Since I have lived, walked, and breathe in this world, my eyes were already opened about the existing feud. I was aware that demons were good, and didn't have the intention to cause harm against humans.
As time goes by, I grew up confused. I spent my lifetime training, working, and educating myself to achieve my mission, and all along, I knew pure virgin soul will gift our King a great power. So, demons would no longer thrive in Zonax.
I never even had a second thought of this bringing chaos to our world.
I've lived every day with a purpose to find the pure virgin soul. I knew this purpose kept me alive because I need to fulfill my promise to my father. Therefore, I set aside my confusion and just, keep on training even after my father's death.
His death.
My father already told me every day of his life to not succumb to fear and sadness when he died.
I tried to hold my tears. I did.
He raised an excellent daughter.
He taught me all the things I know to this day –even to stay loyal to the King. If Datu Gahid is indeed saying the truth, then I turned out to be Panah's failure. A huge mistake in history.
On the other hand, I'm still doubting his words. I don't know if I should believe him or not. Despite these, I need to find the truth for myself.
My body dropped on its own like a dead lying on buffalo's skin bed. In a heartbeat, my mind sinks into the deeper realm, my soul swims somewhere farther.
"Limdi," I looked around when I heard a woman calling my voice. I am in a place I have never been into. However, I can see flowing rivers and trees around, just like in Perditus City.
"Limdi." I heard the voice again, echoing. It was soft and low, almost magical.
A woman then appeared in front of me. I step backward, position myself, but I don't sense any danger from her.
The woman has colorful bright long hair flowing down to her waist, and her white with a faded black dress that reaches her feet sways as the wind blows.
"Who are you?" I ask, almost out of my mind because of her beauty.
I noticed her horns, bright red with black on the tip. I wonder if she's a diablae, because I have never seen a diablae like that before, plus, her horns are different.
Normal horns are usually dark blue for diablaes and black for diablos. Our horns serve two functions: hearing senses and protection.
My hands motion themselves to touch mine. I have our Panah's horn-shaped and strength both inherited from my parent. Darkest blue, I thought mine is strange because it can turn into a light shade of dark blue as it flexed or curled. Meanwhile, she had magnificent and awestruck two horns; although, their form is different. The right side had metallic and solid form, contrary to the left with pearly and sort of curly form.
Without her horns, I would've mistaken her for a diwata or even a deity.
"You probably know who I am." she smiles sweetly, almost alluring. I tried to remember her face and features but my mind doesn't recall acquaintances of mine with her looks.
"I'm the she-twin in the feud. Perhaps, the one who put the demons in Zonax realm," she speaks, her voice is really soft and smooth to my ears. My eyes widen when the realization struck me.
"Great Oracle" with my jaw hanging, I step backward again. She nodded to me and walks by the riverside.
"Is this a dream? W-what?" Seriously, my whole day was confusing as heck and then this? I'm excited to see her in front of me though.
She chuckles. "Dear, you are in a dream. Thus, this dream is vivid and... lucid."
My tongue rolled back as if I can give her feedback. What should I say? Uhm, like, 'hello, long time no see'?
"I do wish I'd meet you before this happened." Then, she sat, her feet dangling in the water. She turned to me with a pleasant and calm face. "Come here, let's talk." She pats the space beside her.
I walk and follow her invitation. "What are we talking about?"
"If you stay longer, you might not wake up anymore."
I gasp and look at her with wide eyes. "You really are the Oracle! I couldn't understand a single word you said."
"Time is inconsistent here. Don't worry, once you wake up, just do immediate action. If you won't, regrets and consequences you'll suffer."
I blink several times. She didn't hear what I've said. I am clueless to this point.
"You sounded like in your scrolls." I mock.
She smiled. "Words of mine are interpreted in many ways. However, there is always a single thought bridging those interpretations."
Her face suddenly becomes sad. "Limdi, tell me what you feel for the human" she shifts the topic suddenly.
"I don't know. I'm not sure. I feel happy when I'm with him, I want to protect him. I'd die for him." I bite my lips, looking down at the ground.
"Then why did you gave him up?" she asks, making me tear up, as I remember the look on Traiser's face when the demons took him away from me.
"Because it's my fate to serve the ruler."
Even I, myself, didn't want to give up on Traiser. Wish I could.
"Sweet nightmares, are you aware that demons have one fated partner for them?"
I pondered her question. My eyes are squinted, as I think of the word. "Uh, you mean the Heixz?" She nodded. "And, what are the circumstances of a diablae facing her Heixz?"
"From what I read, demons' temperature rises, and they feel a different sensation on their horns as it heats up."
Then I remembered how I lost consciousness when I met Traiser due to the sudden rise of my body heat, and how I felt something on my horns the day I realized my feelings for him. I turned my head towards her, my mouth was agape.
"We're fated for each other?"
I look at her, meeting those 'You-answer-your-own-question' stares.
"I've never been surprised to know that my bloodline inherited the dense for love. Anyways, Limdi, everything in this world even on Earth has order or sequence. There are ones who can alter the order, or even make it their own life. You have your choice. Everyone does." She explains, but it only made things complicated.
"From the very beginning, you have two paths. If you choose to be a servant forever, your fate with the human will be broken. But, if you choose to have faith in yourself and your feelings for him, then you have the chance to alter the order."
With my mind still working on her explanation, she suddenly holds my shoulder and speaks. "Limdi, you have choices. You are the answer," she slowly fades away.
I woke up from my deep slumber, trying to catch my breath as I drown in my dreams. My third eye has been activated all these times. I stand to my feet and reach for a glass of carbon dioxide. Everything seemed to be crystal clear to me. Now, I just have to act and decide. Thanks for the spoken Oracle scroll, Great Zonax Oracle.
"Don't worry Traiser, I'll save you.." I mumbled to myself while holding the bracelet.
Silently observing the whole palace from a tree, I almost got dizzy on how high the walls are. The scope is really huge that three villages can fit inside. There are way several guards everywhere.
Plotting for Traiser's escape, I initiated first on observing the place. It's kind of tricky for I don't know the interior and exterior of this castle. However, I visited Datu Gahid again and thanked him for telling me the truth. I also told him about my plan, and he offered me a map of the palace. He said it was from my grandfather's items. I can't really run inside using speed because the Knights are far skillful and stronger than me.
When I got back to my house, two Knights are waiting for me. Did they discover what I'm planning?
With a deadpan face, I laid my eyes on them. They handed me an abaniko leaf, with an insignia marked outside. "We apologize for delivering the invitation this werewolves hour. To pay our disrespect, we offer you a ride to the castle. We will expect you at prayer hours." One Knight said.
I nod. "Noted." At exactly six-thirty in the afternoon, they'll send me to the castle. We called that as prayer hours for Southern demons always collected zui from Earth by ritual. I doubt it's a forbidden ritual.
I scan the whole message in abaniko leaf, which says that the King will be rewarding me for what I needed the most.
I got a bad feeling about this.
Exactly at the time, the Knights appeared in front of my house with a Sky dragon ride. They bow to me and then lead me to the only seat at the back of the dragon.
As the dragon soars in the sky, my mind flies into thinking for more observations, and probably, I'll ask for beheading Traiser. Of course, I shall not, but that's the easy way to get my hands on him. Not in a bad way, I would get him out of the castle.
And, settle in the West, where Wanali tried to warn me. Half of me yelled that Wanali may know what's going to happen, while the other half tells I still should not trust him.
When my feet got on the ground, I see a strange ambiance as no knights is guarding in front. As I walk further inside, there's no single breathe of Knight in here.
I pulled the leaf from my bag. "Heart of the Castle. You must be on your own." I read aloud what the message said.
I sigh and then march straight to the heart. Funny, this is the heart of the castle while my hearts have been racing crazy until I arrived. My hands tremble to touch the door. This door has a complicated appearance. So confusing that I don't want to open it. I touched the middle part which had a mark of a demon's heart, surrounded by weird crawling veins, and at the top, a huge head of the Oracle. And, there's no doorknob at all.
When the door slides in the middle, the King, himself greets me with a grin, sitting in the top of the pyramid seats. Along with his 13 Maharlika who are staring madly down at me. I feel they want me to be either killed or humiliated.
"Pace faster, trash! Get a grip on yourself!"
Guess who said that. Right, Jazxus with her proud face. Quickly, I move faster and just stood there in front of them. Heury, the seventh Maharlika, stands up. "With the presence of the Almighty King of the Demons, and the Great Maharlikas, we bless this execution to initiate." Later on, he shows an evil grin and stares at me.
Execution? Did he mean it?
My eyes widen, hearts slowly racing, and I almost got choke. I look at them, one by one, with confused eyes. "What do you mean of execution? I have done my job successfully. In Panah's name, I shouldn't be rewarded like this."
They all laugh at me, except for the second Maharlika with his blank face. The King even pointed at me. "In Panah's name? That might be the third time on hearing this."
Third time? How come... Datu Gahid is right.
My grandfather and father didn't die because of the curse. They had been.....
...killed by these so-called higher positions.
Jazxus then blurted out. "Your father pleading for his life, like, In Panah's name, I should have a free will. YOU ARE A FAMILY OF TRASH!"
Heury suggested. "Poor diablae. I can take into consideration if you satisfy my needs."
Dilag, the third, bragged on. "Heury, don't waste your time on some trash. Even my very own horn wouldn't be a match for her UGLY face."
King went on. "You don't even have someone waiting at your house. All of your family were dead! Now, you'll be going to see them too!"
I bite my lips, trying to suppress my anger inside. All this time, my efforts went in vain. My whole life and even existence were lies. Gada stands up, then all of them went into silence. The first Maharlika, diablinx, looked down at me with a disgusted look.
"I have a higher intuition that this diablae had deeper feelings to the human. I suggest, we lock her up and let her witness her regret!" Gada laughs while holding their stomach.
The others laugh too. My eyes as if ordered to meet the gaze of Quizion, the second Maharlika. I don't know if he's laughing as well or as expected, he'll discriminate my kind in his mind.
The King now stands. "To my accordance and will, this diablae has been sentenced to torture and sacrifice for the ritual. Torturing her feelings whilst watching the human be scavenged."
I take a deep breath. Calm, Limdi. Think and reflect. I can do this.
"Any last words?" The King added.
The ninth and tenth held me by my arms. Fine then, I'll play by your own stupid game. I let out a grin and look at them with a proud face.
"All of you in this room, you listen. Mark the name of Panah, for I shall take what's already been mine. Let's see who's laughing at the end."
Together, they flinched at my words. They even look at me with those mad eyes. A moment later, I've been carried by the two Maharlikas. My prison has been sealed with a spell, joined and strong type. They even mocked me that what I said was a hoax and a statement from a loser.
As they parted, I hold tightly the bracelet. Fixing my calm posture and thinking for the plan. There are possibly three exits here; one from the main door, one from the back of the heart, and one above in the same room.
I cannot withstand thirteen demons altogether. I must think of another way. If I would be Wanali who gets to escape everywhere, what would I think?
Lucky him, he got an army, while I got nobody. Only Traiser at my side. I found myself just sulking in sadness because of this. Suddenly, father appeared in my mind.
He said that if I need urgent help, I need to do a spiritual prayer. I pulled out the journal, the first one I got. I flipped the pages and stopped when I saw the spell.
Peace of mind.
Peace of soul.
Calm thy heart, and let the ride goes on.
Call the spirit to guide thee.
Do not be afraid, just let them be.
At last, give thy tears from the eye.