It started off as a mild suggestion, but before long, the Constellations were all gushing about the Hosts they had, or the potential ones they would soon possess.
No one really knew how long conversations like these lasted, especially among boundless entities like Constellations.
From discussions of compatibility, to arguments on superiority, they kept going on and on about the primary subject of Hosts.
Perhaps the reason for their attitude was the fact that there had been no major incident in a while, and they also recognized that they could currently do nothing about the current situation until their vessels were ready.
And even that seemed to be drawing ever so closer.
As such, not only was their powerlessness the reason for their free discourse, but also their confidence in Jared's plans.
However… even the almighty Constellations could not foresee what was to come.
None of them could imagine it.
… Not until it happened!
*******
"I personally like the kind of people that are all 'fired up', you know? Talent and stuff like that are meaningless in the presence of Constellations, you know?"
"What the hell are you talking about now, Sagittarius?" Leo rolled his eyes as he glanced in the direction of the Archer among them.
"Look, I'm not downplaying talent or anything. It's just… those are dime-a-dozen in the branches. All of those geniuses are pretty much frogs in different wells. It's so commonplace to find geniuses in the branches."
"What's your point, dude?" Yet another Constellation, Cancer, asked with a gnawing sense of impatience.
Sagittarius' current position was that their myriads of conditions for Hosts were too skewed, and ultimately pointless.
Naturally, not many took what he said well.
"I'm just saying it's better to find a Host with a spine. Passionate and with a nature that is willing to charge headfirst into danger to get what he wants! Even in the toughest tribulations, they choose the path they have set on… and protect the ones they love!" Sagittarius declared, almost as if he was reciting poetry.
"Geniuses are dime a dozen in the Aether Tree, but it's hard to find someone with a spine."
In a sense, Sagittarius had a good point.
After all, most living beings would operate on instinct when danger manifested. It was the nature of life to preserve itself when threatened.
Those who would rather throw away their existence than abandon their passions, desires… love… were the outliers.
Rare entities in the world.
And it seemed those were the kind of people that Sagittarius sought—those who were willing to change the world, not for themselves, but those they cared about.
"Whatever, man. I still think your standard is the skewed one…" Pisces mumbled.
"Haha! You want to say that to me when my Hosts have been proven to be one of the most integrated ones ever? Can you say that about your own?"
"Why you…"
"Haha! I'm just stating facts! In the end, the most—"
Before Sagittarius could conclude his sentence, and before Pisces could think of a rebuttal for whatever would proceed from the Archer, the both of them instantly dropped anything else they would have engaged in.
Instead, they joined the rest of the Constellations in their troubled silence.
Those who had eyes widened them in shock, and jaws were instantly loosened as a result of the current occurrence that all the Constellations were privy to.
"Something's wrong…" The first to speak was Aquarius.
She would have been the first to notice it, but not before even her connection was lost in the process.
Her face was made of primeval waters, so it was impossible to get a read on her expression. However, the way her voice quaked proved the situation was dire.
"Something… something is here."
Every Constellation instantly agreed, as they all shared their senses with the realm they occupied. They were made aware of what went on within it, and as such… they knew quite well that something was off.
And that feeling only began to swell until it felt too overwhelming to be encapsulated in a single second.
All the Constellations instantly turned to the floating screen that was spread out in front of them—almost as if they were driven by instinct—only to find the most unexpected sight manifest itself.
Just a second ago, the screen only displayed the figure of Dragon King Z'ark, who was taking a break after a rigorous round of his trials.
The area around him was brimming with heated sulfur that would make anyone's skin melt many times over, yet his tough physique allowed him to endure despite it all.
The heat, and the nigh-infinite landscape that consisted of all sorts of complicated regions he had to travel in order to obtain certain items… it was all a lot for Z'ark to do, so a break was expected.
As such, he was currently seated in his true Dragon form, his eyes closed for just a few seconds… until the very second that caused all the Constellations to widen their eyes and stare at the screen.
Right beside the resting dragon, a stain began to manifest.
It slowly evolved within that same second, growing into something bigger and blacker, until it became a murky black portal that now warbled in malevolent delight.
All within the same second, a hand proceeded from the black portal.
It was pale, and most of it was covered in what seemed to be pure darkness. The hand touched the resting Z'ark, who was too tired—and frankly too slow—to even sense the portal manifesting, talkless of the hand.
The hand pressed itself on the slumped shoulder of the Dragon King… and then the first second passed.
"Zar'k, NO!"
It was unclear which Constellation said that, but it was already too late.
~FSSHUUUUU~
Right there and then, before Z'ark even realized it… he was consumed by the darkness, reduced to less than dust within that second.
At that point, Z'ark the Dragon King… ceased to exist.
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[A/N]
Thank you all for reading!
And so it begins… the storm we have all been waiting for.
