I am a god... this world belongs to me. The skies, the earth, the life that populates it. I’ve changed it all to my image, I vanquished all who opposed me and crushed them under my foot. Not even Gladea could put a stop to my army, and her knights cower at the sound of my name. Hundreds, thousands, millions and then billions, both knights and humans were broken by my army.
I feel my body crumble to pieces as this monster looks down on me, an azure glow I’ve seen so many times—yet never been so shaken by it before. I am Specter... I can’t possibly be defeated... killed. I am an immortal being, I am a god! How could I feel so trapped... helpless... afraid...
I lift my weakened self from the ground, after waiting for so many years I have finally regained my strength. I fought him again, Gladea’s chosen... the warrior now known as ‘the champion.’ I feel my body crumble once more, but I have won—and now, nothing stands in my way to reclaim what is mine. Then why... who? Who is this in front of me? I defeated Gladea’s champion and wiped the knights’ existence from my perfect world, then how is this one still standing? Unlike the others I cannot see his eyes, he is no champion... then why do I feel so afraid?
I am... alive. I hear a strange, yet familiar voice calling out to me. She calls me by a name I do not recognize, I feel her touch as she holds me in her arms. My skin, my body... it’s too small, too fragile. I can hear my heart calling out to me from far away, my specters... my home... as I open my eyes, I feel them all surge with energy as I wake up from my slumber.
I am Sovereign, or at least that’s what I call myself. Mom thinks it’s cute, but Ki-Joon says it’s stupid—not the reaction I wanted from her truth be told. She is the chief financial officer (CFO) for a company called ‘Hydra’ and is my mother’s best friend. I don’t know where she found the time, but she took on the role of baby sitter whenever mom wasn’t around—witnessing as I grew into the handsome and genius young man that I am today.
Speaking of mom, she is a florist, and has been trying to teach me about her occupation for a long time—although it’s not something I’m interested in, I find them quite ugly if I’m being honest. When she is not working, or trying to make me look at some boring flowers, she is telling me about this fantasy of hers. A tall, handsome guy with a bronze sword that rescued her from a terrible demon at the top of an evil castle. The memory may be faint, but don’t forget this detail, Sovereign.
I am a god... this world belongs to me.
Center of the Deadlands, Ruined Castle: 936 April 1st, Sunday, 10:00 PM.
The devastated throne room was filled with an eerie silence, its spectral structure displayed the remains of a deadly battle that took place many years ago. Multiple broken pillars lied on the fissured floor—rubble spread all over the place with most of the walls damaged with massive sword slashes.
At the end of the room was a black throne with inactive crimson veins, a table of the same material as the castle was placed beside it—holding the core of a specter on top of a small sharp-edged platform. It’s faint crimson glow became brighter and brighter over time, absorbing the embers of the specters that arrived through the breached gate of the room.
Hours passed while the core restored its power through the life force of the dead specters, leading some of its energy into the throne’s sit. The embers gave shape to the body of a human male—forming his feet, his legs, his torso.
With enough time, the man’s body was eventually whole. He remained in deep slumber, with his head dropped and his arms resting on the throne’s armrest. With an abrupt and loud gasp, the silver haired man awoke from his overextended nap—his newly formed body kicking back into motion.
Sovereign lifted his head lazily, glancing from side to the side to look at the wreck of a room he found himself in. Using his hands to push himself up on his feet, the young CEO inspected his body carefully—starting with his human right hand, and moving to his left—mutated into a spectral form with crimson veins running within its fissured structure.
“Is this really it...?” he expressed with a frown—displeased by his new looks. Turning his head to look at the core resting peacefully, Sovereign stretched his arm towards it in an attempt to make contact with it—being rudely interrupted by an unfamiliar voice just before he could reach it.
“Would you mind not touching that?” Sebastian sprinted his way inside the castle—clapping his hands together and bowing deeply. “Please, it is uh...” he stood straight once more, scratching the back of his head. “Important, yes! Don’t do that!” he offered a wide smile with his eyes closed—stressing the wrinkles in his eyes.
“And who might you be?” Sovereign asked with a distasteful sneer.
Sebastian recoiled at his question—reacting with an exaggerated gasp. “You would forget a friend? That’s not the Sovereign I know.” he replied, faking his anger.
“Are you trying to get on my nerves?” Specter questioned the man before him as he moved away from the throne towards the Cerberus officer. While his eyes remained cloaked in a shadow, his frowning mouth depicted his anger just as well. “Do you perhaps... not know who you are talking to?”
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“I know exactly who you are...” Sebastian smirked—pointing his shotgun at his own boss.
Before the major could even react however, Specter dashed towards him with inhuman levels of speed—leaving a trail of shadows behind him, and emerging in front of Sebastian in the blink of an eye. Getting a hold of the major’s shotgun in one hand, Specter forced the weapon’s barrel to point upwards towards the ceiling as Sebastian wrestled to maintain control.
“Have you... been working out?” the major groaned as he struggled to match the strength of his opponent.
“What is this...?" the silver haired figure inspected Callisto, his curious eyes scanning every detail of the gear. “If you think you ca—"
Before he could finish his sentence, an electrifying wave from the shotgun suddenly shocked him into a violent outburst—his face contorting with the piercing sensation traveling across his body.
After a few painful and violent seconds, Sovereign managed to let go of Sebastian’s shotgun in a quick jolt—resting his hands on his knees. His face was drenched in his sweat, breathing heavily as the waves of lightning dispersed from his body.
“That was shocking...” Sebastian commented with his eyebrows raised in astonishment. “Are you alright, good ol’ friend?” the major rested one hand on the young CEO’s shoulder—who offered a low groan before answering.
“I... think so.” he breathed.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha!” the major chuckled, slapping Sovereign in the back—who almost dropped to the ground by the force of the impact. “Good thing I always have Callisto at the ready, hu!” he shook the loaded shotgun in his hand like a toy.
“How long has it been?” Sovereign asked with furrowed eyebrows—his nervous eyes eagerly awaiting Sebastian’s answer.
The major hummed—resting his chin on his fist. “A few weeks, I think.” he shrugged nonchalantly. “Don’t worry, the plan worked just as expected and everyone else came back safely.” Tha major offered a thumbs up with a beaming smile. “Well, you weren’t supposed to be out cold for so long.” he chuckled nervously while scratching his nose. “I should probably take you back right now.”
“Just give me a moment...” Sovereign trudged his way back to the throne—resting one hand on his throbbing head. Noticing a phone laid on the table beside it, he looked at the device with its battery on the verge of death—displaying the gray button of an already played voicemail, the message was simply titled ‘Remember.’
Pressing the ‘play’ button, Sovereign began to listen to his own voice recording the message—interrupting the mail immediately after the first sentence: ‘I am a god... this world belongs to me.’
Kaldstein, Yeon’s Room: 936, April 2nd, Monday, 1:00 AM.
Looking through a large array of pictures on a burrowed cellphone, Yeon glanced at her own phone now and then with heavy blinking eyes—suddenly forcing themselves shut from time to time. She picked up her cup of coffee and took a quick sip from it, struggling to maintain her focus while looking at the ocean of photos and videos before her.
A video in particular caught her attention, saved inside a folder named ‘favorites’. Hitting the play button, Yeon observed the silver haired woman resting in a hospital bed with a tired smile in her face. Her undivided attention was placed on the tiny baby resting in her arms—the glimmer in the woman’s eyes accompanied by rolling tears of happiness.
“Look at him, Yeon.” she enthusiastically addressed the person behind the camera. “I waited so long... my beautiful, beautiful baby.” she expressed with her soft voice breaking in between words.
“He is so cute!” the Yeon in the video said, moving in closer to focus on the baby—her youthful voice considerably younger than her present self. “Look at his hair..." she observed with awe.
The euphoric mother huffed a laugh, running her fingers through her baby’s hair. “It’s just like mine...” her expression turned into a melancholic smile as she offered her whole attention to the slumbering child. “He looks just like him too...”
The loud ring of her phone in the table brought Yeon back to reality with a violent scare, causing her to smack the ceramic cup away in a quick reaction—spilling the coffee all over the floor. Ignoring the total mess she’s just caused, Yeon picked up her phone in a sudden rush—slamming the answer button multiple times once she read the name ‘Don’t Answer’ displayed on screen.
“Sovereign!” she hissed, trying to keep her voice low.
“Hey, Yeon!” the man on the other side of the call said—an excited tone she’s accustomed to hear with every call of his. “I’m at Cerberus in my office, can you come pick me up? I’ll take you to dinner as repayment.” he sang to her.
Yeon’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice, staring into empty space before putting herself back together—rapidly shaking her head to clear off her worries. “Ki-Joon,” she whispered, her voice somewhat annoyed.
“Uh?”
“You refer to me as Ki-Joon, don’t forget that.”
“Oh, right.”
With a long sigh of relief, Yeon rested her head in one hand—allowing all the stress to leave her body. “I’ll pick you up in a moment, don’t talk to anyone there or even let them see you, understand?”
“You are the boss, I’ll wait here.”
Cerberus HQ, CEO’s Office: 936, April 2nd, Monday, 1:00 AM.
“Ki-Joon...” Sovereign put the phone back in his pocket—gazing at the swaying fog of the Deadlands through the window, his left hand hidden inside his pocket. “How much did I forget this time?” he wondered with gritted teeth, remembering the voicemail in his phone. “I need to keep it together... Ninigi is making a move and King is only getting bolder.” he clicked his tongue with a snarling expression. “If only I knew how to bring you back...”
Lifting his right hand near his face, Sovereign gazed upon the portrait of a man with his exact same features. The paper was old with a brownish color, like an ancient piece of art that belonged in a museum. The man’s eyes were kept hidden by the artist—cloaked in a glooming shadow, he kept a stoic expression and his hair was painted black with charcoal.
The sudden creak of the door redirected Sovereign’s attention however, turning to face the intruder who just sneaked into his office.
END OF CHAPTER