The Void. Aldric's POV.
The darkness swallowed him.
Aldric fell through nothing—no ground, no sky, no light. He couldn't feel his body. He couldn't hear his breath. He was nowhere, everywhere, falling through a space that had no end.
Then the light came.
It was not the light of the sun or the moon or the stars. It was the light of the void—pale, hungry, illuminating nothing. He was standing on something solid—stone, maybe, or something like stone. The ground was cold, smooth, black as glass.
He was not alone.
The hunters stood before him. Not the hunters from the canyon—these were different. Older. More solid. Their bodies were whole, their features clear, their red eyes burning. They had been waiting for him.
"The vessel," one said. "Finally."
Aldric raised his sword. "I'm not your vessel."
The hunter smiled. "You are. You've always been."
---
They attacked.
Aldric fought them—faster than he had ever fought, stronger than he had ever been. His sword found their flesh, their eyes, their throats. They did not fall. They were not real. They were shadows, echoes, things that had been waiting for him.
You can't kill us, a voice whispered. We are part of you.
Aldric stopped. Lowered his sword.
The hunters faded.
He was alone.
---
The figure emerged from the darkness.
It was tall—taller than a man—its body a mass of shadow and light, shifting, changing, never still. Its face was a mask of pale skin, featureless except for its eyes—red, burning, the same red as the hunters. Its hands were long, thin, ending in fingers that seemed to stretch and shrink as he watched.
It was wearing a body. A vessel. A human shape that it had taken for itself.
"Aldric," it said. Its voice was soft, warm, almost kind. "I've been waiting for you."
Aldric raised his sword. "Vorlag."
The figure smiled. "You know my name."
"I know what you are."
The figure tilted its head. "Do you?"
---
Vorlag moved closer.
Aldric wanted to step back. He couldn't. His feet were frozen to the stone, his body locked in place.
"You've been carrying me your whole life," Vorlag said. "The voice in your head. The shadow in your dreams. The hunger in your heart." It reached out, touched his face. Its fingers were cold, smooth, like stone. "You are my vessel. You've always been."
Aldric's jaw tightened. "I refused you. In the cavern. I said no."
Vorlag nodded slowly. "You did. But you didn't destroy me. You just pushed me back." It smiled. "I've been waiting. Growing. Preparing."
"Preparing for what?"
Vorlag spread its arms. "For this. For you. For the moment when you would come to me."
---
Aldric looked at the darkness around him. At the void. At the place where Vorlag lived.
"You can't leave," he said. "The door is closed."
Vorlag laughed. It was a soft sound, almost gentle. "The door is closed because I want it closed. The portal is sealed because I want it sealed." It stepped closer. "I don't need the door, Aldric. I need you."
Aldric stared at it. "What?"
"Vessels are rare. Most can't hold me. They burn out, wither, die." Vorlag's eyes gleamed. "But you are special. You can cross worlds without losing yourself. You can carry me anywhere. With you, I can travel to worlds I've never seen. Conquer realms I've only dreamed of."
Aldric's blood went cold. "You want to use me."
Vorlag nodded. "I want to be you."
---
Aldric was silent for a long moment.
"You have other vessels," he said. "The hunters. The ones who came through the portal."
Vorlag smiled. "I have many vessels. In many worlds. I copy myself—my consciousness, my mind—and place it into a host. A vessel." It gestured at its own body. "This is one of them. A temporary one. It will burn out eventually. They always do."
"But I won't."
"No." Vorlag's eyes gleamed. "You won't."
Aldric looked at the darkness. At the void. At the thing that had been following him his whole life.
"What happens if I refuse?"
Vorlag was quiet for a moment. "Your friends die. The creatures will keep coming. The cult will keep serving. The hunters will keep hunting." It paused. "I will find another vessel. Another world. Another door."
Aldric's jaw tightened. "And if I accept?"
Vorlag smiled. "Your friends live. The portal closes. The creatures stop coming." It stepped closer. "You become something more than you ever imagined."
---
Aldric thought about Grog. About Lira. About Mirena. About William. About everyone who had fought beside him, bled beside him, believed in him.
He thought about the voice in his head. The shadow in his dreams. The hunger that had followed him his whole life.
He thought about what Vorlag had said. You can cross worlds without losing yourself.
"I have conditions," he said.
Vorlag raised an eyebrow. "Conditions?"
"My friends live. The portal closes. The creatures stop coming." Aldric met its eyes. "And you leave this world. Forever."
Vorlag was quiet for a moment. Then it nodded slowly. "Agreed."
Aldric took a breath. "Then I accept."
---
Vorlag's smile widened.
It reached out, placed its hand on Aldric's chest. The touch was cold, smooth, like stone. Then it spread—warmth, heat, power flooding through him. His wounds healed. His leg straightened. His scars faded.
The voice returned.
Good, it whispered. Very good.
Aldric closed his eyes.
When he opened them, he was alone. Vorlag was gone. The hunters were gone. The void was empty.
He looked at his hands. They were steady. He felt stronger than he had ever been.
He walked toward the portal.