The second day of the siege began without sunrise.
Smoke from the previous night's pyres choked the sky, turning dawn into a sickly gray twilight. Mahismati woke not to birds or bells—but to the sound of distant war drums.
Slow.
Measured.
Unstoppable.
---
> [Siege Progression – Day 2]
> Enemy Adaptation: High
> Defensive Attrition: Increasing
> Warning:
> Civilian Casualties Probable Within 48 Hours
Arya stood alone at the highest watchtower.
The Dominion Protocol pulsed beneath his skin like a second heart.
Waiting.
Hungry.
---
"They're tightening the noose," a general said quietly beside him.
"I know."
"They're cutting water routes."
"I know."
"And Bhishma hasn't ordered a full assault yet."
Arya finally turned.
"That's the most dangerous part."
---
By midday, the attack came.
Not at the walls.
From beneath.
---
The earth screamed.
Stone cracked.
A section of Mahismati's outer district collapsed as hidden tunnels erupted upward, swallowing homes whole.
Screams followed.
Real ones.
---
> [Civilian Deaths Detected]
> Karmic Load: Severe
> Dominion Protocol Pressure: Escalating
Arya's vision blurred.
Empathy clawed against suppression.
This wasn't war.
This was punishment.
---
Karna arrived, bloodied, eyes wild.
"They're using sappers," he shouted. "They're collapsing the city itself!"
Arya closed his eyes.
The choice stood before him.
Clear.
Cruel.
Final.
---
> [Final Warning]
> Partial Dominion Release Available
> Radius: Limited
> Cost: Permanent Moral Degradation
Arya opened his eyes.
"Evacuate the inner ring," he ordered calmly.
Karna stared.
"You're buying time."
"I'm buying lives."
---
Arya stepped forward.
Alone.
Onto the wall.
---
The sky darkened.
Not with clouds.
With presence.
---
> [Dominion Protocol – Partial Release]
> Authority Field: Active
> Range: City Perimeter
> Status:
> Law Supersedes Will
Arya raised his hand.
And the world listened.
---
Kuru soldiers advancing the walls stopped.
Not frozen.
Bound.
Their bodies moved.
But their intent collapsed.
Weapons fell.
Men screamed—not in pain—but in terror as the urge to fight was stripped from them.
---
Bhishma felt it.
He opened his eyes slowly.
"So," he whispered, "he chose dominion."
---
The ground shook.
Tunnels collapsed inward.
Not explosively.
Deliberately.
Enemy sappers were buried alive.
---
> [Mass Casualty Event]
> Enemy Losses: High
> Civilian Losses: Minimized
> Humanity Index: Critical Decline
Arya staggered.
Blood trickled from his nose.
Karna caught him.
"What did you do?" Karna demanded.
Arya's voice was distant.
"I ended the question."
---
Bhishma stepped forward onto the field.
Alone.
He raised his hand.
And the pressure eased.
Not broken.
Respected.
---
"You wield a king's authority like a god's judgment," Bhishma called out.
Arya met his gaze from the wall.
"And you wield obedience like virtue."
The words echoed.
Dangerous.
Sacrilegious.
True.
---
Bhishma did not deny it.
"You cannot rule ashes," he said.
Arya's voice dropped.
"Neither can you rule graves."
Silence fell.
Even the Dominion hesitated.
---
> [Canon Resistance – Extreme]
> Bhishma's Will: Anchoring Reality
> Warning:
> Prolonged Dominion Use Will Trigger Divine Intervention
Arya lowered his hand.
The pressure vanished.
Men collapsed, gasping.
Alive.
Broken.
---
The assault stopped.
Not defeated.
Paused.
---
Night fell.
Mahismati still stood.
But something had changed.
---
In the city, people whispered.
Not prayers.
Names.
Arya.
Dominion.
Monster.
Savior.
---
Karna stood beside Arya as healers worked.
"You crossed a line today," Karna said quietly.
Arya did not argue.
"I know."
"And if you cross it again?"
Arya looked at the blood on his hands.
"Then I may not come back."
---
The system spoke one last time that night.
---
> [Permanent Status Applied]
> Title: King of the Blackened Scale
> Effect:
> Balance Shifts Toward Control Over Compassion
> Note:
> Redemption Possible
> But Not Guaranteed
Arya laughed softly.
A broken sound.
"Fair."
---
Across the battlefield, Bhishma knelt in prayer.
"Forgive me," he whispered—not to the gods.
But to the future.
---
Above them all, unseen, Krishna watched.
And smiled.
Not kindly.
But knowingly.
---
The siege did not end that night.
But the war—
Had changed its nature.
---
End of Chapter 19