Lord Shadow

Drip!

Drip!

The sound of a droplet of water echoes inside the darkness of this dark long cave.

Small slithering creatures could be seen roaming inside the darkness of this dark alleyways of this cave, hissing and slithering, their eyes red and glow in the dark.

Drip!

Drip!

The sound of the water from the stalactite on the ceiling of the cave ceiling fall forming a stalagmite below.

The dripping water drips down like the sound of a timpani in a grand orchestra filling the soundless cave with music only certain people can appreciate.

Inside this dark cave green smoke fills it.

It is translucent and ethereal. And it was full of malevolent intent.

Ravens sometimes fly inside it. The snakes and the slithering creatures that dwells inside the cave sometimes look up and see the ravens but they did not jump and swallows them.

Instead they let the ravens go.

Black ravens…..this is the familiars that their masters uses. These snakes possess some intelligence.

They knew instinctually that the ravens that flies freely inside this cave belongs to their master.

So, they hissed and look. But they did not do anything. Then suddenly a laugh reverberate inside the cave and the snakes shivers.

The ravens’ trembles.

Deep inside the cave, is a child dressed in a very kingly outfit that reminds one of a child emperor.

He wears golden robe and wears golden shoes. With runic patters that covers his entire outfit he looks mystical and mysterious.

The kid has a childish and cute face, and possess smooth skin. He sit on a throne of slithering snakes.

The thrones hiss and spew green smokes from their mouths filling this deep dark caves.

Ravens are perched on top of his throne and its handle.

The boy was pouring wine into a wine glass.

Yet, the person who was sitting not far away from that boy did not find the boy cute at all. If nothing else, that person found the boy fearsome.

The person sitting in a marble chair was handsome but there is a scar on his hand and he look tired.

On his left hip is a golden gourd. And wrapped on his feet is a chain carved in the likeness of a serpent.

This person is Louise the Wine Beggar.

He look towards the kid and ask.

‘Lord Loki, why did you not prevent my mistress plans when you clearly knows what she is planning?’

Loki was sipping wine as he smiles mischievously.

By now Louise has found out that Loki did not once relent his eyes from watching over them and have eyes on their every action.

Looking at the screen on the walls of the cave showing what is happening in France and what is Morgana is doing, Louise at first believes that Loki would shatter his mistress plan.

But how would have thought Loki did not move at all. He did not prevent any of his mistress action.

He was like a flowing water, following the wind like the clouds. If this is any other person, Louise could understand.

But this is Loki….the now nemesis of the objectives of Morgana and Louise. Loki put down his wine glass and wipe the leftover wine on his mouth with a white handkerchief.

‘Louise, I am known to be quite the talker. It is one of the qualities that the Death God did not like about me.’ He said before he giggles.

‘That I’m quite the talker. But I could not talk much since I was sent here. Because even if I talk, no one would understand.’

He sighed.

‘When I have a day when my plans don’t go well, to who could I vent? Who could I share my secrets and frustration? And talk without reservation? It is ironic that the only person I could talk freely with is you and Morgana. Because both of you knows what I am doing here, and why I’m doing it.’

Louise did not reply but he nodded in understanding.

Travelling through time and landed in the past….it is nothing exciting. Of course meeting characters that will one day become legendary was quite exciting at first but after a while, the only thing that is left is utter and abject loneliness.

Then Louise said

‘To be someplace where we do not belong, to be in a time where we do not belong….I understand the loneliness.’

Loki smiles bitterly.

‘Since you understand let me tell you why I did not stop your mistress. The reason is not as complicated as you might think. It is simple actually. It was because I miscalculated one thing. A legendary person is surely legendary indeed.’

Loki said before laughing at himself.

‘What do you mean Lord Loki?’

‘Azief was always known to be the First Sovereign. It is why he was the strongest. He was the first. And a hundred years later Raymond became one. The Era of the Death God was called the Era of Golden Years. For a hundred years he reigned and he then passed the era to Raymond when Raymond become Sovereign. But..’

‘But?’

‘But this progress of him is too fast and too terrifying. I only helped him a little and change a few events but it propels him to an unimaginable heights. Now he is even walking the path of Perfection. This will make him even stronger but also changes a lot of my plans. To be more accurate, if he is growing with this kind of pace, it will throw all of my plan askew.’

Louise suddenly understand.

The Butterfly that flaps its wing and changes events. The Butterfly effect.

Even though Louise evade three Eras he knows a little about the God of Death from folk stories told in villages and kingdoms before his grand Ascension.

He met many people and slaughter many people. But he also saves many people and met many people that will one day become his enemies and allies.

But in the long course of the God of Death history he had never had a sworn brother or having such a heartwarming life like he is having right now.

He was alone.

He was betrayed and was forced to become fugitive by the World Government after he escaped from World Government captivity which sets off a feud between Azief and Raymond in the later years.

Of course Louise knows the inside story that the one that accompanied Azief from the very beginning is Sofia but other than that, there is no other friends or acquaintance to speak off.

He only has allies and enemies. He is a lonely sovereign that is could and emotionless. Louise understand why Loki is worried.

‘So, you wanted to Morgana to kill The God of Death?’

‘Hah’ Loki snorted.

‘You think she would succeed?’ Loki ask back with disdain in his tone

Louise did not understand why Loki believe why she will not succeed.

‘Why do you believe so?’ Loki snorted

‘You, are after all only mortal after all. You know nothing about Sovereign.’ Before he takes another sip from his wine glass.

Then putting it back down he said

‘Why do you think there is only Seven Sovereign? And why is a birth of a new Sovereign always happen after the Prohibition of Sovereigns?’

‘It is the control scheme of the Sovereigns.’ Louise answered. Loki laughed

‘This is why I said you know nothing about Sovereign.’

‘Prohibition of Sovereign decreed that no one is allowed to attempt to become Sovereign during the time of the Prohibition. If this is not a way to controls the people, what is it?’ Louise shot back.

This time Loki laughed harder.

‘Did you not notice the Prohibition of Sovereign always lasted only for a hundred year? Raymond become a Sovereign after the first prohibition of Sovereign ended. He became Sovereign almost immediately.’

Louise nodded. It is why he return back to seclusion and seal himself evading three eras of the three strongest Sovereign.

Loki continued like he was getting drunk and ready to talk without concealing everything. Louise felt Loki was happy he could talk about this with someone boasting about his knowledge and insights.

‘And a new Prohibition was put into place. Katarina the Ice Goddess took one hundred and fifty years to become a Sovereign as Jean missed that chance by a few months. But by then the Prohibition was put into place by the Divine Decree now supported by Three Sovereigns.’

‘But didn’t the Time God..’ Louise was about to point out something but Loki smiles and answer almost immediately

‘Jean had to wait for the Prohibition to end but the death of Paulette forces him to break the Prohibition and become Sovereign. If not for the God of Death rendering assistance during that time, Jean would have been annihilated by the Divine Laws of Prohibition of Sovereigns. Only one exception was given and that was during the ascension of the Twin Sages of the East, Oreki and Hikigaya. The Sovereign lifted the Prohibition to allow them to ascend. But do you know the Prohibition was enacted?’

Louise shake his head, as he knows this is the essence of the story.

‘Because each time a Sovereign is born, he would suck all the worldly energy and the Universal Energy of the Milky Way draining it of the essence of primordial energy. If another person attempt ascension, then the world will dried up and the consequences will be dire. It is not a means to control people and kept humanity weak.’

He takes another sip of his wine and he then continued nonchalantly as he spews these secrets of the world Louise has never known before.

‘It is to keep the Universe of Milky Way from drying up and throw us back to a world without these powers. Defenseless and powerless with a grand treasure hidden inside our very own world, this planet will have a target on it back and without the power to protect it we would become only a sacrifice in the grand scheme of things.

Loki sighed.

He looks at the walls full of moving images of people in the Island of Peace.

He then saw snows falls in the Island Of Peace. The snows falls slowly then slowly it builds momentums as it falls harder and harder.

Then the wind blows and a snowstorm ravage the northern part of the Island.

The formation of the island was forced open and a woman shot out form the island with an ice trail helping her to launch herself to the clouds as she freeze the air and glide through the clouds heading to France.

He ignored the snows and the woman as he look back at Louise and continues.

‘With the miraculous power of the World Orb, in only one hundred years, it will fills the world with energy once more. If this was any other planets, with one ascension that world will dried up and will not produce even one Sovereign as the consumption of such transformation would taxes the entire Universe where the person resides.’

‘When Six Sovereign was crowned, Raymond and a few other Sovereign manipulate the Divine Laws and cut the Will of the World making it impossible for anyone to ascend to Sovereign. At the time the God of Death was in another Universe comprehending laws and perfecting his Grand Path. So, he was not able to prevent the tearing of the Will of the World and it Universal Laws.’

‘But…didn’t you become the Seven Sovereign?’ Louise asked clearly confused. And with this Loki smiles.

‘I used unconventional ways to circumvent the Divine Laws and manages to become a Sovereign to the ire of Raymond and a few other Sovereigns.’

The he takes another sips of his wine glass as he looks at the walks and saw that the battles on France is about to reach its conclusion.

He saw Morgana is ready as a woman in white robe appears inside the dome and help Morgana to put a spell on the tip of that spear.

The White Witch is now cooperating with the Wicked Witch.

Loki by now, knows that the White Witch knows that it was him that wipes her memories. The only thing she doesn’t know is what memories Loki wipes from her mind.

And that is why she is cooperating with the Wicked Witch. Loki knows. But he didn’t care. Everything is still under his calculations.

Louise on the other hand is lost in his thought as he suddenly realize something and his face turns pale.

‘Lord Loki…why did you tell me all about these secrets?’

Loki avert his gaze from the walls and smiles.

‘Do you fear that I will silence you by killing you?’ Louise nodded honestly. Loki laughed as his laugh echoes inside this large network of caves.

‘Then why?’

‘Maybe because I knew you would never be able to tell this to anyone. Or maybe I have a plan regarding you.’

Then pouring more wine into his glass he ask

‘Do you know playing cards? Not our era playing cards but this era playing cards?’

Louise nodded.

‘Do you know what card I like the most in the whole deck of cards?’ Louise shakes his head.

‘The Joker. Because in certain games it could change the entire situations.’ And he smile mysteriously.

‘I have warned your mistress that if she did not follow my advice, I will no longer take it easy on her. Today is the day I will now fully scheme against her.’

Louise was startled.

‘You will kill her?’

Loki shakes his head

‘Morgana herself said I could not kill her without changing a lot of things in the future. She threatened me by using the fact that she also knows the future where she is not present will also be a future where I know nothing. And I know nothing I could not move forward with my meticulously thought plans’

‘Then what do you intend to do to my mistress?’

Smiling Loki answered

‘Return to the Origin.’

Loki only said these words as he closes his eyes and waves his hand as Louise is once again teleported to another room with the chains once again connected to the walls of his cell.

It was like Louise is his prisoner instead of his quest to settle Karma between them two like Loki suggested in the first place with Morgana.

Louise was trying to decipher Loki last words to him. Return to Origin. What does that mean?

Meanwhile on his throne of serpents Loki opens his eyes as he saw the conclusion of the battle in France.

‘Like always you did not disappoint me, Morgana. You might hate your father but for someone that hated her father, you surely inherit his stubbornness.’

Loki click his finger and a card appear on his palm. It was a Joker card.

‘There is still one card I haven’t play. I wish I didn’t have to open this card…but you push me to use it. The moment you went to cleanse the Karma, you have fallen into my trap. I warned you to stop but you do not heed me. So, I could only return you back to Origin.’

He sighed and take a sip from his wine glass and then he puts down his glass. He then put down the cards beneath the throne by flicking it.

One of the serpent swallowed it.

Then he got up from his throne and transformed into a young man, tall and handsome with brown hair and green eyes.

With one steps he appeared outside the caves somewhere in what used to be the Aegean Sea. Nowadays who knows what this sea is called.

Many small nations and races were being wiped out after disaster strikes relentlessly for these three years.

‘The Partition of the World will begin later. In the past timeline only two of the organization was qualified to divide the world. But now with Azief that possess such influence and power and with powerful subordinates and allies, this time the partition of the World will become interesting.’ Loki said to himself.

He remembers in the original timeline when the partition of the world began he was twelve. He was a foot soldiers in Freya army.

But now he is a great character in the matters of the world.

It was an agreement of the two great organization of the world to divide the world amongst them and their allies.

By now the population of the world is only three billion. About more than half of the population of the world is now dead.

But Loki who has seen the future knows that this is what makes this generation the most blinding and shining of all the generation.

From this generation heroes and heroine will appears that will paved the path to grand era of Sovereigns.

Like being grinded humanity become like a sharp weapon that could cut through anything after being baptized by such terrible condition and threats of survival looking over their heads.

He take a step outside the cave and he transformed into a black raven and flew to the white clouds

Instead of went to France to do something about the conclusion of the battle, Loki flew towards the direction of Italy.

He has found the location of the Inventor. Now, that the Weronian Invasion is underway, Loki needs to make preparations for the next big event.

The Time Crisis.

***

Meanwhile on Spain, Azief chest area is dripping with golden blood,

‘Uhuk’ he coughed blood and his blood sprayed to the lightning infested ground.

He look towards the person in front of him. The great Warrior Purunghasa. And then he look down at his chest and saw the hand that drill into his heart.

And he laughed.

***