Black and White (III)

"Don't let it take over your soul!" Zero yelled, his hand reaching over towards the young man that teeters on edge. "Fight!"

Reaching out his hands, he clasped onto the shoulder of the young man. In that instant, Zero could feel a swarm of darkness, anger, and revenge swirling around him like a tornado. The chaotic darkness swirled upwards into his hands, contaminating him as well.

Zero closed his eyes as sweat began to emerge. He felt his body becoming hot from the abundant energy spewing out of the young soldier.

What's going on? Why is his anger so much stronger than Dave's? How am I supposed to stop this? Zero thoughts were running away like a train. He did not have a single solution or an answer to the predicament that he was in.

"I won't let it take me," Zero muttered. He could feel the immense pain of the invading energy, which meant more harm.

His eyes opened and glowed goldenly. "I said let him go!" A burst of energy flowed outwards from his body pushing back the darkness.

Zero felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, and he turned around to see a beautiful female with wings floating beside him. Her warm smile and stern eyes gave him even more power that was pure. It was a complete contrast of energy that he felt from the collective force of people to the angel. The energy was clean and pure, with no hint of contamination.

"Sarah?" The young man glanced up towards Zero and looked at the angel floating beside him.

"Is that you?"

The angel reached out her hands towards him, telling him everything is going to be alright. Then, with shaking hands, the young man reached out to her.

"Sarah! It's you." The young man grabs onto her hand with tears in his eyes. "I knew you would come for me."

Sarah didn't say a single word and instead gently smiled. Zero pulled back his hand and fell onto his butt exhausted. This was the first time that he felt his life was threatened to the point of exhaustion.

"Jon," Sarah spoke just one word, and the young man's face blossomed into joy.

If Zero could ever describe such a meeting, the only word that came to mind was pure bliss, happiness, and love. Nothing else could describe the two.

"Let's go home, Jon." Sarah's words even struck Zero's heart.

Home. A familiar word that can not help but describe the aching pain of belonging. It was a place of rest and a place where one would be welcomed. The memories of his family shot through his mind as he stifled a sniffle. A sharp pain of loneliness hit him hard in his chest, and all he could do was look at the angel and the young man with jealousy, but it was quickly washed away. Instead, it was replaced with happiness.

"Thank you." The angel gave him a soft nod. "You have helped change the destiny of this man's life. That is why I am here. For your help, the Seed that is in your possession has received new abilities, though I recommend that you should reach your physical body first to activate it." She spoke and smiled.

He was too shocked to ask her any other question and stare at the mesmerizing beauty before him.

Her wings extended outwards and wrapped Jon and her into a tight cocoon. All the darkness that was willed up in Jon's body crumbled away like dust and in its place was a happy man full of love. Then, in the blink of an eye, a bright blinding light erupted from both of them as they disappeared into the light.

Zero felt pleased that his Seed's power was unlocking. The telepathy skill he had gained had been both a pain in the ass and, at the same time, useful. At first, it was very strange that he could hear other people's thoughts unwillingly, but at the same time, it gave him an edge in many things, especially in fighting. At the same time, he had not been using it too much because he could not even control it.

His Telepathy skill was still at the stage where it would come and go without a second thought. Sometimes, it was even so jumbled up with his thoughts that it confused him. It took a while for him to get used to which thoughts were his and which were not.

He had no time to waste; he needed to find his body. Who knew how far distance Russ was to the Draconis Village? His feet were moving toward where he needed to go. An unconscious pull told him the direction of the 'Dragon's Home' that kept him moving.

Even in the gloomy atmosphere of the world, Zero pushed forward. The forest was different than the city. They were no deceased people, but instead animals and monsters. Animals, as usual, flee from the sight of him, while the monsters look twice as intimidating as when they are in the physical plane.

He could tell that by casting off their shell, the limit one had on their body multiplied, giving a full reign of their powers. Luckily for him, the number of deceased monsters was lower at the moment, though at times he would cross paths with a large herd of them moving in one direction.

Zero did not take unnecessary battles and tried his best to avoid as many fights as possible. His goal was not to kill as many monsters on his way toward Draconis Village but get there as fast as possible. He was unsure how much time had passed since his soul was pulled out of his body. In all honesty, he wasn't sure how fast or slow the time between the living and the dead flowed. This was the second time he had run around the world of the dead.

The other times that he had died, he would just wait for the twenty-four hours to be over. This world was not something that he enjoyed being in. In all honesty, it reminded him too much of the real world that it gave him shivers.

"I seriously need to get out of this plane." Zero mumbled under his breath. Staying any longer made even his bones feel the cold chill of the world.

Continuing forward, he felt a sudden warmth in his body. The winds blew a hotter breeze as the plants around him had more vibrant in color. However, he did not expect the sudden change until he walked deeper into the forest.

"Why is there color here?" Zero exes aimed around curiously. He was not sure what was going on. Was this another sacred space? That was the only thought that came to his mind.

The longer he walked, the more sounds and color washed around him, making it feel like he was back in the physical realm. Then, finally, out in the distance, Zero saw what he was looking for. Draconis Village was lit up in multiple lights, allowing him to see something he would not normally see in the physical world.

Aurora lights swirled above Draconis Village, creating a serene and magical feeling. A light of gold and black energy shimmered and encompassed the village, creating a barrier. Many dark spirits were on the edge of the barrier, creeping around as they tried to make their way in.

Zero was astounded by the high density of dark spirits waiting outside the barrier. This was something that he had never noticed till now.

"How am I supposed to get through now?" Zero mumbled. He searched around him, looking for any possible way in.

Then he saw what he was looking for: Russ's army bypassed the gold and black barrier, heading towards the Draconis Village. Due to all of the shadows surrounding the barrier, Russ' army was impossible to see, but whenever they finished passing the barrier, it was clear as day. It was a strange sight to see; it was as if the interior of the barrier was temporarily merging the two planes.

Zero watched, trying to find a way to avoid the cluster of dark spirits. Unfortunately, time was running out, and he did not have a moment to spare. He noticed that the dark spirits parted ways when Russ' army started appearing.

Taking the initiative, Zero jumped down onto the ground and ran towards the opening. All the dark spirits nearby stared at Zero with interest at his unusual behavior. Then, they started to crowd behind him, following him in the hopes that he would be able to penetrate the barrier.

Zero ran till he took his first step. The moment when he stepped through the barrier of the Draconis Village proximity, the dimension between life and death became clearer. Everything happening before him was not a blur anymore and instead was flesh and bone with the multi-color scenario. No more was the dreary world of the dead, but instead, pure energy spilled outwards surrounding the Draconis Village.

Pure sounds of the bell could be heard from the Church of Infinity as it kept the evil spirits at bay. Even the dead soldiers stopped at the edge, unable to come in closer, but instead crept like hungry wolves.

Zero turned a sharp right bypassing the living soldiers as if they were nothing.

"Gah! A ghost!"

"What?"

"Where?"

"Something cold just bypassed me."

The soldiers were moving around, unsettled at the strange occurrence. Every time a new voice would be squealing out in fright as Zero passed through them and headed towards Draconis Village.

"What's going on?" One of the commanders shouted. "Why are you men acting like pussies at this time. Ghost, you say? Where?" The commander glared down at the unsettled Soldiers in front of him.

"Here!"

"No, here!"

"It just passed through my body now!"

"Gahhhh!"

"This place is haunted!"

"We're going to be cursed!"

Zero jumped out from the crowd and ran towards the commander. Without a second thought, he passed through the commander as if he was not there.

The commander turned ghostly white and gulped. "M-Men. B-b-be b-b-brave." He stuttered. The Morale of the soldiers was rapidly declining as Zero made his way through, and he was finally able to break away from the army and slip into the trees. He was now too far away from the Draconis Village and instead climbed up to see where he could go to enter.

"This is war!" Russ shouted at the top of his lungs. "You and your filthy lizards don't deserve that library!"

Russ brought forth the four thousand soldiers that were left. They tracked through the forest and were finally able to catch up to the Draconis Village. Then, moving into position, they waited for Russ' signal.

Agnis stared coldly down at Russ from the cliff. Her white hair fluttered behind her, showing off her slim neck. Even under the bright moonlight, everything about her glowed magically, as if the goddess blessed her even more.

Hundreds of dragons the size of horses lined up, bearing their teeth at Russ and his soldiers. They growled, and smoke escaped their lips and nose. Everyone was staring down at Russ with the intent to kill. Even though they were up against many, they did not waver and instead stared dead in the face of danger.

"You're not welcome here, you filth." Valiant, the black dragon, roared. He spewed out black flames toward the soldiers. Every single one of the soldiers scuttled away like a bug, trying not to get burned. The black fire continually burned, making it difficult for the soldiers to pass through.

"Disgusting lizards, do you know who I am? I am Russ from the WaterRose Guild and the messenger from the direct King himself. Hand over the Library, or your life will be forfeit. We will continually hunt down your kind till extinction!"

"You think you that will intimidate us?" Valiant spat. "You are probably a measly fool who is just throwing around the name of WaterRose guild with dirt. Does Liliac know what you are even doing?"

"She does."

"Lies. I know her and spoke with her an hour ago. She stated what you are doing is wrong!"

"Shut up, lizard. You don't know anything about Liliac. She is my goddess. The words that you spout are all lies." Russ hissed.

"This fool thinks he knows Liliac like the back of his hands." Valiant spat in rage. "Do you see that, guys? He thinks he knows Liliac just because he's in her guild."

"Damn, psychopath," Seka growled. "I should've known it was bad news when we saw his face."

"Let's make sure we keep this guy away from Lilac," Reed spoke gently, patting Valiant on the neck. She was sitting on Valiant's back.

"I'm completely in with that."

"Plus, he needs a good beating to open his eyes to his delusions."

Most dragons were the size of a horse, and no baby dragons were present anywhere.

"Are the baby dragons and their companion safe?" Agnis asked Garrett.

Garrett and hundreds of Lunar Rabbits stood on the edge with her bearing arms. They looked like warriors ready to slaughter at any moment now.

"They are being protected at heart, my lady," Garrett spoke. "It would be impossible to get to them." Then, with an evil smile, he gave her a reassuring look.

"How many do we have ready to fight?"

"189 Lunar Rabbits, 259 young dragons and their companion, 743 cat people, and 590 residents. We can not count too much on the Leprechauns; they do not specialize in fighting. We have another thousand of our residents and dragons deep underground."

"I understand. It's more than I thought. It will do for now."

"Do you have any plans to counter this?"

"No."

Garrett went silent. "I understand; we will fight with our life on the line."

"Don't worry. Everything will be alright." Agnis's voice was filled with hope.

"You are right. These damn brats came to take our homes. Let's make them pay for what they're trying to do and beat them black and blue!"

"Yea!" Everyone heard him and shouted in unison.

"Drezo Regalia. Drezo Regalia." Like a constant chant, the dragons pounded their feet in rhythm. The ground shook, causing rocks to tumble off the cliff.

Their pounding feet and chanting gave off an eerie feeling. The soldiers nervously watched as the dragons continued to chant louder and louder. Their voices continued to speak out in unison with vigor.

"Drezo Regalia! Drezo Regalia! Drezo Regalia!"