On the Brink of Escaping Sanity

Fate. It is truly a wonder how the works behind that one particular word just happen. Most people cannot fathom to understand what fate is. They blame everything on it, and I am truly in a dilemma on whether the world needs to be renewed or it just takes time. Rebirth, chaos, destruction, then the cycle begins once more. An endless loop of life and death and the one suffering of it all is the world.

Every sunrise, millions of people would witness it, taking in the sight before them and go on with with their lives. Then there was its setting, where the moon will rise--the world revolving around the concept of numbers. Time. Another one that which people cannot fathom. Numbers decide the way of life, and numbers also mark the end of death. No one understands what fate and time truly are, even I cannot exactly grasp the perfect understanding behind it. I can only feel its power surging inside me.

Yet I am but one of the lonesome creatures. I do not have the rights to meddle between the process of life and death. No, that seems wrong. I'm making myself seem like the one holding the domain of time. I can meddle, I always meddle. After all, I cause the fates of those who go through the cycle of rebirth and destruction. But having this power, no, wanting this power--I must not meddle with those fates I have already tapped.

"Oh?" I tilted my head, leaning myself over the couch behind me. "How strange." My lips arched into a smirk, placing my leg over another as I crossed my arms.

Long grayish-white hair seemingly translucent against the light, eyes in contrast to fallen ashes lighting up like they hid embers beneath them. There were no need for words, the stare she was giving the moment she walked into that door was enough to tell me what made her come here, now throughout all these ages. Still, it is a bit saddening that she chooses to watch where it can hurt more rather than just taking her pace with me. After all, time is on her side.

"Not gonna offer your visitor some drink?" She smiled, setting herself on the couch opposite to mine.

I lifted my hand, a bottle of wine appearing in an instant, pouring itself over a wineglass on her side of the table. The bottle disappeared, ice cubes then summoning themselves inside her drink. She inhaled the scent of the wine, sighing in pleasure after she took a sip. I smiled watching her enjoy as I put my chin atop my palm, my elbow setting on the table between us.

"How many years has it been, Athanasía?" I started, swirling the cup filled with black coffee on my other hand.

"Honestly, I lost count. It would always feel as though it was just yesterday I last saw that mischievous glint in your eyes."

"As much as I enjoy your company," I gulped the last batch of my coffee, the caffeine pumping up my body. "Surely, you aren't just here to reminisce with me."

"There's nothing to reminisce about in the first place."

"My, always going after my feelings."

"I speak of the truth."

I sighed, snapping my fingers and just like that, the cup was refilled with coffee once again. "So, what's with the sudden visit, dearest friend?"

She looked down, clanging the ice against the glass which created that sound upon her silence. "It has been...so long since you last tap into anyone."

"Oh, so you're here for that."

"Why must her fate be like that?"

"You've taken a liking to her."

She frowned, now looking so serious at me. "What?"

"Why do you seem to blame me for every fates you dislike out there, Sia?" I took another sip, the coffee tingling my tongue. "It's not that I cause each one of them."

"But I certainly know her fate is your work." She clenched her fist.

I chuckled. "She already has a twisted fate. I just hmm...amplified it a little."

"You always do this for fun."

"Well, it is fun. But my reason for tapping her fate isn't just for mere entertainment."

"What are planning now?"

"Do not give me those searching eyes, Athanasía." I waved my hand, dismissing her worries. "Do not fret, you like her, do you not? I like her myself too. The pillars that govern over all life and death, do you know of it?"

"Time. Fate." She stated, even hesitant on saying so. "That's us."

"There's emotions too."

Her eyes widened for a moment, then slamming the glass back onto the table. For a second there, I was worried she'd break the glass and hurt herself. But my concerns are unfounded, her gaze now filling me with glares. While I do love inciting reactions from her, it's always no good to actually making her angry.

"How can emotions even govern over life and death?"

"It feels the world. It stimulates life and silence death. Imagine that power, Athanasía." My face then turned serious. "Power that can destroy the world if she wishes for it so. Power that can destroy the cycle of rebirth and destruction. Power that manipulates all of living things."

"Do not meddle with her humanity any more than you did with her fate!" She yelled, standing up.

"You're meddling with her fate too, are you not?"

"That's because..." she paused, unable to find the right words.

"You of all people should already know how dangerous she is when left alone." I refuted, matching the intensity of her gaze.

"Is that why you tapped into her fate? For her fate to lead to us?"

"And thanks to your meddling everything might just change. I don't even know what her fate is anymore. You know how my power loses its effect as your power against mine."

"Our powers collided and as a result--"

"No. Her fate is changing, yes, but there are still traces of it left. She will die. She must, and she knew of it. Reason why she had let her own daughter end her out of all people. She had set a stage, she planned everything out, all for her daughter to be renowned as a hero who had slaughtered a monster. She's a lonesome creature, just like us." I smiled, sadly, watching her sit back down probably with thoughts and memories of her past she would never share. "The reason why I tapped into her fate was so her potential won't be wasted, not because I pity her."

"Of all people you could twist fates with, why her?"

"I told you, her ability to sense emotions is just too great and not because she is a Cursed Blood. The blood running inside her...hmm think of it as an additional boost, a decoration."

"You're speaking riddles."

"She could have been born as a demon, a dragonborne, or could have been born in a normal family with no special blood, but Fate chose her to be a human, a Cursed Blood at that. She was meant to live a miserable life, she was meant to die with life of suffering. She was meant to feel a small dose of joy only to be replaced by agony tenfold."

"Still...to twist an already threaded fate..."

"Think about it, Sia." I stood up, the room suddenly beginning to turn dimly. I waved my hands on the air, as though my fingers were tracing something that wasn't even there. Each movement caused a glow, each in different colour.

"I am."

"If it weren't for me altering her fate, she would have had died an early age without even having to bore an offspring, don't you agree so? It was I who helped her set that stage so she could die in the hands of her daughter. But you meddled. You changed her reality by bringing the daughter and rest back in time. Do you even realize how much of my works have gone to waste?"

"Because I am against it."

I shook my head in dismay, strings in neon lights appearing all around us. "So you do realize what I'm doing."

"Altering her fate is one thing, but meddling with her humanity? That's against the rules!"

"Rules?" I turned to face her, amused by her annoyed reaction. "We govern both life and death, we govern the world, and I make rules however I see fit."

"Why all of the sudden?"

I closed my eyes, letting my irritation disappear before opening them. "She will die either way, I'm merely helping her ascend to being someone not even gods can do injustice."

"You're bringing her to our ranks."

"She is powerful. Power that not even the world can comprehend. As she is now," I sighed. The strings then formed into a ball of crystal, the luminous glow of it enlightening the dim room. "She is still far from it. I'm guiding her however I can, just like how you show up like a ghost by her side whenever you want to."

"No. You don't understand her."

"And you claim you do?"

"She wants to die to have peace, she wants silence--"

"And silence shall I give! Once she dies, she will claim her rank among us not as a human nor a god, above them even. Stand atop life and death, she will awaken her real power and become one of us. See my point Sia, she is but another lonesome being deprived of those who can truly understand her."

"You're saying that's us." Her tone was sarcastic, a hint that she's already on a brink of anger. "Funny, as how things stand, you're far from the one who could understand her. She will die and that's that. Do not meddle with her humanity--"

"She will die and she will claim her place among us here, not in that mess of a world. You want her to stay as a human? Why? What did humanity bring her? Nothing but unfairness as it did to us!"

"You're just lonely." She mumbled. I was taken aback by what she said, looking away almost as immediately. "I am lonely too. We both are. You just see ourselves in her. Bringing her here after death will only make her suffer more. You feel so lonely that you twist people's fates."

"And you feel lonely as well as much that you watch them unendingly through time." I sat back on the couch, my lips then meeting the edge of the cup, the black liquid falling right through my throat. "She is lonely just as we are, Athanasía. Only power can help her realize that the world, the people, they are all different from her. That she is special."

"Power only makes one lonelier."

"Even at the end, we always see things differently. You have always been against me."

"That's because you love loneliness too much that you hated parting with it when in truth, you just fear escaping that loneliness for you might not be able to see yourself then."

"And you hate being lonely that you try so much to escape from it only to fail every single time you make yourself feel warm." I replied, hastily.

"You just love messing with fate."

"And you're just too kind even with the pain time brought you."

Our silence dragged our eyes back to the glowing crystal ball, images then flashing. Pale, blue eyes...I wonder if Ke'ala herself is aware of what those simple gazes could bring anyone who falls into them. Her life, still, is far from what she could reach--if she only desire ascension. I truly only wish that she finds her true identity amongst the chaos the word centered her in--that she doesn't have to answer to those burdens.

Because the world does not deserve such powerful, lonely being, as it did not deserve us.

The uneasiness was swelling in the air, the constant anxiety and hunger for destruction as though orchestrating another war. May it be humans, demons, orcs, or any other races--they are all the same. Yet they judge each other, yet they discriminate one another, and still at the end...there will always be that part in their hearts that screams for selfishness. It's pitiful, really. Thinking how the world could have been better if it weren't for all those negative emotions.

However, as I stood above the bronze platform, watching the cinders burn through the wind, feeling the heat hovering over the spreading fire--could the world be called perfect without these trifling events that have shaped history people have known until now otherwise? A world without negative emotions... how boring would that world be? How empty it would actually feel? But is a world filled with pursuits of endless battles better than an empty one?

"Ke'ala? I've been looking for--" she stopped herself, noticing my silence. "Where have you been these past hours? And those wounds...they look horrible.'

I turned around, looking at Irona. "I wonder."

"Is something wrong?" She frowned, closing herself. I lifted my hand, stopping her.

"Nothing I know of." My gaze wandered around, again with the cries that hinted hunger for blood. "Another broke out, so it seems." I added, referring to the distant noise of fights.

"More reinforcements from the earlier battle against those blue orcs came. Sinabi ni Adalya na inaasahan naman nila ito pero mukhang matatalo sila ayon sa mga nangyayari."

I nodded, hearing sudden loud footsteps nearing over our direction. The trees were swaying violently, black smokes raging over the screams of the air. My senses were sharp, the emotions my body was sensing were clouding even my own. I could feel them, each single one of those feelings surging through my veins, going along the rush on my blood. Spiritual energy flooded in me, and I wonder then why it doesn't feel as painful as absorbing emotions usually give without the relic Gïzë. As though... that's right, as though the emotions were mine in the first place.

Blue-skinned orcs easily surrounded us with their huge sizes. They were speaking something I don't understand, not that I was planning to know either way. Probably another monologue about us being humans. Humans do attract orcs after all. It would be difficult to handle their numbers if we were to stay at one place for a long time. Still, there are around seven of them around us, raising their weapons in... threat?

One orc yelled something in orcish language, leaping overhead with its sword made of stick-together bones lifted, preparing to land it on us. Other orcs ran to our positions, visible hunger showing on their smirks which made me sigh. Everything seem to have come in slow motion then. I ducked, bending my body forward as I avoided the sword striking an impact on the ground behind me. I stretched out my arms, grabbing the orc's wrist which I used to hurdle myself up.

I twisted my body, my feet kicking the blue orc right at his face. The sudden attack made him lose his balance, making him unable to dodge an incoming sword which was supposed to hit Irona if she hadn't dodged. The sword from the other orc hit the one I was clinging onto, the bone-made weapon plunging deep into his chest. I jumped down, backing away as I met Irona just beside. The other orcs were enraged, now charging blindly towards us.

Until a figure drove himself in front, his own sword blocking a bigger weapon. The ground beneath cracked into a small crater, the soil loosening down as though it had always been soft. The figure pushed the orc away, the latter hitting the rest of the orcs which caused them all to fall. The man placed his sword on his shoulder, tilting his head in amusement as one orc stood along with the others.

"Having trouble dealing with creatures from Wonderland, Alice?" He smirked.

"Again with the horrible name, Salem." Napabuntong-hininga na lamang ako. "I dislike owing people, but you should know I wasn't having trouble with them in the first place."

"Is that so?" He slashed his sword, a gust of wind was created from that simple action which drove the orcs away, their bodies hitting the lines of trees behind them. "Ah, a tsundere?"

"Imposible. Ni hindi nga siya gumagamit ng enerhiya." Irona mumbled, her suspecting eyes scanning the man in front of us.

"Tsundere?" Hindi ko pinansin ang namumuong katanungan sa mukha ni Irona.

"A word from the East." He chuckled. "But they aren't opponents you can beat without mana, Ariel. Of course, except me who doesn't rely on mana usage at all. My body's used at using raw strength to draw out my innate natural power. At this point, you're only going to get hurt."

"I can handle my--"

Interrupting me with his sword raised towards the direction of the incoming blue orcs, he spoke, "plus, you must be drained from the events of earlier. You may not feel tired, but your body will eventually catch up to the time you lost in that place. You will soon feel exhausted, it's better not to force yourself."

He easily cut down an orc's arm, the big creature screaming as he lose blood painted in blue. His speed was no joke either. It's almost as though I was watching Andrei herself battle. That former Elite leader would usually fight without using energy, reason why she could outmatch me in terms of speed and strength even with using my own energy.

Saying I've already long surpassed her is impossible. With her already deteriorating health, she would purposely hold back between our trainings to preserve her strength. And this man might even be faster than her. Knowing the fact that I'm still far ahead, I feel unsettled. Naaalala ko ang mga nangyari kanina, at hindi ko mapigilang hindi mainis sa sarili ko.

Lights were glowing so brightly enough that my eyes couldn't keep up. There, even just for that moment, I wished for darkness to relieve myself off that glow, to relieve myself of that blindness and as I closed my eyes, even there I couldn't find that darkness. It was all the same regardless whether I open nor close my vision, a blend of yellow and white illuminating everything that they were painful. Too painful.

My skin, as though being burned, were opened with cuts with sharp rays penetrating them like needles. My mind throbbed, the heat raging inside me that it strangely felt nauseating, as though I was being hovered up through the air with nothing to cling on to. I began sweating, and they were cold like being wrapped by ice contradicting the heat building up inside. My voice cracked as I screamed, my heart threatening to burst, an eruption that has yet to come.

"For a child to desire darkness just as much as she desires light... you never fail to amuse me, Ke'ala." Came after that soft, deep voice was a giggle, making my skin crawl.

"Even at the end, this mortal cannot see past this light." This time, the voice was that of a man, thunderous and bold.

"No mortals can truly do." Unlike the other two, the third voice was pleasant, sound of an uncaring tone.

"Who was it that granted her the sacred passage?"

"Does it matter? Any mortal basked under this light always burns anyway."

"I did owe her once for obliterating those druids. Time always did pass quickly contrary to the truth of it."

"Is it you then, Morrigan?" The bold voice accusingly questioned.

One orc landed a punch right beside him, going right underneath the other orc and used the opportunity to slash its weapon onto the blue creature's knee. The four remaining enemies continued to try their best to hit him. Salem buried his sword on the ground, jumping up and land his weight on its hilt which made the ground tremble. It created another crater, only that this time it was far bigger. The ground under the four orcs trembled down, burying them through the thickness of the falling soil with their yells unfounded.

"Phew." He breathed, sheathing his sword. "That was a nice exercise--" he stopped when he turned around, facing

Irona's dagger which she quickly pulled out from the larp attached on her thigh. She must have had gotten herself some weapon when looking for me. Or it was possible Adalya had given her one. That female verdent orc might act like she hates us, but she's plenty soft inside.

"My, is this how humans thank each other now?" Despite that, Salem was grinning. "Nice companion here, Tweety Bird."

Although annoyed with the new name, I stepped between them, taking down Irona's wrist away from the man. "Don't start something you wouldn't be able to finish, Irona."

She frowned, taking a step back but still clenching her dagger. "I could if you hadn't stepped in."

"We did owe him the trouble of taking those orcs out."

"... this is tiresomely troublesome." Against her will, she put her dagger back in its place. "But he's suspicious."

"I never did say he isn't."

"Such hostility." The man sighed. "But you should run along now. Gathering here will only attract another group and it's better if you go on and hide until things get better."

"Don't underestimate me, Salem." Upon saying that, the man observed me.

He grinned, a set of white teeth showing with bliss. "Of course, kid. If you're able to get to Zelestia, you're a force to be reckoned with."

"Zelestia?" Irona asked, even more suspicious now. She was about to voice our her questions when I touched her shoulder, making her flinch.

"We're going."

Without batting one last look, I turned around, forcing Irona to follow behind me. Getting involved with that man... something tells me that isn't a very good idea and my premonitions are mostly right, there's no point in going against it now--however interesting may that man is. He's strong--powerful even. Without my spiritual energy, I'm just a normal being now deprived of anything I can use to win. I clenched my fist at the thought. I'm not weak, but at this moment I can't help but think I am.

Places where energy can be used are scattered here in Orc Country. They rely on raw strength and speed to create power, they don't use any kind of energy. It's ironic, actually. While the world outside is overflowing with both pure and dark energy enough to even threat all life with destruction, most realms don't even have half of it. May it be the Spirit Land, this country--all because people are divided.

This division ages ago throughout all history was the reason mana was flowing unnaturally in a single world, depriving some realms with that same energy despite being located in the same universe. My visit in Zelestia told me things I shouldn't have even known as a human. The more powerful I seem to become, the more my own humanity disappears and the more difficult the responsibilities the heavier the burden being placed upon my shoulders.

Looking at that restless sky, covered in smoke which hindered the sight of those glowing stars...I could only wonder when I would be able to watch them freely without thinking about all of these. No one shares my pain, for they know nothing about me. They only know Caelesti of the Unknown, the woman who set her goals to destroying half of the world to render it chaos--all to set a stage for her own daughter to become a hero who slayed a monster.

She was never evil to begin with, she only became the true embodiment of it upon the first view of her daughter's cries, upon the realization that the world will never accept even if she were to start a new life. She did it all for the sake of a child she believed she loved more than the burdens she had been placed with. Pitiful. So pitiful that I'm beginning to hate it. So what if the world doesn't accept her? Must she bring suffering to those around just for the world to at least accept the existence of her child?

Tsk. I will not make the same mistakes. Because unlike her, after everything ends...I will rest.

I spread my arms in an attempt to grab something, just to stop this feeling as though I was being spun around the air. I bit my lower lip, blood dripping down due to my futile struggle of preventing a scream. My skin opened like a sheet of paper, each light passing through appeared as though electrical surges that shook even my bones. Smoke exuded out of my body, the scorching heat grilling my flesh every passing moment.

"She is but a pitiful child, it appears so."

"Even us greater beings cannot do anything to her." The voice let out a small breath. "The thread of Fate hangs protectively around her, truly a fearsome one."

"Enough! Send the cryptids and banish her out before she grasp a hold of our sacred identities. Opening the Gates for a mere mortal, how preposterous!" His booming tone sounded enraged, making the entire space tremble.

"Opportunities such as this do not come by often, Cernunnos."

"Amaterasu," a warning. "You do love playing games, but even so! This might cause your place."

"Unlike you, I do not particularly like playing gods when even the Greeks do not recognize us as one."

"Let them hide behind the walls of Olympus. They never did have the audacity to rage on a direct war. Not with the Grimoire's existence lost in a sea of diverse beings down below."

"It is truly a wonder how they have yet found Zelestia, or perhaps they have already did. Keeping quiet had always been what best described them."

"Setting those Greeks aside, are you not in the slightest bit interested in this particular mortal, Cernunnos?"

"Hmm... you are associated with fate, Morrigan. Contend yourself with your own matters."

"You are getting old." The goddess sighed. "Live yourself up."

"Hmph." He snorted. "A foolish sight."

Barely even hanging myself through the pain, I let out my own spiritual energy. I knew it was never enough to shield myself against the light, but it was a worthy try. The light, in my expectation, did absorb the energy that was constantly exuding out of me. I gritted my teeth, wrapping my arms around me as I trembled in exhaustion at the feeling of my energy being drained out.

"Truly amusing. However, it is a futile struggle. This light is basked in heavenly power, energy that any beings lesser than us cannot comprehend nor feel. Along with your body being burned, releasing your mana will only hasten your death."

"The process of death is never easy, the best way to feel less pain is to simply accept it."

I once again closed my vision, screaming--ignoring their voices that buzzed like bees around my ears. In the end, even the gods underestimate my existence--in the end, even they cannot understand the barriers that seperate me from those 'lesser beings'. Being in this place, sharing the same space as them, hearing them directly, sensing this incredible energy... I realize that I can ascend, that I am much more capable than than the world gives me credit for.

My heart skipped a beat, once... twice--until it completely halted. Breath slowly left my body along with my life force disappearing before me. One second, two, three...then came the fourth and the fifth. It was as though I was watching my own soul leaving that vessel. I felt free, unhindered by the limitations my humanity had marked. Another minute, with one final push, I channelled the last batch of my energy out, leaving my life force thoroughly sucked out dry.

"What's this?" The god, Cernunnos, held a wondering tone. "Zelestia's space is changing."

My breathing rose, my consciousness returning in its rightful state and I was bound by the limitations of this body for another yet again. I could feel my own heart throbbing as though an empowered engine, tweaking my blood in awakening. Finally, emotions swirled through the surrounding spaces and I wasted no more time in grasping them. With one final scream, I opened my eyes, the intense light creating visible tears. Energy poured inside me like they were in a race, filling every corner of this body.

It was then I began to see past the illuminating light. My eyes widened, for everything was replaced by another beautiful scenery that made my skin tingle. Huge palaces stood before the horizon painted in a blend of dawn at the brink of a starting night. Stars shone as though crystals thrown at a distance while a setting sun was carved behind the tall buildings.

The sound of water rushing gently produced a pleasant melody along the rustles of the chilling breeze where white pigeons flew right by. Soft gasses of clouds enveloped the place, and everything was hovering on the air--without any sort of platform. Sharp laughter reverbed behind me, making me turn around almost in a hurry.

And there, I met a god.

She looked more human than anything I've seen before. White, jaded skin covered in a long, seemingly tribal dress--a kimono, a traditional clothing from the Easts. Bright, golden ribbons fluttered with constant motion around her. A huge crown laid atop her head, black hair falling easily down almost reaching her knees.

The Goddess moved through the wind with gracefulness, her right hand slightly extended beside as another yellow glowing orb of raw energy appeared. Her eyes found mine in interest, they were sparkling as though desperate to dismantle my entire existence to satisfy her own growing curiosity.

"See? She defies the imposible." She giggled, moving closer.

"Do not stare at her like that, Amaterasu."

My thoughts drifted back to the present, Irona stopping on her tracks with an alarming gaze directed around her. She let out a deep breath, finally stepping over a fallen log. I could feel her anxiousness, just hidden behind the neutral expression on her face. I halted my own steps, observing even the tiniest detail on her actions.

"You aren't used at being in a battlefield, are you?" I questioned, making her sigh for another time.

"What gave me away?"

"You're strangely perceptive, too anxious. You kept looking above, feeling the tension of the place. You act like you're going to get attacked if you don't scan with your head around." I sat on the log, finally feeling the exhaustion my body has been under.

She crossed her arms. "I'm more of a marksman."

"Ah, so you prefer distance. No wonder you seem restless moving around with battles raging on everywhere."

"You've been ignoring what's happening, Ke'ala." She tapped her finger over her elbow. "We've wasted too much time here already. But then again, your natural strength hasn't even returned to its peak yet. How long must we even stay here?"

I lifted my hand above, feeling the emotions that enveloped the visiting wind. "I need those black tourmalines."

"For what?"

"A replacement."

"Can you please stop complicating your answers?"

I smiled. "Answers always are, if one digs even deeper."

"You're impossible." She said, giving up.

"Tourmalines are like lacrimas. A gem that absorbs energy, and it won't stop absorbing from the source until the source itself is empty. Lacrimas store energy so that the energy can be reused. But tourmalines are opposite. They store energy and the energy stored inside cannot be used. Instead, the energy vanishes when the gem itself is destroyed."

"I've never heard of anything that dangerous."

"Because black tourmalines are rare, very so. Enough that it is referred to as a mere legend. Although it exists, nobody knows what the tourmaline is capable of."

"Yet you do."

"One of my aids is very interested in its study."

"Why must you acquire so many of these gems?"

"You're smart, Irona. Think about it. Why does Caelesti of the Unknown need those tourmalines?"

"You said it was for replacement. But I don't know what for and why. This must have something to do with the World's Organization."

"You're on the right track, at least."

"Those black stones are spawned from killing monsters, base on how Adalya acquired them. Gumagana ang nether energy mo sa mga halimaw na iyon dahil pareho lang ang energy composition ng katawan nila sa'yo. Ibig sabihin ay ang tourmalines na sinasabi mo ay gawa sa sarili mong enerhiya."

"Correction. It's made up of the same energy, not necessarily mine."

"We can always just kill more of those monsters."

"They're bigger, stronger. Even if my ability works on them, I would end up exerting more effort and weaken my current state even more."

"So that's why you need the orcs." She shook her head, as though erasing a previous thought. "Helping this tribe so they can owe you, that's what you meant by assisting them."

"I could see a but coming after that statement."

"But in their eyes, you're just a powerless human. They won't believe nor even hear you out. Kinakatakutan ka man ng karamihan, pero wala kang kapangyarihan dito sa Orc Country." She's now even tapping her foot on the ground, thinking deeply. "You need to show them what you're capable of. A plan to make them dependent on you."

"I knew I like you for a reason." I chuckled.

She's productive, always direct to the point. She talks less but she has a smart mouth when it comes to serious business. So this is Iyana's daughter, huh? That man too. Although the sudden memory of him made me frown a little, I ignored it, the images instantly disappearing from my mind. I stood up, my eyes closing for a moment before continuing on with the road--following where the sound of clashes rang the most.

Time, indeed, moved differently in this space for that cool voice came with the sun which had already completely set, the night sky growing above. A ball of arkness wrapped itself around the nearing figure--as though a robe preventing anyone from seeing what was carved beneath it. In a sudden motion, the black aura disappeared, absorbed into a tiny layer in front of the female being. The darkness turned into a passerine bird--a raven.

It was then how another greater being appeared, her face clouded in a slight amount of light radiating from the earlier goddess, Amaterasu. Eyes were closed, hair as dark as the raven that settled on her shoulder. Long, red fabric hang over her slender body, leaving a large opening on her front which showed more skin contrary to the past god. Black feathers covered her breasts, lining down to each side of her hips, and there was that facade of seriousness exuding from her face.

"I advice you all to keep your voices down and not to attract unnecessary attention. The rest of the Celtic and Norse Gods will not take this encounter lightly." Her eyes shot open, giving me a comprehensing look. "Especially knowing how a mortal managed to set herself inside Zelestia, they will not sit idly by."

"Most of the Norse are on Asgard and the Celtics barely leave Otherworld. Only wandering gods like us love dwelling in this realm." Amaterasu replied, sun of brightness wrapping around her still even with the night.

"Do not be complacent." There came that booming voice, sounding behind me. I turned myself around, alarmed.

The slim moon in crescent stood above him on a far distance, stars shining brightly upon his presence. Hair, dyed in the same colour as the ones over the background, long enough to have reached his broad shoulders. He wore some sort of a headdress--or perhaps what he'd call a crown--layered in green plants, seemingly growing longer above in sync with how time past rather quickly.

Most of his line of sight was covered by the leaves left fluttering over his forehead, yet that did not stop me from sensing the sternness of which his gaze held against mine without failing to notice the small glowing circle just under his collarbones, a dot in the middle, circling on his naked upper body. Skin, paler in comparison from other gods, radiated coldness, as though he was a dead all along.

"How fearless. To answer my gaze without an ounce of hesitation, how fearless." He whispered, his voice almost echoing. "For a mere mortal child to face us greater beings and to even witness the Dwelling of the Gods... she must not leave Zelestia alive."

My ears perked up at his words, my eyebrow lifting up with my hands clenched. "Is that supposed to be a threat, oh 'Mighty God'?"

Amaterasu beside me laughed, her hand reaching for my shoulder in an instant. The sudden touch burned my skin even more so than the light before, too much that a part of my flesh was completely shredded off. My knees getting weak that before I had even realized it, I was already down below...kneeling. Clouds past by my body, they felt cold, like gasses seeping deep through my bones. But I was hot inside, my eyes growing wide as the rush of blood hinted the rising anger surging up.

"Know your place, child." Her giggles had already haunted my mind then. "Lesser beings must always be on their knees before us, with their heads hang low." She grabbed my head, smacking it down with her foot stepped on it.

"Amaterasu." Morrigan warned. "You are playing with fate. Her fate specifically."

"What can this mere mortal even do?" She wondered, asking herself innocently.

"She entered Zelestia when mortals would have had already died along the way to through the Gates. She saw past through the Light Barrier when even the cryptids burn to nothingness. She was able to discern our identities when our worshippers pray for us to show ourselves to them."

"Hmm she's special, is what you speak." Amaterasu sent a pole of light sinking through my shoulder. I gritted my teeth, moaning in pain. "I am curious, you see. So what if she is? What makes her so different from the rest of those filthy mortals?"

"Even so, what she did was unorthodox." Cernunnos said, walking around. "She emptied her own life force in the middle of a near-death phase and blended her massive resource to the energy here in Zelestia so that she could absorb them back to her body. Impressive, but unwise."

"It was I who opened the entrance. I simply did not expect her to reach past even the Third Gate." Morrigan replied, frowning at my state. "But I should have expected as much, for someone favoured by the Prime Sovereigns."

"P-Prime Sovere--" Amaterasu halted, my hand gripping her feet. She backed away, her eyes growing wide--eventually clutching her head with her hands. "I...I--this is impossible."

I bent my knees as I straightened up, my eyes directed to the kimono Goddess. With my feet pushing myself in acceleration, I layered my energy around my palms. She backed away again, but it was too late. My speed caught up with her, my hand pointing up at her neck in rage.

"I see her now." Irona said, getting me out of my thoughts which were already seemingly far. "That's their Chief over there," she pointed her finger.

The Chief she was talking about was mercilessly slamming down huge beasts and besting up enemy orcs who were coming right at her from different directions. She moves fast, enough to make her opponents loosen their holds on her and she proved her strength as well, by simply grabbing the blue orc and  throw him over the rest of his group.

Irona clutched my clothes, pulling me down as we hid behind a big wooden crate, almost ignoring the on-going war between the green and blue orcs all around us. She leaned over, mumbling how troublesome this was. She was even more anxious now, tapping her fingers on her forehead while closing her eyes.

"What are you thin--"

"Shhh! Huwag mo muna akong kausa--"

"I will and I could." I sternly said, grabbing her full attention. "What kind of weapon do you usually use? Considering how Iyana can summon guns and all."

"...a sniper rifle." She smiled. "My favourite was a personaly customized one with 810/34 mm heavy-type barrel and a 30-round attached double-stacked magazines. It has a computer-aided optic scope. It's really long and heavy, reason why I tend to stay at one place on high grounds to see everything clearly. It shoots as silent as a breeze too, the quick-detaching sound suppressor doing its job."

"Did Iyana customize it for you?"

"Paano mo nasabi?"

I closed my eyes, remembering a memory from when we were back in the Academy. "She used to rant about those things. She even collected posters and created designs."

Iyana was supposed to have only one weapon, a gun. But because of her ability to open up spaces, she could summon these guns from different spaces as well, guns in which she had stored from one place so she could summon them. Just thinking of how she used to complain about little things and get tired, she never really did when it came to her gun addiction.

"She said it was disappointing she could only summon guns and not create them." I added, opening my vision again. "But you can open up realms and create guns. She must have felt so happy customizing one for you."

She looked away, a hint of pink spreading across her cheek. "Making me feel less anxious? Not a character that suits you."

I stood up, giving a small pat on her head, my fingers numbing at that feeling of energy. "Summon that favourite of yours. I'm heading out."

"Huh? What?" She panicked and was about to grab my clothes again when I pulled away, and it was then orcs turned their heads over me. "Ke'ala!" She hissed silently. "I can't summon with the energy scarce enough to even produce one."

"Well," I lifted my hand, summoning my dual swords. "Either you're just going to watch there or help, it's your decision to make."

"Do not be compulsive, child." Cernunnos was already beside me, kicking my stomach with his knee that I was left limping on the ground before I could reach Amaterasu. "To attack a god...how rude."

"Such disrespect!" Amaterasu was angry now, overwhelmed by the painful sensation throbbing on her skin. "What did you do?!"

I've stored all the pain that light barrier gave me earlier in the relic Gïzë which has become one inside me. I merely returned the favour. I didn't expect them to get all flustered. Despite her question, I kept my silence, sensing her irritation about to erupt. Intense amount of energy gathered around her, too intense that I suddenly nauseous all over again. The pain I felt from her disappeared, replaced by power the light wrapped on her body was giving.

"Die." Her tone contained venom, sending a huge ball of light to my position, too big that simply avoiding was impossible.

"You..." I muttered, slowly.

I settled back on my feet, strands of my hair falling forward. I stroke my arm forward, touching the ball. I screamed, feeling my bones enflamed by the incredible heat coming from inside. I could feel it. The emotions radiating from the energy of the attack, surging through my fingers, up to my body and it was as soon as I touched it that Amaterasu's attack vanished into thin air. Both gods backed away in surprise, making me chuckle.

"Gods?" I mocked, laughing now. "Oh please," finally turning serious, the rage inside me pulsing to the point that it had become too unbearable to bottle in. I twisted my broken hand, releasing a dozen more of those hot energy balls. "...you agitate me."

My swords were raised both at each of my side as blue orcs threw themselves at me, saving me the trouble of going to them myself. I tilted my head, my lips ranting out an unavoidable smirk.

"I guess they agitate me too."