I plummeted endlessly through the blackness as the emptiness consumed me entirely. While I descended, his energy swirled around me, jolting through my form like electric currents. My body began to metamorphose - I stretched upward, my frame shifting and expanding into a muscular build as though I'd spent decades in intense physical conditioning.
The void stretched endlessly around me, a living darkness that pulsed with ancient power. As I continued to fall, something stirred deep within - a connection to the shadows themselves. The darkness no longer felt alien or threatening. Instead, it flowed through my veins like liquid night, becoming an extension of my will.
My descent slowed, then stopped. I hung suspended in the endless black, feeling the power course through every fiber of my transformed body. The darkness responded to my thoughts, swirling and dancing around me like an eager servant awaiting command.
"I... see..." My voice echoed through the void, deeper than before. "So this means I control the void now."
I slashed my hand through the air, cutting through reality itself. The darkness obeyed, parting like a curtain torn asunder. The void dissolved around me, revealing the forest clearing once more.
My feet touched solid ground. Zarthus, the mighty demon lord, dropped to one knee before me. His head bowed low, an ancient being of immense power showing complete submission.
"I see you made it back," he intoned, his voice resonating with dark pride. "From this point on you will be my master."
I approached him with measured steps, my new height allowing me to look down at his kneeling form. The darkness still clung to me like a second skin, ready to respond to my slightest whim. Standing before him, I felt the weight of this moment - a demon lord pledging himself to a former street urchin who now commanded the very shadows themselves.
"Fascinating," I remarked while surveying the forbidding woodland. The atmosphere filled my lungs with ease, and my vision extended far beyond its previous limits. "Are you enjoying your newfound abilities?" Zarthus questioned as he rose to his feet, observing me as I continued examining the landscape.
I turned to face Zarthus, catching my reflection in a nearby pool of water. The change was striking - my once-small frame had transformed into a powerful physique, muscles rippling beneath my torn clothes. My eyes had changed too, now holding an otherworldly gleam that spoke of the darkness flowing through me.
"The transformation is complete," Zarthus's deep voice rumbled. "Your mortal shell has been remade to contain the power I've given you. But this is merely the beginning."
"What else can I do?" The words came out in a voice I barely recognized as my own - deeper, more commanding.
"The armies that once served me now belong to you. My legions await your call." His lips curved into a knowing smile. "Say 'Arise.'"
I raised my hand, feeling the power surge through me. "Arise."
The word echoed through the forest with supernatural force. Darkness flooded the clearing like an incoming tide, spreading between the trees and pooling in every shadow. From these depths, figures began to emerge.
First came the warriors, their armor as black as midnight, weapons gleaming with an unnatural sheen. Behind them, robed figures glided forward - demon mages whose hands crackled with dark energy. Monsters of every description followed: grotesque beasts with too many limbs, winged horrors that blocked out what little light remained, creatures that seemed made of living shadow.
They kept coming, an endless stream of nightmares made flesh. The forest, once empty, now teemed with my demon army. Thousands of eyes fixed upon me, burning with ancient power and newfound loyalty.
As one, they dropped to their knees. The sound of their genuflection was like thunder, a physical force that shook the earth. Row upon row of demons, monsters, and dark warriors - all bowing before me.
"This," Zarthus said, his voice thick with satisfaction, "is power."
I surveyed my army, these beings of nightmare who now called me master. Each one could level a village single-handedly. Together, they could reshape the world. My world. The same world that had cast me out, left me to starve, treated me like dirt.
"How many?" I asked, my voice carrying across the sea of kneeling figures.
"Tens of thousands. And these are merely the ones within reach. More will come when called." Zarthus moved to stand beside me. "Your army awaits your command, Master."
I stepped forward, feeling the raw power coursing through my veins. The army before me, a sea of darkness and terror, waited for my command. With a wave of my hands, I channeled the newfound energy within me. The shadows responded instantly, swirling and writhing like living ink. In the blink of an eye, my legion vanished, dissolving into the ether as if they'd never existed.
"I will make this world bow to me with these powers." My voice came out dark and trembling, resonating with the authority of my newfound strength. The words echoed through the clearing, carrying the weight of a promise - or perhaps a threat.
Zarthus's lips curved into a proud smile, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "For now I will also be in your shadows as humans will be scared if they see me. If you need me just call my name and I will appear."
Before I could respond, his form melted away, merging with my shadow. The sensation was strange - like having an extra limb I couldn't see but could somehow feel. My shadow seemed darker now, more substantial, pulsing with an energy that matched my heartbeat.
I turned my attention to the forest around me. The trees that had seemed so imposing before now appeared ordinary, their mysterious aura fading. The seal that had trapped Zarthus for centuries was broken, and with it, the supernatural darkness that had pervaded this place began to lift.
My feet carried me forward, each step purposeful as I navigated through the thinning woods. The path ahead grew clearer as nature reclaimed its territory from the magical barrier that had warped it for so long. Shafts of sunlight began to pierce through the canopy, creating patches of warmth on the forest floor.
As I approached the forest's edge, a sound caught my attention - voices, multiple ones, growing louder. I pressed myself against a thick oak tree, peering around its trunk. Through the last few trees, I spotted a group of Imperial Guards, their polished armor gleaming in the afternoon sun. They were gathered around something I couldn't quite see, their voices urgent and concerned.
"...never seen anything like it," one guard said, his voice carrying clearly through the still air. "The barrier just... disappeared."
"The Emperor needs to know about this immediately," another replied. "If what was contained here has escaped..."
I held my breath, feeling Zarthus's presence stir in my shadow. The guards were closer now, their heavy boots crunching through the underbrush. One of them turned, his eyes scanning the treeline. I pressed myself flatter against the trunk, my heart pounding. But as his gaze swept past my hiding spot, something unexpected happened - he looked right through me, as if I wasn't there.
A branch snapped beneath my foot.
The guard's head whipped around, hand flying to his sword. "Did you hear that?"