Both Ahcehera and Richard stared at it, their bodies tense. The core's light grew brighter, and the dark energy surrounding it intensified, twisting and writhing like living tendrils.
"What is it doing?" Ahcehera whispered, her voice laced with dread.
Before she could utter another word, the core moved. It shot toward Richard with blinding speed, its energy screaming through the air like a vengeful spirit.
"No!" Ahcehera screamed, struggling against the chains with renewed desperation.
The core slammed into Richard's chest, its dark energy spreading across his body like a living infection.
He let out an agonized howl, his body convulsing as the energy invaded him. The pain was unbearable. Richard's human form began to shift involuntarily.
His bones cracked, his muscles expanded, and his skin was replaced by jet-black fur that shimmered with a strange, otherworldly sheen.
