Fall Foretold

Game master

His heart had skipped a beat, multiple times, as gunshots resounded. He was afraid but he had never been scared to go out and face a war. He was locked in and no matter how hard he tried, he would only attract the attention of the attackers.

He had drifted backwards, many times, but he frequently walked back to the door, trying to silently shake it open. Even if it worked, he couldn't have done anything to stop anyone. He would only be counted among the ones that died, that day.

The gunshots stopped. An eerie silence followed. Npama was curious. He wanted to know what was happening out there, looking for a hole in the door. The door opened wide, suddenly, startling him. It was one of the king's chiefs.

"Come on", the chief said to him. He hesitated. "Come on! I won't hurt you"

Cyrus stood up and walked out. There was blood around and countless bodies. "What happened here?"

"The mundane earthlings attacked us. They have developed themselves to combat the Mystique race. Let's get you to the palace", the chief said, pulling him, gently.

"My father?"

The chief hesitated to talk, for a second. "Your father is alright. He sent me here to get you to safety"

"Why wouldn't he come himself?", the young Npama had tears in his eyes. "Priests never run from war. Even if he wanted to, you would have forced him to come out or you'd strip him off his garment and drain his strength... isn't that it?! Isn't that it?!!"

"No, Npama. Priests are to foresee, not to be killed in war. We have changed that rule you speak of"

"Trust me", the chief put one knee on the ground, before the boy. "Your father is alive".

That was an half lie. Npama had let out a loud cry, after running around the palace, in search of his father.

"Will you go with the soldiers? They will show you every dead body. I assure you, your father is alive".

Npama had carefully checked every of the hundreds of soldiers, mutilated and killed. Django, the most powerful soldier in Zulu was also brutally murdered. His father was not found. That didn't convince him, though. One of the magicians took him in the shrine and showed him a burning red candle. "That represents the life of your father", the chief had said.

"How do you mean?"

"When the fire looks like it'd go off, your father is weakening. If the fire keeps burning, he is alive and strong. The candle you behold will never melt or get short... and as long as it keeps burning, you have nothing to fear"

"So where is he? I want to see him"

"The mundanes didn't only kill our people. They stole from us. Your father might have followed them into their world to retrieve our sacred items"

TWO YEARS LATER

The chiefs had successfully made Npama stop his worries over his missing father. He only stopped complaining. His mind never stopped worrying. 'What if he is in pains? What if he is tied up, somewhere?', he had been thinking.

'... when the fire looks like it'd go off, then, your father is weakening..', he never forgot that statement. It always seemed to help him get over the thought of his father suffering. The fire was burning, just the same.

The day the fire seemed to be slowly going off, he found out. It was time to find a solution to his father's absence.

"I'm going to the mundane world. I will retrieve the stolen items and bring back the priest", he requested from the king.

"Only a priest is allowed in and out of dimensions. Sorry, Npama", a chief replied.

"Then I request that I should be ordained as priest", he said and knelt before the King.

"You have become of blue blood. Blue bloods are never sent to war", the king replied. "I'm sorry, Npama. Your father will return safely."

"I'm not of Royal blood. I'm just a boy from the streets; the son of a poor farmer. I have to save my father. I promise you; I will return our dignity to the land"

********

He knelt before the magician who chanted praises to the gods of the land. The magician opened a box of split pills and picked one out."There are four elements in Zulu; the Lord of Fire, the Lord of Water, the Lord of the Sand, and the Lord of the Wind"

Npama, like every other priest on their day of ordination, had to split himself in four, dip himself in the four elements, die and be reborn in the elements. Then, he became what they could call a priest.

★

Davis had called her to meet him at the bar. It was unusual. 'He probably has a surprise', she had thought, though she was reluctant.

She had always been nauseated by the smell of alcohol. Davis came out to meet her.

"Welcome", he greeted and hugged her. He stinked of the alcohol she was avoiding.

"Have you been drinking?"

"Oh?!", he exclaimed, drunkenly, showing her the glass of alcohol he had held behind her back. She hadn't noticed it, earlier. "It's just a taste. You don't like it?"

"I told you that! Just yesterday, for Christ's sake!", she yelled at him.

Two guys walked out of the bar to call him. "Hey, Davis! Come on! The girls are waiting. She's ready to go down"

Davis turned back to Laura. "That's Craig and Luis"

"What?! You said you would avoid them if they ever came back... just yesterday!"

"I didn't forget that. Yea, but they didn't just come back. I called them back", Davis said to her. "Our relationship had a goal. I don't know of yours but I think I already achieved mine. Sorry, if you're hurt. You can go back to your boyfriend now"

"But...", she stuttered, as tears rolled from her eyes. "You weren't even my first choice!". She yelled, as he walked back in the bar. It is crazy when you believe you need someone to share secrets and things with; someone to miss and talk to when you're bored, but people come and they never plan to stay.

★

He was in the Shadowmask costume, like he was expecting a crime to happen, any time soon. He laid his back, staring at the dark skies. He had Laura on his mind again. The thought of her in Davis' arms was horrific to him.

"Don't keep that thought for too long", a voice spoke to him. The Shadowmask had been startling him, sporadically, since he got control of his powers. "Hello?"

The voice called again. It wasn't the Shadowmask. He felt a slight touch on his head, jumping up, immediately. It was the black man who had showed up at Cyrus Martinez's den .

"Npama?", the Shadowmask asked, holding out his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Ryan"

"Hmm?"

"Don't worry. I'll tell no one. No one can figure that, though", Cyrus said. "I'm close to what you guys call a diviner. That's the only reason I know your identity and the prophecy"

"What are you, then?"

"I'm a Mystique from Zulu; a different dimension. Every ordained priest is empowered to see beyond the ordinary. A priest can see the whole of Zulu, wherever he stands"

"You should be able to see the possible doom, about to befall this place. If you have the chance to leave, why are you still here?"

"I came here with a goal. The king of Zulu has sent me here to find the sacred items stolen by your fellow mundanes when they attacked"

"We can get in your dimension, too", the Shadowmask asked.

"Yes. The devil's daughter figured out a way to do so. She also figured a way to hide herself from the sight of a Zuluan priest. They stole powerful items from the shrine and they need to be returned... I also came to find my father, Piccolo Madrid"

"What do you need to get in her lair and take back all you came for?", the Shadowmask asked, ready to help.

"I've been there, masking my scents, a million times. My father is not in there. The items will be the last thing I take."

"Then, you should have gone to a diviner", the Shadowmask said, pointing at Mario's shop.

"He's a vendor. The poster is for the fun of kids", Npama replied.

"No, he's masking the scent of his magic. The outlook is what he wants the world to see."

*********

The lights blinked as the Shadowmask walked into the shrine. "Mario!?", he called. "Mario!?

"I am the great Mario!", he appeared behind the Shadowmask, dancing around, like always. "Thou art welcome to my discourteous dwelling. What can I offer you, Lord?"

"I need to find someone"

"Ok. fifty dollars for a map?"

"You don't need a map. His name is Piccolo Madrid. He is taken captive and kept somewhere in the city but you can't see through the walls"

"Hmm", the diviner walked around, stroking his beards. "I love riddles. If he is in the room and you can't see anything wrong with the room, like what you seek is definitely not in there. If it's has to be somewhere but everywhere appears empty, then you should stop looking for that thing. You should start checking which of these buildings has an incense mask"

"An incense mask?"

"With an incense mask, you can prevent a diviner from finding what you have to hide", Mario said. "Why don't you leave Piccolo Madrid to be found by his son? Let's talk about the key you need right now"

The Shadowmask put in more attention. "What do you know about the prophecy?"

"I know no one can stop the devil's daughter if she decides to come for the key. I know she will soon come for it. What if I told you you can end this quickly?"

"How do you mean?"

"The fire and lightning from your veins are capable of destroying the key. Once you do that, all hopes of unlocking the beast burns up. Voila! You've prevented the rise of the Antichrist"

★

A lady in a black dress and a black hat walked into Mario's shop. It was the devil's daughter. "Mario!", she called. "Come out! I have a job for you".

"I am Mario", the diviner appeared behind her, dancing around like he always did. "Whaaa!". He exclaimed and staggered back, afraid. "What has the daughter of the humble living devil come for in my disdainful diggings"

"I have come to find something", she said to him.

"And Titus cannot do that? Or you underestimate the power of the man?"

"Don't you dare question me!", she yelled at him.

"Don't you dare yell at me!", he yelled back, making his voice echoed loudly, like it'd cause an earthquake.

"Don't break down your habitation just to scare a woman without fear hormones"

"Say the word, Melissa”

"The key to the beast lock"

“You failed”, he jumped, dancing around like he had won a lottery. The weird beats started again, as he danced around the devil’s daughter, fearlessly. “You have one last chance. You fail again? Then, you’re gone!”

"Skip the act, Mario. You might regret the jokes"

Mario stared at her for a few seconds. "Who do you think is powerful enough to keep diviners from finding the key?"

"My father... Lucifer, himself", Melissa said, and turned, about to walk out.

"Then, Lucifer, it is... But what if I told you you won't be getting the key, easily?"

"I already know that", she replied.

"And what if I gave you a better idea to take out the threats?"

She turned and faced him. "How do you mean?"

"The Shadowmask might stop you if you're not careful... so why don't you stop him first?"

"How do you suggest I do that?"

"Let him have the key. He'll run wild and his people will kill him with their own hands. Nothing stands in the way, any more."

"Sounds like a cunning idea. I like it"