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The forest had fallen silent. Miriam and Stefan had just walked in and witnessed what just happened. Stefan immediately shielded her, blocking her oath so she wouldn't see but it was already too late.
Miriam clasped her mouth with her hands suppressing the loud cry that threatened to escape her lips.
Her knees went weak and she instantly fell, Stefan instantly caught her before she could reach the floor and embraced her. Biting his lower lip so hard blood sipped out but instantly mended as soon as he let go.
He could hear Hades' cry, he wanted to rush over there but it was too late, there was no way the Queen could survive her throat being cut open and he needed to protect Miriam since the place was crawling with Rogues and the aura of the man who ordered Velia was suffocating. He was no ordinary being.
Hazel lay motionless, her short silver hair now crimson at the ends, the life once blazing behind her eyes now gone dull. Even the air itself seemed to hesitate, as though the forest refused to breathe.
Then, in the midst of that silence, a growl split the air.
It wasn't human.
It wasn't even ordinary.
It was the growl of something older, darker — something that had been chained deep within the heart of the Hellfire Citadel for eons.
Hades lunged forward with impossible speed, his claws cutting through the wind like knives. He aimed straight for Velia's head — and for a split second, the world blurred into motionless dread — before everything froze.
His claws, blackened and dripping energy, halted an inch from her throat. His entire body hung suspended midair, veins bulging. It was as if the world itself had gripped him by the throat.
Then his body stiffened, locked by an invisible force.
The air trembled.
And before anyone could blink, Hades was hurled backward — violently — crashing through tree after tree. Each trunk snapped like fragile twigs until his body collided against a stone ridge, leaving a crater where he fell.
A hush followed, broken only by the crunch of leaves beneath approaching steps.
It was him.
The Eclipsed One.
He stood there, pale as bone, eyes gleaming a deep emerald that seemed to bleed into black at the edges. His presence distorted the air — reality bending around him like heat waves. When he moved, the earth shuddered.
Lycan roared and pounced forward in his human form, — but before he even reached, he was slammed into the ground. An invisible force pinned him, bending his spine against the soil. He coughed blood, trying to rise, but the air pressed harder until the ground cracked beneath his weight. He couldn't transform since lycanthrope magic was also forbidden in the soul forest.
Ares followed, twin blades conjured in his hands — yet the moment he took his first swing, the Eclipsed One merely looked at him. His emerald gaze flashed — and Ares was sent spiraling backward, colliding with a tree so hard that it splintered into dust. They were basically mundanes in this forest, since none of their powers worked here.
Alyssa flinched. She was smarter than that, why charge in when she knew the results will be fatal, this man... If she should even call him that, could end them where they stand.
She hadn't even blinked, and yet two of the most powerful beings in the underworld had fallen. Her fingers trembled. The Eclipsed One hadn't even touched them.
He just moved his hand.
And reality obeyed.
The rogues who had gathered in the shadows — beasts, demons of every shape — stared in awe.Velia had always told them of the power sealed in that abyss, whispered in myth and prophecy. But to see it now, before their eyes, was blasphemous and divine all at once.
They began to laugh.
Low, nervous laughter that grew into wild, savage chants.
"The world will burn!"
"The underworld is ours!"
"All hail the Eclipsed One!"
"W--we have to do something... We can't just stand here in the shadows," Miriam cried, trying to gather her strength and push Stefan out of the way but to no avail. She was weak, not even adrenaline could kick in.
"And do what? You'll be torn into pieces before you even get ten feet towards them and the forest bands magic, I don't have my powers here." Stefan ran his finger through his hair. "All I can do now is protect you, so please let me,"
He looked down at her and she gazed up at him, tears falling uncontrollably. She cried in his arms. "Wh—why her, it should have been me!"
Stefan didn't say a world and just let her cry in his arms while he watched the strange man and the others.
Velia's lips parted in sheer disbelief. For once, words failed her. The sheer dominance radiating from the being before her sent shivers down her spine — but it was not fear she felt.
It was ecstasy.
A slow, feverish smile crept across her face. She turned toward Gavriel, whose brow remained furrowed, suspicion flickering in his crimson eyes.
"See?" Velia said, laughter bubbling in her throat. "I told you, Gavriel! By his side, we could be kings!"
Her laughter turned manic. The rogues joined her, their voices echoing across the forest, their madness swelling with the scent of power.
The Eclipsed One stepped toward her, his feet brushing past Hazel's blood. The body of the fallen queen lay limp beneath his shadow. Her once-glowing aura had faded — nothing left but silence.
He stopped beside her corpse and looked down briefly, as if acknowledging the irony of it. Then he raised his head toward Velia. His movement was almost affectionate, his expression unreadable as he touched her chin with cold fingers.
"To show my gratitude," he said, his voice a deep, resonant echo that didn't belong to a living thing. "I will bestow upon you a gift. Tell me, serpent child… what is it you truly desire?"
Velia's grin widened. "Your grace is sufficient," she said, her eyes glinting. "I have already done what I longed to do." She looked down at Hazel's bloodied form and smirked. "But… if you insist…"
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"I want power."
The Eclipsed One smiled faintly — a smile that split across his face in too many directions at once.
"Then power you shall have."
He raised his hand and grasped her face, his palm completely covering her features. A sickly green glow pulsed from his hand, and then — tendrils of emerald smoke slithered from his mouth into hers.
Velia convulsed violently.
Her body arched backward, trembling as if lightning surged through her veins. Her scream was muffled, raw, filled with both agony and pleasure.
When it was done, he released her.
She stumbled, gasping, her eyes now blazing emerald — no longer with pupils, but serpent-like slits. Scales crawled across her cheeks, glimmering with a metallic sheen. Her voice hissed when she exhaled, her aura doubling, tripling — she could feel it.
Power.
Raw, endless, intoxicating.
"No." Alyssa said.
"This can't be." Miriam muttered, holding unto Stefan even tighter.
"Shit!" Stefan cursed underneath his breath.
She dropped to her knees, pressed her lips to the Eclipsed One's feet, and whispered, "My lord."
Then—
The ground trembled again.
But this time… it wasn't the Eclipsed One and definitely not Velia.
It was something else.
A low rumble rolled through the forest — a guttural, primal sound that made the rogues flinch. The trees began to sway, the soil cracking open in veins of molten fire.
And from the shadows… he emerged.
Hades.
His upper body was bare, his long hair disheveled, silver locks streaked with black. His chest rose and fell with fury, every breath releasing waves of searing heat. His aura flickered — black flame licking his skin — and his eyes black as night.
The sight froze everyone.
Even Alyssa stepped back. For all her ancient wisdom, she had never seen him like this. Not even in the oldest wars, not even when he burned the gates of Tartarus to ash.
This wasn't rage.
This was suffering turned into fire.
His eyes — those pitch black orbs — darted to Hazel's lifeless body. For a moment, he didn't breathe.
Then the tears came — not of water, but flame — sliding down his face, sizzling against his skin.
He let out a sound that was not a scream but a shatter. A cry so raw it tore the sky open. The ground split beneath him, shockwaves bursting through the forest. The rogues stumbled, covering their ears. Ares and Lycan could barely stand.
Magic was not supposed to work in this place.
But now, the forest itself was breaking that rule.
Branches burned without fire. Stones floated. The world warped as if bending to his grief.
The air grew thick — a black mist swirling, drawn toward him, cocooning him in darkness. His body vanished inside the shroud.
"What… what is he doing?" Ares hissed, his voice trembling.
Alyssa gasped, her eyes wide. "I don't know," she said. "But this… this isn't just Hades."
The Eclipsed One tilted his head, watching with curiosity rather than concern. "Interesting…" he murmured, stepping closer. "So this is the king's true form."
The cocoon pulsed — each throb radiating enough force to shake the trees.
The Eclipsed One extended his hand, palm glowing faintly. "Let's see what you truly are, child of darkness."
He reached out — but before his fingers could touch the cocoon, a surge of black-violet energy exploded outward.
The forest screamed.
The Eclipsed One was thrown backward, his feet skidding against the dirt. He steadied himself immediately, eyes narrowing. For the first time, there was a hint — a hint — of surprise.
Then the cocoon exploded.
Out stepped the King of the Hellfire Citadel — and he was unrecognizable.
Hades' hair, once silver as starlight, was now pitch black, streaked with violet flame. Two ram-like horns curved from his skull, pulsing faintly with molten light, his fangs were elongated and so was his absurdly lengthened claws that could tear through steel.
Ancient markings, glowing and dark, crawled across his torso like living ink. Behind him, a massive tattoo unfurled — the outline of a dragon's form, ethereal and burning.
His eyes, no longer pitch black, burned with literal violet flames.
When he exhaled, the air itself ignited.
The rogues stumbled backward, many falling to their knees under the pressure of his aura, getting goosebumps that paralyzed them. The forest bent beneath him.
He looked like sin. Like wrath made flesh. Like the god even demons feared.
Velia's lips trembled. Her newfound power suddenly felt like nothing. She swallowed hard, her voice caught in her throat.
"W-What is that…?"
"Your Majesty," Stefan whispered in awe. Years of being by Hades side he had never seen Hades like this.
Alyssa whispered, almost reverent, "The Grimm Dragon… the last form of Hades' lineage. The one they sealed before the dawn of the new age…"
Her voice trailed off. "He has awakened."
In an instant, the ground vanished beneath his feet — and he was in front of Velia.
No sound. No blur. Just presence.
His hand closed around her throat.
She gasped, claws digging into his wrist, but it was useless. Her power meant nothing before his fury. The violet fire in his eyes flared brighter.
"You killed her," he said softly, voice hollow and dangerous.
Velia tried to speak, to smirk, to find her usual arrogance — but all she managed was a broken whisper. "She… she was in the way."
Hades' grip tightened. The flames crept up her neck, burning her scales.
The Eclipsed One stepped forward, his tone almost amused. "Careful, King of Hellfire. She's mine now."
Hades turned his head slowly, still holding Velia aloft. His gaze locked with the Eclipsed One's.
What followed wasn't words.
It was power.
The entire forest erupted into chaos — violet fire meeting emerald corruption. Trees disintegrated into ash. Ares and Lycan were forced back by the sheer magnitude. .
And at the heart of it — between two gods — Velia screamed.
Hades released her just as the flames engulfed her body. She fell to the ground, burning, her cries echoing like the wail of a dying creature. Gavriel rushed over to her.
But Hades didn't stop. His power kept rising, his aura devouring the darkness around him.
The Eclipsed One's smirk faltered for the first time.
"You dare challenge me?" the ancient being said, his voice booming across realms. "You think yourself a god, but you are only the shadow of one."
Hades' lips curled into a smile — but it wasn't sane. It was grief wearing the mask of wrath.
"I am what you made me, not a god... the devil." he said.
"Now burn."
And with that, the Grimm Dragon roared.
It wasn't just sound — it was existence unraveling.
The ground split, lava veins bursting through the soil.
The forest — the one that allowed no magic — was consumed by it.
Alyssa's eyes widened. "This is impossible," she whispered. "He's breaking the laws of the forest—"
"Not breaking," Lycan said hoarsely. "Rewriting." His body begun to shift and Ares could feel his strength coming back. Not only that, the rogues also seemed to be getting their strength back and there was still a thousand of them.
Hades rose into the air, violet and black flames swirling around him like a storm. His body flickered — black dragon wings unfurled, sinful and devilish. The very air screamed from the distortion.
And through the maelstrom…
Hazel's body twitched.
Unnoticed by all but Miriam, a faint glow began to form around her — golden and warm. Her blood, once dark, shimmered like molten gold. Causing her brows to furrow in confusion.
The forest might have been burning, the world might have been ending — but somewhere in that chaos, a single spark of life refused to die.
And it began to burn again.