Sobs... whispers... laughter. A disconcerting mix before the platform on which the beautiful crystal coffin rested. The woman who lay in that vessel of mortality exuded a stunning beauty. Everyone, friends and enemies, agreed that it was regrettable that death had reaped such a dazzling being so early.
Chaos... pain... joy... For some she was a friend, for others, a patron, and for the majority, an enemy. But for a minority, she was loved. And even among that minority, the feeling and reaction were disconcerting.
But no one felt more, suffered more, hated more, and loved more than Khaled. His tears silently stained his dark gray cloak. His hands trembled, but no word was spoken. No groan was uttered, no vow or goodbye was pronounced.
He still remembered the last words of the one who gave color to his existence. Ayla's last sentence echoed in his memory like a judgment. "Live Khaled... Live for me...".
Irony... a tasteless joke... She who was known as the master of life, a master who could kill or heal entire armies with a simple gesture, dead by a poisoned enemy blade. Yes... It was a joke in very bad taste. But he would make them all pay. The direct culprits... the indirect ones... everyone would pay.
With a firm, yet gentle, hand, Khaled, in a final act of farewell, closed the eyes of his beloved. His left hand conjured a portal with a gesture of his index finger. The light of the stars dotted the dark sky on the other side of the spatial rift.
The rift moved, slowly swallowing the coffin. The portal undulated with the contact and, little by little, the crystal coffin disappeared into the darkness of the starry void.
Khaled had no idea how much time passed looking at the coffin moving away. When he could no longer see anything but the celestial void, the portal imploded and disappeared. Then, looking at the crowd of people around him, he took a deep breath, closing his eyes.
When he opened his eyes again, an unwavering resolve was there, facing everyone. What would happen, no one had the slightest idea. But one thing was certain... The Master of Space would make a river of blood flow in the war, perhaps finally putting an end to the exhaustive fight.
With a sluggish step, he opened a new portal and vanished through it. In his heart, besides the flames of hatred and vengeance, his wife's words echoed... "Live Khaled... Live for me...".