Lord Shadow

ONCE UPON A FUTURE

A woman can be seen walking along the Hanging Gardens of America.

The woman was wearing white dress with her long black hair draped behind her back looking like a Greek Goddess.

The Hanging Gardens of America is a beautiful Garden floating around the city of Washington.

It is filled with the most colorful plants that Earth could offer. With all kinds of flora and fauna and with the width of a small country, the Gardens are almost like Eden.

Only few people are allowed to set foot on it.

With Pillars of Lightning in its four corners, guarding it from external attack, the Garden itself is one of the safest places on Earth.

Not to mention, the Gardens itself was created by one of the Seven Sovereign. Nobody would like to see themselves in conflict with a Sovereign.

The woman that is walking around the garden sometimes peeks down the Hanging Gardens and chuckles bitterly.

High above the sky, the people underneath her looks like ants. She wondered is this how Sovereign look towards the mortals?

Like puny ants? Insignificant? She sighed. And she wondered, is this how He sees her? Is that why?

Or is it because of ‘that?’ Then she remembers about how he helped her to escape the deals she made with the Trickster.

Even though all have been settled between her and the Trickster, she could not help but second guessing her decision.

‘Is this the right choice?’ She was looking at the sky alone in the gardens. No maid around her.

Usually there is some maid servant following her from behind to cater to her every need.

She wanted to be alone before the wedding. And what better place to be alone, other than the most beautiful garden in the world?

With no one around her, she could think.

The wedding is on in a few days.

Raymond has been battling deep in the Great Sea with the Water Dragon King a 50 feet dragon with the abilities to create storms, tsunamis and tidal waves whenever it wanted.

Even now, she could not understand. At the eve of her wedding, memories seems to flood her mind.

The warm sunlight, the beautiful flowers, but her mind could not erase.

‘Could not erase….’she murmured.

She still remembers that black clothed man saving her, being her friend, then her lover, her sun and moon until he left her.

If only their beginning is more…..warm….could it last? She thought to herself.

What she couldn’t understand is the reason why he left her. Why does she always do this kind of love?

The kind of love that hurts herself. The kind of love that consumes her? That makes her pathetic? That makes her change?

She hated that she change. And she hated the fact that she couldn’t hate him…no matter how she tried. She hates that fact the most.

And she hates that…even now….even after all the pain….even after all this time…she still misses him when she look at a peach blossom.

She remembers the declaration of that once young man. You and me, against the world he promised

She wanted to ask him…’Why were you like that?’ ‘Did you even love me?’ Even now she can’t stop asking in her mind.

It’s unfair that he could just leave. Unfair that only she feels the pain

And she was angry because at the moment of their parting, she couldn’t…say anything. If he had told her from the beginning, that he didn’t love her, would she close her heart this tightly?

When he was leaving, she could only stare.

They were perfectly happy before.

Until he got the Eye of the Oracle. He never told her about how he got the eye.

The only thing that Sofia knows was that a few weeks after he could see the future, he began distancing himself from her.

She blames the Oracle

The Time Crisis happens because of the Oracle. Because of something the Oracle says. Sofia once went to the Temple of Erika once to seek answers.

But the Oracle did not say anything.

Only saying that Destiny Will must be done. And at that time, it was enough. Because at that time, she has her own problems with Azief.

At that time, she needed a reason to hate him.

But now, she knows she needs to know the answer. She needs to know. Because she could not marry Raymond knowing her heart is like this.

Wavering….second guessing….dreaming of a once future dream

She needs to end this. That’s the reason she is here far away from everyone else, and far away from Raymond.

But her heart asks her…is it really because she wanted to end this? Or…is it something else?

Is that why she is here? Far from Raymond? Then she said to herself, almost like trying to convince herself

‘Because she knows that he would not like it if he knows what she is about to do.’ That is what she thought to herself to convince herself.

Sofia looks up at the sky and then she closes her hands together and she prays.

And she called him. Called his true name.

‘Azief’ she whispers, covered by the sound of the wind. But the word echoes like a melody of a song.

Somewhere in another realm, a realm of Light and joy, of beauty and majesty, of a realm free from the taints of mortals, of a realm where sorrow and sadness does not exist, where only majestic beauty existed, a paradise, full with winged creature with faces that is full of light, a man clothed in Light who was resting on his Throne open his eyes.

Beside him was a Scepter as large as a planet which is white like diamondshine the stone that emits light.

All around the scepter life blooms and death do not dare approaches.

The Throne was as big as a planet, and the man itself was larger than that. He opens his eyes, and light filled the realm.

His Throne glowed with an incomparably shine that if it released on the stars, the stars would be shamed and the sun would be outshine by the glow.

The denizen of that realm was shocked.

The splendor of the realms magnified, life blooms on the Lower Realms and the Sinful Souls were spared from their punishment today.

The Hell Girl stopped torturing; the Reapers stop reaping souls and Hell freezes over. The tortured soul was spared for that day because the Man opens his eyes.

And just because he is feeling happy. He spared the one who is about to die today in his realm, stop the tortures of the sinful souls and grant blessing to his realm.

The winged creatures which resemble the angels in paintings all rushed towards the man on the throne and prostrate themselves.

Their expression was reverent and full of worship. They will not disobey, they will not rebel, and their loyalty is immeasurable.

They do not dare look up to see the face of their Lord else they will be blinded by the splendor of their Lord.

The angels itself has different positions and hierarchy. The largest of them have a wing that could cover the earth.

The smallest of them is already two times bigger than planet earth. Even though they are big, they do not incite the feeling of fear or instill dread.

Each of their faces was pleasant and good looking.

‘She called me’ the man on the throne said in a disbelieving tone. His word when uttered shakes the Pillars of that Realm.

The man on the throne smiles and his smiles blinded one thousand angels.

The angels who seen his smile, their eyes was instantly burned by black fire and they crumbled and turns to nothingness.

But the other angels didn’t care.

Then He got up. He clicked his fingers and the robe make of light turns dark red with malicious runic writing covering it.

The robes make him look like an avenger of sins. His kind face, his holy aura disappeared replaced with a cold expression that could create winter.

His holy aura is replaced with a wrathful vengeance.

He clicked his finger again and the Scepter turns into a Black Red Scythe emitting killing fiendish aura, as thousands more angels was instantly evaporated when they came into the contact of the aura.

Yet, the angels did not move. They still prostrate themselves. Another click of his fingers and rings suddenly appears in each of his fingers.

Then looking the angels prostrating in front of him, he clicked his fingers and the thousands of evaporated angels who was turned into nothingness, appears again, larger and stronger.

Then without explanation, the man closes his eyes and he disappears in a flash of light. The moment he disappears the Pillars of the Realms cracked.

The angels even though their lord has disappeared still prostrate themselves and did not do anything.

***