Chapter 16: The Blade of Eclipse
857 Words
Chapter 16: The Blade of Eclipse
The battlefield grew unnaturally still.
Even the wind seemed to stop as the Shadow King unsheathed the Blade of Eclipse. The black metal absorbed every ray of sunlight, leaving a trail of darkness wherever it pointed.
Orion's voice was low and urgent.
"My Queen... do not let that blade touch you."
Lyra kept her eyes fixed on the weapon.
"What is it?"
Seraphine answered, her voice trembling.
"It was forged during the Fall of the Moonborn."
"The blade was created using forbidden magic."
"It doesn't simply wound the body."
"It cuts the soul."
A chill ran through Lyra.
"So that's how..."
Seraphine nodded sadly.
"Many of your ancestors died."
---
The Shadow King rested the blade on his shoulder.
"I've waited centuries to finish what I started."
His crimson eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
"Today, the Moonborn bloodline ends forever."
He vanished.
Lyra barely had time to react.
The Shadow King reappeared directly in front of her, his blade already descending.
"Princess!" Orion shouted.
Clang!
Kael threw himself between them, raising his sword just in time.
The two blades collided.
For one heartbeat, Kael held his ground.
Then—
Crack!
His sword shattered into dozens of pieces.
The force hurled him across the battlefield.
He crashed into a broken stone wall and slid to the ground.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
"Alpha!" Damon cried.
Kael struggled to stand.
His arms were numb from the impact.
The Blade of Eclipse had destroyed the strongest weapon in Blackwood with a single strike.
---
The Shadow King smiled.
"Brave."
"But foolish."
He turned back toward Lyra.
"No one can protect you forever."
Lyra stepped forward instead of retreating.
"I don't need someone to protect me."
The silver markings on her arms blazed.
Moonlight swirled around her feet.
She stretched out her hand.
The pendant around her neck floated into the air.
The ground beneath the battlefield trembled.
A brilliant beam of silver light erupted from the heavens.
It struck the earth directly in front of Lyra.
When the light faded...
A sword stood embedded in the ground.
Its blade shimmered like liquid moonlight.
Its hilt was wrapped in white leather with a crescent moon carved into the guard.
The battlefield fell silent.
Seraphine smiled through tears.
"The Moonblade..."
Orion immediately dropped to one knee.
"The Royal Sword."
Lyra stared at it.
"It came to me..."
"No," Seraphine whispered.
"It returned to its rightful owner."
---
Lyra wrapped her fingers around the hilt.
The instant she pulled the sword free, the blade burst into radiant silver light.
Power surged through her body.
The aching exhaustion she'd felt moments earlier disappeared.
Her wolf laughed joyfully.
It knows us!
The Moonblade felt as though it had always belonged in her hand.
She instinctively raised it.
The silver blade hummed softly, almost as if it were alive.
The Shadow King's smile faded.
"So..."
"The legends were true."
He tightened his grip on the Blade of Eclipse.
"Then show me."
"Are you worthy of it?"
---
Without another word, he attacked.
This time, Lyra met him head-on.
Steel clashed against steel.
Black sparks exploded where the two legendary blades met.
The force of the collision sent shockwaves across the battlefield.
Again.
And again.
Their swords danced in a blur too fast for ordinary eyes to follow.
Kael watched in amazement.
Only days ago, Lyra had admitted she'd never held a sword.
Now...
She was matching the Shadow King blow for blow.
Orion smiled proudly.
"She isn't remembering how to fight."
Damon frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"The Moonblade remembers."
"It carries the skill of every Moonborn ruler who wielded it before her."
---
The Shadow King lunged.
Lyra sidestepped gracefully.
She spun.
The Moonblade sliced across his shoulder.
For the first time in centuries...
The Shadow King cried out in pain.
He jumped backward, clutching the wound.
Silver light spread across the cut, refusing to heal.
He stared at the blood on his fingers.
Then...
He laughed.
Not with anger.
With delight.
"Excellent!"
"I've searched for a worthy opponent for hundreds of years."
He pointed the Blade of Eclipse toward Lyra.
"And now I've found one."
---
Suddenly, Fenrir let out a deafening howl.
The cursed chains around his neck glowed violently once more.
The Shadow King's smile widened.
"Ah."
"I nearly forgot."
He snapped his fingers.
The chains tightened, forcing Fenrir to roar in agony.
Lyra's attention shifted toward the beast.
For only a second.
It was enough.
The Shadow King disappeared.
He reappeared behind Lyra with terrifying speed.
The Blade of Eclipse plunged forward.
Kael's eyes widened.
"Lyra!"
She turned—
Too late.
The black blade pierced her side.
A gasp escaped her lips.
The Moonblade slipped from her fingers and clattered onto the ground.
Time seemed to stop.
A single drop of Lyra's blood fell onto the battlefield.
Where it touched the earth...
Silver flowers instantly bloomed.
The Shadow King's eyes widened.
"What..."
The flowers continued spreading in every direction, glowing beneath the darkened sky.
Something ancient...
Something sacred...
Had awakened beneath the battlefield.
And whatever it was...
Even the Shadow King looked afraid.
- Writer
