First Demonic Dragon

Abaddon is extremely powerful.

At this point in time, the list of beings in creation that can contend against him in destructive might are few and far between.

And the number of those who can imprison or shackle him falls to an even smaller margin.

Needless to say, none understood that fact better than Abaddon's own friends and family.

But today, they would learn that there may have been depths to his power that they just weren't aware of before.

They knew he had nearly unmatchable strength.

They knew he could do fantastical things like pull every star in the cosmos out of the sky.

But they had no idea about the strange things he could do.

Visoleer didn't just suffer damage when Abaddon became agitated.

The entire planet cracked apart.

And not a simple, 'We have a few new national landmarks' kind of crack.

It was an apocalyptic ' Why can I see a molten river of nickel and iron' kind of crack. All across the planet.

With the planet's core compromised, an explosion was imminent.

But just as geysers of flame began to lick at the air above ground, time itself seemed to stop.

Everything was frozen in time except for the individuals who were within eye-sight of Abaddon.

The imperial was completely gobsmacked.

"What manner of creature are you- Mmph?!"

The man clad in white brought his hands to his face in horror.

Much to his surprise, his mouth was now completely missing- as if he'd never had one in the first place.

"Your voice may be the single most regurgitating noise I have ever had the displeasure of having grace my ears… Until your life and name are but a mere memory, I'll ensure you remain silent..."

Despite the extraordinary feats and abilities that Abaddon had showcased with his mere arrival, the Imperial one wasn't quite as afraid of him as he should have been.

He merely saw the being in front of him as a challenge to be overturned on his own journey towards ascension.

The air around Abaddon's body literally shivered as if it could not support the full weight of his existence.

What he would not give for a power like that.

His grip tightened on the prized WhiteBane spear that had been handed down from his family for the last ten generations.

Digging his heels into the dirt, he dashed forward at a speed so terrible that he easily broke through the sound barrier.

He should have closed the gap between them in an instant.

But somehow, he had misjudged the distance?

And so, he tried again. This time moving more erratically than normal to throw off any chance that his movements could be read.

After doing this two times over, he reached another unbelievable realization.

He wasn't moving.

He was running at full speed and with all of his ability, but his position in the world wasn't changing.

It was as if he were jogging in place.

"He doesn't interest me, but I would like to see him broken…" Abaddon spoke without even looking at the man who'd been trying to attack him.

"Say no more, lad." Darius was the first one to get over Abaddon's flagrantly divine power because he had his own axe to grind.

Unsurprisingly, Hajun also didn't care.

With the scene from earlier still fresh in their minds, the ancient dragons launched themselves forward.

Unlike what happened with the Imperial one just a moment ago, the old men were actually able to move.

They instantly closed the distance between themselves and the man in white; drawing back their fists and striking him in the chest at the very same time.

However, the Imperial was not so inept that he couldn't react to the men's speed.

An extra barrier of ice formed over his chest plate before either of the men could strike him.

He thought that it would protect him from the force of their combined impact and allow him a moment to get the upper hand.

But against all of his expectations, the men were only impeded by his surprise gambit for less than a fraction of a moment.

He felt two cracks come from the inside of his chest and his body suddenly went catapulting backwards.

"M-My…!" Carrea began.

"Your what?"

Iori was barely keeping himself contained as he stared at his long lost grandmother.

Helios' firstborn was a dutiful son who would not so easily sit by while faced with a person who had committed injustices against his family.

Even if that person also happened to share his blood.

"Nephew… I ask that you spare this traitor no sympathy." He finally said.

"As if I would have ever dared."

Suddenly, Carrea was trapped in a large prismatic cube made from hundreds of layers of highly condensed spacial magic.

No matter how hard that she tried to escape it, her every attempt ended with her damaging her own arms and head from banging on the barrier.

"Those who take no pride in being dragons are undeserving of being dragons. So the life that my daughter once brought forth is perhaps better off returned to her."

A tendril of energy left Abaddon's palm and slipped through the barrier.

Carrea screamed out from within her confinement once the tendril of energy finally made contact with her.

She felt 'something' forcefully leaving her body at an alarmingly fast rate against her will. Further fueling her despair and terror.

"ABADDDONNN!!!! What have you done?!"

The energy in the clearing took a noticeable shift when a sudden voice yelled out from behind.

Even without looking back, Abaddon already knew full well who had arrived.

"Director Nagumo, how nice it is of you to join us… Even though I specifically recall expressing my desire not to meet again."

The director snorted. "I recall taking an oath that promised I would never let you get what you wanted! You'll hurt my feelings if you take my word as something so easily broken."

Abaddon all but groaned.

"Your insistence upon stoking conflict when there is none will certainly prove to be your undoing. It's not only boring, but irksome."

"No conflict?? You've split this world apart! After claiming you were going to leave peacefully once your business was done!"

"This is just a little accident. No biggie."Abaddon shrugged.

Before the director could respond to that flagrantly wrong statement, the woman Abaddon was torturing finally stopped screaming.

But only because she was near dead and physically unrecognizable.

Not only had she aged thousands of years in a single moment, but she had also lost some of her most prominent features.

She wasn't a dragon anymore.

Retracting his hand, Abaddon pulled something new out of the prism holding her.

It was a small purple bead no bigger than a marble, but it shone with a natural glow that would put most flashlights to shame.

"That is..?" Iori asked.

"Her solidified essence… Even though grandfather has expressed that he no longer cares what happens, I believe that he should make the final decision out of his own mouth." Abaddon answered.

Iori opened and closed his mouth several times before falling silent.

Ordinarily, he would have argued against this for fear that they may in fact end up angering his father.

But now… Who could say?

Helios might have wanted to know a few things at least before Carrea died.

"I-If I may ask… What are you going to do with that?" Jormir still wasn't exactly sure how he should address Abaddon, given that this was both his origin and great-grandson.

It was tall enough of a task to speak to him without stuttering.

Abaddon blinked a couple of times and his mind seemed to lift from the angry fog it was previously in.

"Oh, right. This is for you." He handed the pill to Jormir.

"Hm? Me??"

"She grew quite old and powerful in your time apart. This will return to you what was stolen."

Director Nagumo: "Don't you ignore me, Abaddon!"

*Abaddon continues to ignore him.*

Jormir stared at the pearl in Abaddon's hand and eventually shook his head in denial.

"It's a kind gesture, but I'm afraid I can't take it. I will not accept that which I have not acquired through my own merits, not even if-"

"My god you're just as self righteous and annoying as he is. Just accept nice things when people offer them to you."

Abaddon pulled down Jormir's beard to force his mouth open and then tossed the dragon bead into the back of his throat against his will like Bill Cosby.

As soon as he closed the old dragon's maw, his body was wrapped in a blanket of blinding violet light.

His body floated upwards into the air of its own volition- undergoing a considerable metamorphosis.

The wounds across his skin healed, he regained much of his youth, and even his wing grew back.

He even sprouted an extra pair right underneath the original.

Now, the resemblance between him and Helios was much easier to see.

"T-This power is…"

"A symbol of your responsibilities." Abaddon interrupted. "I'm trusting you to lead our people well, and build them up into something greater than what you showed me before. I never want to see dragons forced to live below ground again."

Jormir seemed to understand the weight of what was being requested of him.

But he still looked around as if he was fully aware of the difficulty of the task.

"But our home is…"

"Hm? Oh yeah, right." Abaddon yawned.

He cupped his lips over his mouth before yelling over to the battlefield where Darius and Hajun were still in the middle of jumping the Imperial leader.

"Hey, old men! Mind putting this planet back together when you're done?? I'll keep it frozen for you while you fix it."

Darius: "Can't you see we're fucking this bastard up right now?! Why can't you do it??"

"I miss my family. I'm going home." He shrugged.

Hajun: "We will get it done, don't worry! Make sure my daughter knows I will have lots of stories to tell her upon my return!"

Abaddon nodded in satisfaction before he turned back to Jormir.

"They're going to fix everything, don't worry."

"I-I see… And if I may ask, what would you have us do about the humans?"

"They won't be your concern."

Finally, Abaddon turned his attention back to his fated adversary.

"I'm assuming you'll handle the mortals, yes? Find them somewhere nice and free to live that's dragon free before you wipe their memories of you?"

The Director's face turned an unhealthy shade of red.

"You motherfucker, I don't work for you!!"

"Did I say you did? Watch your mouth before I replace it with your asshole."

"I dare you to come and try!!"

Abaddon sighed, realizing that some people just don't learn through words alone.

More forceful persuasion was sometimes required.

"Alright then. I'll entertain you just this once. Make it quick, yea?"