Here's the second of my two-chapter comeback! Get ready to see what everyone else is up to during the events of "He of Good Faith" in its final segment. Who will end up doing what? Read and find out! Hope you like it.

He of Good Faith - part 3

In the back alleys of Zthasariia...

Bess POV

We flew some distance towards the tower when the four of us decided to make the rest of the trek on foot, especially since Marcel had been running out of steam for some time now. He had narrated the time he had carried that wolf Humphrey in Sawtooth National Park during their adventure to get home. I remember Kate mentioning the same excursion that night before all of this started. Either way, Marcel had been hinting at the fact that Humphrey, a wolf, had been lighter than Lab MC, a dog. "What does that tell you, MC?" Unfortunately, the dolt hasn't appeared to have caught on to these hints.

My injuries weren't as bad as I had initially thought. After having moved for awhile, I got the hang of walking, or limping, rather. The more I worked on walking, the more I became used to my broken leg. I had even managed to jog for a short amount of time. Some of my bruises still smarted, but the pain was manageable by this point; it was almost like a good kind of pain pushing me onward. My determination to find Itchy was acting as a kind of fuel, allowing me to ignore my ailments more than anything.

We were a little more than a block from the central structure waiting in an alleyway for some of these demons to pass so we could make a run. A few had trudged out of our radius of caution, but one had decided to plant itself smack in the middle of the road where we needed to run. "Move," I pretended to act as if I could mentally commune with the creature. It was dumbly gazing skyward as if the clouds were the most interesting thing on earth, and it looked as if it had no intent of moving anytime soon.

"Dammit," I cursed - mostly to myself - catching Paddy's attention. "We need to get across. How long can one demon sit there and wait?"

"Excuse me, miss," he whispered. "If I may add a possible course of action?"

I thought for a moment before giving him the benefit of the doubt. "Alright, Paddy. What do you got?"

"Well, our demon friend here seems to be quite enamored in the sky as we can see. Perhaps we could sneak around it if we stick close to the walls and make sure our footfalls remain silent?"

I was hesitant in agreeing to his suggestion, but it was either that or waiting here for Lord knows how long. Every moment we waited meant another moment Itchy could be tortured, or...worse. "Alright," I sighed. I gestured for the others to join us as I told them what we'd do.

Of course, Lab MC gave a fuss as soon as he heard something dangerous, as if being where we were now wasn't. "Are you out of your goddamn mind?" he whispered as loudly as possible. "I'm telling you the moment we step foot out of this safe zone while that thing is there, we'll be seen and surely eaten!"

"Will you calm down?" I nearly smacked him. "Geez, we've already been out here for hours, MC. There is literally one more block until we make it to our goal. Can you compose yourself for once and just do something without complaining?"

His face contorted to a look of disgust. He was obviously tired of me reprimanding him as if I were his mother, but to be honest, he acted no better than a pup, and I think he needed someone to slap his wrist - hell, probably his face - to make sure we don't die out here because of his immaturity. Giving me a huff, he managed to mumble a "fine."

Paddy went first, seeing as it was his idea. Peeking his head around the corner, he looked both ways before turning the corner and sliding along the wall. After a few seconds, his wing appeared and waved in the direction he went, giving us the affirmative green light. I decided to go second, slipping out of the alley and hugging the side of the black building. I tiptoed my way forward several meters behind the beast - still completely unaware of our presence - when I looked back and saw Marcel beginning his trek. A few seconds later, MC took up the rear on all fours. About 30 or so feet behind the demon's position, a broken down car lay on the side of the road closest us. Paddy made a right turn and began his walk toward the vehicle, stopping once he was behind his target. I did the same, almost scrambling to get behind the car once I was right next to it. We waited for the others to catch up before deciding to continue.

Checkpoint.

"Now all we must do is cross the rest of the road and make it to that alley," Paddy pointed.

Marcel and I nodded. MC rolled his eyes. Going in the same order we started, Paddy made his way across the street first and successfully made it to another building before travelling parallel to it and sneaking into the dark alley on the other side. I began the run home as soon as the duck touched the building. Staring at the demon the whole time, I noticed now from being situated directly behind it that its head was slightly swaying in a side-to-side fashion, as if entranced by the clouds it was watching. These things must really like the sky, seeing as they probably never get to see it where they belong. This almost made me feel bad for it.

Almost. I still didn't like it for making us have to sneak around it and for serving under some dark homicidal lord. I made it to the black edifice and straddled close as I made the last leg of the journey. I was only eight feet from the alley when a light thump reached my ears. I foolishly looked back to find Labrador MC had tripped a few yards from the car.

My heart dropped. Zipping my head around, the beast awoke from its trance and turned its head to face what had disturbed it from what was apparently a pleasant daydream for a demon. The silence that had been delicately pervading the area ended when a groundbreaking scree emanated from the creature's throat. MC hopped to his feet as the three of us still left out in the open scrambled for the safety of the alleyway.

The demon saw where we were headed and beelined for the alley as well. I began to panic - more, if that were possible - as the gap between it and the alley rapidly shrank, much faster than I could close my own. Tears were blocking my vision, stinging my eyes, as I sprinted faster than I ever had in my life. Only five feet to go...

I gave my head a slight twist, allowing my eyes to do most of the turning, as the demon stampeded right where I was heading. It had only a couple feet until it blocked the only safe way out.

Four feet...

Its eyes were fixed on me, ready to burn through my soul the moment its outstretched claws intercepted my tiny body. My body was burning, my broken leg feeling as if it were about to snap in half. I think fear alone was keeping me from collapsing from all of the pain I had suddenly forced upon myself.

Three...

I was running so fast I my shambled appendage missed its mark and I stumbled. No, I couldn't fall. Not now; not after I was so close. So close to the alley. So close to the tower. So close to saving Itchy. I willed my body to stay upright as I brought my right forepaw to the ground, stabilizing me again as I lost practically no speed due to my error.

Two...

The thing was right next to me now. I swear I could feel its fiery breath from its blackened maw on my face and its deadly claws on my back fur.

One...

I then made a move I would have never made in the right mind. I knew it would take too long to make the turn; I was running far too fast. I slid onto my side and continued my trip forward, the alley next to me. I was sure I was about to slide right passed my goal when Paddy's wing appeared out of nowhere, grasping my arm and yanking me inward. Thank God.

I collapsed on top of him and landed on my stomach facing outside just in time for the creature to smack its head into the building in front of it. I guess it too underestimated its speed. Taking no time to recover, however, the thing turned around and faced Marcel and MC, both of whom were also heading for the alley. It gave a roar in their direction, having acquired new targets. Marcel did the only thing he could do now: he took off and flew upward out of the beast's clutches, leaving Lab MC.

All alone.

Having sprinted as well, MC took a few seconds to stop in his tracks. He attempted to run the other way, but he couldn't will his gaze off the terrifying being before him, and he fumbled over his own marred foot trying to make the turn, landing him on his back. Helplessly he began backing up on his rear, unable to do anything but hope for a swift death. This would be the end of him.

I hated the fat perverted mutt. The way he always leaned over me, asked me for dates, asked me for more than dates, treated me as if I were some sort of property, gave me gross kissing gestures, followed me home at night. The way he did it to all of the girls. He should be punished for the years of his harassment, his sexism, his downright indecency. But no dog deserved this. I didn't want to see him die. In a way, his disgusting habits and crudeness had become an integral part of my life. I had seen him almost everyday at the Flea Bite, his suggestiveness and comments a part of a long day after competing at a dog show or training for the next one. He had become so familiar in my life that I knew him a lot more than I would care to admit. Despite his grotesque viewpoint of the opposite sex, I'd seen him in many less gross positions. I remember the day he came into the Bite, but not to work as he always did. He took the day off, sitting at the bar and ordering the hard liquor. He had lost his house to Carface and his gang after he couldn't pay him back the bones he owed. He sat there and ordered shot after shot until a piteous Jingles, a performing Yorkshire terrier, sat up next to him and the two talked. Soon after Felipe joined the two as MC vented out all that had gone wrong. By the end of the night, he, Jingles, Gerta (who was the barkeep that night), and even Felipe were laughing away. Life wouldn't be the same if he were gone. Labrador MC may be a complete asshole most of the time, but he had his own emotions, his own thoughts, and, despite how most of them revolved around women, even his own dreams. And now he was going to die.

I was about to turn away, unable to look upon the massacre sure to occur, when Marcel swooped back in and pecked at the demon's skull. It stopped its descent on Lab MC and attempted to swat the waterfowl that had dared distract it from its kill. "You like that, missieur!? Feel the almighty power of the Canadian goose!" Marcel trumpeted with all his might. I almost felt as if Paddy had to correct him on the trivial error of his ethnicity, but now was not the time for such an irrelevant revision.

MC stared dumbly at the beast as Marcel fought against it with all he had, doing everything to prevent being captured, when he realized his opening and tripped over to the alley as fast as his legs could carry him. Once he reached the threshold of freedom, the three of us looked up to see Marcel holding the creature twenty times his size at bay. Once Marcel saw we had all made it, he maneuvered around the demon and ended flying skyward to escape. The demon made one last grasp for the goose, gripping his tail. Marcel wasn't about to be stopped now; he ripped away from its hand as several feathers had been plucked from his rear end and he let out a squawk of pain as he ascended out of harm's way. As if suddenly remembering there were four of us total, the beast gazed our way and ran for us again. Noticing we were all still in its grabbing range, we made a run for the other end of the alley out of its range. It collided with the building once more, angling its body to allow for maximum reach. A few feet behind us I could hear its hand flop emptily on the alley floor as we made it out. Peering back, we saw the demon stand up and gave a cry of defeat, having been outmaneuvered by two dogs and two birds.

Marcel landed behind us and dusted himself off, checking his rear end and rubbing it to assuage some of the residual pain. He looked to MC and asked, "Are you alright, missieur? That was quite the rough encounter, hmm? I guess you owe me a few tail feathers now," he chuckled. Lab MC could only stare at the goose in silence, still in the shock over what had just conspired over the last minute. "Oh, come now, missieur, I was merely joking."

MC couldn't manage a laugh or a smile, but managed to mutter, "I...I'm fine." His sullen eyes fell to the ground. "Th-thanks."

Marcel padded up to the petrified MC as we began walking towards the other end of the alleyway, placing his wing on the ripped white jacket on MC's back. "It's alright. See? We have made it to our destination, no? It's going to fine now. Are you?"

Labrador MC brought his head up to meet Marcel's beak. "Y...yeah," he finally managed to force out.

"Good! Then let us walk onward!"

I smiled. Marcel and Paddy, despite having recently met them, I found were fantastic motivators and friends, even if sometimes the two of them were a little weird with this whole 'Marcel takes charge all the time' shtick. The adrenaline having drained from my system, I found myself rubbing my body all over to rid myself of soreness. After that, I don't know if anything would hurt nearly as much. I seethed through it, and found the will to keep walking, resorting back to my limping pace. Ahead laid the end of the alley, and before it a large courtyard leading straight to the tower. We made it.

From where we were, I made an important observation: the entire city was focused around this single structure. Sure, I knew this one was important due to its notable size, but from right next to it I could see all of the other buildings extended in a circle around this one and creating a pattern outward until a certain point that they then followed the typical rectangular placement. Before us lied a massive clearing nearly 500 feet in radius from the tower, to distinguish it from the rest I could only assume. The clearing surrounding the tower contained a number of demons and monsters lazily meandering about, but from here I could tell none of them were right next to the tower. About 80 or 90 feet from it and inward, none of them tread, as if some invisible forcefield were keeping them out. That, or they didn't want to get close to the tower. This concerned me, but I couldn't allow it to break my concentration. Scattered around this area were several piles of debris, which we could use to get closer to the structure until the supposed safe haven in the center. I relayed my observations to the others.

"We can use those piles to make our way across the open area without being seen," Paddy noticed. "Good observation, Miss Bess."

"First, though," I started, "We appear to be in the front of the building. See those large doors there?" I pointed to two large black doors at the base of the tower; I could only estimate that this was the main entrance. "If we're going to sneak in, we should probably check to see if there's a back way or something where we won't be noticed."

"We'll sneak around then?"

"Yeah. We'll use these buildings' alleys to make our way to the back, then cross the gap." It was then something dawned on me, however. If this was the main lair of the monster in charge of all of this, shouldn't there be guards or something? Sure, there were all of these demons and whatnot, but nothing was standing in front of the doors nor acting as protective subjects to say the least. It was as if nothing but the so-called king resided inside, as if one could simply waltz right on in and have an audience with it. I knew this couldn't be the case, so I just decided to stick with the plan I had just announced. No point in taking the small chance no-one was guarding the interior.

We traveled around the courtyard using this innermost ring of buildings, managing not to get caught again - although Lab MC almost caused more unwanted attention when he sneezed behind a demon and it almost saw him. Thank God Paddy has those reflexes of his. Now directly behind the infrastructure, I swore I could make out a smaller black hatch on the ground next to it. It was hard to make out, but I could only hope this was the back entrance we were looking for. I knew now we would now have to cross the clearing to get there. If we could make it to that unoccupied area where none of the monsters tread, then we'd be safe.

"Alright, I think I can see a way in over there. We just have to make it across and we're as good as Happy Hound kibble!" Marcel and Paddy gave me estranged looks. "It's my favourite brand of dog food. Anyway, I'll go first this time. Paddy, you'll go next, then Lab MC, and finally Marcel. That way we have no more close shaves." I looked directly at MC.

"What? Not my fault those damn things are so freaking sensitive to..."

I didn't even wait to hear the rest of his explanation as I began my trip. I ran out and dove behind a pile of bricks, concrete, and broken glass before anything saw me, waving for Paddy to follow. I continued onward and took advantage of several of these piles, skillfully navigating my way across. Unfortunately, some of the debris had crushed bodies underneath them, with layers of dried blood covering whatever else had the misfortune of landing on top of these poor souls.

I had noticed plenty of bodies on the way here, but for some reason only now did I let it get to me, as if some delayed reaction had finally gone off. About halfway there, I just stopped and found myself unable to pry my eyes away from a lone hand poking out from under a collapsed wall. I choked on a sob. Had I really been so blind to all of the carnage we had passed on the way here? No wonder why Labrador MC was complaining the whole time. I had allowed myself to be so focused on my goal to find Itchy that I had simply scanned over all of this morbidity with nothing but a second look. It was only now that a sense of horror had smacked me in the face like a brick. There...there was so much blood. So many of them. These monsters...we've been dodging them like nothing more than a ball being thrown in a child's game. These were real demons. Real monsters. "Oh God..." I gasped. When had I become so blind that everything that once was my home was now gone? I knew we could die out here, but only now did it truly hit me that we could die out here. Itchy may have already died, he and the others, they...they could've -

"Miss?" a voice interrupted. I slowly turned to see Paddy standing there. He apparently had caught up with me and we were now both standing behind this one pile. "Is everything alright?"

As if snapped out of my shock-induced trance, I promptly answered, "Yes. Yes, I'm fine. Just...just give me a moment."

"Of course, miss." I bent over and managed a few deep breaths to calm me down. I had been doing fine so far; I had to keep going. I had come this far, and I wasn't going to give up now. I was going to find out what had happened to my boyfriend, even if that meant...

"No. None of that. You've been strong thus far, Bess. Just be strong a little while longer. For him. You'll see him again, and it'll all be okay. You'll see." After getting myself under control, I stood up and nodded to Paddy. He nodded back, just as Lab MC had reached the pile as well.

"What's going on?"

I didn't grace him with an answer as I continued onward, trying to leave my horror behind. I still knew, however, that my state of mortality was going to remain in the back of my head. I went by the other hiding places as fast as possible, attempting not to make eye contact with the blood or anymore bodies.

Finally, after what had felt like a mile running through a field of corpses, I had made it to the safe zone. I no longer could see any demons in front of me as I made a straight dash for the building. Once I made it there, I nearly smacked into the tower as I stopped and placed a paw on it to catch my breath. After about 30 seconds, I saw Paddy come up next to me. After a little while longer, Lab MC trudged his way to us, gasping for air as if it were an extremely precious and rare resource. Marcel was almost right behind him, by which I mean he landed after apparently flying almost the whole way. A hundred feet away, a group of creatures were growling and screeching at us.

At least that supported my hypothesis about them not coming close to the tower.

"Marcel," I reprimanded, "We were trying to sneak over here so none of the guards knew we'd be coming in this way!"

"Oh, I am sorry mademoiselle," he apologized. "At least I managed to distract the rest of them so you went unnoticed." I nodded in understanding and found no-one upon us, so I guess no harm was done.

In front of us was the hatch I had seen, so this thing must go underground at least a bit. Hopefully no guards would be down there and this would be our way in. "Alright then, let's try to get this opened," I instructed.

All four of us placed our paws and wings around the cover in order to flip it up. Nothing happened. I was probably to blame; I couldn't completely exert myself because of my damn leg. "Shit. It's locked," MC barked.

"Maybe it's just too heavy," I suggested, "We should all try and heave it up at the same time." We all placed our paws and wings around it again. "Okay ready? One, two..."

We were so busy trying to lift the door that we hadn't noticed who had found us until it was too late.

Summer POV

"Gah! Quassazoll," I screamed. "What are you doing!? You're eating f**king trash!"

The dragon had his head immersed in a human trashcan - that's the term, I believe - devouring its disgusting contents. The can had been haphazardly tipped over, trash strewn about in a grotesque display. The waste consisted of plastic containers, old papers, and half-eaten food. The latter of these were foul and rotten, having long passed their proper time of consumption, causing most of the leftovers to be a sickly green colour. God, the whole mess was so rancid I could smell its ungodly odour from here! I took a step back; had I been any closer I may have likely lost the contents of this morning's breakfast. I mean, we wolves may be pretty messy eaters, but that's nothing compared to the garbage now lying in Quassazoll's gut. Quassazoll didn't seem to mind the filth or my shouting one bit, calmly and sluggishly lolling his head from out of the can to get a better look at me. While turning into position, however, he accidentally stepped upon a round, degraded piece of food, causing a dull red condiment to find its way onto his face. He grunted in response before finally addressing my remark.

"Quass-a...zoll see...dogs eat...tr-trash," he reasoned.

Is this what dogs eat? No wonder it's common knowledge that our domesticated counterparts are inferior to us; who in the right mind would choose to eat this over caribou? Well, I guess dogs don't even possess the strength to take down a caribou, let alone something simple like a doe. I couldn't really blame dogs for being less than us. It is how it is. Nonetheless, here Quassazoll was eating this crap as if it were a gourmet meal.

"Just because you see a bunch of mutts doing it doesn't mean you should! Quassazoll - sir - you're the lefthand of the mighty Azxoll! You have access to the best meats from the servants' trips. Why would you waste your appetite on such feculent filth?"

Quassazoll stood there and acted as if I had said something incomprehensible. "Is fine f-for Quazoll...to eat good fo-od, or...eat same food as sla-aves...even if food is tr-rash," he pieced together.

It appeared as if Quassazoll had no desire (at least, from what I grasp from the jumble of words he said) to be treated as royalty; in fact, he would be fine living on the same level as the very canines serving under him. How could Zwaksnoll and Quassazoll be Azxoll's top two followers? They are both so weak and unintelligent, the exact opposite of the aggressive and determined beast Azxoll himself was. Neither of them wanted power or violence; each had the inability to want anything more than to serve their appropriate positions, and reap whatever benefits it just happened to bring. Maybe that was the point. Maybe if both of them were so passive or stupid, neither one would ever think to overthrow their lord for their own selfish reasons. That made sense, I guess.

Maybe I was reading too much into this.

I knew one thing: I didn't want to end up running upon this scene again.

"Eat whatever you want, sir. Though perhaps you'd want to patrol the second half of the buildings around the courtyard with me?" I suggested. "There aren't that many left, and with the two of us, we should be done in about twenty minutes. Then we can go inside and maybe do something...fun." I knew I had to entice him with something in order to get him to follow me. Although I really wasn't a 'fun' individual, I'd find some activity to do. What? I wasn't sure. Hopefully I'll find something to do by the time we're done, albeit I don't know how long I'd be able to keep him entertained. I used to be a fun wolf, until that happened. Since then, I haven't been able to appreciate the more leisurely, the more relaxing - the more omega - side of life. Still, I think I might have some jest or game up my sleeve.

"Ok-ay," he almost immediately replied with excitement. As he fumbled out of the garbage to join me, I could see countless things stuck to his feet. I really hoped most of it will have fallen off by the time we're done. I don't want him tracking all of this mess into the lair.

Once he was right beside me, we started our way to the black structures surrounding us. As this happened, I could only wish Azxoll would get back before our rounds were finished. Who knows how long I'll be able to keep Quassazoll occupied? Lord knows I don't.

Somewhere in Zthasariia...

Unknown POV

Can't stop running. Can't look back.

They're all dead. It was a catastrophe. Bodies were everywhere, blood carpeted the floor like a lake. I couldn't process why. Why someone would do this. Why the world allowed such a travesty against nature. Why I hadn't collapsed yet from the mere shock trapping my brain like a vice. So many emotions flooded my mind. Grief. Anger. Depression. Shock.

Their faces were the worst thing. I couldn't get their scared expressions out of my mind. Most of their jaws were cast apart, as if a scream were the last thing that escaped their lips before... Their eyes were glazed over as only fear would remain with them until the end of time. Red would stain a number of their mouths, implying their final seconds had been a painful series of events.

I wanted to go back. I wanted to help them. I wanted to tell myself they were all just an illusion. This wasn't real. It couldn't be.

And yet somehow here I was. All I could do was keep running. "Keep running and you won't end up like them."

I knew what was behind me, why I couldn't look back. The blackness was chasing me, its eminence and power threatening to swallow me whole. If I kept running, it wouldn't be able to catch me. If I stumbled, however, just for a moment...that would be it. I would forever be lost in the darkness, searching for my way out to no avail.

And yet somehow here I was. I couldn't escape the encroaching void on my tail, and I dared not look behind me in fear of what I knew was already there. Where was I going? It was if I were trapped inside of some labyrinth. Something told me this couldn't be the case; I've been heading forward this whole time. So how to I keep ending up running passed the same places? Was I truly going nowhere?

There must be a way out of here. It's so hard to think. I can feel the void around me now; constricting my mind. I couldn't breathe. "Can't stop running."

I can't get them out of my head. All of the red. All of the black. All of the death. I was overwhelmed. Walls closing in. No way out. "Must keep going!"

The pain. How it happened. Can't take it back. So vivid in my mind. They'll always haunt me. Until the day I die. "Don't...give...in!"

Swallowed by death. Can't escape. No way out. No peace of mind. Light gone. No point to keep going. "Maybe I'll rest...just a second..."

"No! I'm still here! As long as I'm here, as long as I'm standing, they will not have died in vain. I will fight! Until the day I die!"

A weight had been suddenly lifted off of my shoulders. I could breathe; I could think. I have to get out of here. I just have to try something I haven't before. Suddenly, a right turn showed up from my endless running down this eerie straight path. I bolted right as fast as I could; hopefully this was a way out. As I kept running, I could see the first light I had seen in a long time. After such a long time of running alone in the dark, the light was a welcoming beacon amid to my eyes. No, my soul.

I ran for this light, its radiance and warmth filling me with sensations I had long forgotten. Was this the feeling of safety? Was this what relief felt like? I felt more and more...awake as I neared the light. I was almost there...the darkness behind me was gone; I could feel its density deteriorate with every step I moved forward. I felt liberated. I was finally here...

Moving into the whiteness, all of these emotions were gone the moment it had dimmed down.

And yet somehow here I was. Destruction. Nothing but destruction. Everything was in ruin, flames blazing from he remains of what had been once tall, sturdy structures. A black and orange sky highlighted a world of desolation.

However, there were no bodies. I could see not a drop of blood, nor any gaping mouth gasping for its last moments of air. This gave me some release, but I could not comprehend why I was here or what had happened.

As soon as I spotted IT, everything came back. The party. The disaster. The death.

The dragon. There he was, standing in the middle of the debris, taking pride in the destruction he had caused. He was gazing upon the vermilion heavens, his eyes fixed to something. I dared follow this gaze to find a huge black hole in the sky. All of the clouds had arranged themselves into a blackened scar, desecrating the natural heavens with a giant gaping emptiness leading beyond.

"I will do as you ask, master," the beast bellowed. "Your will shall be carried by my hand to unleash upon the world. Then the dominion that has for so long belonged to the unworthy Father shall finally be transferred to you!"

Suddenly, a pair or glowing eyes and razor black teeth appeared to my left, glowering down upon me with the weight of a mountain. Despite its obvious glare at me, it responded with a dark and authoritative voice, "Good, my son! As your wrath grows and your pain is wrought upon the weak, darkness shall spread and the Final Coming shall come to pass for the first time since Creation!" As it said this, circling me, I could see the black scar in the clouds growing bigger. And bigger, until...

Fire erupted from the core of the black portal, shedding its massive display upon the world, lighting up the heavens in a barrage of red, yellow, and orange. Smoke puffed out of the hole, polluting the air in the foul smell of sulfur. If that wasn't bad enough, bodies began falling from the it, plummeting to the ground to meet untimely fates. It was literal Hell on Earth.

I had been so immersed in the horrid scene before me that the hand thrown up from the ground nearly grabbed me. All over, claws and limbs erupted from the earth beneath me, screams and screes of unknown creatures echoing up to meet my ears. This was unreal. There was no way something like this could happen; it just wasn't possible.

And yet somehow here I wasn't. That's it! None of this is real! All of it is simply a terrible nightmare, and I was trapped by nothing more than my mind. None of this has happened.

For some reason, however, I could not help but shake the fact that something was still wrong. Call it a hunch, but this felt like more than a dream. It just felt so real, so...revealing. All as if this were some kind of premonition. But it couldn't be, right? I couldn't be sure what was happening if I was here, so I decided this nightmare might just be worth remembering, even if I had no desire to. "A dragon spreads darkness to cause the 'Final Coming.' Darkness is a scar in the sky. Darkness is controlled by the dragon." At least, that's what I got out of it. Simple enough; it's not like this had any real application.

The beast that had been circling me this whole time had caught my attention once again, its portals staring fire into my soul. I became so entranced to this painful stare that I did not expect its thundering words.

"THE FINAL COMING SHALL COME TO PASS FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE CREATION!"

Shock caused light to replace darkness as I took what felt like the first gasp of air in centuries, my body jolting upward as pain replaced sleep.

Ta da! Here's the next chapter, showing my comeback to Fanfiction, "Azxoll: Inchoation" fans! I hope you liked the 3-part chapter I had here, as well as the goings-on of all of our little groups. Plus, who was dreaming? What happened to Bess and the gang? Will Summer be able to entertain Quassazoll? What will happen next time? I guess you'll have to stay tuned (for whatever date I manage to get out another one of these, hopefully not anywhere near as long as these two updates)! Be sure to review and follow for my first chapter in a long time!

Until next time,
KingAzxoll9 signing off