Shadow Slave: Arcadius of the Forgotten

Cade had discovered another aspect to his new connection with the Darkness. He could use it to augment his weapons or armor, one at a time. And the augmentation was pretty great.

He wasn't completely sure if this extension of his Aspect Ability was new or if he'd always had it. It had taken him quite a number of battles to realize that he had this power. But he still hadn't managed to figure out how to augment himself with the Darkness. He wasn't sure if he could even do that, but he was hopeful.

However, right now, being hopeful would only get him killed.

He dissolved once more, and his furious consciousness surged forward. Cade materialized just below the towering abomination's massive ribcage, his form condensing from the black mist.

Gritting his teeth, Cade drove the Darkness-clad blade upward. This time, the Voidfang pierced through and cracked one of the abomination's enormous ribs. Not easily, but it was enough to make the creature recoil. Black blood sprayed from the wound and painted Cade's face.

He grimaced and the abomination howled— a guttural, ear-splitting sound that rattled the very air of the underground chamber. It aimed one of its elongated limbs right where Cade had dealt the wound while the other one lashed out in a wild frenzy. The obsidian claws tore through the black mist and chunks of rock and debris were sent flying.

Cade dissolved into the Darkness once more, barely avoiding the claw that had shot toward him. He reappeared a few paces away, only to vanish again before another blow could connect. He was everywhere and nowhere, all at once. His Darkness-drenched form was a blur of motion and steel.

Yet for all his newfound power, the abomination was simply relentless. It adapted quickly. It swung its massive limbs in unpredictable patterns, forcing Cade to stay on the move and look for better openings.

Sadly, there weren't any that he could sense. The wild flailing of the abomination made the task near impossible. All he could do was poke and prod at it with the Voidfang's blade.

His dissolving and materializing seemed to grow slower. The toll of utilizing the Darkness-form weighed on him. Each time he struck, his blade carved deeper into the creature's flesh, but the thing's wounds seemed to reknit almost as quickly as they formed.

The chamber became a battlefield of chaos and Darkness. The Darkness swirled violently. It obscured all but flashes of movement: the creature's massive claws slicing through the mist, Cade's blade glowing faintly with the eerie light emanating from within the abomination's hollow eyes as it struck again and again.

The creature's resilience was monstrous. Cade's strikes, even with his augmented blade, barely kept it at bay. It wasn't just powerful— it was seemingly unstoppable.

Cade felt exhaustion creeping in. His breaths, when he was tangible, came in ragged gasps. The Darkness around him thinned slightly with each exertion. And on top of that, there was the rage.

It clawed at his mind, whispering for him to let go of what little sanity he had left. It begged him to give in to the primal fury bubbling beneath the surface completely, to let it consume him entirely.

But he held on, if only barely.

The abomination lunged again, apparently even faster than before. Or maybe it was Cade who was growing slower. He didn't have time to dissolve into the mist or to evade the strike. The creature's massive claw swung with terrifying speed, catching him and tearing through his armor's shoulder plate. The blow sent Cade skidding across the chamber's floor.

Cade hissed, and planted the Voidfang into the ground to slow his sprawl. Pain bloomed where the armor had been hit and blood pooled around the wound, but he didn't falter. He couldn't afford to. He scrambled to his feet and commanded the Darkness to heal him. The Darkness gathered around him like a living thing. His pain vanished as his wound closed itself.

"Oh, you'll pay for that, you ugly son of a bitch..." he muttered through gritted teeth.

Cade had grown tired from dissolving and reappearing again and again. The price of utilizing his Darkness-form for too long was steep. So, he took a deep breath, clenched his jaw and broke out in a sprint, circling the towering abomination.

The abomination was clearly oblivious as to where he was— after all, the True Darkness had blinded it. So, Cade felt that maybe he could deliver a blow, unseen and unnoticed.

He stopped at the abomination's heel and smiled with murder in his eyes, hoping to strike against its hindlimb and make it lose its footing.

But the moment he lifted his blade, he sensed something through his connection with the Darkness. He gaze snapped toward his left. The mist there convulsed, and one of the translucent tentacles he had glimpsed earlier shot toward him with terrifying speed. There was no time to dodge.

His Battle Master instinct took over— he snapped his forearms up, crossing them over his chest, and braced for the monstrous impact.

But it never came.

Instead, the tentacle... passed right through him.

Cade's eyes widened. Was this an illusion? A mind-attack? Was the creature using deception to mask its true assault? He focused sharply on his connection with the Darkness. His muscles tensed, expecting a follow-up— a flash of armored claws lunging for his throat or his torso.

But no strike came.

Instead, more tentacles surged toward him, writhing through the Darkness like spectral limbs. Even though Cade sensed the ethereal appendages, he wasn't fast enough to evade them. The tentacles connected. But just like before... they all passed through his body, as if he weren't even there.

Harmless. Or at least, seemingly so.

But Cade knew better. So, he didn't linger.

He dissolved into the Darkness once more. Exhaustion he could deal with, but he didn't have the luxury of time. The longer the battle dragged out, the more his rage and strain would pile up. He had to finish this quick.

So, this time, he didn't reappear immediately. He stayed one with the Darkness for as long as he could hold the Darkness-form. His consciousness moved through it like a wraith. His presence was a mere whisper, a fleeting shadow.

The abomination seemed to grow restless for some reason. It swung wildly. Its claws tore through empty air and the tentacles moved through the mist like sentient serpents. The monstrosity's hollow eyes burned brighter as it searched this realm of True Darkness for Cade.

Then, Cade struck. Out of nowhere.

His blade materialized first, plunging deep into the creature's side. Cade let go of the Voidfang and reformed above it. Gravity seized him in an instant and he smiled darkly. As he dropped and accelerated, his armored boots found the exposed hilt of the blade still jutting from the abomination's body.

He threw all his weight onto it, driving the weapon downward and opening the abomination up. Flesh, or whatever passed for it, split apart with a sickening tear. A grotesque spill of viscous, inky innards sloshed from the gaping wound. They reeked of rot and something far worse— something wrong.

The creature let out a guttural, ear-splitting roar. The sound was a raw, tortured blend of rage and agony. It shook the very air around them. The creature's monstrous form convulsed. It writhed as if trying to reject the pain. Its limbs flailed wildly. The Darkness itself seemed to recoil at the unearthly sound it emitted.

In that moment, Cade felt satisfaction. But he didn't have time to celebrate, lest he be drenched in the ghastly black blood. He dropped low, and seized the hilt of the Voidfang. Then, both he and his blade dissolved into the mist once more.

He reformed in a blur, slashing across the abomination's leg, then its arm, then its chest. The creature was still reeling from the wound at its side. So, Cade took advantage of its pain.

Each strike was precise, deliberate, and laced with murderous intent. Cade meant to dismantle the abomination piece by piece, cause it the pain that it hadn't felt in ages. Every cut chipped away at its strength, forcing it into a desperate frenzy.

But the toll was immense as well. Cade's mind screamed in protest, fraying under the weight of exhaustion and rage. Even when he didn't have a body, he could still feel the strain. He could tell that his strength was waning. His vision blurred. The Darkness around him flickered. It threatened to retreat entirely.

Yet, he pressed on, driven by sheer will and carried by the thrill of battle. He reveled in the pain he caused the abominable thing. As the behemoth shrieked, Cade smiled in glee despite himself.

Finally, with one last surge of strength, he materialized onto the creature's back, and swung the Voidfang in a wide arc, cutting off the spikes jutting out of the creature as if they were nothing but dry branches.

He found a weaker looking section of the flesh, and drove his Darkness-coated blade into the base of its skull. The abomination thrashed violently. Its guttural howls echoed through the chamber as it tried to shake him off. But Cade held firm, twisting the blade deeper viciously. He poured every ounce of his remaining strength into the strike.

As Cade twisted and turned the blade, the tentacles surged behind him once more, but again... they seemed to pass through him without dealing any damage whatsoever. Cade paid the writhing appendages no mind. He was currently in the middle of causing the abomination as much pain and suffering as he possibly could.

He pulled and freed the Voidfang; then he drove it forward again, then again and again.

"Die. Die, you ugly son of a bitch!" he shot through gritted teeth. "Just fucking DIE already!"

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of stabbing and shrieking, the abomination staggered. Its massive frame collapsed to its knees. Cade leapt off just as it fell, landing on the ground.

His legs barely held him up. He also dropped to one knee, using the Voidfang's blade to stay upright. He stood there, panting, as the creature let out one final, shuddering breath before crumpling to the floor.

The voice of the Nightmare Spell spoke, reluctant, yes, but not neglectful:

[You have slain an Awakened Tyrant, Dread Revenant]. 

[You have received a Memory: Oblivion Reaver] 

[... The Darkness within you takes root.] 

[The abyss within you deepens.] 

Cade's eyes widened slightly as the chamber fell silent, save for the sound of his labored breathing and the incessant dripping of water.

He had not received a Memory ever since getting the Drowned Eye two weeks ago. He smiled, and recalled his Darkness. As the Darkness retreated, it left the space around him eerily quiet. As the rage ebbed away, the dull ache of his battered body took over.

*** 

Cade lay atop the Flat Hill, facing upwards toward the starless void. The black waters bubbled, and the Dark Sea returned. Cade still felt somewhat uncomfortable during the nights because the Dark Sea's presence had become much more profound ever since his transformation. But he'd learned to suppress the unease.

He had managed to make his way back to the Flat Hill without many Nightmare Creatures crossing his path. Much of that peaceful journey was due to the Crimson Guide, which pointed him to take all the right turns at all the right places.

The gruesome battlefield slick with Strider blood and the crevice in which the Dread Revenant had dwelled were located almost midway between the Flat Hill and the Bone Ridge. As the trio had decided to move on to the Bone Ridge, Cade had retreated to the Flat Hill.

The last couple of weeks had been quite... disgusting, to say the least. Almost every day, he had returned to the Knight's statue slick with blood. Today was no different, apart from the fact that the location had changed.

But it was worth it.

He summoned his runes to take a look at his progress: 

Fragments of the Abyss: [505/1000] 

He smiled. Halfway there, he mused. I do hope that forming another Abyssal Core won't be as painful as forming the first one was.

He shifted his gaze towards a different set of runes: 

Darkness Saturation: [23%] 

His reserves were very vast now. So, even if it didn't seem like it, twenty-three percent Darkness Saturation was quite a lot.

Finally, he took a look at the new Memory he had gotten: 

Memory: [Oblivion Reaver]. 

Memory Rank: Awakened. 

Memory Type: Weapon. 

A weapon, huh? he thought. Well, I guess that much was obvious from the name. Still, I already have a pretty decent sword, though. And with the Darkness augmentation, its Tier gets almost doubled. So, my augmented blade and this new weapon should be at roughly equal footing.

He didn't really care about what kind of a weapon it was, since he was proficient in using any and all weapons but he decided to read its description either way: 

Memory Description: [There was no dawn on this forgotten shore, only the endless embrace of the void. Whatever once lived here was touched by a darkness older than memory itself.

The sea blackened, the creatures twisted, and the Revenant rose from the depths— its body a vessel for something that should not have been. 

This blade does not strike the body, yet its wounds linger. What it claims is beyond steel and stone. What it touches, it marks, and what it marks, it consumes.] 

Well, what else did I expect? Goddamn Spell... he thought, feeling a little frustrated at the all but expected, cryptic description. However, it did seem to tell him something.

Hmmm, it looks like it deals soul damage, he thought. Maybe? I think it'd be safe to assume that the Revenant itself actually used soul attacks. Yeah, I had that uneasy feeling as soon as I entered its chamber.

Cade had concluded that those tentacles which had passed through him several times during the battle, were actually supposed to deal soul damage. But since he didn't have a soul, those attacks proved ineffective against him.

That would explain why I was able to defeat an Awakened Tyrant so easily... he thought. Or who knows? Maybe I'm just that awesome. Anyway, I am in desperate need of some rest right now. I'll test the weapon tomorrow.

And with that thought, he dismissed his runes, turned over to his side and fell asleep right where he had been lying.

In the morning, he awoke to the sound of the Dark Sea retreating back into whatever abyss it crawled out of every night. Cade sat up and stretched lightly.

Alright, he thought. What to do today?

He had some strips of Scavenger flesh in his seaweed rucksack that he carried around with him. So, he decided that he would have breakfast first. Then, he wanted to take a look at the new weapon he had gotten yesterday.

So, without wasting any time, he summoned the Flameheart Forge and started roasting some monster meat. While the meat strips were resting on the grill of the Flameheart Forge, he decided to summon the Oblivion Reaver to take a good look at it.

As always, the Memory weaved itself out of Darkness. And soon, a short sword appeared in his right hand. It wasn't like a typical sword. Its blade wasn't straight but undulating, almost serpentine. It rippled with a wave-like pattern, giving the impression of a shadow frozen in time.

The entire weapon was abyssal black, a darkness so profound that it seemed to drink in the light around it, leaving the edges indistinct and hazy.

The hilt was wrapped in a material that resembled polished onyx, smooth yet cold to the touch, and etched with faint, nearly imperceptible runes that pulsed softly when wielded.

Its cross-guard, jagged and sharp, splayed outward like fractured obsidian claws. Every detail of the sword carried an otherworldly elegance, yet there was a primal, harrowing weight to its presence.

Cade got up, the Reaver held in his right hand, and gave it a few swings. It felt good in his hand; well, every weapon felt good in his hand. But the Reaver was... subtly different. Cade saw a big boulder lying at his side and brought the Reaver down in a breathtaking diagonal slash, hoping to split the rock in two.

But the blade passed through the rock, as if it wasn't there at all.

I figured as much, Cade thought as he took one last look at the serpentine blade, and then dismissed it.

It seemed that his assumption about the Reaver being able to deal soul damage was correct. And that was a good thing... a very good thing. Being able to damage an enemy's soul was an advantage that no one would want their opponent to have.

Sadly, it seemed that the Reaver could only deal soul damage. It did not even leave a scratch on the rock, something that didn't possess a soul. While dealing soul damage had its own perks, the blade itself would prove quite useless against enemies of higher Ranks because their souls would be more or less immune to the damage it could deal.

But that was alright. Having such a terrifying weapon was a good enough thing, and Cade would not let something that might or might not happen sour his mood.

So, he moved to sit beside the Flameheart Forge and decided to enjoy his breakfast, tasteless as it was, in peace. He sat, chewing lazily on a piece of roasted meat. His body leaned slightly to one side, his weight resting on a palm pressed against the cool stone beneath him.

He gazed out into the distance towards west, in the direction of the Bone Ridge. His legs were stretched out in front of him, his posture was relaxed, almost carefree.

I wonder how Cassie's doing...

As soon as the thought crossed his mind... without a warning, a chill colder than any wind brushed against the side of his neck. The sudden sensation devoured the carefree thought and froze him mid-chew. Cade tensed imperceptibly and slowly, his gaze shifted to the edge of his vision.

The source of the cold was unmistakable: it was a blade, a curved longsword seemingly carved out of ice. Its surface glimmered faintly with a snowy sheen. It wasn't just steel; it was unnaturally cold, as if the metal itself were alive with frost and covered in snow.

Snow... Cade thought, as a memory surfaced in his mind. Back when he'd gone to intercept the trio and prevent them from reaching the Knight's statue, he'd noticed a strange snowy silhouette near the base of the coral mound where they had been staying. That detail had completely slipped his mind.

His jaw tightened, but his body remained still. His eyes flicked upward, trying to catch a glimpse of the weapon's owner. But before he could fully turn, the blade pressed just enough to nick his skin and produce a drop of blood. The voice that followed was sharp, as cutting and cold as the blade itself.

No, it was much colder.

"Identify yourself," the voice demanded.