CHAPTER 1124: DELIBERATE

Erend tensed even more when he heard Zerathul’s words. The tone of amusement in that creature’s voice showed no strain or any hint of effort. And when Erend focused more on him, on the way he stood motionless while he sent his summoned horrors to fight them he realized it was true.

The dark creature wasn’t exerting himself at all. He was simply watching, commanding, and really just playing.

"HAAAARGH!"

Krono roared again, his fury seeming to flare even brighter, golden aura seething from the cracks between his scales.

He crouched low. His wings snapping open, and then hurled himself forward again.

The ground exploded beneath him, black shards of stone scattering like shrapnel as he charged at Zerathul.

Eccar caught sight of the move through the chaos and cursed under his breath.

His fist smashed through another monster’s chest, shattering bone and muscle in a storm of gore, yet his eyes stayed fixed on Krono.

He could see how uncontrolled the Time Dragon’s movements had become. He became wild and full of pure wrath instead of calculation like his usual self.

Erend was thinking the same thing. Between slashes of his blazing claws and bursts of lightning that tore apart more abominations he met Eccar’s gaze across the chamber.

They both understood the danger. Krono wasn’t fighting smart anymore. He was losing himself in rage, and that could cost them everything.

Meanwhile, Aesa stood in the middle of a growing blizzard. Her frost Magic tore apart monsters that regenerated seconds later.

She saw Krono rushing forward again, ignoring Zerathul’s taunting expression. Her eyes narrowed, and she reached out to the others through telepathy.

"Krono must be stopped. He’s not thinking clearly. We need to understand that thing before we strike again."

"I agree," Erend replied, his mind-voice sharp with tension. Lightning flickered along his shoulders as another creature lunged at him.

Eccar crushed the monster’s skull in his grip, breathing hard. "Krono doesn’t usually act like this. He’s not the type to lose his composure, even in a fight this intense. He must really hate that creature."

Erend didn’t answer immediately. His eyes followed Krono as the golden Dragonborn in human form slammed against a new abomination that was larger than before, its body wreathed in crawling red light.

The impact sent both of them skidding through walls of blackened stone. Krono emerged again, panting, fury glowing in his eyes. But there was something else too. His aura felt unstable in Erend’s eyes.

"Maybe it’s not just anger," Erend finally said.

"What do you mean?" Eccar’s telepathic tone wavered, a mix of confusion and unease.

"I’m not sure," Erend replied. His voice was low and strained even within their minds. "But what if his emotions are being manipulated? What if this Zerathul doing something to him?"

That thought made both Aesa and Eccar falter in the middle of their motion. They could feel Krono’s strange condition as well now when they think about it. It seeped into their senses, whispering through the energy that filled the chamber.

Aesa’s gaze snapped toward Zerathul. The creature hadn’t moved from his spot. His crimson eyes half-lidded as though watching insects struggle in a jar. But the red veins on the floor pulsed in perfect rhythm with Krono’s aura.

"If that’s true then he’s turning Krono’s strength against us." Aesa said, her mental voice cold.

Eccar’s growl echoed in their minds. "If that is true then we must break his hold quickly."

Erend clenched his fists, power crackling at his fingertips as he glared at Zerathul. "First, we need to find out how he’s doing it."

"HYAAAAA!!!"

Krono’s roar split the air again, a sound filled with rage.

Then suddenly, a strange guttural laughter rippled through the air. It swelling into a reverberating echo that seemed to come from every direction at once.

It was not laughter that came from a throat. It came from the air itself, from the walls, from the dark energy that coiled around them.

Zerathul’s voice followed. It sounded distorted, layered with a lot of echoes of itself.

"Futile... all of it," the voice said. "You still don’t understand. You coming here only proves that my plan is already working."

Erend froze. The words hit harder than any physical blow.

"His plan?"

His heart sank with the sudden realization that they might have been led here deliberately. His gaze darted toward the others and he could see the same grim realization flash across Eccar’s and Aesa’s faces.

"We were meant to come here. He wanted this. He wanted us away from the other worlds we were supposed to protect!" he thought, horror clawing through his mind.

Zerathul’s laughter deepened, the sound weaving through the air.

"Yes... now you begin to see. While you struggle here, the seals you were meant to guard weaken. That ancient god was awake, and the gates will open."

Eccar’s expression darkened. "You bastard..." he muttered under his breath, teeth grinding. His fists clenched so tightly the air around them trembled with ripples of energy.

Aesa’s breath came slow and heavy.

"He’s playing us," she whispered. "He wanted us here."

Zerathul raised both of his hands lazily, his movements smooth and deliberate. The veins on the floor blazed with crimson light.

"And now," he said, "it is far too late for you to think about anything else."

The ground began to move. The black stone beneath their feet writhed like living flesh, pulsing and folding inward. Tendrils of shadow slithered up from it.

They lashed around their legs and arms.

Krono roared. His aura flared wildly. The tendrils reached for him too, but the moment they touched his scales, golden fire erupted across his body.

Then, in a blinding flash, Krono’s form expanded. His body split with golden light and in a heartbeat he was beginning to turn into his colossal figure of the Time Dragon.

A pair of wide golden wings unfurled with a deafening crack. The changing process generated waves of force that shredded the crawling shadows and shattered the stone floor beneath him.

The energy bursting from him was so immense that the entire chamber quaked. The tower walls began to fracture, red veins breaking apart under the weight of his unleashed power. Shards of obsidian stone rained down, melting in the golden blaze.

Zerathul only smiled, his eyes glowing brighter through the chaos.

"Good," he murmured. "Let it out. Let your fury consume you, Time Dragon. It is exactly what I want."

Krono’s roar answered him. A storm of sound and light tore through what remained of the tower. Until everything around them exploded.

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