The arena fell quiet in the aftermath of the brutal trial. The once-boisterous cacophony of hopeful initiates had been reduced to eerie silence. Blood soaked the ground, and bodies—some still twitching, others already dead—lay scattered across the pit.
Kael stood tall amidst the carnage, his chest rising and falling as if he had just been on a leisurely walk. His shadow, ever restless, shifted at his feet, growing and pulsating with the taste of death it had just devoured. Around him, the others were motionless, their eyes wide with fear and awe.
The instructor, who had been watching from the sidelines, was the first to break the silence. He stepped forward, his heavy boots clanking against the stone floor.
"Impressive," the instructor muttered, his voice thick with disbelief. "I've seen many, but none like you. Number 9999... Do you realize what you've just done?"
Kael didn't respond immediately. He let the words hang in the air, knowing the weight they carried. His gaze remained locked on the instructor, who had begun to step back, instinctively sensing the dangerous energy radiating from Kael.
With a slow, deliberate motion, Kael turned his attention to the remaining initiates—now only a handful of them, their faces pale and defeated. They knew, as Kael did, that they had just witnessed something that could not be stopped. They were prey in a predator's domain.
One of the initiates, a tall, dark-skinned girl with a dagger at her side, hesitated before speaking. Her voice trembled, but her defiance was clear. "You... You're no ordinary slave. Who are you, really?"
Kael's lips curled into a small, cold smile. "I'm the one who survives."
The girl didn't reply, but her eyes narrowed with a mix of fear and curiosity. She, like the others, had felt the shadows swirling around Kael, the unnatural power that radiated from him. They had witnessed him bend the very essence of darkness to his will, but they didn't yet understand the true depth of his abilities.
The instructor cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable with the tension growing in the arena. "Enough of this. You've earned your place, Number 9999. You're a beast, and we'll see just how well you fare in the next phase."
Kael's eyes flicked toward him, and for a moment, there was a glimmer of something ancient and predatory in his gaze.
"The next phase?" Kael asked, his voice calm and steady, though a dangerous edge lingered beneath the surface.
The instructor hesitated but nodded. "Yes. The Master's Trial. You'll be pitted against the elite assassins of the academy. Those who survive this trial are either deemed worthy of becoming part of the high council... or disposed of."
Kael's expression remained unchanged. "And what happens to the weak?"
The instructor's lips twitched in a half-smile, one that didn't quite reach his eyes. "The weak fall. The strong rule. You'll either join us or be crushed beneath our feet. It's how the world works here."
Kael's eyes narrowed. The subtle threat in the instructor's words did not go unnoticed. But Kael wasn't interested in playing by the academy's rules. He wasn't here to serve anyone. He was here to take control.
"I don't join. I dominate," Kael said, his voice low and firm.
---
The Master's Trial
The following day, Kael was led to the highest arena of the academy, where the elite of the assassins trained—where the truly powerful fought to prove their worth. This arena was different. It was massive, its walls towering above, designed not just for combat, but for survival. Here, Kael would face off against the top-ranked assassins, each one a monster in their own right.
The arena floor was covered in dense mist, and the air smelled of blood and iron. At the far end, a large obsidian gate stood, crackling with dark energy. From behind it, Kael could hear faint whispers—voices of those who had failed before him. They echoed through the silence, like the ghosts of the past.
He was not intimidated.
The instructor stood beside him, watching the gate with a mix of anticipation and dread. "These are the academy's finest. Assassins who have survived the most brutal trials. You'll face them one by one. Fail, and you will join the ranks of the dead."
Kael's lips curled into a dark smile. "Failure is not an option."
With a loud groan, the obsidian gate slowly opened, revealing the first challenger: a woman, tall and lithe, with raven-black hair and crimson eyes. She wore a dark cloak that shimmered in the light, and her hands were covered in black gloves, each finger tipped with an intricate, razor-sharp blade.
She stepped forward with deadly grace, her eyes locked onto Kael's. "I am Lyssa, the Blade of Shadows," she declared, her voice smooth as silk but laced with venom. "I will make sure your reign ends before it truly begins."
Kael didn't respond immediately. He let the silence hang, feeling the weight of her words, the presence of death that lingered in the air around them.
"Let's see if you're truly worthy of those words," Kael finally said, his voice calm but carrying an underlying promise of destruction.
Without warning, Lyssa moved. She blurred into motion, faster than the eye could follow, her blades flashing as she attacked with deadly precision. She struck at Kael's chest, aiming for a lethal blow. But Kael was already gone.
He had dissolved into shadow.
Lyssa's blades met nothing but air as Kael's form flickered, disappearing into the darkness. The shadows seemed to bend to his will, stretching and shifting as he moved within them. He was everywhere and nowhere, a living nightmare.
Lyssa snarled, her crimson eyes narrowing as she tried to track him. But Kael was already behind her.
"Not bad," Kael said, his voice dripping with amusement.
He reached out, his fingers brushing against her shoulder. The shadows followed his lead, twisting around her arms and legs like serpents, binding her in place.
"Let's see if you can escape from this."
With a single motion, Kael's shadow tendrils tightened, pulling her to the ground with an unnatural force. Lyssa struggled, but Kael's grip was ironclad.
Then, in an instant, Kael's shadow lashed out, piercing through her defenses. With a twisted, agonized scream, Lyssa collapsed, her body crumpling in the shadows.
Kael stood over her, watching as her form was consumed by the very darkness that had been her downfall.
"Another one down," Kael said coldly, his eyes gleaming with power.
---
The crowd watching from the upper tiers of the arena remained silent. The instructor's eyes widened in disbelief. Lyssa, one of the most feared assassins in the academy, had fallen before Kael in a matter of seconds.
Kael turned his gaze toward the next challenger as the gate opened once more.
The next trial awaited.
But Kael knew this—no matter who stood before him, he was unstoppable.