"Hasten your lazy pace!! and you guys, be on full alert! No slacking is allowed!"
The commander of the Blue light order, William Hathforth instructed the guards around for one last time. His tall and muscular build with a pair of clear intimidating black eyes and a strict personality made him one of the most feared leaders in the knight order. He stood firm with a discerning look making final preparations for the arrival of the two most important people of the Temple, the saintess, and the cardinal.
''Commander, The carriage has passed through the final checkpoint. No abnormalities. No deviation." a knight stood firm reporting the progress to him.
There were four knight orders in the empire. Blue Light, White legion, Black Stallion, and the Holy Templars. While Blue Legion was directly under the command of the Pope and held the highest authority among the four orders, they were responsible for the security of the temple and the capital and the secondary order under them oversaw the security of the East.
The three Grand Apostles each commanded the other three orders in the Central Plains, Southern territory, and The West. The Holy templars in the Central Plains, White Legion in the South, and Black Stallion in the West.
The summons of the saintess and the cardinal were strictly kept under wraps. A sudden summons to both of them who had been handling the damages of war and fighting on the frontline could lead to a heavy commotion and unrest among the people.
Three days after the summons, both of them finally arrived at the capital and headed straight towards the temple, curiosity filling their entire bodies as to what had been of so great importance that they had to abandon their duties on the frontlines to immediately present themselves in the grand temple.
"Welcome back, Your graces. I hope your trip was comfortable." commander William greeted both the Saintess and the Cardinal consecutively.
"May Lumina's blessings be with you." the saintess closed her eyes and cast a simple blessing upon Wiliam. Her long, flowing platinum blonde hair and jewel-like blue eyes symbolized her angelic appearance and high divinity. Her appearance and her gentle aura were befitting of her title as the Saintess.
"Long time no see, William. How are you faring? It's time for accepting the new recruits, isn't it?" the Cardinal spoke extending his hands towards William. His informal tone indicated a close relationship among them. All of those who had high divinity and holy powers have blue eyes and so does the cardinal. With shoulder-length silver hair and a holy aura, Cardinal Francis was a man of free will and was known for honestly speaking his mind.
William glanced over the Cardinal and a light chuckle escaped his mouth,
"All thanks to your grace's protection, things are manageable." he smiled. William seemed a bit relaxed now thinking to himself how both the cardinal and the saintess seemed to be doing fine and their demeanor hasn't changed despite being on the battlefield for a very long time.
After exchanging pleasantries, both the distinguished guests were led to their respective resting chambers, and the time for their designated meeting with the pope was fixed immediately.
A few hours later in the prayer hall of the Grand Temple:
"Your holiness, Saintess Lily and Cardinal Francis are here." a cleric informed the pope in the prayer room. He had his eyes closed and faced towards the giant statue of goddess Lumina and seemed to be concentrating on something and so without glancing over or even opening his eyes, he nodded.
The cleric went back and opened the door leading Francis and Lily in. They walked in without much noise, steady and elegantly.
"May the eternal light of Lumina be upon Esterneil. Greetings to Great Messenger of Lumina." Lily bowed down with perfect etiquette and grace. She had always been admired for being dignified and proper. Her manners were the ideal of high society.
Following her greetings, Francis bowed, " Greetings to the Great Father. May Lumina's blessings be upon us." Francis only ever gave a formal greeting to one person, the pope himself. He disliked people pleasers the most but he was utterly devoted to the pope. To him, the Holy pope was the light of the world.
A few minutes pass by in silence. The pope finally opened his eyes and turned back to face the two of them. An unreadable expression formed on his face. He finally spoke in a gentle voice,
"Lily, Francis, the time has come." his eyes had a mysterious sparkle as he announced to both of them. Both of them were perplexed at the mention of something they had no clue about. Observing both of their puzzled faces, the pope came a few steps down from the podium and looked directly at them and said in a somewhat delighted tone,
"The wait is finally over. A new light has been blessed by Lumina to end this two thousand years worth of misery. Begin the search. The stars have already announced his arrival." a faint smile appeared as he dropped this unbelievable piece of news. Lily's pupils widen with shock.
" Has there been an oracle, Father?" she clenched her hands, anticipating and anxious.
"A new light?!" Francis cried out with surprise before the pope could answer Lily's question. His former calm demeanor had clearly changed. He was agitated and excited.
"The answer to all the questions. A light for the lost. our son who is destined to conquer the dark. A new light is born."
"The words of Lumina for the first time in two thousand years, she has finally spoken." he gazed back at the statue of Lumina.
"The last time we got an oracle was when Xavier was born!" Francis exclaimed. His whole face lit up hearing the oracle. The suffering was finally going to end, he thought to himself.
Lily froze immediately. She had a hard time processing what she had just heard.
" A new light? Like Xavier? How is this possible? Is he?...no" a cold sweat dripped down her forehead as she thought to herself. She looked at Francis who was dancing with obvious excitement then looked at the pope who was already staring at her intently as if he was examining her. Chills ran down her spine and she immediately controlled her emotions.
"We shall prepare for the oracle to be made public." she bowed to the pope.
"I will begin the preparations immediately! We must begin the search as soon as possible." Francis said excitedly and hurriedly excused himself.
Lily followed after him. Francis disappeared in an instant while Lily walked a few steps then suddenly stopped and looked back at the pope.
"Father.....is that all of the oracle?" she questioned in a low voice. She looked at him as if she believed that the whole oracle wasn't told. As if there was something more to it that the pope did not want others to know.
The sun had begun to set and the room was beginning to fill with the dim orange light of the sun. The pope was standing at the foot of the podium with the golden hour sun rays falling slowly on the tips of his robe to the intense blue eyes. He slowly smiled at Lily. It wasn't a gentle smile this time. It was the smile that said no further explanation is needed. A smile that imparted authority and he finally spoke,
"That is all, Lily."
Lily lowered her gaze and looked at the ends of his robe, how the wind was swaying it, and stared at it for a few seconds then bowed her head and left the room without saying anything further. She had to know her place, she was nothing but a saintess. One that obediently completed all the missions handed to her without questions and now her new mission was to find the child from the oracles. The one who would rewrite the history.