Ascension of the Arcane king

THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM...

The air in the ruined chamber hung heavy, thick with the weight of their recent battle.

Elias sat on the shattered stone floor, his back resting against a fallen pillar. The world felt different now. The Watchers were gone. The First King was real. Varian had been freed.

And yet—something else loomed on the horizon.

Seraphina sat beside him, her gaze sharp yet filled with concern.

"How are you holding up?"

Elias exhaled slowly. "Like I'm carrying the weight of a thousand lifetimes."

She smirked faintly. "That's because you are."

His laugh was brief, brittle, and died too soon. The truth weighed him down. He wasn't just a king—he was a part of a cursed cycle. And the path to breaking it was hidden in shadows he couldn't yet pierce.

Near the chamber's entrance, Varian and the First King spoke in hushed tones. Their grim expressions didn't inspire confidence.

Elias's chest tightened. Something wasn't right.

He could feel it

And he was about to find out why.

THE FIRST WARNING....

"The barrier is failing."

Varian's words were calm but cut through the air like a blade.

Elias and Seraphina looked up sharply.

The First King's glowing eyes dimmed. "It was only a matter of time."

Elias pushed himself upright, unease clawing at him. "What barrier?"

Varian turned, his gaze piercing. "The one keeping them locked away."

A chill ran through Elias. "Who?"

The First King stepped forward, his expression unreadable.

"The ones who came before us."

The ground trembled beneath their feet.

Elias stiffened, his magic instinctively rising.

Seraphina's voice wavered. "I thought you were the first Arcane King."

The First King's bitter smile was laced with exhaustion.

"So did I."

And then—the sky fractured like brittle glass.

THE GODS OF OLD RETURN...

A deafening boom shattered the silence.

Dust and debris rained down as a pulse of energy ripped through the air.

Elias spun toward the source, his heart hammering in his chest. Above, the sky splintered, cracks spreading like a web.

Through the fractures, something stirred.

Not light. Not darkness.

Something older. Something primal.

Seraphina's voice trembled. "What… what is that?"

The First King's fists clenched. "The beginning of the end."

A voice, deep and resonant, echoed from beyond the cracks.

"THE FALSE KINGS HAVE RULED LONG ENOUGH."

Elias's breath caught as the cracks widened, threatening to consume the heavens.

Something ancient and powerful was breaking through.

THE FALL OF THE BARRIER...

The First King acted without hesitation.

A golden wave of energy shot from his hand, surging toward the sky, but the cracks continued to spread.

The barrier shattered with an earsplitting roar.

The heavens exploded into chaos—a vortex of void and golden flames. And through the breach, they emerged.

Three figures cloaked in shifting energy, their forms both human and otherworldly.

Elias staggered, dread pooling in his gut. These weren't just powerful beings

They were the Gods of Old.

The true rulers of magic.

And they were here to reclaim their throne.

THE RETURN OF THE LOST GODS....

The tallest figure stepped forward, his voice resonating through time.

"For centuries, you have stolen power that was never yours."

His faceless gaze fixed on the First King.

"And you, pretender—you dared wield what was forbidden."

The First King remained unflinching, his silence heavier than words.

The second god spoke, her voice like a whisper cutting through the void.

"The Watchers failed to maintain the balance."

Her attention shifted to Elias.

"And you—you were meant to be contained. Yet you dared to break free."

Elias felt the chill of her words settle deep in his soul.

The shortest god stepped forward, his aura suffocating.

"It is time to correct the mistakes of history."

With a flick of his wrist—

Elias collapsed to the ground.

A POWER TOO GREAT TO FIGHT...

"Elias!" Seraphina's scream echoed in the chamber.

Elias couldn't move. His body felt frozen, every nerve bound by an unseen force.

The gods weren't just powerful. They were absolute.

The First King stepped forward, his voice steady.

"You cannot control him."

The tallest god tilted his head. "We have no need to."

The air around Elias turned to ice, suffocating him.

Seraphina lunged forward—but an invisible force hurled her into the wall. She crumpled to the ground, gasping.

Elias gritted his teeth, the weight of their power pressing him down. This was unlike anything he had faced before.

For the first time, he truly understood what it meant to lose

THE FIRST KING'S SACRIFICE...

Before the gods could finish, the First King intervened.

In one swift motion, he stepped between Elias and the gods, his hands raised. Reality itself bent around him.

The gods hesitated, their collective power flickering.

"You would challenge us?" the tallest one demanded.

The First King's voice was calm, resolute.

"I would do more than that."

He closed his fist—and time fractured.

The gods roared in fury as the space around them imploded, distorting their forms.

Seraphina's eyes widened in horror. "What is he—"

Varian grabbed her arm. "He's buying us time. We need to go."

Her voice cracked. "We can't just leave him!"

Varian's expression hardened. "If we stay, we all die."

THE ESCAPE...

The First King turned slightly, his gaze locking with Elias's.

For the first time, Elias saw something he didn't expect.

Hope.

And then—the chamber exploded in blinding light.

Varian seized Elias's arm, and in an instant, they were somewhere else.

Seraphina stumbled, looking around the darkened cave.

"Where are we?"

Varian exhaled heavily, his voice laced with grim determination.

"We just fled from the most powerful beings in existence."

His eyes met Elias's, sharp and unyielding.

"And if we don't find a way to stop them—"

He let the words hang, the weight of their meaning clear.

"—this world is already lost."