The guardian did not stop even so, he swallowed hard and stared at them all. "To give power to a demon is to condemn the world to destruction and calamity, while to give power to the weak is to ask for it to be misused and extinguished. You two are unworthy of being here, and all I can offer is my pity and a chance to serve as stepping stones for the ascension of those who are worthy."
Finally, he fixed his gaze on Ryan with what seemed like a sinister obsession worthy of a stalker. Ryan felt revolted.
"As for you, Lost Son of Summer, you came from distant lands. You left the warmth of your mother's bosom and abandoned your father's protection, you ventured into the cold that sought your life at every turn and even so you showed them that the strongest flame is the one that comes from the soul." He spoke with such reverence that it was almost possible to forget his previous remarks.
"You broke your own chains without crying out for help, while the cold was defeated before your burning soul…Cursed creatures recoiled in fear solely because of your words of wisdom… Bloodthirsty beasts saw you as easy prey and were proven wrong, you slew them without them ever knowing what had taken their lives thanks to your cunning and imposing presence…" His voice filled with pride, like that of a good father.
"Twisted, corrupted and Silent Stalkers who inspire terror in the bravest of men learned to fear you and retreated with that same terror they once had inflicted upon all others…all of this while men consumed by greed hunted you and their hundreds were annihilated through nothing but your wit and bravery as you dared to command an Emperor of Snow and Ice…."He grew increasingly excited as he remembered the Glacinata.
"You had so many feats in this land, so much in fact, that the inhabitants of this land grew ashamed to admit your origins. They grew ashamed to call you a child of summer, and named you the Bastard of Winter. Accepting you as a son of this land, marked by cold and blood, for only the Winter could kill the Winter..." He stared at Ryan with shining eyes, almost like a child meeting his idol.
However…
The more he spoke, the more uncomfortable Ryan felt, the more his chest burned with anger, and the more his tongue carried a grotesque taste.
"What the hell did we get ourselves into?" Ryan murmured quietly, glancing around as his companions began to settle. He was tense, as was the apothecary, both of them knowing full well that dealing with this situation would not be easy.
The slave, however, was trembling, gripped by a terror beyond anything he had faced until now.
The Wolves had been small.
The abominations had been human-sized.
Mercenaries were just numbers.
But a single giant needed only one simple swipe, a stumble at most, and they would be dead.
They should accept his rules.
But they were not going to accept them in any possible way.
Even if the deranged giant favored him, Ryan had no desire to find out how long he would remain sane in his presence.
"Thanks to you, he will be properly tested. Take pride in yourselves, your lives now have meaning." The guardian said, opening his arms like a savior. "Thousands of lives will be saved because of this day, because of this decision."
He stared at each of them. "It is a noble end, for each of you." He then shook his head. "But do not worry, I am certain he will remember each of you as the dear companions who brought him this far. Who guided him toward such a special destiny." He then nodded repeatedly.
"I myself must give my personal thanks." He said. "Thank you, for finally fulfilling the destiny so long awaited. We have hoped for this for so long, after all, in complete solitude..." His eyes dimmed for a moment as he clenched his fists. "But finally… the day has come." The eyes rekindled...
An enormous explosion erupted directly against his face, making the sky and the earth roar as they unleashed powerful shockwaves that sent the statues flying away and Ryan's group tumbling uncontrollably, scraping terribly their entire bodies in the process.
'Did I hurt him?'Ryan thought. 'It doesn't matter, first I need a strategic position.'
A dense cloud of dust rose as, without any need for communication, all three of them bolted toward the exit at the greatest speed they could muster. They used the adrenaline to push their bodies past limits that should never have been reached, their calves burning and their bones grinding.
Even so, they pressed forward.
"You know..." The giant said, sweeping the dust aside with one hand and recovering his visibility. "I admire your courage," His eyes blazed in a deep red. "In the same measure that I despise your foolishness."
With a heavy thud the door shut itself by magic.
The three of them stopped before it, eyes wide with panic, thick sweat running down Ryan's forehead as his mind churned out plan after plan. They all braced themselves, preparing for what would come next.
However, the apothecary kept trying to find a way out. She knew that within that instant, Ryan, despite his genius, did not know as much as she did. So for a moment, she swallowed hard and tried to think like him.
'We are in the Lost Eden… a divine paradise…' she thought. 'We are inside the Legacy of some master, the owner of Eden is the master of the Legacy. Who could have created Eden?!' She kept thinking, trying to make some discovery.
"But I think I can overlook such an error." The guardian observed from a distance, without having taken a single step. "You still do not understand the difference between our powers, you think you can face me when that has never been anything more than a distant dream... and…"
Suddenly the apothecary lit up and stepped forward. "Your master was Uriel! As in the Uriel Mountains!" She shouted as loudly as she could. "I am not familiar with him, but I know he was a being of justice and a kind man! An Angel! You never stated the rules! But I'm sure of it! He would never allow the trial to be carried out by force. Correct?" She stared the guardian down with blazing eyes, his own suddenly going dark.
"..."
"That is correct. If he do not wish to take the trial, it will be cancelled here and you may leave. Since that is Uriel's will."
She then turned to Ryan in a rush. "He wants the trial cancelled, he does not wish to take part in the trial. Right? RIGHT?! Say fucking yes!"
Ryan slowly processed the situation."He never explained the rules… and probably never would… she found a loophole to leave…"Ryan swallowed hard. "Yes, I refuse to participate and I want to leave."
"..."
Suddenly, slowly the doors opened in silence. While the giant simply watched, the light gone from his gaze. He then said automatically. "I wish you safe travels, I hope you are able to achieve great things. May your dreams become reality... that is the will of Uriel."
The group stared at him in silence...
Soon they nodded to one another. "Thank you." Ryan said, turning to leave with the others, occasionally glancing back. The guardian simply stood there.
"..."
In silence.
Alone.
Again…
Again.
Again!
AGAIN!
AGAIN!!!!!
'Damn...'
The light in his gaze had gone out.
'It could have been today... everything could have ended today. Why did it end up being like this?'
I COULD BE FREE.
HE JUST NEEDS TO OBEY ME
'How long has it been now? Hundreds of years? Millennia?' The guardian asked himself. 'I trained so hard, I dedicated myself so fully. In those days, all I wanted was to be a good disciple, so that I might be respected, eat well, and perhaps even find a good wife. Of course... I also wanted Uriel's Legacy, but that was such a foolish dream to me. There were so many others, so many better than I was... But then... "
"He gave it to me."
"He chose me."
"I feel Uriel's power running through my veins.'
I AM THE LEGACY
'I have Uriel's Legacy.'
I AM URIEL'S WILL
'Then why do I still obey his old rules?'
'...'
NONSENSE
ALL OF THIS IS NONSENSE!!!
Suddenly he clenched his fists with such force that he released a shockwave. 'Uriel, that cursed man must have used his power against me!He must be controlling my mind! Perhaps I was never even his disciple!' Ryan startled from a distance as the light returned to the guardian's gaze in an intense blood red.
'Uriel was powerful! For he had a Powerful Legacy! He created rules, he did not obey them!'
Suddenly he roared. "I have the same Legacy! I will obey no one! The world will hear my voice! And the world will obey!"
THE EARTH MUST OBEY MY WILL!!!
I SHALL ORDER THE HEAVENS!!!
"IN MY NAME I COMMAND..." He screamed, shaking the heaven and earth.
Suddenly, the sun fell from the sky.
Suddenly, the moon rose like a comet but soon froze halfway across the horizon.
In the east and west, the sun stood still on the horizon, creating a scene unlike any other, one that was known as:
TWILIGHT.
THE RIGHTFUL HEIR OF TWILIGHT HAD AWAKENED.
"I remember that day as though it were yesterday... You asked me to guard this power for someone special... but what right do the dead have to decide anything?! I am alive, I choose!" He clenched his teeth. "IN MY NAME I COMMAND..."
Suddenly, like a tumor, Eden began to rot, every form of life withered and shriveled, the temple itself began to crumble, while the radiant armor fell apart piece by piece. Revealing grey and lifeless skin clinging to plates of metal. The very earth seemed sick.
A mouth of sharp teeth and lidless eyes stared at Ryan and his group. "IN MY NAME I COMMAND..."
The warmth vanished and the winds of the Glacinata invaded Eden to torment Ryan and his group.
"Forgive me, master, I loved you..." He murmured. "But I am exhausted. It has been millennia of this, millennia without a single challenger. I cannot allow him to leave. He will inherit whether he wants to or not."
HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT'S GOOD FOR HIMSELF.
I WILL PASS THE LEGACY FORWARD
I WILL BE FREE!
"You! I am who I am, is what you are called, right? Is that what you wish to call yourself?!" The guardian roared. "Then, I am who I am! Your trial begins here! And the only possible outcome is to pass." He laughed with his teeth bared. "But I am certain you will not want to make mistakes!"
YOU WILL ALWAYS WIN
THE LEGACY IS ALREADY YOURS
BUT YOU MUCH WILL YOU LOSE AT END?
FOR ME IT DOESN'T MATTER.