ARC II — "THE FALL OF THE FALSE GODS"
The battlefield fell silent, but only for a heartbeat.
Kurotsume's body collapsed to the shattered ground, blood mixing with rain, his aura sputtering and fading. The generals froze, sensing the shift. The storm above didn't roar anymore — the world itself seemed to pause.
Siel ran to his side, panic in her eyes. "Kurotsume! Stay with me!"
The demon hissed inside him, frantic.
"No… not now! Don't let him—"
But Kurotsume was already gone. Consciousness slipping, the battlefield melting into shadow. His body fell limp, but his mind drifted — deep, deep into the past.
Flashback — The Origin of the Abyssal Revenant
Long ago, in a void between worlds, a being existed that was neither alien nor human. It was the first fragment — a creation of Vorak himself, meant to store the essence of lost gods, a vessel for ultimate power.
It had eyes like collapsing galaxies, skin that shifted between shadows and silver flame. It was immortal in its rage, but trapped, unable to touch the physical world.
Centuries passed. The fragment's essence became whispered legend — a story in forbidden texts, eventually called the Abyssal Revenant. It hungered for freedom, longing for a host to awaken it.
And then… a child was born on a distant planet — a child with a soul capable of synchronizing with fragments of power.
"You carry me, even before you know," the fragment whispered, unseen.
"You are my vessel. And I am yours."
The child grew — Adrian. He rebelled against aliens, fought for justice, and defied death. Every trauma, every loss, every moment of rage — it resonated with the fragment inside, awakening slivers of power.
But the fragment remained dormant, waiting for the moment of ultimate trial. It required near-death, overwhelming force, and the convergence of both human will and demon pact. Only then would it merge with the host — reborn, unstoppable, and beyond comprehension.
Kurotsume — unconscious, battered, yet determined — walked through visions of endless voids. Shadows of past hosts, failed fragments, and whispers of Vorak's manipulations surrounded him.
The demon inside whispered, awe-struck.
"It… it's real. The legend… it's in him."
And then, a memory — a voice faint, almost lost to time.
"Human. One day, you will awaken me. And when you do… the world will bend to your will."
Kurotsume's hand twitched unconsciously, even in faintness. The fragment within him stirred, responding to his suppressed rage, pain, and determination.
The flashback began to collapse. The battlefield returned — rain, smoke, fire, the generals standing over him — but something had changed.
Even unconscious, even broken, a faint glow emanated from Kurotsume's chest, silver and white, like the heartbeat of the fragment itself.
Siel's eyes widened.
"What… what is that?"
The demon, voice reverent, almost trembling:
"It's him. It's beginning. The Abyssal Revenant… is awakening."
And the chapter ended with the battlefield trembling again — Kurotsume lying unconscious, but the first true stirrings of his ultimate form beginning to manifest.