800 Years Ago, Year 2196.
Two hundred years after the Great Human-demon war, life returned back to scratch, humanity dwindled, cities fell, nations were devastated, and kingdoms - wrecked.
Positions and nobility became useless, powers became nothing, tenzocracy fell.
Lives were lost, families estranged, properties desolated, children misplaced.
This became known as the age of ruin in the history of mankind.
Man lost his hope in life and most unfortunately, his belief and trust in Aethrauzon diminished.
After this, most people denounced their faith in Aethralism, and deserted the Aethric Tenets.
Then, twenty years later, humanity entered the age of religions, starting with the rise of the Nefarian church.
People were drawn to her beliefs and practices like ants to sugar, since unlike in Aethralism where people believed in Aethrauzon - an unseen god, humans were able to see god - the pioneer of the Nefarian Church - Naza Azkaban.
And most importantly, righteousness wasn't necessary, as long as you acknowledged the existence of Azkaban.
However, a hundred and thirty years later, in the year 2366, which is about 1300 years after the Great war...
The Nefarian church fell, due to its inadequacies, and that Azkaban couldn't protect all his worshippers from man's age-long enemy - demons.
Man became frustrated. Man became disappointed. Man wanted a god. Man wanted a religion. Man wanted to believe in a being that could protect him. Man knew he was fragile, and unlike Aethralism that taught the concept of life and death...
Man didn't want to die.
...
104 years later, Year 2600, Vietto-Roca, Valtor, Northern Region.
The heavens smiled upon man.
A new religion rose. From the ashes of war and suffering, came Vladimir Vexar.
No one knew his origins. No one knew who he was. But one thing everyone knew, was that he was from a dreaded nation, known as the region of cannibals.
Valtor.
Vladimir Vexar didn't proclaim himself as god, instead, he was the messenger of god.
Vexar preached the existence of a god, whom he saw in a vision. A god who had even greater powers than Aethrauzon.
A god who could protect man from his predator. A god who gave man a chance to stand up again:
The god of Infinity - Void Amaranth; the hollow.
In no time, Voidism spread all over Tenebrous. No one accepted its beliefs and teachings at first, but soon after, man embraced his new god.
Voidism brought hope, peace, and protection against demons. Humans smiled again, believing that they were finally free.
Marks were placed over the Void Church believers - the mark of an eye, believed to be the eyes of Infinity - eyes that see in the dark.
Voidism believers were always dressed in white robes, to show their utmost respect to their god.
Tenebrous became ruled by a system called Voidcracy - a government ruled by the priests of Voidism, with Void controlling the whole world through his messenger - Vladimir Vexar.
Time came and went, days passed, years flew by, decades went, and finally...
Voidism finally began to reveal its true colours. Vexar revealed the strange Tenet of Voidism, containing 400 verses - which he saw in a vision.
He called it - the PARADOX.
Its Tenets taught that demons are not humanity's foes, instead, they are miracles provided by Void, except one - the demonic archon, the true enemy and deceiver:
Sou Aidra.
Therefore, to defeat demons, humans must embrace them, and to do that...
"We must become one with demons,"
- Verse 400. The Void Tenet.
At this point, it was no return. There was no turning back. Everyone who believed Void to be god was going to take part in the final ritual that will bring humanity and demons together as one.
Those who tried to turn were annihilated, and made examples to others. A universal fear fell upon the world, as the day of the ritual drew closer.
Several many atrocities were done. Human experiments, demonic rituals, children killings, and suicides.
And finally, the day of the Great ritual came. The day man's soul would become one with that of a demon.
The ritual began at midnight under the bloodred moon. Many souls of humans and demons were used. Blood was drunk, fleshes were equally shared to be eaten.
But at the climax of the ritual, when the fusion of souls was coming to a completion, something unprecedented happened.
Also referred to as the night of god's wrath - Aethrauzon came down.
Not in human form, not in angelic form, not in the form of a god, but in the form of fire and brimstones.
People panicked. They tried to run. But fear of being killed stopped them.
They feared Void, even more than Aethrauzon.
In that single night, all worshippers lost their lives.
But not without a result.
The ritual went on, even after everyone died, even after the messenger of Void died, the ritual still went on.
Legend says that after the annihilation, the ritual still completed, leading to the resurrection of a few selected worshippers, and not just worshippers, also the messenger:
Vladimir Vexar.
When they resurrected, they were no longer normal humans. They were no longer what they used to be. They now had powers - powers that didn't belong in this world.
Their souls...were now conjoined with those of demons, and these beings were called...
"Zeros."
"Uh?" Code's eyes widened in trepidation.
The man blinked, as he took a deep whiff of air. "That's what you're, Code," he said.
Code's breathing ached, as his chest heaved heavily. "H-how do you even know that?!" Code shouted.
"I don't believe you! We've never met before, and you're telling me this for the first time, like you even know my past?" Code yelled, as his eyes burned with fear. His eyes swelled with tears.
"I don't need to know your past, it is clear-" the man replied, but before he could finish, Code cut in.
"Don't give me that shit!" He exclaimed, as he got up to his feet.
'I thought I finally met someone different, only to be disappointed,' Code grieved.
"Every single time, every single place I go, every single person have always told me the same thing," Code muttered, tears pouring down his cheeks, as the memories flushed through his mind.
"You are different from us."
"Monster."
"What are you?"
"You're better off dead."
"We don't want you."
"Something's strange about you."
...
Sniff. Sniff.
Code gritted his teeth. "So. So you're telling me it was all because of this? That I was always a monster?"
Code raised his piercing gaze to the man.
"That they were always right?" He yelled, as tears poured freely.
The man didn't answer, instead, he kept staring into the skies.
"Uh?!" Code exclaimed, as he grabbed the man's cloth. "Answer me!" He screamed.
"Arrrgh..." The man sighed, his eyes didn't betray any emotions, instead they were filled with indifference.
"Yes. You're a monster, you regenerated using the demon's flesh, not yours," the man whispered.
But for Code, it was more than a whisper. It was a curse. A curse he had always been running from.
Code fell to his knees with a sorrowful thud, and he bowed his head to the ground.
"Ahhh!!" He cried, scratching his fingers over the sand.
"Why does it have to be me? Every fucking time?" He wailed.
"Because you're you," a voice boomed amidst Code's wails.
Code raised his teary eyes to the man.
He continued.
"You will always be you, no matter your tears, no matter your wails, no matter your prayers, you'll ever remain you!"
"Uh.." Code's eyes widened.
"And as long as you're you, life will always bring whatever is meant for you to you!"
He turned to face Code.
"Until you stop being you, you'll continue to bask in the problems of you," the man said, as he slowly raised his hand, and held Code's.
Code's tears stopped, as he felt the warmth in his hand.
"You're the one who'll choose what you want, not life. Life will only bring you anything, and sometimes..." He looked into Code's eyes.
"...nothing."
Code's eyes widened more. His racing heart calmed.
"So Code, why do you live? Why do you fight? What do you live for?" The man whispered, and in that instant...
A cool breeze blew against them, as leaves swirled and circled into the sky.
'I never asked myself those questions,' Code spoke to himself.
'All I wanted to do was live. I don't remember anything from my childhood, I didn't have parents, nothing worked out for me, so I didn't have any real goals, I just wanted to live, and never die.'
Code bowed his head in shame.
"I guess I was wrong the whole time," he whispered.
"Arrrgh..." Code sighed, as he quickly cleaned his face and raised his head.
"Thanks, but I don't think I have any real goals for now," Code said, forcing a grin that didn't seem to get to his eyes.
"What? Nahh," the man replied, as he chuckled lightly. "I wasn't expecting you to come up with one all of a sudden," he said.
"Oh," Code muttered, scratching the back of his head. "My bad." He added.
An awkward silence passed for a few seconds, before the man suddenly sprang up to his feet.
"We've spent a lot of time here," the man said, as he turned.
Code in response, also stood up, dusting what was left of his cloth.
"Sorcerers will be here any minute," the man said, as Code grabbed his hand again.
"Thanks," Code said, and this time with a real smile. Though it wasn't as wide as his face ones.
However, this time, the man didn't seem to like the idea of touching.
"You shouldn't touch a god," he blurted.
"Eh?" Code raised a brow. 'Tch.' he hissed in his head.
Then Code turned to leave.
But suddenly, the man's voice halted him.
"Where are you going?" He asked.
Code stopped, then slowly turned to him with an awkward look.
"Where else? Home," he replied.
"Home?" The man repeated. He seemed confused.
"Yeah, home," Code affirmed with a nod.
"Haha," the man suddenly burst into a chuckle.
"What's so funny?" Code asked immediately.
"Didn't you hear me the whole time?" The man asked, as his laughter subsided.
"That what?" Code asked. Now he was the confused one.
"You really wanna hear it so bad? That you're a zero?" The man said.
"Uh?" Code's eyes went left and right. "Yeah, I'm sure I did. What does that have to do with this?" He asked.
"Don't you get it?" The man said, as he facepalmed.
"What?" Code asked.
The man shook his head grimly. "A zero is treated on the same level as a special disorder, duhh," he explained.
Code's mouth opened wide instantly. "What?" He exclaimed.
"A-a special disorder? Is it that bad?" Code stammered.
"You didn't know? It's even worse in some cases," the man replied.
A special disorder is the highest class of demons, which most people say are myths.
It could take all the sorcerers in a region, including 1st-grades to take down just one special disorder.
"S-so I can't go home?" Code muttered, sweat sliding down his cheeks.
"Yes, you can," the man replied with a wave of his hand, and dreadful slitting of his eyes. "Except you won't come back...ever. You'll be the thing of experiments, a perfect specimen, the joy of scientists, and -"
"Ahh!" Code cut in, eyes wide. "Ok, I've heard. No more descriptions. So, wha I do now?" He asked.
"Hmm...lemme see," the man whispered, as he grabbed his chin.
'Arrrgh,' Code sighed in his head. 'Does that mean I've become a universal threat?' Code asked himself, his mind reeling with worst-case scenarios.
'What if they take my heart?'
'Or my kidney?'
'I have already sold one, so if they take the other one...'
Code gulped.
'No. I don't, I don't want to die,' he wailed in his head.
But just as it seemed like he would burst into another round of tears, the man cut in.
"Why don't you join my guild," he said.
Code froze.
Time seemed to have stopped.
'Did I just hear that?' Code asked himself.
'Nah, it's one of my dreams again. I didn't know dreams could happen while you're awake.'
"Hey...!"
Code jolted back to reality.
"Uh?" His eyes widened. "What did you-"
The man didn't even let him complete his statement.
"I said would you like to join my guild?" He said, stretching his hand to Code.
'There's no way this is fake, there's no way this is a dream,' Code exhaled heavily.
"No one wants me in their guilds. I'm useless," Code said to the man, but he didn't look like he was going to bulge.
"You haven't answered," he said.
Code's lips parted. "Like? I would love to!" He exclaimed, as he walked to the man, grabbing his hand.
"Yes!" Code said.
'Finally, a guild! After all this years!' Code exclaimed in his head.
"Okay," the man said, as he slipped his hand out of Code's tight grip.
"Then let's go," the man said, as he began walking.
"Wait..." Code exclaimed, raising his head.
"Uh?" The man stopped, as he turned to face him.
"I-I didn't get your name, I should have asked since, my bad," Code said, as they fixed gazes.
"My name?" The man raised a brow.
"Y-yeah," Code stammered, grinning nervously.
"Hmm, I thought I already said that," the man said, taking a step forward.
"You did?" Code asked, confused.
"Yeah. I'm a god," the man instantly said, as he shoved his hair in pride.
"Ohmigosh, dude, stop being delusional," Code replied, his vein bulging. "Your real name," he added.
"Oh, that," the man replied with a low chuckle, as he scratched the back of his head.
"That doesn't matter," he said with a wave, as he turned. "But if you insist..." He stopped again.
Code bent forward.
Wind blew through the terrain, flaying the trees sideways.
Then the man spoke.
"...Van."
Code's eyes went wide.
"...Van Ackerman."
"What?" Code exclaimed in surprise.
"V-v-va..." He couldn't even process the thought, before....
His legs gave out, and he fainted.
***
To Be Continued...
♥