"Yes, I just wanted to see your reaction and to see if it's worth talking to you." Belial nodded with amusement. "It seems I have found a new toy to play with." He flapped his wings, causing a whirlwind of air to gush outwards, hitting Zero squarely in the chest.
Belial shot up and hoovered up in the air, facing face-to-face with Zero. "Prince of Dragon, even though I have once fallen, I still do not want to see this world go into complete chaos. Destruction is fine, and manageable chaos is fine, but the whole world's obliteration is not something I wish for. Remember this Dragon Prince; not all demons agree with the Demon Prince." He gazed directly into Zero's eyes. "So decide, Prince of Dragon. Serve me as your new lord or die here."
Zero knew he had no chance of winning against Belial, but even still, his heart wouldn't allow him to bow to someone, especially if it was a fallen angel. Words automatically escaped his lips before he could pull them back.
"No." He replied with a quiet declaration as his words seemed to have more force than he thought. Everyone in the vicinity had heard what he had said, and they all held in a gasp. Even General Liam was one of the rare few to be half still standing up against Belial's pressure.
Belial floated in the sky, his eyes turned into a scowl, and his first started to ball up. "Are you sure that is what you want to say to me, the great Belial?" An excruciating powerful aura shot outwards from Belial's body, suppressing everyone into complete fear. Nobody could move or even lift their head.
Zero knew he couldn't back down anymore; Belial heard his words and knew that what he said wasn't easily taken back. Even he was on the edge of bowing his head downwards towards Belial into complete submission. It took everything out of him to stand still, even as his instincts and mind were a complete war zone, telling him to submit or run away. Even still, he persisted with all his might and stood his place: neither bowing nor moving. This infuriated Zero so that he couldn't do anything against the monster in front of him, and as time went on, his resolve got stronger and stronger.
"I wouldn't be so sure you will easily get away with that," Zeraph replied with a sharp tone of voice.
The overwhelming power was squandered as if it wasn't even there in the first place. Zero looked towards Zeraph in a complete daze at what Zeraph had said. Then, zero felt another more potent energy in his hand that rivaled Belial's. In that instant, Zero knew what Zeraph was holding, a Krustallos. Where Zeraph got the Krustallos, Zero didn't know, but he knew that the Krustallos that Zeraph was holding was even more special than all the other Krustallos that he had ever seen and held.
The pure power from the Krustallos was astronomical; he could feel wave after wave of light and dark energy slowly beating in a rhythmic beat, dazzling Zero's senses and putting him into a peaceful state of mind. Yet, even the sheer brilliance of the Krustallos was something he had never seen before; the stone wasn't completely black or gold. Instead, a perfect mix of both colors swirled together to create a unique pattern. In the center of the stone was a small pink color closely in the shape of a heart.
A nostalgic feeling was felt from the Krustallos; an instant memory of his mother's love and his father's strong presence spread out into his heart. He knew then what that Krustallos was. It was the legendary Krustallos that once protected the Fire Continent and the cause of the fall of the barrier since the invasion of the Landsharks.
A legendary Krustallos has emerged. Finally, you have found your parent's Krustallos.
Zero was completely stunned. He couldn't believe that Zeraph was the cause of the downfall of the barrier; how this was possible, he didn't know. The question was, where did Zeraph go to find something so precious?
"You can try killing him, but I'm sure you'll die before you even get a chance too." Zeraph confidently stated.
A swirl of powerful black and gold energy shot outwards from the Krustallos and swirled around Zeraph in a whirlwind. A monstrous size black and the gold dragon appeared over Zero, towering above him in their full glory. Jet black wings, dangerous sharp claws, and angry-looking spikes lined up on its spine, as evil green eyes, long neck, and tail thrashed around like a whip. A triangular face with an evil set of teeth opened up as green energy started to glow from its mouth.
Simultaneously, a majestic, angelic gold dragon slightly bigger than the black stood across from the black. Its beautiful, enchanting feathered wings, curvy body, and proud demeanor stood perfectly with its head held up high. Blue energy swirled around in its mouth and belly as power swelled in both dragons.
"How is this possible?!" Belial shouted in complete disbelief. "They should be dead!"
"Well, buddy. They're not." Zeraph grinned mischievously.
A blast of black and gold energy shot simultaneously at once toward Belial. Belial hurriedly raised both his arms to stop the force of both dragon blasts. Next, a powerful wave of dark energy shot outwards, competing head-to-head with both dragons, but still, he couldn't stop the blast of both dragons completely. Instead, the more he pushed, his arm slowly bent and eventually destroyed it altogether.
With a loud boom, the large shockwave of energy and air shot outwards. Everybody was thrown back onto their back. Even Zero tumbled backward and rolled a good distance away. When the storm of chaotic energy finally dispersed was when Zero was able to get up in a complete daze slowly.
The only one standing in the middle of the field was Zeraph, holding the Krustallos above his head like a trophy. Soft gold and black energy wrapped around him, keeping him safe. Belial was nowhere to be found.
Zero thought Belial was gone from that blast, but he was wrong. Instead, Belial was floating with an extra pair of wings. He was now fully grown into an adult form and looked even more breathtakingly handsome. What was surprising was that they were heavy wounds littered all over his body and all of his wings were in complete tatters.
"You have the Eternal Stone," Belial whispered, his voice strained as he gazed at Zeraph with a deep scowling look. "How? The Eternal Stone was lost."
"Never was." Zeraph wasn't too happy that Belial was still alive. The gold and black dragons started to power up again; this time, their attack energy was twice as terrifying as the first one.
"I'll leave." But, then, Belial sharply spoke, "I came here for only one thing."
Suddenly, an invasive telepathic thought hit Zero's mind. You are a lucky dragon. But, there is one more thing I leave behind with you: A message from the high one. You who are a resident of two worlds, even though you live in our world for a brief moment, remember this even in your other world, we demons don't always agree with the other demons bent on bringing The End. What point would that bring for us to enjoy the life that we have now? So, listen well, for there will be no second chance. Evolve, grow, and become stronger, for your battle has just begun. Belial's voice cut through his mind, stunning him temporarily. The battle for your soul will begin in the next five years when the Prince of Demon fully awakens. Until then, Dragon Prince, I look forward to that day when we meet again. You will choose to become my weapon or the Demon Prince's, for your faith has been sealed in heaven's record.
"With this, my mission is complete," Belial spoke out loud.
Zero needed clarification on what Belial meant. Belial flapped his wings and shot through the sky like a comet, disappearing into the sun. Everybody was silent as they watched him go. The two dragons shimmered and disappeared back into the stone, leaving Zeraph alone. The warm power he had felt from the stone was gone, making Zero feel empty.
You have received a Fallen Angel message.
Countdown until the Demon Prince awakening.
Four years and 156 days.
Zero felt excruciating pain on the back of his hand. Red and black fire dug into his skin, branding him with a strange mark.
Mark of Belial. Belial will come for your soul before the Demon Prince does. No one can erase this mark but Belial himself.
Zero wasn't pleased; he shook his hand, trying to see if it would get off. He even tried to scrap it on the ground, but nothing worked. Instead, he was annoyed at what had happened, but what got him more curious was how in the world did Zeraph get the Krustallos of his dragon parent's stone. All his hunger was gone, and he stared, speechless.