Requiem Of A Failed Hero



The air changed and the clouds began to swirl, darkening the whole sky as though there was about to be a heavy rainfall.

Shhriinngg

A dark and red spark flew began to discharge from a point in the clouds and began to spread in opposite directions, forming a straight line.

A gate appeared out of the streak, forcing itself out of the swirling clouds, a gateway to the deep ends, the land of fiends, beckoning to the depths. It had several heads with different horns sculpted on the front and each head and horn were intertwined.

It was more complex than the one Raith had seen before which was just three heads, this was the true gate of hell.

Its eerieness and ominous discharge worsened as it began to creak open, dispersing enormous black smoke that carried the wails of wraiths.

As the gate widened, a shudder passed through this fabric of reality like an ancient dragon awakening from slumber.

From the depths of the darkness beyond this gate came forth a hand, as if it was reaching out for the Will of one's soul, it protruded out of the gate. The hand alone was colossal, and easily would crush any tall building, its massive form was rippling with an unholy aura.

As it pulled further out of the gate, its presence became so bare that people from independent cities afar off, remote villages could see the descent of this creature.

King Balam's presence alone defied comprehension, even though he had the ability to shape-shift his colossal body at will, for this particular manifestation he chose to unleash the full wrath of his demonic essence upon the world of Therut.

As he descended, the ground trembled beneath his immense weight, quivering in anticipation of the destruction that would inevitably follow.

The skies darkened, clouds swirling in a maelstrom of chaos as if the heavens themselves quaked with trepidation.

The earth groaned in agony, its very core unsettled by the imminent arrival of this infernal titan.

And then it began,

From the depths of King Balam's form, a torrent of seething lava erupted, cascading down like a fiery shower from a world unseen. The molten torrent splintered the once serene landscape, devouring everything in its path with an insatiable hunger.

Trees, once pillars of life, were reduced to smoldering husks, their branches reaching skyward like twisted fingers, pleading for salvation.

The ground cracked and split as if the Therut itself was crying out in despair, crevices spreading like spiderwebs, releasing a torrent of scorching steam and billowing ash.

The very air grew heavy with the stench of brimstone, a foul symphony of sulfurous decay. It was like this world itself had become a cauldron, bubbling with the dark essence of damnation.

"Yes!! Yess!!!"

Hallan Lamar who had somehow managed to disappear from the heroes was filled with overwhelming joy as he saw the surface covered in this unreasonable ruin. He looked like he was in a state of orgasm, savoring this befitting destruction to his fill.

In the wake of King Balam's descent, the destruction became an art form, a symphony of devastation that played out with the precision of a demonic conductor. Buildings crumbled like sandcastles, reduced to mere memories, while rivers boiled and evaporated, leaving behind only parched scars etched upon the scorched earth.

Everything was nothing anymore, people were not given a chance to die before they died, heroes did not matter because they died like flies.

The only thing that stood and watched this happen was the only archon that had been disturbed from its slumber. Amidst this cataclysmic chaos, King Balam stood before the archon, his fiery eyes gleaming with a sadistic delight.

Both of them were bathed in silence while the effect of Balam's presence destroyed the whole place as it deemed fit.

"Foolish celestials, their tainted hands forever meddling in affairs beyond their reach. A masquerade of holiness, veiling their true nature as architects of deceit. Tsk tsk, the depths of your depravity, how repugnant it is to witness."

The demon's voice resonated like thunderous echoes from the depths of a bottomless chasm.

"I am not surprised to see you sullying this realm with your slatternly presence. seeing as you have always been a demon without a home."

A deep, bone-chilling chuckle escaped Balam's colossal form, sending tremors through the very air as if the earth itself shivered in apprehension.

"Delighting in the exquisite tapestry of creation is my prerogative. Do not mistake my intentions, celestial fool. It is not out of malice that I seek to claim this world as my own. It is merely the necessary transformation, a testament to my dominance. And for that, your feeble existence and that of your pitiful comrades must be eradicated, leaving behind only the echoes of your celestial delusions."

The archon frowned.

It knew very well how strong the great demons are and right now it was not even in the state to move, because the moment he moved an inch, it will cause a tremor large enough to wake the other archons. Since they all buried themselves in a way that if one decides to destroy the world or wake up on its own, its movement will trigger the others and also wake them.

But that waking will bring forth massive destruction, splitting the plane into eight different parts and revealing the very reason why a world such as Therut could exist in the first place.

The crystal shard.

An item that is not known by many and the few that know about its existence relish it for themselves. Some say that after the creation of the universe, the father of the universe became a crystallized monument, and primordials, celestials, and fiends have longed to have this crystal.

Their fight for it was what caused it to be in pieces. Legends say one shard is enough to wield the power of recreation and destruction.

But no one has actually ever known of this, even the archons who were currently in possession of one of these shards had limited knowledge about it.

The creation of Therut was something that happened to be a coincidence brought by this crystal shard after they escaped the celestial city and were going to hide somewhere far away until they also became strong enough to go against the gods.

But in a desperate attempt to find a hiding place, the crystal acted on its own.

A world was birthed from the will of another void, made to exist on a hidden plane and all sorts of creation emerged along with it.

They still didn't have enough information about the extent of its powers but they were well convinced that they should give their life to protect something like this.

It was why Fel could easily abandon all to embrace death.

It was why this archon here will never move an inch, he would never reveal that shard.

"You look like you are prepared to die."

King Balam's thunderous voice resounded again. Watching keenly at the adamant and immobile archon.

"You appear resolute as if death itself holds no sway over your staunch spirit,"

King Balam's voice boomed, reverberating through the air with an overpowering force. His piercing gaze fixated upon the unyielding archon, observing with predatory intensity.

The weight of his words hung in the air, laden with an ominous mix of warning and curiosity.

"A curious sight indeed, to witness your unwavering determination in the face of impending doom. But rest assured, I shall relish the spectacle as your unwavering resolve crumbles into dust."

"Yes, yes, yes, finally it is happening!!" Hallan Lamar shouted, shedding tears of joy as he beheld the figure of the archon and King Balam from afar, from his vantage point, it was evident that they were about to be locked in a big fight.

Wheeeeum!!

Right in that instance, a red streak tore out of the sky between the two of them. It was a normal thing that the mini gate created by Absalom would use the location where the energy is at its strongest, this explains why all three of them now found themselves falling from the sky, right in the middle of two colossal beings.

"Damn it!"

Absalom scaled through the air and caught both of them by the collar as they fell.

He looked back up.

'I was not wrong. It is a greater demon'

He looked around, the city he now found himself in was in shambles but he was very curious as to what this world was. Plus, he could now vividly feel Raith's presence.

Especially, since Raith was just waking up from his prolonged slumber.

[Due to title effect 'One who devours death' you will be resurrected]

'Indeed the dagger was no ordinary dagger.'

Raith shook the dirt off his body as he stood up.

"Noir."

Amber Rose's fallen head swung up as he heard the soft call followed by a massive formation of dark smoke that brought forth a massive dark wyvern before her eyes.

"What?! Mr. Raven?!"

Raith looked down at her for a second and looked up.

"Noir, let's go have some fun."