Eclipse of divinity

Echos from Eden

After relentless, diligent training in the snowy mountains of Alaska for three months, I could feel my bones and muscles getting stronger. I had become a warrior of such stature that beating Alex and Jordan—the descendants of the fiercest war gods of ancient times—seemed easy. I could beat them without using my brain powers, which made me and everyone realize that I was the chosen one. I used to doubt that I was the one who would defeat God, but as the months passed and we prepared for the epic battle, I came to believe it, too, even if it was a gradual process.

"It is time we embark on this new journey that would reveal the true nature of things and enlighten us about the knowledge lost in time and history," Jordan proclaimed while we were training for the last day on the snow mountains before we began our journey.

I became curious because I didn't know what he meant by that. "What are you suggesting? Can you elaborate on our next plan?" I inquired.

Jordan looked at Alex, giving him a nod to explain what we were going to do next, and he came forward after sharpening and putting his dagger back in its sheath. "The next phase of this journey is to find the first man on Earth," he said perplexingly.

"First man, huh? You mean Adam?" I raised my eyebrow in confusion and asked Alex.

"Yes, you guessed it right, we're going to find Adam, and he will guide us about our next move. He will enlighten your journey with knowledge lost to time and men. He is the only one closest to God, and he knows secrets no one else does. If we're going to defeat God, we must have the knowledge first to do so," Alex delineated.

Layla was attentively listening to our conversation while standing next to the butt as we were practicing archery this morning. She came forward and said, "But you must be prepared for the dangers that await you on this path. You're going to encounter monsters that you've never seen before. The journey is full of challenges, and we must be prepared to deal with them before we reach the sacred sanctuary where Adam is believed to reside."

"I have been preparing for months now. I believe I'm ready to go and find this sanctuary," I told them.

I could see the inexplicable expressions on their faces, and I was trying to read their minds. But before I could say anything, Jordan spoke, "You're ready. Yes, that's true to some extent, but before you know well about the challenges that lay ahead on this path, we simply can't leave."

"I see, so please tell me, what are we facing this time?" I asked them with burgeoning inquisitiveness.

"Monsters, powerful wizards, and mages possibly, that can seduce you and trick you into death. You must be prepared for them in advance," Layla said.

We all went back inside the house to prepare for the journey ahead. It was much warmer inside as the fire was still ignited. I sat at the table while Layla went to the bookshelf on the corner to bring ancient books that contained knowledge about the creatures we could encounter on our way to the sanctuary. She took out three of the books that had dust on them and dropped them on the table.

"Here, these three books contain most of the knowledge we are required to have in order to embark on this journey prepared," she said, looking at Jordan and me while Alex went to make some tea for everyone.

She opened the first book after removing the dust with her hands called the 'Chronicles of Mages and Darkness.' She read the preface from the ancient book that contained confusing Latin words that I couldn't understand, and then she translated the text for me.

"So, the text says this book was written by one of the wizards named Heimdall de Vries, who witnessed the power of dark magic firsthand and then saw what happened to those wizards and mages who chose the wrong path and betrayed their brothers and sisters and violated the ancient laws of wizardry," she translated for me and began to read further. "The wizards and mages who were condemned to hell forever reemerged with the fall of God and became even more powerful. They were liberated from the shackles of slavery and made protectors of the realms that connected different dimensions of miscellaneous worlds."