亚洲综合中美

Curtains unveiled at the battle climatic end; high-tier spell, akin to those wielded by angels, flung on either side. Upon landing, large-scale devastation, sphere-shaped clouds rose – sun, unable to pierce the thick fog, retreated into somberness, habitants of below shuddered. All-encompassing and warm light gradually vanished; a line of grey sunk the battlefield in horror.

*Cough, cough, cough,* faint lights flickered across the mist, “-what happened?”

“No idea,” stones and rubble fell onto the cold ground, the sound of life clambered to a stand, dimmer lights lit in turn, “-who’s alive?”

“Everyone, I think,” fired an unshaken voice.

“Too much effort, I’m tired...”

“No complaining till we get home!” unimportant argument set off to the side.

.....

“Whatever, this place is boring.”

“Don’t insult...”

“Calm it, you’re acting like children.”

“Well, we are?” returned a harmonious quip.

Two sharp claps resounded, those carrying lanterns halted to stare vaguely at the sound, “-the battle has concluded,” a gust blew, the fog dissipated instantly, bodies left to the elements regenerated, “-we’re pleased by the display,” said four massively imposing figures, “-Vesper, representative of the Monster Realm, I, Miira, Guardian of Time, humbly accept thy realm’s strength as our own,” a sharp line divided the forces, five to the left, elemental guardians – Lightning, Water, Earth, Fire, and Wind, brazenly gazed onto the opposition; Cora, Starix, Kaleem, Yuria, and the trio of, Draconis, Saniata, and, Vanesa. Shadow of large griffin circled the center and promptly landed; the resultant dust cloud rose in a show of strength.

“The battle was very well fought,” returned Vesper at the head of the King of Monster’s army, “-we do apologize for the lack of personnel, our residents are still in the process of moving from realm to realm.”

“No offense taken,” replied Miira, “-have the army retreat, welcome to the Shadow Realm. We shall speak at greater lengths in the capital – provincial portals are readied for operations. Don’t dilly-dally too much.” On said note, the guardians flickered into nothingness, proven warriors stared wholeheartedly, “-I hate to admit it, the monster army is strong.”

“Coming from Kaleem, a man of fist to words, I say I’m impressed,” returned Starix, “-they were very strong, especially those guardians.”

“The raw power of the elements,” added Cora, “-if this had been a real invasion, they would be considered on par to arch-angels. We’ve made a fearsome ally,” he grinned nervously.

“There’s no cause for concern,” a keen-eyed lady slithered into sight, “-we’re servants to our Monarch, the King of Monsters. Besides, Starix, you’ve met Kul, the master’s personal guard, her attitude should give a peek into our world.”

“We’re good friends,” returned Starix, “-she’s got a hot-temper and I dare say if she ever decides to unleash the real strength...”

“Yes, yes,” interjected Vesper, “-the four heroes, disciples of the General-Gods of the Shadow Realm. In accordance with our previous master, we shall follow lady Miira’s guidance until the master sees fit for us to focus on a new journey.”

“Lady, lady, are you strong?”

“And who might you be?” she glanced to the side, Draconis, enveloped by chaos energy, wove a ball of concentrated mana.

“A boy who likes to play,” he smiled grandly.

*chop,* interjected a hasty Cora, “-no conjuring chaos energy in front of guests.”

“Cora...” he pouted, “-let me blow a little bit.”

Stood firm with arms crossed, “-no more chaos energy outburst for today. Saniata, if you would.”

“Understood,” the figure stepped from Kaleem’s overwhelming shadow, “-whatever am I to do with you, big brother...”

“No,” he looked away defiantly, “-I’m not going with Saniata, she thinks she’s too pretty or something. Look at her,” he pointed, “-short skirt and a white shirt, who wears that to a battle.”

“Brother,” she grinned, “-don’t bring up fashion,” five enormous balls of fire circled the group, “-one more word and I’ll kill you.”

“Try me,” an equally powerful outburst forced the observers to side-step.

“There they go again,” yawned Saniata, “-Starix,” she pulled onto his shirt, “-conjure a cloud for me.”

“Why?” returned she with knotted brow.

“Just do it.”

“Sure,” *poof,* the nonchalant visage sparked, albeit slightly, emotions definitely showed. “Warm fluffy bed,” she dove face first, “-fly to my siblings,” it obeyed and flew. Tension from the disagreement condensed into pure elemental strength.

“Should you not intervene?” inquired Vesper. A line of observers watched, both armies retreated long before the squabble.

“Out of the three devil children, Vanesa’s the strongest by a long stretch,” said Starix proudly.

“Oh please, just because she’s always listless and never raises a finger doesn’t mean she’s the type to kill on a whim,” fired Kaleem, “-it’s obvious Saniata has stronger control over the flame of Rah.”

“As your leader, I have to disagree,” Cora challenged their point of views, “-Draconis is far superior to the two combined. He’s not only mastered flames of his prior self – but is on way to conquering lady Gophy’s legendary ability of destruction.”

“Can a lady have silence for two minutes!” exclaimed Yuria, ‘-I’m envious...’

“Sorry,” they halted to face the children. Glances exchanged words, ‘-we should have been more careful, she’s the only one without a child to call her sibling,’ said Cora’s gaze.

‘You started it,’ fired Kaleem to Starix.

‘Don’t pin this on me,’ returned Starix to Kaleem, flickers of misunderstanding diluted into banter between close companions.

‘Must be nice to have allies one can call family,’ thought Vesper waiting in the background, ‘-the two realms have merged successfully. Raw essence in this world overflows, the children born here are beyond what my people have known to fight. The domain of Death, Time, and Origin, combined – scary. If the day ever comes where fighters of the Shadow Realm are called to arms, and I mean, in full-force, the universe might just cower.’

Per Starix’s comment, Vanesa ambled gently to the pair, gestured downwards, canceled the spells, and sent the duo plummeting into the ground, “-no more fighting,” she said laying on her stomach, “-Saniata, Draconis.”

“Whatever,” they broke her hold, “-stop being so mean to us,” said Draconis.

“No,” her eyes narrowed, “-the more you misbehave, the more I’ll use my powers,” her expression turned vile, a goo rose from her fingers, “-my accursed snakes are ready to pay a little visit.”

“NO MORE!” a whistle called onto the griffin, gust flung, “-LATER SISTER!” they leaped, latched onto the beast, and flew into the sun.

‘Quite the interesting bunch,’ thought Vesper.

“We ought to return to the capital,” said Cora, “-follow us, lady Vesper.”

“Lead the way,” and so, the two realms started their budding new relationship via a test of might. Who was superior, who was weak – the monster realm’s aces were strong, Cora and the rest might not have liked to admit, however, the elemental guardians, contrary to their names, were far stronger than anything they’d seen before save the generals.

A spacious terrace lined by an exquisitely crafted balustrade held a meeting. Retainers stood at the ready to serve, a large glass wall of many warm colors, waited as the backdrop, “-once again, I must say, welcome to the shadow realm,” added Intherna.

“The pleasure is ours,” said Vesper kindly gazing at the cityscape, “-never expected quite the level of advancement of the realm.”

“The place rules itself nowadays,” said Miira, “-our intervention isn’t much required. Efforts from the Watcher have brought fortune and strength superior to any realm to currently exist. I speak on the matter from the perspective of one who’s experienced countless realms.”

“-What of the other gods, won’t they be angered?”

“I have no idea,” said Gophy, her mind churned reasons why Hermes would personally assist Lixbin.

“I know that expression,” commented Intherna, “-there’s a ploy involved again, right?”

“Hermes and the letter,” added Lilith, “-Hades was well-placed to win the battle, the letter ultimately saved us.”

“Didn’t lady Miira say the realm to be stronger than another?”

“It’s half-right and wrong, we’re strong and not at the same time. The measurement of the strength of a domain is highly influenced by the presiding god, and in our case, tis Igna. Without a shadow of a doubt, the plane we live in is on the way to creating more life and channeling it into its own universe. I’m sure knowledge of the ranks is known to us, the hierarchy of watcher, gods, angels, and humans – the realms also follow a similar pattern. We’re at the top and on the bottom, that’s the catch. As we speak, the core, Krono’s sickle, has woven across time and space – making us untouchable. The Shadow realm is, by all means, a world within a world, a universe within a universe, an existence reliant on the culmination of Death and Time. To lady Vesper’s question, the answer is subjective. I say, the better answer would be to leave the matters to god – very cliché; still, our god is technically Igna, the watcher.”

“A perplexing prospect to say the least,” her eyes locked onto pastries, “-what then?”

“All the realm talk is boring,” added Intherna, “-speaking about said matters won’t change anything. How about we talk of Hades. The demon god didn’t exactly retreat, I’m sure damned Zagreus isn’t going to take the loss standing still.”

“Nothing can be done about the matter,” said Gophy, “-I did take the initiative to close the rupture in Fuda Mountains. Sadly, another rupture cracked to the north of Alphia. Hades army is on the offensive.”

“Persistent little pests,” added Intherna.

“Pardon the intrusion, I have something to add.”

“Go ahead, lady Vesper.”

“Here’s the deal, the tower inside Plaustan is about to be conjured. Strong adventurers have made it to the 198th floor. The history of the tower must be kept alive, without the constant stream of humans fighting, our forces won’t gain strength. I heard Achilles teamed up with Eraalko, the demi-son to the goddess of the seasons. Together, they’ve strid to the top. On floor 100th, the first Demonlord, a lady, was defeated soundly. Next is the main boss, the second Demonlord on the 200th floor. The tower’s legends need to captivate the newer generation. Here is my plight and I’ll need the acceptance of the council – the creation of a tougher tower, more complex, riddled with traps, labyrinth, and treasures. Heroes defeat demons, the staple of fantasy stories that have captivated children from birth, potential adventurers hooked by the prospect of fame and glory,” a scan across the faces, “-my proposition is this. Igna Haggard, King of Monster, will stand guard on the 200th floor on the day the adventuring team reaches the top. He will display his true might and take the title of Demonlord.”

“Basically, he’ll have to be a villain and defeat the adventurers?” summarized Gophy.

“Yes.”

“I see no reason why he shouldn’t,” shrugged Miira, “-we’ve all heard the tale about how he conquered Yuria’s world as a Demonlord. Should be a walk in the park. Once they reach the 199th floor, have the master teleported.”

“Will do, I’ll run by him later today.”

“-I presume we don’t have much to discuss?” Intherna asked boldly.

“Not that I know of,” answered Gophy, “-Lilith?”

“Nothing here,” she smiled, “-what about Miira?”

“I’ve spoken my fair share today,” she smiled, “-the talk is concluded. Go make thyself at home, lady Vesper, I’m sure the land is bountiful.”

“I will, thank you.”