Chapter 8 - Shattering Future
#8 of Chains of Destiny
Chapter 8 - Transcendent Wings
Canterus could not believe what was going on or why. Everyone but Leo and Canterus stopped moving, stopped breathing, frozen in the positions that he last saw them before Leo turned his head. "None of this can be real," murmured Canterus in fear.
"Everyone should be afraid of the Black Wings because no one can run from it. Those who set their eyes upon it fear the outcome of meeting them again. I'd be careful not to run into them under dangerous situations," said Leo.
"Why? Why does it appear now?" asked Canterus.
"The Black Wings go for many eons, traveling from one person to another with or without Kanis Falthelom. They decide who deserves the power. The originated with the ancients but I doubt even you knew that Canterus. There are differences to those who posses its ability. From the ancient past, it was written that those who possessed them lost control and killed themselves in the end. Here, it serves a different ability, or strength. I can control it because it has found a certain quality within my body that it is subdued to," replied Leo as the wings bent inward slightly.
"Such a thing shouldn't exist, it's impossible for it to exist in the first place!" shouted Canterus.
"No, it's not impossible. Its origins are still unknown and I suggest you don't aggravate me any further than you already are," said Leo darkly.
Canterus shut up but he could not believe that the Black Wings were created along with the ancients. It was never marked anywhere within the ancient scriptures but he had second thoughts after hearing Leo's explanation. The wings glowed softly but there was something strange with what the Black Wings were doing, sort of a hint of extreme danger for those who get too close to it.
The Black Wings were created along with the creation of the ancients but it was done so in secrecy. Its original purpose was to be a check and balanced the amount of power that the ancients had. To ensure that it remained a secret, those who wrote the ancient scriptures, the record of pacts and creations, left out the Black Wings on purpose since they were the ones who created it.
Leo turned his head back to the opening and vanished from sight. Brian, Collins, Fiona, and Alan resumed moving and were shocked to see that Leo has disappeared. They got up mystified and turned to Canterus for an explanation of what just happened. On the ground before Canterus were black feathers, which he picked up. The feathers were cold and hot, rough and soft but the thing that intrigued him the most was the mark that was each feather. In the middle of each feather, the symbol of the northern star was on it in white.
"This can't be happening," murmured Canterus as he got up and left, unaware that the others were up and about.
Leo flew through the air and stopped above a temple that he should go to in order to understand why he had someone else's memory instead of his own. Floating above the temple, Leo decided that it was not worth it and continued his course out above the Sand Ocean. He traveled for miles on end, covering much of the distance of the Sand Ocean in only 5 minutes until something caught his eye. A light glinted around on the ground that attracted his attention. Stopping in midair, Leo saw that it was an army of beast men trekking across the desert both on foot and in vehicles.
"There is no hope for this world that I should intervene with," murmured Leo but something inside his mind kept him from moving on towards the Goliath Mountains.
He continued to observe the moving army and decided to go to the Country of Star instead. Turning around, he flew over the Sand Ocean once again, over trees, the battlefield, and across the border before finally stopping at a peak near the border. Looking down at the borderline, his mind was confused because he saw beast men along side the humans, working together. This disgusted him, the mere thought that both races could live a stable life with one another was very unpleasant but yet pleasant.
"What is going on with my head?" murmured Leo. "I can't seem to do things correctly. I find it disgusting that the beast men are working with humans but I also find that satisfying."
Turning away in confusion, Leo got up and resumed his flight into the Country of Star stopping only once more to observe a lake that was divided into two. The lake attracted his attention, even after he resumed flying and returned latter in day when it was close to twilight.
Dropping at the edge of one of the lakes, he saw his reflection. The Black Wings and stone cold eyes attached to the beast man he is. Moving to the center divide, his reflection split into two, one on each side of the divide. On his right, was the reflection of the beast man without the wings and the eyes soft and caring. On his left was the reflection of a human who looked fierce and intimidating but his eyes was also soft and caring.
"What is the meaning of this?" growled Leo when he saw both reflections. Both of the reflections were looking at him but did not say a word. "Why do I have two different reflections instead of one?!"
Leo attempted to kick the water but the moment his foot touched the water, his foot became scalded by what seemed to be hot water even though there was no steam present. Rubbing his foot, Leo became confused and extremely upset. "The water is sacred," spoke a voice from the woods.
Leo turned around in frustration to see who had spoken. A little girl, no older than 5 years of age, stepped out into the light. The moons shined greatly upon her especially the gold moon as she walked towards Leo.
"You are looking upon Mirror Lake, a sacred Lake in the Country of Star. The water judges whether your actions are appropriate or not and looks inside the soul of those who look into it," spoke the little girl.
"Stay back!" shouted Leo as he brought his left hand up. His eyes grew colder but the little girl kept on walking towards him without fear. "I said stay back!"
The little girl kept walking and Leo unleashed a beam of light but the water suddenly came to life and deflected the assault. It surged over the divide, as it was only a small tidal wave on a beach. Leo repeatedly fired more beams but the water would continue to deflect it until he decided it was pointless to continue. The little girl was only an arms length away now and she stopped there. "Your soul has been attached to another one that is why you see two instead of one. It is the same with your memory," said the girl.
"What do you know about that?" snapped Leo as he continued to stare at the little girl.
"I know more than you think," said the girl calmly.
Leo refused to listen to any more of her nonsense and decided to leave. He turned around and began walking down the divide until the water rushed up and pushed him into the lake. The little girl disappeared the moment Leo turned around and caused the water to push Leo into the lake.
After Canterus walked out of the vehicle, he quickly sprinted off into the forest leaving the others behind in his wake. Canterus ran as far as his legs would allow him before he collapsed on all fours in tears. Still holding the feathers, he looked up and saw that the red moon was gone and it was day light. Through the tears in his eyes, he saw the blue sky and the clouds that were fuzzy but he didn't care about the blue sky or the fuzzy clouds. He cared about what was going to happen to Leo. Getting up, Canterus dusted himself off and stored the feathers within his swords sheath, lying against the cold steel.
"Those damn Black Wings! No matter where I look, they exist. Why don't those fucken wings just leave me alone!? No matter where the hell I go they are always there!" shouted Canterus. After he could not here the echoes anymore, he began to walk slowly. "Why do they always die in the end?" asked Canterus softly.
He walked for what seemed like hours on end but he knew better than to just walk aimlessly. Concentrating his mind on a small remote abandoned village, Canterus continued to walk with the feathers still stored inside the sheath. Even though he was an ancient and could move anywhere in a flash, he chose to walk instead and think about the Black Wings, its origins, and Leo.
Night had fallen by the time he saw the abandoned village in the distant. Picking up his pace, he entered the village quickly and walked to what used to the square. He looked all around him and visualized the village that had once been here, the village that had housed him when he was Ryan until the Country of Star raided the village. The screams were still vivid in his mind as he continued to ponder whether it was right for him to be here. The smell of smoke was still strong in his mind as well as he wondered whether it was the right thing to do. The sight of burning fire was also strong as he questioned why it had happened.
Canterus looked further into the past and remembered the village for what it was. From where he was standing, there were stalls that lined all the walls surrounding the square, that sold many assortments of food and weaponry used for hunting animals. The broken buildings used to be homes, schools, libraries, and a vast amount of other things. He remembered a fountain that lay outside of the city that was always full of water and it brought happiness to anyone and everyone who looked at it. The sound of happy children that ran around the square was very nostalgic and so were the happy faces that greeted him every morning. The most important thing he remembered was that this village lived in harmony; both the beast man and humans lived side by side in complete happiness.
"It always pains me to come back here," murmured Canterus.
Turning, he began to walk to his left, towards a building that was in ruins and hard to tell whether it was once a house or not. Stepping through what used to be a doorway; Canterus thought about the way his house was before the invasion. The smell of cooking food and tiring work his mother did around the house with a smile. His father, sitting at a table in the center of the room, the stove up against the far wall. There were stairs that used to be in front of the doorway that led to the second floor. The beds were always neat and tidy and the amount of things that was scattered about every room. What he missed the most was the caring voices of both his mother and father.
Canterus walked back out of the building and drew his sword, catching the feathers as it fell towards the ground. Each feather eluded his grasps and flew towards different ends of the village even though there was no breeze to carry them. The feathers disappeared into many houses and began to glow once it was inside. The village began to repair itself, the stalls being erected and the buildings being built all over again. It amazed Canterus how the village was almost completely restored and people began to walk around the village once more.
"Am I dreaming?" questioned Canterus in a low voice.
"Hello, Ryan, isn't it a pleasant day today?" spoke one of the people as they walked by.
A little boy ran out from where Canterus was standing and replied, "Yes it is! It's a good day to go find berries!"
"That's me, when I was only four as Ryan," awed Canterus as he looked around him.
The people did not seem to notice Canterus, only Ryan who zoomed off through the buildings. Canterus had the urge to follow but decided that he wanted to see his home. He turned around and reentered the building. The stove was running, his father was sitting at the table reading the newspaper, his mother sweeping the floor, and Ryan ran through the door with fist full of berries.
"Mama! Look what I found!" shouted the excited young Ryan.
"Why look at that, you found brumble berries and they look very delicious," said the mother with a happy face.
"Brumble berries? I haven't seen those in ages," remarked his father as he put down the paper and went to examine the berries.
"Can we have brumble berry pie mama?" asked young Ryan with his eager face.
"Yes, let's have brumble berry pie tonight. That way we can all enjoy it together," replied his mother as she handed him a pail. "Fill this up with as many brumble berries as possible."
"Okay!" shouted young Ryan in excitement as he took the pail and ran out of the door.
"I thought I would never see the day when brumble berries still existed," chuckled his father.
"Neither did I," laughed his mother as she went back to sweeping the floor. "Brumble berry used to be your favorite, remember?"
"I remember that clearly," said his father as he returned to his newspaper.
Canterus traveled up to the second floor and saw his bed. The room was exactly the way he left it, messy. His parent's bed was across the room also messy. The whole room was messy but that is the way they liked it. Ryan bolted through Canterus and flew onto his bed making a loud thud as his head also hit the wall. The young Ryan sat up laughing while rubbing his head to make sure he was okay and not bleeding. Canterus went further into the room and towered over the small bed as young Ryan got off of it and picked up a few things before bolting down the stairs.
"This is all so real," murmured Canterus as he tried to gather his thoughts and get an idea of what was going on.
"This is real but it's only a memory of course," spoke a voice.
Canterus turned his head slightly and saw someone at the stairs. "Leo?" asked Canterus.
"Indeed," smiled Leo as he walked towards Canterus was soft caring eyes. There was a difference in this Leo though; his fur and mane were the color of golden yellow, the color his fur was supposed to be originally.
"You're not Leo," stated Canterus.
"Oh contraire. I am Leo but not the Leo you see outside of this memory," stated Leo.
"You're not him but you are? That makes no sense at all," said Canterus in confusion.
"Of course it doesn't make sense because I didn't want it to make sense to begin with," chuckled Leo.
"You're more humorous and you smile quite a lot," commented Canterus.
"Why thank you. I'll make it as clear as I can right now. I am Leo but I am his soul. There are actually two of us stuck together but he didn't want to come," smiled Leo as he began to pick things up and tossing them onto the bed for no apparent reason.
"Why are you here though?" asked Canterus.
"I wanted to know your past but it seems that Ryan's past was more interesting," said Leo and he began to move more gracefully around the room.
"Is there any particular reason?"
"Yes there is. If you would follow me please," smiled Leo as he led Canterus down the stairs, out of the house, and out of the village towards the fountain. "The people of the village like the fountain, no?"
"They call it their happy pond sometimes but I found it more like a sacred monument," replied Canterus.
"You're right to believe that because it happens to be the Fountain of Truths. I stumbled upon this fact while recreating this memory. Just look into the water and ask it a question but I advise you not to ask about the Black Wings. That will get revealed to you over time," said Leo as Canterus looked into the fountain. The fountain was just water nothing held it. He saw no reflection but that was common to those who look into the fountain.
"What is wrong with Leo?" asked Canterus to the fountain.
The water began to swirl and he saw the two lakes and Leo crouching in the divide rubbing his foot. He saw Leo getting up and walking away. He saw the girl just disappear from sight. He saw the water pushing Leo into the beast man side of the water. The water of the fountain began to dive towards the lake. Some one else brushed Canterus's shoulder and he turned to see who it was. It was a human who looked fierce with soft and caring eyes.
"I see you made it in time for the show to begin," said Leo enthusiastically.
"This is important besides, it looks really interesting to begin with," replied the human but Canterus diverted his attention back to the fountain as it penetrated the lake water and followed Leo on his slow descent.
Fiona, Brian, Collins, and Alan walked out of the vehicle just as Canterus ran off into the woods.
"Now what do we do?" asked Collins who did not know what was going on.
"Well for one, it doesn't seem to make any sense as to why Canterus ran off without telling us anything," stated Alan who looked up into the sky. The night sky became streaked with many colors as the sun began to rise and dominate the night sky.
"We might as well head towards the Sand Ocean and see if Leo's at the near by temple or not. That's the only inhabited place for miles to come. Plus, we don't want to go to the war line right now. I heard there's going to be an introduction of new weaponry soon," said Brian as he began to walk towards the Sand Ocean.
"I know a short cut to the temple!" shouted both Fiona and Collins simultaneously.
"You don't know the short cut! It's just past those trees and to the left of some weird looking rock!" shouted both of them pointing in the same direction.
"You both know the short cut so can we get going now?" said Alan and he began to walk in the direction that was pointed out. The others followed right behind him along with a slowly developing argument.
They walked through many trees and came across hundreds of weird looking rocks but Fiona and Collins told them to keep on moving driving the need to argue even deeper. For about an hour they were able to prevent any possible arguments to break out but all that soon changed.
"This is the weird looking rock," said Fiona.
"No! The weird looking rock is right over there," pointed Collins.
"You're wrong Collins! This is the weird looking rock!"
"No! That rock over there is a weird looking rock! Any untrained eye knows that except for you bat eyes!"
"I'm not blind you son of a bitch! You're the one that's blind!"
"No I'm not! You're deaf and utterly stupid like an ass!"
"Don't you dare call me an ass you fucken whore!"
"I don't prostitute on other people unlike you bitch! You just love to give men what they want for some fucken good cash so you can get fucken high later on your fucken street!"
"Shut the hell up! You don't know what the hell you're talking about you fucken dumb ass!"
"Um...couldn't we just continue walking?" asked Alan.
"NO!" snapped both Collins and Fiona.
"Let's just walk from here Alan," said Brian as he walked towards the left with Alan right behind him. They left the strange looking rock behind them including the intense argument and thought about what they were going to do next.
Fiona and Collins continued their argument for about five minutes before either of them noticed that Brian and Alan were missing. They looked in every direction until they saw the trail that veered off to the left at the rock.
"Ha! I knew my path was the right path!" shouted Fiona as she ran down the path. Collins followed right behind her without a word. Brian and Collins were not that far way. They stopped underneath a tree, waiting for Fiona and Collins to stop arguing.
"Why did you do that!?" shouted Fiona in anger. Collins followed up right behind her and shouted the same question.
"You two were too busy arguing that Brian and I decided just to take a risk and walk in this direction," explained Alan.
"Well, you should have at least told us something!?" shouted Fiona and Collins as they wouldn't calm down very easily.
"Will you two give the shouting a rest? It's giving me a headache that I can't get rid of if this keeps going on," said Brian frustrated as he continued the walk. For the duration of the travel till the Sand Ocean, Fiona and Collins refused to talk with one another making it quite difficult to start up a good conversation. The group exited the forest and appeared at the edge of the vast Sand Ocean. Nothing but sand for as far as the eye could see. To their right was more sand that lined with trees. To their left was the same thing as the right, more sand lined with trees.
"This is hopeless," said Fiona.
"Neither of us even knows where the temple is," said Collins.
"It seemed like both of you did back there but I guess you guys were two busy arguing to make a difference," remarked Brian as he began to decide which direction to go.
"I say we go to left," suggested Alan. Brian agreed with him but Fiona and Collins wanted to go to the right. This started up a small argument about which way to go but it was decided that the group split into two and go into the directions they wanted to walk in. Alan and Brian to the left. Fiona and Collins walked to the right.
The temple was not very far away from where the group split up. The temple was to the left of that point so Alan and Brian found it without a problem. Alan ran back the way they came and dragged Fiona and Collins with him to the temple where everyone gawked at the handiwork that lined the doors. They climbed the steps that led to the door and opened it with breeze.
Beyond the door was a large chamber filled with an assortment of things varying from priceless artifacts from the Stone Age to modern technology that was broken or useless. There was a door on the other side of the room but it was a long ways off.
"Man, look at all of these antiques," whispered Alan as he walked into the hall.
"Greetings! I've been waiting for you to arrive," spoke a voice from across the hall. It was an old man with spectacles on. "I see you like my collection Alan. I've been collecting all my life but then I decided to stop collecting because I have no where else to put it."
Fiona and Collins walked in after and looked at the assortment of things on the ground. The many objects reached from the floor up to the ceiling and it seemed like it was going to fall over and smash Alan, Fiona, and Collins to pieces. Brian looked in but all he saw was an empty room. He did not know what his friends were looking at but he did see the old man across the hallway. He tried to take one step but a force kept him from proceeding.
"I'm afraid I can't let you in Brian, not until they have entered the other room safely," spoke the old man.
Everyone but Brian made it to the other side safely and passed through the door. Beyond that door was a smaller room with a fountain, the same fountain that was found outside of Canterus's village. All three of them looked into the water and saw what Canterus saw. Leo on the ground. Leo walking away and the girl disappearing. Leo getting pushed into the lake. They were mesmerized that they did not notice that the door locked them in keeping the old man and Brian outside of the door.
"Now you may proceed but stop at the center. I have something that you must look at separately from the rest," spoke the old man and Brian did as he was told.
The old man also walked and stopped at the center of the room. Both of them stood over a smooth brown circle but something was etching itself into the ground. Brian's symbol of the northern star and its crosses and ankhs were being drawn into the ground. A light illuminated from causing both Brian and the old man to fall through effortlessly.
"The reason I told you to stop at the center is because you can help Leo get away from a dangerous force temporarily even though the dangerous force is a good one," said the old man.
They appeared underneath the water on the human side just as Leo was turning around to walk away. The little girl saw the old man and disappeared. The old man saw her disappearance and asked Brian, "Are you prepared for what's to come?"
"Yes," replied Brian and the old man forced the water up over the divide and pushed Leo into the lake.
"The Black Wings are a dangerous force to be dealing with. It's power is enormous but it lives on forever. We all fear it but no one fears it more that the person itself. It's a great wonder to what we can do, don't you think?" asked the old man.
"I suppose," replied Brian.
"The last time I saw the Black Wings was not to long ago. From what I studied about it, it transcends time itself or rather it follows time itself by moving from one host to another. It is usually drawn by the desire for power but this time it was quite different. It was drawn upon by the desire to change," stated the old man.
"It's attracted to Leo only for his desire for change?" asked Brian.
"Yes, it's actually a strange thing to be attracted to because we all have a desire for change. But the moment he no longer needs it, it will all change for him horribly. The Black Wings will consume him. The two souls that hold him to the living are doing their best to ensure everyone understands his problems but when I probed his mind, you kept appearing. I figure that have the strongest influence over him a time like this," responded the old man.
They both watched as Leo slowly descended towards the floor without any conscious thought and feeling. It seemed that he was unconscious.
"He is only vulnerable during this unconscious stage. That is when both souls, including you, have the best opportunity in making a difference. Hopefully, the wings will go no further than Leo but I can't be for certain because of the recent events that have been going on," said the old man.
Brian and the old man descended towards Leo and stopped next to his body allowing Brian time to decided whether he wanted to help Leo or not.
"The choice is up to you. If you accept, then all you need to do is close your eyes and place both of your hands above his heart. There may be some consequences with what you do though. The highest consequence is that he can develop a thirst for blood altogether and lose his mind during such a thirst but that has a once percent chance of passing though," said the old man.
Brian did not know what to do but he knew that he had to help Leo in anyway possible. Without any thought, Brian placed both of his hands on Leo's heart and closed his eyes. The Black Wings were the first thing he encountered on the subconscious journey to Leo's subconscious. The Black Wings tried to impede Brian's movement but he quickly evaded each of the attempts and sank lower quickly. Brian made it to the subconscious to see two people, one beast man and one human, outside of a sphere. When he got closer to the sphere, he saw another sphere inside that was black.
"You need to get past that sphere in order to save him," said the beast man was Leo's beast man soul only with a sad face.
"We can only get you past the first sphere but everything after that is up to you," said the human, Leo's human soul.
Both of them grabbed Brian by the arms and pushed him into the sphere. Once he was through, all they could do was watch and hope that Brian would be okay.
"Everything lies within his hands and not ours," said the beast man soul.
"We tried our best and now the spirits have lent us their aid. If Leo gets out of this alive at all, the lost power will return to the land the moment he awakens," said the human soul.
"If he gets out of this alive, his instinct will grow under the scent of blood. The stronger the scent, the harder it is to control," spoke the beast man soul as they looked at Brian's approach to the black sphere.
"There's nothing we can do. Even if he does become a blood thirsty lion, he will also become a blood thirsty human," said the human soul.