Astaroth

In a time when the Great War raged on for decades, humans, devils, and angels fought against each other, with humans being forced into combat. The one race that refused to participate in the fight were the Dragons. These prideful beings refused to be roped into a war they felt they had no part in. As a result, they were branded as enemies of everyone and killed whenever found. As this merciless onslaught continued, Melchior, The Legendary Dragon, finally got tired of the slaughter of his brothers and sisters. One day, he roared for the second time since he was born. The world shook ferociously and the hearts of every living being felt the gravity of the power put into it. The roar was a rallying cry to all surviving dragons to gather to Melchior. Meanwhile, all fighting around the world ceased entirely. Not a single soul felt like continuing to fight after having their hearts pierced by that roar.

All the dragons gathered to Melchior. The Legendary Dragon convinced the others to band together to survive this accursed time and to minimize the amount of deaths of their own race. To that end, they moved to Mt. Ignus, the largest mountain in the world. There they forged their stronghold by burrowing deep into the mountain to the point that they were able to create a city at its base. Melchior, having no use for a throne, brandished a floor designed specifically for himself and his offspring. The location of this floor is unable to be accessed by anyone who does not possess the blood of a dragon flowing through their veins, more specifically the blood of Melchior.

An entire month passed since the conflicts stopped, but a month was about as much time as everyone would not fight. Eventually, without fail, the conflicts resumed and dragons, being no exception, were attacked again. However, this time, since they were working together and had a fortress for which they could use for protection, after over 140 attacks on their fortress, not a single life was lost for them. The attackers, on the other hand, lost anywhere around 562,315 troops, with many more being unable to be found/recovered due to the bodies being in such close proximity to the fortress. The dragons wouldn't sit put and wait to be attacked. Melchior ordered skirmishes using hit and run tactics on the angels and demons. The casualties rose exponentially with the dragons still suffering not a single death. Seeing as how the dragons were increasing in number, while not suffering any casualties from repeated attacks, a deal was eventually struck between the leaders of the angels and demons. The deal was to exterminate the dragons in one final assault, before they went back to fighting each other for control over the world. Humans, being forced to choose sides, were also roped into this as well. Ten days would pass as armies gathered around Mt. Ignus. Melchior gathered his kin in the Ascalon Hall, a superstructure within their fortress that possessed a gateway to an even deeper space within Mt. Ignus. He told his kin of a device that he had forged, capable of defending their fortress from the armies if used at the right time. Immediately after saying this, he sent a group of scouts to alert them as to when the armies would advance on their fortress. Meanwhile, he moved every mother and egg into the depths of the cavern. The remaining dragons were to pour their flames into the device, but not until the time was right. He used the time in between to fashion a name for it. He called it, Core.

Soon after, his scouting party returned, and informed him that the armies were advancing on the compound. He told everyone to wait patiently until you could hear the enemy within shouting distance. The armies had progressed so far into the stronghold that more than half of their total forces were nowhere to be seen on the outside. At the sound of the incoming fighters, Melchior ordered every dragon still with him to pour their flames into the Core. As the combined fires sank into the Core it started to light up in a green glow. Soon it turned red and reached critical levels. Without missing a beat, Melchior ordered everyone to flee into the cavern as fast as they could possibly go. The dragon finally poured in his own flame, which he had held off on doing while the others were in his presence. The Core's glow brightened beyond all limitations. One could go blind by simply looking for too long. Melchior took the Core by his hand and thrust it into the ground. He then followed his kin into the cavern, but not before breaking the area of the cavern to seal it off, then cementing it with his celestial fire. Moments later, a cataclysmic explosion sundered the mountain, with a roar. On the outside, the leaders of the armies watched as the mountain went off like a volcano, but instead of magma, an undying flame covered the mountain making it seem like it was a giant candle. The leaders of the angels and demons could only watch on in horror as the fire raged. They could only listen to the screams of agony and death from their comrades that filled the air. The sound of pain, piercing their hearts like a million needles, brought great sorrow and tears to their eyes as they stood there helpless and in regret of having sent their soldiers in only to die such agonizing deaths. After 4 days had passed, the fires subsided, and Melchior broke the seal on the cavern and led his kin out. It was clear who the victor in this battle was. Melchior met with the leader of the angels, Michael, and the leader of the devils, Lucifer. They were tired of fighting and were ready to surrender to Melchior's power. They asked that he spare their subjects the cruel punishment of death, however, the legendary dragon would never have done such a thing in the first place. He told them that he is not interested in making them submit to his word, only that he wishes the fighting to stop and peace be restored. He declared them fools for ever wanting to fight in the first place and that if they truly have learned that fighting is pointless, then they should join him in creating a world that is free of war. "It is only that in such a world, that we shall know true peace. Although, I am far aware that conflicts between people are bound to happen. It is for the sake of tomorrow that we must... try our best to prevent any escalations of those conflicts. War will always be a possibility, but we shouldn't let that possibility stop us from coexisting. Don't you think so?" – Melchior, The Legendary Dragon, addressing Michael and Lucifer.