In the end, the fruits of their efforts bore only ashes, and she stood alone on the mountain of glass.

The goliaths advanced, each step causing another fracture, another fissure over the last testament of their struggle.

It wouldn't last. What they protected no longer existed, and what they fought for no longer mattered.

A final sigh left her body, as both hands wrapped around a black sword.

No. A black Key.

There was nothing left.

But even then, she would not surrender.

"One last time."

●●●●●●



A mere 15 years ago, the Jeualian Empire, a military powerhouse, rampaged through the lands on an unchallenged conquest. With towering war machines and weaponry fifty years ahead of its time, there were no countries that could stand up against them. With unbelievable ease, the red flag of the Jeaulian Empire was planted over half of the kingdoms, principalities, and city-states on the continent. The people were subjugated, their cultures homogenized, and soon, they too became part of the gears that moved the Empire.

It was at the halfway point, however, that the unwavering armies of the Empire were forced to halt. For, in the southern half of the continent laid three nations that, together, could indeed challenge the Empire’s sovereignty. Joining arms in the face of a common foe, the theocracy of Astopol, the monarchy of Illiserev, and the democracy of Dansila marched under a common flag, led by the Knight-Commander, Mirelle Keep. Even the monsters of Talze Utera joined in the war effort, as the Elders of the Scarlet Court put aside their feud with Astopol to feast on the blood of the Empire.

For months on end, the armies clashed, a hail of iron met by a hail of magic, every ambush reciprocated, every defeat paid for in blood. The land turned into ash, as conflagrations marred the battlefield. The wastelands became marshes, soil tainted with lifeblood. Over and over again, the war was waged, a mountain of corpses growing as the days passed on.

But the difference in resources was slowly becoming clear. The war machine of the Empire was powered by the hundreds of nations that they’ve conquered, while the defensive war waged by the coalition left their own lands razed. In a final, desperate offensive, all the armies of the coalition decided to strike head-on, signing a suicide pact that had no chance of victory.

On that day, as war hymns were sung and good byes were said, humans became the horizon, as two massive armies met on opposite sides.

With a selfless, selfish charge, the Knight-Commander led the horde of metal and flesh into her final large-scale confrontation with the Jeualian Empire.

●●●●●●​



And then, just a little bit, the world cracked.

A soul-trembling sound broke over the horizon, as the sky shattered. From the darkness, never-before-seen monsters fell onto the barren fields like mud. And, just as incoherently as they came, those beings attacked, mindlessly lashing out at both sides. Incidents of these popped up all over the continent, as tears in the skies heralded the coming of these alien beings. Unable to fight a war on two fronts, especially with the majority of their forces concentrated in foreign land, the Empire retreated, closing off its borders with massive walls.

Their retreat was both the end of the war, and the beginning of a new one. Massive civilian casualties were incurred as these monsters, dubbed ‘rift-beasts’, appeared at random, rampaging through even the most heavily-fortified cities. They did not respond to any attempt at communication, and could not be stopped by anything less than high-class magic spells. A thoughtless, mindless, merciless enemy that acted with no purpose other than to attack.

Talze Utera was the first to disperse, seeking amnesty in the miasma that was their home.

The Coalition quickly broke apart, selfishly defending the well-being of their own kingdoms. The rift-beasts were not an enemy that could be defeated by a ‘combined’ force, and soon, all friendly relationships broke down between Dansila, Astopol, and Illiserev. No charity existed between them, and they crumbled under their own inability to eliminate these alien threats. Already weakened by their battles against the Jeualian Empire, the kingdoms fell into anarchy as the unknown monsters continued their senseless onslaught.

●●●●●●​



It was in that dark hour, known as the ‘Talentless Strife’, that a special material named ‘Talentium’ was discovered.

Extracted from the bodies of dead rift-beasts, it was a ghostly metal that could be forged into a weapon stronger, sharper, and more durable than any past crafting material. Furthermore, though, Talentium was a metal that resonated with the will of the wielder. A mage would find themselves capable of achieving magical feats they’d never have dreamed of, while a swordsman would find themselves filled with strength that was beyond human.

With the first sword crafted by the Dansilan prodigy, Alier Velone, and wielded by the Astopolian captain, Aiv Recourt, it finally appeared that the rift-beasts could be driven back. Each encounter and victory brought forth more Talentium, and thus, allowed for more soldiers to gain the power necessary to fight off those amorphous monsters. Slowly, but surely, the coalition stood as one again. Knights, mages, soldiers, pilots, all people from all three nations worked together, scattering themselves to respond quickly to any rift-appearances.

Step by step, the Talentless Strife gave way to the March of Light.

In the end, through the valiant efforts of Mirelle Keep, who single-handedly dispatched a thousand rift beasts that poured out from north of Astopol, and Aiv Recourt, who slew the World-Eater, the rift-beast large enough to blot out the sun, the three nations could breathe easily once more. Rifts began to appear less, and the advent of Talentium had accelerated their living standards remarkably.

It was an era of peace, of training, of development, as fallow fields were tended to, as the lands were restored to their past glory. It was a time of rest, broken only by the few rift-beasts that appeared, and the residents of Talze Utera that hunted.

But such tranquility could not persist.

Not in a world that tore itself apart.

●●●●●●​

For the accursed wheel continues to turn, even when reset.

For individual fates continue to convene, even when untangled.

For the Man in Red continues to move..

His progress is unmade.

But his purpose remains.

All for the sake of Kana.