Monarch of Darkness, Arsene

Driving my heart into the young Djinn, blood gushed from the little brat’s lips as a look of confusion, hate, and despair filled his eyes. However, before he could say a word, nodes of darkness rose from my arm that was impaled in his chest.

I tarnished every part of the boy. Turning him from a Djinn into something more. Something of relevance. While Djinns were powerful, they couldn’t compare to the power a Shadowfell possesses.

“Hmmm. Lily, I just had a thought. How do I cultivate a race?”

“Send your skills down the line. Shadow Step, the Hive Mind, and so on and so forth. Make it a bloodline skill. The Shadowfell already has access to your forsaken heritage. Freya proved that. Give them a bone or two. No need to be greedy when you’re the Progenitor. Look at the Angels. They share everything. You recently created a new technique that transfers energy to another plane, almost like banish. Send that down the line. Make your race resilient.”

Falling into thought, I removed my arm from Adrian’s chest cavity and watched as the hole I created faded away as though it wasn’t even there. Shutters suddenly ran over the young boy’s shoulders as his eye’s rolled to the back of his head, following the intricate lines of Abyssal, Hell, and Night emerged, twisting and weaving till my crest found its way over the boy’s chest. I smiled.

Lily was right. While I didn’t like the idea of spreading my skills. My people needed to rival Angels and Hell Fiends. If they can’t awaken Mother’s bloodlines, they need to use the power of Hell and Night.

Reaching deep into myself, to the core of my blood lodged deep into my soul, I stared at the glowing red and Black flame, blazing a fiendish aura. Like it was a caged beast that craved blood and nothing more, I felt its killing intent flare merely to my presence.

It did not grow docile. No, it didn’t do any of that. It merely flared up. Trying to match my aura with its.

“There is pride in my blood.” I mused aloud. “Good. Then… I shall spread a fragment of my Abyssal Pride and perhaps my Wrath.”

“Arsene!” Lily yelped. “That’s… that’s crazy! You’re…”

“My race needs to be supreme. And what’s better than a derivative of my Abyssal Sin? Pride and Wrath. They may call it what they want. But said weapon would be born from their soul. They’ll possess a weapon that will break the system.”

“There is always a price… I do not recommend it.”

“The price will be madness, Lily! Utter madness. It will be a Generational Madness. If the Shadowfell cannot rise, They will fall into lowly devils and demons. Ravenous beast. But if they can master their madness. Mold it through the generations. Then… then there may be a chance that the Abyssal FIends are pushed off their Supreme Throne.”

Staring, if not glaring, at my bloodline, I took hold of a small flame hissing with a cruel flame. “We are at war. And there is no time for weakness. Survival of the Fittest. Shall always reign supreme.

Transferring all my knowledge and a fragment of my Abyssal Sins so that my Shadowfell will have a similar path to this king, a pulse so strong, I paused mid-flight rippled out of me, causing the Fourth Heaven to shutter.

Looking skywards towards the Bed of Chaos, I could almost feel a faint presence of a being staring at me. A spirit that I knew all too well.

Shooting the Holy Spirit a wink, I smiled and ran. The fault isn’t on me anymore. God gave everyone a choice. And I’m giving everyone skills. What they do with it is up to them.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH~” Howling in my ear, I dropped Adrian from the skies and allowed his body to plummet to the grassy plain below.

However, two wings of blazing fire sprang from his back as his eyes snapped open. Spiraling with gold and red flames, the young Shadowfell glared at me.

“Oh? Are you going to challenge me?” I smiled and beckoned to the boy. ” You should be able to feel a dozen skills in your little soul. Use them on this king if you can. I wish to see it.”

Spiraling lines abyssal in script covered young Adrian as he growled, his eyes pooling with tears and killing intent.

Ripples through space and time shroud the great planes we stood, sealing the laws around us. Adrian trembled, opening his palm as laws began to bleed, to weep as a vicious sensation pooled through heaven and earth, rippling around Iluthath like a ravenous beast demanding death. 𝚘𝚟𝚕．ｔ

I had never called upon Wrath. But even I stood frozen that such a power could come from a child… A nascent soul no less.

“Even… even if I have to sacrifice my soul… I’ll kill you!” The boy howled as his eyes turned fully red.

“Then show me your Wrath.” I challenged, waiting for the blade to materialize.

Trembling as his skin grew pale like the dead, the hair over Adrian turned ashen like mine as he let loose one final roar. The winds rushed toward me like a beast, striking at my clothing as a sword black in nature appeared, carrying a demonic pressure.

Vanishing, to my surprise, I couldn’t help but smile at the Shadow Step that happened so abruptly as Adrian appeared to my flank, cleaving his sword down on my neck.

I could have dodged and used my own Shadow Step, but I wanted to feel the power of that blade. The only ones capable of cutting through my body were High Gods or Elder Gods.

“DIE!” He howled, cleaving down on my neck, striking at my flesh; a thunderous ding echoed, turning grass and plants to ash. Looking down at Adrian as he looked up with widened eyes, I touched my neck.

Blood wasn’t drawn, but there was a bruise. Adrian had managed to cut the outer skin. Such a blade could kill a High God. It could even kill an Elder God! By the Hells I’m good.

Staring at Adrian as he looked up, seemingly losing his anger, sudden arcs of black lightning crawled along his dark blade and suddenly spanged up from Wrath, devouring the little champ in a web.

Hellish wails carrying the will of the Abyss, and Hell spilled from Adrian’s lips as he plummeted downwards, hitting the surface of Iluthath with a loud thud.

“Hmmm.” I hummed in response, staring at his soul withering before my eyes. It wasn’t dying, more like becoming tainted.

“Interesting. Not a bad backlash; Adrian will need some souls to dampen the backlash. Or use a wish. He still should have retained his Djinn abilities.”