Forum:Shadowkeeper Apocalypse

"A few weeks after the Jewelbilee, what was supposed to be a proud day that commemorated Auradon's glory turned into a massacre the moment Kirito freed Zevon from the Isle of the Lost and recruited him into his rogue army that we now call the Shadowkeepers, who killed all of the civilians and corrupted Mal with the Darkness. But, what traumatized us the most wasn't her betrayal or the deaths of her friends, but Zavala's death, and now, what we saw proved to us that no one is safe. Not anymore."

- Ikora Rey highlighting the start of the Shadowkeepers Apocalypse

The Shadowkeeper Apocalypse (also known as the Apocalypse and sometimes the Second Collapse) was a massively cataclysmic system-wide conflict fought between millions of Guardians and inhabitants of the Solar System and Kirito and Asuna and their armies of Shadowkeepers, Shadow Army minions, and Ghosts of Nagasaki to take back Auradon, save Mallory Bertha, and protect the Light. Although this crisis was initially triggered when Mal killed Maleficent, it actually began when the Shadowkeepers murdered countless people in Auradon, including Ben, Evie, Suguha Kirigaya, Emperor Calus, the Auradonian Kids' parents, and Commander Zavala, in order to take over all of Auradon and begin an eight-year reign beyond the heart of Aincrad. Unlike the previous enemies the Guardians killed, the Shadowkeepers sought to rewrite history and create a dark future, with them controlling all worlds as gods.

Prelude: The Swordsman's Arrival
"The Dragon’s Eye has awakened. It is on a little world. A human world. They would only wield its power… But our allies know its workings as they never will. They are ready to lead. And our forces will follow. The world will be theirs. The universe yours. And the humans, what can they do but burn?"

- An unnamed Taken commander, speaking to the Darkness about Kirito and Asuna.

Some time after the Guardians' victory of the Dimensional Wars, the Darkness, having found a still-open portal, sent the Pyramids into the dimensional gateway to recruit its new allies: Kirito and Asuna. Having known firsthand about how they had seen what it saw and mourned for the deaths of their friends and of innocence, the Darkness not only gave them back their powers from Sword Art Online, but also granted them permanent access to its Pyramids, knowing that they can succeed where its previous forces failed.

Upon accepting the Darkness's gift, after stepping out of their dimension and into the Guardian's universe, Kirito and Asuna recruited both the Shadowkeepers and the enemies of Light, instilling into them a profound sense of freedom and purpose, promising them that they would be the one to save them and those cast out and left for dead by their own people from the Traveler's lies.

Attack on Auradon
"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I just... I thought that... I was afraid to tell you. I thought I was gonna lose my life. But I had to do something! I had to protect my birthright! It's just... I wish things could've been different."

- Mal, talking to Petra Venj shortly before leaving with the Shadowkeepers.

Some weeks after the Jewel-bilee, the Shadowkeepers and their newly-assembled Shadow Army freed the son of Yzma known as Zevon from the frozen prison on the Isle of the Lost before launching a high-stakes invasion on Auradon that resulted in Mal's corruption at the hands of the Darkness and the deaths of countless civilians and heroes, including Zavala. Kirito and Asuna, having triumphed over the now-dead Zavala, proceeded to launch the codes for the Darkness's corruptive-matter system, simply known as Lightfall, which summoned waves of malevolent Blights that destroyed everything that Auradon stood for, killed all living beings of Light and civilians of Auradonian blood within it, and turned the entire city into a realm of Kirito and Asuna's ideal birth worlds. Although the fall of Auradon itself was unfathomable and the exact aftereffects of this event were unknown, it is certain that Petra Venj was the only survivor.

A New Aincrad
"For years, the world had been bound by aspects of a failed past, full of lies that the Traveler brought upon this universe. But, we knew the truth. In Light, there was only weakness. Only failure. Only subjugation. Only death. But where the Light took, the Dark gives. No longer will we be pawns of the Light's lies. No longer will we stand by and let those monsters and so-called heroes abuse our people. No longer will we watch the lives of those we care for be lost. In Darkness, there is only strength. Only power. Only victory. Only freedom. Only life. And we shall rise forever!"

- Kirito, rallying the forces of Darkness.

Moments after taking over Auradon, Kirito and Asuna set up countless programs and SIVA networks from his computer that the Pyramids used to rebuild Aincrad as they saw fit and split up the Shadow Army into its six respective groups: the House of Shadows, led by Kotrik, Bloodcrafter of Kirito, a notorious Fallen Kell of Shadows who stole Guardian tech from The Last City; the Shadow Swarm, led by Zharves, Shadowcaster of Kirito, a surviving Hive Deathsinger who formerly served Crota and his father; the Shadow Divisive, led by Hydrax, Mindkiller of Kirito, a massive Vex Axis Mind Hydra who possessed the ability to stop time; the Shadow Legion, led by Gha'arn, Crownforger of Kirito, a powerful Cabal warlord who helped murder Calus and overthrow the Leviathan; the Reborn, led by Thu'urg, Blightmaker of Kirito, a Taken Cabal commander who helped ignite a new Taken War; and the Cult of Shadows, led by Vayeriks, Fatesmith of Kirito, Fikrul's right hand and a commander of the first Scorn.

Hoping to further weaken the Traveler, they sent their forces across the system to launch countless waves of devastating attacks against its forces, some of which led to the extinction of numerous human civilizations and permanent deaths of the heroes of those extinct worlds.

Creation of Dawnrise Protocol
Enraged by the atrocities committed by Kirito and Asuna, Ikora Rey and Rasputin, along with numerous Guardians hellbent on getting their revenge on the Shadowkeepers for killing Zavala, created Dawnrise Protocol in the hopes of fighting back against the Darkness and saving the Last City, while factions such as the Stygian Brood and the House of Lions would lead countless assaults against the Shadow Army and those who pledged loyalty to Kirito and Asuna. At the same time, AJ would rally numerous factions of dimension protectors to fight against the Shadowkeepers.

Assault on the Empire
Some time during Dawnrise Protocol, Kirito and Asuna and their daughters Yui and Konno and sons Tatsuyi and Yuji met up with Castris and her Elites, offering them a chance to work alongside his syndicate. At the same time, Rudolph McAlister, one of the spies whom Robert E. O. Speedwagon dispatched to investigate Castris's criminal empire, found numerous evidences about Castris's past and attempted to rendezvous with Ashe-5 so that they could bring down the empire, only to find that Ashe had been slain by a Guardian-issued Sword. Appalled and shocked by this, he attempted to find Castris and apprehend her, but is suddenly attacked by Kotrik, who immediately slaughtered him, but not before Rudolph sent a message to Speedwagon, telling him that Kirito had returned. By the time Speedwagon and his associates arrived, Castris had already escaped. As Speedwagon attempted to pursue Castris, he runs into Tatsuyi, Kirito and Asuna's eldest son who had stolen Cisco Ramon's metahuman powers and fused them with both his Necrotic Grip gauntlets and Thorn before murdering Vibe. Enraged by Vibe's unjust fate, Speedwagon summoned his version of Hammer of Sol and attempted to end Tatsuyi's life, but finds himself temporarily paralyzed by the effects of Thorn, which gave Tatsuyi an escape plan. Some moments after Kirito's family escaped, Speedwagon, no longer paralyzed, woke up to find his associates dead and vowed revenge on both Castris and Tatsuyi.

Picking up on the investigation, however, he would discover a distress call from the syndicate's main arms supplier, Wren, who stated he and his band of smugglers was currently under siege from the syndicate. Perplexing the Titan, he followed the distress signal to the gunrunners personal Cabal carrier and provided support for his gang. He would meet up with the Warlock and would begin interrogating him about the syndicate and it's prior transgressions to which the Warlock stated that the syndicate is currently still neutral at this time. When Speedwagon told about Ashe's fate and the sword used to slay her, Wren was shocked, stating that the Dreaming City-make sword was recently purchased off him by one of the Empire's associates. Before he could let on about the buyer, the two are attacked by two mysterious Fallen assailants armed with a mysterious power. The two are quickly overwhelmed by the empowered hostiles and Wren would end up abducted while Speedwagon would be knocked out, but not before meeting a third assailant who threatened his life if he got in the way again.

The Titan would be awoken by one of the Empire's Barons, Solviks, who consoled him that Castris and her Empire were allies, not enemies, albeit unconventional. Speedwagon would also meet one of the Empire's lesser known, yet most treasured associates Myra Winters, who told him that she had upgraded his Ghost with tech that just might help with his investigation and prove the Empire's standing on the Shadowkeepers, starting with a previously recorded conversation between Wren and his trusted Psion friend, Lithwe, who were conversing about Castris's decision on the deal with the Shadowkeepers as well as what might happen if they did accept. But before the two could let on about her decision, the two are interrupted by a familiar looking, muscular Fallen brute who was asked if he could purchase a special sword; Speedwagon recognized the Fallen brute as one of the attackers who snatched Wren, learning his name was Kamrak. The Titan hesitantly thanked the two Criminal associates before the two left, stating that they had some business to attend. Continuing the investigation, he would utilize the "ECHO" tech to discover the murder of Ashe, where he would see the Vanguard representative being escorted by some of the Empire's associates, learning that they were there to guard her on her way to Rudolph. Expecting them to turn on her, he would, instead, discover that the squad was picked off one by one and the Exo Hunter would be murdered by the other mysterious assailant from the night prior. Raising even more questions, the Titan would attempt to go back to where he meet Tatsuyi to learn more. Going back to the site and activating the recording software, seen from his eyes, the Shadowkeeper scion would be seen conversing to the members of the assailants and gave them new orders, attempt to frame Castris and rope the faction into war, telling the female assailant to stay here and wait for Speedwagon and attempt to escape to give the guise she was Castris while telling the other two to hunt down and capture some of the syndicate's higher weapons designers and suppliers such as Wren and Vyslaks to which a respected new member of the Shadowkeepers would get them to replicate some of the Empire's work. It all came to the Titan that this was a conspiracy, one in which that will force the Empire into war with the Shadowkeepers.

A New Consensus
"Long before the Traveler came, I made a promise to live on for the sake of my friends and Fairy Tail. Now, it has called on me to speak on its behalf and help you fight back against the Black Swordsman and the Lightning Flash."

- Lucy Heartfilia, speaking to the Guardian moments after becoming the new Speaker.

Some time after Dawnrise Protocol's initiation, Ikora Rey appointed Shiro-4 as the Hunter Vanguard and Luther Hargreeves as the new Vanguard Commander representing the Titans, while the Consensus would appoint Glynda Goodwitch as the Huntress Vanguard, Kakashi Hatake as the Shinobi Vanguard, Jotaro Kujo as the Meister Vanguard, and Lucy Heartfilia as the new Speaker in order to strengthen the defenses of the City and provide more protection for the Traveler.

Sumeragi's Reemergence
"Mayday! Mayday! Do you copy! Vanguard access code 0306! Guardian, requesting backup! I repeat! We need backup down here!"

- Nova, Herrscher of Sumeragi, sending a distress signal to the Guardian approaching the Cosmodrome.

Due to the havoc caused by the Shadow Army, Sumeragi, led by Nova, Herrscher of Sumeragi and Skalos's son Sakodis, Heir to the Shadows, have reemerged from their hiding places, seeking to restore order and balance to the system. However, despite their strength and wit, Sumeragi's forces weren't enough to stop the Shadow Army. After a close encounter with Kirito and Asuna, Sumeragi retreated back to their base, but not before sending a distress signal aboard the Cosmodrome, officially beginning a truce with the Guardians.

The Cosmodrome Breach
"My name is Kotrik. I claim the title of Kell of Kells for myself. The Given shall fall. The Great Machine will be reclaimed. To arms, brothers! Let us advance the work of Kirito, who has given us this strength!"

- Kotrik, Bloodcrafter of Kirito, rallying his Fallen brethren shortly before triggering an assault against the Guardian.

Shortly after claiming the power of Fusion in the form of its subclasses and arriving at the Cosmodrome, as the Guardian rendezvoused with Cayde-6 and Petra, they received a distress signal from Nova, Herrscher of Sumeragi, who warned them about the threat Kirito and Asuna posed to Humanity. Upon hearing from him, the Guardian investigated the impending source of the Shadows' emergence, fighting the House of Devils along the way, and arrived at the base, where they acquired the Ace of Spades, Thunderlord, and Gjallarhorn shortly before encountering Kotrik, who wielded a corrupted version of the Thunderlord and declared his intention to eliminate the forces of Light and carry out Kirito's mission to bring the Traveler under the influence of the Darkness before unleashing his Fallen army upon them. The Guardian barely escaped just as more Fallen Shadows overwhelmed the base.

Discovery of the Shadows
"I was right... I was right all along... The day we've been dreading has finally arrived. The Black Swordsman is here."

- Eris Morn.

Some time after the Guardian uncovered the source of the Shadows' emergence in the Cosmodrome, Eris Morn, aided by her new recruit Anna Blue, intercepted a distress signal coming from the Hellmouth, searching for answers on Luna. After traversing deeper within the Scarlet Keep, she stumbled upon an abandoned Clovis Bray facility and touched a black surface, which revealed itself as some kind of footage. Upon getting a closer look at it, she discovers what happened to Mal back when she was a child and that the two adult Warlocks shielding her from Maleficent's attacks were her parents Kaguya Narusaka and Hendrick Yor.

A Nightmare's Return
"The overall objective of this is to save a certain high-value person - Mallory Bertha. She has been corrupted by the Darkness and made the Dragon Queen of Auradon and the Isle of the Lost. She must be saved from the Darkness. But we will have to defeat Kirito’s armies of Shadows in order to accomplish this."

- Luther Hargreeves.

Appearances

 * Destiny 2
 * Paradox
 * Fractured Worlds