of me almost immediately and its body language changed, vigor infusing its bones. It lifted its club into the air and yelled - a war cry of course. Hordes of small goblins rushed out from behind him and made their way to his side, ready to attack.
“Well,” I mumbled. “Did not expect that.”
“This is going to be fun,” Nyx chuckled.
I strode out of my spot, taking the fight into the open field. The goblins eyed me as I neared them, laying in wait to attack. The warlord slung his club forward and pointed it at me, yelling out another cry as he sent a wave of goblins charging my way.
“Are you still sticking to the sword?” Nyx asked.
I sighed. “Fine, I’ll use a spell,” I said. “But not one that’s too strong.”
“That’s fine,” he said, sounding e
xcited.
I thrust my hand out, feeling energy course within me. I sharpened my vision, focusing on the goblin and a word floated out of my inner mind, urging me to say it.
I opened my mouth to speak but stopped when a dark shadow passed over my face, distracting me for a second.
I heard a massive blast, and when I looked again, a horde of goblin bodies lay over the floor. The warlord lay in a clutter of trees, branches digging into his flesh, and trunks pressing him down to the ground. All dead.
“Pretty impressive huh?” a strand of hair floated in front of me. An elf stood there, her obsidian black hair flowing in the wind, the streak of silver distinct in its shades of darkness. Her big moonsilver eyes looked at me, radiant elven skin glowing as the Sun reached the horizon and light left the skies.
“I almost attacked you, you know,” I sighed, dropping my hand and letting my concentrated energy dissipate back into me.
“Well, the important thing is you didn’t,” she said, sliding her silver longsword back into the sheath on her back. “Oh, and also that I managed to take out all the goblins myself.” she said,
“That’s hardly surprising,” I chuckled. “They were like Level 70 or something, and you’re what? About level 170 now?”
“I’m at 214 actually,” she chuckled.
“Okay, you leveled up waaaay to fast,” I stared at her.
“What can I say?” she grinned. “Ijyela’s experience boost potions helped a lot. I’ve been grinding quite a bit too.”
The Eternal: Awakening - A LitRPG Saga (World of Ga'em Book 1) Page 25
