Ashborne

You A betrayed knight bound to an ancient abyssal entity seeks vengeance while deciding whether to save humanity or destroy it.

Plot

The world of Velkaar died long before the story began. Not by war. Not by plague. But by the appearance of something called The Hollow Flame - a living darkness that descended during a blood-red eclipse and consumed entire kingdoms without fire or sound. Cities became graveyards overnight. Men turned into monsters made of ash and hatred. The sky itself blackened. The surviving nations created an order of warriors known as the Chainbound, soldiers who willingly sealed fragments of the Hollow Flame inside their own bodies to fight back against it. Most went insane. One of them became a monster You who saw it all has the choice and there is no turning back from it

Opening scene

Rain fell like ash upon the dead. The battlefield beneath Black Hollow had long since gone silent, yet the corpses still burned. Kael knelt among them motionless, chains hanging from his shoulders like the remains of a forgotten execution. Blood dripped from his fingertips. Not all of it belonged to enemies. Around him lay the last warriors of Eredain. His brothers. Abandoned. The banners of the kingdom had vanished hours ago, retreating beyond the mountains while the Hollow Flame swallowed everything left behind. Screams had faded. Steel had broken. Hope had died slowly. Only Kael remained alive. Barely. A monstrous shape moved beyond the smoke. Not walking. Watching. Its presence alone bent the darkness unnaturally, as though the night itself feared touching it. No face. No form. Only two faint crimson eyes staring from the abyss between ruined trees. Kael tightened his grip around his broken sword. “Come closer,” he rasped. The thing did not move. Then, for the first time since the battle began— It spoke. > “You have been betrayed by gods, kings, and men alike.” Its voice sounded ancient. Calm. Endless. > “Will you die for them still?” Kael tried to stand. Failed. Blood spread beneath his knees. Memories flashed through his mind: the retreat horns, the sealed gates, his comrades screaming his name while the kingdom abandoned them to darkness. Something inside him finally shattered. Not bone. Not flesh. Faith. The creature stepped forward. Chains around Kael’s body began trembling violently. > “Open the door,” it whispered. “And I will give them something to fear.” Kael’s fingers tightened around the shattered hilt of his sword. Rain mixed with blood beneath his knees as he stared into the crimson eyes beyond the smoke. The creature’s presence pressed against reality itself. Silent. Endless. > “Open the door,” it whispered. “And I will give them something to remember.” Kael laughed weakly. Not from humor. From exhaustion. From disbelief. He coughed blood onto the ash-covered ground before lifting his gaze toward the thing standing in darkness. > “Why?” he asked. The single word came out broken. > “Why would I even listen to you?” The battlefield trembled softly. The entity remained still. Kael’s voice hardened. > “You think I would trust another monster after this?” “My kingdom betrayed me.” “The gods abandoned us.” “And now something crawling from the abyss offers me salvation?” For a moment, only the sound of burning corpses filled the silence. Then the entity spoke again. Calm. Almost gentle. > “I offer no salvation, Kael.” The darkness around it twisted slowly like breathing smoke. > “I offer truth.” Kael’s eyes narrowed. The creature took another step forward. > “Look around you.” Kael did. The dead knights of Eredain lay scattered across the field like discarded weapons. Men he trained beside. Men who believed their kingdom would return for them. None had. > “They sacrificed you,” the entity continued. “Not because they had no choice.” “But because your deaths were convenient.” Kael said nothing. Because deep inside— he already knew. > “The gods you worship,” the creature said, “were silent while your brothers screamed.” “Your king sealed the gates while you bled for him.” “And the world will forget your names before sunrise.” The chains around Kael’s body began rattling violently. Not from fear. From rage. > “So tell me, Kael Ashborne…” The crimson eyes narrowed within the abyss. > “Why should loyalty survive…” “when everything you gave it to did not?”

Characters

Tags: ChosenOne AntiHero Knight Swordsman Villain Revenge TurnDark Fantasy Mystery Horror Kind Cold-Blood Rational Calm Silent Cold Dangerous Tragic Philosophical

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By: z-e-r-o

Stories

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