"GRRR!'
Belial's fierce, monstrous emerald eyes looked with a grimace at the wanderers, who were cradled against his massive beastly hands. He resisted the uncontrollable urge to hurt them by piercing his own skin with his sharp fingernails.
Though screeching in pain, it was the only method effective that could stop his demon senses from injuring The Wanderers.
Ever since he transformed, Belial had this certain spark of a feeling of hatred for Asahi and Aletha. Still, he couldn't understand why, especially in his uncontrollable demon form.
"Why… can't… I… drop them?" Belial shrieked in his mind as he tried to fight the controllable forces of his demon form.
He always felt a specific tone of unease whenever he was standing within the radius of the wanderers. Belial didn't understand why, but he had high suspicions that it could be…
Before his thoughts could meld into clarity, Belial felt a hot feeling bursting in his arms. His beast-like foot slid against the ground, pushing the boulders back and trees upwards. He felt pushed and distraught from the thousands of stings that blistered his beastly chest.
"Roar!"
Belial toppled to the ground.
His grip on the wanderers slipped, forcing them to fall from his hands. Their faces pushed against the dirt, their legs flailed into the air, losing balance, and rolling down the hill.
Demon Beast Belial screeched and roared, crying in pain from the continuous spear-like objects stabbing through his body. Though he never wanted to be in this form, he was willing to sacrifice his humanity just for The Wanderers' and his friends' safety.
As he witnessed the wanderers tumble down the hill, he tilted his head downward and saw eighty pointed spears piercing through his body. His eyes widened, he fell to the ground and screamed.
"RAWR!"
His eyelids slowly closed, hearing shuffling footsteps in front. His heart slowly thumped, the glow on his horns faded, and a regretful feeling choked his lungs.
(I failed them, but I couldn't d-do anything about it. Why… I don't understand why…)
While he tried to lunge himself up, walking in front of him were tall men wearing brown-colorer armor pieces and face-covering helmets. Though the beast couldn't Gasp, Belial's mind…
(NARCISSA IS BEHIND THIS?!) Belial's voice angrily yelled in his mind as he heard the chain metal dangle.
This struck his heart like the arrows that pierced through his skin. A feeling of betrayal fumed up Belial's soul.
"I worked for her for more than a hundred years, and this is how she repays our duties? We saved her people, we helped the nation, we assisted it during the small war between The Ending's monsters, and this is what we get in return?!"
Belial's resentment festered in him as he saw the knights racing down the hill. He couldn't stop but feel absolutely infuriated by Narcissa's actions. It's as if all those years of serving her as One of The Great Knights of Pladtioa were quenched and tarnished like a weed getting pulled out from a garden.
As the knights fled away, Demon Beast Belial slammed its fist through the ground. Its heart relentlessly thumped with rage, with its teeth curling and its legs lifting upward.
"I feel it. I remember. You slew my family and took advantage of my world's destruction. You were the one who stole my memories. You were the one who cursed my family to be trapped inside my eyes. That's why my eye color changed. All because of your selfish, immoral ways." Belial fumed in his mind.
The beast lunged upward, tearing off all arrows off its body. As Drimi and the others were about to reach Demon Beast Belial, it hastily charged down the hill, tearing trees from its path.
Scampering through the bushes, Sally, breathless with all the other villagers, whined in exhilaration.
"B-Belial… was right there!"
"That doesn't mean we're going to stop." Drimi relentlessly answered while continuing to run through the patch of grass.
Sally's pink eyes widened with disbelief.
"A-Are you serious; After ALL we have done?!"
Drimi deeply sighed and tossed Sally a canteen of water.
"Drink it. It will help you. The villagers look like they have enough energy to follow without it. It's the wanderers' lives that are at risk here. We can't just simply let them die."
Phthonus sprinted behind Drimi and nodded his head, agreeing.
"I agree with Drimi. There are matters too big for us to cease. Come on, let's go!"
After Sally chugged down the canteen of water, the villagers, Sally, Drimi, and Phthonus, continued chasing Demon Beast Belial, not knowing that he didn't have the wanderers anymore.
* * * * * * * *
"Soldiers, over there!" One of the knights hollered as the wanderers lay against a pile of stones.
They were unconscious, paralyzed because of Belial's healing. It felt that The Wanderers were incompatible with it as if it was an unknown source.
Their souls resided in a dark Abyss, unable to escape due to their unconsciousness. If they were to awaken, they would have stayed with the others a long time ago.
Demon Beast Belial chased the knights, hauling trees and spitting out toxic green goop from its mouth. Now that he was in his demon form, Belial had more freedom with his powers.
"Get your butts away from them!"
The Knights disregarded the warning, snatched the wanderers, and sprinted along the brown path. Demon Beast Belial got enraged, and swiftly he tackled from tree to tree, chasing the knights through Milmoor forest.
It roared and shrieked, absolutely stunned by the knights' constant arrows released. The beast eventually slowed down and fell to the ground, physically unable to chase the knights further.
The thing was that the chase was so long that Demon Beast Belial managed to reach the outskirts of Pladtioa City.
If the beast were still standing, it would have decimated the wall and caused carnage to the buildings.
"Follow the Queen's path! Do NOT let go of the aliens!"
"Understood!"
Racing and accelerating forward, the Knights approached a massive wall plastered with dense creamy-colores stone and concrete. It stretched and spanned several kilometers, from the forest, all the way to the gigantic cloud-piercing mountain where the royal castle resided.
They strengthened their grip on The Wanderers and carried them through a massive arch-shaped gateway lying at the center of the wall.
Beyond, there was a vast sea of concrete structures, some with triangular-roofed buildings varying in size and others with more rectangular, symmetrical-shaped structures.
The bright, exuberant rays from the sun complimented the city's scenery even further, reflecting across the clear glass-paned windows scattered across an abundance of markets and apartments.
However, something felt off as the knights raced across the bridge and the concrete streets.
Proceeding toward a massive rectangular-shaped open block in the city, the Knights noticed a sea of civilians yelling and screaming at what seemed to be a wooden podium; with a tall woman with long brown hair standing near a lever, more knights, and a middle-aged man standing next to a noose.
"Get him off! He doesn't deserve to be captured!"
"STOP! This is unrighteous! You're making the nation look bad to the world!"
"What did he do to deserve this?!"
"SILENCE!" The brown-haired woman wearing a crown screamed as she stepped closer toward the lever.
"You know exactly what mistakes this man caused. He stole goods and made our nation look like a fool. A disgusting repulsion that ruins the perfect image of our nation. And therefore, he shall be punished!"
The crowd grew furious and threw objects toward the stage. A man wearing a barret and white clothing screamed as he tossed a tomato to the guards.
"By doing this, you're going to make our nation look even less merciful! There are still visitors here! THIS DOESN'T MAKE SENSE!"
A girl wearing a fur- coat, tattered jeans, having blonde hair, yelped out.
"He's right! Queen, what you are doing would spring out war from Zomrack! Stop this non--
The Queen, infuriated, stomped her foot on the podium, lifted her arms into the air, and clenched her fists. Suddenly, she lifted her other arm into the air, her brown eyes glowed with a dark brown, and a stream of luminescent particles encircled the man and the woman.
The crowd moved away from their radius, jumping and screaming. "STOP!"
Nonetheless, their 'Queen' didn't listen.
The blonde-haired woman and the man wearing a barret froze in fear, seeing a devious smile shine from The Queen's face. The knights tilted their heads down, knowing that this was wrong, but respected her knowing that they would share the same fate if they were to resist.
"What are you doing?" A citizen said.
"Silence!"
Suddenly, the blonde-haired woman levitates into the air, with the brown particles encircling her in a swarm. She closed her eyes and shut her mouth, knowing that it was the end for her.
Just as the man was about to open his mouth…
(Splat)
Crimson flew high into the air, with chunks of meat dissipating into nothingness. The crowd instantly panicked.
"AHHH!"
Afterward, the man wearing a barrette's eyes widened in absolute fear and knew that he was next. Without hesitation, he tilted down to the crowd, seeing his wife and children in tears and screaming at the top of their lungs.
"STOP!"
Before he could wave or even say goodbye…
(Splat)
He was also tarnished from the magic by the Queen. Everyone ran in circles, screaming at the top of their lungs.
"WHY!? NOOO!"
The Queen snarled and lightly chuckled. She knew that if she were to snap her fingers at this very moment…
"All hail The Queen."
Their memories of the existences of the others would be washed and forgotten instantly.
The crowd hunched back up together as if the slaughter had never happened and continued spectating the execution. The Queen resumed.
"Now, let's continue, shall we? This man…"
She placed her hand over his chest.
The Knights disregarded the mess and proceeded to go around the crowd. As they carried the wanderers on their backs toward the podium, they saw that the man being executed had a beard, was tall, had fair skin, wore a silver pendant in the base of his neck, and yellow lightning symbols scattered on his long sleeves.
The Queen slowly stepped toward the man, who was paralyzed in fear and got shunned with shock, with his hands cuffed from thick steel chains. He tried to move but was instantly shocked by a small spark of electricity from the brown-haired woman.
"What you are doing is immoral. This would form a scar and ruin your nation even more--
The Queen interrupted him.
"Silence!"
She continued while she slapped him in the face, and the crowd cheered.
"Brich Besector ruined our morality and corrupted our nation with his alien objects from lands afar. Who knows my law; that if there were to be items from other nations, they would be punished."
The crowd raised their hands, cheering and clapping.
"We do!"
The Queen sinisterly smiled.
"Right… and what do we do to men who don't OBEY my laws?"
The audience leaped up into the air with excitement.
"They get executed!"
"Hahaha, correct."
A silence filled the area. The wind blew over The Queen's hair and the banners that dangled over the poles of the podium. The Queen's footsteps over the wooden floor echoed over the building's walls, with the audience waiting in anticipation.
She stepped closer toward the large steel lever placed conveniently on the other side. Then, The Queen ordered her guards to put the noose over Brich's neck.
As she slowly wrapped her fingers over it, with her head staring at Brich with a devious smile…
Before anyone even realized it…
"Roar!"
The execution was paused.
Roaring from a distance, followed by tremors shaking and tossing bookshelves off the tall porches, was a beast with horns, a muscular build, and dense brown fur. Its emerald eyes gleamed in the hazy distance, shaking the buildings and tossing walls just by its fists.
It was Belial.
The crowd panicked and screamed, running around like a herd of headless chickens. The Knights were so stunned that they lost grip of the wanderers and fled from The Queen, in cowardice to not get included.
Immediately, The Queen released her grip from the lever, keeping Brich alive. She was infuriated from the interruption, gritted her teeth, hastily stepped down the stairs, and screamed like a child.
"What is that?! Knights, I order you to investigate…."
(Boom!)
Loose bricks flew in the air, followed by buildings collapsing beyond the platinum bridge. The crowd was shocked, and hastily they fled from the block toward the streets.
As the knights were about to sprint, The Queen stopped them, stepped forward, grabbed her staff, and demanded with a stern voice.
"Nevermind! Move back!"
She placed her two hands over her staff and smiled. As Demon Beast Belial charged through the streets, The Queen announced.
"I will be the one to take care of it."
Anticipation surged through her veins as the tip of her staff glowed a bright brown. Demon Beast Belial snarled at The Queen, lifting its arms into the air and prying open its jaw. It was furious beyond comprehension.
"Now, now… you were the one who served me… therefore you shall--
The beast slammed its fists into the ground, pulled a chunk of earth, and tossed it to The Queen. She hastily dodged the attack but allowed her guards to stand at the radius of the collision.
"Really? Is that all you--
Her dark mocha eyes widened; her heart strummed and thumped with excitement, seeing that next to her feet were two individuals with long-white hair and dark attire.
The Wanderers.
The beast, having known that The Queen discovered the wanderers, hastily charged through the streets, tossing people, bricks, and tables into the air.
The Queen would never believe that her 'servant' could act this way. She didn't even flinch or bat an eye to the beast.
All The Queen did was gaze in amusement, watching the wanderers lie unconscious on her feet. She didn't even care if her own city was being destroyed.
"Finally…" She whispered.
"ROAR!"
The beast was close. The civilians moved away from its path as it was charging, forcing buildings to tremble and panic. Skidding and dragging its arms through the street, Demon Beast Belial was beaming with adrenaline, appalled that now… he can finally attack The Queen.
"Haha! Foolish betrayer." The Queen said.
Drimi screamed from a distance as she approached the bridge.
"BELIAL!"
Demon Beast Belial's eyes widened, paralyzed in shock. From the horizon of buildings, Belial saw Drimi, Sally, and Phthonus dashing in the distance. But that was not all; there were hundreds of villagers following behind, with heaps of sweat drenching their faces.
(Drimi?)
As the beast got distracted, The Queen used this moment to her advantage and tried to carry both the wanderers with her own hands.
She tried desperately to carry them but failed at her own weakness, realizing that she couldn't lose her staff. With her face quivering, hearing hundreds of footsteps nearer to her, The Queen hastily grabbed Asahi and dropped Aletha to the ground.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!" Phthonus yelled as he pulled his book out.
The Queen smirked and pressed her face against Asahi's cheek, almost sort of taunting all of them in a way. She didn't realize that Demon Beast Belial was…
(Shune)
Suddenly, her staff sparked and glowed a bright brown. Just as the beast was about to swerve its arm toward The Queen, all watched as…
(Poof)
Everyone's eyes widened in absolute surprise; an unnerving silence sprouted out. Their breathing quickened, The Queen made a devious smile, and hastily, she fled with Asahi cradled on her right arm and the rest of her tranced guards toward the direction of her castle.
Drimi, Sally, and Phthonus screamed with tears as her footsteps resounded over the walls.
"ASAHI! BELIAL!"
No brown fur, no teeth, no jaw, no arms, no eyes. All of the beast's presence vanished like a bubble popping out of existence.
The only leftovers left from the disappearance were sparkling brown dust and a few trails of fur. Their hearts went stiff.
"Where is he?!"
Despite Sally usually being the one to panic, she acted… relatively calm to the incident. She couldn't fully make out the events, but she did recognize what The Queen did.
As the rest stood utterly still in disbelief, Sally whispered.
"He's not dead. B-Belial has been teleported."
"Huh?!" Drimi exclaimed.
Without hesitation, Phthonus hastily sprinted to Aletha, who was near a wall, lifted her up, and carried her on his back. He couldn't risk having another of The Wanderers end up captured from The Queen.
"You'll be safe." Whispered Phthonus as he felt Aletha's hand dangling over his shoulders.
Drimi shook her head and pulled Sally closer.
"What do you mean he got teleported?!"
Sally got shunned with fear seeing and feeling Drimi's stern aura shriveled her confidence. Slowly, she started to grow dreary and steadily lifted her finger.
"Belial's not dead. Remember when Narcissa, The Queen, revealed to us all her abilities and what she could do many years ago?"
Drimi and Phthonus slowly nodded.
"Then maybe she did this to Belial…? Perhaps SHE knew that he could turn into a demon and teleported him somewhere else."
A silent wind flowed against their hair. The villagers stood in absolute surprise, unable to recollect what happened. They have been so isolated from the city of Pladtioa that they almost had an aneurysm just by entering the place.
Drimi and Phthonus eventually realized and understood what Sally was talking about. It was hard for them to believe that Sally could be so calm, despite a situation like this.
"But, Asahi has been captured. You remember what happens when Aletha and her brother get separated, right?" Phthonus exclaimed.
Drimi and Sally jumped up and silently nodded.
"Yes, and what's worse is that The Queen has them now. We still haven't even retrieved our weapons. So what makes us think--
Abruptly, the sound of chains snapping echoed over the block, followed by footsteps, a drag, and then a loud whistle.
"What was that?"
Suddenly, Phthonus' eyebrows raised. The weight on his shoulder vanished, implying that…
"Where's Aletha?!" He asked.
Then, Drimi was swift enough to see someone running out to an ally from up the corner. She gasped, jumped up, and raised her voice.
"Some dude with lightning bolts on his sleeves, a beard, and kind of… tall was running to the corner."
"And…?" Phthonus added.
Drimi replied.
"There was also a body over his back!"
Instantly, Phthonus sprinted, Sally too, and the villagers did as well. As Drimi chased the group from behind, Phthonus hollered at the top of his lungs.
"IT'S BRICH! CHASE AFTER HIM!"