1 The End

Inside a large room that was dimly lit, an old man sat upon a large and dark spiked throne made from obsidian. He is the current king of the Shadow Clan. He has long grey hair with a long grey beard. he was dressed in dark clothing with a black fur cloak around his shoulders. The man was nervous, he had a look of concern on his face that was hidden from view by the hood of his cloak. As he tapped his finger on the arm of his throne, the large door's to the throne room flew open as a man in a dark set of armour ran in and kneeled before the old king.

"General, have the scouts sent word about their findings," the old king's voice was deep and rough and echoed through the room.

"Yes my Lord," A large blade man said. As he lifted his head, it could be seen that the man only had one eye as scar could be seen covering the one that was damaged. "There are large amounts of troops making their way up from the south. The Banners they fly so far suggest that it is only the Lightning, Light and Fire Clans Converging on us. It seems that the Light clan are leading at the front leading the troops but however, the scouts cannot confirm if any of the other Clans are planning to join with the attack force at a later date.

"That damned Light Clan this is all their doing!" The old king grunted frustratingly "What is their estimated time of arrival?"

"It's estimated that with the number of troops they have and the terrain that stands in their way, it will take them three days to arrive" the General responded

"General, I need you and all other high ranking officers to begin planning and executing an escape for the citizens. Once that has been taken care of inform the Scout sect to go into hiding within the other clans and pose as none essence users" the old king commanded. After learning of the time they have left the kings face was no longer one of concern but instead one of resolve as he now knows what he must do to try and save his Clan but first he must do something of great importance.

"ill inform the officers and Scouts immediately" The General then stood and walked out of the throne room.

As the doors began to close the old king stood up from the throne. As he did this dark shadows started to rise from the floor encircling him and eventually covering him completely. As the shadows dispersed the king was now stood in a tall Black tower on the top floor. Within the tower, a man in his mid 40's stood above a cot with a 2-month-old baby laying sleeping within in it.

"James" the old king called out while lowering his hood "I need you to do something and I know it's a lot to ask but as my son's closest friend I need you to take this child, my grandson, my son's son and raise him under your clan for I fear that within the next few days the powerful Shadow Clan will be destroyed"

With a dumbfounded face, James could only stare at the old king. As his closest friends dying wish he was asked to protect the child but at no point did he expect that he would have to raise the child as his own "Wh.. what do you mean? What has caused you to come to this decision? and also why me? wouldn't someone of the shadow clan best to raise him?"

"The other Clans have decided to eradicate the Shadow Clan due to our growth in power over the last 10 years. Although only the Lightning, Light and Fire Clans march on us we have received no messages from the other Clans to say they will stand with us and defend us. so we can only assume that they also believe that we should be destroyed" the king had tried to explain as much as he could based on what he knew "And as to why I want you to take the child. As you know his mother is from the Variant Clan like you so he should grow up and learn along with those that share his heritage"

James although now understanding the danger and why he was chosen was still unsure if he was the right person for the job but, hesitantly decided that he would accept the king's request "I'll do it but are you that sure that the other Clans will succeed in this?"

"yes I am, I am not the man I used to be and I don't have the power I used to have. Growing old has really been a detriment. plus myself and the other officers will only be able to hold back the attackers for so long before we become exhausted" the king said with a sullen look, the look of a man that has lost everything. "so please do all that you can to protect and raise the boy I don't want see any more of my family die"

"you have my word," James said as he kneeled to the king then rising to pick up the baby from its cot, waking him

"I'll send you away now so that no one will be able to track you and give you a three-day head start for your journey back to the variant clan" the king smiled to James as he raised his hand, slowly shadows appeared below James and the baby circling them and slowly rising.

"wait! the boy doesn't have a name yet and as his last living relative you should name him" James called out as the shadows rose

"your right. I think ill call him Rik after his father," the king said with a slight smile across his face. as the shadows continue to rise and cover the two James could see the smile and a teardrop down the king's face and then nothing but black.

As the Shadow dissipates James realises that they have been transported away from the tower and into a nearby forest.

Over the next day, the Shadow Clan prepared the best they could but the army arrived a day early and in the end, their defences were breached and they were slaughtered. the evacuation plan was underway during the initial attack and some were able to escape but were eventually hunted down like wild animals and killed on the spot. Those who didn't escape faced brutal deaths as they were burned, electrocuted and 'purged' of their shadow by the light. The kings head was placed upon a pike and paraded about in victory. The only ones to survive were some of the Scouts and Rik.