The Hollow's sky had no sun. No moon. Only the ribs of the god towering above, glowing molten, dripping light like blood.
Aelric ran.
Every step broke the ground. Every breath shredded his lungs. His corrupted arm thrashed wildly, tendrils coiling like serpents, drinking the last dregs of his strength.
"COME ON!" he roared. His voice cracked into madness. "COME AND BREAK ME, YOU THIEF OF HOURS!"
The god's shadow fell across him, massive beyond thought.
Elara screamed behind him, her voice raw, desperate:
"AELRIC—STOP!"
Her wrist pulsed.
[00 Hours : 03 Minutes Remaining]
The digits burned into her skin. She couldn't breathe. Every second felt stolen, chewed, spat out.
But Aelric didn't slow. He launched himself upward, black chains lashing behind him like wings. He rose toward the ribs of the god, crimson eye blazing.
The god's chest opened wider. A rib creaked. Molten light surged outward.
YOU CANNOT KILL TIME.
"Watch me."
---
Aelric slammed into the god's torso, corrupted arm plunging deep. Black tendrils stabbed through molten bone, erupting inside divine flesh. A shockwave rattled the Hollow.
The god convulsed. Its rib cracked, splintering under the corruption. Light bled like liquid fire.
Elara gasped, tears blurring her vision. "He—he's—hurting it again—"
For one heartbeat, the impossible was real.
Aelric, broken and bleeding, had made eternity bleed.
He laughed, blood spraying from his mouth. "See? Even forever has a weak spot."
The god's roar shattered the air.
INSIGNIFICANT.
A colossal hand slammed down, swatting Aelric from its chest.
He smashed through a tower of gears, bones snapping like twigs. Blood painted the stone.
Elara's scream ripped from her throat. "AELRIC!"
---
He didn't rise immediately. His corrupted arm twitched, twitching tendrils scraping the dirt. His vision swam, crimson and static.
Elara crawled toward him, timer plunging—
[00 Hours : 02 Minutes Remaining]
Her hands shook as she touched his face. "Please—don't move—don't—you'll die—"
He coughed, laughing hoarsely. "Good. Means it's working."
Tears streamed down her face. "No—it means I'm losing you—"
His crimson eye locked on hers, blazing with stubborn fire. "No, Elara. You're gaining minutes. That's the trade."
She shook her head violently. "I don't want minutes—I want you—"
He chuckled, choking on blood. "Tough luck. You're stuck with a lunatic who bargains in hours."
---
The god's chest rumbled, molten ribs knitting themselves back together. The wound closed, though cracks still glowed faintly where corruption had burned.
It raised its hand again.
YOU WILL NOT STRIKE ME AGAIN.
Aelric spat blood, dragging himself upright. "Yeah? Then I'll just keep hitting you till one of us breaks."
He staggered forward, each step leaving bloody footprints. His corrupted arm split open further, bone jutting through blackened flesh. Yet tendrils still writhed, ready, hungry.
Elara grabbed his arm, sobbing. "Stop—please—if you move again, you'll—"
He turned, grinning despite the blood dripping from his lips. "Then I move again."
Her heart shattered.
[00 Hours : 01 Minute 42 Seconds Remaining]
---
The god's hand descended. Time itself buckled around it—buildings aged into dust mid-collapse, stone crumbling into sand before it even hit the ground.
Aelric roared, raising his tendrils in defiance. Chains lashed outward, intercepting the hand. Black corruption met molten light, shrieking as the two forces devoured one another.
The ground trembled.
Elara covered her ears as the collision shattered the Hollow, debris raining down like comets.
Aelric's teeth clenched, veins bursting across his face. His crimson eye blazed hotter, his corrupted arm unraveling into pure tendrils of black flame.
"Fall…" he growled. "FALL!"
The chains split. The hand broke through, slamming into him.
Aelric's body slammed into the ground, blood pooling instantly.
"AELRIC!" Elara screamed. She staggered forward, timer plunging—
[00 Hours : 01 Minute 09 Seconds Remaining]
---
He lay in the crater, chest heaving shallowly. His corrupted arm was barely an arm anymore—just a mass of writhing shadows, fused into bone.
His lips curled into a grin. "Still… not hollow…"
Elara collapsed beside him, holding his face, sobbing uncontrollably. "Stop—stop talking—please—just stop—"
He coughed blood, crimson eye softening as it met hers. "If I stop, you die. And I won't… won't let that happen."
Her timer flared.
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 59 Seconds Remaining]
She froze, breath catching in terror. Less than a minute.
She choked on her sobs. "No—no—there's nothing left—"
The god's shadow loomed again, molten chest glowing brighter.
ALL TIME RETURNS TO ME.
---
Aelric's grin widened, teeth red. "Then choke on mine."
He slammed his corrupted arm into the ground. Tendrils erupted in every direction, wrapping the shattered Hollow, the broken gears, the fallen towers. They lashed skyward, binding the god's torso again.
Chains screamed, corruption burning, hours collapsing into seconds.
Elara's timer plunged.
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 41 Seconds Remaining]
She fell to her knees, voice raw. "No—please—I can't—I don't want to die—I don't want to leave you—"
Aelric turned his head, grinning bloody and broken. His voice cracked, but his words burned.
"You're not leaving. You're surviving. That's the deal."
---
The god struggled, ribs cracking under the chains. Molten light bled out, the Hollow trembling under its weight.
But Elara's timer was vanishing—
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 30 Seconds Remaining]
Her screams turned to desperate whispers. "Please—please—don't trade my time—I don't want to live without you—I—"
Aelric's crimson eye softened. For once, his grin faltered.
He whispered, barely audible over the god's roar. "Then don't. Live with me."
Her breath caught. She stared at him, tears blinding her vision.
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 27 Seconds Remaining]
He gritted his teeth, veins bursting, corruption devouring his chest. He roared, pouring everything into the chains.
"LIVE WITH ME—OR DIE WITH ME—BUT MAKE IT LOUD!"
---
The god convulsed, ribs cracking fully this time. Molten fire sprayed outward as the corruption sank deeper.
For the first time, the god shuddered. It staggered.
Elara's eyes widened. Her tears froze mid-fall.
It was working.
But her timer screamed—
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 19 Seconds Remaining]
---
She looked at Aelric. Broken. Bleeding. Laughing at eternity.
She knew the truth.
If she let him continue, he'd burn out in seconds. He'd drag the god down with him—but she'd die before she saw it fall.
Her chest shook violently. The words tore out of her throat like a confession.
"Aelric—I—"
But the timer blazed.
[00 Hours : 00 Minutes 15 Seconds Remaining]
She didn't have time.
She had to choose.