Chapter 2 - A New Start, Or...?

Eventually, after some unknown amount of time, the raging battle for dominance inside the yellowish shell of the egg had calmed down.

Completely assimilating with the zygote, all the vital energy, the essence was absorbed, merged into the formless blob, the origin spark.

A new seed was formed from the remains of the old, similar in shape though at the same time, different from its kin. It was something new, something unique, something… out of the constraints of this world.

Days kept passing, gradually turning into weeks then into several months, whilst the entity, the small seedling of life inside the protection of the solid shell of the prehistoric egg continued to develop. Acquiescing to the governing laws of this new world, the little spark slumbered, letting 'nature take its due course and slowly shape his new initial body.

Even though all the material essence he acquired were from rather primitive lifeforms, that had only basic instincts as their driving factor, he didn't mind it at all. His own unique curse-like ability was the very reason for his endless existence and was what also saved him from eternal silence.

It was his core defining trait, the [Essence Restitute] was more like a unique system all on its own. Serving as an immaterial Core, that unlike all the others he had ever come in contact with resided in the center of his soul.

Every time he defeated a foe, the core would twirl into action, creating a sort of aura, a domain around Aziel's body. Like hungry tendrils of a void beast, it greedily latched onto whatever foe his host has felled and swiftly absorbed the mass into its own, either converting it into energy or storing it for later usage.

The little spark, which held the lingering soul and consciousness of Lord Aziel Vor'thega, once known as the strongest of the Thirteen Demon Lords, and second to only his own brother, the Demon God Cahal, rested patiently, unaware and oblivious to the passing of time whilst his evolution was reaching its final stages and he was getting ready to see the world through the eyes of his new body.

Though he was all but certain, that it was a far cry from anything resembling his old self, he didn't care. This… life, was merely the start on his new journey, the very first step, the first hurdle he needed to overcome in his path of vengeance.

No matter how much it took, he, Aziel Vor'thega will have his revenge on those that he once thought dear to his heart!

With nothing more to do than to allow nature to take its intended course, the spark inside slowly descended into a deeper slumber.

—

Eventually, after the passage of some unknown amount of time, was finally awoken from his rest. His consciousness and the remnant of his soul have finally completely merged with the little reptile, prehistoric lifeform.

Through the countless days, he could feel that he had vastly outgrown the constraints of his temporary calcium-based abode. An unknown urge swelled from inside him, he felt the need, the desire to break out, and finally whiff at the fresh air... He wanted to see the world with his own eyes, suddenly he felt that he could no longer bear being caged and kept inside of his egg.

Before unleashing his bestial wrath, Aziel tried opening his eyes to take one last look at his surroundings, to at least memorize it. After all, this place, the inside of this egg was his first stepping stone, the starting point of his new life, his eventual return!

Unfortunately, he found himself extremely weak. Weak to the point that even forcing his eyelids to part and open up be a much more strenuous task than it should have been.

Suffering his first failure right at the start of his new adventure didn't phase Aziel too deeply. Feeling the primordial urge to escape into the big world more and more pressing as time passed, he decided to shelve this little problem for the time being and return to it once he could smell and feel the fresh air finally.

He could feel his two pairs of limbs, two fore and hind appendages protruding from his body. He could also feel something extra, a new tendril-like vestige coming from his behind, twirled under his body.

'A tail?' He pondered inwardly as he kept on sensing, familiarizing himself with this strange new sensation. Faintly he could feel the muscles, the countless joints and small bones that made it up. Making a swift mental note to investigate it thoroughly as well, he shifted his attention and focused on the walls of the cavity he still resided in.

Though he currently only sported 3 fingers at the end of each of his limbs, at the very least they all had a thick, curved claw protruding from the tip of them each.

Using his limbs he began to scrape the inner walls of the shell, first rather weakly, but as time passed, and as he familiarized more and more of his new body, he added more and more strength to his attempt.

Eventually, he managed to wear down the resistance and managed to pierce through the solid barrier, revealing the first crack on the outside.

The tip of a dark, onyx-colored sharp end of a claw showed itself for the first time, grabbing the attention of a large-scaled reptilian creature that have just returned from its hunt and was ready to settle down to rest for a bit.

Just as she was about to sit down, she heard the sound of a crack, making her jump up and wait beside the nest with growing anticipation. Her little one was about to hatch!

Following the first crack, a large spiderweb spread out, further weakening the already fragile barrier. A moment later, another ebony tip pierced through.

In a few seconds, more and more holes appeared, slowly forming into a dotted amorph geometrical shape. Eventually, the many holes finally wore down the last bits of resistance from the shell. The surface caved in, followed the dot-like holes, and eventually merged, fusing together into a large window.

The large creature, the excited mother watched with barely contained excitement, as a small, but familiar-looking head appeared in the dim, dark interior of her egg. She watched as the little critter pushed his head through the small hole he formed, and through a visibly great deal of effort slowly, gradually extracted itself and fell down on his little behind in the nest.

Maternal instincts instantly kicked in, the large, oversized reptile lowered her elongated head and nudged the little one with her nose, whiffing some warm exhale of air on the top of his head.

At the sensation of the hot, humid exhale of air, Aziel's eyelids instantly snapped open, revealing the large yellow glimmering eyes for the first time.

Yet, only for a single instant, as the sudden surge of information, all the excess light hurt his unused vitreous sensory organ, forcing him to squint to combat the sudden searing pain.

'What the...' The little creature, the newborn Aziel frowned inwardly. He wanted to exclaim his disgust over the strange method his supposed mother decided to show his affection, yet he found unable to voice any words.

Like his visual organ, -which felt rather primitive, lackluster to what he was used to, he felt the discomfort, the newfound challenge in trying to use his vocal cords for the first time.

Only a barely audible squeal, a high-pitched cry was all he could muster. More elaborate frequencies and resonance were all out of his capabilities. At least for the time being.

'Great...' He lamented inwardly. Though he wanted to complain, the sudden surge of hunger that he felt, pushed these unnecessary thoughts quickly to the back of his mind.

Aziel couldn't help but look up at the large, strange bipedal, theropod dinosaur mother with an expectant glint in his eyes...

---

Time passed, in the blink of an eye, several years have passed by...

In a landscape flush with greenery and strange-looking creatures at every turn, an approximately 6-foot creature could be seen. Like the creature that brought it up before its eventual succumb to the violent and harsh world, he too was a theropod, a species of carnivorous predators that stood firmly on his 3-toed limbs. His body growing even above his deceased mother, looked like a fearsome incarnation straight out of a nightmare.

Thick golden-brown scales covered his furless, featherless body, with long, thick curved ebony claws glinting in the cover of bushes menacingly.

Over the years, although he got used to, almost accustomed to the harsh, twisted nature of this strange world, he still felt rather weak when faced with any of the real predators of this realm. His civilized mind still hasn't descended back to a state that would allow him to match some ferocity, such brutality he constantly had to face.

Still, in a sort of twisted, chaotic way, he almost enjoyed this lifestyle. At the very least there were no schemes, and ploys to battle against, no despicable traitors to worry when they would stab you in the back; life was simple, straightforward. You either survive or get eaten.

Taking a whiff in the air, Aziel was about to set foot in a seemingly random direction to see if he could find a more open area so that he could at least make out the surroundings.

However, before he could take a single step and get anywhere…

*SNAP*

*GROWL*

The snapping of a twig could be heard followed by a deep growl from behind.

Hearing this, Aziel felt a chill running down his spine. Slowly turning around to see what had made the noise.

As he looked at the feathered creature standing on two legs facing him, he immediately regretted his decision. The creature was slightly smaller than Aziel, but its massive claws made him worried beyond belief.

"Oh shit!" He cursed at his luck.

He spun around, and burst into a sprint, running as fast as his legs could carry him. This action only seemed to provoke the animal as it began to chase after Aziel gnashing its teeth.

He kept running and running until he almost passed out from exhaustion. Aziel finally decided to look behind him to see if he managed to escape the fearsome predator.

Not seeing any trace of it, he decreased his speed and slowed down to a stop.

After looking around and believing he was safe, Aziel spotted a log. He went to sit down to recollect himself from the life-threatening situation he had just gone through.

Little did he know that an even bigger predator than before was watching, lurking, trying to find the right time to strike.

As the creature observed Aziel and saw that he finally dropped his defense and sat down, it jumped from the foliage and pounced at him.

'Huh?' Aziel attempted to turn around but it was already too late.

The creature had caught him off guard.

*CRUNCH* *CRUNCH*