Chapter
20
I Want
It That Way
It was a barren, god-forsaken place. It was empty, too. Well, there was
the earth, of course, but just dry rocks, the normal unadulterated atmosphere,
and a trickle or so of pure virgin water. Otherwise, there was nothing. There
was no plants, animals or even bacteria. There was no life at all, despite the
perfect conditions the place had for the primeval caldron of the creation of
life. It was as if cursed forever to remain untouched by any form of living
being. In short, it was a dead world.
Indeed, one cannot believe that such a place exists in Ningenkai with it choking of life in its
splendor. Nobody knew it ever existed, much less of its location. No one ever
ventured to this place. Not even did the humans who have brought all other
creatures they share this planet with on their knees. Well, there are some but
none ever survived. Perhaps, all died with loneliness. That is why this place is
not in any earthly geography book, library or archive. As mentioned earlier, not
even myths, neither legends nor old wives' tales even hinted the existence of
such a place.
Ah, but this place wasn't always like this. Perhaps, before, it was like
the other lands situated in its area. Maybe some incident caused the radical
change. One thing that supports this guess is a mass pile of rubble. Besides the
rocks, there were also bricks, glass pavement, metal and other various materials
suggesting it was once part of a man-made infrastructure.
Not anymore. Now there was an enormous fortress of plastered
greenish-black rocks. However, the place didn't exist twenty years ago.
Therefore, this is probably it. This is the stronghold of the very man
responsible for this land's transformation; the man once known as Azrael; the
man in the threshold of god-hood; the man more popularly known now as the Angel
of Death.
There was something strange about the castle. There was something about
the place that aroused fear, foreboding, and dread. There was an air of
mysticism, of horror, of danger, of death. It was no surprise either, for the
dark vile man was in there himself. He was there, resting on the highest, most
isolated tower of the citadel.
A pair of eyes opened. Two amber irises glowed eerily in the dark. They
looked around, peering everywhere. It
was almost pitch black, the windows having being latched close, but the pupils
had gotten accustomed to the scarcity of light.
He rose from where he had lain to snatch a couple of hour's sleep. Even
he needs rest after all those stressful preparations. He smoothly glided to the
solitary window of the chamber and opened it.
He stood by the window, letting the breeze entering the room refresh him.
He contemplated the handsome landscape offered by the late twilight. Ravishing
isn't it? But not for long. Soon this place will be lit up for miles around
signifying the start of his merging with the powerful child.
Azrael quietly mused with his thoughts. What will happen now? I'll fully
lose my humanity. I would be completely incapable of having feelings, and
emotions. Will it be right? Will not this actions offend the order of things in
nature?
This is crazy. I've never doubted my actions for centuries. My heart has
long become numb, my conscience dulled by all those cruel experiences and my
spirit rusted by the passing of time. Why tonight of all nights, the eve of my
domination of this wretched world do I hesitate? Why now?
This is proof of how troublesome it is to be human. Yes, I do admit, even
with all my accomplishment, even through all of what I have experienced, that I
still am human. Their emotions, their weakness, their natural tendency to be
selfish and egoistic, these are the things that make them so fallible. I, too,
am restricted by my limitations. I wonder. Will I succeed? How many times have
this occurred before? Many times, I had brushed with victory, but always it had
been snatched from my grip, tantalizing me to madness!
Yes, why must I doubt? This is what I must do. What must be done, must be
done. It doesn't matter how much would be destroyed. It is crucial if this
universe is to be fixed. The end will just have to justify the means. Besides,
I'm not like any other normal being. I am special. People like me have to make
certain sacrifices. Ours is a high and lonely destiny.
This world has done so much evil. Countless has given themselves to
martyrdom trying to save this world from damnation, trying to help it change for
the better. All their efforts were useless. Therefore, since this world can no
longer be cured, it must be destroyed and renewed. Need I mention the only ones
at fault here are the inhabitants? This innocent earth must be purged of all
ills. Then it can begin anew. We can all have a fresh start and I will this
whole place my way.
He gazed again sadly at his world that once flourished. He seemed almost
sorry for what happened there and what will happen to the rest of the other
realms. In a flash, all the nostalgic, painful memories passed through his mind
in final farewell. No longer will he dwell on them. It is time, it has long been
time, to throw away those that hold him back from his destiny. With one last
look at the empty desolate land, he shuffled out of the room.
It's time.
***
"Audie," whispered Ebony to her brother. "I feel really
weird."
Audric squeezed his sister's hand to comfort her. They were cold, clammy,
and wet with cold sweat. She's practically melting inside, he thought worriedly.
You have to be strong, Niobe!
Just then, Aiea slipped on some loose stones, nearly
falling off the steep precipice. Luckily, Hiei caught her in time. The others
stared at them in shock, too startled to react.
"Good--" exclaimed Ebony, her hand shooting to her mouth.
"Are you alright?"
"I am," Iantha said, panting a little. "Thanks to Hiei.
I'm sorry. I was rather…distracted. It is rather dark."
Uh-oh, thought Audric. Not you, too. Pull yourself together, Aiea!
"Ohmigosh!" muttered Ebony. "I really
think we'll have a fatality before this really begins, me!"
"Don't worry, sis," said Adrian grinning wryly. "Our
family has no history of heart diseases."
"I know. But good grief! What is this place?"
"This was once Yalith," said Kurama.
Audric nodded. "Haega is also somewhere here. Azrael must have
casted a spell over this place. This is what Azrael's idea of a perfect world.
This is probably what will happen not only to Ningenkai but also to the rest of
the other realms if he succeeds in merging with the child and unsealing the
powers of Lethe."
Hiei merely shrugged but a closer look will reveal nail marks on both his
palms due to tightly closed fists. "Enough of this talk. We've wasted
enough time already. Let's go."
"Stop talking like that!" pleaded Ebony. "You're creeping
me out. We took the necessary time to prepare, no more, no less. It's not easy
breaking psychic barriers."
"He's right," said Audric starting to walk again. "We've
dallied for too long. Let's go."
Ebony shrugged and started trudging along the not so
welcoming terrain.
"You must admit," she said. "This place is impressive even
if it is a bit… well, extraterrestrial. The moon is a perfect touch. Lunar
eclipses are so mysterious, intriguing, scary, even. Hey, Yusuke, are you
waiting for the sky to fall down? Come along now before it really does."
"I've been thinking," he said.
"Really?" She raised her eyebrows mockingly. "Since
when?"
Yusuke ignored her. "I've fought many battles before and some of my
opponents had similar stories with Azrael. They were violent, desperate fights,
some of them bothering my conscience with guilt just like this. I sometimes
wonder what would have happened if I had tried harder to talk them out of their
plans."
"Don't worry, Yusuke," said Kurama. "We tried our best
before, it didn't work. And I don't think it'll work this time either."
"Besides," pushed Hiei. "How many people had fought that
maniac? I'm sure one of them has bound to have tried that."
"Yeah," said Ebony in gleeful morbidity. "Then ended up
dead! Ha-ha. Really, you guys should relax. There's nothing to worry about. All
we have to do is to prevent the merging by getting the mother. Easy right? Easy
way to be killed. Nothing will go wrong. Like what Hiei loves to say, she's
still on her 26th week of gestation."
The others started walking away again, trying to ignore the ceaseless
chirping of Ebony following form behind. However, somebody else lagged behind.
The king was immersed in his own thoughts.
"Hmm," he muttered under his breath. "Red skies…"