“Two out of two,” he chuckled. “I’ll give you a reward for that. Those crystals? They function like your Phantom Heart.”
I froze. “What?”
“Did you think I didn’t know about it?”
My eyes narrowed. “How do you know about my Phantom Heart?”
“We were not always enemies, Diablo.”
I stayed silent.
“I have seen you use the item in the past enough times to know what it is. A manifestation of rage, is it not?”
Focus. I calmed my thudding heart, silenced my screaming mind. He doesn’t know much more than what I tell people. It’s still okay.
“Who is the Time Lord?” I asked. “What does he want with us? He’s been interfering in this world way too many times now.”
“Who is the Time Lord,” Azmuth repeated. “I will tell you this, that man is not like us. Do not test him.”
“I know that much,” I muttered. “His race doesn’t even show up.”
“Neither does it for me. No one knows who he is, or where he is from. He is not an Eternal, I can tell you that much.”
“A convenient answer.”
“A truthful answer.”
“That’s questionable. Fear can twist lies into truth. You’re scared of him, aren’t you?”
“I am frightened, yes,” he said. “It should tell you volumes if I am more frightened of him than of the man who plunged his hand through my chest.”
My fingers tingled.
“The Time Lord is beyond us, Diablo,” Azmuth said. “When I came to this world, it was to raise my own power, to build the Dark Alliance back to what it used to be. The Time Lord supported my plans, and I went along with it. Now he requires assistance, and I will provide what he needs. Rather, I must. If I want to survive.”
“What is he even trying to do?”
He chuckled. “Even I knew, I wouldn’t tell you.”
“Are you telling me that the Time Lord hid information from you?”
“You should realize what kind of an opponent you’re dealing with here, Diablo. He knows everything about you, from who you were, to what changed you.”
“I know he does.” I grit my teeth. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to bow down to him like you did.”
He chuckled.
“Is this funny to you?” I asked.
“It is amusing to see your resistance.”
“Amusing?” I spat. “You know what I find amusing? You listened to the Time Lord when he helped you, when he gave you power. He’s stripped you of it all now, and you still follow him, like a loyal pet. That is amusing.”
The Dark Lord stayed silent, and then a weak voice came through. “In the words of a friend, I’ll do what I have to.”
“What you have to? For what? To save the Alliance?”
Silence responded once again.
“Well then.” I looked through the darkness. “I think I’ve gleamed as much as I can here, Dark Lord. It’s a little disappointing that it ended like this, but I certainly don’t need to sit and watch you act all pathetic now. Thanks for the information though.”
He chuckled. “You forced me to talk to you.”
“Okay, to be fair, I didn’t think you would actually care that much for your own Knights.”
“Do not assume you know me.”
“You’re not that hard to read.”
Azmuth moved his hand in the air, and the darkness swirled downward. The inner side of the enclosure faded in, with its broken rubble and dead bodies.
“I am here.” A deep voice echoed into my mind.
I looked up at the large gap in the ceiling. A dragon sat on the edge, and looked down at us.
Perfect. I turned to the Dark Lord. “Thank you for your patronage.”
“Do you like vacationing, Diablo?” he asked.
I raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“I hear the Hexel ruins get quite exciting this time of year,” he said. “Might be a nice time for a visit.”
“Are you sure you’re playing on the right side now, Azmuth?”
He chuckled. “Why would you say that?”
I smiled. “Just a feeling.”
***
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“Where to?” Acnologia asked.
My knees squeezed the Dragon’s neck, rubbing against the grains of its scales. The beast surged through the skies, and I felt the dry winds against my face.
“You’re already headed back to the village anyway,” I said. “And you’re also asking me where to go to?”
“Formalities,” he chuckled. “We ARE going to Ikarius, correct?”
I nodded. “We have to regroup with this new information first and then figure out what to do.”
“Ah,” Nyx said. “That’s going to be a tough ask.”
My eyes narrowed. “Why?”
“You think they’re all going to be happy to hear you met with the Dark Lord?”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
A burst of wind slithered past my hair as the Dragon rose higher up into the sky. The clouds floated many yards beneath us, and the air this high was much worse than just chilling. I blinked at the stars above me but they were now frozen, like twinkling jewels that had been put on pause, pulled away from their beauty.
I stared at them. “Do you really think I’ve changed?” My voice was soft.
The spirit and the Dragon said nothing.
“So, is that a yes?”
Nyx sighed. “Diablo, whether it’s a yes or a no, I think this isn’t something we should talk about right now.”
“Why?
“Because you’re too emotionally invested in it. And so, something we shouldn’t trigger.”
“It can’t be that bad, I mean—”
“Do you remember what happened back within the enclosure.”
A gentle pressure built into my mind, just at the utterance of those words. “Yeah.” My voice dropped. “I remember.”
“So, you understand.”
I said nothing in reply.
The breeze dropped, as though voicing its own response. A section of clouds approached us, and my heart jumped at the sight. These were the same clouds Freya and I had seen before. The ones we’d cherished.
Freya. My finger traced the empty air. Damn, she is going to throw a rage fit if she hears I met with the Dark Lord.
Nyx chuckled. “You’re can’t just hide this from her, you know.”
“Why are you enjoying this?” I rolled my eyes.
“Who’s enjoying anything?” His tone turned innocent. “I’m just stating the obvious.”
I smiled. “Sure, you are.”
“Diablo, it will take us a good two hours more to reach Ikarius,” Acnologia said.
I nodded. “About what I’d expected.”
“Wait,” Nyx said. “Did we ever get a message from the Death Lord that he’d reached the village?”
“We didn’t.”
“Shouldn’t we be worried about that?”
“Normally, yes. But I think we should trust the guy. He is pretty strong after all. And he did take down that skeletal army on his own.”
“Who do you think summoned something like that against him? The Dark Lord?”
“You saw how that man was,” I said. “He’s weaker than we saw him last. It’s probably Horace’s doing.”
“Yeah…”
“Diablo, what do you think of the things Azmuth talked to you about?” Acnologia asked.
“Ah,” I sighed. My head tilted up to the skies, fixed onto the stars of frozen light. They reminded me of myself, of an existence that had suddenly paused within time, unable to do what it usually did, to do what it was supposed to do.
“Do you think he lied to you about something?” Nyx asked.
“It’s possible, but personally I don’t think that’s the case.”
“Eh? Why?”
“Yes, the Dark Lord is a fiend who’d technically lie like there was no t
omorrow, but the current situation has him at a huge disadvantage.”
“Really? He still seems to be on the winning side to me.”
I shook my head. “It’s just like I told him. The winning side doesn’t make any difference if he’s being used as a pawn rather than a knight.”
“So, he doesn’t like that the Time Lord isn’t acknowledging his potential?”
“Something like that,” I said. “Azmuth is a prideful man. He would have first agreed to the Time Lord’s plans only because he was giving him more power, so he was the stronger one — technically. But the Time Lord had flipped out on him, and taken his powers away from him. Horace is interacting with this world more now, and the Dark Lord has turned more into a servant than a leader.”
“Isn’t that overanalyzing things?”
I shook my head. “I just know how he thinks. About certain things at least.”
“I’d still be cautious though,” the spirit said. “All that demeanor-play could just be a lie in itself.”
“That’s true. I don’t think that’s the case, but it is possible.”
“I’m not saying you need to disregard everything he said, but just be careful.”
A clap of thunder cracked through the skies and thick clouds emerged ahead, blocking our pathway. Sparks of lightning struck inside them, flashing like epileptic lights.
“Uh oh.”
“Hold on,” Acnologia said.
The Dragon’s wings expanded out to their full length, and he flapped hard, pushing through the air. Winds and gales burst around us, swirling in chaos as we rushed forward, to the dark mists ahead. In an instant we burst into the thick formation, and chilling sensations laced onto my skin.
This was not a good idea.
Flashes of light came from all around me, bursting into my eyes. The accompanying claps of thunder exploded in my ears, deafening me from all other sounds. The Dragon pierced the shades of darkness, surging like an arrow through the winds.
Slow down!
My knees squeezed harder, and I lowered my hands, holding tighter onto the beast’s neck. Winds and gusts pushed my chest, thudding against my beating heart. My muscles tensed, aching from fighting against the force.
“We must move fast.” Acnologia flapped his wings even harder and surged forth.
A crack of lightning struck just a few feet away, lighting up the darkness around. Swirls of dark mist moved around, and left us in a stark black. I activated my Night Vision skill but that didn’t help me see through the darkness. We were moving too fast for me to see anything as more than just a blur.
“I didn’t know you could fly this fast,” Nyx said.
“I do not do it often since it is not the safest way to fly,” Acnologia said.
Always thrilling to know when you’re flying dangerously. I gripped his neck tighter.
The Dragon chuckled. “We’re almost out.”
A burst of wind shot from behind us, and the Dragon caught onto it, using it to push ahead even faster. A strike of lightning struck mere yards above us, lacing terrifying heat onto my back.
A shiver ran down my spine. It’d hurt to get struck by lightning.
“You’ve had that done to you before,” Nyx said. “Remember?”
Oh yeah. I blinked. Markus’ lightning.
A clap of thunder sounded and as if that was our cue, we broke through the dark clouds, and emerged back out into the gentle skies. The cracking sounds still echoed behind us, but they didn’t seem as threatening anymore.
We flew in silence for the rest of the journey, mainly because Nyx and Acnologia knew the Dark Lord discussion wasn’t something I wanted to have at the moment. The only word we mentioned after was when a small village emerged on the horizon.
Acnologia glided down. “We’re here.”
I stared at the image. “Nyx, send Ijyela a message. Tell her we’re here.”
“On it,” the spirit said.
The Dragon soon descended to the village square and dropped, thudding against the floor. The water fountain in the center sparkled as it usually did, pouring streams of sparkling liquid from its many spouts.
I headed down the street and to the large house at the end. The door creaked open, and black-skinned elf stepped out.
“Zoran,” Ijyela said, with a stern look on her face.
I nodded, and followed her in. Stay out here, Acnologia.
“Understood.”
Freya, Krof and the Death Lord sat at the table inside. Ijyela pulled up a fifth seat for me and took her place at the table as well. I nodded at the others and sat down, pulling my chair up.
“So,” Ijyela said. “It’s good Diablo made it here in time. This will be useful to the discussion.”
“Eh?” I blinked.
“The Death Lord had something fascinating he has shared with us.”
I turned to him, staring at the violet eyes inside his hood.
“This crystal.” He pulled out the Time Lord’s stone. “I’ve been trying to study its properties, and mainly the odd presence inside it. I believe now that it is a fuel source for the Time Lord.”
“Exactly what the Dark Lord said,” Nyx whispered.
“I can affirm that’s the case,” I said.
“What?” Everyone turned to me.
“I did some testing of my own,” I said. “That crystal is something the Time Lord uses to give himself more strength. Collecting those things is how he’s become so strong already.”
“Perplexing,” Freya muttered.
“Death Lord, was that stone buried deep within the chamber you visited?” I asked.
He nodded. “I had to dig quite a bit.”
“And before you got to the chamber, did it feel like something had run away from you?”
He nodded yet again. “There was the sensation of something having escaped moments before I got there.”
“Alright. This aligns with everything that I experienced at the chamber I visited.”
“It does?” Krof asked.
I nodded. “The Chamber I visited was also visited by the Dark Lord.”
Eyes widened.
I frowned. Looks like Freya didn’t tell them about this. I continued, “He had an Eternal in his arms, and scampered away the moment I showed up. That was the only reason I was able to find the crystal in the first place.”
“Wait,” Ijyela said. “So, you have this crystal too?”
“I uhh…broke mine.”
She blinked. “What?”
“Anyway,” I said. “I was able to learn a lot about what’s been going on here.”
“From whom?”
“A source.”
Eyebrows raised, and gazes intensified, but I kept going.
“The Time Lord seems to be gathering many sources of energy,” I said. “I’m unsure why, but that could never be a good thing. He seems to be using minions to get his work done though, which additionally implies the possibility that the Time Lord himself isn’t here in this world.”
The gazes still held.
“Do you know what the energy sources are being gathered for?” the Death Lord asked.
“No clue.”
Ijyela leaned closer. “Zoran, who is this source of yours?”
“Someone from the Dark Alliance.”
“Eh?”
Freya’s eyes widened. “Zoran, you didn’t…”
Uh oh.
“You went to the Dark Lord, didn’t you?”
I stared at the center of the wooden table.
Everyone else other than the Death Lord kept their gaze fixed on my face. “Zoran, is this true?” Ijyela asked.
“Well, he was the best resource I had,” I said. “And he’s lost his power-up armor so he’s really weak now compared to me.”
“I can’t believe you did that without consulting us.” Her tone changed. “The least you could have done was tell us about it.”
“It was a spur of the moment. And plus, if I’d told you before, you would have rejec
ted the idea.”
The elf glared at me. “What else did you find out?”
“The Hexel Ruins,” I said.
“What about them?”
“That’s what the Dark Lord tipped me off about. He implied something was going on there.”
“And how credible is this information?”
“I take it to be truth. I know you guys won’t, and that’s fine. From what I saw, the Dark Lord is being ambiguous with who he’s allied with right now. The Time Lord is using him as a pawn, and that irks him. Given how much emotions sway him, it’s not unlikely he will help us, simply to pull the Time Lord down a peg. I’m taking what he said to be a genuine statement, and I will act on it as such.”
The other eyed me, and the expressions on their faces changed.
“Do you really think that’s a good reason to trust the Dark Lord?” Freya asked.
I nodded. “I do.”
The elf looked into my eyes, and then she sighed. “Fine.”
I turned to Ijyela. “Can you contact Heslia and ask him about the Hexel Ruins? If something is going on there, he might know.”
“He still has not responded to my previous message,” she said. “I will nevertheless ask him about this.”
“We’ll head over to the place too.”
Freya chuckled. “Figures. You can’t keep your head out of a mystery, can you?”
I smiled. “You know me.”
“Is there any other piece of information that you were able to find out?” Ijyela asked.
“Wait.” Krof held up his hand. “I understand that the stones are sources of power, but where exactly do they come from? The fact they are appearing in these chambers where the Eternals emerged suggests there is a certain connection between the two things.”
“That is true,” the elf added. “Where do these crystals come from?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
The three turned to the Death Lord, and he also shook his head.
Krof sighed. “It seems that might be an important piece of information in this fight as well.”
My chest tightened. It is.
“If anyone has any other questions, ask them now,” Ijyela said. “Else we will disband. It is best to send you off to the Hexel Ruins as soon as possible.”
I looked around the table, but everyone’s eyes were fixed to the wood.
The Eternal: Hellbringer - A LitRPG Saga (World of Ga'em Book 5) Page 12
