DEATH OF THE UNIVERSE: BOOK TWO OF THE REALM OF ZERROS SAGA Read online

  DEATH OF THE UNIVERSE

  BOOK TWO OF THE REALM OF ZERROS SAGA

  THE REALM OF ZERROS SAGA – DEATH OF THE UNIVERSE

  DISCLAIMER

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  © 2018 Shoraz Yusuf. All rights reserved.

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY–ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY–TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY–THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY–FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY–FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY–SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY–SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY–EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY–NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY–ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY–TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY–THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY–FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY–FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY–SIX

  CHAPTER THIRTY–SEVEN

  CHAPTER THIRTY–EIGHT

  CHAPTER THIRTY–NINE

  CHAPTER FORTY

  CHAPTER FORTY–ONE

  CHAPTER FORTY–TWO

  AUTHOR'S NOTE

  CHAPTER ONE

  Zerros

  As the battle raged on in the sky above the Grand Castle, the royal guards stood in defense of their master’s territory; while on the ground the armies of good and evil clashed in an epic, universe–altering battle that was destined to change the future of everything in existence.

  As the armies battled, it was clear that the side of evil had the upper hand and was ready to put an end to the uprising against them by two of the oldest clans in the Realm of Zerros.

  High above in the open skies stood Alkazar, the leader of the royal guards of Zerros and the holder of the sword of power. As he boldly stood overseeing his army decimate their enemies, his eyes were focused on them, but his mind was focused on the one thing that could single handedly change the outcome of the battle. For he knew that in order for this battle to be truly over the Blue Dragon would have to be killed, but it was nowhere to be seen or even heard from.

  “You must summon the beast my master,” Alkazar said to the ruler of Zerros – Venetia – as she sat on her throne perched in comfort and far removed from the battle that raged below.

  “Bring me the tortured sorcerer,” Venetia said to Yram, and with that, Yram made her way to the dungeons of the Grand Castle to find Razen, the tortured sorcerer.

  As Yram made her way to Razen’s cell and opened the door, Razen cowered in fright, but Yram showed no mercy and ordered the royal guards to bring Razen to Venetia.

  As a royal guard violently grabbed him, Razen tried to resist them, but they quickly overpowered him and dragged him up against his will to meet the evil Venetia, for what Razen knew, was a task that he had no intention of doing, if it were not for Venetia’s threat of destroying every single universe in existence.

  As Yram and the royal guards brought Razen to Venetia, he stood in fright in front of her, knowing fully well that her only request of him and the only reason which she kept him alive was for him to release the Blue Dragon from its spell.

  “Release the beast Razen, release it now, or everything you hold dear and love will perish. I swear to you Razen, I will destroy every single universe in existence if you do not obey my command,” Venetia said.

  “No Venetia, I cannot do this, as I know…” Razen said, but before he could say another word, Venetia motioned to the royal guards, and they began to attack and beat Razen mercilessly, and as they finally stopped he lay on the floor and cringed in pain.

  Venetia then ordered the royal guards to remove Razen’s blindfold as well as the shackles that bound his hands, and she looked down towards Razen in disgust and revulsion.

  “Release the beast now Razen, or the creations within the universes will suffer a fate worse than anything you can ever imagine,” Venetia said, as she looked towards her band of royal guards that stood awaiting her command to fly towards the portals to the universes with the intention of spreading carnage and destruction to whichever universes that Venetia commanded them to destroy.

  Venetia then gave the word, and the royal guards began to fly towards the portals to the universes, and as Razen saw them, he begrudgingly said to Venetia, “I will do it Venetia, just please leave our creations to live in peace.”

  Venetia then commanded the royal guards to stay put and then she looked towards Razen, and he knew that he had no choice but to release the mighty Blue Dragon in order to save the innocent creations within the universes.

  She then raised her scepter and whispered the words, “Bring the beast to me, or I will destroy all that you love and cherish,” and with that, she pointed her scepter at a few of her enemies and they fell to the ground as the light of the scepter touched them.

  “Bring him now Razen, and I will have mercy on the rest of them,” she then shouted, but the Blue Dragon was still nowhere to be seen.

  Then, as Razen began his spell out of fear of what Venetia would do next, a smile came over her face as she looked at Yram, Leonis and Zalde with a look of assurance.

  She then raised her scepter a second time and there was a loud roar, and in the distance, soaring in the sky of Zerros was none other than the Blue Dragon, and as it stopped flying and hovered in mid–air, it stared at Venetia as she sat on the throne.

  “Bring him to me,” she then said to Alkazar, and with that, Alkazar and the royal guards headed towards the mighty Blue Dragon.

  Then, as Venetia looked at the few remaining royal guards, she pointed to Razen, and without hesitation, they drew their swords. And before Razen had a chance to use his sorcery upon them, they began to attack him, and as he valiantly tried to fight back, they plunged their swords into him and ended his life of misery and torture under the evil rule of Venetia.

  As Razen lay dead on the floor of the Grand Castle, Venetia looked towards Yram, Leonis, and Zalde and then she proudly looked back at the crescent of the ‘V’ imprinted above her throne, and she knew without a doubt that she was destined to be the ruler of Zerros and everything in existence for all of eternity.

  Meanwhile, as Alkazar and the royal guards approached the Blue Dragon they surrounded it with their weapons drawn, ready to bring him back to their master – Venetia. They then charged towards the beast and it fired shards of fire and ice towards them in a fierce and unrivaled display of power and strength never before seen in the Realm of Zerros.

  As everyone looked on, the battle on the ground below came to a sudden halt due to the sheer power of the Blue Dragon and also in anticipation of what would come next. As the Dragon fought off the royal guards, Alkazar looked on waiting for the perfect moment to attack the beast, and when that moment arrived, he rushed towards the Dragon with the sword of power in his hand ready to stand strong against the powerful Dra
gon and bring him back to Venetia and her evil cohorts – Yram, Leonis and Zalde.

  As Alkazar’s speed accelerated, the Blue Dragon readied itself and just as they were about to clash, the Blue Dragon morphed its body into diamond and its eyes shone blue, and with that sign, Galiac awoke from his deep and innate dream, utterly confused by what he saw.

  But nevertheless, this was his indication that the time had come and his mission to restore glory and wisdom back to the Realm of Zerros had arrived.

  As he looked in the distance towards the Ocean of Eternity which sat on the edge of Zerros, he knew that it would not be an easy task, but he was ready for the many challenges that lay ahead. And more importantly, he was ready to give his immortal life in order to give the Realm of Zerros the ruler that it truly deserved, for by doing that he would not only give prosperity and glory back to the Realm of Zerros, but also to the plethora of universes and galaxies under its control.

  “The time is now,” he then said to himself, and with that he headed off to begin his journey of reclaiming the throne and bringing back order to the realm that he loved, which in turn would forever change the core physics and beliefs of humans, as well as the many, many other forms of creations in existence, including life itself, in ways that no one could have ever fathomed, and change the way everything in existence viewed life as they knew it.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Earth

  As Ava awoke and looked up at the dingy ceiling the first thing that came to her mind were the events of the past and she questioned herself about why life turned out the way it did. She then tried getting up off of the bed but her body was in pain, and she was extremely tired and weak.

  In her somewhat disorientated state of mind she tried her best to justify and put Jonah’s heart–wrenching death, as well as the attack by the betasapiens, and the other catastrophic events into perspective and answer the fundamental questions of why it happened and what was the purpose of it, but she was at a loss.

  She then pondered back to Jillian, and her mind flashed back to when Jillian committed suicide in hopes of escaping the world that was filled with evil and hate. Deep inside Ava’s mind, all that she could think of was revenge upon the betasapiens, and she knew that they still had to pay for the destruction and pain which they caused to the humans in general, and especially to the ones that she loved and was close to.

  As Ava tried to return to the new reality of a world besieged by the betasapiens, she thought of those she lost such as Jonah, Laurie, Krishna and the many others who helped her along the way. She also wondered about her father – Dean – and hoped that he survived the onslaught and was somewhere safe.

  Never in her wildest thoughts would she have ever imagined that her life would have taken such a tragic path, all beginning with when Jonah found the dead golden knight and returned him to the Denver Collective Church of Worship; as well as her and Jonah escaping Denver and trying to evade the vigilantes; and finally, losing Jonah and then finding him again, only to have him die while trying to save her from the betasapiens and knights. These events were now cemented in her mind, and they were ever so slowly changing Ava in ways that she could have never imagined.

  Then suddenly her mind flashed back to her being lost at sea looking in the horizon as the betasapien aircraft slowly disappeared in the distance. She then looked up and she could see Max dearly holding onto her and trying his best to keep her feeble and weak body from falling off of the makeshift raft they were floating on in the raging Pacific Ocean.

  She then remembered the feeling she had looking up at him as he tried to protect her from the waves and debris that were battering them. It was a feeling of safety and security, and she longed for that feeling once again. Even though she had been through so much and was equipped with never before seen superhuman abilities, she still longed for the most basic of human needs which were love and the feeling of protection and safety.

  “Where are you Max? I need you,” she whispered under her breath as she looked around the room that was filled with empty beds wondering where she was, and more importantly, wondering where Max was.

  She then lay down on one of the beds, closed her eyes and thought back to her and Max on the makeshift raft stranded in the middle of the ocean and then she heard a scream and as she looked towards Max, she could see him in severe pain and there was blood all over them both.

  Startled, she then rose from the bed and ran to the door of the room, and as she exited it she was met by two knights, and just as she was about to unleash her abnormal and breathtaking abilities upon them, a fellow superhuman named Steve came running towards her.

  “They mean no harm to you, we saved you and we have your friend in another room,” he said to her in hopes of saving the two knights from a sure death.

  “Who are you and where’s my friend?” Ava nervously asked as she prepared her mind and body to strike at a moments notice.

  “He’s in the other room, he was badly injured and we had to do emergency surgery on him,” Steve said to Ava in hopes of calming her down.

  “What’s wrong with him? Is he okay? Can I see him?” Ava asked.

  “The surgery is finished but he is still sleeping from the anesthesia, he won’t be up for another couple of hours, but before you go in to see him we should talk,” Steve said to Ava.

  “What is there to talk about? He’s okay right?” Ava hesitantly asked.

  “He’s alive but he’s not the same, we had to amputate his left arm from the elbow down and his head and upper chest were damaged as well,” Steve somberly explained to Ava.

  “When we found you both stranded on that makeshift raft we were in shock by his injuries, and the fact that he kept you from falling overboard and alive was in itself a miracle of some sort. You must really be someone special to him; he gave his limbs and his body to keep you safe, it’s a miracle that he’s alive,” Steve continued saying.

  Ava’s heart sank even further into despair given the news that she was just told about Max, and she wondered how he did it, and more importantly, she wondered why he did it and why he sacrificed himself in such a manner to save her. As she pondered upon those thoughts she knew that if she had been in his position she would have done the same for him. Her eyes then began to fill with tears and she tried her best to keep her emotions in check.

  “Can I please see him?” Ava asked, and Steve obliged and they then began walking towards the room in which Max was recovering in.

  As they walked down the barren hallway Ava was mentally preparing herself for what would surely be an emotional and painful experience.

  Then, after a few minutes they arrived at the room and Steve pointed to the door implying to Ava that she had permission to enter. As she entered, a lone doctor was with Max, and Steve gestured for her to step aside and give Ava some privacy in this most emotional of moments.

  The doctor and Steve then stepped outside leaving Ava alone with Max and just as the door to the room was closed shut, the floodgates of Ava’s emotions opened and her tears flowed down her face and she began to cry uncontrollably.

  As she looked at Max lying on the bed, this was not the Max that she knew, and he now looked more like a knight rather than a human. His entire head was now covered by a metal helmet and his upper body was now an armor of golden metal, while his left arm was replaced by a metal forearm with a built–in laser for protection.

  Ava then stood beside Max and held his hand, “Why did you do it? I told you to leave me and let me die; I can’t live with myself knowing that I did this to you,” Ava silently said to Max, thinking that he couldn’t hear her.

  “I had to do it Ava, something inside me kept me going,” Max said to Ava’s surprise and relative delight.

  “Max, you’re awake, let me get the doctor,” Ava shouted.

  “No Ava, wait. Please know that you didn’t do this to me, I did this to myself because I had to protect you,” Max said to her in hopes of making her feel better about the situation.


  “Thank you Max, I don’t know how I’ll do it but I’ll repay you for this, I promise this to you,” Ava said to him.

  “Seeing you alive is enough for me Ava, it makes it all worth it, you’re special Ava, and you were meant to survive. Your brother gave his life for you, Krishna gave his life for you, and I’m ready to give my life for you as well,” Max said to her.

  Ava then thanked Max and walked towards the door and opened it for Steve and the doctor to come in, and as they entered, they asked Max how he was feeling and Max replied that he was feeling okay given the severity of his injuries.

  “Do you feel well enough to travel Max?” Steve asked.

  “No, please let him rest,” Ava intervened.

  “No Ava, I’ll be fine, we’ll do what’s best for everyone,” Max replied.

  “Okay Max, I’m good with whatever you say,” Ava said as she held Max’s hand.

  “Where are we traveling to and where are we now?” Max asked.

  “We’re in Spokane, Washington right now, and we’re headed to Alaska,” Steve replied.

  “We heard over the radio that everyone is being summoned to Alaska, and the superhumans and rogue knights will stand side by side with their human friends until the end, we’ve pledged allegiance and we will fight to our deaths against the betasapiens and the knights,” the doctor said.

  And with those words, the small group of approximately two hundred humans, superhumans and rogue knights began preparing for their trek to Freedom City, Alaska, in hopes of joining forces with the rest of the superhumans to battle the evil betasapiens.

  As the airmobiles headed out under the cover of night, Ava stayed with Max as he lay down and rested in the cargo area of an airmobile. She then looked at him as he closed his eyes and fell asleep and she pondered upon his earlier words of how special she was, and in her heart she knew that she was meant to be alive.

  She then pondered upon her revenge against the betasapiens as she looked down at Max, who in his almost helpless state was ready to do anything for her. Meanwhile, as Steve sat in the cargo area of the airmobile he kept an eye on Max, and then as he glanced at Ava it was clear to him that from the scan of her brain which was done earlier, that her strength and uber–abilities would be of great benefit to them. But unknown to him as well as everyone else; on the inside, something far more spectacular was unknowingly brewing and Ava had no idea what it was, for if she did, the battle against the betasapiens and the knights, as well as the destined battle against the unknown and evil forces at play in the Realm of Zerros would have already been won.