Unbound Legacy

Prologue -Darkness Descends

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In a realm of perpetual night, where the sky remained eternally shrouded in darkness and three blood-red moons cast an eerie glow over the land, a figure strode purposefully down a dim corridor. Clad in armor as dark as the abyss, highlighted with accents of crimson, Crimson exuded an aura of power and malevolence. Trailing behind him was a short, wiry man struggling to keep pace and speak without panting.

"I'm sorry, Master Crimson," the man wheezed. "But it ended in another failure."

Crimson halted abruptly, his brow furrowing briefly before the expression vanished. "Did it?" he replied, his tone sharp. "It was but one of many paths. No reason to dwell on it, is there, V?"

The man nodded vigorously, relief washing over his features. "Fine. Now get out of my sight." The man nodded and turned, scrambling away.

As soon as he rounded the corner, Crimson's anger boiled over. He smashed his fist through the wall, splintering the stone. "I'm running out of options here!" he muttered, forcing himself to regain composure as he approached the majestic double doors at the corridor's end. Pushing them open, he was greeted by two beautiful women who took hold of him and escorted him toward his throne.

"What is it today, Master? You look awfully grumpy," Rin remarked, beginning to massage his tense shoulders.

"Yeah, you usually don't get mad," Riko chimed in, returning with a platter of assorted delicacies.

"It's nothing, don't mind it," Crimson forced a smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Enough of that. Riko, let me see what you've prepared for me today."

Suddenly, an ancient figure cloaked in shadows materialized before Crimson, exuding an aura of foreboding. "My lord," Mordov intoned gravely, "we have uninvited guests."

A wicked grin spread across Crimson's lips. "Ah, I think I've found something to lighten my mood," he declared, vanishing from his throne.

"Should we be worried?" the twins asked Mordov in unison.

"If it's the Master, worrying would be—how shall I put this?—idiotic. But I suppose that's normal for you two," Mordov replied with a mocking tone before disappearing in a swirl of shadows.

Despite their irritation, Rin and Riko couldn't ignore the truth in his words and followed suit. Outside, an immense army gathered, their ranks stretching as far as the eye could see.

"Oh, this might actually be fun," Crimson said, a gleam of excitement in his eyes as he toyed with a crystal in his hands. "I've wanted to try this out for so long!"

He continued, "Once, I met this human who incapacitated an entire army without moving an inch. I was fascinated, but the power required bloodline energy—something I unfortunately lack. But that's where this comes in." He held up the glowing crystal.

"Is that what I think it is? Where did you find it?" Rin asked, awe creeping into her voice.

"Let's just say I borrowed it from my dear friend Celestalon. Now, all I need to do is draw energy from this," Crimson said as the crystal pulsed with light. "And voilà!"

A heavy pressure enveloped the area, causing the sentinels to collapse, unable to rise. Crimson laughed hysterically as he wiped tears from his eyes. "That was so much fun," he exclaimed.

"Master, it seems one has survived," Mordov suddenly interjected, gesturing toward the battlefield.

"Isn't that Valkyrie? And the fun continues," Crimson said, vanishing again.

He reappeared before the kneeling Valkyrie, a grin stretched across his face. "Valkyrie," he purred, his voice a velvet-coated threat, "you're leading sentinels now. Has your pride as a celestial truly vanished? I guess you'll do anything for that idiot Celestalon." He chuckled mockingly.

Valkyrie's jaw tightened, her eyes blazing. "Don't you dare insult his greatness, you piece of—!" she yelled, only to be cut off by Crimson.

"For a Celestial, you really should watch your language," he responded, chuckling as he noticed her damaged chestplate. "What do we have here? Some friends you wanted me to meet?"

"You pervert!" she shot back, blushing and instinctively covering her chest, while Crimson howled with laughter.

His mirth was short-lived, however, as a sense of anticipation filled the air, pulling his gaze skyward. "At last, you show yourself," he murmured, vanishing in a swirl of shadows to confront an ethereal figure clad in flowing white robes surrounded by a halo of light.

"You sealed me in this wretched realm and then had the audacity to send your soldiers after me!" Crimson shot back, his voice dripping with disdain.

"What? You didn't like my little welcome gift?" Celestalon responded, mockingly tilting his head.

"I'll kill you!" Crimson roared. Before Celestalon could reply, he suddenly halted, finding himself mute as his jaw was now broken.

A twisted grin crossed Crimson's features. "There's more where that came from," he taunted, driving a fist into Celestalon's stomach. However ,healing began almost instantaneously, reversing time for the injury.But Crimson did not relent as he unleashed a flurry of fists, Crimson tore through Celestalon's form, each strike sending shockwaves through the air. Clouds parted from the sky but Celestalon's body healed, defying logic.

"Why bother? You know it won't work, I alraedy told you I'm not here for a fight," Celestalon observed, his calm demeanor infuriating Crimson further.

" Fine, I guess that leaves me no choice," he declared, a pained expression crossing Celestalon's face as he vanished, reappearing beside Crimson, extending a hand that sent him flying.

Crimson crashed into the mountainside, his senses pivoting from surprise to alarm as he realized he could not move; Celestalon had stopped time. But a subtle smile spread across his lips as he vanished but he then suddenly jumped back from where he was as a sense of urgency had suddenly filled him just before a miniature black hole formed where he'd stood.

On seeing this Crimson changed his demeanor as his eyes started changing colour."I surrender! There's no need for that," Celestalon said, halting Crimson in his tracks. "I did not come here to fight. We have important matters to discuss."

"Like I'd listen to you," Crimson spat, launching another barrage.

"It's about Ragnarok," Celestalon shouted, finally breaking through to him. "If it's a lie, I swear I'll kill you." Crimson said and with a frustrated growl, Crimson relented, aware that their confrontation was far from over. Together, they vanished from the realm of darkness, leaving only echoes of their clash to linger in the cold air.