Chapter 5: The End of Light
-------
The lair trembled with the force of the battle. Rex's light and Nate’s darkness collided again and again, each strike sending ripples of energy through the stone walls. The room itself seemed to groan under the weight of the clashing magic as if it could no longer bear the conflict within.
Rex was weakening. Every spell, every defense drained him more than the last. His vision blurred, sweat ran down his face, and his limbs felt heavier with each passing moment. Nate, however, seemed only to grow stronger, feeding off the darkness and the drugs that had consumed him.
The air around them crackled with tension as Rex tried one final time to reach his friend.
"Nate!" Rex shouted, his voice hoarse from the effort. "You don’t have to do this! There’s still a part of you that can come back, that can stop this madness!"
Nate’s red eyes blazed, his face contorted in a sneer of contempt. "That part of me died with Anthony and Sarah. All that’s left is power, and you—" He unleashed a surge of dark energy that slammed into Rex, sending him crashing into the wall. "—are in my way."
Rex gasped for breath as he pulled himself to his feet, pain radiating through his body. His light, once strong and pure, flickered weakly in the face of Nate’s overwhelming darkness. He knew he was losing, but he couldn’t give up. Not yet.
With trembling hands, Rex summoned what little magic he had left, focusing it into a single, desperate attack. He thrust his hands forward, sending a beam of pure light hurtling toward Nate. It struck the dark aura surrounding Nate’s body, and for a brief moment, the shadows seemed to falter.
But then, with a roar of fury, Nate’s darkness surged forward, swallowing the light and consuming it completely. The red glow in his eyes burned brighter than ever, and a twisted grin spread across his face.
"You can’t win, Rex," Nate said coldly, stepping forward as the shadows seemed to ripple around him, feeding off his malice. "This world belongs to me now. You’re just a remnant of the past."
Rex staggered backward, his heart pounding in his chest. He had nothing left, no magic, no strength. He looked at Nate, at the friend he had loved like a brother, and saw nothing but a void where Nate’s soul used to be.
"I’m sorry, Nate," Rex whispered, his voice barely audible. "I’m sorry we couldn’t save you."
Nate’s smile faded, replaced by a look of cold indifference. "It doesn’t matter anymore."
Without another word, Nate raised his hand, and the shadows surged forward, wrapping around Rex like a suffocating shroud. Rex gasped as the darkness closed in, crushing the life out of him. His body grew cold, his vision dimmed, and the last flickers of light in his soul began to fade.
In his final moments, Rex thought of Anthony, Sarah, and the bond they had all shared. He had tried so hard to save Nate, to bring him back from the edge. But in the end, the darkness had won.
With a final breath, Rex’s body crumpled to the ground, his light extinguished forever.
Nate stood over his fallen friend, his expression unreadable. The room was silent now, save for the faint crackling of magic in the air. The shadows that had once pulsed with Nate’s anger now coiled around him like a protective cloak, their hunger sated.
For a long moment, Nate simply stared at Rex’s lifeless form. The power, the darkness—it had consumed everything. There was no one left to oppose him, no one left to challenge his rule. He had won.
And yet, standing there alone, Nate felt nothing. No triumph, no satisfaction, no sense of victory. The world around him was as empty as the void inside him. The friends he had once loved, the memories they had shared—all of it was gone, consumed by the very power he had sought.
He turned away from Rex’s body and slowly returned to his throne. The lair, now fully under his control, seemed to pulse with dark energy, but the silence was deafening. The price of his power had been everything—friendship, love, humanity—and what remained was a cold, lonely existence.
Nate sat down on his throne, his red eyes staring into the abyss. He had everything he had ever wanted, and yet, in the end, he had nothing at all.
The world outside fell into darkness, Nocturnus swallowed by the shadows that now ruled unchecked. The people cowered in fear, knowing that their fate was sealed. There would be no heroes to save them this time.
And Nate, the once-promising hero, sat alone in his lair, a king of nothing, surrounded by the shadows of his own making. The last flickers of hope died with Rex, and the light that had once shone so brightly in Nocturnus was forever extinguished.
The darkness had won.
The End.
----------
By the way, this will be the end of this series. Sorry, but I need to focus on school and other things. but I hope you enjoyed reading it!