Far to the Northeast of Breidset, deep underground, in a place of perpetual darkness, a middle-aged man was kneeling on the ground in front of a gigantic throne. He was a decent looking man with silvery hair and a well-trimmed goatee, though his most prominent feature would have to be the pair of wings protruding from his back. Wings that appeared to be made of pulsing energy that started out black at the arches and slowly transitioned down to pure white at the tips. Wings exactly like the wings Thomas had.

The man continued to kneel patiently before the being sitting on the throne until a gravelly voice spoke, "Raise your head, Skullmane."

Skullmane, full name Aritae Skullmane, lifted his head and looked at the being sitting on the massive throne, a demonic being. The demon towered at nearly ten meters tall and wore an elegant robe over his muscle-packed frame. The golden-colored robe matched his inky black skin perfectly and gave the horrific monster a sense of civility and dignity. Atop his horned head, he wore a crown made of pure gold encrusted with gems that would delight the hearts of many. Clearly this demon wasn't some barbaric monster that was only out to rip out spines or feast on hearts but some sort of aristocrat.

The demon looked down at Skullmane with glowing red eyes that studied him for a moment before speaking, "You have done well, Skullmane. With your help and personal sacrifice, we have finally succeeded in turning you into a Nephilim. Unfortunately, the Artifact no longer has enough power to create another." The demon sighed, "If only we had succeeded in the first four attempts."

Skullmane smiled, though not at the praise. He had been an experimental subject trying to replicate the events that led to the creation of the first Nephilim. They didn't know all of the details when the experiments began. Their spy had only gotten a report that described the events but didn't have full details. Because they didn't have the full details, their first four attempts had led to his untimely demise. Each death earned him a significant amount of reputation with this particular faction, returning to volunteer for the next attempt had earned him even more reputation for his 'unwavering faith'. He felt it was all worthwhile.

Skullmane was a specific kind of player, much like Thomas, in that he liked to play a certain role inside of VRMMO's. Being the 'bad guy'. He wasn't a dick about it though and didn't act like a troll by picking on weak players or trying to ruin the fun of other players. He thrived on not just the conflict between 'good' and 'evil' but on the stories that would unfold from the fighting. He never joined the chaotic evil factions that were just out for blood but instead searched for the 'evil' factions with a good story and lore behind them. That was how he came across this faction and began working for them leading to the experiments that had turned him into a Nephilim.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

The demon continued, "Still, you have served well and your success has given us the edge we need. The Lord's arrival is inevitable. We must be prepared for it. Can you still feel the location of the other Nephilim?"

Skullmane nodded, "Yes, my Lord. He is still to the southwest. The distance is far so the connection is weak and I cannot pinpoint exactly where he is."

"That will have to do. Take the army, head southwest, and find the other Nephilim. Convince him to join us or destroy him. Crush anyone who stands in your way. If you can, recruit other immortals and have them join our cause. We will return to the surface and reclaim our homeland. Let none stand in your way. Crush those who would be our enemy and ally with those who would be our friends."

Skullmane bowed his head as he received his orders, "Yes, my Lord. I shall do as you command."

The large demon waved his hand to dismiss Skullmane, "Go. Do not fail me."

Skullmane bowed once more before standing and turning to leave the throne room and make his way to the barracks where the generals of the army would be awaiting his arrival. As he moved through the corridor he started pulling equipment out of his inventory and donning it piece by piece. When he arrived at the barracks he wore a full suit of pitch-black plate mail with a gigantic black greatsword strapped to his back between his wings. Unlike Thomas, he had no need to hide what he was from the 'people' he surrounded himself with.

He stepped into a large room and climbed some stairs to a podium where he could be easily seen by the generals below. He looked down at the beings he would be working with and smiled. During his time here he'd gotten to know a few of them. They were all brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, husbands, and wives. Other players would only see them as 'evil' NPC's who needed to be killed. Skullmane saw them as friends that he would be glad to fight beside for a worthy cause.

When the room was silent he finally spoke, "Lord Vathaili has given his orders. We are to march to the southwest. We have multiple goals we are meant to achieve. Our primary goal is to find my fellow Nephilim and bring him to our cause or destroy him. Our secondary goal is to recruit or destroy anyone in our way. It is time to reclaim our homeland, time to return to the surface and live beneath the sun once again!"

All the demonic beings within the room let out thunderous cheers while raising their arms up in the air. The cheering lasted for a few minutes before the gathering calmed down. For the next several hours the generals and Skullmane discussed their plans and strategies. This was the easy part, the hard part would be getting the army moving. Each of the one hundred generals commanded ten lieutenant's who in turn commanded ten lieutenant generals, who commanded ten colonel's and so on. In the need, each general in the room controlled an army of ten thousand. With one hundred generals that meant an army of one million demons. Not including pets, personal minions, and straight-up beasts that were just unleashed to cause chaos.

Getting such a large war machine moving would take time and a lot of logistics. Luckily, Skullmane didn't have to deal with all the small details, that's what a chain of command was for! With their plans laid, they began the hard work. Soon the world would tremble as a demonic army unlike any they had ever seen made its way to the surface and began to wage war. Their path, a straight line to the other Nephilim.