The Last Celestial

The Lion's Den

A raindrop landed on his forehead, shocking him to awareness. Slowly, he gets up with a loud yawn as he stretched both his arms while arching his back. His vision was still a blur, slowly and steadily he saw that he was laying down in a meadow. Tall grass, and flowery fields. The sun was shining brightly and a lot of birds fly high on the sky.

It was serene, and he felt peace. Andrew looked down and noticed he was not wearing any clothes. How long was he naked? Instinctively, he covered his nether regions then gazed at his surroundings. A sigh of relief passed his parted lips when he saw that he was alone.

He began to run, but noticed he was sinking, falling in a steady pace. A thick black substance was swallowing him down to his thighs.

"Help!" He screamed in panic. He twisted and he turned and tried to find something to grab a hold unto. He palmed and grasped the tall grass. But it would just snap, some will have its roots pulled from the ground. "Please, help me! Is anyone there?!" He screamed and cried. But no one is listening and he saw no one.

Where is Dah, he thought? Where is Timothy and Tahani. Where are all the keepers who promised his safety? Where are they? Thoughts of him being abandoned as a child resurfaced. How he was powertripped by a man wearing blue.

He remembered the great fire. His father burned. And he was all alone, for days he cried alone.

He's sinking further, the think liquid seemingly squeezed his chest and it feels like he's out of breath. "Please." He cried out, tears falling from his eyes. "I'm scared." He noticed he was sinking faster than before. In a matter of seconds, his whole body was consumed by the tar. He managed to raise his right hand, hoping someone will save him.

As death approaches him the black substance reaches up to his neck, he feels hopeless. Until a light, bright as the sun appeared in front of him. A hand reaches out to him, and the hand glowed. A light that flicker like fire.

It burnt his skin when the man grasped onto him and pulled him up. He winced and whimpered as the glowing man pulled and pulled. Until only his feet was trapped.

Tears kept falling from his eyes, his body shook, almost trembling with fear of dying.

With one last pull, the glowing man was finally able to pull him out. When he was pulled out of the pit of darkness, he was sucked inside a vortex. Swirling and swirling around a never ending loop. He felt his body crash against a pavement.

"Ghhh!" He groaned aloud feeling his whole body was in pain.

Where was he? He thought. Columns as thick as trees stood at the four pillars of the floating palace. He saw stars, and the surroundings were different shades of purple, black and blue. There were glimmering lights shining from afar. And from a near distance, he could see the constellations of the Celestials.

He needs to get out of here, and fast.

Using his hand, he prompted and pushed himself up. He noticed that the ground he was standing on was not the ground, but layers and layers of clouds. The small hairs from his spine down to his toes stood up. And cold chills runs through all of his body.

His muscles begins to tremor and his body shakes in fear.

He looked down, and he saw the Earth. It's spinning slowly beneath him, and his mouth hanged and his eyes widened in disbelief.

"I'm dead, am I?" He said to himself, as his eyes was glued to the small looking earth. "The blast hit me too hard, and I died."

While he was in complete stupor, a flicker of light glimmered out of nowhere and the explosion was greater than the one he created before. Golden dust and a burning ember fell and lay on the clouds. The blast threw Andrew off and he hardly maintained his balance.

The dark sky was lit up by lightning, a small cyclone formed and carried the dust. Whirling and whirling in circles. Red and blue fire ignited and the cyclone began to disappear.

A man of white gold, brown, and red appeared from the rumble.

The man was wearing a long robe which drags against the clouds. It has patterns of fire embroidery on its smooth silk.  The man's hair was long and course and it dragged along his back. From afar he looked like a graceful lion wearing a mane.

"Do not fear, young one." A cold distant voice spoke to him. "For I live inside you, and I will guide you. Until the power burns bright inside you unlike any other."

The man walked closer to him. His body was glowing, and it made Andrew cover his eyes with his forearms. The man lifted his hand, and Andrew was lifted from the clouds. The man closed his fist, the boy found himself being dragged closer to the man. Andrew remained floating, then the man pressed one of his finger against the boy's forehead.

Long black finger nail dug against his skin. The golden eyes of the man pierced right through his soul. "Great power lies within you. Trust your yourself, and call upon me if you're in need. I'll be with you."

The man nudged his fingers and a hole appeared on the boy's feet.

"Now, you wake up."

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Gasping for air, the boy jolted up from his long slumber. His heart was pounding so hard against his chest that he can hear his own heartbeat. His hands clutched against his the white sheets laid on his mattress. 'Is he back to reality?' He looked at his surroundings and saw the familiar brown and cream walls.

The posters that was clumsily stapled on the wooden walls remained there as well. He looked down and saw his worn out slippers and shoes. Finally, he's back home. He rubbed his palms against his chin and noticed stubs of hair growing there. How long has he been out cold?

Slowly getting on his feet, Andrew puts on his slippers and walked towards the door. It was unusually quiet upstairs, he thought. He noticed he was not wearing his wrist watch, as he was sporting a black short with a faded logo and white sleeveless shirt.

"Dah? Timothy?" He called against the dryness of his throat. Damn, he's thirsty. He made his way towards the stairs and began to descend down a few steps. His feet felt heavy and it feels like his entire body was run down a train. When he was near the end of the staircase, he heard the familiar sound of kitchen utensils and pans. An aromatic---savory taste reached his nosed and his mouth began to salivate in hungry.

He walked towards the kitchen and approached the man cooking happily as he whistles.

"Is it done yet?" He asked and sounded a little impatient.

The man who was diligently stirring the pot stopped and his elbows were frozen in place. The man almost dropped the wooden spoon and looked back at him with wide teary eyes.

"Andrew!" Dah hollered in sheer joy. He almost pounced against the younger man, giving the teen a tight hug. "Finally you're awake!"

Andrew felt a warm sensation against his chest. He was happy yet bewildered at the same time. "How long was I sleeping?"

"It's been two days, Andrew. Timothy and I were really worried." Dah placed his hand on top of the boy's head full of hair and disheveled it. "I'm glad to have you back, kiddo."

The teen rubbed against his nape and smiled brightly. "Thanks, Dah." He looked past the older male and sniffed through the air. His stomach grumbled and Dah laughed when he heard it as well.

"This is almost done." Dah reassured him, understanding how hungry the boy must be. "You eat first, I'll wait for Timothy and tell him you're awake. He'll be happy to know you're back with us."

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The three of them were sitting in the together in front of the dining table. The table which was once filled with food to the brim was now almost half empty. The food was plentiful, it could've feed a family of seven of people.

Timothy and Dah momentarily had an exchange of looks as they watch the boy shove food in his mouth like there's no tomorrow. He had crumbs of bread on his cheeks as well as stains of ketchup. The chicken noodle soup Dah cooked earlier had only a single serving left. The boy ate it all and he still seem hungry.

"Slow down, kiddo." Timothy's arms were crossed against his chest, and he is sitting with his legs crossed. Cleary, he was amused. "You barely escaped death from the explosion. You don't want to die from a mere choking hazard now, would you?"

Andrew was loudly munching on his food when he heard Dah's chuckle on the background. He lifted his head up and stopped chewing to swallow a mouthful. He grabbed the cup of water in front of him and drank leisurely. "I'm still hungry though." He said shamelessly.

Timothy shook his head, while Dah looked amused as hell.

The two men decided to let Andrew be, thinking the boy needed to replenish his lost strength. They've failed to notice how Andrew's eyes changed its color. His grayish eyes shifted from dark red to chrome yellow. As if his eyes were on flame.