ARC I — "ASHES OF THE FAITHFUL"
The forest was still. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Adrian stirred on the damp ground, eyes flickering open. His body felt different — lighter, sharper, and thrumming with a strange energy. A dark aura, black and red, shimmered across him, curling like smoke, naturally shielding and shaping itself around him.
"Finally awake," a voice whispered in his mind.
Adrian's lips quirked slightly. "You again."
"Do I ever leave? No. We're… bonded now. Convenient, isn't it?"
He flexed his hands, feeling the aura respond, slithering over his skin like liquid shadow. Power hummed through his veins — sharp, dangerous, yet exhilarating.
"And yes… you're naked. That won't do."
Adrian's eyes swept the area, and by the next moment, black pants, boots, and a sleeveless top with leather straps covered his body. The transformation felt natural, instinctive — an unspoken awareness guiding him.
"Stylish," the demon purred. "Functional. Terrifying. Just the way I like it."
Adrian didn't respond. He stood at the edge of the forest, eyes glinting faint red beneath the hood. His aura flowed around him, subtly alive — a visible pulse of shadowed power.
"Shall we test it?"
Adrian extended a hand toward a broken tree. Black-red tendrils of aura slithered from his arm, wrapping around the trunk. With a flick of his wrist, the tree shattered, splintering into shards that hovered briefly before falling.
"Not bad," the demon murmured. "But that was just a taste. There's much more waiting inside you."
Adrian exhaled softly, almost lazily, and stepped over the fallen debris. The alien patrols gliding through the forest above didn't notice him. The aura masked him, bending light and sound, and he moved with a fluid, unhurried grace.
"They think you're human," the demon whispered. "They have no idea."
Adrian's eyes flicked toward the glowing patrol lights in the distance. A faint smirk touched his lips, and he simply melted into the shadows, the aura flickering like liquid smoke.
Above, the red sky pulsed faintly, as if acknowledging the birth of something new — a human no longer bound by fear, walking with calm, lethal intent.
"Let's see how far this goes," the demon whispered.
Adrian didn't answer. He didn't need to. His presence, quiet and composed, radiated the promise of power — a warning that the rebellion had a new face, one they would soon learn to fear.