The title says it all.
Blood. Blood is red. Igneel was aware of this. Everyone knows this. It's common knowledge after all. Yet, he was still surprised to see his father's blood was just as red. It would have been more unsurprising for him if the fluid had been painted in another colour.
But no it was red, crimson red. The essence of life flowed out of Ignis body from the countless wounds he got moments ago. Droplet after droplet drenched the floor, collecting in a large pool, waiting for the body to drop down.
This was not supposed to happen. As much as Igneel dislikes his parent, the father keeps being a father. So seeing his life fade away wrenched his heart and tears were about to fall down his cheeks. He would make the murderer pay for this and if it's the last thing he will do!
At least that's what he wanted to do but his body didn't dare to move an inch, not until he got permission from the demon in front of him, the demon that has killed his father in front of his eyes without a second of mercy to spare, ripping father and child apart in the cruellest way possible and not showing any sign of remorse for what he had committed.
A demon through and through, an embodiment of evil his father had created himself and for what? To protect his arrogant pride, that had taken a heavy blow once, because a mere human child did not bend his knees in front of him.
A flick with one of his hands transmitted the order from the master to his demonic weaponry and they abandoned the warm and throbbing sheath of dragon innards. Then with a swift motion, they cleansed themselves and painted the walls with dragon blood as well before they slowly faded away, their embers blown out since their master had no use for them anymore.
A snap of his pitch-black fingers adored by white sharp nails followed and the chains were dismissed as well, releasing the hold on their dead hostage. A loud crack accompanied by a wet thud echoed through the cave when Ignis' lifeless body fell on the ground into the pool of his own blood.
And only now the person Igneel had only seen once deemed it right to turn around and present his demonic form in its full glory for Igneel to behold. The dragon didn't dare to describe what he saw, too terrifying was the unholy impression radiating from the unnatural life form.
"Now then, what am I supposed to do with you, lil' Igneel? Gonna admit I didn't expect you to close the distance this fast, not that I mind one or two witnesses." Hearing this uncertainty unnerved Igneel. It felt like he was being toyed with, nothing but a pupped lying within the palms of the demon lord.
"That being said I still do not know what I shall do with you, now that you are here." The more the murderer of his father talked, the more Igneel thought he would be killed any moment, slaughtered just like Ignis. But the demon surprised him.
"Don't worry about what you are thinking right now, Lil' Igneel. I'm not gonna kill you." Igneel's eyes widened. Impossible! Is he able to re-
"Read your mind? I could if I wanted to by using my Archive Magic but that would be such a waste since there's no need for that right now. The expression on your face is more than enough for me to decipher what's going through your mind."
Even though having the reassurance, that his brain is not messed with right now, did only so much in calming Igneel down. But knowing he wouldn't be killed at least managed to stop the screaming survival instincts in the back of his mind Any form of security was very much appreciated.
However, the demon was not nice enough to let Igneel have this small sense of safety because in the next moment he destroyed all of his hopes.
"I think you are under the illusion of a misunderstanding, lil' Igneel. I might not kill you but I never said I wouldn't rough you up here and there a little bit. I've yet to decide on how I'm going to mutilate you even though Nostradamus did a good number on you already."
The uncertainty from earlier had vanished at this point. Left behind was nothing else but a cruel, merciless determination. Every word spoken to him were laced with the truth. Every phrase was morphed into an unholy omen, waiting for the time it would be finally fulfilled. And the worst of all, there was little Igneel could do to prevent this fate.
He could stand up and fight but knew this was pointless. Too great is the power of the vile creature. He could try to escape but knew this was useless as well. He would be caught in an instance. The only option he had left was to give in to his fate and accept the upcoming doom.
"Igneel!"
Suddenly a familiar voice called his name. Even though it sounded frantic laced with complete and utter exhaustion Igneel did recognise the owner immediately. The one and only friend he could count on, Atlas Flame.
His name was called out again and then Igneel could already pick up the noises his friend made while he came closer and closer. He wasn't sure whether he should feel relief or fear. Relief that he was not alone or fear what might happen to Atlas Flame. Either way, he couldn't stop it anyway. His life... no, both of their lives were already in the palm of the demon lord and it was his decision alone what would become out of them.
"Igneel! There you are!" It was weird how there was still this spark of joy in Atlas Flame's voice. The joy of having found his friend. Has he not seen who... what is standing beyond him?
The other dragon was about to say something again but a sharp noise sounded again. With his own eyes, Igneel witnessed how his friend burst into flames, set ablaze by the monstrosity behind him. Being in mid-run, Atlas Flame's body did not simply collapse. Instead, it fell forward and rolled before it came to a halt right next to Igneel. The stench of burning flesh accompanied by a metallic note from the iron inside blood, filled Igneel's nostrils. Too shocked about this sudden development, too horrified about the sight of his burning friend Igneel could only vomit the contents of his stomach.
Coughs and gurgles filled the air while the sound of raging flames danced between them as Atlas Flame trashed around, frantically trying to put out the fire consuming his life.
"How rude. Have you never been told it's disgusting when you vomit in front of others, lil' Igneel? And you, other dragon. Lil' Igneel over there and I were discussing important matters. I won't have any interruptions from ousid-" the demon scolded them but put his lecture on a sudden halt.
Next to him Atlas Flame had stopped thrashing around and instead tried to stand up, unwilling to give in to the suppression forced upon him. Their oppressor squinted his eyes, examining the victim of his hellish fire.
"Oh? That's honestly rather surprising. Are you actually trying to resist my magic?" Of course Atlas Flame was unable to form an answer since his body was incarnated but still, Igneel could swear he was glaring at the assailant with murderous intent as the fire dimmed ever so slightly.
"Ah, now I see. That's what's going on but are you sure about this? Once you've set your soul ablaze you will never be able to regain your physical body and magical depletion is equal to death. On the other hand, it's your only choice if you desire to cling to life a bit longer." Maybe the strength of the demon is not the most terrifying part of him. Igneel had no clue what was going on but in mere seconds the foul creature had presented a plausible and solid explanation for Atlas Flame's actions. Looking at the blazing sun-like spell behind the demon strengthened his assumption.
The demon was the very definition of an enemy with dreamlike abilities. Boundless, physical strength able to tear apart the earth and sky alike, a bottomless amount of spells at his disposal, a never-ending reservoir of magical power fuelling his incantations and on top a smartness without rival coordinating everything.
This is not fair. This is not fair at all. How is the world supposed to overcome this threat? When even his father was unable to stop him, the other God Dragons are no good either. That only left the Supreme Dragons but every last one of them gave the impression that they didn't care a bit about the happenings on Earthland as long as nobody dared to annoy them.
Beside him, Atlas Flame roared before he slumped on the ground. Igneel couldn't tell whether he was alive or not. His body was still engulfed in flames and where his face was supposed to be was only a foggy mirage, indicating that it might be a face. But it could be something completely different as well.
"Hm... I wonder how long he will be able to maintain this new form of his. Either way, his life will not be the sa-" Whatever the demon wanted to say was cut short. An annoyed expression formed on his face and his eyes narrowed.
"You really ought to know when to accept defeat, filthy lizard." What happened next was too fast for Igneel to see. One moment the demon was standing in front of him and in the next moment he was gone, buried underneath a large, fiery claw!
In raging fury his father Ignis had returned from the realm of death, intending to pull the demon along for the journey. Igneel immediately understood this was his only chance to escape. Even though the demon was crushed he still smirked. Igneel needn't see it. He could it, almost as if it hat parted from the body it belonged to, had enlarged and was hovering in front of the sun, showing that hope didn't exist.
Mindlessly Igneel turned around. He grabbed Atlas Flame's burning frame and dashed away. His father, though dead, had given him this one tiny possibility and he couldn't let it be in vain. Ignis should be remembered as the dragon he was, Cruel and merciless but prideful and enduring at the same time. Flapping his wings as fast as he could, Igneel tried to bring as much distance as possible between him and the demon lord. He could sense how he was preparing another attack, one that would probably destroy the whole area aside from him.
Back in the chamber, the demon cackled beneath the Fire God Dragon's infernal claw. Gone was his annoyance and came had an overbearing amusement with the turn of events.
"If you are this persistent allow me to spit one last time into your face, oh mighty lord of fire." The demon laughed while he spoke. For him, this was nothing but the greatest of all entertainments.
"Fire you are but this shall not be the form of salvation for your departure from this world. Instead, you will remain in this realm for eternity, bound and shackled down by everlasting ice." Upon hearing its masters words, the still-burning sun above began to tremble and changed. Red and orange became white and icy blue as the elements switched places. Ignis newly conjured flames froze and crystallized, unable to win this fight even though they had the elemental upper hand.
"Freezing Sun"
The sun fell and swallowed both, Ignis and the demon, alike. The ice magic dwelling inside erupted in a wave of coldness, covering everything in frozen water. Igneel barely managed to escape from the icy grip aiming for him. Only when he couldn't feel the cold on his back anymore did he dare to turn around. What he saw was unbelievable.
Mt. Hakobe, once an ever-active volcano and home of the Fire God Dragon Ignis, was now covered in a thick layer of ice. Snowstorms raged around the area, erasing every existing evidence that this was once a volcanic environment.
The corpses of Ignis and many other dragons lay underneath, hidden from the view of those interested enough to steal a peek. Not once in the centuries to come would the temperature shift, too strong was the magic of the culprit behind.
On that day, the Age of Etherion began and it lasted far too long. In those times humans were less than amoebas, dragons crawled on the earth and hid in caves in the underground. Devils from the underworld and gods from their ethereal kingdom in the skies pitied them, mocking them for their lack of strength to oppose the demon lord.
Until their realms fell victim to him as well. The underworld was set ablaze by his hellish flames and the divine home was pulled on the earth by unholy powers. Each race was slain in the millions without an ounce of mercy.
And all of that was committed by a single man, raining down havoc on Earthland until the fateful day Igneel and demon met once again. By a streak of fate, an opening occurred and Igneel attacked, banishing the demon from the face of the world once and for all, ending his reign of terror.
How ignorant he has been. Everything it would have taken to dismantle the demon's lie was a simple look on his old home, still encased in ice. It's an iron rule. As long as the caster has yet to die, a spell will not cease to exist as long there's no command.
Igneel should have connected the dots. The smirk he saw, when his flames burned the demon out of existence. He should have known that he was pulling on a string the demon wanted him to pull on. Carefully placed and prepared so Igneel would do his bidding. Blinded by relief the world continued to turn around, ignorant to the fact that this was happening in the demon's palm because he allowed so. Earthland and all its inhabitants are nothing but puppets and he is the puppeteer, pulling the strings behind the scenes unnoticed.
But this would change because he had plotted his scheme and was ready to plunge the world back into despair. And this time he wouldn't stop until no human, no dragon, no devil nor god was still breathing. This time Earthland would be cleansed from everyone he deemed unfitting in his world. The demon whose name nobody dared to utter in full length because nobody ever dared to ask for it. Thus he was always referred to by his initials. Nothing more and nothing less. Otherwise one feared to incur his wrath. The wrath of the demon who's only known by three letters. The demon who is the master of the end-times, the demon who controls fate itself, the demon who has surpassed perfection and ascended into higher realms, the demon who is the pinnacle of the entire cosmos.
The demon who is called
E.N.D.
E.N.D. may be revealed now but this is only the beginning. Stay tuned to how he turns the world upside down :D
