They say when gods die, they leave behind no corpses.
Only echoes.
But sometimes... echoes are louder than screams.
---
One Month Later — Graveton
The city was slowly becoming a symbol — not of vampire rule or divine order, but of possibility.
Jayden didn't wear robes anymore. Or fangs. Or flame.
He wore peace — but peace was heavier than armor.
People asked him for answers now. For justice. For leadership.
And deep down, Jayden was beginning to understand…
> "When you burn down a kingdom, someone will try to build another one on your ashes."
---
Seraya's Distance
Seraya hadn't been seen in ten days.
Some said she was meditating in the Crystal Valleys.
Others claimed she was walking through dreams, freeing minds still bound to the old gods.
Jayden had a simpler theory:
> "She's making sure no one tries to make me a god."
But he missed her.
Even revolutionaries get lonely.
---
The Gathering Flame
In a hidden cavern beneath the remains of Noctis Hollow, old followers of the gods whispered to each other.
"We were warned," one muttered, cloaked in silver runes.
"That the flame would burn the heavens…"
"But from smoke," said another, "a darker light rises."
In the center of the circle, an altar pulsed — not with divine power… but with something older.
Something that even gods once feared.
---
Jayden's Vision
That night, Jayden dreamed.
But it didn't feel like a dream.
It felt like a memory from a life he hadn't lived.
He stood at the edge of a dead sea. The water was still. Above him, stars spun too fast. And then he heard it:
> "The gods were not alone," a voice said.
He turned — and saw someone wearing his face.
But older.
More worn.
More dangerous.
> "You broke their cycle," the other Jayden said. "But you didn't break the chain beneath it."
Then he smiled.
And burned away into black smoke.
---
Message from Seraya
The next morning, Jayden found a note in his room.
No footsteps had entered. No scent. No sound.
It simply… appeared.
> Jay,
They're regrouping. Not the gods — something worse. Something deeper than divinity.
They've waited for the gods to fall.
Now they're coming.
I'll send coordinates. Don't come alone.
We're not finished.
— S
---
A Voice Returns
As Jayden folded the note, the mirror on his wall shimmered.
Not his reflection.
Not Seraya.
But Nyxa.
> "They're called the Hollowborn," she said.
"Not gods. Not demons. Not vampires.
They are the forgotten power beneath all others."
Jayden frowned. "Why now?"
> "Because now… there's an empty throne."
And every forgotten thing… wants to sit on it.
---
Message to the Reader
> Victory isn't the end.
Sometimes, it's an invitation to something older to crawl through the cracks you left behind.
Don't get too comfortable in your wins.
Stay awake.
Stay becoming.