It was as if there was only darkness waiting for this spiraling chaos that I had triggered by killing my own mother with my bare hands. Yet, perchance a spark of hope still fluttered on the horizon. But one thing was for sure-Sarath would pay, and with him, the gods. Come rain, come shine; I'd see it through. I am Janiya, the girl born to kill the gods. If you're starting to freak out, then let me lead you gently back to where this all started some years ago.
It was the day I killed my mother. They'd call me crazy, but within this world, aside from the regular passing of time, there was another reality-inhabited by gods and supernatural beings-whom my mother served, while my dad was among them, a god. But unlike most, he never degraded humanity; it was the thirst for power of the gods that messed everything up. For they had rings of control and powers over the elements and hence their true power. Without those, they meant nothing. To the gods, only they deserved to live, and the rest of us did not even matter.
But the most potent of those was Sarath: he had clutched my mother in his dark clutch and made her his pawn for his sick crusade against all races, then recreating in his name. He would stop at nothing.
Our story started a decade ago.
"Janaiya, sweetie, wake up," my mom's voice was soft but commanding through the house.
"I'm coming, Mother, only putting on my armor," I returned clamping on the last buckle.
"Your father awaits to begin your training. Go, prepare yourself."
"Okay, my turn!
My father stood tall and stern, as always, waiting in the courtyard. "You ready, Janiya?" he said in that low cool voice of his that held so much expectation.
"Mhm."
"Today, we are going to spend some time with some swordplay. I'll teach you the movements of Diamond Blade Dance. Take any sword.".
Clutching the cursed blade-a black-and-red-sword-emitting such a bad aura without giving it a second thought, I answered, "This one.".
"You sure?" he asked, his eyes pressed with seriousness.
"Hell yeah!"
"All right, let's go!
Blades clashed in blur; I was just wild, full of energy, not a bit of technique.
Janiya, stop these blind cuts! father cried. "Use your head, not just charge headlong!
"Ugh, I know, but this is more Sasha's thing!" I whinged and jerked a thumb towards my sister, sitting off to one side.
"Fighting is not of strength alone; it needs strategy. Use your head," he reproached him, crossing his arms in a stern gaze.
Sasha was standing, smirking like always. "Come on, Janiya; let's spar. Only hands this time-no powers.
"Fine," I grumbled, ready just to get it over with.
The spar was brutal. Sasha was relentless, her strength and speed far surpassing mine. With a single blow, she shattered the ground beneath us. "Keep up, Janiya, or you'll get crushed," she taunted, her eyes gleaming with victory.
Before I could get into the defense, she planted a hard kick in my ribs. "Damn it, Sasha, that hurt!
"Just warming up," she said, smiling, and suddenly her next motions blurred with quickness. "Flash Step!" An instant later, she was behind me, the punches landing true, heavy with precision-face, stomach, ribs.
But I wasn't defending anymore. "Now it's my turn," I growled low. I mirrored her Flash Step, hitting her in return now-face, stomach, ribs. "Try moving like that and I'll be able to cut you in half.".
"That's enough!" my father shouted, pushing between us. "Janiya, don't kill your sister."
"I wasn't going to," I grumbled.
"Go practice with your mother," he said, and waved me away.
Till then, I didn't know it was going that far. Perhaps by knowing it, I could have stopped whatever happened. Now Sarath has finally donned colors. Already he had set his plan in motion for destroying humankind and all the races using the Infinity Cube, which is a very powerful artefact, as once in his possession, no one halts him. It was days later when it would fall apart. By that time, he had already spent two of the Infinity Cubes, and my mother. she was beyond recognition, corrupted by his influence-a monster. I had to defend myself from her, in order to save my sister Sasha. Then, something went so wrong during that combat: I struck Sarath with this forbidden technique, and. and my mother, lost and in despair, came in its way. Her chest was pierced. She gave of herself what little she had left in that last, dying breath. "Seal him away, Janiya," she mouthed. "Before it's too late. Fuse one of the Infinity Cubes into yourself-don't let him reach full strength." I nodded with tears streaming down my face. "I promise it, Mother." Getting most of my strengths back, I removed the Demonic Heavenly Seal. "Return to the underworld and never return!" I shouted, sealing him away. Yet somehow in my heart, I knew that was far from over. One day, he would break free. I took my unconscious sister in my arms, and we ran. For years we would be training and preparing. Our only hope now was revenge, to kill the gods and readjust the balance. And this too is the story of my disciple Noah Kazumah, the boy who one day would become a god himself.