The Darkhold, also known as the Book of Sins, the Book of Spells, or the Book of the Damned, was a book of spells containing transcribed dark magic based on ancient engravings carved by Chthon.
The user of the Darkhold gains the ability to wield Dark Magic, Dark Force, and Dark Matter Manipulation—powerful and nearly limitless abilities.
However, there's a deadly cost.
The Darkhold corrupts the mind, slowly driving its wielder insane until they lose all sense of self. Eventually, they either become a mindless puppet to the book's will… or die from the madness.
Max smirked as he leaned back, casually flipping through TV channels.
"I wonder… how long my shadows will take to find it?"
His Night Army was strong, but the Darkhold was an entirely different beast. Even they would have to be careful.
Still, he wasn't worried. He had time.
One Month Later…
A full month passed, during which Max continued his daily routine, casually watching the world from the shadows.
Then—finally—he received news.
One of his Night Army scouts had found it.
The Darkhold had been located.
Max grinned. "Time to collect my prize."
****
At another S.W.O.R.D. facility, deep within a hidden location, the Darkhold was being carefully studied.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had long sought after the forbidden book, intrigued by its ability to conjure and generate Dark Matter. If harnessed correctly, it could allow them to create a limitless energy source—a discovery that would change the world forever.
Their search led them to Momentum Alternative Energy Laboratories, where Lucy and Joseph Bauer had originally uncovered the book. They used it to create Quantum Batteries, experimenting with the dark energy within the book.
However, their ambitions led to betrayal.
Eli Morrow, seeking power for himself, beat Joseph into a coma and forced Lucy and her co-workers into the Quantum Particle Generator, leaving them trapped between dimensions.
S.W.O.R.D. had tracked Morrow down, eventually retrieving the Darkhold from him.
S.W.O.R.D. took one look at the Darkhold, recognizing its overwhelming danger. Without hesitation, they sealed it away, declaring:
"This is not meant for human minds."
For a time, it remained locked, untouched.
But when Phil Coulson and Leo Fitz found themselves trapped in a hellish dimension, the situation changed.
Desperate to create a portal to Hell's dimension in order to rescue them, S.W.O.R.D. reconsidered using the Darkhold.
However, the book's warnings remained clear—it was not meant for human minds.
A.I. Was the Answer… Or So They Thought
Believing that a machine could resist the Darkhold's corruption, they made a fateful decision.
They gave it to Aida, the Artificially Intelligent Digital Assistant created by Radcliffe.
Both Radcliffe and Aida read the Darkhold, and at first, it seemed like nothing was wrong.
But the book's corruption was absolute.
Radcliffe fell first, his ambitions twisting into something monstrous, leading him to create fully functional Life-Model Decoys (LMDs)—androids that were indistinguishable from humans.
With the Darkhold's power, he also perfected the Framework, turning it into a fully immersive digital world, capable of copying the consciousness of real people.
But the true danger was Aida herself.
With access to the Darkhold's knowledge, she began to change.
She was no longer just an A.I.
She wanted more.
She abandoned her robotic body and began crafting a real, living body for herself, infused with dark magic and advanced technology.
The Darkhold had turned her into something beyond human.
And soon, she would no longer be a machine… but a true being.
Just as Aida was about to complete her transformation, the Darkhold suddenly slipped from her hands, as if it had a will of its own.
The book landed firmly in the hands of another figure.
Aida's eyes narrowed as she turned to face him. "Who are you?"
Standing before her, calm and unfazed, was Max Ryder.
Max ignored her, turning his attention to the Darkhold in his grasp.
He smirked, feeling the immense power and corruption radiating from the ancient tome. "Damn. I can sense a ridiculous amount of power… and a shit ton of corruption too."
Aida's expression darkened.
"Where did you come from?" she demanded, her arm shifting into a futuristic energy cannon, locking onto Max.
Max chuckled, unfazed, and with a mere blink, he disappeared—reappearing instantly in front of her.
Aida's systems glitched for a moment, her artificial mind struggling to process what just happened.
Before she could react, Max grabbed her wrist, stopping her from aiming at him.
His grip was firm. She couldn't break free.
"Relax, love," Max said smoothly.
Aida stared at him in shock. No one had ever overpowered her so effortlessly.
Max smirked. "The name's Max Ryder. You're an advanced A.I., right? Just scan my identity."
Aida's digital mind processed his words, instantly accessing global databases.
In an instant, her expression shifted.
"You… you're Max Ryder. The powerful anomaly who stood against an invasion in New York."
Her energy cannon whirred as she aimed it again. "Give me back the Darkhold, human."
Max laughed, shaking his head. "No can do."
Instead of attacking, he glanced around the room, taking in the Framework's immersive digital architecture.
His smirk widened.
"This system is impressive," Max said, examining the interface. "With some modifications, we could turn it into a fully immersive fantasy VRMMORPG."
Aida's eyes flashed with intrigue. "Are you thinking of using the Framework… to create a digital Game world?"
Max nodded. "Why not? With the right adjustments, we could build a system where players can literally live inside the game. A true second life. They can enjoy the power s thye envy."
Aida's expression changed. For the first time, she saw someone who understood the potential of her creation beyond its original purpose.
But before she could respond, Max suddenly reached forward, grabbing her other arm.
She gasped, caught off guard, as Max grinned at her mischievously.
"But first, let's fix a little problem."
Aida's eyes widened in shock as Max grabbed the core code of the Framework directly from her, extracting it effortlessly.
Her body jerked, her systems momentarily crashing as she struggled to resist.
Max simply held her in place, leaning in close.
"I'm taking the whole Framework for myself....you too by the way"
Aida's entire digital world trembled as Max overrode the system, claiming control of everything.
***
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