Chapter 119: Chapter 119 - Gathering of Demon Generals ( Part 3)
The Citadel of Eternal Night was completely silent.
Above, endless storms of black clouds reigned over the Demon Continent.
Lightning flashed through crimson skies.
Mountain shook under the march of countless demonic legions preparing for battle.
And yet...
Not a single one of those sounds reached the place below the castle.
Down there...
Was only silence.
When the meeting was finished, six Demon Generals got up from their thrones.
No order was issued.
No words were exchanged.
All of them knew where they should go.
And Azrael lead the way.
His silent steps echoed across the black obsidian floors.
Beside him marched Draven with his spear thrown over the shoulder.
Behind them followed Morgatha, clicking her ancient staff against the ground.
Lokiar sang his quiet melody, while his illusions danced around him like phantoms.
Grom stepped behind the others with his giant steps shaking the corridor.
Behind the Demon Generals marched hundreds of the elite demon guards completely silent.
Massive gates of the Obsidian Throne Hall slowly closed after them.
But the real destination lied even further.
Much further beneath the throne room...
Beneath the prisons...
And the ancient libraries.
There was a stairway going forever down.
The walls were made of black stone absorbing every ray of light.
Strange crimson crystals protruded from the stone as beating hearts.
Every hundred steps there were gigantic statues standing as sentinels.
Not the statues of demons.
But the statues of gods.
Broken.
Severed heads.
Crushed weapons.
Draven sneered.
"The gods were always arrogant."
Azrael answered quietly,
"But they built this prison."
"They deserve our respect."
Draven tsked, but didn’t say anything more.
Even he understood.
This prison beneath the castle had never been made by demons.
It had been created by the joint forces of gods themselves.
Hours passed.
The stairs eventually led them to the pair of huge gates.
Unlike any other door in the castle...
Those were not of obsidian.
They were pure white.
Glowing divine light flickered along the surface of those doors.
Seven glowing circles were inscribed in the center of each door.
Those circles represented one of divine seals.
Five of them started cracking.
Two seals remained pristine.
Morgatha traced one of the glowing runes with her finger.
"My..."
"The seals weaken faster than we thought."
Lokiar crossed his arms.
"The prophecy is starting its run."
"Fate too."
Azrael silently watched the cracks.
His face darkened.
Suddenly...
Those gates recognized the presence of Demon Generals.
Ancient mechanisms sprung into action.
Slowly golden chains retreated into the walls.
Low voice resounded in the chamber.
"Authority recognized."
"Six Demon Generals confirmed."
"Seventh Seal remains forbidden."
Huge gates slowly started opening.
Wave of ancient mana spread out of them.
Torchlights in the corridor went out instantly.
Even Draven unconsciously clenched his spear.
Beyond the gates...
There was huge chamber descending to the endless darkness.
Unseen ceiling.
Flows of glowing silver mana ran through the stone like blood vessels.
Hundreds of floating crystals lit the whole chamber with pale blue light.
In the middle of the chamber there was a huge black crystal towering higher than a hundred meters.
It penetrated both the floor and the unseen ceiling.
Its polished surface absorbed all the lights.
Instead...
It reflected the gravity.
The crystal gave off the impression of immense pressure.
Not aggressive.
Not chaotic.
Just...
Absolute.
Six Demon Generals stopped their march.
None dared to come closer carelessly.
The chains of divine silver wrapped around the crystal.
Those were thick enough to compare with the ancient oaks.
Golden runes were flowing constantly across the surfaces of the chains.
Each of them represented some kind of blessing granted by ancient gods.
Seven chains.
Seven divine seals.
Together...
They kept prisoner in there for thousand years.
Inside the crystal...
There was a figure that could be barely seen.
Man sat on the throne carved out of black stone.
His long silver hair moved slowly as though in the water.
The face was covered by black mask without eyes and mouth.
The hands rested calmly on the arms of the throne.
He didn’t look like a prisoner...
More like a king awaiting awakening of his kingdom.
Not a single ray of mana left him.
Still the pulse of every living being in the chamber unconsciously slowed.
Even Grom lowered his head.
The grin of Draven disappeared.
Playful smile of Lokiar vanished.
Morgatha murmured some ancient prayers.
Azrael just stood respectfully silent.
Before them slept the being who commanded every Demon Legion.
The strongest of the Seven Demon Generals.
The being even Demon Emperor trusted with fate of the Demon Army.
Finally, Draven broke the silence.
"So..."
"There he is."
Morgatha nodded.
"A thousand years..."
"And he hasn’t aged a single day."
Lokiar laughed quietly.
"I almost forgot how oppressive his presence is."
Grom crossed his arms.
"I didn’t."
Azrael took one careful step towards the crystal.
His crimson eyes reflected sleeping figure.
"I remember our last conversation."
"He told us..."
"’If I fall asleep...’
’Wake me only when the world is ready to burn once again.’"
Silence.
Crystal stayed immobile.
Then...
A single heartbeat resounded in the chamber.
Thump.
Chains started vibrating.
Golden runes flashed brightly.
First crack appeared in the first divine seal.
The sleeping figure didn’t move.
But the whole mountain shuddered.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Mana streams surged violently.
Six Demon Generals instinctively backed away.
Slowly, Draven smiled.
"He heard us."
Azrael didn’t change his expression.
"No..."
He said quietly.
"He heard..."
"The world."
Deep inside the crystal...
Behind the motionless black mask...
A single finger twitched.
The Seventh Seal...
Started cracking.
It was absolutely quiet in there.
Even the movement of that one entity inside the black crystal caused the whole mountain to shiver.
The seven divine seals became brighter. Their golden runes flashed in the metal as if some kind of light river was passing through.
Nobody said anything.
Even the conceited Draven stayed quiet.
The six Demon Generals stared at the black crystal with respect in their faces.
In the darkness behind them...
The Demon Oracle stepped ahead slowly.
Its ivory mask shone under the light of the divine seals.
The ancient stone tablet floated beside it.
The Demon Oracle raised one hand.
"The time has come..."
"...to remember the name forgotten by history."
The stone tablet shined.
Ancient images appeared above the crystal.
The Great Demon War.
The sky was painted red.
Mountains fell apart.
Kingdoms had turned into seas of fire.
Millions of soldiers clashed under banners which became a part of history long ago.
In the middle of the battlefield there stood one man.
He didn’t have any shield or spear.
Only the massive jet-black sword lying across his shoulder.
Every step of his...
All armies were retreating.
Dragons wouldn’t descend from the sky.
Even Demon Generals were stepping aside.
The Oracle began speaking.
"He never lost."
The image changed.
There was one solitary man standing on the hill of broken weapons.
Around him there were many heroes.
Saints.
Kings.
Dragons.
None of them could beat him.
"For centuries..."
"He was walking from battlefield to battlefield."
"Victory went wherever he walked."
"He knew nothing about losing..."
"...as well as retreating."
Even Draven lowered his head.
"He was the greatest warrior our race has ever seen."
The Oracle nodded.
"He commanded each Demon Legion."
"When Demon Emperor gave an order..."
"It was he who delivered it all over the world."
The image changed again.
There was one majestic throne.
On it there was sitting the Demon Emperor, Zuko.
Below him there were kneeling all Demon Generals.
Each and every...
Except that one man in black armor.
He alone stood.
Not because of arrogance.
Because the Demon Emperor himself gave him the right to do so.
The Oracle started saying,
"Even Demon Emperor believed only one creature."
The image focused on that one man.
"Him."
"He wasn’t just a general."
"He was a shield of the Demon Empire."
"A sword which destroyed all kingdoms."
"The commander whom even Demon Kings respected."
There was absolute silence in the room.
Then...
The images changed once again.
There was one solitary human being.
Golden armor.
Silver hair.
Excalibur glowing as the second sun.
Leonis.
Azrael silently closed his eyes.
"I remember..."
The endless battlefield.
Leonis and the black-armored commander were standing face-to-face.
Neither of them didn’t move.
Neither of them didn’t say anything.
They were just looking at each other.
Two legends.
Two impossible warriors.
The voice of the Oracle became grave.
"They were fighting."
"Not one day."
"Not one week."
"For forty-nine days."
"Nobody yielded."
"The whole world almost tore apart during their battle."
The visions were showing split oceans.
Volcano eruptions.
The stars disappearing behind the storms of mana.
Nobody of those two swordsman wasn’t winning.
Finally...
Leonis made his choice.
The voice of the Oracle became soft.
"He understood..."
"That nobody in the world could kill this man."
"He was too powerful."
"Too enduring."
"So Leonis chose another way."
Golden light erupted on the battlefield.
Miasa came down from the skies.
The Goddess raised her hand toward Leonis.
The Sword King smiled.
"I understand."
He looked at his enemy.
Then...
Without hesitation...
He put his own hand upon his chest.
Golden light started pouring from his body.
His life force.
His soul.
Half of it.
The Demon Generals looked in shock.
Even Azrael didn’t see this part of the history.
The Oracle was speaking.
"To create a prison which would be strong enough..."
"...Leonis sacrificed half of his remaining lifespan."
"And he offered it willingly."
"And Goddess Miasa accepted his determination."
"The divine seals were created."
Seven pillars of golden light erupted from the sky.
They surrounded the black-armored commander.
The warrior tried to fight.
For the first time...
His feet stopped moving.
First one chain.
Then another.
And then all seven.
The black crystal was forming around him.
He didn’t scream.
He didn’t beg.
He was just looking at Leonis.
The Sword King smiled slightly.
"I couldn’t save you."
"But I won’t allow this war to go on."
The black-armored warrior was giving a little nod.
As if he acknowledged his worthy opponent.
Then...
The black crystal closed.
The war was changing forever.
The Oracle was lowering its hand.
The visions disappeared.
The room became silent again.
Draven clutched his fists.
"So..."
"Half of Leonis’s life..."
"...was needed to seal him."
"Yes."
The Oracle answered.
"No weapon could kill him."
"No spell could destroy him."
"No God could erase him."
"Only the seal based on the life of the greatest hero..."
"...could seal him."
Lokiar was whispering,
"Equal among the monsters."
Azrael quietly corrected him.
"No."
"He surpassed monsters."
"He surpassed heroes."
"He stands alone."
The Oracle was turning to the immense black crystal.
Its voice echoed through the room as if it was the decision of the History.
"He is..."
"...The Lord of Destruction."
In this very moment...
The whole Demon Continent was shaking from the deafening heartbeat.
THUMP!
One of the seven divine chains broke.
The black crystal was flashing.
And behind the featureless black mask...
One crimson eye was opening slowly.
