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Chapter 6
The Dark King

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Deep within the center of the earth, a man clothed in black stared into the molten lava that surrounded him. His thoughts were filled with nothing but the Chosen that trapped him in his prison. If it wasn't for them, he would still be free ruling the world with his army of shadows. The raven-haired man wanted to rule the world once again and be in control of everyone that inhabited the Earth. He desired to see the world fall into darkness once again. He would still be in control of the world and its people if only Umi and the world's natural spirits hadn't gotten in the way.

After a hundred years of being trapped in the core of the Earth, Adrien Ciaran felt himself going crazy...or crazier than he already was. Even though he would never admit it aloud, he felt the power he worked so hard for slowly fading away. The raven-haired man knew that he needed to get free of his prison soon if he wanted to keep his dark magic.

The man many called Darkness continued to brood within his prison until he sensed the atmosphere around him changing. It wasn't long after that when Adrien felt his power rising from what he thought was an unusual amount of fear rising in the world. But then he realized what he was feeling was much different than a century ago. What he felt was something much more powerful than the fear of Earth's mortals. It made Adrien feel amazing and more powerful than he ever felt.

Since he was distracted by the glorious feeling that coursed through his veins, the Ciaran man failed to notice the spell that was trapping him in his prison was breaking. That was until he heard a voice chanting in the distance.

"Darkness rise, Darkness rise, Darkness rise."

Adrien had no idea what was going on at first as he spun around in a circle in an attempt to find where the voice was coming from. Another long moment passed before the Ciaran man realized what was happening. He was being summoned. A mortal was summoning him for the first time since he received his dark powers from even darker spirits. No mortal dared to try to control him or even dared to cross his path. No one was able to handle his power. So why did that human think they were any different?

"Darkness rise to seek revenge on those I despise. Darkness rise, Darkness rise, Darkness rise." As soon as he heard the words, a sinister smirk appeared on Adrien's face. Out of everything he could do with his powers, enacting revenge was his favorite.

Maybe this mortal will be useful in my quest to take back what is mine, the raven-haired man thought to himself as he continued to look around for a means of escaping his prison.

It wasn't long after the chant finished when Adrien felt himself rising from the core. As he continued to make his way up towards his escape, the raven-haired man felt his strength slowly returning to him. A sinister smirk made its way onto the man's face as he took in the feeling of power coursing through his veins. Adrien let out a long sigh before he felt a cool breeze on his face, causing his eyes to flash open.

The first thing the Ciaran man saw was a green forest with flowers on the floor surrounding him. The grin on his face instantly faded when he saw all the bright colors he despised with every bone in his body. Adrien instantly used his power to drain the life out of the flowers near his feel, stripping them of their color and adding to the energy flowing through his veins. Once he was satisfied with his work, the raven-haired man turned his back on the lifeless plants and began looking around the clearing for the person who summoned him...but saw no one. That instantly made the smile on his face return, knowing that if no one came soon, he would be free to do as he pleased with the world around him.

"Darkness?" a voice said from somewhere behind him, sending a wave of irritation over Adrien before he let out a long sigh and slowly turned around to face a young man standing a few yards away from him.

"Why did you summon me?" the King of Darkness demanded, making the boy slightly jump while the former did his best to suppress a smile.

"Well, uh," he stuttered then hesitated for a moment before he continued speaking, "I want revenge on those who've wronged me."

Adrien paused for a moment as his eyes scanned over the squirming boy. After his eyes moved back up to meet the summoners, the Ciaran man couldn't help but wonder who wronged the young boy so badly that he felt the need to bring back the worst being to walk the Earth. "What did they do to make you feel this way?"

"Long ago, my ancestor was chosen by the spirit of fire to receive the gift of fire," the brunette boy explained, causing the Dark Ruler to tense a bit before he continued listening to the boy's story, "since then, every member of my family has trained for when the time came for a new person to receive the gift. I have learned that the time has finally come and five new people were chosen to receive the gifts...I am not one of them."

Silence surrounded them as the boy looked to the ground beneath his feet while Adrien continued to stare at him. It wasn't long after that when the sinister smirk on the Ciaran man's face returned. The boy may not have been selected by the spirits to join the Chosen...but he may just be the perfect candidate for the mortal leader of Adrien's shadow army.

"They have taken important things from both of us," the King of Darkness told the boy, breaking the silence and drawing the latter's attention back to him, "Umi must have seen this event coming and looked for the best candidates for the next Chosen. If we work together, we can stop them and get back what is rightfully ours."

"I will be happy to assist you with whatever you need," the boy told Adrien without an ounce of hesitation in his voice, showing the Dark Ruler exactly why the natural spirits didn't select him to be part of the next Chosen, "I want justice for the honor that was taken away from my family...no matter what it takes."

"I'm glad to hear that," the Ciaran man responded before he watched a large grin appear on the boy's face for the first time since their encounter began, "first things first, we need more followers that will accept the dark power I will bestow upon them in order to stop our enemies."

"I have gathered some people who would follow you if they saw you with their own eyes," the brunette boy explained as a sudden wave of confidence washed over him, "I also may have discovered the area where they're training...just not the exact location."

"Umi most likely hid their training facility well. But no matter, I will be able to find them with the information you have," Adrien said as the smirk on his face grew even larger before he turned around to face the open world in front of him, "it is time to begin our quest."

While his new ally went to gather their future army, the Ciaran man went to search for where the Chosen were residing. Adrien searched high and low for any signs of the new heroes or light magic sealing their base. Despite wanting nothing more than to use his abilities to bring the Chosen to him, the King of Darkness blended in with the mortals. He hoped that by using this strategy he would find the heroes as they searched for him. When this tactic failed, Adrien tried using his powers to locate the Seer he almost defeated thousands of years ago, only to fail.

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After days of searching and failing to find his enemies, Adrien finally returned to the place he was summoned. It wasn't long after he arrived when the boy appeared out of the trees with a small number of people following behind him. The Ciaran man just stared at the tiny crowd for a long moment before a wave of anger washed over him. He did his best to fight against his growing emotions as he turned to face the boy who summoned him.

"What is this?" Adrien hissed while using his hands to gesture toward the small group of people in front of him, "this is not an army."

"But they are people who will accept the power you give them and blindly follow you wherever you go," the boy explained to him before he began speaking in a hushed tone, "and you will not find any others who are willing to blindly follow your cause."

The Ciaran man glared at the boy in front of him for what felt like an eternity. Adrien did his best not to show any sign of emotion, despite how impressed he was at how much rage could be contained in such a young mortal.

"Fine," Adrien stated as he turned his attention back to the small crowd behind them, "but we need to get them ready. If I'm going to find the Chosen, our allies must be ready for a fight."

"Where do we start?"

"With your name," the raven-haired man stated, causing the boy in front of him to send him a confused look before the Dark Ruler continued, "if I'm to bestow some of my strength onto you, I must know how to address you."

The brunette boy hesitated for a long moment as he stared down at the grass beneath his feet before letting out a long sigh. It wasn't long after that when he looked back up at Adrien with confidence covering every inch of his face. "My name is Trevor Moore."

"Well, Trevor Moore. Welcome to the Dark Army," Adrien told him as he tapped his finger against the boy's forehead.

Trevor's eyes instantly rolled into the back of his head before falling to the grassy floor. Everyone watched as a black cloud began to surround the young boy until it absorbed into his body. The Moore boy didn't move for a long moment then his eyes flashed open, revealing nothing but darkness before they returned to their normal shade. Trevor had officially become the first member of his shadow warriors and Adrien had no doubt that he would be the strongest of them all.

No matter where Umi was hiding her new Chosen Ones, the King of Darkness and his followers would find them. Whether they had to cause destruction or attack the mortal beings of Earth, the Ciaran man would find a way to draw them out. Then he would destroy all of them...once and for all. There would never be a Chosen walking the face of the Earth as long as the Dark Ruler stood at his rightful place.

Adrien would do whatever it took to rule the world again...and no one was going to stop him.

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