Shadowraven: Ascension

The Dark Throne

Shadowraven woke up in complete darkness. It was a comforting darkness, but he couldn't see through it. He held his hands up and saw them, then sighed. So I'm not blind. That's good, he thought to himself. He clenched his fists, then walked forward. The darkness began to swirl and contort, then a throne appeared. It was black and purple, the colors swirling together like a galaxy. Shadowraven stepped back in surprise as a figure appeared on the throne. It was a man with a long grey beard, two eyes that were a deep blue and was in a red robe. "Come forward, child." He said. Shadowraven stayed where he was. "I said, come here child." The figure said again. Shadowraven shook his head.

"Who are you and where am I?" Shadowraven asked. The man chuckled. "Amber was right. You are hard to talk to." The man said. Shadowraven tensed up slightly. "Listen. I've only known one Amber my entire life, so I don't know who told you that." Shadowraven replied. The man laughed, the sound booming through the darkness. "I am the High Judge. This is the Void." He said, motioning to the darkness. Shadowraven looked around, then back at the High Judge. "I expected it to be... Swirlier." Shadowraven said. The man laughed, then looked at Shadowraven's serious face. "Have you never been in the Void?" He asked. Shadowraven shook his head. "I've only used it for magic." Shadowraven replied. The High Judge nodded thoughtfully. "Well, I am here to speak with you momentarily. The First has released one of the primitive gods. Divein is the god of anarchy. Ourous is next to be released. Then, finally, Gamuza. I warn you child, if you fail to stop them, Judgement shall befall you and one other person. If you manage to escape Judgement, then you shall come back and defeat all four of them." The High Judge said.

Shadowraven stared at the High Judge, silence being the only thing comfortable enough to think in. "So if Judgement commences, I'll be in a ton of trouble?" He asked. The High Judge nodded. "Beware the four storms, Shadowraven. Beware the four storms..." He said. Shadowraven nodded. "So  I'm unconscious?" He asked the High Judge. The man nodded and snapped his fingers, bringing up a small screen. "In there you shall see where Gamuza and Ourous lay dormant. Now memorize the locations and hurry!" He said. The screen flashed, revealing Mt. Kilimanjaro, then an old cruise ship miles below the ocean. Shadowraven looked at the High Judge and saw that he was gone.

Shadowraven focused on the screen, noticing that it was now a blackened mirror. Shadowraven watched as his reflection swirled. It swirled and swirled, until it suddenly stopped. Shadowraven slowly extended a hand towards the mirror and the creature reflected back did the same. He gasped, his eyes widening. "That isn't me..." He muttered. The creature, a demon with blood red eyes, black scales all along its body, a draconic snout and draconic wings and tail, smiled at him. "Yessss. It is you Shadowraven. We are one, young Shadow Lord. We will always be one." It hissed. Shadowraven glared. "No, we will not. Not now, not ever." He replied. The creature chuckled and stepped forward, a scaled foot escaping from the mirror. Then an arm, then the torso, then the entire creature was free. It spread it's wings and eyed Shadowraven, as if mocking him. Shadowraven felt something heavy fall into his hands and he saw Shi No Kuru Ryujin in them, the blade humming.

"Kill, Shi No Kuru Ryujin!" Shouted Shadowraven. He quickly unsheathed the blade and a wave of darkness arced forward, cutting the dragonoid demon in half. The creature wailed in pain, then disintegrated. Shadowraven panted as the magic of the blade began to take effect. His entire body felt heavy, as if something were slowly crushing him and making him want to collapse, to fall deep into the Void and never resurface. He wanted to resurface though. Shadowraven began to look around. "There's gotta be an exit somewhere..." He muttered, walking forward. Each step made his body feel as if it weighed a ton, making his progress slow. He urged himself forward, sometimes pinching himself to stay awake or using Drakensang to cut into his skin. The pain helped his adrenaline, which in turn helped Shadowraven stay awake and try to walk faster. A small twinkle began to glow up ahead and Shadowraven began to run.

Shadowraven was becoming even more tired. "I have to get to the light... Gotta... Wake... Up..." He mumbled. He tripped, his head hitting nothing. Yet he became unconscious, only to awaken in a soft sofa. Charmcaster shot up and hugged him, the movement pinning him to the couch. "Charm, what happened?" He asked. She stayed quiet, her only reply being the hug getting tighter. Tigerblaze walked in, her demon form completely gone. "Charm, let him breath will ya?" Tigerblaze said. Charmcaster let go and walked out of the room, muttering several apologies as she walked out. Tigerblaze sat next to him and punched him in the stomach. Shadowraven coughed, then groaned. "Stupid. That was really damn stupid of ya. Getting yourself impaled just to kill what's her face? Really? I saw the entire thing. I came back and saw you get stabbed. I didn't step in because then you ripped her heart out. What the hell, Shadowraven?!" Tigerblaze shouted. He recoiled slightly, causing the girl to sigh. "Take a shower. There's some clothes set up in there for you. We'll continue this conversation later." She said, getting up. She walked out, leaving Shadowraven alone with his thoughts.