Where there is darkness, an ember of survival ignites. In his panic, Nero found a hidden path, escaping into the freezing woods, leaving behind the cries echoing in his mind. Days morphed into weeks; he moved through the shadows, the vibrant world of Eden now a distant memory.
The tragedy faded into folklore: whispers spoke of children consumed by demons, and Nero was left a phantom—lost to time.It all felt like a fever dream to Nero. In those time he stumbles upon a town among the commoners land called Bathsheba He starves, runs errands, rattles all just to thrive.
Later then he found solace in the presence of some of the people who took him in and offered him shelter whom they wondered what could have possibly went wrong for this child of which he never revealed.
One day, while wandering through the town, Nero came across a priest named Arcadius preaching to a crowd of villagers outside a grand cathedral. Intrigued, he approached the priest and listened intently to his words.
However, as the sermon went on, Nero's keen eyes caught a subtle flicker of deceit in the priest's gaze.Determined to uncover the truth, Nero began to follow the priest discreetly, observing his actions and interactions with the townspeople.
In a desperate quest for answers, Nero discovers a hidden scroll in the priest's place detailing the priest's true intentions: to unleash an ancient evil and claim dominion over Bathsheba, leading him to realise that the priest was a fraud, using his position of power to deceive and manipulate the trusting people for his own gain.
Through his encounters, Nero began to uncover the deeper layers of the conspiracy that had taken root in Eden. He learned of a dark force that had been manipulating the affairs of the nation, using the guise of religion and spirituality to maintain its hold over the people.
The more he delved into the mystery, the more he realised that the fate of his friends was but a small part of a much larger and more sinister plot.
"DEATH is the one that falls upon you people",Nero shouts with enragement. Nero who grew from fables of the messiah's return to the commoners land and then providing salvation now understands it was all a myth.He then decides to take matter in his own hands.
An eye for an eye
For the next 2 years,Nero worked for a blacksmith during the day and on nights he trained with singular determination. He scavenged weapons and learned the art of dual dagger wielding from those lost texts he managed to uncover in the ruins of forgotten places.
His hatred for the priests churned within, propelling him into a relentless pursuit of mastery. The boy shaped into a nightmare—one who gazed into the abyss and did not flinch.
Nero's hands grew calloused as he worked the forge, not with passion but with a fury that fueled his newfound purpose. His nights were spent training, his body a whirlwind of steel and fury as he honed his skills.His disdain for priests grew with every drop of blood spilled, He decided to become something that places fear in the hearts of the false ones and those who had supported their vile sermons.
After all those years of training ,determination and with the help of his blacksmith skills he was able to master the technique of dual dagger wielding. "The time has come", Nero declared.
One night, as the village slept under the watchful gaze of a full moon, Nero slipped into his masters workshop. He gathered the finest metals, the strongest alloys, and worked tirelessly to forge a mask that would conceal his identity. He crafted the mask inspired by the very shadows that had stolen his friends; it became a second skin, an armour against the world that had turned so cruel.
The mask was a grim visage, a snarling beast with eyes that gleamed like the embers of a dying fire—a reflection of the rage that now burned within him.
The mask was not just a disguise; it was a symbol of fury and sorrow, a vessel through which he would unleash vengeance and a silent declaration of war against the priesthood that had stolen his friends and his life.
That night the town did not realise it had unknowingly birthed a nightmare. "I will become the ultimate darkness that devours other shadows ", Nero swore to himself . His voice renounced like a thunder during a heavy storm.