MANDATES OF DIVINITY

Episode 20

Episode Twenty

Our might lies with you,

Because you bear our names.

Whatever you set out to do,

Our strength shall be your grace.

- Saint Udias

Book of deeds.

“I would have loved to see what other foolery you have to present, but I am pressed to please the giver.” Edgar’s voice rose. “Prepare to face judgment.” He sounded like a noble judge preparing a verdict. The entire ground around him trembled, the atmosphere around him changed drastically. This would be like the previous assignments, the enemy was something he could squash whenever he wanted, and now, he finally had the go ahead.

When he yelled at Itus, the two heard a whisper in their ears; the cold voice of Xandar had travelled through space and had found its way to the duo. It came with an instruction from the cardinal himself...

The expression on Hurd’s face darkened drastically, the knight in front of him had changed. It was like a beast was released beneath the armour, his scan still portrayed that Edgar’s battle power remained unchanged, but a feeling of dread engulfed him.

“The scan... how is this possible!” Hurd was stuttering, his soul scan had never failed, it was never wrong. Way before he launched an assault, he was dead certain Edgar was pretty average, nothing intimidating. It only confirmed their intel, that the knights of the church were people who were unable to become priests, so they should be weak. However...

The others noticed the drastic change in the atmosphere; it was like a storm was descending with Edgar at the centre. Betty sensed a mighty influx of light, a measure that rivalled that of the beings above. To Betty’s keen senses, it was like a patron had replaced Edgar.

“He will overdo it again, he always does.” Itus who observed from the clouds muttered. His all-seeing eyes caught every detail of what was going on down below.

Edgar’s armour is not just like any other, it was given by the grand patron of his order, Saint Udias. The armour made up for Edgar’s low compatibility with the giver’s breath, it was like a massive conductor that drew light for Edgar’s techniques. It gave him the likeness of a higher being, now that he had removed his restraint, he was on a different level.

“Bathan!!!” Hurd called out as he drew away from Edgar. “Prepare to take us home, we have to leave now or we won’t be able to!” He yelled.

Sera glanced over, shocked. She had fought alongside Hurd for years, more than any of the others, and she had never seen him behave that way. He was the leader of the council of five and one of the four outer cardinals of the entire Hellos cult, she was always confident in his capabilities.

“Council Master...” Bathan began to panic.

Bernard seized the window and stabbed out with his spear, Bathan was already disoriented and that provided him with the perfect opportunity to attack. Suddenly, a scythe that seemed to come from nowhere plunged towards Bernard, he had to abort his attack halfway to block the scythe on time.

“Don’t freeze!” That was Sera, she was the one who threw her blood-red scythe towards Bernard to protect Bathan.

Bathan nodded and drew away from Bernard, the latter could not pursue because the scythe kept coming at him like it had a mind of its own. As soon as he was out of Bernard’s reach, he raised his hand, with the gauntlet still on, a ring of light appeared in the distance and gradually began to expand.

“Escape is futile!” Edgar’s voice resounded, his armour shone brilliantly. He turned into a blur that appeared behind Hurd, he caught up as soon as he moved, with his sword raised.

Hurd froze in his steps, the pressure from behind engulfed him. He turned around in shock, his eyes opened wide in disbelief. He couldn’t even see Edgar move, all he saw was a flash of light. A blood red barrier quickly engulfed Hurd, luckily he had a defence that didn’t depend on his senses.

“This won’t be enough.” Edgar added as his sword collided with the barrier. The clash resounded like two metals collided. The barrier instantly shattered and the figure of Hurd was thrown backwards.

Like an arrow, Sera’s scythe floated away from Bernard and plunged towards Edgar in a bid to slow him down as he was already beside the figure of Hurd, raising his sword to deliver another blow. The scythe was like a bolt that plunged steadfast into Edgar’s armour, it instantly snapped in half, not leaving a dent on Edgar’s armour.

“What?” Tom was shocked, Sera’s scythe wasn’t a normal weapon. “How is that even possible?” He was baffled. One of Tom’s clones quickly dashed towards Edgar, holding his two daggers firmly. The other kept on wrestling Watt.

Tom was as fast as ever, his figure quickly turning into a blur as soon as he drew close to Edgar. He attempted a manoeuvre and stabbed towards Edgar with all his might. His face widened in disbelief, he was hanging in midair, Edgar’s sword had stabbed right through him. The searing pain was more than what he could handle; he had absolutely no idea of how and when he got struck.

The others drew cold breaths as the lifeless body dropped to the ground, he wheezed and soon stopped making sounds. He died on the spot. Edgar didn’t stop, he merely walked over the body and approached Hurd.

Watt felt chills run down his spine, he didn’t know why he felt so scared. The other Tom just stood and stared, dazed, that could have been him. Technically, that was him.

“Siiiiiii” A powerful screech startled everyone; a mighty creature crawled out of Yoku’s phantom gate. The creature was like an enormous viper, more like a giant millipede, dark energy exuded from the beast. Without hesitation, it raged towards Edgar, it’s mouth wide opened ready to swallow up the knight whole. The size didn’t hinder it’s speed, on the other hand those present were rather shocked at how quickly it got to the Paladin.

“Watch out!” Bernard couldn’t help but call out, the creature dashed past him and he slightly trembled, he feared what fate could befall Edgar.

“Troublesome!” Edgar's voice bore disappointment, to him, this opponent was just too weak. Just as the creature opened up wide to swallow him up, Edgar slashed out with his sword that was already glowing.

“Bammm!!!” Under the shocked gazes of everyone, a bright light proceeded from Edgar’s s***h and spread outwards. The creature was totally obliterated without a trace, however the light spread out undiminished.

The five members of the Helios cult quickly pulled away, the dazzling light had such a wide range it engulfed that vicinity. The five gathered not too far away, defeat written on their faces, the pressure from Edgar’s attack just now was too terrifying. For most of them, their bodies moved involuntarily out of fright! The light crashed on the gate Yoku had summoned and it diminished drastically, looking almost like a mirage.

That instant, Matith and the other two beings from above unleashed devastating attacks, clearing up all the phantoms in sight and finally erasing the gate. Yoku frowned, with her fists clenched she was about to dash towards Edgar, Hurd restrained her.

“Bathan, get us out of here!” Hurd yelled.

Bathan released weird energy from his gauntlet and the ring of light that appeared earlier expanded even faster. The five suddenly brought out various vials that contained what seemed like potions and consumed them. The aura around them instantly changed, it was so condensed and deadly. Betty was stunned; the battle power of their opponents seemed to have tripled. However, they did not fight, rather they turned towards the ring and dashed at an insane speed. The speed of the creature from earlier was nothing in comparison, Tom in particular was nothing but a blur that approached the portal in a flash.

“All that added power, just to escape? Cowards!” The voice of Itus thundered in the sky, this time everyone heard it. He turned into a ball of light that shot towards the escaping five to intercept them, his eyes full of fury.

“Stay away Itus.” Edgar yelled as he pursued from behind. He wasn’t any slower than the five he pursued, the distance between them was closing drastically it was obvious he became even faster.

Another terrifying aura was in pursuit. Betty had been engulfed by light and shot through the air just like Itus. She called out and Matith turned into a spear that appeared in her hands, his subordinates disappeared. Their joint auras rivalled that of Edgar.

Athion, Bernard and Watt on the other hand stood and watched. Bernard clenched his fist, unwillingness written in his eyes, at the crucial moment, he couldn’t move. Watt was excited, the strength of the paladin impressed him deeply. Athion was like a frozen statue, no sign of emotions he just glared.

“Save us goddess.” Hurd was sweating profusely, without a doubt he saw the three figures that pursued them. At this rate, it was obvious only Tom who was naturally a speedster could reach the portal in time.

“From the ashes of yesterday...” Sera who also understood the situation suddenly yelled. The others glanced at her slightly and discovered that she stopped running.

“What are you doing?” Yoku was starting to slowdown. “Why is she stopping...?”

“... will come the bloom of tomorrow!” Hurd chorused along with Sera and stopped too. He nodded with decisiveness. He understood what Sera meant. “Don’t stop Yoku, you’ll never have a chance to revenge if you do.” Hurd smiled in a strange manner, in a way he never had.

Sera unleashed a strange technique, red energy seeped out of her body without ceasing, her face started to change as she began to age rather quickly. That instant her skin turned pale, her hair gray and her eyes hollow, she slowly morphed into a very old woman.

“No, you’ll die.” Bathan had to stop, his eyes teary.

That instant, a powerful pressure crashed upon the six from the church. Itus started to plunge towards the ground head first unable to move a muscle. Betty slammed into the ground, her own limbs restrained her, the same for Edgar. The trio behind all fell on their knees, they weren’t pursuing or they would have also crashed down.

“What is this?” Itus was enraged as this pressure finally slammed him to the ground and restrained him there.

“The death bind!” Tom drew a cold breath, obviously he knew the technique Sera had unleashed. “With this even the others can escape.” He finally had a look of relief as he stopped right before the portal.

“I curse you filthy members of the church.” Hurd stood over Sera’s body, she had collapsed on the floor, lifeless. “I call on the wrath of Hella, the goddess of decay and herald of death.” His voice began to rise. The sky gradually darkened and lightning travelled in the sky.

“This...” Yoku was dazed. “This is the power of the high priest!”

The power didn’t belong to Hurd, it belonged to Darus, the high priest of the Hellos cult. Just before the council of five left, Darus had blessed Hurd with a wisp of his powers and now in this moment of desperation, he had unleashed this strength.

“This is really troublesome.” Edgar sounded troubled. He wasn’t worried about himself, just the four smiths in his care. He knew they were powerful, but he couldn’t tell if they could withstand the curse this damned was about to unleash.

Faraway, Xandar who levitated in the skies of Nook glanced towards the south. He seemed to be observing something. “This should be it!” His anticipation swelled. He could see the clash between his students and the enemy as clear as day, not even the smallest movements escaped his sights.

“I call on the wrath of Hella, the goddess of decay and herald of death.” Hurd’s voice was different, like he had been possessed by another being. A faint aura of death engulfed the entire area. “Perish!” He yelled and a ripple of invisible energy burst out of him at that moment. The pressure on Edgar and the others tripled immediately, each of them could feel the pressure seep in through their skin and begin to corrode their organs. They couldn’t even produce any sound, the pain almost made the four in particular faint.

Hurd turned towards the portal and ran with all the strength he could muster. “Go on.” He barked an order and the three before him sprung into action. Tom jumped into the portal without hesitation, Yoku was unwilling but did the same. Bathan and Hurd jumped into the portal at about the same.

Simultaneously, Xandar frowned and stretched forth his arm towards the direction of the south gate, his fingers adorned with multiple rings bearing precious stones. His robe rippled in the breeze, he was like a god descending from the clouds.

“ May his grace be with you and may his wrath befall the damned.” Instantly the breeze stopped, his fluttering robes did not fall rather they stood frozen, like they were held in place by something, hanging in usual patterns.

Actually, time had frozen in the immediate vicinity of Xandar, so the robes didn’t actually stop fluttering, they were just frozen in time, like everything else. A bright light shot out of Xandar’s palm and vanished into the distance. Right after the release, everything returned to normalcy, time moved as it should. No one had seen Xandar act.

At the site of the clash, Hurd had successfully escaped into the portal when a surge of energy seeped in just as the portal closed. His eyes widened in disbelief as he clutched his stomach, it was the same for Bathan since the strange energy engulfed him too, just Tom and Yoku weren’t affected.

“Impossible...” These were Hurd’s words as his consciousness drifted off into darkness.

As for the others trapped under the curse, they could feel a warm energy invade their bodies and the eroding energy was quickly eliminated. Their wounds also began to heal and the restriction too faded away drastically. Itus and Edgar were the first to rise up, the remaining four rose one after the other, fully replenished and full of energy.

“Just now, it must have been his eminence.” Edgar wasn’t too happy. “Such a waste.” He glanced at Sera’s withering corpse and shook his head. Itus instantly released golden flames and it consumed the body totally.

“Such a waste.” This time it was Xandar who spoke to himself. He was disappointed that the adversary just now couldn’t reveal what he desired. He could have waited to see if the curse would be sufficient but the others would have died. “Well...” He sighed and nodded his headed like he was giving an approval, then gradually descended towards the ground.

Actually, he was giving an approval, because the instant he nodded, the various Archbishops and Cardinals in the sky suddenly started to move in a coordinated manner and one by one, the affected smiths were detained and cured.