Omega Wars Chronicles

Chapter 106: Roots Part 3

6 years ago within the territory of Stormwind village, little Cloud and his mother Marida were walking on the road, laughing and conversing with each other, but during their conversation, Cloud stopped smiling as he noticed the look of disturbance on the face of his mother.
"Mother, is something wrong?" Cloud asked.
"Huh? Nothing. Nothing at all." Marida answered as she regains herself, "I was just thinking about something."
"What is it?" Cloud asked.
"You won't understand. It's grown ups talk." Marida.
"Hmmm." Cloud said as he smirked mischievously with a raised brow to which Marida responds with a smile.
"You naughty boy!" Marida said as she drew Cloud's head to her waist.
"Ah!" Cloud's voice sounded.
"Wait till your father hears this." Marida's voice sounded.
"I'm sorry!" Cloud's voice sounded again.
Inside their house as nightime had reached, Cloud laid fast asleep on the bed while Gorg and Marida both sat outside on a chair.
"So how was the hunt?" Marida asked while smiling.
"The hunt was crazy. Those creatures were hard to kill and Kashigag started misbehaving again." Gorg answered.
"Started misbehaving again? Did he drink before joining the hunt?" Marida asked with a raised brow, "He has a big problem with drinking and he becomes more dangerous when he is hunting."
"He assured us that he had overcome his drinking problem and is capable of hunting." Gorg said.
"And you believed him?" Marida asked.
"Well, he did look stable until the prize came, that's when he started to misbehave." Gorg said, "Rather than shooting the arrow at the beasts, he started shooting at everyone and he ended up hitting Asmika in-between his arse."
"Goodness..." Marida said in shock.
"He's alive... I just don't think he will be able to sit for a long time." Gorg said, "So..."
"There was something you said that you wanted to tell me earlier. What is it?" Gorg asked as he glanced at Marida.
"I saw it; the end of all things... The end of all creation." Marida said, "The living, dead, undead, the sun, the moon, the realms.... Everything gone. I saw what Cloud says he sees and that vision terrifies me."
"I saw a man... A man in black. He said we are in debt." Marida said which made Gorg stare at her in confusion, "He said we can only delay the inevitable ... Not stop it. My fear of and for Cloud keeps growing. I try to put up an act that everything is fine but i know it isn't. I keep asking myself 'what have i done?'
I look at my little boy; his smile, his laughter, his heart, yet i remember what he is destined to do... Who he is destined to become, and i ask myself again: what have i done? All i wanted was for him to live and i doomed many to do that.
Cloud keeps feeling, hearing and seeing things but we try our best to assure him that everything is alright but we know it isn't. He desires to become the greatest warrior but a part of me feels that his ambition is what will lead him to his destiny."
"Three days ago, you scolded him, yelled at him, hit him and even burnt his favorite book that contained the history of Agaroth's greats all just to discourage him from his ambition." Gorg said as he faced forward.
"I still feel terrible about my actions and i hate myself even more for it." Marida said, "My fear of his destiny played out and i acted terribly towards him. I apologized and bought him a better type of that book, but it doesn't change my horrible actions. How he could still forgive me and laugh with me even after that still surprises me.
I just wanted and still want to protect him from himself and his destiny."
"But you can't." Gorg said, "You can't hide or protect him from the truth forever. When he is of age just like his other peers, they will learn the truth of our tribe's past and very soon he will learn the truth about himself; about what you did to give him life."
"I know he will learn very soon and i doubt he will still see me with the same eyes after learning the truth. He will definitely hate me." Marida said, "I don't want to imagine me being hated by my own son but I can't say I would blame him if that happens."
"He won't hate you." Gorg said.
"You don't know that." Marida said, "You dont know that at all. He is suffering so much because of me and others will too. He definitely will hate me once he learns what happened.
He is a pure child, yes he can be annoyingly cocky <which by the way he got from you Gorg when you were younger> but he has a clean heart, however it's not enough. Children change as they grow; that sweet child can become an evil monster as soon as they enter adulthood or even before that, and that child that was terrible can become one of the most blissful people you have ever seen."
"And there are those that remain the same." Gorg said.
"And what if he changes? What if he encounters something that breaks his soul and decides to end everything?" Marida asked as she glanced at Gorg.
Gorg stared at Marida for a short period and turned his face away.
"Roku once told me something: there will come a time when your child will be left on his own, then would he have to make his own choice." Gorg said, "I thought about those words for some time and he is right. We won't be there for him forever. We won't be there to continually comfort him, or tell him what to do and what not to do. Very soon, he will become an adult and he will have to make his own choices."
"And what if he makes the wrong one?" Marida asked.
"Then we failed. We failed as parents." Gorg answered, "Marida, i am as frightened as you are. Each time i look at him, i ask myself: will he go down down that path? Are we doing enough to ensure he doesn't fall or are we doing so little? And to be honest, i don't know. I truly don't know. But what i do know is that i will do everything i can to teach him what is right and evil and ensure he doesn't stray.
That is all i can do as a father."
"But what about you? What will you do as a mother?" Gorg asked as he peeked at Marida, "I have seen you. I have watched you talk with him. You are more connected with him and he took a lot from you. Your determination, your stubbornness and there are a lot of good things you taught him.
Do you feel you are doing enough as a mother or do you feel you are doing too little?"
Unable to respond to the question, Marida bent her head down. Gorg stared at Marida for some seconds and sighed.
"We need to get some sleep." Gorg said as he stood on his feet.
"Lets go in." Gorg said as he stretched forth his hand towards Marida.
Currently after Kiorra had revealed to Cloud about the rekindled covenant, Cloud silently stared at the scene.
"My mother..." Cloud said softly.
"What's wrong? Going to play denial again?" Kiorra asked, "Go ahead, feel free to deny. After all, that's all you are good at."
A series of emotions surged through Cloud as he had trouble processing the revelation of Kiorra, leading him to subconsciously step back.
"N-No..." Cloud said, "N-No. It's not true. It's not possible...!" .
"As expected, you would deny it. Even with what is front you, you would still call it untrue." Kiorra said.
" There is no way. My mother would never do this!" Cloud said, "She never even understood what was happening to me!"
"Oh but she did. She knew, she always knew." Kiorra said, "In order to save your life, your mother made a covenant with me; a covenant that if i should grant you life, then you will become my other half."
"No..." Cloud said softly.
"In a desperate attempt to save her child... Her dying, sickly child, she chose to do the unthinkable and cross the line no other Stormwind would cross." Kiorra said.
Kiorra quickly took Cloud to the scene of Marida standing in the dark forest baby Cloud in her arms.
"Is that me?" Cloud asked.
"Yes. you before you were covenanted to me." Kiorra answered.
Cloud's eyes widened as he immediately took notice of his previous brown hair color.
"My hair... I was never born with white hair." Cloud said within, "I constantly wondered why the color of my hair is different from my parents but i was never given a straight answer. At one point, my mother told me it was because of a herb she took when she was pregnant with me.
It... It was all a lie..."
"Your mother was indeed desperate." Kiorra said as the scene plays of Marida on her knees with baby Cloud in her arms, "After losing three of her children, she made up in her heart that she would not lose the fourth."
"Three children...?" Cloud asked.
"Three children." Kiorra replied, "Your mother lost three in her womb, you are the fourth child and the first to breathe the air of the Earth, however you were plagued with an incurable disease, leaving your days on this Earth numbered.
Your father though he was determined to find a cure, your mother was already devoured by fear, and made up her mind that she would save you by any means necessary.
Mothers... Never trifle with a mother, especially a desperate one. The lengths they would go to save their child... They would even to cross the molten deserts of hell to do so."
"Can you hear me, god of our ancestors?" Marida asked with closed eyes at the time she bent her head in prayers, "In the days of old, you saved our fathers from annihilation when they were once fishermen. You granted them strength to conquer their enemies and because of you, they created the iron era; though everything fell apart but there is still a connection between us."
"My child... He is dying. He doesn't have much time." Marida said with a tearful voice, "He is the fourth child and the first to breathe the air of the Earth among the others, but he is terribly ill. We have tried everything but nothing has worked. I don't know what else to do but i cannot lose him.
Please, if you would save him and grant him life, then i will give you whatever you desire. If you would make him healthy and ensure he doesn't die, then whatever is required, i will do it. If it is service then i will grant it, but please..."
" Please save him." Marida said as tears trickled down her cheeks.
"Mother..." Cloud said with the disbelief of what he was watching.
"To be honest, i wanted to kill her daring to disturb me, but i found something amusing." Kiorra said, "The island i was imprisoned was heavily guarded with han stones to prevent anyone from entering and on top of it, each week, your people would assign four men to watch over the island but your mother managed to get pass them, not with brute force but with intelligence and without a single one noticing her presence.
And how did she do it? A simple sleeping gas arrow, a han stone capable of turning the user and what they touch invisible, and han stones capable of countering the stones placed in and around the island."
"Please, i need you! Answer me, please!" Marida said in the scene.
Suddenly all the tiny leaves that were descending to the ground froze. Heavy footsteps resonated, causing Marida to quickly raise her head and at that moment she raised her head she was struck with fear by the appearance of the black wolf Kiorra who towered above the trees while being tied with blue chains. Marida's fear grew as she quivered rapidly and in a blink of an eye, Kiorra lowered his head close to the surface and glared at Marida.
"You disturb me, human." Kiorra said.
"I-I am sorry!" Marida said as she bent her head, "I am sorry for awakening you but i need your help. My son, he is-"
"I know about your son and i am not interested." Kiorra cuts in, "The affairs of humans bore me."
"Please i beg of you!" Marida said, "I have tried everything but nothing has worked. You are my last hope."
"Hope is an illusion only fools choose to pursue." Kiorra said.
"But with acts, fools can turn that illusion to a reality." Marida replied, "You were once the god of our ancestors. You made them mighty and saved them from their enemies before they obtained power. If you could save them then you can save him now.
Please save my son and whatever you request i will give it to you."
"There is nothing you can give me. Nothing you can offer." Kiorra said, "And do not forget your ancestors rejected me and chose to live as powerless mortals. I am no longer acknowledged as the god of your people."
"I acknowledge you." Marida said.
"You speak with words of desperation. Words to soothe the ears just like your ancestor Edon." Kiorra said, "But as i said before, you have nothing to offer me, nothing to give.
Begone, human."
"Please, i beg of you! I will do anything you want! Anything at all!" Marida pleaded, "Just name it and i will do it!!"
Kiorra stared at baby Cloud for a while and slightly grinned.
"I desire another half... A true other half. Will you do it?" Kiorra asked, "If i were to offer healing your child in exchange for him belonging to me, would you agree? Would you let your son be one with me and let his life become mine? Would you agree for him to become my other half?"
"Your other half...?" Marida softly asked with googled eyes.
"Would you agree, mortal?" Kiorra asked, "Your time and that boy's time is running out. Would you agree to give him to me or would you rather let him perish and live with the part that you could have saved him... Your fourth child? Make your decision quick, human."
Marida stared at her baby for a short while and quickly lifts him before Kiorra.
"Yes, i will offer him to you! If you desire to make him your other half then so be it. His life is yours! But please..."
"Save my son!!!" Marida said as tears trickled down her eyes.
Kiorra chuckled at Marida as his eyes glowed brighter and all of a sudden Marida awoke and found herself sitting on a bed. Marida panted and observed the environment which turned out to be her room, leaving her in confusion.
"Home? I'm home? Was it all a dream?" Marida asked herself, "Does it mean... I never left?"
Suddenly Marida heard the sound of a baby crying which made her to stand on her feet and rush out of her room. Arriving to the spot she remembered keeping her child, Marida paused and stared in confusion at the sight of a white haired baby crying.
"Is that my... Son...?" Marida asked within.
Unable to fathom if what she was seeing was real, Marida stretched forth her hand and gently held the hand of the baby. In that moment Marida held his hand, the baby stopped crying and stared at Marida which made Marida stare back with widened eyes and shortly after the realization, tears streamed out of Marida's eyes, leaving her to break down and cry heavily.
"From the time you were born, you had never opened your eyes neither did you cry. That was the first time she had heard and seen you do both." Kiorra said, "What would a mother not do for her child to live? What line would she not cross? But what she didn't know was that at that very moment she agreed to my terms was the moment you had given up the ghost. If she had not agreed or if you weren't compatible with me, you would have been another dead born.
It was by chance you were compatible to me and it was by that covenant you were brought back to life and your hair is a testimony."
Cloud's eyes widened as he had bent his head while trying to process everything he had heard and seen.
"Your father learnt the truth and they both agreed to hide you from it and with help from the treacherous Roku, they were able to suppress you for ten years, but no matter how long and hard they tried, they could never hide you from me. From your duty... From your destiny."
Being filled with melancholy, Cloud fell on all fours and gazed at the surface. Cloud immediately had several memories of him and his parents but all of those memories shattered in his head
You belong to me, Cloud of the Tageiras." Kiorra said.