For millennia, he had slumbered in this cave, willing to leave the world to the humans and their wars. Waiting and waiting, until eventually, the stream of idiotic humans seeking his power trickled away as rumors spread of the danger, but there would always be those with unfailing arrogance that charged in recklessly, demanding his power. As if he would give it away to egotistical brats anyway, the sheer energy itself would likely rip their puny bodies to shreds and obliterate their minds, if not their souls. Not that that would bother him, just that it would be a pain to clean up.
Shouting breaks through his thoughts and he perks up. Oh goody, more fools to destroy. He gathered his energy and sank into the shadows, letting them direct him to the source of the noise. He emerged from the darkness above the humans, watching as the scene played out below him.
There were three adults surrounding a child sprawled out on the floor in front of them. Something twinges painfully inside him as he surveys the kid, the bruises scattered on his body, the splotch of red on his side, the arm bent unnaturally next to him. He marveled though, at the glint of defiance still shining in his ice-blue eyes, the clench of his jaw and the proud tilt of his chin.
One of the humans sneered, stepping forward, "What's that look for, demon?" he asked, letting his foot fall heavily on the child's broken arm. He could see the boy's lips moving, but he was too far away to hear the words the boy uttered, all he saw was the result.
The adult's eyes narrowed, and his lip curled into a snarl as rage flooded his features. He whipped out a sword, plunging it deep into the boy's stomach. And then, as he watches the boy cough out blood, the defiance lost for a second in the sea of pain, as he saw resignation replace the defiance and the light in his eyes dull, something snaps within him.
The three humans barely have the time to cry out in surprise, before he surged down, darkness enveloping everything, and he savored the fear that tainted the air. He crept forward, a low snarl on his lips as he felt his form change.
The mass of shadows coalesced and solidified into one huge form. Long, razor sharp claws sprouted from four furry paws and his tail swung low, lips pulled up to reveal his fangs. Wisps of purple smoke flit across midnight black fur as his eyes glowed a menacing red.
The shrieks of fear from the humans were satisfying, he decided as the shadows parted in front of him, letting them glimpse his majesty. He didn't understand what was going on, what he was feeling, all he knew was that these pathetic humans would pay for hurting this child.
That was all that ran through his mind as he lunged forward, powerful jaws closing around the neck before pulling, the chunk of flesh still clutched in his jaws. The human let out a gurgle of surprise as he sank down onto his knees, eyes staring in disbelief at the piece of meat the wolf had spat out, before collapsing, dead eyes staring forever and unblinking at the wall in front of him.
"W-what the hell!?" the second human yelped as the rusty blade shattered on his fur. He lifted his giant head, turning it slightly to meet the gaze of the human with one red eye. "W-what the hell are you?! Demon!" he shrieked, backpedaling desperately before his back hit the wall. His eyes landed on the-the monster stalking towards him as he cowered behind the imaginary safety of his arms. The safety that was ripped away from him at the same time as his arms separated from his body, settling limply on the floor.
He stared blankly before his shrieks crescendoed, echoing around the cavern. The wolf's ears twitched in annoyance before he lunged, cutting off that horrid noise midway. Now where... he turned, watching as the cowardly human fled, leaving his comrades to their fate.
He waited before he saw the triumphant smirk cross his face, so sure that he had escaped from the jaws of death. He mentally snorted at the arrogance that seemed attached to every single member of the pitiful species. Nothing escaped his lair, nothing escaped... THE VOID!
The shadows behind the man lunged out, engulfing him in their grasp and muffling his terrified scream. He chuckled and watched as they dragged him beneath the ground, his last glimpse of the fingers grasping around desperately for a hold he wouldn't find.
The wolf turned, trudging back to the form of the curled-up child. He bent down, nose gently nudging away the fingers pressed against the wound. Concern and anger filled him as he saw the severity of the injury. The sword had brushed his lungs, which were quickly filling up with blood. At this rate, the kid wouldn't survive.
He lowered his head and was relieved to see that the boy hadn't fallen unconscious yet. His hazy eyes were locked on his form, and seemingly with a mind of its own, the small, pale hand shakily lifted itself into the air, plopping itself onto the soft, midnight black fur.
It was then that he decided, as he watched the joy that briefly lit up his eyes at the small act of comfort, he wouldn't let the boy die, wouldn't let anyone hurt him ever again.
'Tell me boy,' he spoke directly into the boy's mind, a deep comforting rumble, 'would you like to live?'
There was a slight hesitation as the boy struggled to draw the breath required to whisper the next word, "yes..."
He didn't hesitate, leaping towards the boy, and merging. Every part of his shadows combining into this one, human vessel. He could feel it, the happy thrum coming from his shadows as they made quick work of repairing his injuries.
And inside the boy's body, he grinned, a bloodthirsty, predatory grin, because he couldn't wait, to rip apart the next person who even looked at the boy wrong.