Azriel walked towards the mesmerizing crystal and gestured me to come closer.
"Selene, this is going to be real hard. Okay? But don't give up. As soon as you put the heart here. You're gonna feel a huge, huge surge of energy." He said.
Now I was scared.
"Let it be a lesson, okay? I want you to fight through it. And you can do it. I'll be here."
I gulped. As I approached the crystal, I felt a strong pull towards it. My body felt heavy, as if I was carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders. My legs felt weak, and my vision blurred. But through the haze, I could see Azriel's encouraging gaze.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, focusing on the task at hand. With all the strength I could muster, I placed the heart onto the crystal. And just as Azriel had warned, a powerful surge of energy coursed through me.
It was like nothing I had ever felt before. My body was electrified, and I felt as if I was on fire. I wanted to scream, to run away from the overwhelming sensation, but Azriel's body came behind me. His hands travelling down to where the heart was.
His body too jolted, as we sat there. "I'm here." He whispered in my ear. And as soon as he did, the heart started beating like crazy and my hands started burning.
"Ah!" I screamed.
As soon as the scream escaped my lips, the whole cave seemed to shake. The crystal around us glowed brighter and brighter, illuminating the cavern with an otherworldly light. My vision blurred, and I felt as if I was floating, weightless and free.
But just as suddenly as it had started, the sensation stopped. I fell back into Azriel's arms, panting and gasping for air. The heart had disappeared from my hands.
Azriel looked at me with concern etched on his face. "Selene, are you okay?"
I nodded, breathing heavily. I felt his arms wrapping around me, my cheek pressed against his bare chest.
"Azriel! I am- I am alive again! Oh my god, I can't believe it!" A man yelled.
My eyes widened, and so did Azriel's.
"Jared?" Azriel whispered in disbelief as a figure emerged from the shadows.
It was a man I had never seen before, but his eyes were bright and his smile was wide, which looked even better with his sharp jawline. His hair were brown and rough. He walked towards us, his hand outstretched in greeting.
Azriel got up, his eyes teary as he took his friend's hand in a greeting, then hugged him tightly patting his back.
"I can't fucking believe I am alive again!" Jared said, his eyes too, glistening with tears.
"I can't believe it," Azriel whispered.
Jared pulled away and looked at me. "And who is this beautiful lady?"
"This is Selene," Azriel said, introducing me.
"H-Hi." I waved my hand with a nervous smile. I was sitting, my butt hurt, and my hair were a mess, and I might have some tears on my face. No one could be beautiful in this state.
All of a sudden, Jared took my hand, stood me up, shaking it as a hello.
"As the prophecy goes, she is the saviour of the world." Azriel let out, staring at me. "I have to train her."
"Woah! That's so cool." He said. "Hey, you know you look like the little girl Az wouldn't-"
Azriel stomped in between and tapped his lips glaring at Jared. He whispered something to him, making me feel so left out.
"Don't whisper! I want to hear." I kicked Azriel's leg.
He turned around to glare at me.
"I look like who?" I gazed at him angrily.
"Nobody. Don't listen to him." Azriel said, and then shot daggers at Jared.
I frowned, "You asshole! Are you going to tell me or not?" I shouted at Azriel, making Jarel laugh in silence. That was when it hit me, Azriel had silenced him, tapping his lips.
"No, I am not." He said. "Deal with it."
I crossed my arms, pouting. "Fine, be that way." I said, turning away from him. But curiosity was eating me up inside. Who did I look like? And why was Azriel so against me knowing?
"Well, let's get out of this cave. I have to tell you lots." Azriel said.
Jared glared at him and smacked him on the arm, pointing to his mouth.
"Ah." Azriel said and then shook his head as no, smiling coyly afterwards, getting another smack from him. "Alright. Alright."
As we walked out of the cave, I couldn't help but steal glances at Azriel. He seemed different, like something was weighing heavily on him. And Jared seemed to notice it too, shooting him concerned glances every now and then.
"What's going on?" I finally asked, breaking the silence.
"I have to train you. We have to do it fast. Abaddon is acting up fast. He might starting killing innocent people again." He said.
Jared eyebrows came down together, "He isn't dead, yet?"
"I couldn't kill him the last time too. I don't- I think- I don't know."
"I know." Jared muttered. "We couldn't kill him together, even and we're the strongest together."
Azriel nodded.
I just looked down, thinking if these men, strongest, couldn't beat him and then how would I?
"It's very simple, Selene." Azriel let out, as his face turned to me.
"You would have to beat us to defeat him. You have to win." Jared said, smiling as he completed Azriel's sentence.
My eyes were wide and I didn't want to face them. I, sometimes, wish I hadn't taken an oath, just to see the waterfall of problems from inside.
"Have you told her about the past, Az? How it all started?" Jared asked, raising his eyebrows as if knowing he hadn't told me anything.
"No. Is it necessary?" Azriel stared at him.
"Of course, it is, you dumbass. She should know everything if she's the chose one!"
I looked at both of them, one by one.
"Well, I was going to tell her little by little." He replied calmly, defending himself.
"Yeah, sure." The brown haired man then glanced at me. "I'll tell you everything, Selene."