Chapter 20
The Doctorman was beginning to grow restless. "Are you sure this is the way to the main hall, Eskora?" he asked the Istran. I'm fairly certain, he replied mentally. But the royalty of Doomaria like to shift the dimensions of the castle on a whim. Doctorman laughed weakly. "So this whole place could change in an instant," he said. "That's nice, especially if they know where we went." This does appear to be the most straightforward they have made the halls in a long time, Eskora said, its fingers twitching. I feel like they want us to get to the center hall. The Knight just shrugged. "If so, then I guess they're going to get their wish," he said plainly. What if it is a trap? Eskora said, worry in his words. "It is most definitely a trap, I don't doubt that." Doctorman said casually to his Doomarian ally. "But I'd be disappointed if they did not have a trap in store for me. I didn't come all this way for it to be a walk in the park."
What do you mean? Eskora asked. You wanted to come here? Doctorman nodded. "I figured it was about time I got a good inside look of the main base, where I knew they would take me," he explained. And also because you want to return to your love, correct? Doctorman was taken aback. "How did you-" I read minds, remember? The Istran reminded him smugly."I'm going to have to be careful about speaking to you then, because I don't want you to know my secrets," he said to his friend. "There are just some things better left in memory, unknown to anyone else."
As Eskora was about to respond, they came across a large double door in the middle of the hallway, decorated with several Dark writhing figures. "Well, I suppose this is the way to the center?" the knight asked his guide. The hand gave a silent thumbs up to indicate that he was right. "Well, then," he said, drawing his sword and placing his marked hand on the left door, "Let's not keep them waiting any longer, shall we?" Indeed, Eskora said, and placed its hand on the right. Together, the two of them flung the doors open. Inside the room were several Dark knights, gathered at the both sides of a long purple carpet leading to a throne of yellow and purple pulsating Darkness. On that throne, there was a tall, overly muscled man with a crown of the same eerie yellow that was on his throne, and armored in a suit of chain mail that gave off a strange otherworldly aura throughout the room.
The man stood up and snapped his fingers. Instantly, Neo Berthe appeared on the carpet, facing the Doctorman, and grinning evilly. "I'm going to enjoy freezing you in perpetual Darkness," the resurrected demon said, then he breathed a frozen breath down the carpet. Eskora moved in front of the Doctorman and shot fire out of his fingertips, immediately dissipating the frost. "It comes to me at no surprise you betrayed us, Istran." Neo Berthe snarled. "You always were a believer of peace with the Light. But today you learn that there is no reason to make peace with our opposite, for they will not stop until all of Darkness is destroyed, just as we won't stop until all Light is extinguished!" He roared, and charged them both running on four legs. Eskora was taken by surprise with this sudden charge, and did not sink back into his portal hole in time. Neo Bethe stomped on him, and aimed to take a bite out of Doctorman. Doctorman leaped over him, spinning with his blade so that it consistently sliced along his back. By the time he made it over the humongous demon, shadowy blood was spurting out of Berthe's back, and he was roaring in pain.
Standing up, Neo Berthe glared at Doctorman angrily. "You will pay for that, Knight!" he shouted. He dug his claws into the ground and flipped a huge chunk of dark stone at Doctorman. He readied his sword to hit it back, when suddenly, Eskora grabbed the whole stone and absorbed it into himself. Instantly, the Istran began to bubble and morph. Then, in an audible voice that echoed throughout the room, Eskora spoke. "You have always stepped on our race," he said, a mouth forming on the palm of the dark hand. "You considered us inferior and weak, and treated us as slaves. But that is only because you have never used Dark magic on us." Eskora was now forming into a colossus, human-like with glowing yellow eyes. A dark muffler covering his mouth, he stared directly at Neo Berthe. "You do not frighten me with your trickery, Istrite!" he roared. "Then why don't we take this elsewhere, so that you can truly prove you are better than me?" Eskora said, beckoning with his hand. A dark shroud enveloped the two titans, leaving Doctorman alone with the man on the throne, and the shadowy legion of dark knights. I'll keep in touch, Eskora told Doctorman mentally before being totally enveloped by the dark sphere.
No sooner had the sphere closed than Berthe pounced on Eskora, knocking him down. "You think this will help you, slave?" he growled. "I grow stronger with each passing second in this Dark realm!" Eskora threw him off and stood back up. "You are blinded by power, and thus you think you can crush anything that displeases you," Eskora said, looking into Berthe's eyes. "But the humans have a saying-Pride goes before the fall. And I can say without a doubt that you are losing your pride rather rapidly, Berthe." Berthe howled, and demons arose from the Dark Sphere. Some of them had razor thin wings on their back, with sharp claws for hands and feet. Others were just animated orbs of Darkness. Still others had the appearance of Light seraphim, but the light they gave off was tainted in nature. "These creatures come to my aid through a pact made through Darkness far greater than you can imagine, slave!" Berthe cried out. "They have no thoughts other than to spread Darkness of the purest kind! They are never truly destroyed, so fight them if you wish, you won't ever be rid of them!"
The creatures flew at Eskora and swarmed him, each of them attacking viciously with claws and Dark magic. Eskora flung them aside, dissipating them with the force of his strike. But for every one he destroyed, Neo Berthe summoned two more. This is truly madness! Eskora thought to himself. To make a pact of this magnitude…He would have had to…No, I won't even think about it! Ekora tried to force his way to Berthe, but more and more of the creatures attacked him, overwhelming him and knocking him down. The creatures held him down whilst Berthe walked over to him. Towering over the Istran, Berthe cackled with a laughter that was unheard of in Doomaria. "You really have done it, Berthe," Eskora said in shock. "OF COURSE! THIS WAY I AM THE STRONGEST THERE IS," Berthe yelled in voice that was far different than the voice he had not 10 minutes ago. "AND MY POWER WILL KEEP GROWING!" "Why would you let that thing in!?" Eskora demanded to know. "It was not to ever be released from the prison it was chained in, and you set it free-Why!?"
"BECAUSE THE TIME OF THIS PITIFUL KINGDOM IS OVER, ISTRAN!" Berthe shouted at him. "DARKSIDE HAS HAD LONG ENOUGH TO BRING ABOUT THE END OF THE THREE GUARDIAN DIMENSIONS! I'M GOING TO CRUSH NOT JUST THEM, BUT ALL THE DIMENSIONS OF THE UNIVERSE IN A MATTER OF WEEKS WITH THIS POWER!" Eskora looked at him fearfully. He is losing control….Truly, we are all doomed if nothing is done to stop him now. Calling on the last of his strength, Eskora threw off the creatures binding him, and charged Berthe. When he came into contact with him, Berthe was unmoved. "FOOL, YOU ARE ONLY DELAYING THE INEVITABLE!" he laughed, calling up a legion of creatures from his fingertips. This has to work, if not forever than at least long enough for Doctorman to find a way to victory! Eskora thought, and he began to fade into the Dark sphere he created. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, WASTREL!?" Berthe cried out. "I'm dragging you into the Void, where you originally existed!" Eskora responded weakly. "This will stop your maniacal plan of conquest!"
Berthe noticed he was fading along with Eskora, and howled, clawing at the Istran, trying to stop him, but to no avail. "YOU INSOLENT CUR! YOU WILL NEVER STOP ME!" he yelled, calling the dark creatures back to him. "I know I won't," the Istran said. "But the Knight will!" With that, the two of them completely faded away into the dark orb. Doctorman, Eskora communicated with the last of his conscious. Prepare to face something even worse than the King of Darkness at some point. I will hold him as long as I can.