The Awakening of Shadows

Phantom Genesis

Prologue: The Awakening of Shadows

The moon hung high over the ruined city of Eryndor, its pale glow barely piercing through the dense mist that swirled over the desolate streets. Broken buildings stood as silent witnesses to the chaos that had consumed the world. The air was thick with the scent of blood, smoke, and something darker—something ancient.

A lone figure moved through the debris, his footsteps silent despite the weight of exhaustion pressing down on him. His name was Orion Duskbane, and tonight, his fate would change forever.

Wounded and breathless, Orion collapsed against the cold stone wall of an abandoned cathedral. His black combat gear was torn, revealing deep gashes along his arms and torso. Blood trickled from his lips as he gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stay conscious.

“They just… keep coming,” he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

The creatures hunting him—Voidborns—were relentless. Twisted abominations of darkness, their glowing red eyes peered from the shadows, waiting for their chance to strike. Orion had fought them for years as a mere D-Rank Hunter, surviving by skill, strategy, and sheer determination. But tonight, something was different.

A sudden pain shot through his chest, sharp and searing, as if something inside him was breaking free. His vision blurred, his heartbeat thundered in his ears. He clutched his head as an overwhelming force surged through his veins, a darkness unlike anything he had ever felt before.

Then, it happened.

A voice echoed in his mind. Deep. Commanding. Ancient.

"You are not weak. You are not prey. You are the harbinger of shadows."

Orion's body convulsed as dark tendrils erupted from his back, wrapping around him like a cocoon of energy. His wounds sealed, his strength multiplied, and for the first time, he felt it—power. Real power.

The Voidborns hesitated, sensing the shift. Orion slowly stood, his golden eyes now glowing with an eerie violet hue. He raised his hand, and from the darkness, something answered his call—a phantom army.

The night trembled as Orion Duskbane took his first step toward becoming a legend.

The Shadow Sovereign had awakened.

Let's get introduced about Orion backstory.

As Orion stood in the eerie silence of the ruined battlefield, his mind drifted back to a time before the chaos—before he became a hunter.

Five years ago…

A cold wind howled through the narrow streets of Sector 12, the slums where the abandoned and forgotten lived. Orion was just a boy back then, barely fourteen, surviving on scraps. His parents had disappeared when he was young, lost to a dungeon break that wiped out half the city. With no one to rely on, he scavenged for food, fought off thugs, and slept under broken rooftops.

One night, as Orion rummaged through a pile of discarded supplies, a deep growl echoed behind him. He turned sharply—his breath caught in his throat. A mutated beast, a Lesser Hellhound, prowled toward him, its crimson eyes glowing in the darkness. He had never fought a monster before, never wielded a weapon, never felt the sheer terror of staring death in the face.

As the beast lunged, Orion’s instincts screamed at him to run, but his body refused to move. Just as the claws nearly reached him, a cloaked figure appeared—a hunter. With precise movements, the stranger slashed through the beast with a gleaming dagger, its body collapsing in an instant.

The hunter turned to Orion, his blue eyes piercing through the darkness. "If you don’t fight, you die. Strength is the only currency in this world." He tossed a blood-stained dagger at Orion’s feet before vanishing into the night.

From that moment on, Orion knew—weakness had no place in this world. He vowed to become stronger, to never be helpless again. That was the day he decided to step into the world of hunters.

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Arpit Sharma the author

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