Albert knelt on the battlefield, the weight of his grief pressing him into the blood soaked earth. Around him lay the bodies of his comrades, twisted and broken, their faces still frozen in the last moments of agony. The once proud soldiers of humanity had fallen, their fight ended in the dirt under the crushing onslaught of the Chaos Creatures. Thick smoke hung in the air, making it hard to breathe, and the stench of burning flesh clung to the wind. Fires raged in the distance, casting an eerie orange glow on the torn earth, a grim testament to the horror that had unfolded here.
His chest heaved, and his vision blurred with tears as he gazed at the lifeless faces of those who had fought beside him. Friends, brothers in arms gone. "No… no…" he whispered, choking back sobs that threatened to consume him. "Ricky... James... Emma... Jacob", each name that passed through his mind was a dagger to his heart. He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white, wishing with every fiber of his being that he could trade places with them.
A thunderous roar split the sky above him. He looked up. In the storm churned heavens, the battle still raged on. The humans who had survived this long fought with wild desperation against the Chaos Creatures, alien monstrosities twisted in form and mind, seeking solely humanity destruction. Multiple rifts the size of buildings loomed over the battlefield, almost as if to mock humanity's struggles. And out of these rifts an uncountable amount of those monsters were swarming out.
The sky was swallowed by darkness, a writhing mass of Chaos Creatures blocking out the light. Kneeling in the blood of his fallen comrades, Albert's limbs trembled, his fingers numb against the hilt of his sword. His chest ached, not from wounds, but from the crushing weight of helplessness. "We lost.... all of this pain... all of this struggle was for nothing," he thought.
Suddenly a small but strong light was shining on the battle field, but it flickered as if it was a candle on its last wick... But it kept coming back. And just as the light seemed like it was going to go out it exploded.
A grand sword with exotic symbols exploded forth and dispelled the darkness. In the sky stood the Pillar, alone. Shouldering all of humanity's hopes and dreams. It felt like everyone on the battlefield stopped, all the humans, all the monsters, and even the planet itself. We all waited for this man who stands at the peak to speak.
In deep powerful resonating Voice He said. "STAND, not for yourself. But for our family's and the family we lost. Fight for our future, even if you feel like it's pointless. FIGHT, FIGHT AND SHOW THEM THE POWER OF OUR SOULS. THE POWER OF HUMANITY!"
As the Pillar finished his sword glowed even brighter and he said in a shout that shook the earth " COME MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS. FIGHT WITH ME!" He swung his sword and sliced through one of the larger rift causing it to collapse, generating a massive explosion in the sky.
"The Pillar..."
How can he give up when the Pillar is still out there fighting alone....I need to stand... I need to fight!, Albert thought.
With a shout Albert stood back to his feet, all around Albert the soldiers that seemed to be on their last leg stood back up. It as if we gained a second wind.
In the corner of Albert eye he noticed a grunt devouring soldier. Noticing his gaze it glanced up as it was eating. Their lifeless eyes staring directly at Albert, Albert surged to his feet, his breath ragged, heat thrumming beneath his skin as he charged, sword gripped tight as he ran towards it.
As if it finally decided to stop its meal it shot its head out of the guts of the fallen solder and looked at Albert in confusion. Its large white eyes locked on him as it slurped an intestate, standing up it was a towering beast submerged in a deep black fog with hints of white light seeping out of its skin. Albert's eyes narrowed, his heart pounding in time with the rapid beat of the battlefield.
It lunged at him its deformed arm twisting into a sword made of its flesh. A white haze surrounded its blade giving it an even deadlier look.
Albert didn't hesitate and kept charging, his sword ready. It screeched and swung its deformed sword at him. Using its own momentum, Albert deflected the strike but lost his sword in the process. Ducking low, he aimed his fist at its stomach going for its brain.
With a large amount of mana Albert charged up the skill [Power Stike]
With a roar Albert threw all his weight in the strike, his fist igniting with a burning white light. The force of the Punch exploded as it connected with the alien's stomach, shattering its ribs and sending it crashing into the ruins of a fallen building. Its body convulsed once, then lay still, the light already draining from its eyes, turning black.
Before Albert was even given a chance to breathe another grunt lunged from the piles of corpses, its fangs bared and dripping with black like tar. Albert sidestepped just in time, rolling through the guts and blood of fallen soldiers and coming up with his sword in hand. On his right rib a lang gash was left. Blood dripped from his wounds, his vision darkened at the edges, but still, he fought. He couldn't stop, not yet.
The grunt regained its balance and hurled itself at Albert once more. This time, Albert didn't dodge. Instead, he aimed his sword in the path of its jump, slicing clean through the grunt.
Catching his breath, Albert felt a spark of hope. Maybe he could survive this. Maybe he could come out stronger. But before he could process the thought, he realized he was flying through the air.
Albert glanced around and saw a brute standing where he had just been. "Aww fuck.." Was the last thing Albert said before losing consciousness.
Waking up, Albert realized he was lying on the body of a soldier. Her organs were scattered around him, and he could still feel the faint pulse of her heart beneath his hands.
Gasping, he jumped to his feet, his eyes frantically scanning the scene to assess the damage he had inadvertently caused.
"Soldier, can you hear me?! Are you with me?!" he shouted, desperation lacing his voice.
He whipped his head around, searching for help. "HEALER! I NEED A HEALER!"
But of course, no one answered. The only response was the distant chorus of roars and the sickening crunch of human bones being devoured.
Somehow, the woman was still conscious. With great effort, she looked up at him, her lips trembling as she forced out a whisper.
'Keep... fighting... plea...'
Her head slumped forward, the last word left unfinished.
"ARRGGGGG!" Crying out I stood up and noticed my broken leg, but he wouldn't let that stop him.
In front the same brute that hit Albert was charging for another strike. Steading his breathe Albert lowered his center of gravity used [Power Slash]
Cutting it in half, before Albert could catch his breath another Grunt jumped at him. Lifting his sword he sliced through creature's abdomen, black ichor spraying into the air. But out in the battlefield more of them came. For every one he felled, three more took its place, their grotesque forms a mockery of life. He was tiring he could feel it. But the Pillar was still fighting, so shall he.
"Come on!" he screamed, raising his blade as his energy flared. "Come on!"
A group of Chaos Creatures converged on him, their claws digging into the earth as they closed in. Albert swung his sword, the blade trailing arcs of brilliant blue light, every stroke a testament to his will to survive. He knew what was coming. He could feel the weight of the enemy bearing down on him, relentless and overwhelming.
With a final surge of power, he raised his sword to the heavens.
"[Tempest Blade]!"
The storm within him erupted, crackling blades of wind was unleashed, a devastating whirlwind of energy. The Chaos Creatures were thrown back, torn apart by the sheer force of his attack. For a brief moment, there was silence.
But it wasn't enough. The creatures regrouped, their numbers never ending, their hunger insatiable. They swarmed him, claws tearing into his flesh, fangs sinking deep into his skin. Albert cried out, dropping to his knees as the weight of them pulled him down. They danced in joy and pleasure.
He was being eaten alive. Their hollow white eyes formed crescent moons as they were filled with ecstasy from his pain.
Pain seared through his body, unbearable and unrelenting. Blood filled his mouth as his vision dimmed, but worse than the physical agony was the failure that weighed on his soul. He didn't amount to anything. He abounded his family to die, he was a weak nobody, he let his girlfriend give her life for him. He had lost so much, and for what? to just die here.
But this wasn't some story where he would get a power up. This is reality, he was dying. And why would someone help a random weak soldier.
With trembling hands, he lifted his thumb with the last of his strength. He couldn't let the Chaos Creatures have joy in his death. With a sharp intake of breath, he drove his thumb through his chest. Activating a skill to stop the pain.
[heart shock]
The world around him slowed. Blood poured from the wound pooling beneath him as the creatures continued to tear at his body, but he saw their crescent shaped eyes turned into fury.
"hehe, fuckers"
As his conscious started to fade out he thought to himself.
I'm sorry , his thoughts slowing. Mom… Dad… Douglas… Rose… Eddy… I'm so sorry. If.. If only had another chance I wouldn't have....
His vision faded completely, and as the last remnants of life slipped away, he felt his soul drift from his broken body. Floating upward, he saw the Pillar lying on the ground, bleeding out. Humanity had lost.
And with that, Albert's small soul entered a vast sea of emptiness, the void.
In the void, the pain was gone. There was nothing now but silence and darkness, a cold, endless abyss.
But the void heard Alberts plea
"Thy hope shall be granted."
It was spoken in a language older than time, its resonance filling the void with an eerie sense of purpose. Albert's drifting soul quivered as if awakening to something beyond death, beyond the loss and suffering of the world he left behind.