The Whispers of the Fallen

by J. D. Netto

  My attack was released from me with fury. I concealed my attack to strike him directly. White wings sprang from his back as he took flight. He swerved away from my attack, flying to his left.

  “So the red flashes that streak out of you are your attack?” he asked as he lingered in the room.

  “Isaac, how is this even possible?” I shouted, confused. “You have ruined all our plans,” I lamented. Anger boiled inside of me.

  He retracted his wings, his feet touching the floor. “Nephele, there are questions that you will never know the answer to,” he alleged with an assertive tone. “If you want to know what fate awaits you all, follow me.” He let out a smile as he darted out of the interrogation room, quickly pacing up the staircase. I followed him. From this moment on, I no longer cared about Ballard or Corbin. I wanted to destroy Isaac. I wanted to find out how it was possible for his soul to return to his body.

  “You are still human, Isaac. Eventually your human desires will get the best out of you,” I shouted as we both flew around the prison, coursing our way toward the stairway that led to the exit.

  Once we exited the prison, Isaac flew through the immense glass window located above the entrance to the castle, making his way out. I maneuvered my way through the darting shards of glass. I came to a halt when I saw the other Nephilins standing motionless on the moat as war cries resounded. As I plunged my way downward, I saw Adawnas standing in front of the castle, her eyes fervently looking ahead.

  “What is going on?” I asked as I landed on the moat.

  “Corbin is no more.” She bit her bottom lip as she nodded her head toward the darkness. Out of the shadows, a man appeared. He slowly moved across the garden located in front of us. His dark hair moved with the blowing breeze.

  “He is no more…” I repeated. “Where is he?”

  The war chants grew louder; the ground trembled. I failed to see what was heading toward us.

  From the darkness, many men appeared, marching in perfect formation, making a long straight line behind the man that stood as their leader. Isaac flew down from the sky, positioning himself next to the man.

  “The Exchange is over.” The voice sounded just like Corbin’s. “Death now belongs to the one that is greater than its previous master. Our souls are no longer slaves to your desire,” the man next to Isaac bellowed loudly.

  I could not believe my eyes; the man standing next to Isaac was Demetre. His spirit had returned from the Wastelands.

  “Die, die, die,” the men accompanying Isaac and Demetre chanted together. As they shouted, lightning broke through the dark sky. I could not believe what I saw. Underwarriors, many of them appearing like a cloud of locusts, were converging from the dark clouds. To my knowledge, they had all perished in Aloisio. They joined Isaac and Demetre, making a perfect straight line ahead of the men. The chanting and shouting ceased. A chilly breeze blew as silence began to settle.

  “If it is a war you want, it is a war you shall get!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.

  “We do not want a war, Nephele,” Isaac answered in a loud voice. “We want justice!”

  “Attack!” I yelled. A mighty roar arose from Isaac and those that stood with him. The ground trembled as the men catapulted in our direction. The whooshing sounds of wings violently flapping joined the battle march as the Underwarriors and Nephilins darted toward the sky. Explosions of light colored the dark sky as both Underwarriors and Nephilins released their attacks. The clashing swords could be heard when the men and the Nephilins that remained on the ground collided. While some Underwarriors and Nephilins used their special abilities, others used weapons. I took flight, causing pain all around me, attacking both Underwarriors and men.

  I stopped in midair, surprised when I saw the rays of the sun piercing through the dark clouds. The light caused the clouds to turn into vapor. The light touched the garden, the castle and the battle that raged beneath me.

  The Underwarriors slammed many Nephilins against the castle as flames engulfed its towers. Some Nephilins turned to ash as swords and spears pierced them; the ashes were scattered throughout the garden by the wind.

  “Here, you will meet your doom,” I heard one of the Underwarriors shout as he approached my son, Duane. I watched as Duane took flight and headed in the direction of the flaming towers.

  I fled toward the castle when I remembered the books were still inside; I had to retrieve them before they were found. I passed through the flames and rubble, dodged the debris and falling stones to get to my bedroom, where both books were under lock and key.

  The moment I landed inside my room, I could not believe what I saw; the door had been broken down and the room was ransacked.

  “They have been taken,” a man spoke from inside. He stood to my right partially hidden in the corner, near the window. “What you seek is no longer here.”

  “And who must you be?”

  “Nathan, one of the Underwarriors,” he responded.

  “I thought you were all destroyed.”

  “Nephilins are not the only ones with tricks up their sleeves.”

  I could no longer control myself. I attacked him with a simple thought, and tossed him against the window. The moment his body broke through the glass, he took flight. I followed him, flying quickly to block him as he headed outside into the battle.

  From the ground, dust rose up from the battle. I heard cries and groans coming from the battlefield. Nathan and I collided in the air. The intense impact tossed us both in different directions. I skyrocketed into the river behind the castle. The water was frigid, the air chilly. The blunt impact hurled my body with such force that I sank all the way to the bottom of the river. I swam with haste back up to the surface.

  The moment my head was out of the water, I saw lightning and thunder coming from the direction of the invisible wall that protected Tristar. I heard a low hissing noise and observed that the Lesser was still curled up next to the water fountain.

  A loud screech bellowed above, followed by a blaze of fire that tore the sky apart.

  “Go back to the shadows,” Eldon’s voice resounded as I swam toward the riverbank. I searched for Eldon but I could not see him.

  “I will not be held prisoner here.” Lucifer’s voice was menacing. The wind picked up and the temperature continued to drop. Out of a blaze of fire, Eldon appeared in the sky.

  A dark dust also arose, covering all but Eldon as it approached. Once the dark curtain of dust neared the river, the dust scattered. I looked up into the sky and it was as if the sky itself was being ripped apart by the sunlight as it slowly faded. Gray flocks of ash fell softly from the sky. The ashes burned as they touched my skin.

  I took flight. A very thick mist arose and surrounded everything, blinding my visibility. I could still hear the sounds of war coming from far beneath me. I hovered inside the mist, trying to get a better judgment of my bearings.

  Lucifer’s shouts rose to a loud crescendo. I could see Eldon’s figure moving about as the darkness reached to the sky, mixing itself with the thick white mist, blinding me as I frantically tried to grope my way through.

  I can still hear them, which means I am still in Justicia, I thought.

  “The earth is shaking…the earth is shaking…” I heard the men repeatedly clamoring.

  Weariness increased inside of me. My vision grew even dimmer as a flash of light shone brightly, illuminating the mist and the landscape. I squinted, trying to see, but I couldn’t. I felt branches brush against my arm and shortly thereafter, I collided against a tree. I plunged down, landing with a thump against the ground.

  I was surprised when I felt a sudden chill. I moved my hands and felt snow on the ground.

  There is no snow in the garden, I thought as I moved in a daze, crawling on the floor.

  As my vision returned to normal, I could see the gray sky above me. The mist had vanished and the Nephilins, Underwarriors and the men still battled. I looked around and there was no sign of Eldon or Lucifer.
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br />   The castle was to my left, burning to cinders. I tried to understand what had happened. The vegetation around me, the shape of the trees and the falling snow were certain signs that we were no longer in Justicia. It was then that I realized where we were. Somehow, we had been transported to the borderline that connected Elysium and Justicia. I couldn’t understand how all that had happened.

  Why have we left? I wondered.

  It was in that moment that Shadows sprang up from the ground and attacked the Underwarriors. All the questions I now had must be laid aside for the moment. I had to join the others in battle. I jolted toward the battle and attacked as many men and Underwarriors as I possibly could.

  As I fought, I could not ignore the many Nephilins that disintegrated to ash, but I rejoiced to see as many Underwarriors’ bodies lifelessly rested on the forest floor. With my mental power I tortured many with immeasurable pain that I released around me. Shadows mounted on top of the men and bit them ferociously on their necks and legs. Scarlet blood spilled onto the white snow.

  Another violent tremor shook the place, this time coming from the direction of the castle. The Underwarriors were bringing the castle down with their powers; some shot out rays of light like cutting swords as others destroyed it with their punches and kicks. Dust arose as the castle walls crumbled to the ground, while the ceiling continued to burn.

  One of the Underwarriors attacked me from my right, striking me with his sword and tossing me into a puddle of blood that had formed on the snow-covered ground. As he attacked me, a Shadow mounted onto a Desert Dragon descended from the sky and in one swoop bit the man in half and swallowed half of him. The Desert Dragons and the Shadows that rode them had come in countless numbers.

  They snatched both Underwarriors and men with their claws and tossed them in the air.

  “Where are the five?” I heard a Nephilin named Duncan call out, attacking the men with fire. As he clenched together both of his fists, fire engulfed his hands. “Where are they?” he continued shouting. Since none replied to his frantic screaming, fire issued forth from his hands, engulfing the men in flames.

  I was surprised when White Dragons appeared in the sky. They roared and hovered over us, moving in sync with one another. The Dragons were wearing armor on their snouts and horns. A massive plate covered their torsos. From the ground, their wings appeared to be longer than their bodies.

  From the woods, an army of many men charged toward us with loud roars. They were fully clothed in golden armor and held spears, swords and shields. Their helmets were shaped like a dragon’s skull, adorned with two silver horns on each side.

  “Humans?” Duncan asked as he looked at me, surprised.

  “Do they not know they will perish if they join this battle?” I said as I watched the lot of them attack the Nephilins. Five men dashed toward me with swords in hand, attempting to wound me. With a single hand gesture, I tossed them all against the trees. The White Dragons spit fire as they flew in the air with their human riders. As the flames shot from their mouths, I saw something that I did not expect to see. The blue flame they released consumed our kind. I became desperate. I was unaware that White Dragons could kill us.

  “Fight to the death!” Duncan shouted to all the Nephilins repeatedly as he flew about.

  I picked up a sword that was lying on the ground and attacked the Dragons in the sky. The Dragons I had wounded plummeted to the ground, screeching in pain, their riders falling off, their bodies thrown violently to the ground. In the midst of the battle, I wondered how these humans knew of our location.

  I quickly returned my attention to my surroundings when I saw Isaac coming in my direction from the sky. With a simple thought, I dragged him away from the battle and tossed him deep into the forest. I followed him as his body plummeted from the sky.

  “Despite your great abilities, you should keep a close watch out for your enemies,” I said as his body hit the ground with a hard thud. I attacked him with my power, executing pain upon him.

  He groaned as he struggled to stand on his feet. “Do not waste my time, Nephele,” he murmured.

  “Waste…Wasting your time? You are the one that has been wasting my time. You have taken the life of one that was dear to me.”

  “And I will take the lives of many more. You have no idea of the things I saw while my body was possessed by one of Fallen Stars.”

  I felt my power growing weak. I could see Isaac regaining control of his limbs.

  “You must understand. I am no longer the same naive boy from Aloisio, Nephele. When you performed the Soul Exchange, my soul went to the place where all the others are. I died without a choice just like them, but I died knowing the truth about the Creator and Lucifer. The things I have seen have given me a new perspective on this journey. In the Wastelands, Death was conquered by one mightier than Athalas. Demetre and I were released to fulfill the purpose designed for us both.”

  “That being?” I asked, enraged.

  “To be the keepers of the Diary. To never give in to the temptation of reading its pages; to keep it safe from enemy’s hands. I may be its bearer, but Demetre will aid me during this journey, no matter what the cost. That is my mission…and Demetre’s.”

  I laughed. “You are still human. Nothing that you say or do can change that. Sooner or later, the Diary will get to you and you will open it, willingly. Will you really be able to contain yourself, knowing you hold such an important book?”

  “I will fight with all that I have,” he affirmed in a strong voice. His speech was bold and full of authority.

  “The Fallen Stars and the Nephilins have chosen the wrong time to attack. As the darkness rises, so does the light. There are some humans that have not and will not turn their back on the Creator.”

  “That explains the futile efforts of the humans that are wasting their lives fighting against us.”

  He closed his eyes and clenched his fists. “They fight because even Lucifer and his armies aren’t strong enough to cause their hope for redemption to grow dim.”

  “Fools! All of you! Why do you do this to yourself, Isaac? Look at you! Do you not see all the power and the abilities you possess? Think of what you can be if you ally yourself with us!” I declared.

  “I wondered where I would find you, Nephele. It is of no surprise that you stand next to Isaac,” Erebos said with a smirk, strolling in from the darkness of the woods.

  “King Marco?” Isaac asked. He scowled the moment he laid eyes on Erebos.

  “Boy, this body is no longer a dwelling place for a king of men. A greater power now lives within this vessel.” The kingly robes that once clothed him were now all ragged and torn; blood dripped from his fingers and toes. “Excuse my appearance, but I had to feed.”

  With the palm of his right hand pointing toward Isaac, he released a flash of red light that was shaped like a whip. With great force it flew toward Isaac, stopping only an inch away from his face.

  “Try harder, beast,” Isaac mocked.

  My mind attacked him viciously; he screamed and the whip wrapped around him, lashing him with great strength. Isaac struggled against the attacks, moving his body about, trying to free himself from the whip. He tried to push us away by using the power of his mind. Small cuts and bruises appeared as the whip tightened around Isaac’s body.

  “This only proves how human you still are. I am a Fallen Star. I have been alive long before you, boy. And yet you have the gall to defy me.” Erebos laughed aloud as he watched Isaac struggle. Immediately, his whip transformed into a snake; its body wrapped around Isaac.

  “Where are the other book-bearers?” Erebos demanded, tightening his grip to emphasize his supremacy.

  Isaac defiantly looked into Erebos’ eyes, but remained mute to his cynical maneuver, and refused to divulge the coveted secret.

  “Intensify the pain, Nephele,” Erebos commanded as he belted forth a satirical shrill. “Show the boy what we are capable of.”

  “I am beyond seeing what you
all can do, Erebos.” Isaac’s teeth chattered and sweat flowed from his brow like tears. The snake Erebos held in his hand disappeared into a mist. In a flash, Erebos stood in front of Isaac and held his face in the cup of his hand.

  “If you don’t tell us where the others are, we will find them anyway. We will lock you all in a dungeon and torture you until you only have the sheer will left to shed your blood for the Dark One and pledge allegiance to him,” Erebos promised with a malevolent sneer.

  I was thrown against the trees by the force of a loud explosion. Dirt and rock flew about as the explosion intensified. Above me, I saw Nathan leaping over the treetops as he darted flashes of light in our direction. When the light touched the ground, loud explosions ignited. Nathan’s face was covered with blood.

  I looked at the ground and saw Isaac lying unconscious on the floor. Erebos stood to his feet.

  “Is this how you want to fight, Underwarrior?” Erebos shouted as his limbs shriveled, melting into his body, making way for a tail. His skull changed its shape and his eyes inverted to a bright golden glare. He revealed his visage in form—a coiled snake, cunning and lethal.

  Nathan did not respond with words but with action. He flew toward Erebos, wielding a flaming sword in his right hand.

  “Clever of you to come against me with fire,” Erebos remarked as his body stood upright, ready to attack. With one hand, Nathan held his sword and with the other he cast exploding flashes of light at me. Because of the flaming attacks, the floor of the forest was enveloped in flames. The trees became burning torches. Soon the smoke filled the sky. The flames were spreading quickly.

  Erebos grabbed ahold of Nathan with his tail. “Fool. Your efforts are in vain. Even if you defeat me, we will find them.”

  “Destroy him!” My voice was drowned by loud thunder. Lightning flashed across the sky, creating a kaleidoscope of colors. The clouds moved in as a whirlwind and the wind picked up, causing the trees to bow low toward the ground in surrender to its strength.

  White Dragons crossed the sky in great haste, howling as they flew. It was as if the clouds were falling upon us, slowly closing in on the ground. The snow on the trees was picked up by the strong winds, creating a curtain of pure white. But even through the snow, I could not miss the massive funnel cloud that touched the ground.