Prophecy

Chapter 2: Name

*Xavia's POV*

The worm-like archdemon entity that emerged from my father's torso devoured the last dragon in a matter of seconds. It had a massive circular mouth filled with several layers of razor-sharp teeth. For the worm to appear, those large teeth rend his chest asunder, and the ripping sounds heard from that action are alarmingly morbid. A millennia ago, I learned that he forced a demonic parasite onto his body, fusing both for all eternity. That additional entity is what siphons the very essence and powers of those it consumes. My father so easily disfigured himself for the sake of power, a horrendous act that was now irreversible.

He'll stop at nothing to become the most powerful thing in existence.

While the parasite ingested everything, I could hear several bones breaking and splashes of blood spewing from the gigantic second mouth protruding from my father. The dragon itself had screamed in misery. Though ordered to sacrifice its life, it couldn't help feeling the pure agony of the process it was going through. My father emitted a satisfactory, content growl followed by a burst of diabolical laughter. I noticed his power was rising; I could sense it, and it utterly terrified me.

"No matter what, Xavia must not catch onto what we're doing," He suddenly stated, and I couldn't help but wonder why I was mentioned.

"Do you seriously think she could pose any threat to your plan?" Abigor questioned, looking at the Devil.

"No," He answered confidently, "Prophecy or not, my rise and rule over everything in this existence will not be thwarted." What did he mean by that? What Prophecy? Before I could understand what was happening, my father added, "We're leaving now."

Abigor followed closely behind him as they both leaped off the tower and flew toward my home. Now that searching for that hurt creature was safe, I returned to my physical form. Then, I jumped off the tower oppositely and landed on my demonic legs. My dragon feet took the brunt of the impact; their sheer strength made jumping from high surfaces mere child's play. The ground beneath me broke apart after stretching my ten toes; sometimes, I forgot how powerful my demonic form indeed was. I must find that animal before it is too late; it's the least I can do. Activating what I call my bat hearing, my ears then elongated. It allowed me to hear further into the distance with the help of echolocation.

"Come on, little creature... move or something... I'll hear it, I promise..." I muttered to myself, hoping.

I kept my entire body extremely still, waiting for even the faintest of sounds. The soft, painful whimpers I heard not only broke my heart but actually helped me pinpoint where I should search. Since my legs were still in my demonic form, I used their immense power to propel me forward quickly. I dashed, leaping off the ground, practically jumping toward what I hoped was the little dragon.

Seconds later, I halted myself a few feet away and began carefully searching, utilizing my lycian sight for additional aid. Doing so lets me see part of the infrared spectrum and detect heat signatures of objects or various living beings, even in total darkness. Now that I was closer, I simply followed the slight movement and crying sounds until I spotted blood.

The animal should soon be in my vicinity.

After following the bloodstains for another minute, I found the tiny creature defeated and broken. The sight before me was horrifyingly heartbreaking, to say the least. I morphed into my human form and knelt beside the dragon. I could hear its heartbeat as clear as day, calm. That is until I showed up; the pace suddenly quickened, so much so that I thought the speed might harm the little thing further.

The dragon was so scared of me that it tried to run away, and... seeing what my father caused reminded me of myself a long time ago. Bones were sticking out from the creature's ripped wings, and my father's handprint was embedded in its body, around the waist. By the time it tried to stand, it limped one step and keeled over, shaking in fear.