Irredeemable

Dark

All they could hear was a sea of murmuring voices. They all whispered to anyone and everyone who could hear them. It was as though their minds were all connected, almost by a cable. It was quite similar to being in a room just large enough to hold everyone in it. It was like a sardine can.

As Gravel struggled to gain awareness of who, what, or where they were, they started to notice that one voice was more dominant than the others. It came back to them. The dominant vessel was the same vessel they had been tasked with stopping. They weren't sure how they knew that, but they knew it was true.

The vessel was currently trying to gain control of their siblings. "Radiance is vulnerable. Need to attack." They conveyed to the masses.

"No! Misunderstanding. Do not kill!" Gravel tried to call out to stop them, but their protests fell on deaf ears.

In what was the first united act of the Shade Lord, a massive claw struck the Radiance out of the sky. Gravel could do nothing but watch helplessly as the Radiance crashed into the ground. Once again, void arms rose up to greet her. The powerful claws grabbed onto the Radiance and slowly started to pull her under.

On the ground, Hornet was trying to figure out her next move. She had just watched a vessel defeat the Radiance in her purest, most powerful form, and now they controlled all void in Hallownest. This was a foe she was for once, not prepared to face. Nevertheless, Hornet pointed her needle to the Shade Lord. "Everyone!" She shouted. "We have to defeat the void itself! We are all that stands between it, and the world. For Hallownest!"

Hornet's army charged the Shade Lord. Even some of the seekers joined the ranks. The conglomeration of shades was intrigued by the attack. When the first blades started to strike against it, however, the Shade Lord's amusement turned to anger. It couldn't just let them attack it like this. It had to fight back.

Losing focus, the void arms released the Radiance. She was still alive, but there wasn't much chance of her going anywhere anytime soon. The Shade Lord's own arms were now very interested in swatting away any pesky bugs who dared to annoy it. Since some of the seekers had defected to Hornet's army, even they weren't safe from the Shade Lord's wrath.

The powerful hand of the Shade Lord came down quickly. Bugs scrambled to get away from it, but some weren't so lucky. This was an area Hornet had quite an advantage in, being as quick and nimble as she was. She took notice of the Radiance and formed a plan. "Everyone! Keep being a nuisance! If we can keep it distracted long enough, we may have a chance!" She explained.

The Shade Lord was no fool. Looking at the small annoyances, it noticed almost immediately that two bugs seemed to be the ones that commanded the rest. If it could catch them, hopefully the rest of the bugs would leave it to its prey. Targeting the two leaders, the Shade Lord threw down its hands.

Hornet was able to avoid the massive hand, but for an already wounded, large, barely mobile bug like the Godseeker, it was something she knew would be her undoing. With no other options, she looked up at the hand of the god she had created, and scoffed. "My lord wants me dead. So be it." The Godseeker watched the hand come down on her. She was no more.

With the Godseeker gone, the seekers started to panic. The gods had turned on them. Suddenly, their entire plan had blown up in their faces. Fortunately, Hornet was prepared to calm the panic. "Seekers!" She shouted. "If you wish to survive this, you need to join us. We have to find a way to put this thing down!"

Vayne and Favian watched as the Shade Lord's hands tried in vain to swat Hornet away. Looking to each other for assurance, they nodded in confirmation. They started to climb up the abyss. It was an insane plan, but it was more than anyone else had.