Two Worlds: Clash of the Guardians (Completed)

XVIII - His Lovely Wives - Part II

Vadiraj

October 8, in the year of 8845, Reminis Calendar (RC) 

Vadiraj sat still in his chair, scratching his goatee. Elli and her friends were halfway through their journey, and that administered a sense of urgency to him. He opened his drawer and took out the book given by the ghost. Sun Tzu, The Art of War… He sniggered. He claimed himself as the God of War, having killed thousands of lives and instilled fear in the mind of Reminis’ citizens. Even after ten years, the fear was still strong and never subsided. How could this Sun Tzu, someone from China, surpass him?

Sniggering still, he flipped the cover and read the first page. It was a wordy book and his patience thinned. He began to skip lines until he read a phrase: To win the war, you must understand your enemy. He closed his eyes and thought. Who are my enemies? The Lucifers were killed; he didn’t have to fear anyone. The sorcerers were just pathetic brethren. What about the Jackals? He didn’t dread that too. If his prediction was right, he would be seeing them in the Underworld and beheading them. Soon…

Soon… The word resounded in his mind like a charm, hypnotising him. His conscious drifted. His soul moved out of his body and wandered into a cavern. A feminine voice kept calling him and out of curiosity, he ventured deeper. Instead of getting darker, the surroundings become brighter. He followed the light, eager to find the source, until he saw a hooded figure standing in front of him. He had been meeting lots of weird entities lately. The thought annoyed him but he didn’t walk away.

The woman was cladded in all-white and wore no shoes. A satin shawl veiled her pale face, leaving only her golden eyes. Golden hair flown out of her hood like waves of aurora. She was the reason the entire cavern was enlightened. Vadiraj frowned. He thought of the leader of the Earth Wanderer, Lady Lauriela. But the woman in front of him possessed an aura that even the mix-breed Banshee couldn’t compete. She was not a living creature, and that reminded him of the ghost.

Vadiraj’s bone-woven cloak shuddered as he back-stepped. He didn’t want to stand too close to her. She released a scent that made him suddenly remember those days he was trapped under Mount Tampas. How could that be? That’s impossible. “Who are you? Why do you call me here?” he asked.

“That’s a question you often ask lately, isn’t it?” She smiled like a queen. Vadiraj could see the faint line of her lips jerked upwards from behind the shawl. She smiled again and said, “I don’t mind telling you who I am, but that’ll make your confusion grow fonder. You already have lots to deal with.”

“I am a busy man. Speak your errand, or I’ll leave.”

“Why the hurry? She’s not asleep now. You don’t have to catch up with her soul.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Vadiraj, Elli has suffered a lot, because of you. If you didn't kill her father, she wouldn't have to come to this foreign land of magic. She wouldn't be whipped up by the sandstorm and tossed down from the sky. She wouldn't be chased by poisonous bee. She wouldn't have to venture into the volcano and suffer great heat. All of these cause tremendous pain to her. Do you want to keep playing this game?”

The woman waved her right hand upwards, and a mirage appeared in front of Vadiraj. It looked like the screen of a television that he saw from the pamphlet, though it had no particular shape or colour. As Vadiraj stared deeper into it, he was shocked to see his own face in the screen, and he was… beating Elli with his staff. She was screaming in pain, writhing in anger which she’d not be able to release on another person. The scene changed, showing her tear-soaked face when his goons bullied her.

“Is this the way you treat the woman you love?”

Vadiraj was tongue-tied. The woman waved her hand again and the scene changed. Elli was lying on a white bed. She wore a long-sleeved peach tunic with golden hems that draped from her chest to her hips. Her breasts heaved up and down as she slept on her side, her right leg crossed over her left, revealing her voluptuous buttock. Vadiraj stepped forward. She looked so peaceful, like a goddess. Her face radiated light fairer than the moon. Her lips tugged upwards, as if she was knitting a sweet dream.

He wanted to kiss her forehead and comfort her for the sufferings she endured. He leaned forward and all of a sudden, a wave of heat assailed his face. He retreated and saw fire licking Elli’s body. Panicked, he tried to put out the fire but his hands became heavier. Looking down, he saw himself grabbing his staff, the jaw of the skull ablaze with heinous fireball. He was the one who had set the fire on Elli, on the woman he loved, on his bride. Yelling, he grasped his head and collapsed on the cavern floor.

“Elli will become nothing but a floor of bones if you continue this. Think about it.”

The woman’s voice trailed away and everything become pitch black. Vadiraj opened his eyes and found himself lying on his own grey marble floor. He was relieved it was just a bad dream. He lifted his hand and wiped away the beads of sweat on his forehead. A thought stroke him. He had never sweated; he had never made a bad dream before. All the while, he was the one who controlled people’s mind, not to be controlled. The woman… She-she is a Lucifer, the wife of Eremiel. How could that be?

He flung his arms in exhaustion and the thick book flew out of his grip, lying sprawled on the floor like a defeated warrior. The book… It was a demonic item. It was possessed by the Lucifers’ souls. They had come back to haunt him. The thought suddenly calmed him and he laughed. Ghosts, pathetic ghosts. They're nothing but shadows. His mood relaxed but he kept his eyes focused on the book.

Wars… Fire… Elli… Death… No. The war was inevitable, but he would make sure Elli was safe. He was the creator of the game. He controlled everything. Grinding his fangs, he thought of a plan. He’d prove to the Lucifers and those trying to hamper him that he was unbeatable. Closing his eyes, he called out to a Vampist that he trusted, the Vampist that had gone with him to Detroit to get the chainmail.

“Kaizord, prepare an army of fifty. Tonight, we’ll hunt.”