The dwarves were said to be a race of warriors, feared and respected for their bravery, stubbornness and pride. Yet, on this autumn night, a certain dwarf exhibited none of these qualities.
This said dwarf was on his knees in a glade. Like most dwarves, his skin was so pale that it looked uncanny. His black hair and beard were both long enough to reach past his waist.
“W-wait, I have information! Information about Seifer Nox” he said softly, struggling to speak. He fixed the others in the clearing with a pleading look but their golden masks betrayed no emotion.
It was an eerie sight, a frightened dwarf begging for mercy from the five masked men wearing hooded white robes. They seemed disinclined to show him any, one of them just laughed.
“What a surprise to see the great Midas Stone in such a state” he said.
“I know where he is! I can bring you to him!” shouted the dwarf, coughing afterwards from the strain on his throat.
“Why would we go to him? Just tell us where he is or die!” said the man coldly. He pointed his sword to Midas' chest but the dwarf simply looked past him, as though he was a mere insect. There was no sign of his previous terror.
Unsettled by the abrupt change, the five masked men turned around and instantly forgot about Midas Stone when they saw the man who had appeared on the edge of the clearing.
He was tall and muscular with black hair and fair skin. His features were handsome but the first thing you noticed about him wasn’t his looks but his eyes, one of which was a pale blue and the other, a brilliant silver.
The masked men braced themselves as he approached but none of them believed they could actually fight him. The silver eyed man walked right past them, leaving the five in a state of confusion.
Before they could wonder, they were all seized by an invisible force, making them float several feet off the ground. Just a second later, their mangled bodies hit the ground, looking as though they were crushed by a boulder.
“Why would you offer to take them to me?” asked man with a raised eyebrow.
“Well Seifer, you just told me to act desperate and I know desperate people say stupid things” said Midas with a small smile.
“That explains it. All this time you were just desperate” said Seifer teasingly.
Midas opened his mouth to retort, but before he could, a blinding light flashed all around him. For a second, all he could see was white. When his sight returned, he found himself and Seifer floating hundreds of feet in the air.
Seifer stared down at what used to be a clearing in the thick woods. But now, nothing remained of it. There was only a deep pit that was over a thousand feet in diameter.
“You should retreat” he said.
Midas nodded and a beautiful purple gemstone appeared in his hand. He crushed the gemstone within his fist and it shattered into a purple mist that enveloped him completely. A second later, the mist was gone and so was the dwarf.
For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then, from within the darkness, dozens of figures emerged from the pit. They flew up towards Seifer but all but one kept a fair distance from him. Seifer sneered at the one man who dared get close to him.
“Your end is near, Lord Scourge. We have an insurmountable advantage, soon the Dark Order will be no more” declared the man, his blonde hair fluttering in the breeze.
“Overconfident as always, Gabriel” said Seifer.
Gabriel spread his arms wide and a translucent red barrier appeared around all of them. Seifer simply smiled mockingly.
“You are trapped here, Seifer Nox.” said Gabriel warily, he knew better than anyone that the man in front of him had a gift for doing the impossible.
“Oh yes. But my friends will have time to escape.” said Seifer serenely.
“How very noble of you, Lord Scourge” said Gabriel, the amount of disgust he had managed to infuse into his voice was quite impressive.
“All the things I’ve done and it is sacrifice that angers you?”
“You are capable of love yet choose to be a monster” said Gabriel.
“We are both monsters, Gabriel. Just to different people” he returned.
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“Soon, you won’t be a monster to anyone.” said Gabriel coldly. He looked back at the dozens of men behind him, they were the best of his Order and they were all determined to end this demon’s life.
“I’m sure I won’t. But how many of you will have the privilege of celebrating my fall” said Seifer and right as he spoke, everyone within the barrier could not help but gaze upon his eyes, becoming entranced by the blue and silver.
“Look away!” roared Gabriel, but the damage had already been done. Fearful expressions coated the faces of his men. None retained the conviction they once had.
“Tell me, Gabriel. What is it that you plan to do, what is worth sacrificing so much in this war?” asked Seifer.
Gabriel scoffed at the blatant attempt to stall for time but his hands were tied. His men needed time to shake off the demon’s spell. He couldn’t make them fight at the moment without huge casualties.
If he was going to allow Seifer Nox to stall for time, Gabriel hoped to at least help his men regain their former conviction by speaking of their cause and what they stood to gain.
“It begins with the First Ones. The three brothers Michael, Gabriel and Lucifer who created the human race. After the first humans were born, they created a power to rule over them, to ensure that they acted virtuously.” he said after a few seconds of silence had passed.
“They called this power Justice. It would punish all sinners at once. Thieves would lose their own wealth, murderers lost their own lives. In the elder days, the entirety of the human race lived in peace” he continued with a fond smile, as though he himself had seen those days.
“That all changed when Lucifer betrayed his brothers. He was the first demon, the first to be free of justice, free to do as he pleased. After his betrayal, Justice was forever damaged” said Gabriel, his tone changing into one of anger.
“Now, the force that was once justice is known as Karma. It simply brings misfortune to sinners, not instant punishment. There are ways to negate the effects of Karma, not to mentions the demons who are entirely unbound by it”
“Without Justice, the world continues to be plagued by sin but soon, that will no longer be the case. For eons, the Hand of Justice has sacrificed much into the Sphere of Serenity” said Gabriel, the fond smile returning to his face.
“That is the purpose of the Sphere, the greatest source of energy in the world. It will turn Karma back into Justice?” asked Seifer, appearing to be grave but something felt off to Gabriel.
“We don’t need to bring back Justice. The Sphere has the power to affect the entire world, it will cleanse the evil from every being in existence, leaving none who are not righteous.” said Gabriel, ignoring his slight suspicion.
“So you will take away the free will of all beings. Mass brainwashing has always been a villainous move, you know?” said Seifer with a laugh.
“As you said, we are both monsters to different people. But after this, there will be no more monsters.” said Gabriel, his voice shaking slightly. He felt many emotions, joy, pride and guilt.
“There is one thing you should know, Gabriel” began Seifer. He noticed the faces of his enemies no longer showed fear, their previous conviction had returned and it seemed to be even stronger.
“I already knew all of this” he said.
“That means nothing now, Lord Scourge. You are going to die and the Sphere will cleanse this world of evil. I would offer you the chance to repent for your sins but we both know you are beyond guilt” said Gabriel.
“You could not be more wrong, Gabriel. It means everything” said Seifer and then, shocking everyone, he disappeared on the spot.
Right as Seifer left, Gabriel sensed a powerful energy begin to awaken. It felt like a sleeping dragon who had yet to be aroused. He looked up, seeing the darkened sky with golden lights flashing across it and instantly knew what was happening.
The Sphere of Serenity is awakening? But it’s not time yet! thought Gabriel, all color draining from his face.
Meanwhile, Seifer had appeared billions of miles away, in a massive windowless room. The floors and walls were the same dull white, the only interesting part of the room was the golden sphere floating in the center.
Seifer looked like an ant in front of a boulder while he inspected the various patterns and inscriptions on the giant sphere.
A few seconds later, he sensed another person appear in the desolate room. She was dressed entirely in black which was a sharp contrast to her silky white hair and pale skin.
“Is it done, Morgana?” asked Seifer.
“It will take a few more minutes to fully activate” she said softly. Seifer felt her hands slip into his as they waited. He smiled as he brought her hand up to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on it.
“Next time, I will not have you be a spy. I want you to be at my side always.” he said. His wife smiled radiantly, throwing her arms around him. She seemed to hesitate for a while and then spoke.
“There’s something I need to tell you” she said.
Unfortunately, she never got the chance to tell him. As she opened her mouth, a figure dashed at them with incredible speed. Gabriel roared with rage as he ran into an invisible barrier.
Seifer had never seen him in such a state. A face contorted with ungodly rage, eyes that were bloodshot and gleaming with madness, Gabriel looked more like a demon than Seifer ever had.
Letting go of Morgana, he stabilized the barrier, feeding more energy into it. Gabriel just kept attacking, shouting like a madman. The rest of the Hand of Justice arrived soon after but they were too afraid to approach him.
“It is too late, Gabriel. We have been corrupting the Sphere for centuries. As you said, it has enough power to alter the whole world but you didn’t realize it could be used for a purpose other than your own” said Seifer.
His words meant nothing and for the next five minutes, Gabriel did not stop his assault. Seifer realized that deep down, Gabriel understood that it was too late. He wasn’t even using his strongest attacks, he just punched the barrier, mad with rage.
“It’s time” said Morgana at last. Seifer let out a sigh of relief. The five minutes had felt more like years as he held of Gabriel’s assault.
A second later, everything and everyone around him was as still as statues. Seifer looked away from Gabriel, who was now frozen in a state of insanity and wondered what was going on.
“Don’t worry, this is my doing not yours” said a deep voice from behind him. It was not loud in the slightest, yet it radiated power. Seifer realized that it sounded almost exactly like his own.
When he turned around, he couldn’t help but gasp at what he saw. That face and the long white hair that framed it, anyone in the Dark Order would recognize it instantly. Eyes as dark as the abyss itself met the blue and silver.
“Lucifer...”