The Apocalypse (part two and final part)

The air, usually calm and steady, now crackled with an eerie energy. Suddenly, without warning, a colossal rupture materialized before my eyes — a pulsating luminescent-blue tear, snaking its way across the midnight sky. The rift began to slowly expand, its wispy, cobalt tendrils spreading across the night sky like gushing rivers. The crack itself glowed with an intense azure hue, casting an ethereal glow that danced on its jagged edges. It pulsed rhythmically as if it had a heartbeat and its cerulean-mottled light dappled the street below, bathing my surroundings in an electric blue.

I heard the hysterical cackle of the feather-man behind me. 

“Tis happening!” He bellowed “I have waited far too long for this!”

The ground below began to shake violently without warning, throwing me to the ground. Directly ahead of me, a row of houses began to crumble as a stone circle thrust through the manicured lawns, paved pathways and Victorian homes. As the last tremors subsided and the ground regained its composure, I began to trek towards the stones. 

Each stone varied in height, with the tallest being about three metres. Moss and lichen clung to their crevices, adding a touch of primal green to the weathered mottled grey. The stones bore intricate carvings, similar to runes, and their summit was carved to a pronounced, jagged spire. I could feel some sort of inexplicable energy radiating from the circle, casting a subtle shimmer in the air. As I neared the circle, the ground inside began to glow a violent magenta; the dull charcoal grey of the stones was illuminated by a throbbing purple hue. The ground in the centre of the ring, began to slowly crumble, giving way to an inky abyss. I stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding the disintegrating pavement. A palpable darkness seemed to rise from the void and engulfed me. Stumbling blindly away from it, I felt a firm and icy grip grasp my ankle; with a firm tug, I felt myself falling through the chasm. 

(now we have returned to 3rd person) 

A grotesque, viridescent hand reached out of the void and sunk its pointed talons into the pavement. Following the hand, a small pot-bellied figure lifted itself out of the ring and into East London. Standing at a mere three feet tall, the goblin was covered in course, green-hued skin. Sharp, pointed ears jutted out from its bald, misshaped head, which twisted at each minute sound. Beady yellow eyes, filled with a chaotic glee, peered out from a prominent, overhanging brow; a snub nose protruded above a thin-lipped, parched mouth that revealed a sneering grin. It was wearing a mish-mash of tattered clothing and a belt of gleaming, scavenged trinkets, which kept the rags from plummeting down.

 A second goblin-like creature dragged itself out of the abyss; about a head taller than the first, its hunched and wiry frame was a peculiar shade of an earthy umber. Instead of the sharp yellow eyes seen in its green-skinned brother, this goblin's eyes shined with an unsettling violet. Its pronounced ears were adorned with dangling bones and crystals and were hung haphazardly. Its face was a seemingly more cunning expression, with a hooked nose and a mouth that curled into a sly, toothy grin. 

A third emerged and then a fourth, then a fifth and soon there were over a hundred darting through the deserted streets of Newham. Under the veiled shroud of night, windows were smashed, people were torn limb from limb and garbage bins were toppled, sending debris scattering like confetti. Their diminutive forms, a chaotic jumble of greens, browns, and greys, flicker in and out of the pools of streetlights. Amid gleeful cackles and guttural chattering, glittering jewellery, shiny baubles, polished brass keys, antique pocket watches, broken spectacles, chipped ceramic figures, tarnished silverware and human hands adorned gleaming rings were pilfered from houses; each goblin clutched its ill-gotten gains with a possessive glee. Their beady eyes glinted in the darkness, their small, clawed feet creating a pitter-patter symphony against the cobblestone pavement; And then the footsteps turned into a thunderous beat. A trio of giants marched through the street, using assorted blades and clubs to demolish the rows of houses adjacent to the portal.

The first giant, with skin the colour of weathered granite, had hollow eyes which emanated a ghastly, sickly green glow. The titan looked like he was hewn from a mountain and was etched with the scars of countless battles. With a crown of jagged mountain stones adorning its massive head, he wielded a malevolent axe the length of two men. 

The second giant was about a metre shorter but its body was stockier and sinewy. His skin, a stormy blend of greys and blues, seems to ripple with electricity. Wild, windswept hair frames a face chiselled and rugged. In his colossal hand, he clutched a sceptre that crackled with cobalt energy.

The third colossus, clad in twisted, obsidian armour embellished with sinister drawings, had eyes that glowed like molten pools of basalt. Jagged horns protrude from its skull; Wisps of shadow dance around its form, engulfing him in a palpable darkness.  

Without warning, the rhythmic thudding of rotors churned the air, creating a storm of dust and debris; an attack helicopter neared the horde. The creatures collectively peered up at the hulking war machine and snarled, their twisted features contorting into a venomous grin. Suddenly, the helicopter unleashed its wrath on the monsters below. Streams of Gatling-fire erupted from the machine guns, stitching a lethal pattern through the ranks of goblins. The gunfire was accompanied by rockets, illuminating the night like comets before exploding in fiery blossoms. The acrid scent of burning flesh and seared earth polluted the night air. Before the helicopter could inflict sufficient casualties, a giant tore a streetlamp out of the concreted path and launched it into the helicopter, slicing cleanly through the rotors. The copter was engulfed in a ferocious blaze of orange and red. The sound reverberated through the air, a thunderous roar that echoed off nearby buildings. The shockwave rippled outward, shattering windows and sending its debris cascading down like confetti. Smoke billowed, obscuring the sky, as the aircraft collapsed to the ground. 

Soon, amidst the wreckage, another wave emerged from the circle. The Sluagh reared their ugly heads; it was an entity born from the deepest depths of hell itself, a haunting amalgamation of pain and tortured souls.

They first appeared as a swarm of shadowy figures, writhing and ever-shifting. Disembodied faces writhed within the darkness, each one a distorted mask of agony and despair. Its face lacked any discerning, immutable features, save for two crimson orbs that burnt like red dwarfs.  Its form was an inky void, a pitch-black silhouette.

Their forms twisted and contorted, bending like willow branches in gail. One second they were a steed, another a raven. Wispy, ebony tendrils reached out like a ghostly fingers, hungry for any unfortunate souls that happened to find themselves in their path. As they moved, the light dimmed , consumed by the voracious darkness that clung to the sluagh’s like a shroud. They were the offspring of darkness and fear itself. 

Families were murdered in their sleep. Houses were completely demolished. Entire swathes of greenery were set alight. And this was before their King, their Emperor arrived into the realm of the living. 

A colossal red dragon had awoken from its fiery slumber and erupted out of the circle like lava out of a volcano. Scales, the colour of smouldering embers, adorned its entire elongated body. Its behemoth eyes glowed with an otherworldly crimson light. It had ivory horns as sharp as knives and long, sinuous whiskers that twitched with the creature's movement. As the dragon unfurled its massive, serpentine body, a trail of scorching earth and concrete followed in its wake. A fence of glistening fangs, the size of wind turbine blades, was exposed from its gaping mouth. It towered eight metres above the tallest houses in the neighbourhood. It marched on great, striding legs, each two tons of pure muscle, bone and flesh. The dragon's entire body had thick ropes of sunken muscles embedded into itself. Its taloned feet left enormous 12-inch-deep prints on the tar roads. As it neared a clearing, two enormous wings unfolded, in hues of fiery red and orange. With an anticipatory flick of its tail, the dragon crouched, its gem-encrusted breast brushing against the cracked pavement; in one explosive burst of strength and power, its wings began to beat, creating a tornado of scorched air and rubble. As it ran, its razor wings cut clean through buildings and trees.  The dragon rose and the rift in the sky began to beat faster until it was effectively flashing. It soared higher, as it emitted a triumphant bellow echoing across London. A cone of fire erupted from its cavernous jaw, immediately incinerating a cul-de-sac. Hell had been let loose. 

From the rift cutting cleanly through the sky, a figure descended gracefully. Cloaked in snowy garments that seemed to glow with a soft sapphire light, a metallic halo hovered above the man's head. shimmering metallic feathers adorn the angel's expansive set of wings, their surfaces catching the pulsating glow of the fissure. As the man descended, his wings flapped with a fluid action. His suit emitted a soft glow that illuminated the surrounding atmosphere. The angel was beautiful; He was relatively tall with short tawny hair, and skin the colour of burnt caramel. His eyes of faded china blue burnt in a dark face. In one hand, the angel grasped a golden sword, encrusted with jade and sapphire-coloured gems.

And so the two forces locked into combat; the dragon launched itself at the angel figure, jaws agape, and spewed forward a torrent of flames. It engulfed the man, but when the blaze resided, he was floating unscathed. A second inferno is discharged at him, this time the angel weaved through the fire and delivered a jab, piercing the dragon's jaw’s network of scales. Undeterred, the dragon lashes out with its colossal jaws. The angel dodged and propelled its sword into the dragon's neck. The serpentine swiped at the man with a barbed tail, creating shockwaves that sent ripples through the air. Yet, he manages to anticipate each move, evading with uncanny grace and minimal effort. It was now the angel's turn to strike. A flurry of strikes and stabs and slashes was delivered to the dragon; his blade was a tornado of death. With one last attack, he lodged the sword into the dragon's forehead, and it succumbed to his might. The dragon plummeted towards the ground, its body limp and lifeless. The earth trembled under the mass of the dragon and spewed dirt and rubble into the atmosphere like a flock of startled birds. As the dragon lay, its, and the other monsters, bodies began to disintegrate, leaving only dust, two matching dragon horns and a golden sword.