Silence ruled the arena of the Abyss.
The seven thrones still stood around the circular battlefield, cracked from the clash that had taken place only moments earlier. Fragments of obsidian floated in the air like shattered stars, suspended in the heavy gravity of the realm. Rivers of violet energy pulsed far below the platform, lighting the darkness with an eerie glow.
At the center of it all stood Kaizen.
His posture was calm, almost relaxed, yet the shadows around him swayed like living creatures responding to his presence. His black hair drifted slightly despite the absence of wind, and the faint violet glow within his eyes burned like embers hidden beneath ash.
Before him knelt the Seven Abyss Lords.
Not all willingly.
Pride remained on one knee, wings folded tightly behind him, his expression strained. Wrath knelt with his fists pressed into the ground, teeth clenched as though the very act of submission tasted like poison. Greed watched Kaizen with calculating interest, while Lust smiled faintly, amused by the unfolding spectacle.
Envy trembled slightly.
Gluttony hunched forward like a mountain forced to bend.
Sloth rested lazily on one knee, his head tilted as if he were observing an unusual but mildly entertaining event.
Behind Kaizen stood the two ancient figures who had guided him since his awakening in the Abyss.
The old man, the Left Adviser of the Abyss, leaned lightly upon his staff, his sharp eyes studying the scene with quiet curiosity.
Beside him, the woman, the Right Adviser, watched Kaizen with a calm, unreadable smile.
A long silence lingered.
Finally, Pride spoke.
"You may have defeated us," he said coldly,
"but strength alone does not make a ruler."
Wrath scoffed.
"Yeah," he added, rolling his shoulders. "You knocked us around. That doesn't mean we'll follow you."
Greed chuckled softly.
"Leadership is more complicated than violence."
Kaizen listened without interruption.
He neither frowned nor smiled.
His gaze moved across each of the Abyss Lords slowly, as though examining them one by one.
"I know," Kaizen said calmly.
The answer surprised them.
Even the advisers shifted slightly.
Kaizen continued.
"If I ruled only through force, you would obey me… but you would never truly follow."
His voice carried quietly across the arena, yet every word felt heavier than the gravity of the Abyss itself.
"A ruler who must constantly crush rebellion is not a ruler," Kaizen said. "He is only a tyrant waiting to be overthrown."
Wrath snorted.
"So what? You going to give us a speech?"
Kaizen raised his hand.
The movement was small.
But the Abyss reacted instantly.
The shadows around the arena stirred like a vast ocean responding to the pull of the moon.
The air thickened.
Darkness spread outward from Kaizen's feet like ink dissolving in water.
Pride's eyes narrowed.
"What are you doing?"
Kaizen's violet gaze glowed faintly.
"Testing something."
The old man behind him suddenly stiffened.
He could feel the Abyssal Sigil awakening within Kaizen's soul.
The woman's smile widened slightly.
"So this is what he intends," she whispered.
The shadows surged.
The entire arena dimmed.
Even the distant rivers of violet energy seemed to fade as darkness swallowed the battlefield.
The Abyss Lords instinctively prepared for battle.
Wrath's flames ignited.
Greed's countless eyes opened across his body.
Lust's form shifted like flowing silk.
But Kaizen did not attack.
Instead, he spoke some quiet words.
"Veil of the Abyss."
The world vanished.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Not the darkness of night.
Not the darkness of shadow.
This was something deeper.
Something ancient.
Something alive.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I feel like I'm repeating this something ancient, something alive. But anyways, I'm sure y'all get there idea.
The minds of the Seven Abyss Lords were pulled into a realm that did not exist in the physical world.
A realm built from the deepest corners of their own souls.
Pride stood alone in a vast empty palace.
Broken thrones surrounded him.
Every throne was occupied by a ruler stronger than him.
Kings.
Warriors.
Godlike beings.
Each one looked down upon him.
Each one sat above him.
A voice echoed behind him.
"You fear losing your place."
Pride turned.
Kaizen stood there, his silhouette formed from shifting darkness.
"I fear nothing," Pride snapped.
Kaizen walked forward slowly.
"Then why does the thought of kneeling terrify you?"
The illusion shifted.
Pride saw himself forced to bow before endless rulers.
Humiliation.
Powerlessness.
Insignificance.
Kaizen's voice echoed calmly.
"Serve me."
The illusions froze.
"You will never kneel to anyone else again."
Pride stared at him.
For the first time since his existence began, Pride felt something unfamiliar.
Relief.
The illusion shattered.
Meanwhile,
Wrath found himself trapped within an endless battlefield.
Mountains of corpses surrounded him.
He charged forward again and again, searching for enemies to destroy.
But every opponent vanished the moment before his fists struck.
His rage had nowhere to go.
No purpose.
No release.
Kaizen appeared behind him.
"Your anger is meaningless without a war to fuel it."
Wrath spun around.
Kaizen looked down at him.
"Serve me."
The battlefield erupted into visions of countless armies.
Cities burning.
Worlds clashing.
An endless war.
Wrath's grin slowly returned.
The illusion faded.
Greed stood inside a massive vault filled with treasure.
Mountains of gold.
Artifacts.
Power.
But everything he touched turned to dust.
Kaizen's voice whispered beside him.
"Temporary."
Greed turned.
Kaizen gestured outward.
The vault expanded infinitely.
Entire planets filled with riches appeared.
"Serve me," Kaizen said quietly, "and the universe will be your treasury."
Greed laughed softly.
The illusion broke.
Lust found themselves surrounded by thousands of admirers.
Every creature imaginable worshipped them.
Desired them.
Loved them.
Yet none of it felt real.
Their smiles were hollow.
Their affection empty.
Kaizen appeared.
"Desire without purpose is meaningless."
He extended his hand.
"Serve me… and you will rule the desires of all living things."
Lust bowed gracefully.
Envy found themselves standing among the other Lords.
But in this world, every one of them was stronger.
Better.
Greater.
Envy was always second.
Always inferior.
Kaizen appeared beside them.
"Serve me," he said, "and no one will stand above you again."
Envy dropped to their knees instantly.
Gluttony stood in a void of endless hunger.
No matter how much he consumed, the emptiness remained.
Kaizen created a vision of worlds collapsing into Gluttony's jaws.
"Serve me… and you will never hunger again."
Gluttony roared happily.
Sloth lay in a silent world where nothing ever changed.
Nothing happened.
Nothing moved.
Eternity stretched endlessly before him.
Boredom deeper than death.
Kaizen appeared above him.
"Serve me," he said calmly, "and even eternity will remain interesting."
Sloth sighed.
"Fine."
The illusions shattered.
Reality returned.
The arena of the Abyss reformed around them.
Only a few seconds had passed.
But the Abyss Lords felt as though they had lived through centuries.
They looked up.
Kaizen stood in the center of the arena, calm as ever.
The violet glow in his eyes slowly faded.
The old man's staff trembled slightly.
"Incredible…" he murmured.
The woman crossed her arms.
"He affected all seven simultaneously."
Wrath slowly stood.
Then… knelt again.
This time willingly.
"Hah," he laughed. "You win."
Pride lowered his head.
Greed bowed elegantly.
Lust knelt.
Envy collapsed to the floor in submission.
Gluttony bowed deeply.
Sloth lazily leaned forward.
All Seven Abyss Lords knelt before Kaizen.
Not because they were defeated.
But because they had been understood.
The Abyss trembled.
The realm itself acknowledged its ruler.
Kaizen looked down at them silently.
Then he spoke.
"Rise."
They obeyed.
Not as enemies.
Not as prisoners.
But as generals.
The old man bowed deeply.
"The Abyss has finally found its ruler."
The woman smiled faintly.
Kaizen turned toward the endless darkness beyond the arena.
Far above the Abyss, the mortal world continued in ignorant peace.
Cities lived.
Kings ruled.
Guardians trained.
None of them knew.
None of them understood.
That the Abyss had awakened.
Kaizen's voice echoed softly across the darkness.
"The world rejected me."
His violet eyes glowed once more.
"Now the world will learn what it created."
And deep within the endless shadows of the Abyss…
The war began to move.
...
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Feel free to skip this but I'll appreciate it if you don't.
So I have quite a few things to say, but let me first apologize for going AWOL for 2 months, I had to prepare for a very though exam.
Anyways I'm back now and I've started writing more chapter's of scars of the abyss.
And good news y'all should anticipate, cuz I'll soon start working on my new novel DAO: desolate art online (well I might change the name). But anyways I'm looking forward to knowing whether y'all will love my new novel.
And also I'm getting some views but no comments or likes, can you please support me by dropping nice comments and liking my chapters, and also recommend my novel to your friends and family.
And one more thing I'll like to say is concerning scar of the abyss, the this is I'm still a novice writer, or rather a poet who ventured into novel writing. So pls pardon any mistakes made.
Thank you for reading scar of the abyss so far, and I'm looking forward to reading your comments. See you in the next chapter.