The Hollow trembled as the god's chest ripped through its cocoon.
It was not a body the human mind could understand.
It was a landscape.
Chains of molten light hung across its ribs. Shattered hours bled out like rivers of sand. Its heartbeat thundered in the air, each thump stealing seconds from every soul still alive.
Elara could feel it.
Her wrist pulsed.
[00 Hours : 15 Minutes Remaining]
Her stomach twisted. "It's… it's drinking everything…"
Aelric spat blood, dragging himself to his feet. His corrupted arm twitched violently, bones cracking under the strain. The veins across his face glowed red and black.
"Then," he grinned through broken teeth, "let's make it choke."
---
The god's hand descended.
Entire blocks of stone vaporized. Time shattered in its wake—trees withered into dust, corpses decayed into nothing, even shadows bled away.
Aelric roared, shoving Elara behind him. His tendrils lashed upward, black fire twisting into spears. They stabbed into the god's palm, exploding in a storm of corruption.
For a heartbeat—just a heartbeat—the god flinched.
Elara's eyes widened. "You hurt it again!"
But then the palm flexed, swatting the corruption aside. Aelric was hurled across the ground like a ragdoll, crashing into broken gears. Blood sprayed from his mouth.
Elara screamed, running to him. "Stop! You'll die—"
He coughed violently, grinning anyway. "Good. Means it's working."
---
The god's voice rolled like endless bells.
YOU ARE WASTE. YOUR MINUTES BELONG TO ME.
Elara's timer plunged—
[00 Hours : 13 Minutes Remaining]
She staggered, clutching her wrist, choking on sobs. "I can't—I can't stop it—"
Aelric dragged himself up on one knee, laughing hoarsely. "Then I'll stop it for you."
"HOW?!" she shrieked. "Look at you—you're falling apart—"
"Then I fall." His crimson eye blazed. "But it falls with me."
---
His corrupted arm burst with black fire. The tendrils writhed, multiplying into dozens, then hundreds. They dug into the shattered ground, latching onto broken timepieces, shattered gears, fragments of the Hollow itself.
The entire battlefield pulsed.
Elara gasped. "You're… you're using the Hollow itself?"
He grinned. "Why not? Time's already broken. Might as well weaponize it."
The tendrils erupted upward in a storm, spearing into the god's ribs. Black corruption spread across molten light, burning divinity into ash.
The god let out a soundless scream. The air bent. Hours collapsed into minutes.
Elara's timer plunged again—
[00 Hours : 10 Minutes Remaining]
She staggered. "Aelric—it's killing everyone—me—everything—"
He roared back, veins splitting open, blood pouring from his mouth. "Then it dies first!"
---
For a moment—just one—the god reeled.
Its massive torso shuddered. Its ribs cracked. Corruption burned through divine chains.
Elara's eyes widened. "You're… winning—"
Aelric laughed manically, blood dripping from his teeth. "I told you… gods bleed too."
But then—
The god flexed its chest.
The chains snapped.
A wave of molten light blasted outward, disintegrating entire districts of the Hollow. Towers crumbled into dust. The ground split into rivers of glowing sand.
Aelric screamed as his tendrils shattered, backlash tearing through his body. His corrupted arm exploded with black fire, searing flesh from bone.
He collapsed to one knee, gasping, bleeding from everywhere.
Elara shrieked, falling to her knees beside him. "Stop—STOP—"
He coughed blood, laughing hoarsely. "Why? We're just getting started."
---
The god's voice thundered again.
YOU ARE TIME'S HUNGER. YOU WILL FEED ME.
The Hollow began collapsing inward. Seconds bled out of the air like rain. Elara's wrist pulsed violently—
[00 Hours : 07 Minutes Remaining]
Her tears fell uncontrollably. "I'm—I'm going to die—I'm—"
Aelric grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. His crimson eye blazed even as his body broke.
"Then die loud," he snarled. "Scream so hard it rattles heaven. Make it remember you."
Her breath caught. She trembled, sobbing—but she nodded.
He grinned, jagged and wild. "That's my girl."
---
He shoved her back as his tendrils exploded outward again. This time, they weren't spears—they were chains.
Black chains of corrupted time lashed around the god's torso, wrapping, constricting. Every link burned his own flesh, stealing his seconds, but he pulled tighter, roaring.
The god staggered, ribs cracking further.
Elara gasped. "You—you're binding it—"
"Not for long!" he roared. "But long enough—"
The god convulsed, tearing against the chains. The ground shattered, gears screaming, rivers of sand boiling.
Elara clutched her wrist, timer plunging—
[00 Hours : 05 Minutes Remaining]
Her vision blurred. "Aelric—five minutes—I—"
He roared louder, chains burning brighter. "Then let's make them count!"
---
The god slammed a hand against the chains. Light erupted, devouring the Hollow. Aelric screamed, blood spraying, corruption searing his veins apart.
Elara shrieked, crawling toward him. "Stop! You'll die—you'll both—"
He turned his head, grin crooked, teeth red. "Better than watching you fade."
Her tears fell harder. "Why are you always—"
"Because." His voice broke, barely a whisper. "You're the only reason I laugh."
---
The chains snapped.
The god tore free, molten chest blazing with divine fire. Its shadow swallowed the Hollow.
Elara collapsed, timer plunging—
[00 Hours : 04 Minutes Remaining]
She sobbed uncontrollably. "I can't—I can't stop it—I can't—"
Aelric dragged himself upright one last time. His corrupted body trembled, veins splitting, crimson eye blazing like fire.
He grinned through the blood. "Then I'll buy you the minutes."
And he charged the god.