Never before had Elric Maelstras known the chaos of war to erupt so quickly.

He had simply been recuperating from the intense duties and demands he was forced to meet as the official Champion of Serandore when one of his loyal knights burst through the doors, drenched in sweat, panting heavily.

'S-sir Elric!' Sheer terror clouded Captain Hyde's face and he pointed towards the window with a single, trembling finger. 'We're under attack!'

'What?' Elric's brows knitted together and he stood up, hurrying across the room to where the tall windows were situated. His face paled the second he peered out and caught sight of the carnage erupting outside.

The main courtyard of Orion's Seat had turned into a sick bloodbath. Elric watched as his own men fought to keep the enemy from storming the main palace. Weapons were but silver blurs and the cries of the fallen were muffled by the thick glass. The enemy's uniforms, which consisted of blood-coloured armour and black surcoats, was unfamiliar to him.

Darrius swore under his breath. 'What are your orders, sir?' he asked.

Elric did not hesitate. 'Hyde!' He twisted round to meet the Captain's somewhat startled gaze. 'Join the men outside and focus whatever firepower we have into defending the main construct. We cannot allow the enemy to break through. Hold them back by any means necessary!'

'Y-yes, sir!' With that Hyde left, disappearing back through the doors and down the hallway.

Seconds after the Captain departed, Darrius ran across the room and slammed the doors shut. 'What am I to do, sir?' he asked. 'Should I assist Captain Hyde in his duties?'

Elric stepped away from the window. 'No.' He shook his head. 'I need you here, Darrius. Should the enemy break through our defences, we will have no choice but to engage in a full frontal assault, and two men together are better than one.'

'Very wise, sir. It would be an honour to lay down my life for you, for Serandore would surely fall apart without your worth and valour...'

But Elric wasn't listening anymore. He was too busy staring, contemplating on whatever options and strategies he and his men had to choose from.

Twelve years had passed since his father's death, though Xalvadore Maelstras' untimely demise had not been for nothing. It had marked the start of a long reign involving peace and tranquillity, which Xalvadore had entrusted Elric to maintain.

He closed his eyes and sighed, succumbing to the nauseating guilt which stirred in the pits of his stomach. If only that were true... he thought.

Before he could allow it to get the better of him, however, he picked up on a distant yet familiar scream, prompting him to look towards the doors. Darrius' brows knitted together and he followed his superior's concerned gaze.

'That came from the hall...' Elric muttered.

Darrius backed away from the doors with slow, careful steps. A longsword sat at his hip, tucked inside of the sheath attached to his belt. The sound of hissing of steel echoed throughout the room as he reached down, pulling the weapon free.

Seconds later, a deafening explosion erupted from just outside and the doors were ripped from their hinges, smashing into the side walls with a heavy bang. Elric ducked behind his desk in time to avoid the remnants of smoke and dust which swept through, clouding the room in a dense, grey smog.

'What in great spirits was that?' Darrius exclaimed, though he sounded as though he were miles away. 'Sir Elric! Are you okay?'

Elric stood up. 'I'm fine,' he replied, waving away the mist which obstructed his view. He instinctively began to flex his fingers, preparing himself for whatever threats might be lurking nearby.

'Elric Maelstras...'

The voice came out of nowhere.

He stared at the open doors, his gaze narrowing, in time to see two silhouettes emerge from behind the fog, which withered to unveil a man clad in red and black. Trailing behind him was a woman, whose silver hair and suspecting gaze seemed cold enough to freeze over the entire kingdom. In her left hand was a long, double-headed spear, which she slung over her shoulder, allowing Elric a quick glimpse at the razor-sharp tips protruding from the handle.

The man did not appear to be armed. He was tall, well-built with shoulder-length black hair and sharp crimson eyes. A black cloak had been thrown over his shoulders in an attempt to conceal the blood-coloured armour underneath.

'Who are you?' Elric demanded.

The man threw his head back and laughed. 'Oh, of course! Where are my manners?' He lowered his head. 'My name is Faustus Belial, and I come seeking one thing. If you comply to my single demand, I promise to cease the attack on Orion's Seat and send my armies packing.'

Uncertainty clawed at Elric's sense of judgement as he looked over at Darrius. The knight stood beside him, grasping the sword with both hands, a look of grim determination etched across his face. Sensing that his friend was about to charge, Elric held up his hand, signalling to Darrius lower his sword. The knight complied without an ounce of hesitation.

'What kind of demand?' he inquired at last.

A spiteful grin pulled at Belial lips. 'It's simple, really,' he said. 'Just tell me: where is Erin Maelstras?'

At the very mention of his sister's name, Elric's entire demeanour changed. Perseverance took control and he took a step forward, thrusting out his hand in the direction of the man who had dared infiltrate his home - the home of his ancestors - and demand he disclose his own sister's location. He had no idea what was going on, or why Belial was after Erin. However, the villain's choice of tactics had already proven that he could not be trusted.

'I will never comply to that!' Elric snarled. A flurry of orange sparks materialised between his fingers as he concentrated on summoning forth the necessary amount of spirituas needed to perform a certain spell. 'The Maelstras family are bound by honour and loyalty, and I intend to do whatever I need to in order to ensure that my sister is safe! Even if means sacrificing my own life...'

A necessary price to pay for the sins I have committed.

Belial's grin never faltered. 'I see,' he muttered. 'So, you won't comply? Is that what you're saying?'

'Yes. Call me a selfish fool if you so wish, but I'm not prepared to just hand my sister over to the likes of you. If you want her, then you'll have to go through myself and the chivalrous men that have sworn to stand beside me, no matter what!'

'Hmm. The chivalrous men who have sworn to stand beside you...' Belial's gaze strayed over towards Darrius.

Elric spared his friend a quick glance. 'What has my Head Knight got to do with this?' he demanded.

Belial nodded. 'Good question.' He reached into his trouser pocket and proceeded to fish through whatever contents he had stored up inside. Moments passed by before his hand re-emerged, grasping a single, tattered card.

'What is that?' Elric stared, perplexed, at the worn, parchment-like material and gold-laced frame.

Belial lifted the card up for him to see. 'You don't recognise this?' he asked, almost mockingly. 'Did your saviour father never think to educate you about the prized possessions of your own kingdom's former wizards?' His features softened in a look of pity. 'Even the physician dog Killian knew about the Tarot of Wizardry before I devoured his soul, you know.'

'Y-you killed Killian? Laurus Killian...?'

'Circumstances forced me to,' Belial explained. 'You needn't worry. It was a bloodless death, although I can't guarantee that the poor lout didn't experience any pain-'

'You abominable creature!' Elric bellowed. The initial fear and dismay quickly washed over him, making way for the fury which followed. Desperate to vent it out, he took another step forward and thrust out his hand once again. The summoned spirituas finally exploded in a series of orange sparks, which danced at his fingertips before moulding to mimic the form of a blazing fire.

Belial, however, did not appear to be affected by the inferno's appearance. He simply responded by lifting the card.

'Wrath of-'

'Sir Elric!' Without any warning, Darrius pushed past him, cutting him off before he could finish the enchantment. Elric stumbled back in time to witness his friend engaging in a single-handed frontal assault.

The knight ran forward, his sword raised, desperate to cut Belial down where he stood. He was just steps away from reaching his target when an intense burst of light erupted, bathing the entire room a vivid orange. At the same time, a blazing tsunami collapsed upon Darrius, devouring him instantly.

Elric's instincts screamed at him to look away, but he couldn't. Sheer terror rooted him to his spot, forcing him to witness the full extent of the vicious onslaught.

The orange surge suddenly withered into a pair of triangular shaped structures which rose towards the ceiling. At first, Elric had no idea what was happening. But as he continued to stare, he saw the structures flapping, mimicking the movements of bird wings.

A flaming head, similar to that of an eagle, stood between them.

But that was no eagle. It was...

A phoenix!

The creature threw its head back, acknowledging Elric's thoughts with a resounding squawk before diminishing along with the rest of the orange hue. The inferno sank to unveil a gathering of black powder, which formed a broad circle against the beige carpet. Darrius' sword lay beside it.

However, Darrius himself was nowhere to be found.

Elric staggered away, his legs ceaselessly buckling, as the realisation finally struck. Darrius was gone, having sacrificed himself to save his beloved Champion. It was too much to bear. He reached out and grabbed a hold of his desk, relying on its sturdy weight to support him. Nausea stirred in the pits of his stomach and he shook his head.

Never had he felt so weak, so helpless.

He found himself tormented by various emotions. Guilt, anger, horror, even sorrow. Tears of frustration welled in his eyes and suddenly he wanted nothing more to have his father by his side, simply to reassure him that Darrius' demise was not his fault and that his worth as a leader had not been maimed by a petty mistake.

It was his choice, he realised. Darrius made a noble choice because he thought of me as a courageous leader, someone the kingdom's people looked up to and respected.

Fighting away the tears that threatened to spill forth, Elric straightened up. His arms trembled and fists shook as collection of scorching flames burned beneath his fingertips, fuelled by his own grief and rage.

His choice will not be for nothing!

'Hmm. The cost of devotion.' Belial managed to smirk. 'The lengths mere humans are willingly go to simply to save those closest to them is admirable, but not nearly enough to rid them of their own sins and corruption.'

Thrusting out his hand, Elric closed his eyes and focused on unleashing the power he knew he possessed.

'Wrath of Sol!'

On cue, a rush of fire erupted from underneath his palm. Flames hissed as the inferno came together, forming a massive fist which punched towards its target. Elric waited for the blaze to fall upon Belial and devour him. He waited for the screams and cries - the only things that would truly satisfy his need for revenge - to begin.

But they never did.

Instead, the flames pushed aside with a fizzled cry before diminishing to unveil Belial's unscathed physique and outstretched hand.

'Is this all that the so-called Champion of Serandore is capable of?' The other man laughed. 'Surprisingly enough, Laurus Killian tried a similar attack. Luckily I was able to ward off his petty attempts using this.'

He pointed down at his left hand. There, sitting around his middle finger, was a plain silver ring. Elric's brows ceased as he examined it, taking in its clean, polished form.

'Do you know what this is called, Maelstras?' Belial asked. The deriding grin he wore broadened when all he received as an unsure silence. 'This is Dragifir, a defensive asset which was both created and wielded by the great wizard, Ballethorne.'

'You dare claim Ballethorne's possessions as your own and then use them against his own people?' Elric exclaimed, his teeth clenched in anger. 'You fiend! Have you no respect? If Ballethorne were alive right now, he would have turned you to ashes, fed your remains to the Devil himself and banished your soul to the furthest depths of Purgatory! Only he was worthy of wielding such a device. But you? You only insult his honour by using his own-'

The rest of Elric's words were cut off by an overwhelming force, which slammed into his shoulders, causing him to fly straight across the room. His smashed into the far wall, overwhelmed by the jarring impact that threatened to break every single bone in his body. But instead of falling to the floor in a shaken heap, Elric was left to dangle. He glanced up, only to find a series of polished spikes pinning both of his arms against the wall, binding him in place.

When he looked ahead, he saw that Belial had summoned some sort of armed gauntlet, which sat over his right hand. The man was no longer grinning. The jeering expression he'd donned mere moments ago withered like a mask, disclosing his true self.

'Do not speak of the Devil in front of me,' Belial said. His voice held no traces of emotion whatsoever. 'You have no right to speak of things you do not understand. You humans believe that the Devil is a representation of greed, a symbol of evil. But what you fail to understand is that the Devil is neither of those things. Your kind are! You're vermin. Pure vermin!'

Elric snorted. 'You claim we're evil, yet you're human yourself. You're nothing but a hypocrite!'

The corner of Belial's lips twitched. 'Who said I'm human?'

Although baffled by the man's response, Elric dismissed it in an instant, choosing instead to focus on the metal restraints. He pushed forward, fighting against their iron grip, but the spikes holding him in place refused to budge.

'Please do not waste your time,' Belial explained. He examined the gauntlet. 'Argeid's knives were designed to pierce through even the toughest kinds of dragon skins. Ballethorne really did his research when it came to designing such advanced weaponry, wouldn't you say?'

'Brute!' Elric snarled.

Belial nodded. 'That I am.'

Before Elric could think to open his mouth and retaliate, Belial thrust out his left hand, prompting the ring - Dragifir - to disappear. It dissolved into a collection of silver particles, which drifted across the room and preserved themselves around Elric's body. Each of the particles then stretched out, interlocking to form what appeared to be thick a set of chains. At the same time, the spikes securing Elric to the wall melted away, leaving him to collapse in an imprisoned heap against the floor.

The silver haired woman took a step forward. 'You're not going to kill him?' she asked.

'Not yet. Once we find the location of his sister and secure the key, I will allow you the honour of slaughtering her.' Belial paused and peered over his shoulder at Elric, who was trying in vain to escape the chains unyielding hold. 'Finally, once he has come to break from the grief of witnessing his own flesh and blood die before his very eyes, we'll allow him to pass on. The ultimate revenge, wouldn't you-'

'Sire! Sire!' One of Belial's soldiers entered the room. In his hand was a folded piece of paper, which he handed to his superior.

The struggling ceased as Elric observed, haunted by concern. How had peace come to an end so quickly? That he would never understand.

Belial scanned through the paper's contents and nodded. 'It seems we now have everything we set out to find here,' he said, thrusting it back at the soldier who had delivered it. 'Gather the mercenaries and tell them to cease all attacks on the palace. Let us allow the lowly scum a chance to respite before exterminating them like the vermin they are...'

'Exterminate them?' Elric shook his head. 'What on earth are you planning?' he demanded. 'War on my people?'

Belial laughed away his questions. 'Oh, good grief, no! Mere conflict would not be enough to save this world from the indigenous scum that maim its natural beauty. No, I plan on correcting God's biggest flaw by removing its existence.'

He paused, offering a sly grin.

'I'm going to exterminate the entire human race.'

* * * *

Uh-oh! Why are so many villains concerned with destroying humanity? It must be an "I love evil!" thing. Oh, well. Hopefully someone will stop Belial BEFORE he brings an end to all life on Earth.

Any thoughts on this chapter? Comment below!

Also, if you enjoyed, don't forget to vote!