Nathan darted him a cold stare.
“It is alright, Nathan,” I sniffed, raising my shoulders as I tried to contain my sobs.
He turned around and headed toward Sathees and the others. Arundel let out painful grunts as he knelt beside me. His eyes were full of sorrow.
He cleared his throat.
“It’s not easy, is it?” he asked in a soft voice as he handed me my satchel. Shivers shot down my spine when I felt the Diary in my hands.
“No,” I answered in a low voice. “I had already grown used to the idea that they were dead.” My hands wiped the tears from my cheeks. “And then I discovered that they were still alive. Moments later, I had to be the one to take their lives.”
Arundel narrowed his eyes. “They are at peace now, Isaac.” A shy smile curved his lips. “May the joyful memories you have of them be an anchor of courage when darkness surrounds you. Long before this day, my father was already dead to me. His arrogance and pride killed my love for him day after day.” He pressed his hands together. “He did love my sister very much, but after my mother passed away five years ago, his feelings toward me changed.” He bent his head to the side, cracking the bones in his neck. “He would always have this spiteful look in his eyes whenever he was with me. I never understood why.”
My nose sniffled. “I am sorry,” I said.
“Be glad that you mourn their deaths out of love, not regret,” he said with his voice caught in his throat, shying his eyes away from mine.
“What do you regret?”
“I regret all the time I wasted trying to be the son he had always dreamed of.” He lifted his eyes to the sky. The storm clouds raced against each other as they hovered above us.
“Take your time.” His hand tightened around my shoulder. “You have the right to mourn their deaths, but people like you cannot linger in the disasters of the past. You are no ordinary man, Isaac.”
He stood to his feet, rubbed his hands on his pants, and walked toward the others.
Though they all talked amongst themselves, I noticed that Nathan and Sathees occasionally glanced at me. Xylia and Demetre kept looking my way, probably waiting for the right time to speak to me.
“Isaac.” I heard the familiar voice I had been longing to hear for so long. I turned around, looking for him amidst the trees, but he was nowhere in sight. I shot a quick glance at my companions, wondering if they had also heard the peaceful voice that had called my name, but they still talked amongst themselves. The white dragon rested his head on the ground, napping.
With my satchel around my shoulder, I rose to my feet. My eyes circled my surroundings, expecting to find him.
“You are looking for me in the wrong place, Isaac,” he said. His powerful voice was like the sound of crashing waves. “Close your eyes.”
My eyelids came together. Though I was unsure of what I was going to see, I obeyed his command.
Amidst the darkness, I saw him—the Creator. His white mane bounced as he approached me. His six wings were covered in long feathers as white as the snow that rested atop mountains.
“You are here.” My lips pressed into a tight smile. “After all this time, you have finally come.” His scarlet eyes were like sharp blades that could slash my flesh and reveal the depths of my heart.
“I never left.” He halted, standing inches from my face.
“It surely felt like you did,” I said, shying away from his gaze.
A low snarl came from him. “Do not mistake my silence for abandonment. I have been watching you since the day you took your very first breath.”
“Maybe that was the problem. You were just watching.” I turned my back to him. “Why did you not help me?” My arms spread. “My companions were taken. I was tempted to accept Xavier’s offer.”
“Silence can often teach us timeless lessons. If I had not withheld my words, you would have not recognized your weaknesses and strengths.” Our eyes met. “Despite all of your abilities, you are still a man, Isaac.”
“And yet I have seen things that no man should ever see.” I turned my gaze from his. “Done things that have scarred me for the rest of my life.”
He listened to my words in silence. I noticed the tears that dripped down the sides of his face.
“I watched all the events you mentioned unfold. After all these years, the consequences of mankind’s fall continue to manifest. The day Lucifer was given the right to enter Elysium, disaster and death followed. Though one man may sow the seed, those around him will reap its fruit, whether it be good or evil.” He let out a soft breath. “I am bound by the limits of the universe I created. I decided to give mankind the power to choose for themselves. I cannot interfere with the outcome of their choices, but I can send help and aid them in the battle against the darkness.”
“That was a dangerous thing to give us.” I sniffled my nose.
“It was my way of showing mankind that I trusted them.”
“Do you still trust us?” I feared his response.
“Why do you think I have you and the others going on this journey?” He hardened his scarlet eyes. “My trust stands unshaken. Your journey represents the choice laid out before mankind. You all carry Lucifer’s weapons. With such a task also comes the choice to persevere in your decisions to keep these books safe, or to succumb to their temptation.”
His voice filled my ears like a beautiful melody. It brought peace to my heart, allowing me to forget, even if only for moment, the sorrow that was inside of me.
He gazed into the darkness, silent.
My hands trailed around my satchel, feeling the Diary that sat inside.
“Is there anything else you would like to ask me?” I felt his strength in every word he spoke.
I clenched and unclenched my hands, thinking of the many questions that needed answers. Two of them required immediate responses.
“Are you aware that there is a traitor inside Tristar?”
His face grew empty of any emotion. He stood in front of me, quiet.
“Are you?” I insisted, pacing in his direction.
“Is there not betrayal inside every single heart?” With tender eyes, he looked at me. “The desire for vengeance? Self-righteousness? There is a rebellious traitor inside each one of us.”
I withheld my words, pondering what he said.
“What difference is there between a thief that robs a family’s food supply and a man that steals his neighbor’s joy by speaking evil words upon him?”
I was incapable of finding a suitable response.
“Worry not about traitors in other realms of the universe, Isaac,” he said, letting out a low snarl in his throat.
“There is one more thing that I must ask you.” He bore his tender eyes into mine. “Where did my parents go after they died?”
“Home.” His voice was calm and soothing. Though his answer was short, it filled my heart with peace. With a smile stamped on my face, I watched as an incandescent light enfolded his white body. His wings disappeared like vapor. The striking scarlet eyes melted like ice under the heat of day.
My eyes shot open and creases appeared on my forehead. Time had stood still while I’d spoken with the Creator. I saw my companions resting against old tree trunks. Demetre sat in silence while Xylia and Sathees talked. I rubbed my hands against my legs to rid them of all the melting snow. I picked myself up from the ground and grasped my sword.
Every step I took felt as if a weight was being lifted from my shoulders. The sorrow that came with the death of my parents and the capture of my companions was still present, but a reassuring feeling of victory filled me with strength.
Sathees caught sight of me. His pale face was shrouded in bruises and cuts. Red veins surrounded the gray irises of his eyes.
“It is good to see you, Isaac,” he said in a tired voice. Xylia gave me a half-hearted smile as I stood next to her. Demetre’s face was stamped with sorrow.
“It is great to see you, Sathees.” I narrowed my eyes, surprised. I darted Arundel a curious stare.
“You both have the same unusual eye color,” I remarked, analyzing Arundel’s facial traits. The muscles between my eyebrows constricted. “And the same nose.” I looked back at Sathees.
Those around me looked at both of them, widening their eyes at the similarities of their traits.
“Eyes like yours are not so common, Sathees,” said Nathan, darting Sathees a confused look.
Arundel took three steps toward Sathees. “Have we met before?”
Though confusion shrouded Sathees’ face, the resemblance was undeniable.
“No.” His voice was cold. He darted me a calm stare, avoiding any conversation with Arundel. “I will go find us something to eat. It will be dark soon.” He marched toward the trees.
Arundel watched Sathees until he disappeared amidst the trees. He grimaced, pressing his right hand over his left shoulder.
“What happened to the others, Isaac?” Nathan’s face was shrouded with worry.
I drew in a breath, letting it back out with a sigh as I tried to find strength within me to answer his question.
“Xavier penetrated our minds, presenting an offer that was almost too tempting to decline.” My brows furrowed as I cleared my throat. “He gave us the choice to have our memories erased if we opened our books.” As my words flowed from my lips, a despondent look filled his face.
“So you are telling me…” His voice faded while he crossed his hands. He lowered his head in disappointment.
I noticed that Demetre wept, snuffling as he listened to our conversation. Grave silence loomed over us. We all knew that their acceptance of Xavier’s offer gave Lucifer’s army even more power.
“Adawnas called this power the Dark Exchange,” I added. “She was confused as to why some of us did not remain asleep.”
“Where is Devin?” Nathan surveyed our surroundings with curious eyes.
Xylia darted me a concerned stare. Her jaw hung open.
“He was also taken,” I whispered, glancing at the spot where his body had laid moments before. “But he was not taken because he did not wake. He was just too weak to fight.”
Nathan turned around, looking at the distant smoke that rose from the Village of Tears.
“So the Nephilins and Xavier have within their possession three books and their bearers.” He pursed his lips.
“Xavier said that he still needed our books. He mentioned something about the Diary and the Book of the Justifier.” His eyes turned to me. “He said that the Diary represented Lucifer’s heart, and that the Book of the Justifier symbolized his chest. Without both, Lucifer could not take up his full form.”
With an absent look on his face, Nathan crossed his arms.
“Each book represents a part of Lucifer’s body,” he mumbled to himself, tapping his fingers on his chin.
“Do not forget that the blood-drinkers are also after the third book, the Book of Letters,” Xylia added. Chills shot down my spine as a cold breeze blew about, tugging the dry branches of the surrounding trees.
“They will not rest until they have that book within their grasp,” Demetre said. “They are determined to capture Ballard and open that book. They said that Bartholomew had opened it before. It was also mentioned that the Book of Letters has the power to awaken a dangerous army.”
Arundel listened to our conversation in silence. I was concerned when I saw his colorless lips and pale face.
“Are you alright?” Xylia asked.
“I will survive.” He squinted his eyes, letting out low grunts. “I just need to rest.”
“Let us know if you need anything,” Xylia said with a concerned look.
“Do you think the blood-drinkers will also go after the Nephilins?” Nathan asked.
“I would not doubt it. They murdered an entire kingdom in an attempt to find the book. What would stop them from hunting the Nephilins?”
The white dragon’s sudden groans startled me. It opened its striking blue eyes, raising its massive neck from the ground. It flapped its strong wings, letting out loud screeches.
“What is it doing?” Xylia asked in a loud voice, covering her ears.
“I think it is calling for Sathees,” Nathan shouted.
Arundel let out a piercing cry as he stood to his feet.
“Make it stop,” he begged. “Quiet the beast.” His fingers twitched as his hand released his shoulder, falling against his leg.
The white dragon stood on its four legs, letting out a roar that could have been heard from miles away. Arundel crouched on the ground, falling to his knees and sinking his face in the melting snow. With both of his hands, he covered his ears as he continued to scream.
Markings appeared on his skin. Like ink being used to draw a picture on paper, thin lines emerged on his hands and neck. After a while, I realized what these lines had created.
“He has the same markings as Sathees.” My eyes absorbed the strange scene.
A glowing blue light shone from the strange patterns. They formed the shape of a white dragon.
The roaring beast took flight, heading in the direction of the trees. A strong wind rushed around us as it flapped its large wings.
Arundel’s screams ceased. He uncovered his ears, darting us all a confused stare. He watched the creature soar through the sky. With his hand, he touched his shoulder.