The ruined relay tower loomed above them, a twisted monument to the city's decay.
Kaela, Arin, Riven, and Veyne crouched behind cover — watching the evolved Hollowborn stand in the center of the chaos.
It was no longer the grotesque, mechanical horror it once was. It was something worse.
Its form was dark, shifting, corrupted.
The glowing eyes of the beast now flickered gold, like burning embers from a dying fire.
Its body was no longer just a shell — but a massive fusion of flesh, metal, and rot.
And the ground under its feet pulsed, veins of dark energy twisting beneath the earth.
Phase 1: The Hollowborn Reborn
The creature's form was incomplete. Its massive arms reached out, the sharp claws digging into the concrete as it roared.
Arin's grip tightened around his weapon.
Veyne's eyes were wide with disbelief, but even he couldn't look away from the beast.
Riven was calculating their next move, his mind racing.
Kaela stepped forward, eyes narrowed. "This is it. We don't have a choice."
The Ashen Blades joined them, weapons at the ready. Selene Varkas, their leader, was nearby, already directing the others into position.
---
The First Phase of Battle
The Hollowborn's roar echoed across the ruins as it raised its clawed hands and slammed the ground.
A shockwave of energy surged outward, knocking some of the Ashen Blades off their feet. Arin barely managed to stay standing, his eyes widening as debris rained down.
"Move!" Kaela shouted, barely able to hear herself over the chaotic sound. She rushed forward, her blade raised high.
Riven followed close behind, his own sword flashing in the low light.
But the Hollowborn was fast — much faster than before.
It swung one of its massive claws at Riven, sending him crashing into a pile of broken metal.
> "Riven!" Kaela shouted, but she had no time to check on him.
The creature was already rearing back, ready to unleash another devastating blow.
Arin fired his gun, the shots ringing out and hitting the beast's glowing core, but they barely left a mark.
It was like firing at stone.
Selene's team moved in, laying down a barrage of fire, but it was clear — this wasn't a fight they could win with raw firepower alone.
---
Phase 2: The Hollowborn's Awakening
Just as the creature seemed to be weakening, something shifted inside its twisted form.
The glowing eyes flickered — and suddenly, its skin began to melt and regenerate. The wound Arin had inflicted closed up almost instantly.
And then, the beast grew bigger.
It expanded, towering over them, its body now a colossal nightmare. Each limb morphed, becoming more grotesque — long tendrils of dark energy sprouting from its back like jagged wings.
Its roar grew louder, shaking the very ground beneath them.
> "Fall back!" Selene shouted, her voice cutting through the chaos. "We need to regroup!"
Kaela barely had time to register the command before the Hollowborn lashed out with its newly formed tentacles, wrapping them around Arin and throwing him across the battlefield.
> "No!" Kaela cried, rushing to his side.
The battle had gone from desperate to hopeless.
---
The Final Phase: The Hollowborn's True Form
As the Hollowborn began to absorb the remnants of the city — power, tech, anything it could find — it began to change again.
It was no longer just a beast, no longer just a terror of flesh and metal.
It was something darker, something that seemed to bend reality itself. The glowing eyes flared into golden brilliance, and the ground beneath them cracked and twisted like a broken mirror.
It reached out for the Ashen Blades, now surging with dark energy, and began to hurl blasts of destructive power.
The world around them warped.
Veyne gritted his teeth, trying to keep himself steady.
"This isn't just a monster... it's a goddamn force of nature."
Selene's voice cracked over the comms.
> "We're out of time. This thing is going to destroy everything."
Kaela could feel her heart pounding in her chest.
It wasn't just their lives at stake anymore.
It was the world.
---
The Final Stand
The remaining Ashen Blades began their charge, firing relentlessly at the beast, their last hopes resting on one final push.
But Kaela, Arin, Riven, and Veyne — they had to keep it distracted.
If they could just hold on a little longer, maybe they could find a weakness.
Riven leapt forward, slashing at one of the Hollowborn's massive limbs.
It screeched in pain but quickly countered, sending Riven flying once more.
"Riven!" Kaela screamed, but she was already in motion, charging straight for the creature's core.
She could see it now — a glowing, pulsing heart at the center of its body.
If they could destroy that, they might have a chance.
But as she reached it, the Hollowborn swung its tail, smashing into the ground with a bone-shattering force.
Veyne and Arin barely managed to hold on.
> "We're not going to make it," Veyne muttered, blood dripping from his mouth.
---
The End of the Battle
They fought with everything they had left, but the Hollowborn was too powerful.
It was not just an enemy to be beaten.
It was a force of destruction, unstoppable by mere mortals.
One by one, the Ashen Blades fell.
Veyne was the first to go — crushed beneath the beast's massive form.
Riven, despite his best efforts, was taken by the crushing force of the Hollowborn's final form.
Arin barely managed to drag Kaela away from the monster's reach.
> "This isn't our fight anymore," Arin said, his voice grim.
Kaela's heart sank as she saw Selene, one of the last survivors, make a desperate attempt to hold the beast back.
But even she fell, giving her life in a final act of defiance.
In the end, they were forced to retreat.
The Hollowborn wasn't dead —
it was only beginning to evolve.