Strongest
Chapter 15: Awakened Zetta
Written By Illuminet
Disclaimer: The cast of characters from Makai Kingdom : Chronicles Of The Sacred Tome do not belong to me, and are the rightful property of N.I.S (Nippon Ichi Software) America.
"..."-Indicate Speech
'...'-Indicate Thought and/or Telepathy
:MK:CST:
Unknown
:MK:CST:
"Damn this thing. Every single time I try and blast it, I always end up going blank. I hate to have to do this, but maybe running is the best solution. I sound so pathetic...ME of all people, running away...Tch!"
Zetta went flying in the opposite direction from the large shadow that followed him, consuming space along with it's growth. This was the only tactic Zetta really had left though, as being a book in a dream did make things rather tough as he couldn't do much but shoot the Zetta Beam anyway.
'Great...but where do I run to? I can't exactly hide anywhere if there isn't anything around to hide myself with. Stupid outer space.'
Zetta continued onward, doing his best to ignore the lulling beckon of the shadow as it spoke his name.
'Dammit...what is this feeling? It's as if I'm compelled to go back to that thing...Come on! I've gotta keep going!'
Just as things were starting to feel hopeless, a spark of light caught Zetta's attention. It appeared to be just a star that shown more brightly than the others. It was the only thing different amongst everything else.
'That light...who cares? If it can get me to wake up then so be it!'
Zetta tried to go faster, but could only achieve a little boost in acceleration considering his circumstances. The shadow spread faster as Zetta got closer to the light.
'Shit...! I'm not gonna make it...'
He could feel it drawing ever closer, falling over him like a cage of dense fog. Zetta's sight turned to black.
"NO! Dammit, not yet!"
He said through clenched teeth. He decided to teleport quickly since he could make an estimate to the light's location, as it was the only way to escape before unconsciousness took him over. Zetta was engulfed in red light before fading away, thankfully evading the shadow.
"Zetta..."
It spoke, making Zetta realize that he was only a few feet between the light and the darkness again. He made his book body go as fast as he could.
"Come on...!"
He chanted to himself, seeing the light grow bigger as he dared not turn around, or he might see the shadow just a tap away from capturing him once more. Zetta's vision was filled with nothing but white for the very first time as he disappeared from the shadow's grasp.
'No...he has entered the binding link!'
:MK:CST:
Unknown (again...)
:MK:CST:
"Where the hell am I?"
Zetta looked all around but found nothing but white all around him. His voice echoed as if he were in a cave yet he was only in an empty expanse of light with no discerning location.
"So...now where do I go?"
Anywhere could be the right or wrong direction. Zetta simply decided to go to the place he was facing...as best as he could discern anyway from having turned to look around for anything. Soon the annoying light faded back and Zetta found himself in outer space again.
"Now what? Huh...some planets are over there? This still doesn't look like my universe though. Guess I'll check one just in case..."
He didn't really have much alternative. As he made his way to the blackest looking planet he had ever seen, a beam of light erupted from it, and to Zetta's complete shock, it destroyed all the other planets in it's path. The beam's destruction to the planets caused a massive chain reactions of explosions within all the other things in space, namely the stars. Zetta was totally baffled by what he was witnessing.
"Oh shit...this entire universe is...disappearing?"
The explosions came closer and closer, but to go back would mean to intercept the shadow. Zetta decided to go forward, knowing this had to just be his subconscious playing tricks on him. He was still awed by what he was witnessing as everything just exploded and left nothing but darkness in it's wake. He kept going for that strange planet that emitted the destructive beam, as it seemed to be the only thing not affected. The task was proving difficult however, as it blended so well with the coming blackness. He was glad to know that his book body passed through the massive explosions with no injury, which meant it was all just an illusion.
'Damn, am I even going in the right direction?'
Zetta thought to himself as the explosions traveled too far to be able to pinpoint the black planet anymore. Zetta felt nervous as he simply kept moving forward. Even if the darkness was solace to Demons as light was to Angels and Humans, a darkness where a Demon could not even see anything felt foreboding. Luckily, the feeling gig not last long as light started to present itself in front of Zetta, like an open doorway. Something cast a shadow, however, and he saw the red clad Demon stand there to block the entrance. He felt trapped. The red clad Demon walked further in, and to Zetta's surprise, he was ignored. His eyes followed the red clad Demon, to the bloodied child that was bunched up on the floor.
'This is...'
Zetta realized that this was that supposed memory of his, and he had an outside perspective. He saw the mouth of the Demons speak to one another, though no sound came out. Zetta decided not to care considering he had heard the speech before and decided to walk out of the opening with blinding light.
:MK:CST:
Unknown (yet again...)
:MK:CST:
'Now where the hell am I?'
He looked around, seeing nothing but a bunch of decapitated bodies. Blood covered everything.
'Another memory. Is this...?'
He was distracted as movement caught his eye. Zetta turned swiftly to see what was going on, only to find a small brigade of Demons torn apart by a large drill. No sound existed here much like the previous place, much to Zetta's annoyance. The red clad Demon that was presumably Zetta himself, walked off after hefting the blood stained drill over his shoulders as he began walking slowly towards a twisted looking castle upon a far off mountain that looked as if blood hadn't touched ground yet. Seeing the drill touting Demon was all the information Zetta needed to know this was probably that other memory of his. To believe it or not was still completely for Zetta's decision however, though he could not think of any other suitable reason why he would have such strange memories unless they were true.
'If that was what I looked like before...hmmm, maybe I can find the memory of that red haired Demon. That imposter said I was altered. If that's the case, maybe this outer perspective can shed some light onto why exactly that Demon decided to do what he did. He could have possibly killed me back then, yet spared me. Why?'
He knew he had no where else to go but in the direction of the Demon who was heading to the castle. That's exactly what Zetta did, but when he got there, all that remained was the blood stained throne room and no Demon. No, he did see the Demon, who had his palms flat upon the glass surface. The red clad Demon just kept looking at himself in the mirror, and Zetta wasn't sure why. The Demon didn't speak at all, not that it would have mattered, since everything appeared to be muted.
"Great...Why don't you do something already? DO SOMETHING!"
Zetta yelled into the elongated ear of the Demon, but he did not react. Of course he wouldn't if Zetta wasn't a part of this place. Even as no sound came, the world began to shake.
"What the hell? Oh shit! He's here..."
Zetta muttered to himself, seeing through a large hole in the side of the castle as the black giant enter into this world.
'So now what do I do?'
He pondered to himself, seeing the giant Demon come closer. He leaned against the mirror wall, but ended up going through it instead, much to his surprise. He landed on his back, looking up at stars.
"Dammit...so it was the mirrors all along that was the exit. Should have known."
Zetta berated himself as he floated back up to be able to view where he was now, because so far, not a whole lot of things made any sense. He was now on some desolate world. Many jagged mountain peaks greeted him, but they were not of the natural variety.
"A major struggle took place here. All this risen ground...I don't think I remember anything like this happening."
He decided to go higher and get a peek of his surroundings. The path of destruction almost carried itself in a straight line, so Zetta decided to head to where the path stopped. When he got there, he noticed two Demons.
'That Demon with the red hair...and the one lying on the ground is...!"
Zetta eyes widened in surprise. The red clad Demon lay on his back in a pool of blood. Zetta realized which memory this was now.
"This was...is the place that imposter said I had been altered. Then...Trenia is suppose to be here, right? That Demon with the red hair had been talking to her then he made a wish on the Sacred Tome, this universe's ultimate relic. The damned book that made me lose my body in the first place thanks to Pram's meddling. So the main question is who is this guy and why did he just have the book on him like that?"
He questioned. The red haired Demon's mouth began moving, and Zetta turned to see if he could spot Trenia anywhere, but the little girl had not shown up at all when the red haired Demon pulled the Sacred Tome free. Zetta noticed something for the first time. The red haired Demon did not have a typical humanoid appearance like with his face. The rest of his body was snake like, and when he opened the book and wrote in the wish, he had long tendrils come out of the large sleeves of his blue robe.
'Now that I think about it...impossible! Is this old gramps Babylon? The old Dragon has a smaller transformation? I had no idea...but then again, it's not like I ever bothered to asked him before in the first place. No way. I'm probably just jumping to conclusions. Babylon and Trenia never met before a month ago anyway, right?'
Zetta had been distracted from his thoughts when the dying body of the red clad Demon began to float into the air. Beams of red light began to shine from the open wounds, closing them up. Slowly the body began to change. Long blue hair eventually got even longer and turned a fiery and wild red. Dark skin became lighter and lighter, until it finally became a very pale colored skin tone. The tattered red clothing worn was still the same even if the physical appearance differed now (for obvious reasons, of course).
'Me...'
He saw the body, his body, falling back to earth but was caught within the odd red haired Demon's grasp. The Demon spoke some more as he inspected Zetta's face, but Zetta hadn't seen this part of the memory to know what it was the red haired Demon was saying. Zetta lowered his head in thought, only partially paying attention to the red haired Demon as he floated away.
'That fake wasn't really lying then? Was this really how I was born into this universe? Killed by some Demon only to be resurrected with a different body? That mysterious old man on that small ice cube of planet who raised me was lying all along. Or perhaps he did it to protect me? Dammit! This is my head...what can I truly believe anymore? An old fart who said he was really my grandfather and that I fell into a coma and developed amnesia that erased my childhood memories and of the rest of my family, a memory that I've known and believed in for millions of years? Or this vision of a red haired Demon who tried to model my previous body into one somewhat like his own, a memory I only just knew about perhaps a couple of days prior to this very moment?'
He felt sick all of a sudden.
"Who the hell am I, really?"
He said softly, trying desperately to decide now that he realized his decision could go either way at this point, but ultimately not knowing which one to choose to permanently follow as an absolute truth.
"You've known all along. You are Zetta. The Demon with the body that has access to destroy everything, even an entire universe. And to think, you've only lusted for conquering simple worlds to build up your Mana power so far."
The twisted voice spoke. Zetta swirled around quickly, and was barely able to evade and avoid getting trapped within the black beast's fist. He increased the distance between each other.
"You...what are you anyway? You seem to be a lot more than just some figment of my imagination now that I really think hard about it."
Zetta said.
"You know what I am. You know who I am. Stop thinking on the surface and dig even deeper. The answer is within you, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not."
The Demon said. Zetta growled irritably.
"I don't have time for this riddle crap. To hell with it all. I don't care what's true or not anymore."
He spoke. The Demon outstretched his hand towards the living book.
"Then sleep!"
The giant demanded as he lunged. Zetta was already heading in the direction he had seen the red haired Demon gone. Zetta ended up in a strange place. Some sort of tube with bands of light by the looks of it.
"There's only one way to go. Then maybe I should just..."
Zetta thought briefly as he turned back to the entrance point he had used to get here. His eyes flared up as he shot a Zetta Beam at the ceiling, before moving himself in a circular motion to blast the rest of the small area. A great rumbling was starting to occur.
"NO!"
Zetta heard the Demon's voice on the other side.
'I've got to destroy this passage since I can actually see it. I don't know what it is, but if it's bad for his, then it must be something good for me.'
Zetta though as he powered up his attack to fire off an even more powerful laser. Zetta tried as hard as he could, but the passage seem to regenerate little by little, so he pushed his limits even farther to try and sever whatever this path was.
'Come on...I want to wake up...I want to rule and bully all my Vassals again...I want to see them...Salome...Trenia...'
For how long he was at it he could not be sure, but the Demon's voice became more and more feint, but Zetta was starting to feel drained as well. He then felt himself being propelled backwards when the voice completely died down.
"Now what...? What's going on, dammit!"
:MK:CST:
Outer Space, edge of Universe, outskirts of Babylon's Netherworld region
:MK:CST:
Zetta's eyes opened so quickly, Trenia shrieked in surprise (something that wouldn't normally happen under the right circumstances, of course).
"Trenia...?"
Zetta said softly. The little girl's surprise was replaced with joy and she hugged the Sacred Tome tightly to her body. Deep down he was happy to see her, but as the most Bad Ass Freaking Overlord there ever was, he made sure he didn't look or sound happy. Can't have that when trying to look Bad Ass.
"Zetta! You've finally woken up!"
She said. Zetta was now confused.
"Finally?"
He asked, dreading the answer.
"Yep. It's been five whole days since you went unconscious."
She told him happily. Zetta frowned.
"Five days? Dammit, don't ever leave me in suspense like that again! You had me thinking I was sleeping for a thousand years or something."
He said, sighing with relief that he hadn't slept THAT long.
"Sorry."
Trenia apologized.
"Speaking of being unconscious...why the hell are we all the way out of the middle of nowhere? Babylon's Netherworld is all the way over there...this is the edge of the universe, isn't it? Why the hell are we all the way out here? What's going on?"
Zetta questioned. Trenia wanted to tell him the reason, but she was well aware that it was not in Zetta's nature to run away from the Demon who was truly the strongest Overlord. It had been that reasoning that almost stopped her from telling Zetta about Baal in the first place, but she knew it would have been infinitely more dangerous to not let him know. She steeled her nerves.
"Baal is coming, Zetta. Like I said before, there is no way for me to truly know for sure, but I just have this gut feeling. I know it's not in you to run away, but I beg of you to reconsider this once, Zetta. No matter the body he possesses, Baal is extremely formidable. I know of a safe place to take you. Salome will be with us shortly. Please, Zetta, follow me."
Trenia spoke with urgency. Zetta was not compelled to do as she recommended. Mention of Salome brought Zetta thinking about the dream when he viciously attacked her. Back when she was his apprentice, he didn't really care about how much he hurt her. But here and now...
'Dammit. I really have gone soft...wait a minute. My dreams...first Seedle, then Alex, then Pram and technically King Drake...Valvoga was skipped, then they all show up except for King Drake onto Salome's Netherworld? It's only slightly off but that sequence is in accordance to their Netherworlds location. Seedle's the farthest, and then Salome's would be right next to my own...damn, I'm not liking where this thought process is going...Baal, could he really have...?'
Zetta felt anxiousness settling within him.
'No way could that have been real. I'm just being paranoid...but one indiscreet peep can go unnoticed by the masses, right?'
He thought to himself.
"Trenia, stop being such a wimp about Baal. Go back to my Netherworld and don't follow me. Don't even tell anyone I'm outside of my castle."
With those words, Zetta teleported away before Trenia had a chance to tell him anything or stop him.
"No, Zetta! Wait!"
She had no choice but to go after him.
:MK:CST:
Salome's Netherworld, Overlord's Castle, Throne Room
:MK:CST:
"It felt pretty good to do that!"
Pram acknowledged as she slammed the former Zetta's body with another ice spell that sent him sprawling back into the lightning cage Alex had created to bind the Overlord for the time being.
"Stop that! You want to provoke him further?"
Salome said as she turned to the former Oracle and God of Destruction. They had caught her off guard while she was trying to speak to Zetta and blasted him with a succession of spells before the female Overlord could do anything. Finally Alex had trapped him within the lightning cage and allowed Pram to keep blasting ice spells so that Zetta would keep ramming into the binding spell and get electrocuted.
"We're just trying to knock him unconscious for a bit. Then we can tie him up to torture and interrogate him. Sheesh, you've been a Demon for how long and you still let those old Human emotions rule you whenever Zetta's involved, Salome?"
Alex said as he turned to her. Zetta stood up, hand clasped over his forehead. No, not Zetta. Baal himself had arisen.
"He has broken the link..."
Baal spoke softly as he opened his eyes, hand falling to his side.
"All because of them..."
With a wave of black fire, the lightning cage was destroyed.
"Their interferences..."
His anger began to peak to unmentionable lengths, yet he was able to keep his outward appearance as calm as ever.
"And him..."
He brought the Genesis to rest across his shoulder as he began moving slowly towards Salome.
"His weaknesses made me let my guard down, made me become too lenient..."
He closed the distance at a steady pace, eyes being overshadowed by the crimson flamed hair that moved about more vigorously on his head. Black flames seeped out from between the fingers of his clenched fist.
"I am at as much fault as they are this time. An error in judgement that will not occur ever again."
He seemed to have concluded. Everyone looked at him as if he had gone mad. Zetta was no longer with him, so there was no longer a need to put up the silent treatment. He, the Legendary Overlord, was in a body that was all his own. His right. His claim. His legacy.
"He's talking."
Pram said in surprise.
"Uh, okay? Who's this -he- and -them- that he keeps spouting off about, though?"
Alex asked. Even the battling Seedle and Valvoga had stopped to glance at the Legendary Overlord. Micky's surprise was able to make Ophelia kick him out as the main persona and allowed her to finally warn Salome, and everyone else by extension.
"Salome, don't let him get too close! That's not Zetta! It's Baal! He's possessed Zetta's body."
Everyone turned to face her, expressions of shock on their faces followed by the expression of apprehension as they gazed back to Baal, expecting an attack at any given moment.
"Ophelia...it's been a long time since we've last met. How amusing to see that you've been reincarnated into the body of another Overlord along with your precious Babylon's gift to you, that pet Dryzen. You should have remained dead. What's the point of living when your only going to end up dying by my hands a second time?"
Baal mocked, his tone rising slightly to show some amusement. Ophelia seethed.
"You asshole..."
Her words made a sneer cross his face.
"Please...tell me something I don't already know. Like how you would enjoy perishing a second time, perhaps? But I'll deal with you later..."
He said, turning to face Salome.
"Salome the Traitor, we meet for the first time...it was you...who was one of many to cause such an injustice to me."
Baal said simply as he held up his free hand, black flames swirling around his palm.
"Baal...what do you mean?"
The female Overlord asked, having to refrain from calling him Zetta, as she backed away slightly, fire swirling in her own free hand though she didn't raise it to Baal yet.
"Ponder that while your life is on the line!"
The Legendary Overlord said in a slightly enraged tone as he shot a black fire ball at her direction. Salome knew it wouldn't prove really effective to use her spells against his, but she had also anticipated that he would shoot the spell at too great a speed than she could simply dodge, so she needed to hold it off for a second or two. She hurled her own fire ball at his spell, but it simply ripped right through.
'Too strong!'
Salome thought as the black fire was nearly upon her in an instant. She knew she was going to be struck by the spell, but the impact never came as Salome ended up being protected by some kind of snow flake shield of some sort that appeared before her, canceling out Baal's spell.
"White Ice...then..."
Baal muttered as a massive shadow flew across the castle. Babylon swirled in the air, positioning his head to peer into the large hold in the Castle's side.
"Zetta..."
The Dragon Overlord spoke in soft surprise. Baal smirked.
"Babylon, my old friend...what a pleasant surprise. I was hoping to meet you last, but you've done me the honor instead it seems."
Baal said to the old Dragon. Babylon snarled.
"You are...Baal! So...you've claimed Zetta's body after all."
The Dragon Overlord spoke calmly. Baal chuckled softly.
"You of all people should have known my final legacy would come back to me. Partially at least. Zetta's soul may prove some use other than dying so early, however. He's confined to the Sacred Tome now, is he not?"
Baal questioned, though already knowing the answer. Babylon's eyes narrowed sharply.
"You will not have him, Baal. That boy has suffered enough by your hands."
The Dragon Overlord claimed.
"Babylon...that has always been your problem. Too much of a soft hearted fool for your own good. Both you and Ophelia. It's hard to believe you were born a Demon in the first place. I have no interest in fighting some sentimental old Dragon, however. I'll have the Yoshitsuna take care of you for me."
Baal said. With a snap of his fingers, the Yoshitsuna descended back to Salome's Netherworld. Babylon spared it only a small glance.
"Don't bother. You want a fight, Baal? That can be arranged!"
Babylon declared as he reared his body back before lunging forward at the Legendary Overlord. Babylon's body decreased dramatically until it was nothing more the small red orb. It shattered, hurtling the more humanoid aged Babylon free. The Dragon Overlord continued his descent at tremendous speeds. Baal raised his sword as Babylon summoned a massive battle mace with a shaft that was nearly as long as a spear. The shaft was also elaborately designed with Babylon's serpent like body coiled around it, doubling as a grip as well. Babylon raised the giant weapon overhead before slamming the large spiked ball end at Baal's direction. The very impact of Babylon's weapon sent Baal deep into the mountain, making both it and the rest of Salome's castle fall apart with the devastating strike. The rest of the Overlords flew off before the mountain was now just a pile of rubble.
"Who the hell are you and what have you done to the real old gramps Babylon?"
Alex asked the old man who hovered beside him.
"Yeah, I thought old gramps Babylon had Alzheimer's disease. You seem to remember things all too well, though."
Pram added. Babylon turned to them.
"You youngsters don't have to be so surprised. It's called putting up an act. Enough about that, however, all of you must get out here. You need to meet up with..."
Babylon stopped mid-speech as he heard the rubble being disturbed. Baal crawled out of the destroyed mountain, looking towards Babylon with a predatory glee.
"The Last Impact. The weapon with the strength reminiscent of the great Dragon Overlord Babylon's swishing tail as he dances amongst the stars. You've grown very old Babylon, but your strength is definitely not so fleeting as your appearance even after so many years..."
Baal muttered, ripping his cape free from the rest of the debris. Babylon remained passive.
"...come now, it has been so long since all three of the original Overlords have been together in one place. Let the younger generation witness a true battle for once before their fates are sealed. And allow me to pay you back for it was you who served me and my son the first injustice, after all. You and Trenia. But since she's not here..you'll be the first!"
Baal took to the air like a rocket as he went straight for Babylon. The Dragon Overlord tightened his hold on the Last Impact.
"Injustice? No...you don't know how badly you twisted Zetta's body and mind already. You are no father, and you never were. A parent does not do what you have done to their only child. You turned him into a murder machine. Nurturing his body so you could then kill him and use it as your own...all because of your insecurities. Baal...your ambitions to become the Strongest have gone too far when you decided to create that poor child. Someone like you does not deserve Zetta!"
Babylon dived down to intercept Baal. Sounds of clanging metal that totally put thunder to shame could be heard all throughout the night.
:ToBeContinued:
Note: This chapter mostly spotlights Zetta, Baal, and Babylon. This chapter is also pretty confusing, I'm sure, but all I can ask is for the readers to bare with me. The next chapter, too, will be filled with quite a bit of plot heavy dialogue but hopefully things continue to remain interesting at the very least.