Monarchs of Ruination

Before anyone could process Garuda's behaviour, their attention was forcibly drawn to NOX. Blood covered his face, and behind him, his three-headed incarnation manifested six hands, mirroring the shadowy figure he had encountered earlier.

One of the incarnation's hands gripped the two-headed drum, the Damaru. With a single movement, the slow, haunting symphony of the drum echoed through the entire universe.

BOOM!

The sound reverberated so powerfully that Lucas, the Universe, and even VRITRA were compelled to kneel.

Yes, even VRITRA—a being who viewed Higher Existences as mere insects—was compelled to kneel before NOX's incarnation. And he did not resist. It was as though he found no shame in bowing to this being.

It seemed only VRITRA and Garuda truly understood the terror of this moment.

As for the three mysterious entities?

Having ruled from their exalted thrones for countless epochs, overseeing myriad universes, they could not fathom why they should kneel before someone who had been nothing more than a pawn in their game just moments ago.

But as they refused to bow, an invisible force swept over them. Their bodies were slammed to the ground, golden blood spilling from their wounds as they were forced to keep their heads down.

They struggled with all their might, attempting to stand, but every movement only made it worse. Their bones cracked beneath the strain.

Crack!

Yellowish blood seeped from their wounds as they resisted, the sound of their bones breaking echoing through the thousands of universes they had once ruled.

But they could not—would not—accept their fate.

How could they?

These entities had been rulers, perhaps even the protagonists of their own stories—transcending limits, overcoming challenges, revered by those they ruled. This was just another obstacle they believed they could overcome.

But in that moment, they realized the truth.

This was the greatest mistake of their existence.

Their own powers, the very Concepts and Laws they had once wielded to shape reality, rebelled. Unleashed within them, their forces spiraled out of control, tearing them apart from the inside.

Despair gripped their hearts as they realized their [Origin]—the very foundation of their existence—was being devoured by their own abilities. A cruel punishment for daring to defy the entity before them.

As they struggled to hold themselves together—

BOOM!

The second echo of the drum shattered their hopes, sending waves of fear and despair through them.

Now desperate, the three entities, afraid for their very lives, decided to beg for NOX's mercy. They believed they had done nothing to harm him or his interests.

They were partly right, unaware that they had provoked NOX by scheming against him.

Clinging to the belief that they were innocent, they held on to the hope that NOX, like any reasonable being, would not harm 'innocents' in this cruel world. Their last hope rested on their supposed innocence.

But NOX was no longer guided by reason.

Perhaps, in their desperation, they had become too naive, their minds clouded by the fear of death, dreaming of mercy where none existed.

What they didn't realize was that their bodies had already begun to crack the moment the second drumbeat had sounded.

As they tried to plead their case, their voices failed them. Their bodies froze. They were unable to speak, unable to move.

Confusion swept through them as they exchanged silent glances. But soon, horror gripped their hearts.

Their bodies were covered in cracks. From these fissures, their essence began to leak out, disintegrating into white ash.

They were literally dissolving into nothing.

And not even a scream escaped them. Not that they could have screamed if they tried.

The worst part? They didn't even notice it happening.

For them, time seemed to freeze. Each second felt like an eternity as they watched themselves slowly turn to ash, powerless to resist.

In their long lives, they had never felt so weak, so vulnerable. Perhaps this was how all the lives they had toyed with had felt.

They had no time to regret their actions before they were reduced to nothingness.

And no one noticed their struggle or their death.

Not Lucas. Not VRITRA. Not Garuda. Not even the scheming entities still lurking in the shadows.

Perhaps these three entities had played their schemes too recklessly, revealing themselves too soon and being eliminated before they could do more.

Perhaps, the true masterminds behind this cosmic game feared NOX, or even the game itself, for none dared reveal themselves too soon, lest they make themselves a target.

As for their true goals?

Why did they covet NOX and Lucas?

Only time would tell—if either of them survived the cosmic madness unfolding around them.

And as the dust settled, not a single soul mourned the anti-climactic deaths of these three former rulers.

Every eye was locked on NOX. No, on his incarnation, to be precise.

Some worshipped it, their reverence bordering on madness.

Some feared it so much that they fled the chessboard entirely, choosing death over facing this incarnation.

And, of course, there was one [Fool]. One who dared to mock this incarnation.

******

The first symphony of the drum forced all beings across the universe to kneel.

The second symphony reduced those who dared to resist into nothing but ash.

BOOM!

Then came the third symphony.

With it, NOX took his first step forward. His incarnation, standing beside him, made a subtle yet decisive gesture—commanding the 'Damaru' to play. As its rhythm echoed, the [Aura] and sound force of NOX surged outward.

The sheer [Force] of the sound wave rippled through thousands of universes, compelling every sentient being to kneel—this time not by will, but by inevitability. From the smallest microorganism to the most colossal cosmic deities, all bowed in utter submission.

Then, NOX began to dance as if he was inspired the Shadowy figure's 'Rudra Tandav'.

His movements were not graceful or intentional but filled with a wild, primal madness. His dance mirrored the rituals of Aghoras, invoking raw and chaotic energy that resonated throughout the cosmos.

Matter itself stirred at the symphony of drum and conch, trembling with an unusual joy. It began to transform into white fog and ash. Every being in thousands of universes witnessed the phantom of NOX dancing, surrounded by thick white ASH swirling around him. They shivered as a coldness and goosebumps erupted from their bodies.

Mountains trembled, and oceans surged as if in anticipation of the end of [Dark Chaos Epoch]. Lava flowed from volcanoes, and oceans rose towards the skies, responding to the cosmic upheaval.

The 'thud' of his drum and the 'bang' of his feet vibrated through [Nature], disrupting the very fabric of reality. Matter forgot its laws, and gravity ceased to exert its pull. Entropy paused, and time itself dared not move during this celestial dance.

Existence, life, nature, and time—all felt that this was a dance heralding the end of everything, a destruction that promised a new beginning. Yet, there was no resistance; instead, there was acceptance and even a strange longing.

Meteorites streaked across the skies, rain fell on every planet, and cosmic visions filled the expanse of the universe. In this moment of cosmic reckoning, they embraced the idea of [Eternal Rest] with open arms.

Time lost its meaning as the universes were engulfed in fog and ash. Every living being entered a state akin to "Japa," repeating a single sacred sentence over and over: 'OM NAMA SHIVAY'.

None wished for this dance and symphony to end. They yearned to witness this cosmic spectacle for all eternity.

In the vast expanse outside every universe, thick white fog and ash surged like a sentient serpent, weaving through the void and connecting each universe into a singular entity. Inside each universe, tendrils of the same white fog and ash moved with purpose, intricately linking every life form and facet of nature into a unified whole. These ethereal tendrils extended across cosmic distances, binding every universe and all that they contained to NOX.

"From the One comes Everything; Everything finds its way back to the One."

Thus the Cosmic Dance Concluded.