Lord Shadow

PANDEMONIUM

The black raven flew silently in the night, the serpent came out from the grass as it slithers stealthily entering that workshop

The serpent hiss, the raven caws, and their eyes saw everything.

When these two animals saw their target, the raven caw and green smoke comes out from its mouth rendering the target paralyzed and unconscious.

HISS!

CAW! CAW!

The serpent approaches the target and swallowed it and then they went someplace else. A workshop these two animals know very well.

There was a woman there and seeing these two animals she just sighed.

The animals took it as a sign of agreement and they keep moving, the barrier was slowly opened as they enter the area

The serpent hiss and went into that place, the raven flew and rest itself on the branch of a nearby tree.

It caws, the noise was grating to the ears, its eyes glows green with intelligence as the serpent returns.

There was a man looking outside the window of this place. This place was a workshop. The smell of herbs fills the small modest workshops.

Sometime the ground would trembles as the sound of cauldron exploding could be heard in the distance.

When he first came it was evening, now it is night with clear skies that people could see the moon.

But then something out of his expectation happens.

His silver robe flutters as the winds of the coming storm slowly envelop Pandemonium.

A great battle happened, something he did not expect at all, something that is not in his plan and his eyebrows frowned.

He only sighed and thought to himself

‘It is inevitable’

As the battle starts, a large gigantic dome were erected, a heaven shaking might was unleashed and encompassed the entire Pandemonium and its sea.

As the gigantic waves of the sea attacking the coast and the barrier barely holding on, something shocking happened.

His eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

A manifestation of Azief Will were projected upon the skies of Pandemonium, like a Golden Titan in the Age of Primordial Gods

He has no time to hesitate.

‘Sina’ he shouted and he moved, worry etched on his face. That woman beside him almost fainted so

He immediately holds that woman waist, channeling Willpower of his own so that she would not succumb to pressure.

‘I…certainly didn’t expect you have become this powerful.’ He smiles bitterly

What many people didn’t see all over Pandemonium is people falling down unconscious. Their mind and body could not endure such pressure.

That gigantic projection is the manifestation of Willpower. While it is not truly solid but it is form from Willpower.

‘Azief Willpower is reaching the bare minimum of almost reaching Sovereign level. The First Era of Sovereign….no wonder people recorded it to be one of the most glorious moments in humanity history. The resources is yet untapped and the energy of the world is still in abundance. People easily breaking through level….not like in my time’ he said bitterly.

This man is none other than Loki. He looks at the sky and his eyes could see the struggling Generals of Pandemonium

Wang Jian and Athena who was on the sky of course did not fall unconscious.

They all have their own Willpower.

They do not know how to project it outwards and they do not possess such iron and unshakable will yet but….they all least have a sliver of Willpower.

That is why they could still float on the sky without falling down like a broken doll not to mention the Will Intent did not intent to cause harm.

But just because it did not intent to do harm, unintentionally this Will Intent is too powerful for the majority of people in Pandemonium who is not an expert of the level of Wang Jian, Athena, Freya or the others.

They all fall down where they stand, as their eyes unable to see the true visage of Azief Will Intent that is enduring the Will of the World.

Their mind could not even imagine the face of that projection. It was like seeing God. And those who see God would see madness.

Their Will is weak so when they lay eyes upon Azief Willpower projection they could not endure it and fall down.

Loki…out of everyone understands Willpower. Out of all Sovereign he was only below Azief in terms of Willpower.

Even Raymond with his Heart of Justice could not shake Loki Willpower.

After all Loki becomes a Sovereign even after all people say it is impossible after the Will of the World was ripped apart.

Loki could sense the World Energy surrounding that Will Projection.

And he could also sense the Universal energy from the stars supplying the Will Intent resistance against the Will of the World and Loki could even see a trace of runes underneath the skins of that golden projection.

There is an aura of Celestial and a power that seems to encompass everything from the projection.

But the one that make Loki intrigue was the fact he could sense a Killing Intent.

Willpower of this level should not have the ability to project Killing Intent but then Loki was reminded.

‘He has gone far in his attainment of the Asuras’

Loki knows Azief was in the Six Trials.

Loki truly hope that Azief succeeds in passing the Six Trials this time. After all Azief did once say to him that he regretted he did not pass the Trials.

At the time Azief was already one of the greatest being in the whole Universe. To say he regretted not having the Legacy of Azul…..means it was truly precious.

A few minutes later, the sea was calm and the whole world was at peace again.

Loki releases his hold on Sina waist but he pinches her butt before releasing and then flashes a smirk.

‘You!’

She tried to hide it but she was blushing. Loki chuckles and hearing him chuckles Sina puffed up her cheeks and slap him on his shoulder.

She went to the kitchen and calms herself down. He was smiling a while ago but then his face turns solemn as he looks outside.

Loki looks at the aftermath of the battle and sigh. He took a seat on one of the chair in the living room and closes his eyes, trying to search his memories.

Then he frowned.

‘This…..there is only two possibility on what happen’ he said to himself, his face turns grave and it was then he heard Sina shouted from the kitchen.

‘Loki, do you want green tea?’

‘Yeah’ Loki nonchalantly answered.

He was sitting inside Sina workshop, his robe is full of runic inscription that all seems to be used to avoid detection and surveillance as his eyebrows creased thinking on what just happened.

Loki eyes glow green as one of his animals send him an image of Azief returning to Pandemonium

Loki immediately touches the sleeves of his robe and the runes glows slightly.

There is not a bit of power leaking out of him. It was almost like he was not even there to begin with.

‘Haa’ He sighed. His eyes look outside the windows and he saw that the dome is slowly dissipating, like ash.

Looking at the protection dome slowly disappearing and the whole world becoming calm again Loki sighed.

Sina has finished brewing the tea as she comes to the living room and heard Loki sighing like he was holding very big burden.

Then she saw his eyes.

‘That gaze’ she said to herself and the smile on her face falters a bit.

Looking at Loki like this….Sina doesn’t know what to do.

She out of everyone knows that while Loki is usually playful in front of the group, he has a different side to him.

A darker side.

Sina did not see that dark side of him. Because he never show it to her. But she knows….it exist.

Sina sometimes saw a cold look in his eyes at certain times. It was a gaze…that is seeing something farther….something that is dark and tragic.

Every time she saw that gaze, she wanted to do something….anything….to somehow make it better

She shakes her head and then her smiles return.

‘Why the sigh?’ Loki looks toward the voice. He smiles a bit seeing that comforting smile on Sina face.

The voice was gentle and full of concern towards him. Loki shakes his head.

‘It is nothing Sina’

He saw the green tea and the smell filled the living room. The hissing continues a sound only Loki could hear.

The black raven on the tree outside the workshop suddenly started cawing.

Loki thought to himself.

‘Did Sasha…..manage to sense me? Haa…I guess I could not underestimate the Nightingale’ Even though he thought like this, nothing betrays his expression. There is no worries on his face as he is about to enjoy the green tea Sina brewed for him

Sina take a seat on the opposite side of his chair, looking at Loki as she put the green tea pot onto the glass table.

‘You’re not going to meet Azief?’ Sina ask. Loki looks toward the distance and bitterly smiles.

‘Let’s just say we are not seeing eye to eye right now.’

‘He is searching for you. You do know didn’t you?’ Sina said as she pours the hot green tea into a high quality jade-like cup.

Loki nodded and said

‘I know. But unfortunately I don’t want to be found. Loki smirk, showing that confident demeanor Sina is accustomed to

Sina shakes her head.

‘What are you planning this time Loki’ Sina ask. Outside, the black raven started cawing louder this time. Loki ignores it.

Loki chuckles

‘Why? Are you worrying about me Sina?’

Sina come to the table and put down the cup and slide it slowly to Loki

‘You know I am always going to be worried for you’ He looks at her and nodded slightly. Loki then said

‘Don’t be. Nothing is going to happen to me’ as he takes a sip from the cup. It was calming and it is exactly what he needs right now.

To calm his nerves.

Loki looks at Sina that sits on the chair beside him and feel warm in his heart. In the beginning when he first contacted her, she persuades him to come back.

But that was impossible. There are still many things he needs to do. He is slowly forgetting things. There is not much time for him

When Sina told him to come back, there is a part of him that wanted to.

But he said he can’t come back…at least not right now.

She knows there is something that happens when Azief and he talked after the Massacre at the Island of Peace but she did not know what it was.

She never told Azief that he is here.

But likewise she never told him anything about what happens in Pandemonium and she warns him that if he ever tries to put spies in here, she would inform Azief.

Thinking about it he could not help but feel that Sina…..is the only one that is protecting this family.

This family of misfits.

Loki took another sip as the runes he uses to protect this residence dimmed. Loki eyebrows creased.

He senses it

Many things right now is not in his calculations.

Azief is getting stronger. Thinking about it maybe it is better. Things seem to be progressing too fast.

He chuckles bitterly.

Loki knows the controls he have over events of the world would slowly disappeared the farther he goes.

But he didn’t know he would be face with it this early on the game.

The Time Crisis is close and only the opening.

Loki could not help but think he is slowly losing control of the events that is playing out in this world.

The shock it brought him when he saw that alien woman…..it signify things are clearly changing now.

‘Who is that alien woman?’ That is what he asked himself when he saw her.

In his timeline Azief never encountered such alien race like this on Earth. Even Loki didn’t know what kind of creature that is.

From what Loki gathered this alien came from the finger that Azief summoned but even that information he got from a mole he planted in League of Freedom.

But the weird thing is that in the future Azief also summoned that finger but nothing happened other than the hand coming down to crush it enemies.

But thinking about it again it might be because at the time Azief summoned that finger he was already a Sovereign.

But there is another possibility.

A frightening possibility.