War Of Freedom- Fallen (book One)

PROLOGUE

Twenty-five years ago. 

"This is the freedom you asked for. Enjoy it while you can," the man announced, smashing a small wooden box onto the cold floor. The shattering sound reverberated through the darkness of the cave, conjuring a melancholic wail. Alone in the depths of secrecy, he waited.

From underneath the splintered wood, a hellish bead of black gas ascended. It devoured every ounce of moisture, turning the air bone dry. It grew and grew till numerous tendrils, which looked like snakes on Medusa's head, crawled out. They swirled around green plants and night dwellers, ravishing every bit of essence, leaving only the charred bodies behind.

A necessary sacrifice without any remorse, a predator pouncing on its prey.

The temperature in the cave dropped several degrees as the bead enlarged to a globe sized Core.

'Finally!' it thought. It had been waiting for this liberation since many years now. The tendrils stretched into the depths of the cave, feeling all the corners of its new home.

The black compact Core, hovering in the air, jerked. The cave was too small to move freely. And the life forms present there weren't of its taste. It projected a smoke beam towards the man, who received it by stretching his hand. The gas beam twirled around his arm and enveloped his body. Communication was never a barrier, for it was a part of him once.

"What's wrong with this place? Isn't it cozy?" The man asked with a wicked grin.

The tendrils swayed like falling leaves in gentle spring breeze.

"You don't like it? Try to escape then." He chuckled and dropped the outstretched hand.

The Core didn't waste another minute in shooting a gaseous beam towards the cave's entrance. Just as it was about to beam outside, it halted when it struck a colourless barrier separating it from the world outside.

The man sniggered. "The infamous devil should break such a weak barrier with ease," he commented in a vicious tone.

The Core knew this man very well. His words always pierced right through like an injection of poison. Any trace of sympathy was just an illusion.

The Core jerked again. Its tendrils shot in all directions to escape through the narrow crevices too small for the barrier to miss. But the man was smart. It couldn't find any.

It had killed hundreds of people before. Killing a single unarmed man was as easy as sucking the moisture out of a small shrub. After all, because of it, he became this powerful.

It dissolved to form sheets and sheets of black gas and juddered erratically. Like caught in the middle of an earthquake, the cave roared as it juddered to an extent of destruction. The stalactites plummeted, their pointy ends piercing deep into the floor. The bats squeaked for their lives when the broken stones crushed them flat. Blood splattered everywhere, painting the floor with crimson and iron. Not a living soul survived. Nevertheless, in the midst of this world-shattering calamity, the man stood with his arms crossed and his eyes burning with rage.

He stomped his feet and yelled, "Stop!"

Waves and waves of mysterious, colourless energy rippled from him. It bound with the black gas in a hurried attempt to cease the judders. The black gas molecules had to withdraw itself to an invisible size. Once again, the cave fell silent.

"Stop hiding! Come out now!" The man yelled.

The Core liked the frustration rumbling in him. The more irritated he was, the greater the chances of its escape. As if he read its thoughts, the man took a deep breath and spoke in a calmer tone.

"You begged me to liberate you from that wench. Why are you whining now?" He sneered.

Because this barrier wasn't included in the deal. How dare he say those words after betraying like this? The Core had no emotion left for the man, except infuriating rage.

Fresh blood soiled his white sleeves and trickled down to form pools of red. Underneath the strings of torn clothes, numerous bone-deep cuts threatened to annihilate him. No one should be alive after facing its wrath, yet he stood there, unbothered.

Once in a life time chance for its freedom. The dark gas wasn't ready to waste it because of him.

It reemerged and revolved around him, forming a whirlwind. It blasted a gas beam on the bleeding wound at the back of the man's head to catch him off guard.

He spun around, raised a finger to fire a stream of colourless energy. Black collided with the uncoloured and exploded like fireworks. In the glow, the gas saw his determined expression vividly. It realised nothing would stop him now.

The gas drifted away to form the spherical Core again.

If it couldn't fight him now, it would be stuck here forever. So, it launched a black tendril at him.

Then another.

Then another.

Every strike was countered effortlessly. He seemed to possess eyes everywhere.

Damn him!

The man snorted. He dashed towards the Core and raised his arms wide. The colourless energy seeped out of his long slender fingers and encased the spherical orb. With one sudden, forceful jolt, he clasped it. The Core juddered vigorously to break the colourless prison, but the man chocked it further.

"I warned you not to do that. You damn Quyrp!" A tone of frustration burst out of him. In a span of a few moments, his palms touched each other as the Core shattered into a million obsidian motes.

He withdrew a few steps, but his eyes were fixated on the slowly forming Core. "Your fight for freedom is futile. It is nothing but a myth created by the devil himself. You should realise by now every freedom demands a sacrifice."

Beyond the woodlands surrounding the cave, a few rays of yellow lights danced in the sky from the city streets. Music was blowing up, and the fierce winds carried the enticing aroma of the delicious food. The city had been submerged in festivity since the day broke, completely oblivious to what was brooding in its vicinity. It was like the fight took place in another dimension.

The man continued, "Unfortunately, this city withstood everything . . .famine, invasion, and even the extermination of the entire clan. This is exactly why you are going to be its downfall. You will burn every good in this prosperous country till cinders turn into ashes."

Saying so, he started walking away.

The Core always hated the confidence in his tone. It could do nothing, as it was too weak to fight him at the moment.

He halted when his body came under the moonlight. Then he turned his upper half and emphasised, "Always remember, a devil seeking another devil's help will  have its consequences." And vanished into thin air.

The Core gathered its last mote and traveled to the depths of the cave, determined to take back its freedom.

****************