"Do not worry. I will surely give it back to you. To see the last remaining Drezo Regalia is truly an honor. If you don't mind, I would like a piece of your fur." Garrett slowly reached over to Zero's fur, ready to pluck out a handful; Zero swiped him hard across his hands.
"Yes, I mind." Zero glared as he flexed his claws, ready to strike again if he reached towards him.
Garrett blew and shook his hand. He tried to calm the sting that Zero gave him.
"What do you mean by humanoid dragon?" Zero asked. He shifted back into his human form so Garrett wouldn't touch his fur again.
"Well, humanoid dragons are a branch off of True dragons; they carry the bloodline of both humans and dragons. This is so fascinating. If you don't mind, I would appreciate it if you keep this book with you." Garrett handed him the book Historia. An alarm went off as the message appeared before him.
Quest: Meet with the librarian Garrett completed.
Quest: History of Drezo Regalia completed.
Reward: Historia.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" Zero looked at Garrett with confusion. "I don't need a book." Both quests gave him the same reward. A book: Historia.
"Open it and you will know." Garrett agonizingly held it towards Zero, not wanting to part with it.
"You can keep it." Zero pushed the book towards Garrett. He did not want some old crusty book that did nothing for him. Especially after all the hard work he did, he only gained a couple of levels and a book. If this old geezer was having so much trouble parting with it, maybe it was best for someone who would appreciate it instead.
"No. No. Please. It would be an honor for an old scholar like me to give it to the Drezo Regalia. It would be best in your hands." Garrett closed his eyes as he roughly handed it to him.
Zero was just about to give it back, but was stopped. The old rabbit shook his head. He knew then that he could not give it back anymore. He would accept it graciously.
Carefully opening the book, a flashing black and gold light appeared before him. Thousands of different images danced before him: records of different people's life history played out before him. A gust of heavy wind appeared out from the book and surrounded Zero. He could feel different sounds, smells, tastes, and emotions.
Words peeled off the pages as they swirled around him. Bursting into thousands of pieces like fireworks, the words exploded and disappeared. Every single word was gone. A shimmer of light appeared before him. It was a red and blue infinity sign that merged back into the clean empty page.
Zero's vision distorted as his mind became clear. His eyes glazed over. He felt his spirit leave his body and travel to an unknown place. He didn't know where he was or how he got there. All he knew was absolute pitch black darkness.
Nothing moved, nothing stirred. An emptiness that filled no void. A place where no moon or sunlight could ever reach nor sound could ever escape. Only coldness was its friend.
A pair of bright green, diamond shaped, raptor-like eyes opened slowly. They glowed mesmerizingly in the dark. Soft gold light flickered on the gold markings that accentuated its body. Its large, reptilian face lazily rested on top of both its claws. Six pairs of sharp horns decorated its head like an emperor's crown.
With a slight shift of its body, it caused millions of bone sounds to crunch underneath its weight. A puff of hot steam blew out of its nose, creating a soft mist of acidic smoke. Clouds of hot steam settled down onto the ground, hissing and sizzling, melting through the bones.
"I know you are there," said the creature lazily. Its voice booming, it lifted its head. Two more pairs of diamond-shaped eyes opened wide with interest. In total there were six. Its head bobbed side to side like a snake's.
Zero watched from the cover of the darkness. He wasn't sure if he should approach it or stand back. Instead he stood still, entranced, as he watched the eyes moving from side to side. Appearing out of nowhere, a thin film of light swirled around him, protecting him. It was hiding him from the creature.
"I can ssssmell you." Its tongue flickered out like a snake's. Its head shifted towards the scent. "You are not afraid, child of Adam?" It chuckled.
Lifting itself up from the mountain of bones, its majestic stature sat comfortably on the bones. It flickered out its thick tongue. It sniffed the air; one golden claw ground through the bones and turned them into fine dust.
"I can almost taste you." Puffs of smoke escaped its nose, "I can ssssseeee you." Its eyes blinked wide with interest.
"Have you come to mock me?" it whispered, its voice tinged with anger and surprise. Its long slender tail appeared from behind him and wrapped around its body.
"So you have come to stare at the beast." It angrily slammed its fist into the piles of bones as it arrogantly puffed up its chest. Thousands upon thousands of ghastly green orbs appeared from the pile of bones. Souls of the dead screamed in agony, despair, anger, and sadness. They began to float upwards into the void, dimly lighting their surroundings. As far as the eye could see, piles upon piles of endless human bones lay underneath the dragon's body.
"Let me hear your voice," it whispered through the darkness. It waited patiently to hear. It has been a thousand of years since it has heard anyone's voice.
Zero stood silent. His soul rattled with fear. Something about this did not feel right. It felt too real.
"No?" The beast chuckled as smoke rose from its nose. "One day you will sing for me with your pretty little voice. Your name is of no importance to me. Many have come, and none have ever left. But it seems you are lucky today. I am here, and you are there." All six of its eyes glowed bright and dangerous. It rumbled deeply in its throat in annoyance. Its tail flicked from side to side. How it wanted to taste the flow of fresh human blood, the life force of power.
A burst of noxious green gas erupted from its mouth and surrounded him. Electric sparks crackled in its throat. It spewed out a chain of lightning that set off the clouds of gas. An earsplitting explosion erupted in a chaotic green flame. Six black, enormous wings fully opened. Its black and green scales glistened from the fiery flames. An angel of death and destruction. The life taker. The Beast.
The Dragon.
"I will come for you." It grinned evilly from ear to ear as it shuddered with ecstasy. "I will be reborn." Its maniacal laugh echoed endlessly into the void.
Zero's vision clouded over as his ears were still ringing with laughter. He was viciously yanked back into his body. His eyes cleared and he blinked a couple of times.
"Are you okay?" Garrett was staring at him worriedly.
"Yes…" Zero's chest tightened. He gulped. Something about the beast felt familiar. He just didn't know what. It was like a nagging feeling in the back of his mind. He looked back at the book, trying to see if it would take him back to the place of the beast.
As he fumbled around with the book, he watched as the infinity sign swirled and shifted into a circle. From the circle a small seed emerged out into a three-dimensional object towards Zero. Gently picking it up, he carefully examined the seed. A rusty color with rough texture, it was the size of an almond.
"A seed?" Zero was stupefied at what he was given. "More seeds? From small box of golden seeds to now one large seed? What is with this game and its damn seeds?"
Just as it appeared before him the seed melted into his hands like a liquid and disappeared. His hands shook violently and his veins started to pop out. He attempted to stop it and failed.
Bathump.
Bathump.
Bathump.
His heart raced. The room began to spin as his vision slowly faded.
"Wh-aa-t? Not agaa-i-nnn…" Zero's speech slurred as he stumbled. The last thing he saw was the message that appeared in front of him as he blacked out.
A new primary job has been obtained.
Record Keeper of Historia.