And now we're getting close to the end of this story. I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)
We spirit dragons have always believed in keeping the balance between realms and the colossal amounts of damage that would result if the balance was destroyed. We are responsible for maintaining order here in the Spirit Realm. Of course if you understand the concept of balance, then you know there is another realm that's the complete opposite of the Spirit realm.
It's called the Umbra Realm and it is a realm filled to the brim with chaos. There are beings called Umbra or Phantom dragons. They were our opposites in every way and they have a leader just like us. No one knows the name of this being or if its even a dragon. What we do know is that we call it the Phantom and it has the ability to corrupt any being, mortal and immortal, into a creature of the Umbra Realm. Black and purple inky tendrils corrupt the hearts, bodies, and minds of its victims and they are forever gone.
So what I saw within Hiro was that same inky darkness that had attached itself to him. It had been the first time in centuries that I felt powerless. That I could only watch helplessly as the corruption slowly extends its reach within his body. Draven will pay dearly for this. Whatever deal he struck with that entity has now involved Hiro. Was this his intention all along or just insurance? Whatever the case, that brother-in-law of mine will regret his foolish decision.
I will save my son.
Hiro dodged another lunge from Morenth and tail-swatted Vitarra away. He grabbed both Vitarra and Morenth by the head and held them up. He held his head down and his brown hair covered his eyes.
"What's the matter hatchling? Have you decided to serve Lord Draven after all?" Salamir asked as he circled around them.
"Serve? Draven? Don't make me laugh." A dual toned voice said and the three dragon souls looked at Hiro with widened eyes. Where did that come from? It wasn't the boy's normal voice and it was accompanied by a deeper one. Then a wide, psychotic grin slowly crept its way onto Hiro's face and his grip tightened around the two dragon's heads. "Draven is no king. He too is merely a servant to a much bigger and more powerful master."
"What the hell?!" Vitaara shouted. Then thin black tendril burst forth from the sleeves of Hiro's shirt. They twisted around his arms and wrapped around Vitaara and Morenth. They roared in pain as the darkness burned and corrupted their souls. Salamir froze as he watched the white souls of Vitaara and Morenth turn black. Their glowing eyes turned purple and they looked at Salamir.
"This is..this is amazing!" Vitaara shouted.
"The power and knowledge that flows through me is incredible!" Morenth shouted and Hiro absorbed their souls permanently. He turned to Salamir and his hair still covered his eyes.
"Come Salamir, join your companions and feel true power." Hiro said as he opened his arms and Salamir roared as the tendrils consumed him.
"Stand back princess, something's wrong." Kunaria said as she stood protectively in front of Hime.
"What is that?" Hime askeed as the white sphere turned black and Hiro suddenly emerged. The two women saw that his eyes had changed. His yellow-gold irises were now a violet color and the whites of his eyes were black. His claws were black too and he grinned. "Hiro, what happened to you?"
"I feel great Hime. I feel like I can take on Draven right now." Hiro said and Hime narrowed her eyes. The young dragon tilted his head. "Skeptical? That's to be expected. Then, come and allow me to show you."
"Hiro, no." Kunaria said but he ignored her and shifted to his dragon form. His black scales remained the same but his red scales and webbing in his wings were now dark purple with silver colored blades on the tips of his wings. Black tendrils swarmed all over his arms, abdomen and legs. He slowly stalked towards them. Then silver-white chains erupted from the runes on the ground and wrapped around Hiro's limbs. He roared in pain as the blue and white flames burned through his scales and tendrils. One huge chain tied his wings together and two smaller ones grabbed his tail and neck each but Hiro continued to struggle. Kunaria and Hime turned to see three people approach. They were wearing white ropes and were barefoot. The one on the left was a young woman, the one on the right was a young man, and the one in the middle was an elderly man with a brown staff. All three of them had white hair, pale skin, and glowing white eyes. A final chain appeared and wrapped around Hiro's mouth. The young dragon collapsed on the ground but continued his futile attempt to break free.
"Gillion." Kunaria nodded her head in respect to the elderly looking man.
"What is going on here Kunaria?" Gillion asked and Kunaria sighed.
"I'll explain inside." The old man sighed and teleported everyone inside. Kunaria explained the situation after the other two people left. Then Gillion turned to Hime.
"My apologies your highness. My name is Gillion and I am the leader of the spirit dragons." Hime nodded in acknowledgement and she turned to her servant. He was still in his corrupted and he was snarling at them.
"Can you help him?" Hime asked and Gillion glanced at Hiro.
"Unfortunately not. The most I can do is force him to human form. Whether he returned to normal or if he is too far gone is all dependent on his willpower. The corruption is permanent."
"Kunaria told me about what this corruption is but where did it come from?" Gillion nodded.
"Ah yes, this corruption comes from the Umbra Realm and the entity that rules it. Its identity is unknown, even to us. However its influence is well known amongst our kind."
"Draven was the one who did this to my son. He must've made a bargain with the entity, but for what purpose? Draven was already strong before he was banished." Kunaria said.
"I know not what Draven's plans are but your son is another matter." Gillion said as he increased the power of the chains and Hiro roared in pain. He shrunk back down to human form and fell unconscious. The chains disappeared and the wisps picked his body off the floor. His body was surrounded by a pale blue outline as they carried him out of the room. "He must be kept isolated, just in case he does not return to his proper state of mind."
Back in Draven's castle, Lanaya was slammed into the wall and held there by Draven. The dragon king had a fiercely annoyed look on his face and one of his hands had a purple outline around it. Then he thrusted out his other hand and Jal'zul was subjected to the same treatment as the female dragon. They were practically thrown around like rag dolls and Lanaya spit some blood out from her mouth.
"You incompetent fools! I gave you one simple task and you failed!" Draven growled. Then he snapped his fingers and the two were slammed into each other.
"B-But my lord, the phoenix was accompanied by Kunaria. You know how strong she is." Jal'zul said and Draven narrowed his eyes. "But it's not all bad. That Shadow of Chaos potion you gave me was used on your nephew."
"Is that so?" Draven stopped tormenting them and turned his back to them. He remained silent for a few minutes and his servants stared at him as they caustiously stood up.
"That was a good move, right?" Lanaya asked and Draven glanced at them.
"Perhaps, we shall see soon."
"Where did you go your majesty?" Jal'zul asked.
"I went to gather more dragons for my army and I've succeeded."
"Are we going to conquer more territories?" Lanaya asked with a grin.
"We're going to do more than that. The time has come, I shall lead my army and take my throne back personally."
"Finally! The Monster Realm will bow to dragons once more!" Lanaya cheered.
"Are we starting now?" Jal'zul asked and Draven smirked.
"Indeed." Draven said as he left the castle and started shifted to his dragon form. "Let us begin!"
Suddenly Draven let out a very loud roar; signaling the beginning of the battle. Every dragon in his service raised their heads in acknowledgement of their king's command and took off into the air. They started to roar as well and began their assault.
Azuriel flew as swiftly as his wings could carry him. He arrived at Razakel's home and his brother met him at the door.
"Razakel! It's Draven!" Azuriel shouted and Riza and Reiri walked over.
"The guy is starting his attack?" Riza asked and Razakel cursed. Kunaria, Hime, and Hiro still hadn't returned from the Spirit realm and Razakel was unsure if his son was prepared to fight alongside them against Draven and his army.
"What do you want you do now Razakel?" Reiri asked.
"We have no choice. We must meet Draven and his army on the battlefield." Razakel said and he his wings appeared. "I will gather all of our fighters and we'll meet you in the Monster Realm."
"Got it. Let's roll ladies." Azuriel said and the girls nodded.
Hime sat in a large leather chair by Hiro's bedside. Her servant still hadn't awakened yet but she could see that he was fighting off the corruption within his body from the twitches of his fingers and closed eyes. She couldn't afford to lose him now. Actually, she couldn't afford to lose him at all. He had become such a staple in her life now. Her eyes softened and a small smile graced her lips. She had grown so attached to him and even though he wasn't human anymore, he was still her Hiro. Her small smile turned into a smirk as it all came together. She wanted him to always remain by her side and not only as just her servant but as-
"Hime?" a familiar voice snapped Hime out of her thoughts. She saw Hiro with his eyes half open. He must've woken up a few seconds ago then. She sighed in relief that he was back to his old self again. Hiro slowly sat up and winced before he lifted himself off of the bed. He almost collapsed but Hime stood up and caught him in her arms. His head landed on her shoulder and he breathed in her scent. Then he wrapped his arms around her.
"I see you're back to normal Hiro." Hime said and the young dragon nodded. He didn't say anything for a while and Hime briefly wondered what was wrong.
"It was terrible." Hiro said and Hime guessed it was about his corrupted form. "The death, despair, and hunger. I can still feel it burning inside of me, trying to claw its way out."
Then Hiro's eyes changed to their draconic ones and his breathing grew heavy. The darkness of the Umbra Realm started to show in his eyes and Hime grew worried. She knew that he was trying his best to fend it off, especially considering he had never experienced such an evil before. His nails turned into black claws and he started shivering. Hime grabbed a hold of his head and forced him to look at her. In his eyes he was pleading, begging for some way to push the corruption back. His power as a spirit dragon was missing for some reason and he had nothing to hold on to. The yellow-gold color of his eyes were still there but they were started to flicker between that and violet. Despite the situation, a warm feeling washed over them both and they didn't notice their faces moving closer to each other.
"Calm down Hiro. Just focus on something."
"On what?" Hime didn't answer verbally and instead pressed her lips on his. Hiro couldn't believe what was happening. Hime, the woman he was in love with, was actually kissing him. The corruption in his eyes halted their spreading and he kissed her back. The two monsters felt fireworks go off within their minds but there was something else. It was like the last puzzle piece was placed to complete the picture. The bond between them grew brighter and Hiro's wings appeared. The corruption had receded and he wrapped his wings around them both. Hime pulled away and chuckled at the action. His eyes were back to their normal yellow-gold and Hime placed her hands on his shoulders.
"Use that to anchor yourself." Hime said and Hiro just nodded with a dumbfounded look.
"Why did you-?"
"Why did I kiss you?" Hiro nodded and Hime looked off to the side. "Why indeed."
"Seriously?" Hime chuckled again at his exasperated tone.
"I'm sure you can figure it out yourself. After all, you wrapped your wings around me." Hiro blushed.
"Well you don't exactly make it easier to tell." Hime smirked and brushed a loose strand of brown hair from his eyes. Then Hiro smiled. "But I know it's not easy for you to show."
"I am showing it now aren't I?" Hiro sighed.
"Geez." Hime actually laughed and Hiro couldn't keep the shock from appearing on his face. He had never heard his princess laugh before and he positively enjoyed the sound. His gaze softened lovingly. Then there weas a knock on the door.
"Hiro! Hime! It's an emergency!" Kunaria shouted and the two let go of each other. Hiro opened the door and his mother motioned for them to follow her.
"What's going on?" Hime asked.
"It's Draven your highness, the battle has begun." Hiro's eyes widened. "Razakel is gathering his warriors to meet them on the battlefield."
"But, I don't think I can fight him. Especially after what just happened." Hiro said and Kunaria placed a hand gently on top of his head.
"You're not alone Hiro. We'll all fight him together." Kunaria said with a soft smile and Hiro turned to Hime. She flipped her blonde hair and gave him one of her signature smirks. Hiro smiled at her and took a deep breath before he nodded at his mother.
"I wish you luck young one." Gillion said as he walked past them. "Remember, you're much stronger than you realize. Your spirit powers have not disappeared, they just haven't been called yet."
"Called?" Hiro asked and Gillion smiled knowingly.
"You'll find out soon enough. Just be sure to keep in mind what you're fighting for."
"The Monster realm is mine!" Draven shouted as his army of dragons tore the landscape apart. Hundreds of his kind flew through the air and walked across the ground as they carried out their king's orders. Civilian monsters were slaughtered left and right and Lanaya laughed as she joined in with Jal'zul on her back. Suddenly, a few vines wrapped themselves around the neck of a couple dragons and they roared in pain as the thorns pierced through their scales. Draven glanced over to see Azuriel in his dragon form with Riza and Reiri on his back and Flandre in one of his hands.
"I expected you to betray me little brother, just like last time." Draven said as he narrowed his eyes.
"You lost the war several centuries ago Draven. This world does not belong to you anymore." Azuriel said and Draven snarled. Then a portal opened and Razakel appeared in his dragon form.
"Enough is enough Draven. We will stop you right here and now." Razakel said.
"You think you can stop me?" Draven asked with a snarl.
"I don't think, I know." Suddenly the portal opened wider and more dragons poured out into the Monster Realm. Draven and his army looked around and saw that Razakel had a dragon army of his own. Lanaya and the lightning dragon, Tyrinov floated next to their king.
"My my, such an interesting turn of events. I look forward to seeing the outcome." Draven said and another portal opened. This time, Hiro appeared in his dragon form with Hime on his back and all the portals closed. Jal'zul and Lanaya's eyes widened.
"H-How? There's no way the corruption didn't work!" Jal'zul shouted and everyone heard chuckling. They turned to see Draven laughing.
"Look at you my young nephew! You take after me more than your own father!" Hiro glared at him.
"The only thing I got from you was this corruption that lich of yours put on me. I'm nothing like you." Draven grinned.
"It's over Draven." Hime said with her pistols drawn.
"You think you're strong enough to defy me? So be it." Draven spread his front limbs wide. "Allow me to show you why I am the King of Dragons!"
And that's the end of this chapter. I feel like I need to work more on romance scenes too. It's been a while since I last wrote one. Well, Read and Review!