Dawn arrived with an eerie stillness on the day of the eclipse. The sky was a flawless blue, the sun glaring white-hot above Ntanda's stone circle. We busied ourselves with final preparations in tense silence. Amina and Nkiru chalked protective sigils around our camp while Jabari clasped each warrior's shoulder in quiet solidarity. I moved among them, offering what encouragement I could, though my heart pounded in my chest.
By late morning, an uncanny hush fell over the basin. The air felt thick; even the animals fell silent. Amina stepped to my side and briefly squeezed my hand. "It's starting," she whispered. High above, a dark bite appeared on the sun's edge – the eclipse had begun.
We gathered just outside the ring of monoliths. Our allies fanned out in an arc, weapons ready. Nkiru stood just behind me, charms on her staff glinting in the dimming light. Amina and Jabari flanked me at the front. I swallowed hard, tasting sand and fear.
As the light dimmed to an eerie dusk, the temperature plummeted. Shadows stretched long and distorted. My skin prickled with instinctive dread, and the standing stones of Ntanda began to hum with deep vibration.
Suddenly, with a sound like distant thunder, cracks of darkness snaked across the ground from the center of the stone circle. The shadows pooled and rose, coalescing into a colossal form. Nyos had arrived.
He took the shape of a towering humanoid shadow amid the pillars, with clawed arms and white-hot eyes glowing like embers. A pulsing aura of darkness radiated from him, warping the half-light and weighing down the air as if gravity itself bowed to his presence.
Amina drew a sharp breath. A few warriors stepped back. I forced myself forward, palms slick on my staff. "Nyos!" I shouted, voice echoing. "Your fight is with me!"
His eyes snapped toward me. Nyos hissed my name, his voice dripping with ancient contempt and hunger.
Nyos lashed out suddenly. A spear of darkness cleaved the air toward me. I barely raised my staff in time; the blow hurled me backward. The protective sigils flared and absorbed some of the blow – Nkiru's wards still held.
Battle erupted in full. With a unified shout, our front line charged. Zahra's gauntlet fired solar beams into Nyos's inky mass. Chidike cleaved through shadow tendrils with his sun-blade. For a moment, it seemed we could drive Nyos back.
Nyos reeled, then roared, "Enough!" A shockwave of darkness exploded outward. Many were flung aside. I saw Zahra slam into the ground and go still. Chidike's blade shattered and he fell to one knee. Even Jabari was knocked back, teeth gritted against the onslaught.
I thrust out my hands, forming a gravitational barrier. The dark wave slammed into it and split to either side. It strained every fiber of my being to hold. With a shout, I transformed the shield into a blast of force at Nyos. The invisible blow struck him, making his shadowy form ripple and stumble with a snarl.
Nyos's eyes fixed on me. I felt an invisible hand clutch my heart – he was yanking at the very star-fragment inside me, the source of my power. An icy pain blossomed in my chest.
I dropped to one knee, clutching my chest, as Nyos attempted to tear away the light within me – finishing what he began generations ago. His oily laughter slithered through my mind. "Give in, little guardian," he taunted. "I will make it quick. Perhaps I shall even let your friends live as my slaves."
Agony wracked me; the tug on my soul was excruciating. But at his threat to my friends, fury ignited in my chest. Perhaps once I would have wavered – no longer. I had made my choice last night in the desert.
"I… will never… surrender to you!" I roared.
Mustering every ounce of my will, I pushed back against Nyos's pull. The bond between my heart and the star's light was mine to command – and unlike Nyos, I was willing to let that light go. Shaking with effort, I rose to my feet, resisting that invisible grip.
Nyos's burning eyes widened in surprise. The eclipse was nearly complete; only a thin crescent of sun remained, casting the land into eerie twilight.
Behind me, Amina and Jabari closed ranks behind me. Amina hurled a spear of crackling solar energy that pierced Nyos's side and staggered him. Jabari rallied a few warriors and hacked at the writhing tendrils of shadow, buying me precious time.
Nyos recovered with a furious bellow. He swept his arms and sent Jabari's group flying back. I saw Jabari sprawl on the ground, blood streaking his brow as he forced himself up again.
I raised my staff and stepped forward to the center of the circle. Above us the sun's light had dwindled to a ghostly halo around the moon; the world was sunk in otherworldly gloom. Nyos loomed before me, a nightmare of hunger and fury silhouetted against the black sun.
"It ends here," I said, calm as stone.
Nyos snarled and gathered a seething bolt of darkness between his claws; the ground shuddered under us. In that heartbeat before totality, an uncanny calm fell over me. The pain in my chest melted away into steady warmth, and fear gave rise to unshakable resolve.
I drew a slow breath. Around the sun's last gleaming edge, the corona flared in silver light, crowning the darkness. The eclipse reached totality. Nightfall swallowed the day.
With a triumphant howl, Nyos unleashed the bolt of pure darkness straight at me. I gripped my staff, planted my feet, and made ready to do the unthinkable.
At the instant day turned to night, shadow collided with light – and destiny unfolded.