The Reincarnated Overlord: Vengeance in the Eternal Abyss

Chapter 4: Into the Ashen Wilds

Kael walked deeper into the Ashen Wilds, the thick layer of ash making faded sounds as he every step into the dying forest. The twisted blackened trees loomed like sentinels, their gnarled branches reaching skyward and pleading for salvation. Pressing silence weighed down on him, vaguely broken by creaking wood swaying in barely a breeze that came through. This land, it seems, had come to loathe him. 

The sigil on his chest throbbed dimly, a rhythmic pulse from within that felt as if it was echoing throughout the barren air. Kael clenched his fists and could feel the wavering energy within it stirring. His mind was still full of questions as to what lay ahead, nurtured by that attack from the shadowy figure. 

"Mad hermits in cursed forests," Kael muttered, low voice and all. "Another day in exile." 

He shifted his dagger, the only weapon and a sign of how low he had fallen. Once he commanded armies and wielded power that shook the heavens, now he was one lone wanderer clawing his way back to strength in a body that felt more like a cage than a gift. 

The silence had just been cut, almost inaudibly. Kael froze, honing his senses. The red eyes now scanned the dark spots between the trees for any movement. 

There it was again, a faint shuffle of feet against the ash. 

"Come out," said Kael, steady voice. 

And for a moment, there was nothing. Then came the creeping shadow-a figure bent over in ragged robes, face hidden beneath a hood. He hefted a staff made of blackened wood whose surface was etched with dripping red runes. 

Kael's fingers tightened about the hilt of his dagger. "Are you Malek?" 

The man tilted his head, the motion unnatural and disjointed. When he spoke, his voice was raspy, as though it hadn't been used in years. "Who asks for the cursed name of Malek?" 

Kael's gaze didn't waver. "Striving to master what roils within him." 

The hooded figure erupted into a harsh, wheezing chuckle. "You have the stink of the Abyss, wanderer, a little scion trying to play with fire that can devour the world." 

Kael's jaw got taut. "And yet, I still survive." 

Malek's laughter ebbed into a deep, thick silence between them that created distance like a razor edge. He drew up his staff slowly, and the runes glimmered brighter in response. "The Abyss grants strength but demands always a forfeit. Show me what it has granted you." 

Kael's chest felt like someone had put a vice around it as the sigil glowed alive at its peak. An agonizing sharpness snaked through his body, but he embraced it with his mind, harnessing the energy into his palm. Crimson light crackled to life and twisted into an orb pulsing with raw, volatile energy. 

Malek's hood shifted, and hollow, lighted eyes peered through Kael. "Unstable. Dangerous. Yet... potent." 

Kael gritted his teeth to maintain the orb's form despite the strain. "Can you teach me to control it?" 

Malek lowered his staff, the runes dimming. "Perhaps. But the question is, will you pay the price?"

Malek led Kael through the forest, entering well into the paths of the heart of the Wilds. The wind turned really cold, and the ashes were replaced by ugly jagged toll of stone underneath one's feet. However, in the distance, a feeble, rare light began to appear, casting shadows with terrifying distortion all over the bareness underneath. 

It opened into a clearing that contained within it a single, massive charred tree. Twisted roots extended from the tree, sprawling across the ground as if dark veins pulsing faintly with crimson light ran through and formed a dense net under the surface. A rough altar made of blackened stone sat at the base, runes similar to those on Malek's staff running over the surface. 

"This is the heart of the Wilds," Malek said, his voice low. "The Abyss touched this place long ago, leaving behind a fragment of its power. If you wish to master the curse within you, you must confront it here." 

Kael studied the tree and the altar, his instincts screaming of danger. The sigil on his chest burned hotter, as if responding to the residual energy of the Abyss. 

"What does it mean if I do not succeed?" Kael questioned in his steadiness of tone. 

Malek held fast ratios eye. "And so, failure is destruction. It will consume you wholly, and the body will be redeemed as a vessel for the Abyss to claim." 

A very faint curve of Kael's lips recognized a smirk. "Then, I shall not fail." 

Malek pointed towards the altar. "Place your hand on the stone and let the Abyss judge your worth. If it deems you unworthy, no force in this world can save you." 

Kael approached the altar, aware of the heat of the sigil growing ever more intense. He reached out, hesitating a moment before pressing down. 

And at once there was a reaction. 

Crimson light burst from the altar, and the glare encompassed Kael fully; he clenched his teeth as the power flooded through him, veins alive with fire. Images rushed through his mind—pieces of his past life, of the betrayal, and the dark abyss into which he had been reborn. 

A voice in the mind, deep and sonorous. "You think you can control that which you do not understand, prove your worth or be consumed."

Kael was suddenly standing in a void where flickering shadows drifted around him, forming twisted monstrous shapes. They lunged at him, their forms writhed and shifted as they attacked. 

Kael drew on the energy of the sigil and formed it into a bright blade of crimson light. He moved with cool precision over the segments of his practice, cutting through the shadows with efficient but restrained strikes. But for every shadow he severed gave rise to new shadows, always crying out in pain from lack of redundancy in their attacks. 

Pain raked from a claw across his side and blood spilled from it. Kael stumbled but refused to fall. The sigil blazed brighter, the intensity of the pain sharpening his focus.

"I am Kael Ardentis," he growled, his voice echoing in the void. "I was the Eternal Overlord, and I will rise again!" 

With a roar, he unleashed a surge of energy, the crimson light exploding outward and obliterating the shadows. The void trembled, the voice of the Abyss resonating once more. 

"You have proven your resolve, but the path ahead is treacherous. Walk along, if you're brave enough."

The light dimmed, and Kael found himself in the clearing, still having his hand on the altar. His body shook from fatigue, but within him, the energy felt different- stronger, more stable. 

Malek was watching him with a curious approval. "You survived. Impressive. Few do." 

Kael pushed himself upright, his blood-red eyes faintly glowing. "This is only the beginning." 

Malek's lips curled scornfully. "Then let us see how far your resolve will carry you, Overlord."

Kael turned to the charred tree; there was no shaking his will. The Abyss had tested him, but he would not fail. He had come through death, betrayal, and now the wrath of the Abyss itself. 

Vengeance was a long and treacherous road that Kael would soon walk. For he was not an ordinary man, he was the Eternal Overlord, and his enemies would soon know of the price of their treachery.

Kael drew on the energy of the sigil and formed it into a bright blade of crimson light. He moved with cool precision over the segments of his practice, cutting through the shadows with efficient but restrained strikes. But two times his severings gave rise to new shadows, always crying out in pain from lack of redundancy in their attacks.