Chapter 244: LET'S FORGE AN ALLIANCE

"Have you ever tried thinking of how Luna would have felt?

Seeing you in such a ruined state,

Devoid of love and reason?

Do you think she'd be approving of this,

If you're no longer the angel you once were?"

Ken tried to desperately distract the demon,

But no matter what he tried,

It all seemed not to work.

The Seer could only gobble up his pain as he tried healing his wounds,

But knew that despite the healing process, he needed to move.

It felt too painful to dodge with open cuts and bruises,

But he needed to do them all anyways.

His face though, remained fearless in the demon's eyes,

Which further pushed him to harder try.

"I'll take your tongue once I'm done,"

Belphegor threatened, and then quickly ran.

He stretched both arms wide as he ran towards his opponent,

And with the quick snap, revealed his new summons and agents.

Ken sighed deeply and felt it was way too awful,

Fighting on a battered state, with barely no control.

He was fighting in Belphegor's own world,

With no clear advantage of his own.

And if he stays much longer,

He wasn't dumb enough to dream,

That he'd well go on.

And thus, he tried to think of a plan,

But the quickness of the monsters gave him no such time.

He cursed Belphegor for being too versatile,

It was as if every one of his attack could be nullified.

Belphegor always had something for him,

He was...a one man-army.

Ken had never thought one demon could be that powerful,

He showed no clear signs of weakness, which screams trouble.

The man did not dare let things be however,

And tried to swipe his scythe over and over.

But thorns suddenly covered his body when he failed to defend his back,

Which pinned him, directly to the spot.

"No one can save you now!

I'll kill you again if you come back once more.

Respawn and respawn, it doesn't really matter!

I'll kill you, till none remains of your soul!

I'll kill you! Till you're no longer a bother!"

Ken tried to absorb the thorns covering his body,

As the monsters tried to near him.

He released a cosmic-like blast, shielding him,

But the thorns were too formidable, to burn in the heat.

It seemed that he was trapped, in a seemingly endless dream,

And he was just to watch, as all bad things happen around him.

Worried and reminded about the people he wanted to save,

Ken tried to absorb everything, as much as he can.

The process was like being inserted knives inside your own flesh,

But Ken swallowed all the pain.

He truly hated doing this,

And tried to avoid it if things can be planned.

But he wasn't going to get out very easily,

And desperation had gotten the best of him.

.

.

.

Belphegor wanted to finish the boy,

But felt afraid, seeing him work.

Everything near him seemed to be absorbed,

As if he was, a little black hole.

Belphegor's lips parted to speak,

But in awe and amazement, wasn't able to.

His fascination then turned to deep rage,

Seeing that he may have a chance to escape.

He decided to be brave and take the risk,

And thus, used the nightmares by his side,

To end Ken's will.

Before he could move closer however,

Ken spoke in a monotonous voice.

"Everything here, is a nightmare, your power, huh?

That means...I could absorb them all too,

There's no harm to try."

Belphegor's eyes widened when Ken showed him his hand,

Absorbing the atmosphere of his very lands.

"It was all an illusion, like a studio hiding us from the real world.

If I manage to absorb them, I can...surely steal your power."

Angered further, Belphegor spawned a huge monster from the ground,

Eating Ken's hand he had showed just now.

Ken did not seem to flinch however,

And continued to stare at Belphegor.

Ken was grateful he had worn the mask,

Which were hiding the tears, already forming in his eyes.

Losing his hand should not have been a shock,

Since he was after all, inside this war.

He continued to use the fake look, Belphegor thought.

And pretended to be unharmed, despite the bloody hand.

Belphegor summoned the monsters to attack him again,

But this time, Ken was prepared.

He fought the monsters with his scythe,

As his right continued to heal.

With the energy he kept consuming however,

He suddenly felt different.

Like he wanted to gag, to vomit.

Like he was being entered by evil.

Soon, incoherent voices flooded his mind.

And he saw images flash before his eyes.

He saw Belphegor's past.

And felt the rage and loneliness, long stucked in his heart.

More than that, his head felt unbearably painful,

And before he knew it, he grew a deep black horn.

A black halo, similar of Death, also appeared in his head,

And his torn outfit, became longer and black-tainted.

His mask broke from the contact of the foreign power.

And his hand, was quickly healing by the second.

He smirked at Belphegor, with such evil eyes,

That even the demon, wondered who he was.

Ken's smile was just a facade however,

A facade to convince himself to go forward.

In his mind however, was a different fight.

A voice telling him, if he wanted to continue his path.

He was now aware of Belphegor's past,

His motivation, his life.

But despite it, knew he wasn't to pity,

He, after all, looked unremorseful for what pain he caused and did.

"You...you've stolen my power!"

"And you, have stolen the lives of others!

What made you think that destroying the world would make your burdens lighter?

You're just causing the same pain you hated feeling to others!"

"That's the point! I...I wanted them to feel my pain.

I wanted everyone to feel what I did!

Only then, would they agree with me!

That God is unfair!

That God should be replaced!"

"By who? By someone far selfish and vain?

You are truly insane.

You do not know the meaning of the words you've just dropped by now.

Luna, would never be proud."

"Stop talking about her as if you knew her!"

"And stop talking about how things should be, you're no God to decide the future!"

"And you're too young to understand what matters,"

"And for an old being, you're too silly to understand how life works.

Life isn't always rainbows, Belphegor.

You lose someone, you move on, you let go."

The answer did not satisfied the demon,

Who was quick to summon more.

Ken lost his arms again and again,

But kept healing, never dropping dead.

Even without a mask, his face was unafraid.

Which for some reason, made the demon feel anxious once again.

Ken then quickly summoned his scythe,

Which was noticeably, thrice as large.

"Now, if you still don't understand,

I could try, using coercive force this time."

...

Azazel watched with content, seeing Martha kill and kill again.

And every fight she partakes in, she slowly loses the shine on her face.

She felt herself transforming into a monster she greatly loathes,

And to get out of the arena, was a blind little hope.

She dropped to her knees after killing her recent monster.

Which was a family, who were only forced to fight her.

She looked at Azazel, and looked at him with pleading eyes,

"That won't work on me darling, you're well aware I'm not nice."

"Then, we'll get along just right."

A deep, manly voice, called from behind.

Which put the demon in quite a shock.

He had never invited another to the arena,

And so, he quickly looked back.

His eyes were greeted with a new face.

But for some reason, the stranger gave a familiar scent.

His eyes were red as apples, and his skin as pale as the clouds,

And his hair which captured his eyes the most,

Were made of white snakes somehow.

"My old vessel proved to be too soft for my taste.

How about we work together? To end Lucifer's race.

It would be fun, and that is your goal, isn't it?

Don't worry, I'll make sure we win."

Azazel could still not ponder who he was talking to just now.

This man in red, nicely dressed and proud.

He had never seen, nor heard of him before,

But who is he? And why must he need himself to work?

"Let's forge an alliance, and we'll be unstoppable."

"If you're so strong, what do you need me for?"

"Azazel, you see...I lost my soul a long time ago.

Chained somewhere far, only God knows.

I needed a body to unleash my power,

Without it, I cannot help at all."

"Then I refuse if you'd take control."

"Oh, I promise I won't.

A spirit with no soul cannot fight with a demon who had strong willpower.

I assure you, I'd only aid you and nothing more."

"And how would I be sure?

That you're really strong and powerful?"

"I could try it on that girl."

Azazel looked at Martha,

Who was not...informed of what would happen next.

"Fine, do whatever you like.

She's no use to me anyways."

"Very well then,

Release your greatest monsters,

And I'll show you my prowess."

And without further ado,

The next battle takes place.