“Your sins… you have atoned for them.” The judge declared.
A small gun-like item pulled out the markings from their necks and the judge spoke once more.
“Now you are free.”
Andrey immediately smiled and told the others, “Now we can go search for Godfrey!”
“Godfrey?” The judge asked.
Immediately, Andrey’s eyes opened wide “Do you know him!?”
The purple Altandian creature scratched its head and said, “Well, not really. But I have heard of him…”
“What have you heard!?”
“Why
The shade looked down the dark hole the humans were staring at just now, and after recalling his memory correctly, the Altandian who lured them here successfully assembled the story that would be told.“Yes, I’m not wrong… It must have been twenty years ago.” Thinking of those days the shady Altandian felt nostalgic, yet at the same time, an uneasy feeling consumed him.“I was frightened by the sudden appearance of the small creature. You might be guessing that we didn’t meet here on Alphilia. After all, my kind came here around eight years ago. Still, I was really fascinated by the amount of power this little creature had. The top of its short hair reached my stomach. But what really is of interest is something else. The first human I saw was a male. Scared of the unknown being before me, I attacked the human…”
Many footsteps were heard from the entrance of the cave.Col’Ar looked at the rocky entrance and thought “They have spotted me. Quick, hide, human!”A few hasty steps and they found the perfect cover behind big and old stalagmites. Col’Ar whispered, “Pray they don’t have heat sensors…” and turned off the lighting device.The footsteps from the invaders were louder, which meant they were now close. Though as much as Godfrey looked at the cave’s entrance, nobody was there. It was pitch-dark and no light would reflect from any surface to reveal any objects.Col’Ar realized the enemy had cloaking devices and tried to activate his heat sensor. As the suit with too many tools was connected to his mind, he realized th
Time had passed. Col’Ar and Godfrey found refuge in a mountain far away from the battlefield. It was a no-war zone. They were in a large building resembling a monastery. In a way it was. The residents were all spiritualists. Mages who were adept in meditation, self-conscience, and wisdom. Most importantly - it was one of the few places left that held onto ancient Altandian knowledge.The ability of a human to walk into this sacred realm wasn’t liked by any of the residents there. None of them had seen a human, but the grand monk recognized the species. He knew something, though maybe nobody would ever really know what exactly.Col’Ar really felt suspicious about how the grand monk could know of the existence of humans.The monks wouldn’t accept soldiers. War was the most foolish thing for Alt
The monk spoke, "Can we call our accomplishments 'progress' if we have no goal? Are they not just random specs of dust in the cosmic space then? If that makes your effort and life meaningless, a remedy to that is to simply set a final goal. Then each step taken shall be called 'progress', as a step of the ladder has been climbed… That is what your ability is fundamentally lacking."“How come?”“It is as you said. Abyss… is deep. Too deep. So much that neither Altandian nor human minds would capture within their apprehensive abilities. Call it… ‘infinite’...”Godfrey nodded and waited for more. So far he didn’t discover anything new.The grand monk drank from his tea once more and made a hand gesture, inviting
The shade turned towards the lot that was listening to them until now.“That is how I became what you see now. I do not regret it, but I have been corrupted beyond salvation.”Azazel was smart to ask, “Why? Doesn’t the bond still work?”Col’Ar was silent for a while, and then replied, “The bond is long gone.”Andrey felt a rush and was quick to question, “Does this mean Godfrey is dead!?”No reply came, “Tell me!” Andrey yelled.“The bond… has been severed. Not by death.” the shade replied.“What does that even mean!?” Andrey yelled o
"C-confess what?" Dea'n'ha wondered, stuttering."When I say my hand hungers… Something strange is happening. I am starting to black-out. I feel the need to drain Col'Ar like I drained Levi the Necromancer… Aluca's father." Andrey explained.Niko looked at him and felt an uneasy feeling, "I just want to feel reassured, there's no chance you're gonna come at us, right?"The cross-bearer didn't reply. Instead, he insisted, "Just follow me and let's make this quick. I don't know what will happen to me if this feeling goes on."Andrey started walking very fast while holding onto his right arm. He felt like it was burning. It needed something, and it would deliver punishment if it didn't receive it. “Wake up! Wake up! Andrey, pull yourself together! Listen to me! Can you hear me?”A voice resonated in the hollow darkness.“I need you to listen to me!”The man’s voice once more cried out.Who is this? Where am I?Andrey looked around.Unable to find his body, only his voice existed by speaking his thoughts. “Where are my arms?”“I can’t… look around.”The man’s voice once more yelled out, “Andrey!”Who is yelling?Makiya 154. Back to Earth
Ah. That… Kind of hurt. Andrey thought as he rubbed his right shoulder, which took a good deal of the impact damage.He stood up and looked around, finding himself in a blue forest fire. That's my magic power. I am sorry for the trees, but if I hadn't released a big deal of it to push myself and fight against gravity, I would be a real riddle to the medical experts.He felt okay. The numb pain in the shoulder wasn't too great. In fact, it was already fading away.Andrey took a deep breath and walked out of the dying down blue fire. As he advanced down the mountain, he spotted a red light blinking in the sky. That, along with the sound it made, convinced Andrey it was a helicopter. "Probably the ne