Leaving the destroyed ancient forest behind. I soared above the barren wasteland that once was a fertile land, lush with greenery and life. The shades had corrupted it, turning it into a desolate wasteland where nothing but death lingered. I did not know exactly what the old kingdom looked like, but what remained right now was nothing but a land of death.
I was very sensitive to emotions, whether they be mortals, gods, or dragons. It was because of that, that I could sense the suffering and pain of the people still trapped in this land, a frown made its way across my face.
As I flew further, my senses heightened. Something was off.
"Disgusting," My frown deepened as my body was reacting to the dark aura in the area, and I instantly knew I was getting closer to a shade.
It wasn't the first one I come across, but this one had a very disgusting stench to it, most of the Shades in the area were not worth my time at the moment, they would be taken care of sooner or later, this one, however, was different. It made me halt in my track before I swiftly changed directions. This one, I couldn't ignore.
"By the King, how many of these fuckers are out there," I cursed in annoyance, before I dove toward the ground, landing on a dusty path leading towards a small village. My instincts told me that the shade was nearby.
I opted to walk towards the village, sensing the shades' presence. And as I approached, the stench of death became overwhelming. My brows furrowed as I saw the massacre that had taken place. Most of the humans were already dead, their mutilated bodies lying in pools of blood. The Shade monster had wiped out the entire village, leaving no one alive. The only sound was the buzzing of flies that had descended on the decaying corpses.
As I got closer, I saw what kind of experiments it had conducted on the humans. The bodies were torn apart, limbs severed, organs removed, and eyes gouged out. The monster had used the humans as test subjects, mutilating them in various ways. There was no honor in the fight, they didn't have a swift death, the villagers' horror-stricken eyes told me as much.
I continued to scan the area before I found the Shade monster lurking in the shadows of a nearby building. It was a grotesque sight to behold, with tentacles that writhed and twisted around its body, covered in slimy black scales. Its eyes glowed red, and its long, sharp teeth were stained with blood.
It had a dark foggy barrier around its body, and it seemed to be absorbing some sort of aura. It didn't even notice me, despite my massive form. Lucky for me.
I quickly reached out for my cosmic mana and created the link with the stars before I instantly launched an attack on the shield.
As the Shade's shield vanished into the abyss of the cosmos, the creature found itself vulnerable to my attack. I lunged forward using my wings to further boost my speed, and aiming for the monster's head with all my might. My talons dug into its flesh, pinning it to the ground as it struggled beneath me. Its screeches echoed throughout the abandoned village, but no help would come for the monster.
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Without hesitation, I carved through its black scales with my claws, tearing apart its defenses like they were paper. The Shade writhed in agony, its body twitching as it desperately tried to free itself from my grip. But I was relentless, my strikes hitting their mark with precision and strength. I wanted it to suffer, for it did not deserve me to use my magic on it.
As the creature let out its last dying breath, I felt a sense of satisfaction wash over me before it turned into a dark fog that disappeared with the wind. I lifted my head up to the sky, letting out a triumphant roar that echoed through the desolate landscape.
With that taken care of, I left the village behind. I then decided to slow down my travel pace and began to scan the area for any remaining Shades that might be lurking nearby. The silence was deafening, broken only by the sound of my wings flapping as I soared through the sky. The landscape was barren, with no signs of life as far as the eye could see. The few trees that remained were withered and dead, stripped of all their leaves and branches.
As I continued my journey, I came across several Shades that had taken up residence in the ruins of abandoned villages. I dispatched them with ease, and then swiftly moved on to the next.
The battles were relatively simple, as it seemed like most of the stronger shades were fighting the northern alliance, for now. This did not give me any real satisfaction, but it was something that needed to be done.
I took my time, cleaning up any Shades I came across and even used my water mana to heal the humans who were still alive and in need of assistance. Most had their wills broken beyond repair, but I did come across a few promising seedlings. A lot of the humans feared my presence, but once I rid them of the monsters that plagued them, their fear turned into reverence and worship. I had no doubt, that in the future, should they survive, this world would have a new religion based on me.
The thought of that made me chuckle. As the sun began to set, I took to the skies once more to continue with my mission. It took me a couple more days before I finally reached the border.
There, as I soared high in the sky, I caught sight of a plume of smoke rising in the distance, a telltale sign of a battlefield. As I flew closer, the sight that greeted me was nothing short of disturbing. The ground was littered with corpses, both human and Shade, their blood staining the earth a sickly red.
The location of the battlefield was in a desolate plain surrounded by jagged mountains, making it the perfect spot for the shades to launch their ambush. On one side of the battlefield, I saw the remnants of what was once a human army. They had formed a defensive line, their shields raised to protect themselves from the Shades' attacks. However, it was clear that they were heavily outnumbered and outmatched.
The Shades were everywhere, their black and twisted forms moving quickly and gracefully, their eyes glowing with a sinister light. Some of them were shooting dark auras from a distance, while others were rushing forward to engage the human soldiers in close combat. I could hear their shrill cries and screams echoing across the battlefield, as they mercilessly attacked the humans.
Despite the odds against them, the humans did not falter. They fought with a tenacity born out of desperation, their swords and spears clashing against the Shades' slimy scales. Their faces were twisted with rage and fear, but they did not back down.
As I watched the battle unfold, I knew I had to act.