Shadows of Mephisto

'Nin-Nin!'

Hearing those damn words sang as though they were a mantra, I was about to snap into action but high in the sky, the sigil of Ouroboros oozing a thick soul-crushing necrotic qi, something that only Fallen should be about to summon bared its fangs.

Arkanos stood firmly near my wife, her body glowing with a nefarious aura that made my skin crawl. Eyes beating up and down, she glared over the horizon," No one's gonna touch Arkanos, little brother!" She snapped, arching her hands high, "Heed Arkanos cry, and shower this land with your grace, Ouroboros!"

"I can't believe it," Ezra remarked, her scarlet, black greatsword drawn. " Ouroboros, the fallen order by the Trickster of Sin," Her gaze trembled. "It was stated in the Infernal Bible when Lord Lucifer became a dragon in the war between the Angels to steal the throne. It was Mephistopheles who granted him that knowledge. I don't understand how Ouroboros came into creation, but I know this sigil either belongs to Mephistopheles or is one of the societies or Monsters he created. No one really knows. Not truly. "

Something bubbled in my stomach as I flashed back a year ago when I saw those visions. My fist clenched. And something coiled in me.

Someone was toying with me.

That had to be it. How is it possible to even see the future? Maybe when I was a mortal. But this child carries both my blood and the blood of Lilith. The literal embodiment of the Abyss. The Little One didn't even have a body, merely a soul, and even so, that soul was still forming. The core had not even fully formed. There is no way it could think or show me—

"Zariel, what is going on?" I demanded. Unable to throw off this stinging unease within the pit of my stomach. I had seen that sigil there. It was faint, and I could be mistaken, but I wasn't going to risk it.

A beastal roar bellowed in my response to my inquiry. And from the skies, the Sigil came to life. Releasing a deafening roar, the Sigil shattered the dimensional constant, emerging from a one-dimensional being into a fourth. Black as the night sky, with thick scales that gleamed an evil aura, I shuttered—noticing the mischievous glint from Ouroboros.

"Eat!" Arkanos commanded, pointing off into the distance.

Ouroboros opened its mouth, and the deafening ring of energy gathered, turning stone to dust. I covered myself in divinity. Still, even so, the hairs upon me only rose as the Dragon Lord released a frightening beam of emerald light."

Clouds parted, revealing cloudless azure skies that were being devoured by an emerald pillar of light that seemed to eat away life—not bothering with the devastation that was going to follow. I grabbed onto Lilith and shouted.

"Into the cave! Only Avar and Ty can survive out here!"

Leaping into action, everyone aside from Avar chased after me into the cave where the bloodstone resided. Ignoring the pulse of the ring of bael, I once more shouted, " Rey Nala!"

Stopping in our tracks, the both of us turned towards the exit. And with a powerful exertion of Abyssal Night. Fueling every inch of my flesh, I pushed out a gush of Qi to black the entry point while Rey Nala used her telekinetic ability to enforce my defense.

A vicious wave whipped over the shield we formed. Sending tremors throughout the Bloodstone cave as bits of debris trickled down like rain, striking our bodies, actually causing blood to slip from our brows.

Shock overcame me, but only for a moment before Ezra and Ren formed barriers around us. Sweat mixed with bits of blood slipped over my cheek as we lowered the barrier the moment the shock wave passed.

"Damn that little dragon! The hell was Arkanos thinking using such a powerful spell like that?" Glancing down at Lilith, somehow free of injuries, despite Rey Nala and me taking bits of damage. A sigh of relief skimmed over my brow as I shifted my gaze back to the cave entrance.

"You guys can come out," Avar said, her tone mellow as always.

Hoisting Lilith onto my back, I slowly made my way outside, taking note of the devastation of the once scarlet remains of those of the Overworld. Now a desolate field of rocks and ash.

Glancing at Ty and Arkanos, glaring at a blond-headed child, her eyes were a deep blue, with a glint of scarlet around the rim, filled with tears. Holding a kunai in her trembling hands, she glared at Ty and Arkanos.

"A ninja?" I whispered, a little confused, as her clothing appeared a bit torn, but for the most part, she looked like one.

The young girl bit her lips, sniffling, "you killed them all!" Bitting back the tears, she pounced only to be strung up into the air by an invisible hand.

"Don't you dare kill her,' Rey Nala said, eyeing me sternly.

I was gonna eat her, but ok.

My lips curled upwards, " Do you think I'm so murderous?"

She nodded, shifting her gaze back to the little ninja. "I do. Despite your charming smile, your looks, you give off chills that make Ezra, a true devil, seem tame."

"Your words cut deep," I faintly remarked, rolling my eyes. "Have you not heard tales of Saint Arsene, the wandering healer!"

"Your bullshit has woken me!" Lilith muttered on my back.

"Even my wife Betrays!!!"

"Oh sene," She sighed, resting her head on my shoulder, her breathing soft with a faint oddity. Something I couldn't put my finger on.

She lifted her head a bit and stared at the young girl, balling her eyes out. "Little one,' She gently called, and as if her words were magic, filled with a lullaby to quell those of a broken heart, the young girl's cries stopped, and my wife smiled. "What is your name?"

Tears bubbled in her eyes, and her cheeks trembled; she spoke."Mia."

"That's cute." Rey Nala said.

A faint sniffle echoed from Mia as she nodded in agreement.

Rolling my eyes at the useless interaction with some nobody that would be better off as a meal. I turned my attention to my dear daughter peering up at me with large unblinking eyes.

"Papa? Are you mad?"

"Oh, my sweet little Arkanos,' I slowly said, placing my palms over her tiny head. " What would make you say that? Is it because of the blood dripping from my skull or the fact that I'm squeezing your head!"

Giggling with glee as my grip grew tighter. I tossed the little runt off into the air.