Volmeryn after obtaining the drakara's heart and strengthening its draconic essence had also gained new allies. Lysandros, Arelon, Erylis, Seraphon, and Nethrath had pledged allegiance to him by relinquishing their titles of dragon kings to serve him. It was a double victory for him.
Volmeryn had left the Celestial kingdom with his new subordinates and was now heading to his own kingdom.
After a few hours of flight, whoosh, whoosh, they arrived at their destination. The gates of his kingdom were opened in recognition of their king and then they entered. They proceeded to the strategy room, where the leaders of the various armies of his kingdom were kneeling to welcome him.
He introduced them to the kingdom's new allies and soldiers.
Trôk: «Your majesty! Welcome, we were worried about you. We are happy to see you back in good condition.»
Lyara: «Master Volmeryn! Good to see you in good shape.»
Carlos: «Ah! Welcome back to the kingdom, King Volmeryn.»
Darius: «I welcome you, my king.»
Volmeryn: «Hahaha! Trôk, Lyara, Darius, and Carlos, I present to you our new companions. They are dragons just like me—even if I am more powerful than them... Hahaha!»
«Introduce yourselves.»
Lysandros: «Ahem. Hello, I'm Lysandros, the dragon of time.»
Aleron: «Tsk. I am Aleron, dragon of entropy.»
Sepharon: «Hmph. Then I am Seraphon, dragon of the spirit.»
Eirlys: «Sigh. I am Eirlys, dragon of life and death.»
Nethrath: «Heh. I am Nethrath, the infinity dragon.»
Trôk and the other soldiers were amazed by the charisma of the new allies, they had the same elegant posture as the dragon king Volmeryn since they had the same nature.
Trôk: «You are welcome to our kingdom, I am the leader of the goblins of this kingdom, and we have an army of a hundred thousand.»
Lyara: «Welcome to you, I am Lyara, the elf magician who leads the troops of magicians and efes in the kingdom. We have ten thousand magicians on our army. Few mortals have had the honor of marching alongside dragons. I look forward to learning from you.»
Darius: «I welcome you to our home. I am the vampire duke Darius, the leader of the vampire troops.»
Carlos: «I also welcome you, dear dragons. I am Carlos, a demon emperor.»
Trôk: «These new allies are powerful, but such power must be closely monitored.»
After the introductions, Volmeryn raised his hand, and the runes carved into the stones of the realm began to glow with a purple glow.
"Vrrrrrr..." The air hummed with energy. These ancient symbols which belonged to a forgotten language of the dragons slowly rose into the air, forming a luminous circle around the new allies.
The runes began to sing with a deep, deep sound. "Oooooom... Oooooom..." It was like an ancestral melody. This song resonated in the being of each dragon present evoking their millennial heritage and their place in the draconic hierarchy.
FWOOM! After taking the oath, each dragon deposited a fragment of their dragon essence in the center of a stone circle. These fragments, orbs of light with unique colors represented their element or specialty (Time, Infinity, Entropy, etc.), merging into a luminous vortex.
This vortex was absorbed by Volmeryn, increasing its power. Absorption was visibly trying for him but he mastered it with great determination.
The vortex swirling and crackling like an untamed storm. After the last oath, Volmeryn made his way to a central stele adorned with an ancient dragon crown formed of onyx spikes.
The runes lit up around him with a light surrounding the crown. Fwooum! A powerful explosion of energy accompanied the light. CRRAAAAWWRR! A roar coming from him reverberated throughout the kingdom as if the essence of the dragons blessed this moment.
Volmeryn placed the crown on his head and his aura became almost unbearable even to the other dragons. WHOOOOOM! The pressure in the air thickened, his power reached a new pinnacle.
One after the other, the dragons advanced and placed themselves in front of Volmeryn. Everyone bowed their heads respectfully, although some did so with visible reluctance.
Lysandros, the first to speak, pronounced the words of the oath of a noble:
«I, Lysandros, dragon of time, recognize Volmeryn Vorthyx as my rightful ruler. By this oath I swear fidelity to his cause and to his kingdom. My mastery of time will only be in the service of his glory, and my wings will rise only for his triumph.»
SHIIINK! The rune of time flared briefly before extinguishing with a resonant hum.
Nethrath: «You want an oath? TCH! Let me ask you a question: what do I gain from this story? I'm not an idealist.»
Volmeryn: «I don't need obedient soldiers, but wise advisors. Prove to me that you can think better than me.»
Nethrath: «Hmm... HEH! An interesting proposition. All right let's see if you're worthy of my loyalty.»
Nethrath's rune ignited with a chaotic swirl of flickering light before settling into the stone.
Eirlys: «Why should I trust you? All the bosses I followed used me as a weapon and then gave up.»
Volmeryn: «You're not alone Eirlys. I know the weight of guilt. But together we can find redemption.»
Eirlys' life and death rune swirled as it settled in the stone.
Sepharon : «If you betray me, I'll destroy you... HRRRN! but I want to believe that you are different.»
Volmeryn: «I don't think it will be possible to destroy me. But don't worry Sepharon, I'll do my best to be a worthy ruler.»
The rune of Sepharon burned a bright yellow before disappearing into the stone.
Arelon: «Do you think I'm going to follow so easly someone just because he beat a dragon? I don't prostrate myself to anyone anymore, not after what has been done to me.»
Volmeryn: «If you're so confident prove it. If you beat me, I won't impose anything on you.»
Arelon: «You're going to regret this arrogance.»
THUD! BOOM! The clash of their powers sent shockwaves through the stone circle, but after a few seconds of relentless attacks, Arelon was forced to his knees.
«Okay, I'll follow you. But don't think you've earned my respect.»
CRACKLE! Arelon's rune blazed defiantly before succumbing to the oath's light.
With each oath, there was a specific rune linked to the dragon's essence that swore allegiance in a burst of light marking the acceptance of their oath by the ancestral forces.
The ceremony was finally over, the dragoons stood up and looked at their new ruler. Some like Lysandros, accepted their new role with noble dignity.
Lysandros: «Even the runes have accepted your dominion, Volmeryn . But I will keep watch for strength alone does not make a king.»
Arelon: «At least, with you, we fly under an invincible banner. It's better to be on the winning side than the opposite.»
Volmeryn: «You are now my subjects. Together, we will redefine this world... and far beyond.»
As silence fell after the ceremony ended, whooosh... a faint gust of wind stirred as the strange shadow that had watched them in the Drakara Valley reappeared in the heights of the kingdom.
A deep voice whispered through this shadow from a higher plane where the world of the gods resides:
«Funny... Let's see how far this fake dragon will go.»
Shhhhhh... The shadow move like smoke. That being who spoke through this shadow was Lucifer, who was watching the scene with an interest mixed with contempt and curiosity, which hinted at divine involvement in Volmeryn's future.
Somewhere in another world called Thanar,
a figure sitting on a throne also observed Volmeryn's every move with curiosity. He gave orders to her subordinates:
«Zalkaroth, you with your lieutenants are going to storm the kingdom of Volmeryn which is called Cælora, take with you in our army a thousand demons, I want you to test the strength of this kingdom. »
Zalkaroth replied with a bow of his head:
«Well, Lord Thanatos, we will carry out your orders, I will prepare the escort.»
The sky above the kingdom of Cælora was getting darker and darker.
The peasants abandoned their fields to barricade themselves in their houses while the soldiers on the walls of the fortress stood by but trembled despite their discipline. Everyone knew what such an atmosphere meant: the arrival of enemies on the horizon.
In the throne room, Volmeryn was asleep on his imposing throne. Suddenly, several events of a demon emperor who is ransacking the kingdom paraded before his eyes, which woke him up with a sharp intake of breath.
Volmeryn: «Hmmm… I suddenly have a bad feeling…»
The mechanical voice of the system suddenly echoed in his mind:
[Master, the demon emperor Zalkaroth has broken through the dimensional barriers. A thousand demons are marching after him and heading towards your realm.]
Volmeryn: «Apparently my hunch turns out to be true... tch... »
A slight smile appeared on his lips, followed by a low chuckle, "Heh." He raised his hand and ordered his subordinates in the room to come closer:
«See, my faithful. The demon emperor Zalkaroth dared to attack our kingdom, Cælora, by crossing our borders with the intention of declaring war. A demonic army? Hah! What audacity...»
Volmeryn: «Lysandros, Arelon, Erylis, Seraphon, Nethrath...Show this usurper why this kingdom belongs to me. Make him regret having existed.»
— Lysandros (with a mocking smile): «Heh! Zalkaroth doesn't know what he's up against. Time itself is my plaything.»
— Arelon : « It's time for him to discover the end. »
— Erylis : « A demonic army? What an offense. I will purify their existence. »
Without another word, shhrrrk, Seraphon and Nethrath sprang forward followed by the others.
Volmeryn watched the demonic army's movements through a crystalline sphere that floated in front of him in the throne room. Every demon, every lieutenant was visible as if he were standing on the battlefield himself.
One of his advisors, a stocky man dressed in silver armor approached with heavy footsteps, clank clank, visibly nervous about the situation.
«Your Majesty, the dragons have taken flight. But... Zalkaroth and his lieutenants are formidable forces. We discovered that they come from the world of Thanar and have a connection to the god Thanatos that gives them a power that even our best fighters could...»
Whoosh! Volmeryn raised a hand to order the advisor to be silent immediatly.
— Volmeryn : « They believe that it all comes down to brute force. Zalkaroth thinks that marching on my kingdom is a mere formality and a demonstration of power for his master. But he forgets one essential thing. »
The councillor bowed his head.
« And which one, your Majesty? »
— Volmeryn : « It's not about what you see but about what you don't see. »
With a wave of his hand, fwssh, he brought up a holographic map of the kingdom where every mountain, river, and village was represented with great precision. Glowing symbols shone in various places on the map, bzzzzt, marking strategic points.
— Volmeryn : « I have spent years building this kingdom, linking its essence to my own existence. Every stone, every object responds to me. Zalkaroth believes that he is marching on conquered territory, but he has already fallen into my trap. »
He pointed to a precise point on the map, it was a valley bordered by mountains.
— Volmeryn: «This plain is their apparent objective. An advantageous position, they believe. But they don't know that beneath their feet are energy flaws that I control.»
Volmeryn turned to a black-robed mage who was in the background:
«Ashtarr, activate the seals on the faults. Prevent the demonic energy from stabilizing. I want their magic to start backfiring as soon as they settle down.»
The magician bowed: «It will be done, your majesty. »
— Volmeryn: «The dragons I sent are just a taste. Their role is to test their strengths and sow doubt. It is only when they return that I will really strike.»
CHAPTER ENDED.