When Jace woke up once more, he was forced to admit that no, he was not dreaming, and yes, he was still alive with a giant, shadowy... thing?... trapped in his body.
'Did you just call me a thing?' Jace could feel the amusement radiating inside of him as the... thing... spoke.
"Well what am I supposed to call you?"
'I have many names, but you may call me... Void. Also, don't speak out loud, you look stupid.'
"Gee thanks," he muttered under his breath as he stood up shakily, 'So, like this?' he focused on projecting the thought to Void and he felt more than heard the hum of approval.
Jace staggered and pressed a hand against the cave wall... Only for it pass right through. He shrieked and jerked his arm back, staring as the wisps of smoke solidified into the form of his hand.
'What the heck was that?!' He touched a finger cautiously to the stone and watched in bewilderment as his finger turned into a dark shadowy substance on impact. He felt another thrum of amusement coming from Void as he gawked at his hand.
'To put it simply, you are no longer human. To save your life, I infused you with the energies of the void. For all intents and purposes, you are now a part of me, and I, you. Your form consists of shadows, not an actual, physical body. Shadows don't have an absolute form, and neither, does this body. It can be twisted and shaped to your will. The void will answer your beck and call, you should explore its power, not many have the privilege.' Jace frowned, concentrating on his hand. He watched in awe as fingernails turned to claws and fur sprouted from skin, before both quickly retracted to leave his hand the same as before.
"Whoa," he breathed, eyes wide and filled with wonderment. A small twinge in the back of his mind dragged his attention away for a split second before he ignored it, going back to concentrating on moving the shadows to his will; however, it held Void's attention for longer.
Alarm flashed in his mind and he tensed, head snapping towards the entrance of the cave. It was night, the entrance was shrouded in darkness. After a minute of staring, he felt confusion, only now registering the fact that the alarm came from Void, not him.
'Hide,' the single word was spoken quickly and urgently, 'There's more of them coming. You don't have enough control over my powers to dispose of them, and even if you did, your body is still acclimating to the presence of my shadows. To use too much now would not be healthy.'
'How?' Jace frantically whipped his head around, searching desperately for a crack or crevice in which to hide. He didn't want to die, not after he finally found a friend!
A strange feeling twisted inside of Void as he shifted slightly, 'A... friend?'
Jace started slightly, he still wasn't used to the fact that the being inside him could hear everything he was thinking. 'Well yeah, I mean, you did save my life-'
The sound of distant clanging reached his ears and Void cut him off, 'Sentimentality later human, reach for the shadows, imagine your body dispersing in a cloud of dark mist and blending into the surrounding shadows. For future reference, this only works if there are shadows to hide in.'
Jace closed his eyes, brow furrowed as he concentrated. He reached his will out to the shadows, imploring. He jolted in slight shock as he felt their hesitance, they were sentient? They twisted uncertainly, he had the aura of their master, but he was... different. They reached towards him, the comforting thrum of power radiating from the boy calling out to them, curling up his arm and brushing over his heart.
Jace froze, and his breath hitched. Something clicked in him, in his soul, as he felt the shadows encase him, shielding him from view. He felt... right, whole, like something had snapped into place inside him that he didn't know he'd been missing.
There was shouting and the loud clank of metal as the humans barreled into the cave, but Jace ignored them, basking in the euphoria he felt after finally being complete once more. And with his link to the shadows once again fulfilled, came clarity.
An amused smirk came to him as he watched those pathetic, pitiful humans scramble around, as the shadows fed him the memories of his previous life. Right now, they were in the Holy Kingdom, full of snobbish and arrogant human royalty who thought they were God's gift to the world, who thought it was their sacred duty to cleanse this world of any demon filth on this earth.
Then, across the crevice of molten magma, laid the Demon Empire, where Void was revered as a being whose power rivaled that of the Three Supreme Demon Generals combined. He was a being capable of shifting into any form he desired, he could be the bird that you threw rocks at, the dog you harrased, the homeless one you sneered at, but he was always watching. Or at least, that's what the legends say.
Though in reality, the Kingdom and Empire weren't all that different. They would both do whatever was necessary to destroy the other. The only difference, Jace mused, letting the shadow cloak fall away as he watched the infuriated humans curse and snarl at him, was that the demons actually cared for their own.
Jace grinned, letting the shadows form into armor around him, "Were you looking for me?" he asked innocently, head tilting to the side slightly and eyes glowing a mischevious blue.
"You little-!" the man was cut off as a spear of shadows shot out behind him and stabbed him, heart skewered on the tip. The man hacked, spitting out a glob of blood before slumping to the ground, dead.
Jace just smirked, cupping his ear, "Sorry, I didn't get that," he gave a light laugh that enraged the rest of the men.
"I'll kill you, demon!"
Shouts erupted from them as they charged and Jace let a wicked smile surface, "If you call me a demon, I'll be sure not to disappoint!"
Jace pushed off the ground, bloodlust shining in his eyes, the shadows powering his every step.
None except Void noticed the change in his aura. Calm, calculating before, and most of all, alive. Now it was crazed, psychotic, the stench of death lingering in the space around him. But perhaps the most telling, was the change of his eye color, from a chilling ice blue, to a raging poison green.