Immortalis Fides: Lore - Church Militant

    After Pope Sylvantic's reign, one kingdom boarding Eastern Europe that was once called Germany hundreds of millions of years ago decided to take the remaining advanced weaponry for its own because no government body should hold it, not even the Church. At first, most people trusted them since they had the most people speak out against Sylvantic, but many distrusted them because they had taken justice into their own hands against Sylvantic on several occasions that they didn't always take credit for, and most of their people controlled the military and guard. Regardless of people's worries and support, this kingdom did whatever it wanted and got the chance to do it without pushback after the Great Betrayal. They were the first ones on the frontlines to defend humanity against the ratmen and sacrificed the most. They also were the ones who made defenses around the border separating the lands of ratmen and mankind and boldly made excursions into the wasteland only for their men to die in them.

    Because no one could contest its power, the kingdom took whatever it wanted as payment for its help, executed those it considered heretics and traitors, and occupied territories and buildings of importance all in the name of the greater good. They hastened their research into repairing the advanced technology of the past and were said to have used it against the ratmen on the border. Factions within the kingdom started to grow as some opposed what the kingdom had become, others said that they weren't doing enough, and some other groups were in between. Fights broke out between these groups until one day, a similar event to the Great Betrayal happened to this kingdom where a chain of explosions caused by the damage of advanced technology changed the land and its people. The vegetation and wildlife had grown twice as big with some of them being as tall as churches and become poisonous and its people now had green skin, jagged teeth, could eat the fruit that grew from its land, and were twice as physically strong as they were before.

     Because of this change and the lands not being as dangerous for normal humans to inhabit, many in the kingdom considered this change a blessing. In addition, their people could now enter the wasteland of Eastern Europe without any effect on them, which only further proved to themselves the validity of their virtue. The kingdom was now named Bernhard and its people were called orcs, named after the humanoid creatures of millennium-old fiction. Many of those in the Church were concerned by this change as the people of Bernhard were also more violent and demanding of them while others were happy that there was now a people able to strike within the ratman-infested wasteland, but at the end of the day, both could agree that this added to the many new changes of the present age and were wondering what else could happen, especially since those in the Holy Land held the last remnants of the space fairing age.

Immortalis Fides: Lore - The Great Treachery

    Due to the events of the Great Space War, the Earth was a wreck and the Vatican was no different as it had been a primary target, however, an area in Eastern Europe not too far from Constantinople was in relatively good condition. Because of this Pope Sylvatic, moved all of his clergy and the seat of the Pope to it along with the scraps of advanced weaponry in the hopes of repairing it and keeping them in his care. Sylvatic's papacy was one marked by degeneracy of both the sexually deviant and violent nature as he had taken advantage of the lack of technology to hide his sinful ways. The center of Catholicism became no better than a den of prostitutes with daily orgies and a place where Sylatic could invite his detractors so that he could kill them at his own pace and quietly dispose of their bodies. At the time, those who were still faithful to God could only pray for his conversion and hoped something would change since no rebellion against him could succeed because of the advanced weapons of Sylatic's guards.

    One day, during the many parties, something caused the explosives in storage to go off. Some say it was God's direct intervention while others say it was an accident caused by drunk partiers or the rats and vermin that were said to have lived in the basements. Regardless, a series of chain reactions and explosions shook the land and the entirety of the Eastern European region became a chemical wasteland that no human could enter. Soon after, since nothing could be done about those who resided in Eastern Europe, a funeral was held in honor of the lost souls, and a new pope was crowned who brought the Church and her people back to her roots and instilled a new age of peace. This age of peace came and went until rumors started circulating about rats who could speak and act like men.

    These rumors are thought to be nothing more than scary stories until more people start mysteriously disappearing and being killed. Eventually, physical evidence of the ratmen is brought forward to the Church's authority, and then a live ratman gives himself up so that he could speak to them. This particular ratman told the authorities that he was a normal human being until the explosions went off. Most died, however, others such as Sylvantic, his leadership, and followers were turned into ratmen. Sylvantic allowed this ratman to leave the wasteland to tell them that he was back to reclaim the Church that he thinks is rightfully his. The ratman continued to say that most ratmen aren't allowed to leave the wasteland and that people on the border of the wasteland are kidnapped to be forcefully added to Sylvantic's army. In addition, he said that more ratmen underneath the most important cities of the world have been spying on the Church's most important members.

    With this irrefutable evidence, the Church authorities decided to set up defenses along the border of the wasteland and root out the spies, however, on the same day of the ratman's testimony and the days after that, Sylvantic's army and spies assassinated key leaders of the Church and destroyed several settlements. This forced the Church's armies to scramble and after days of struggle, the army managed to push the ratmen armies back to the wasteland and clear out most of them from their cities, but after what happened, it is unclear whether or not they'll be able to handle a full-scale invasion, especially since this was just a taste of it, because of the unknown spies that still may remain under their very homes, and the hostility of the wasteland that no normal human can enter without dying.

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Collected in this book are the stories of the first exorcist and Ombra.

The first exorcist was Braxton, the king of Great Britain. Set during the Protestant Reformation, Braxton hangs the Pope and his clergy at the Vatican and then parties with his wives and allies, but as they enjoy themselves in the basilica, demons pick off each one of them until God makes Braxton the first exorcist as his penance and to fulfill his life's purpose. 

Secondly, the first Ombra was a nobody named Mar by God and Ruin by his parents and the locals who lives in the age before a proper Church was formed. On one faithful day, he is given seemingly limitless power with the catch being that only God can control the power Mar wields to bring justice to men and women of legend who bowed down to other gods. 

Each story is paired with Behind the Story details that show a few ideas that comprise each story.

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In the time of heroes and legends when there was no proper Church nor faithful people devoted to God, one unknown boy named Mar, or sometimes Ruin, is called by God to be an instrument of His will. He is given limitless power that God controls through him and is pitted against those he's admired for a mysterious purpose that will lead to the salvation of his soul in an uncomfortable way.

Exorcism of the Hollow: Like a Shadow: Chapter 3 – Fading Pride to Nothing

Chapter 3 – Fading Pride to Nothing

The world is being drowned in a constant rainstorm. Now I know why God has a group of people making an ark. As for everyone else, the rich and powerful stay in their castles and act as if nothing is happening while the lowly and poor struggle even more to get by and find high places like mountains to settle in since many farms and low-income areas have been ruined by the rain. In fact, the rain is so bad that some places have to be accessed by boat now because of the constantly rising water level. I don’t think I’ve missed the dry days more than I do now.

People are so afraid of the rain now that they’re beginning to build their own arks and rafts to build settlements on. Right now, I’m not too far from the ark made by the fellow worshippers of my God, but for some reason, my God has made my body stay a fair distance away from them. Since I’m not doing anything, I look at myself in the reflection of the water and admire the cool black mask I have.

“I wonder why the design is the way it is,” I wonder out loud.

“It’s a mask of shame that pays reparation for your sins,” I hear my God say.

“Huh? What sin?”

“Notice the two mouths on it and dull gold crown. These are representative of your two-faced personality.”

“What are You talking about? I’m not a dishonest person.”

“You say you want to serve Me, but do you do that because you love Me or because you want honor, fame, and to be known as a legend?”

“I want to serve You. It’s the right thing to do after all and is it so wrong to hope for some kind of reward afterward?”

“Love is no debt. You serve someone because you love them and the reward is the service itself. Everything that comes after that is secondary and a result of the person loving you back.”

“The reward is secondary to me, I swear!”

The rain seems to get worse as lightning and thunder fill the sky. Looking at the ground, I see that the water is noticeably rising slowly. I try to move my legs toward the ark but find myself unable to walk.

“What’s going on?!” I ask.

“You are to stay here and defend the ark as the water rises. Behold what’s ahead of you,” my God says. In the distance, I see hundreds of armed men and women charging this way. “You will be defending against them. The so-called heroes that you’ve been bringing justice to have made this battle easier for you.”

“What about my safety? Will I be able to get on the ark after the battle? Can I even defeat so many enemies?”

“The ark contains my most faithful. As for you, the waters of battle will clean your soul. We’ll see about the salvation of your soul after.”

My body readies itself for battle before charging at the approaching army. I guess there’s nothing more to be said. The salvation of my soul was mentioned but nothing about the saving of my life. Does that mean that this is where I die? Have I really been so sinful that my God is throwing me at His enemies to battle them and dispose of me by allowing me to drown out here? The intense battle I’m in distracts me from thinking about this question for now but it still gnaws at my mind. Even seeing the many heroes of renown and living legends isn’t enough to distract me from wanting to think about saving my life.

As the battle continues and dozens of people fall to the power of my God that is channeled through me, the water steadily rises and before I know it, the water level is passed my hips. Everyone is now wading through the water with some even choosing to ignore me and just make a run for the ark even as I cut down those close to them one after the other. I’m still a fair distance away from the ark and am tempted to try to move myself towards it. At this point, I must’ve killed hundreds of people and more are still coming, however, they are all slowed down by the water and some of them are retreating. The waters themselves are starting to become violent as large waves begin to form. They crash into the attackers and sweep some away in their tide.

Now, I’m standing on top of the water that was about to pass my neck. Looking back at the ark, I see that it is beginning to rise with the waves and is being carried by it away from me. My legs finally move towards it, however, dozens upon dozens of humongous waves are coming at me. Thankfully, my arms use their power to cut their way through them and my legs propel me into the air to fly through and over them. Everything seems like it’s going to work out in the end until I stop flying and get caught in the waves. Under the water, I see the people I was fighting against drowning and being eaten by sea creatures and monsters that seem almost as big as the ark and the biggest castles I’ve seen and that are as long as the walls that protect the biggest cities. My legs propel me upwards and allow me to stand on the water.

As I look around, I see that the ark has disappeared, and have no clue where it can be. My legs are no longer allowing me to fly or walk anywhere and I start to panic because of it. At least the waters are beginning to calm down along with the storm. This comfort is soon shattered as I see something large below the waters rise to the surface and then emerge. It causes the waves to ripple and seemingly makes the storm resume its ragging. This creature is comprised of wings, a body with a hole in its chest, and three heads with long serpent-like necks. One head seems to be made of gold with golden teeth, gold skin, yellow eyes, and a golden crown. Another head seems angelic with a halo around its head that has long flowing blonde hair. Lastly, the third head seems the most human with beige skin, black hair, and a gray crown. This last head reminds me the most of my own face because of how similar it looks.

“Who are you?” I ask the creature.

They all say in one voice while pointing at me, “We are the god that the men of the world bow down to. Many you have met and slain, who were legends, and the children of angels and men were our faithful, and now, only you remain on the earth besides those on the ark.”

“Your God has abandoned you but we are still here,” the golden head says, “All the honored men are dead, their legacies erased, the once great cities are rubble, and those who will find the rubble will not recognize them as pieces of architecture and art without a healthy use of their imagination. The manuscripts that detailed their stories are ruined and no one will tell of their accomplishments. You, however, can be the richest man alive and many will tell your story if you overtake the ark.”

“There’s not only that,” the human-like face says, “Kill the men on the ark, take their women for yourself, and your blood will be the blood of everyone who will survive the flood. You will have an eternal legacy.”

“In addition,” the angelic face interjects, “You will be known as the most virtuous man alive because you will hold the most power in the world and will get to define what is right and wrong. Many will make churches and statues in your honor and no god, not even your own, will ever be worshipped as much as you will be.”

“How will you gain the power to do this all you may be thinking?” all three heads say at once, “You will do this by bowing down to us. This is the only way to become powerful, a legend like you’ve always dreamed of. This is the only way to save your life.”

This is all too overwhelming.

“Decide. Time is short and you will soon be swallowed by the waves if you don’t accept our offer.”

I don’t know what to do.

“Your God has abandoned you to die. We are your only hope for salvation.”

I guess there’s only one thing to do as there’s always been. I let my God have control over my body and my arms move on their own to create a large wave that crushes both the creature and me. As I descend down with it, the mask that couldn’t be removed from my face falls off and sinks faster along with the creature. Both are swallowed by the darkness of the abyss, but for some reason, I stop in place. In the blink of an eye, I find myself in a garden that feels better to be in than the earth I was once on, though I wouldn’t call it Heaven for some reason. This must be the underworld.

Looking around me, I can for some reason recognize people as being the virtuous servants of my God with two of them being distinct since they were the first man and woman. These people welcome and congratulate me for making it here. They explain that this is the place where they must wait until our God comes for us to take us up to Heaven. I guess I was worthy of being saved after all. I’m fine with waiting down here knowing this though I do feel anxious to get to Heaven. In the end, I recognize that saving my life and becoming a living legend was a vain and silly goal to strive towards because the true goal of my life was to always serve my God and make it to Heaven to be at His side forevermore.

 

The End

Exorcism of the Hollow: Like a Shadow: Chapter 2 – Erasing the Legends

Chapter 2 – Erasing the Legends

Before me stands a man with only a half-human face with the rest of him being that of a slimy and slithering monster and a vaguely human head on one of his arms with long flowing black hair. He’s a legend that goes by the name Lucanus. When he was overcome with grief at the loss of his mother, he sought the monster of the seas, found a cave system that led to the bottom of the ocean, and spoke with the monster he was searching for. In exchange for worship, the monster granted his mother life by attaching him to his body. To this very day, he’s been worshipping the monster of the seas and converting others to do so.

Right now, I watch as he uselessly tries to get to me since my one arm has turned the floor around him into ice. Lucanus falls again and again on his face while never losing his will to continue. In fact, he might be getting angrier after every fall. This is both somewhat funny and sad to watch as a living legend struggles to even stand against me. What’s also strange for me to look at is the dark hole in his chest, which I can feel emanating an icy chill that’s colder than the ice he’s slipping on even though I’m standing far away from him.

Finally, after watching Lucanus slip and fall over and over again, my hand twists and moves to control the ice beneath Lucanus to make it jut up from the ground and impale his body before tossing it into the sea. Large tentacles then emerge from the sea and pull the city behind me into it. As this is happening, I am immediately teleported outside of it in an instant.

While watching the last buildings of the once immaculate city be pulled into the ocean, I say to myself, “Maybe my name should really be Ruin as my parents named me.”

“You are what I called you after I saved you from your family and orphanage. You are Mar,” my God says from behind me.

“I am glad that you saved me from being sacrificed to strange gods. I always have been.”

Still, I can’t help but feel as if the name Ruin fits me. My life’s story should also be something grander since I was saved and raised by the God of Heaven ever since I was little. At least I think it should be though I guess I can’t complain about that anymore since it’s now turning out to be more special with all these heroes I’m defeating. An apple instantly appears in my hand. I move my mask aside that still sticks to my head and eat it as I think of what the overall grand goal of my God is and what I will get out of it.

Why make some build an ark and make me take out heroes one after the other? Will I be rewarded with a kingdom of my own? Maybe I’ll be given riches and land so I can live peacefully in isolation. Perhaps I’ll be known as a hero above all heroes and my God will be recognized as the God above all gods. That last one seems more likely to me than the others since my God isn’t a fan of worldly wealth and people. As soon as I take the last bite of my apple, I am instantly transported to a new location.

“What happened to flying to places?” I ask.

“My timing will not allow that. Societal and spiritual decay is forcing My hand to enact justice on the guilty earlier rather than later,” my God says.

“I see. Let’s not waste any more time then.”

Again, I am transported in the blink of an eye to the place where God wants me. I am surrounded by huts made of stone and rocks all of which are marked with symbols and stories of each inhabitant written on them. The house in front of me that’s the biggest, has the most varied kind of stones, and the most writing on it is probably the home of the person I’m looking for. Sure enough, a living legend walks out of it. The man carries two daggers and is clothed with the skin of wild beasts and men that hardly hide the black hole in his chest and the writing on his entire body and face that detail his greatest victories.

Xanthos is the man’s name and is a mercenary for his god of victory and valor. He and his followers are said to live out here since they want to live for virtue and their god appearing to be like mine makes them outcasts. As he approaches me, he squints his eyes before sheathing his daggers and offering me his hand to shake.

“Welcome, brother,” Xanthos says.

Confused, my arm shakes as if torn between two wills before I shake his hand. Does my God want me to kill or befriend him?

“Do you know me? Have we met before?” I ask.

“Our God has granted me a vision of your arrival in my dreams. Your name is Mar, correct?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Then there’s no reason to be so cautious of me. You can calm your shaking.”

“I’m not doing the shaking. Our God has control over my powers.”

“If He has control over your powers, then they’re not really yours, are they?”

“I guess you could say that, but my life is still mine despite it being dedicated to Him.”

“Isn’t part of your life your own? Sure, God has a good portion of it, but you also have your own where you do what you want to do.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Maybe we don’t serve the same God after all. Come on out everyone! We must pray over our lost brother to save him from the false version of our God!”

Many people with writing on their bodies come out, form a circle around me, and start to pray. My body feels less twitchy, but something is still wrong about this.

“Don’t resist the effects of our prayers, Mar,” Xanthos says. “Our God has brought you here for purification and to give you a home far from the reach of the pagans and heretics.”

“A home? A real home with people who worship the same God as me?”

“Yes! Now, allow us to free you so that you may be with us.”

This seems too good to be true, so, as in everything, I give you control, my God. My shaking stops along with my nerves as my hands move into a praying position. From my clenched praying hands, a green mist seeps out and spreads throughout the settlement of stone and suffocates everyone to death with its fumes.

“I guess…I guess it really was too good to be true,” I say.

For some reason, I am unable to move from my current position and simply fall to my knees in prayer. Perhaps I am meant to pray for the souls of those who just died. Xanthos did say we worshipped the same God, so perhaps there’s a chance they repented at the time of their death or because they were close to the truth. It is possible they went to the place where my God cleanses souls before bringing them to the place of rest in the underworld, so I pray silently until I am interrupted by the sound of horses making their way to me. As I stand up and turn around, I see that the people on horses have holes in their chests and the one that is leading the group of five is a man with most of his face missing, his teeth showing for all to see, a hole in his chest, red eyes, black gauntlets and armor, and one of his arms being a spear-like blade.

Scipio is the name of this man or at least I think it is. It’s said that he is the conqueror of gods because of his stubborn will. He’s a mysterious wanderer who’s said to go from place to place and replace the gods of people with himself so that he is worshipped instead. Are these people with holes in their chests the gods he’s conquered? The horses they ride on also have holes in their chest, and before I can think about it more, they change into a more human form and all approach me with sinister looks on their faces.

“We came here to collect our tithe from these people, but it looks like you’ve killed them all. Care to explain yourself?” Scipio says in a tone of voice that sounds similar to the sound of a serpent.

“They died because my God wanted them dead and used me to kill them,” I say.

“Ah, so you’re another tool for the so-called divine. I conquered their god and many other gods. The ones surrounding me tell me how you feel, how scared you are, and that you want more than just to serve your God. You want to be loved and honored like the heroes and legends of today. You want to be like me.”

“You’re wrong!”

“Then why are you shaking so much? I’m at the very least partially true. The thought of going against your God of the Heavens, truth, and love is constantly on your mind and you are always in danger of going against Him. Do it. Give into your heart’s desire and you can become a legend like me.”

I struggle to move or do anything. Even my thoughts and prayers are all jumbled because of the voices of the gods in my head.

“Let’s work together on this,” Scipio says, “Your God is just another one I have to conquer and I’ve conquered many like Him. If you help me, I’ll let you tag along with me as my henchman. I’ve always wanted a successor.”

In this dire situation, I have only one course of action, which is the one that I’ve always had. I let go of control of myself and give control and my full trust over to my God. My body stops shaking and my arms welcome Scipio as he approaches me. Thinking he’s won, he comes towards me until he is stopped by one of the gods and then by more of them that surround him. He tries to get them out of his way, but no matter what he does, he is unable to do anything against him and they end up dragging him into the earth. Wow. That was something else that I didn’t expect to happen at all.

“I am master over all, even my enemies,” my God reminds me.

“Of course, of course,” I say with a bit of jealousy within me.

Master even over my enemies…

“The enemy that you should master is the one within and never doubt that I am always with you.”

“Yes, I know. So, where to next?” Silence fills the air. “Lord?”

My body moves on its own, goes over to a tree to make fruit instantly grow and fall from it, and sits down. Okay, it’s break time now, I guess. I need it after what I’ve been through anyway.

Exorcism of the Hollow: Like a Shadow: Chapter 1 – Limitless Power in a Nobody’s Hands

Chapter 1 – Limitless Power in a Nobody’s Hands

While working on the farm, what seems to be a young brother and sister approach me. They’re dirty and skinny, and their clothes are nothing but ripped rags.

“Could you please give us a few pieces of fruit?” the brother asks.

Without thinking about it much, I take a bunch of fruits from the trees, put them in a sack, and give them to the siblings.

“Now, head off before you’re caught,” I tell them.

They smile at me and run away as fast as they can. Before I know it, my boss approaches me with a scowl on her face.

“I was watching you give those two fruit from a distance. You know you’re not supposed to give out food for free,” she says.

“I know, but they were poor and starving,” I say.

“That’s exactly why you shouldn’t have given anything to them. The stuff grown on this farm is worth a fortune to those in the inner city and I intend to make every piece of gold that I can with it, especially with the stiff competition during this dry season. If you run over and bring back that fruit, I’ll cut your pay in half for the day, but you’ll get to keep your job.”

“No.”

“What? You’re not even going to think about it for a second?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Then get out of my sight before I have my guards kill you. It’s no wonder why people call you Ruin.”

I run away and sit down in a secluded alley. It’s a good thing that she didn’t check my pockets since I already took part of my pay. I eat apple after apple until I notice the poor in the alley with me. Feeling guilty, I give them everything else I have in my pockets before walking away. Now I have to find another job before going hungry again. Heading to my favorite place outside of the city, I take in the view as I think of what to do next.

Under the shade of a tree, I look at the majesty of this city where heroes and legends reside. The castles seem to reach past the clouds and look like they’re designed by angels. This sight never gets old and allows me to reset my mind every time. It’s also a personal place for me to pray to God. In the city, various gods are accepted besides mine. From here, I can even see the many statues and churches they’ve built for their gods, but nothing for my God. Other versions of Him are worshipped, but all of them are perversions. The only other people that I know that worship the same God were either forcefully converted or are building some kind of boat that they say is for a flood.

“Mar,” I hear a familiar voice say.

“Yes, my God,” I say as I pick myself up and get on both knees while not daring to look into the eyes of God.

“It is time for you to do more than odd jobs around the city just to survive. I have a new purpose for you.”

In an instant, I feel a surge of power enter into me. My dirty rags turn into a long black coat, pants, and boots and a mask covers my face. Fire then bursts from one of my hands while my other hand has metal spikes coming out of it all of which I don’t feel at all as if they were natural to my body.

“Woah! What is all this?”

“A blessing of power I have bestowed upon you so that you may accomplish My will.” Finally! A reward that legends get because of my years of service and good deeds. “That power of yours is subject to My will and changes accordingly.”

“As all things do, my God. What do you wish me to do?”

“To be a conduit of My will. First, I will have you go into the city to bring certain so-called heroes to justice. I will allow you the choice in terms of approach. Do you want to fly or should I bring you there in an instant?”

“Since it’s my choice, I choose to fly!”

“So be it.”

Before I can prepare myself, I am instantly thrown into the air. Despite not having any control over where I’m going, this still feels exhilarating and amazing at the same time. I fly through the city and spin myself in midair as I have the time of my life. Somehow, no one seems to notice me despite how close I am to the biggest buildings and how I stick out. My flight ends at the gates of the uppermost building at the top of the city. Guarding the gates is a single man, a legend, Uthman the Unyielding.

Uthman spent his entire life training his body in training and battle and spirit in long nights dedicated to his god. His training has allowed him to conquer many in battle and to defend every place he’s been hired to defend. It is well known that no one has been able to get passed him no matter how much political or physical power they wield. He is wielding two large hammers and is clothed in silver armor that shines in the sun. Just like everyone else, he doesn’t take note of me until I approach him.

“Small shadow man with hands of steel and flame, you are not expected to be here. Leave,” Uthman says as he glares down at me.

As I stumble backward at the surprise of Uthman seeing me, I hear my God say from behind me, “Do not back down. I will help you defeat him.”

“What? How?” I ask.

“Trust in Me.”

“Oh. Just like always then.”

My next movements are not my own as I let my God take control. The arm that I have that's on fire thrusts forward in Uthman’s direction before he burns to death from inside his armor. Everyone around the gates sees this and wonders how this could’ve happened despite me being here.

“Do people not see me?” I wonder out loud.

“No, they don’t. You’re an Ombra, a shadow. You walk in the spiritual realm,” my God says.

Oh, I see now why Uthman was able to see me and others couldn’t. Heroes like him are gifted with the ability to see both realms.

“Okay, now what?” I ask before I am flown inside the palace temple.

Inside the palace, I stand before another hero of legend who sits in silent adoration of her goddess with her defender. Zyaire is the defender who is said to have suffered the blows from many weapons to protect his wife and somehow lived. His wife, Ysolda, is known to calm the hearts and minds of many with only the words that she’s learned from her goddess. Ysolda’s words are how she managed to tame the bestial heart of her husband and sway him to become the city and her goddess’ defender. Seeing me, Zyaire stands up, puts on his golden helmet that still has cuts and bits broken off it, picks up his spear and shield, and stands in front of his wife like an imposing wall. I know that I’m supposed to allow God to act through me so I don’t do anything as my arms and legs move on their own as they ready themselves to fight.

Ysolda stops her adoration, stands up, and steps in front of her defender. She hardly has the chance to open her eyes as my one arm jolts forward with lightning flowing through it and now into Ysolda and blows her up. Both Zyarie and I are at a loss for words for a few moments that feel longer than they should have. He then yells out in anger before dropping his spear and shield and charging at me with his hands reaching out to me. My body sidesteps his charge, grabs his arms, and blows it up before my hand which has metal spikes jutting out of it touches his chest and blows that up as well.

The people from the outside are now in and are appalled to see their two heroes reduced to nothing more than bone, flesh, and pools of blood. Now, of all times, my appearance changes back to what it once was and everyone notices me.

Thinking on my feet, I say, “I defeated Uthman, Zyarie, and Ysolda! The gifts given to them by their god were no match for the gift given to me by mine.”

This situation reminds me of the stories where one hero would overcome another figurehead and be praised as the best of them all and their god would be worshipped instead of the other, but that doesn’t happen. Instead, insults are hurled at me before the chairs in the palace are thrown at me. My mask and black outfit return and the things thrown at me go through me as I disappear in the eyes of the crowd. I am then flown out of the city and put back under the tree where I was.

“If I may ask, what was the point of that?” I ask while not expecting an answer.

“You’ll see. I know what you were expecting to happen, but that was never going to happen. These people are stuck to their gods of gold, stone, and worldly pleasures. More will have to be done for their dead hearts to be converted,” my God says.

“I get it.”

Still, I expected some kind of reward not just from the events of today, but from everything I’ve done in my life. Despite how nice these powers are, they’re a bit bittersweet to have since I don’t have much control over them. Speaking of which, one of my arms moves on its own and touches the nearby tree to make apples, oranges, strawberries, and fruits of all kinds sprout and fall from it. Now that’s what I’m talking about!