Valzareth soared high into the sky, seemingly eclipsing its light entirely. His immense form swallowed the horizon, and the movement of his wings stirred the dark clouds surrounding the summit.
Void approached steadily, flapping his dark wings until he stopped directly in front of him. The difference in size was obvious; Valzareth was many times larger, but Void's eyes held no hesitation.
Valzareth opened his mouth slightly and exhaled a thick, smoky breath. Then, in a deep, air-shaking voice, he said, "So…you are the dragon I sensed."
"Yes," Void replied calmly, defiantly. "And why do you ask? Did I disappoint you?"
Valzareth eyes narrowed. "Frankly…I thought you were much stronger," he said disdainfully.
A brief silence followed. Then Void burst into a long, hysterical laugh that echoed through the mountains and clouds. But the laughter abruptly ceased, and his expression hardened into a deadly seriousness. He unleashed his dark aura in one fell swoop and said, "So… let's determine who's stronger, you bloated lizard."
Valzareth roared, his own energy exploding, the sky shaking from the clash of their auras. "You have it."
Suddenly, Valzareth gathered a massive flame in his mouth, a black flame tinged with crimson, as dense as a miniature sun. In a flash, he shot it at Void.
Taken by the speed of the attack, Void darted away, but the flame was no ordinary fire. Valzareth tracked his every move, altering the flames' trajectory in the air. Void soared high, the flames still in pursuit. "Damn it… how am I going to get rid of it?"
In a flash, an idea flashed into his mind. He surrounded himself with his aura, amplifying it immensely, then shouted, "Skill… perfected esterazine!"
A dark purple energy erupted around him, forming a colossal shape of darkness in the form of an armored warrior, his helmet shaped like a dragon head, his body resembling that of a legendary knight. Void froze, and Valzareth flames slammed into the shape.
The air rippled, but the attack was completely deflected. Valzareth eyes widened in surprise. At the same moment, Void gathered a purple flame in his mouth and shot it straight at his opponent. Valzareth deflected it with his enormous wings, flames scattering around him. "Is that all you've got?" he said scornfully.
Fury flashed in Void eyes. "You haven't seen anything yet."
He abruptly canceled his Asterazine formation. The energy around him exploded and dissipated, then he shot with lightning speed toward Valzareth, unleashing a torrent of dark energy. Valzareth parried the attacks one after another, but suddenly Void split in two.
Numerous copies of him formed, surrounding Valzareth on all sides and unleashing a barrage of purple flames. Valzareth managed to deflect some, but others struck him, leaving distinct burn marks on his black scales.
He roared with fury. He released a massive energy wave that exploded in all directions, instantly obliterating all the copies. Then he charged directly at Void.
Void noticed him approaching and swerved to avoid him. A fierce aerial chase ensued. Valzareth launched successive fireballs, filling the sky, while Void dodged them with increasing difficulty. Void knew he wouldn't last long if this continued. "Paimon… what do I do?"
"Luring him into the mountain," came the reply quickly.
"You mean… leading him back to where he came from?" Void countered.
"Yes," said Paimon. "There, the space will be more confined, restricting his movement."
Void thought for a second, then said, "All right. Let's try it."
He immediately put the plan into action. On his back, Void formed a shadowy, human-like version of Saruto, shaped it with two swords of dark energy, and began to deflect incoming fireballs, cutting them down and scattering them into the air.
Suddenly, Void changed course, heading towards the foot of the mountain, towards the opening from which Valzareth had emerged. Flames licked past him, almost touching his wings. "I hope your plan works, Paimon," he said in a low voice.
"I hope so too," came the reply, tinged with apprehension.
Behind them, Valzareth roared furiously, stalking his prey, unaware that he was being led into a different arena of battle. Inside the mountain, where size alone would not be enough to win a fight.