Jessabiel

~*~

Gadriel was now sitting in a chair in a white space that stretched infinitely in all directions. Suddenly, a green holographic figure appeared, that of a young boy who was about the same height as him, but had a less puny physique.

“Good afternoon, Gadriel,” he said after his appearance.

“Good afternoon, Kyon.”

“I heard your conversation with Iria. You should really be more careful with your surroundings.”

“I’ll try to be the next time. Can we continue reading where we left off last time?”

“Of course,” Kyon replied with a slight smile of complacency.

At that moment, Gadriel and Kyon were both plunged into darkness. A bright spot then appeared below the young digital boy’s feet before gradually expanding while taking on various colors. The more this phenomenon spread, the more it gave the impression that they were both in free fall towards an unknown planet.

Shortly after, Gadriel and the artificial intelligence ended up in the middle of a battlefield with on one side a large number of Celestials in armor accompanied by several dragons of various colors, and on the other side a group composed of about twenty white dragons all the size of a thirty-story building.

“As you already know, the final confrontation between the Celestial army and the members of the Dragon Emperor cult took place on Draegen, the native world of the dragon race. It was a battle that lasted several hundred days and involved several draegenic clans, those who were for the return of the Emperor against those who were not.”

“I remember it perfectly. However, something about this story bothers me a little. What’s so special about this Emperor that it would cause a conflict of this magnitude?” Gadriel retorted as the two armies charged towards each other.

“I would like to give you a very clear answer, but I only have bits of information. However, according to the data I have, the Dragon Emperor would be a legendary being, a figure with immense powers of destruction who would have lived before the beginning of our universe.”

“Before the beginning of our universe? Isn't that a bit exaggerated as a legend? I mean, our universe has several billion cycles. No one can be older than that, right? Besides, how did they manage to obtain information on something that happened before the beginning of our universe? It makes no sense.”

Kyon then answered that he knew absolutely nothing about it. According to him, life as he knew it could not have even existed at that time since there had surely been nothing before their universe.

“So, someone must’ve invented this story and these dragons believed it without verifying its veracity.”

“That is the most likely.”

“But still, such a bloody battle because of a simple legend that could turn out to be unfounded. Why? Why come to this?” Gadriel asked, doubtful.

At that moment, the young boy watched one of the belligerents of the conflict – a white dragon with strange marks resembling holes – open its mouth wide. Right after, these same marks that ran over a large part of its body released a significant amount of energy that concentrated in front of its mouth in the form of a sphere. A ray then escaped from the latter and reduced to ashes all the Celestials who had had the misfortune to be in its path. Seeing this, Gadriel could not help but be both impressed and terrified by this demonstration of power.

“Fortunately, they ceased to exist,” he thought.

“Perhaps it was to obtain the powers of the Dragon Emperor. According to legend, his powers are apocalyptic in nature. Whoever gets their hands on them would undoubtedly become a practically unstoppable force.”

“Practically?”

“Yes. According to the same legend, and all of this should be taken with a grain of salt, there are certain beings that are as powerful, if not more powerful, than the Dragon Emperor. These beings are the Rectors and the Scythes.”

“More powerful beings than that,” the young boy thought as he was watching the horrible battle unfold before his eyes. “Kyon, do you have any information about them?”

“No, unfortunately. The only remaining information I have in my archives only concerns the Dragon Emperor who would have been banished to a dimension very far from ours, a dimension which he would desperately seek to escape from,” he retorted.

Gadriel was somewhat disappointed not to be able to learn anything more about the Dragon Emperor and even more about these Rectors and Scythes. His misfortune did not end there, however. Indeed, while the young boy was observing the battle as well as successively starting numerous question-and-answer sessions with Kyon, everything abruptly stopped. All the main actors of the conflict all stopped moving at the same time, and this at the moment when all the dragons without exception all turned their gaze towards the sky.

“Kyon, what's going on?” he asked.

“It seems I don't have access to the rest of the information regarding this conflict. How strange. This kind of thing has never happened before,” he replied, perplexed.

“Is there nothing you can do?”

“That's what I'm doing right now, but it seems I'm being denied access.”

Gadriel was somewhat disappointed that Kyon was unable to show him the rest of this conflict. He would have loved to see how it had ended. For his part, the young green boy was troubled by this sudden event. He had tried everything to gain access to the rest of the information, but nothing worked. However, he still had a solution to resolve this problem.

“Too bad you can't access it. I would’ve loved to see how they got rid of that cult,” Gadriel retorted.

“I'll check with the higher authorities to see if it's possible to get access to the rest of the data.”

“Is that true? Thank you very much, Kyon.”

“No need to thank me. I'm also curious to know how this battle ended. But in the meantime, we'd better stop here. The great transfer conjunction should begin anytime soon and I doubt you want to miss it.”

At that moment, the environment around Gadriel became completely black again and the room returned to its original color. The young boy then got up from his seat as an exit suddenly appeared.

“Have a good evening, Kyon,” Gadriel said as he headed towards the exit.

“Thank you very much, Gadriel. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

The young boy headed towards the temple exit, wishing the twins Estria and Iria a great evening and promising them to pay more attention to himself.

*

As Gadriel was exiting the temple, he couldn’t help but notice that the number of people outside had increased drastically. It was clear that everyone was waiting for one thing and that was the beginning of the great transfer conjunction – a phenomenon that occurred every two cycles. Seeing all these people happy and in groups, the young boy felt a deep sadness. No matter which direction he looked to, everything reminded him of the fact that he was now alone and that his mother had perhaps… that his mother was currently absent.

At that moment, Gadriel couldn’t help but feel envious of all those people who had smiles on their faces, all those people who still had their loved ones with them. He found it so unfair. Why wasn’t he entitled to that too? Had he done something wrong to end up alone? If that was indeed the case, what exactly had he done? It was so unfair.

While Gadriel was completely absorbed in his thoughts, the latter passed by a young brunette teenager with emerald green eyes who tried to attract his attention by calling him. But seeing that he did not answer, she simply decided to put her hand on his shoulder, thus causing him to jump scare.

“Jessabiel, what are you doing here?” he said after calming down. “You gave me such a scare.”

“I tried to attract your attention since earlier and I even called you many times, but you completely ignored me. It's not nice to do that, Gadriel.”

“I’m sorry, Jessabiel. I was absorbed in my thoughts.”

“I noticed that.”

It was clear to Gadriel that the teenager was somewhat angry with him, and how could she not be? As she had just said so well, he had ignored her when she had tried to get his attention. However, just as he was about to apologize for the second time, she abruptly asked him if he had also come out to witness the conjunction.

“No, not really. In fact, I just left the temple and now I’m going home,” he replied.

“You’ve been spending a lot of time there lately. People might think you live there. Is everything okay?”

“Yes, everything is perfectly fine. Why do you ask?”

“I don't know. You looked very sad when I saw you.”

“Ah, no! It's because I was thinking about what happened at the temple with Kyon. We couldn't finish watching a story because he didn't have access to the rest of the information. That's all,” Gadriel replied with a fake smile.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Of course, there was no way he was going to tell her the real reason why he had been in this state. He didn't want her to learn what he was going through and he especially didn't want her to worry about him.

“I see. But tell me, what happened to your face?”

“It's a long story.”

Gadriel then told her about his little misadventures with the strange woman whose body was as solid as rock and his encounter with the child at the park.

“You really should take care of yourself,” Jessabiel then said.

“Everyone's been telling me that since this morning.”

“Because it's true. Someone as fragile as you could be broken at any moment.”

“Um...”

“Hey, would you like to attend the conjunction with me?” she asked abruptly.

“Um, I don't really know. Actually, I...”

“Come on, please!”

At that moment, Jessabiel brought her face so close to Gadriel's that the latter couldn't help but blush on top of being completely taken aback. So, he finally gave in and accepted her request.

“Great! I found a good spot where we can observe it in peace,” she retorted happily.

Jessabiel suddenly grabbed Gadriel's hand, which surprised him greatly, and dragged him to a place that only she knew the location of. Meanwhile, the young boy couldn't help but wonder about what had just happened. When she had spoken to him, her gaze changed momentarily. For a brief moment, he had the impression of finding himself in front of... Gadriel then suddenly stopped and asked her if the other one would also be present.

“The other one?! Are you talking about my brother?” Jessabiel answered, doubtful.

“Yes, him.”

Indeed, when Jessabiel had spoken to him, her behavior had been like that of her brother.

“I don't think so. I don't know where Reigns is right now.”

“So much better then. We don't need him around.”

Hearing Gadriel’s comment, Jessabiel couldn’t help but smile slightly before telling him that she hoped that he and her brother would get along one day.

“That’s impossible. I could never stand the sight of him.”

“You’re exaggerating, Gadriel. I’m sure that if the two of you took the time to talk, you’d end up finding things in common,” she said as she started walking again.

“Something in common with him? I don’t think that kind of thing could exist. He and I are far too different.”

“Too bad. Reigns is a very touching person deep down.”

Gadriel doubted Jessabiel's words a lot. For him, it was impossible for it to be true. The description she made of him was in no way the Reigns he knew.

After nearly ten minutes of walking, Gadriel and Jessabiel both arrived in front of a park where many people were already there, impatiently waiting for the conjunction to begin. The young man immediately recognized this place, this being the place where he had received the famous ball in the face.

“Is everything okay?” Jessabiel asked, seeing the way Gadriel was looking at this place.

“Everything is fine. I just remembered something.”

“Okay. There's a place over there where we can sit. Come on!”

Once again, the young boy let himself be dragged by Jessabiel and the two ended up sitting under a tree.

“We'll have a good view from here.”

As they were waiting, Gadriel couldn't help but glance discreetly at the girl out of the corner of his eye. He found her so beautiful. Jessabiel suddenly turned her gaze in his direction, which forced him to look away. Seeing his reaction, she sketched a slight smile again and moved a little closer to him.

Uncomfortable because of this proximity, Gadriel's hands became more and more sweaty and his heart began to beat at a frantic pace, but above all he was wondering what this gesture meant. Did it mean that she was also feeling something towards him? And if so, was it the same thing he was feeling for her? He wasn't sure and knew that he had to ask her the question if he wanted to be certain. Hence, Gadriel took his courage in both hands and went for it.

“Say, Jessabiel, are you…”

“Gadriel, look!” she exclaimed abruptly, pointing out to the sky.

When he looked away in the direction Jessabiel was pointing out, Gadriel saw the gigantic rings of Geoshia slowly appear. An aurora borealis whose colors were constantly oscillating manifested itself afterwards. And with the gamals always flying towards the horizon, it gave rise to a magnificent landscape of immeasurable beauty.

“Wow! It's so beautiful,” Jessabiel retorted.

“Yes, it is.”

Discreetly observing the teenager, Gadriel noticed that she was completely absorbed by what was in front of her. Her eyes were shining so much at this phenomenon caused by the great transfer conjunction that she gave the impression that it was the first time she had witnessed this. At the same time, seeing all the other people present in the park, especially the families acting in the same way as her, the young boy couldn't help but think about his situation, the solitude which he now found himself in.

“Say, Jessabiel, do you think that when you really love someone, you leave him behind and go somewhere else?”

“Why are you asking me such a thing all of a sudden?” she replied, surprised.

“No, forget what I just said. It was very inappropriate of me to ask you such things at a time like this.”

Gadriel tried as best he could not to let anything show, but the question he had just asked piqued Jessabiel's curiosity, who asked him right after what was wrong.

“Gadriel, if something is wrong, please let me know,” she continued.

“Everything is fine, Jessabiel.”

The girl absolutely did not believe what Gadriel had just told her, especially since she could clearly see that the smile he was displaying was completely fake. So, she came a little closer to him and looked him straight in the eyes.

“Gadriel, tell me what's wrong. I can see very well that something is bothering you. Am I not your friend? You know that you can trust me, right?”

The young boy hesitated for a brief moment, but finally gave in and told her what had been going through his mind since his return from Fjore. So, he told her everything, from his mother's disappearance to his daily visits to the law enforcement building.

“Oh! Gadriel...I...I really don't know what to say. Is that why you asked me that question earlier? Do you think your mother abandoned you?”

Gadriel remained silent. Deep down, he knew very well that his mother could never have done such a thing, but the words of this law enforcement officer had sown doubt in his mind.

“Gadriel…”

“I don’t know, Jessabiel. I don’t know at all. I don’t even know what to think about all this anymore. Between what this officer told me and…”

“Oh, no! What time is it?” Jessabiel asked abruptly, panicked.

Gadriel then pointed it out to her, which reinforced the young girl’s feeling of panic. At the same time, a person in the distance began to scream her name. Gadriel’s expression then became much more severe as he recognized the voice of the individual who was only screaming Jessabiel’s name.

“What’s he doing here? How did he know we were here? Did she inform him or...?” he wondered.

“Reigns! We're here!”

As Jessabiel's brother was approaching, Gadriel's expression became even more severe. He clearly didn't want to be near him.

“Jess! What are you doing out with him at this hour?” Reigns asked as he arrived in front of them.

“You know, the "him" has a name.”

Reigns completely ignored Gadriel and continued to talk to his sister, prompting the young boy to say that an uneducated person like him still didn't know what politeness was.

“What did you just say, bug?”

Jessabiel's brother who was physically more imposing than Gadriel got closer to him, determined to attack him. However, that was without counting on the intervention of the young girl who put herself between the two boys, thus preventing the worst from happening.

“Both of you, that’s enough!”

“Jess, I thought you’d be on my side and not on that bug's.”

“If I'm a bug, then what should I call a person less intelligent than me?”

“I said, that's enough!…”

Because she had raised her voice this time, the trio attracted the attention of the other people who were near them.

“Look at what you did. Everyone's eyes are on us now,” Jessabiel continued.

“Us? Why am I included in this? Besides, you're the one who just yelled, Jess.”

“Reigns, don't piss me off. Besides, what are you doing here?”

“You…Father ordered me to come get you. We have to go to him immediately.”

“You can go ahead. I'll join you in a few minutes.”

“Jess, Father doesn't like…”

“Reigns, I told you to go ahead.”

It was the first time Gadriel had seen the girl behave like this, which surprised him greatly, but also scared him. However, he was happy to see that she was attacking her brother, he fully deserved it. And because he was satisfied with the turn the conversation was taking and also because she was directly facing Reigns, the young boy did not notice the slight change in the color of Jessabiel's eyes, her pupils suddenly becoming red. For his part, Reigns had no choice but to obey his sister and therefore moved away from her and Gadriel. However, before leaving, he launched one last threat against Gadriel, insulting him once more and telling him that he would not pay anything to wait.

“Yeah, right.”

As soon as Reigns was far enough away, Jessabiel immediately apologized to Gadriel for what had just happened.

“You don't have to apologize. Your brother’s just a d…a person who likes to look for trouble.”

“I could say the same about you.”

“But I didn't do anything.”

“He said. Anyway, getting back to what we were talking about before my brother arrived, I'm sure your mother didn't abandon you. No parent would consciously do such a thing. Besides, I'm sure she'll be home soon. Who knows, maybe you'll see her tomorrow morning when you wake up.”

“I don't know, Jessabiel. It's been several weeks and she still hasn't come back. Eve told me it was normal, that her job sometimes required her to leave for weeks, but this is different.”

“Gadriel, you have to stop being so pessimistic. Nothing good will happen if you keep thinking like that.”

“It's not easy, Jessabiel. I do everything I can to keep my spirits up, but the more the days go by, the more I tell myself that...that... Plus, that agent told me...”

At that moment, the young girl suddenly approached Gadriel, grabbed both of his hands, and looked him straight in the eye. He couldn't help but blush, thinking that she was much too close.

“Gadriel, what that agent told you is of no importance. A mother would never abandon her child. I'm sure she'll be back soon, trust me. And if she's not at your place tomorrow morning, I promise to go with you to Fjore. And if necessary, I'll go and yell at that law enforcement officer myself so he gets to work.”

Jessabiel's words lifted Gadriel's spirits and he thought that she and Eve were both right. There was no way his mother could voluntarily abandon him. It wasn't in the behavior of the woman who raised him to do such a thing.

“Thank you very much, Jessabiel. Thank you for your support.”

“You don't have to thank me. That's what friends are for.”

In the same way she had grabbed his hands, Jessabiel let go of them before telling Gadriel that it was time for her to go home, adding at the same time that Reigns was still waiting for her.

“I understand. Your father’s calling you.”

“Yes. And he hates waiting. So, we'll see each other tomorrow. You'll tell me if your mother is back. Goodbye, Gadriel,” she retorted before running towards her brother.

“Goodbye, Jessa…biel!”

As she was moving away from him, the young boy sank back into monotony marked by a deep sense of loss. He realized that he had just missed an opportunity to tell Jessabiel how he was feeling about her and also knew that there was very little chance that he would find his mother when he returned home. However, he believed in what she had told him and so he remained hopeful. Hence, it was with her words in mind that Gadriel left the park a few minutes later and headed back home.

*

After several dozen minutes of walking, Gadriel finally arrived in front of his house and, for a long time, he stood in front of it, watching the windows. Jessabiel's words were still echoing in his head and he imagined finding his mother preparing dinner the moment he crossed the threshold. It was therefore full of hope that the young boy rushed inside his house.

“Mother, are you there?” he asked, his face cheerful.

Unfortunately, Gadriel did not get the answer he had hoped for and was instead greeted by Eve's voice who told him that they were only the two of them in the tree house. At that moment, the young boy's cheerful face disappeared to give way to an expression testifying to the sad return to reality that he was undergoing.

“I see.”

Hearing the tone of his voice, the young digital woman understood how devastated Gadriel was by the reality he was now living. She didn't know what he had been through during the day, but his reaction told her that he had really expected to see his mother again when he got home. She then materialized in front of him in an attempt to cheer him up, but just as she was about to speak to him, he began to speak to her.

“If you don't mind, Eve, I think I'm going to go to bed,” he said as he was passing by her.

Unable to say anything, the young woman watched Gadriel climb the stairs and go to his room where he lay down on his bed before starting to cry. Unable to bear seeing him in this state, Eve wanted to go comfort him, but she suddenly dematerialized and the whole house was plunged into darkness. Gadriel, who had completely failed to notice this, continued to sob before finally falling asleep about ten minutes later.

To be continued...

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