Chapter 37: The Beginning of the fall of the Ninefold Dominion

Forsaken Z Island stood silent, a heavy

sense of unease drifting through its darkened corridors. The massive, obsidian-coloured ship docked at the island's

edge, its hull scarred and battered as though it had sailed through hell

itself. From its open cargo bay, the bodies of Segrito's most fearsome warriors

— Kaelis Dorne, Draven Kryne, and Zareth Kaon — hung limply, their bodies

strung up like broken puppets.

Three of the

Ninefold Dominion, the council's deadliest and most brutal leaders, were now

nothing but lifeless corpses. And each of them was pierced

through the chest by a Dark Ripple Saber, the corrupted energy weapons

still crackling faintly with their remaining power.

A lone guard, his

face pale with fear, sprinted through the corridors of the Segrito stronghold,

his boots pounding against the cold stone. He burst into the dimly lit chamber

of Professor Z, the Apex Sovereign of Segrito and the

mastermind behind the council's every move. The professor turned slowly from

the strange, pulsating device he was studying, his face shadowed in the

flickering light.

"What is it?" Professor Z's voice was

calm, but there was a dangerous edge beneath it.

The guard

struggled to catch his breath, his words tumbling out in panic. "Prof. Z! Lord Kaelis, Draven, and Zareth… their

bodies just arrived in one of our ships—along with… our soldiers. They're…

dead!"

For a long,

terrible moment, silence filled the room. Then Professor Z rose slowly to his

feet. The calmness on his face cracked, his eyes narrowing with fury. "Who?" he whispered. "Who was the man who did this?"

The guard had no

answer. Fear rolled off him in waves. "We…

we don't know, sir. There were no survivors on the ship. Just… the bodies."

Without another

word, Professor Z swept from the room, his long, dark coat billowing behind

him. The guard stumbled after him as they descended the winding corridors

toward the docks. As they emerged into the pale, gray light of the island's

morning, the scene awaiting them froze the air.

The ship's open

bay was filled with the stench of death and scorched energy.

The bodies of Segrito's soldiers lay piled, their armor shattered, weapons

melted, and faces twisted in frozen agony. It wasn't a battle—they had been

slaughtered.

And then there

were the three.

Kaelis Dorne, the Strategist

of Shadows, who had led countless victorious campaigns, now hung

lifeless — his face twisted in an expression of shock, his eyes wide open as if

death had come faster than he could comprehend.

Draven Kryne, the Revenant

Enforcer, feared across the Nine Nations for his unparalleled strength

and merciless combat style, now bled from a thousand wounds. The infamous

warrior who had once faced entire armies alone had been reduced to a broken, ruined

husk.

Zareth Kaon, the Sentinel

of Dominion, known for his ruthless territorial expansions and

unshakable command, had been beheaded, his helmet resting at his feet

as if placed there deliberately — a final act of mockery.

Professor Z's

fists clenched at his sides, his breath slow and controlled but his eyes filled

with rage. "Take them to the

disintegration room," he ordered in a voice of cold steel. "No traces of this failure will remain."

As the soldiers

carefully removed the bodies from the ship, one of them noticed something. A

small sigil carved into Draven Kryne's chest, glowing faintly

with dark, fiery energy. A phoenix-shaped mark, its wings spread

wide. The soldier's voice trembled as he called out. "Sir… you need to see this."

Professor Z

approached, his eyes narrowing at the symbol. For a moment, his face was

unreadable — and then recognition dawned. "It can't be…" he whispered.

Before anyone

could ask, he turned sharply. "Summon the

entire council. Now. We have an emergency."

The soldiers

scrambled to obey as the storm brewing in Professor Z's mind grew darker. There

was only one man he knew who left that mark of the Crimson Phoenix — a man who should have been long

dead.

"So… the Fallen Hero

lives after all," Professor Z muttered to himself, a twisted smile

spreading across his face. "This is going

to be… interesting."

The air in the Ninefold Dominion's council chamber

was heavy with tension. The flickering light from the dark energy crystals

lining the walls cast jagged shadows across the room, making the already

oppressive atmosphere even darker. The council members sat around a long,

polished obsidian table, their expressions grave. They knew something was wrong

— they could feel it. But no one was prepared for what Professor Z was about to

reveal.

Professor Z entered

the chamber slowly, his footsteps echoing ominously. The room fell silent as he

reached the head of the table. He didn't sit. Instead, his sharp, calculating

eyes swept over the gathered council members — some of the most powerful and

dangerous individuals in Segrito.

"Council members," he began, his voice calm

but cold. "I regret to inform you that

Kaelis Dorne, Draven Kryne, and Zareth Kaon… are no more."

The room erupted in

shocked whispers and gasps. Selara Nox, the Mistress of Whispers, leaned

forward, her eyes narrowing. "That's

impossible," she hissed. "Those

three were some of our strongest warriors! Who could possibly—"

"There's more," Professor Z interrupted,

raising a hand. "And you all need to see

it with your own eyes."

He gestured toward

the entrance, and two soldiers entered the chamber, dragging three large,

bloodstained cloth-wrapped forms. With a nod from Professor Z, the soldiers threw

the bodies onto the obsidian table. The heavy thud of the lifeless

forms hitting the stone sent a shiver through the room.

When the cloths

were pulled back, the council members stared in horror and disbelief. The

once-mighty Kaelis, Draven, and Zareth lay before them — broken, mutilated, and

unmistakably dead. But it wasn't just the brutality of their deaths that caused

the room to fall silent.

It was the mark.

Etched into Draven

Kryne's chest — and glowing faintly with eerie, crimson energy — was the

unmistakable symbol of the Crimson Phoenix. Its wings

spread wide, a mark long believed to belong to a man who was supposed to be

dead.

Malik Vesh, the

Warden of Abyssal Tech, was the first to break the silence. His voice was low

and filled with a strange mixture of awe and fear. "So… he's alive after all these years."

Voryn Malek, the

Architect of Havoc, let out a bitter laugh. "Oh, the Fallen Hero." His tone was mocking, but his eyes

betrayed his unease. "The world believes

you're a traitor — the man who betrayed his own and caused the collapse of an

entire escort unit. And yet… you were the one who saved them."

Oris Vale, the

Keeper of Secrets, spoke next, his voice tight with fear. "Professor Z… you know what this means. He won't

stop until he's taken down every last one of us. Kaelis, Draven, and Zareth

were the first. And I think we all know who's next."

He looked toward

Malik and Voryn, and both men's faces darkened. They understood. The Fallen

Hero had a score to settle — and the rest of the Ninefold Dominion were his

next targets.

"Professor Z, my request is this," Oris

continued. "Send us to the Underground.

If we remain here, we'll be sitting ducks. The Fallen Hero will come for us,

and when he does, there won't be anyone left to lead Segrito."

Professor Z's eyes

narrowed as he considered Oris's words. For several long moments, the room was

silent, the weight of the decision pressing heavily on everyone present.

Finally, the professor nodded.

"Agreed," he said. "You're right. If the Fallen Hero has truly

returned, then none of us are safe. I'll send you to the Underground — for now.

But know this…" His voice turned dark and dangerous. "We will not hide forever. The time will come when

Segrito strikes back. And when it does, the Fallen Hero will wish he had stayed

dead."

The council

members exchanged uneasy glances as Professor Z dismissed

the meeting, his mind already calculating their next move.

But deep down, even the great Professor Z couldn't shake

the feeling of dread. Because if the rumors were true — if the Fallen

Hero had indeed survived —

then a storm was coming. And Segrito's very survival was at stake.