Abyssborn: The Forsaken King

Kael's pulse hammered in his ears. The Abyssforged was no ordinary enemy—it was something else, something unnatural, something connected to him.

"You don't even know what you are."

The words coiled in his mind like a viper, more unsettling than the battle itself.

The creature moved again, its body dissolving into black mist before reappearing behind him. Claws lashed out. Kael barely managed to twist, the attack slicing across his side instead of running him through.

Pain burned through him, but he couldn't focus on it now.

He threw himself backward, forcing distance between them, his mind racing. His power—it resisted him. It was there, humming beneath his skin, yet it wasn't obeying.

The Abyssforged smirked, its abyssal flesh rippling as if in amusement.

"Struggling, aren't you?"

Kael ground his teeth. He wasn't going to survive if he couldn't tap into what he had taken from the abyss.

The Abyssforged lunged again, its entire body twisting unnaturally mid-air. Kael reacted, shifting his stance and forcing his power to obey.

A pulse of energy surged through him.

For a moment, everything slowed.

The creature's movements became clear, predictable—laid bare before him.

Kael shifted his weight. Ducked. Turned. Struck.

His fist connected—not with flesh, but something deeper. A wave of pure force rippled out, tearing into the creature's abyssal form.

The Abyssforged shrieked, staggering backward. Its form flickered, the shadows struggling to hold it together.

Kael exhaled, feeling something shift within him.

His power had responded—but not completely.

"Interesting," the Abyssforged rasped, its wounds sealing unnaturally. "You're adapting… but you're still incomplete."

Kael didn't answer. He was still trying to understand what had just happened.

The creature's gaze darkened.

"No matter. I've marked you."

Kael tensed. What?

He felt it before he saw it—a burning sensation searing into his shoulder. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to react.

The Abyssforged let out a distorted chuckle.

"The abyss doesn't forget its own."

Then—

It vanished, dispersing into the shadows.

The battlefield fell silent.

Kael slowly looked down at his shoulder, at the mark seared into his skin.

A symbol.

One he didn't recognize—

But somehow, deep in his bones, he knew what it meant.

The abyss had claimed him.

And it wasn't finished with him yet.