Demon Sovereign

The night air was thick with tension as the recruits of the Nightborn Order assembled at the edge of the Cursed Forest. Torches flickered in the wind, casting elongated shadows across the ancient ruins where the Final Selection would begin. The stone pillars, worn and cracked from centuries of forgotten battles, loomed over the gathering like silent sentinels, watching the next generation step forward to face their fate.

Alex Sterling stood among them, his heart pounding in sync with the rhythmic drumming of his anxious thoughts. He could still feel the lingering effects of his unstable power from the earlier trials, the dark energy simmering beneath his skin, waiting for the right or wrong moment to erupt. Tonight, there would be no controlled demonstrations, no guiding hands to restrain their abilities. Tonight, only survival mattered.

At the front of the assembly, Elder Magnus, a grizzled warrior whose face bore the scars of countless battles, raised his hand for silence. His gaze swept over the gathered recruits, each of them standing at the threshold of becoming true hunters.

"This is your final test," his voice echoed through the ruins. "Beyond this point lies the Cursed Forest a domain where demons and their undead servants roam freely. You will enter unarmed, forced to rely on your instincts, your training, and the power you hold within."

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Unarmed? Even for recruits who had trained for years, that seemed like a death sentence.

Elder Magnus continued, undeterred. "Inside, you will face horrors unlike anything you've encountered before. The demons within are not just creatures of darkness they are hunters, bred to tear apart the weak. The zombies that serve them are mindless, relentless, and without fear. But if you endure, if you stand against the abyss and do not break, you will be reborn as true warriors of the Nightborn Order."

The weight of his words pressed down on them, but Alex straightened his back. He had already survived worse. His entire family had been slaughtered before his eyes. He had stood against the darkness and lived. This was just another battle.

Then his gaze flickered to Zane, who was trembling beside him, eyes darting toward the forest's entrance.

"Oh gods, oh gods, I'm going to die," Zane whispered, his voice barely above a breath. "Why did I agree to this? I should've been a merchant… or a farmer… or"

Alex nudged him with his elbow. "You'll be fine," he said, though he wasn't sure if the words were meant for Zane or for himself.

Zane gulped. "You say that, but I'm already seeing my funeral."

A horn sounded, sharp and chilling against the night. The gates of the ruins groaned open, revealing the twisted path that led into the Cursed Forest. A chilling wind blew from within, carrying the scent of decay and something far worse the unmistakable stench of demons.

The trial had begun.

The Descent into Darkness

As the recruits stepped through the gates, the torchlight behind them faded, swallowed by the oppressive gloom of the Cursed Forest. Thick mist curled around their feet, the skeletal branches above stretching like grasping fingers, blotting out the moon.

They had been told that demons were strongest in the dark. Alex could already feel the weight of unseen eyes watching from the depths of the trees.

The ground beneath them was uneven, shifting with every step as if something lurked just beneath the surface. Then, from the silence, came a distant, wet sound.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Alex's pulse quickened. He glanced up. Something was hanging from the branches. Bodies. Desiccated corpses swayed gently in the cold wind, their empty sockets staring down at the recruits. And beneath them, clawed footprints marred the damp earth fresh and deep.

"We're not alone," Alex muttered.

A scream tore through the silence.

From the trees, shadows erupted grotesque figures with twisted limbs and hollow eyes, their movements jerky and unnatural.

Zombies. The first wave of the demons' servants.

One recruit panicked, bolting for the entrance they had come through. He didn't make it five steps before a shadow lunged from the mist, a blur of blackened claws. His scream was cut short as he was dragged into the darkness, vanishing into the void.

The rest of the recruits broke into chaos. Some ran, others froze in terror, while a few braced themselves for battle with nothing but their bare hands.

Alex clenched his fists. This is it. Fight or die.

The first zombie lunged at him, its jaw unhinging grotesquely. He sidestepped just as it swiped at his throat, feeling the rush of foul breath against his skin. Instinct took over. He grabbed a nearby stone from the ground and slammed it into the creature's skull. The impact sent a sickening crunch through the air, but the zombie barely flinched.

"Damn it," Alex growled.

Then a blue-white flash streaked past him.

Zane.

Or rather, the Zane that existed in his moments of desperation. His entire body surged with lightning, his trembling frame moving faster than the eye could follow. In an instant, he sliced through three zombies with a single, electrified strike, the air crackling in his wake.

Then he stopped, blinking as though coming out of a trance. "Oh gods," he whimpered. "I don't even know how I did that."

Alex didn't have time to be impressed. More figures were emerging from the fog not just zombies this time, but the true monsters of the night.

Demons.

The first one stepped forward, its elongated limbs bending at unnatural angles, its maw stretching into a grin filled with needle-like teeth.

"More prey," it whispered, voice like rust scraping against bone.

Alex's dark energy flared in response, the raw, untamed power within him surging dangerously close to the surface. He could feel the pulse of something deep within him a force waiting to be unleashed.

But control was key.

He tightened his fists. Not yet. Not until I understand what I truly am.

"Stay together!" someone shouted from within the chaos.

The battle had begun.

And only those who survived would walk out as true Nightborn Hunters.