Within

Unbeknownst to the outside world, Reyes was undergoing his own trials within his soul…

Before him, inside the darkness stood a shadowy figure complete with wings, horns and green eyes that glowed.

He could feel the raw power emanating from the being that stood before him, but not a single word was shared to break the silence between them.

Instead they battled each other.

Tooth, nail and fist flew within the darkness yet every time Reyes was killed, he spawned again to do battle.

Eventually the being grew tired of this.

Together, they just stood across from each other in silence before the being finally spoke.

"No matter if you or I like it, we share the same body…"

"So what?"

"I wish to make you an offer…"

"Are you the entity I have been seeing in my dreams?"

Reyes had recalled the nightmares he had been having. The pain, frustration and anger he felt flooded back into his mind full throttle.

Thinking this was likely to be the case, he had no choice but to ask.

Even though Reyes couldn't see any facial expression on the being due to the violent black Ki that covered it, he could hear the sound of confusion in their reply.

"What? My name is Azul. You will come to know what that name means but for now, I desire to make a contract with you."

"Contract?"

"Yes. As you can tell, I am very powerful. I shall give you access to my power when you are in danger in exchange for your blood and the right to feed on a portion of your soul."

Hearing this, Reyes shook his head.

"My body is my own, I do not know what intent you have but allowing you to feed on my soul isn't going to happen."

Heavy spiritual pressure quickly fell upon Reyes forcing him to his knees. Looking up, he could feel the murderous intent leaking from the being standing before him.

"YOU DO NOT HAVE A CHOICE IN THIS MATTER BOY!"

Against all odds, Reyes forced himself to slowly stand.

His bones and muscles screamed in agony, but he forced his pain to the side as he stood tall before Diablo.

"I will not! You are here in my body. Not the other way around!"

The pressure increased even further, but he forced himself to keep standing.

After a while, Diablo sealed his spiritual pressure and stared at Reyes.

"Fine then, make your terms mortal..."

"I will allow you to consume a portion of the soul energy I absorb from soul gems. If you are in control of my body and intend to injure anyone I care about, you will give control of my body back and lastly you can only assume control if I am gravely injured."

"Very well…"

…

Leezy just stared at his brother.

'What the hell? Who is that then…'

Who the hell was standing across from him then?

He had thought this strange power his brother had access to was just an extension of his own but to know it might be an entirely separate being was a different story.

As he took a step forward, a huge shockwave of power pushed him back. He watched as the black Ki that covered his brother shattered like glass, fading away into the wind.

"Reyes?"

"Yeah…"

"What the hell was that?"

"Don't worry about it, it's handled…"

Reyes looked over at his brother and wasn't surprised to see his angry expression.

"What the hell do you mean don't worry about that shit?! If I have to walk around with someone who isn't my brother that is powerful enough to completely fold a top general, I would think I should know what the fuck is going on!"

"Who the hell are you talking about kid?"

Out of the aftermath of Reyes's attack waltzed Grim.

He was injured but still able to walk which surprised the both of them.

They both grew silent as Grim walked directly up to Reyes and looked him in the eye.

"Kid, whatever that was just now impressed me. You managed to push me to my limit in base form and even managed to injure me pretty badly…"

Hearing that, Reyes couldn't hold back a grin but it was short lived.

"But…you still haven't won. This battle is a stalemate until one of us can no longer fight."

As he said this, he stopped holding back and let his transformation come forth.

The pillar of Ki from before didn't occur this time around due to Grim's lack of energy but the shockwave that resulted from his release was enough to send the brothers flying.

Reyes barely had enough energy to move but was able to land on his feet.

Leezy was able to do the same and landed next to him.

In the blink of an eye, Grim flashed before Reyes and grabbed him by the throat.

"Why tell me to hold back when you had a transformation up your sleeve kid? I should thoroughly teach you a lesson about reneging on agreements."

"Wait! That is a power he cannot control and as a matter of fact, that wasn't even him fighting you just now…"

Acknowledging what Leezy just said, Grim just stared at Reyes for a while before letting him go and changing back to his base form.

Reyes almost fell to the ground but managed to catch himself.

The power he had spent made his legs feel like they were made of Jell-o.

Overhead the moon's eclipse ended, revealing behind it a blood red moon that changed the sky from purple to a blood red. A single beam of energy shot from the sky and landed on a single point deeper in the canyon.

In the distance, a low rumble shook the entire canyon accompanied by a loud roar.

"What the hell was that?"

Reyes looked between his brother and Grim for answers.

"You had better get ready, if not then i am afraid you will end up dead. Same thing goes for your brother."

Leezy just nodded at Reyes and tossed his greatsword over his shoulder while staring off in the direction the roar had come from.

Turning his head in the same direction while reading himself, in the distance a large silhouette could be seen making it's way toward them in the shadows as 20 sets of purple eyes glowed.

Grim grit his teeth in annoyance knowing he had spent most of his energy on the fight with Reyes as he looked toward the opponent he had been waiting to fight this whole time.

Without a second thought or hesitation, he made up his mind.

With a quick glance back at the brothers, he charged forward leaving them behind…