Chapter 6: A Whole New World
And Iblis looked over this new world he had created, full of untapped potential. He wondered what its inhabitants would one day accomplish.
Iblis soared above the clouds at near supersonic speeds. He danced and weaved in and out of clouds, flying through and reshaping many of them just because he could. For the first time in a long time, he felt young again. He had all this newfound freedom that he couldn’t remember having before. He slowed himself down to a more leisurely pace (as leisurely as one could get while flying several thousands of feet above the ground) and rolled over, looking at the endless black sky. Iblis frowned and turned back to face the ground again, but dense cloud cover blocked his view. Using his great powers, he parted the clouds and saw the dazzling lights of Capital City beneath him. He smiled, seeing the bright vibrant life below him, watching the lights move and flow, growing brighter and dimmer, sharpened and softened.
A restful sigh made its way out of the newborn deity’s lips as he wondered what he would do now. The last time he had no idea what he had become and hid away, but this time he knew exactly who he was and why he was there. These people may not have known of him yet, but soon they would chant his name and follow in his footsteps. Things would be different this time. They already were different, in fact. It suddenly dawned on him how different they were and he quickly shot off, flying to reassure his most faithful companion that not all hope was lost.
Cerina stared out at the dark sky for some time. Thick, black storm clouds loomed ominously overhead, taunting her. Mocking her. Would there be no reprieve from all the bad news today? First Sam nearly dies, then the Consulate does nothing to actually help heal him, and now there were complications? Complications could only mean one thing—and it wasn’t anything good. She curled up into a ball and continued staring up at the sky. How could this happen to him? He was a good person. Sure, he had a bit of a problem with acknowledging others’ feelings and would quickly disregard anything he didn’t think was worth his time, but he had a good heart. Sam always had the best of intentions when he did anything.
Cerina closed her curtains and laid down, facing away from the window. The clouds and their endless, ominous taunts were becoming unbearable. She closed her eyes and whispered a quiet prayer to herself. “No more bad news. Please.” And Cerina rested, hoping that whatever god was out there controlling the strings of the universe heard her plea.
“Poor girl,” A deep voice resonated from behind her and she quickly sat up and looked where it came from. “The world has dealt you the worst possible hand it could have today, hasn’t it?” She couldn’t make out any exact details, but she knew that a man sat in her desk chair and was staring at her. Terror began to overtake Cerina. How had he gotten inside? It couldn’t have been her father; she hadn’t heard the car come back yet. Her door hadn’t even opened and the window was locked. She wanted to cry out, but what if he had already killed her mother? Why hadn’t she heard anything?
“You’re afraid. I should have expected that; I didn’t exactly come at the best time.” She could see him reach up and rub the back of his neck. “It wouldn’t matter anyway. No matter when or where I came to you, you would still be scared of me. You don’t even know who I am, or at least that’s what you think.”
Cerina was too terrified to respond, but the man didn’t seem to prod any farther. He just sat there, staring. “Who—who are you?” she finally managed to choke out.
He leaned forward and rested his elbow on his leg and his head in his hand. Thinking for a moment, he finally responded, “In your life, I will have many names and aliases. Despite all of these, you will always know me as Iblis.”
“Iblis?” The wheels in her head began to click and turn. “You don’t mean—”
“I am similar to the same god worshipped by the cult that your boyfriend was ambushed by, but not the same. They believe their god to be cruel and vengeful. I am not their god.”
“What are you then?”
He was quiet again and just stared at his hand. Finally, he looked at her and reached out, “Let me show you.”
“What?”
“Let me show you.” He leaned forward. Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness and she could see his face better. There was disarming warmth in his eyes, in his smile. “I promise I won’t hurt you. Can you trust me?”
Cerina suddenly recognized something in that warmth. She crawled forward and reached out for this strange man’s hand, grasping at his fingertips. “I-I think I can.”
He let her hand slide into his and held it tightly, but not uncomfortably. The two stood up and he held her close, her head pressed against his chest. She could feel a great heart beating underneath and heard him take a quick breath. “Hold on tight, then.”
“What will you show me?”
He smiled and hugged her tightly, “The world.” The two of them suddenly teleported out of her room. Cerina felt a cool breeze brush against her face and she looked out, seeing clouds beneath her.
“Where—where are we?”
Holding her tightly with one arm, the man waved his other hand and split the clouds. She gasped awestruck—in part by the tremendous power before her, but also by the spectacular view. The bright lights of Capital City shone brightly below, shimmering and splendid. She didn’t know where they were exactly, but it was an astounding sight. The lights stretched out as far as she could see, covering every inch of the massive city below. She had never thought that she would see it like this—not even if she had seen it from an airplane.
“I believe I owe you a first date.” He was smiling, looking at the city as well. “Where do you want to go? Think of any place—anywhere in the world—and we’ll be there.”
“Anywhere?”
“Yes. Just let your heart decide.” She closed her eyes and focused as hard as she could, feeling the magic surround her and take her once more. When she opened them up, Cerina found herself in the middle of a festival in the Eslands.
She shook her head and closed her eyes again, “This has to be an illusion.”
“It could be, or it could be real. Just open your eyes and take in the wonder.” Cerina opened her eyes back up and saw her pajamas transform into a long red dress with white frills on it. And for the first time in the lights of the festival, Cerina got a good look at her date, this mysterious man—Iblis, he called himself. He was tall and muscular, with rich tanned skin. His hair was wild and long, colored a deep forest green with a wide purple highlight running through the middle of it, and his bangs were—for some reason—a bright light blue color. He had a strong, defined jaw and a very handsome face. His clothes transformed as well, turning into an opened button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up, with a plain white undershirt beneath, tucked into a well-fitting pair of blue jeans. He picked a flower out of a nearby tree and gave it to her, tucking it above her ear.
“Well,” Iblis held out a hand, “May I interest you in a dance?” She saw the lights twinkle in his warm brown eyes and took it, smiling now.
“Yes, you may.” Iblis swept Cerina off her feet and the two began to dance to the happy, upbeat music. The two of them kept well with the beat of the steel drums and the guitars, trying to sing along with the songs even though neither knew the words. Eventually, they began to move too quickly and they tumbled over, falling out of the crowd. She laughed and felt him hold her hand again, and looked to him.
“Okay, where to next? There’s an endless, moonlit night ahead of us.”
“I don’t know. There are so many places I’d love to go.”
“Well pick one—any one. There’s no one to tell you no, or where to go. And you certainly know you’re not just dreaming.” She closed her eyes once again and felt the magic take her once more, this time just letting it take her where she wanted. As Cerina opened them up again, she saw a dazzling array of flowers spread out in front of her—some she hadn’t even seen before. A crystal-clear stream flowed nearby, and beyond it was an even more unbelievable sight.
Her first thoughts for actually seeing the Ancenian Royal Palace with her own eyes were indescribable. Cerina had never imagined in her life that she would actually be here in this place—mostly because nobody except the royal family was actually allowed beyond its gates or in its gardens. This is when it suddenly dawned on her that she was actually in the Ancenian Royal Garden and she started to panic.
“Oh my God, what if the guards see us? What do we do then?”
Iblis laughed. “They won’t. We’re safe.” He smiled and nudged her, “Go on. Pick some flowers. Take whatever you want.” Cerina stood up and ran around; inspecting each and every flower she could find, careful not to damage any one of them. After a while, she came back to where they had appeared and saw Iblis sitting there, staring at the sunset. He looked and saw her holding just a single blue flower.
“That’s all?”
“Yes.” She smiled, sitting next to him and looking at it. “It’s a very rare breed that only grows here. I want to take it with me so I can remember and cherish this moment. I don’t think I’ll ever see anything this spectacular again.”
“Here, let me see it.” Cautiously, she handed him the flower. Cerina watched as Iblis called some sand to his hand, and saw him immediately transform it into a glass tube surrounding the flower. He also created brass bands surrounding the top and bottom and she saw a faint glow of magic begin to radiate from it. “There, now it will never wilt as long as it stays within the tube.” Iblis gave the tube to her. “And I hope you always remember this, even when you have something much greater than this entire garden. Believe me, it all gets better from here.”
“Well, we’ve come so far now. I don’t know if I can just go back home now, especially not if you have another surprise waiting for me.”
“There are plenty of new horizons for us to pursue, and we will chase all of them with time to spare, but for now I must take you home.”
She looked at the flower and smiled again, “Well, thank you, Sam. Thank you for sharing this wondrous place with me.”
“Thank you for letting me.” He held her hand again, and the two of them returned back to her home, sitting on her front lawn again. She sighed gladly, and her fingers interlocked with his.
She looked at their hands, “Will I ever see you again?”
“You will.” He picked her chin up, “I promise.” The two of them began to move in closer, their lips parting for a kiss—
“Stop right there!” The two of them looked back and saw Cerina’s father there, ready to fight with his magic. “Don’t you lay another finger on my daughter.”
“Joseph, don’t do this.” Iblis stood up and faced him, “Don’t do anything you’ll regret later.”
“Dad, stop! Don’t hurt him, I’m fine!”
“Cerina, what-what are you wearing? And what are you holding?” Her father let his guard falter for a moment, but his rage returned quickly and with a greater passion than before. “I don’t know what kind of magics you used on her. You’re not like any other Imperial I’ve seen, but it doesn’t matter. First, you decide to invade my home and kidnap my child. Then you have the nerve to entrance her with some kind of twisted spells.”
“Dad, he’s not our enemy! I’m not under any kind of charms or anything!”
“Cerina, stand back!” Cold winds began to blow around the three of them. “This will not end well for you, Imperial!”
“Joseph, I’m not an Imperial!” Iblis’ eyes began to glow as he tried to negate Mr. Burmen’s powers, but something was keeping the older mage fueled. “Stop this; you don’t know what kind of power you’re getting involved with!”
“I swore I would never use this power again,” a distinctive crimson light began to shine in Mr. Burmen’s palms and Iblis’ eyes opened wide, “but if it means protecting my family from the likes of you, then so be it!”
“JOSEPH, NO!” Both Iblis and Mrs. Burmen, who had been watching from the front door, screamed at the top of their lungs at the same time. Iblis was able to react first though, slamming his hand on the ground, and watching as a bright white light quickly surrounded Mr. Burmen. In a moment, the light was gone and Mrs. Burmen was holding her husband’s arm back. He was too stunned to do anything though.
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t let you use it—not when we both know what it’s made of. You couldn’t have used it and lived with yourself.” Iblis quickly stood back up, his eyes no longer glowing, “I mean you no harm though. I swear by my life, I am not an Imperial.”
Joseph didn’t respond to that. “You-you don’t just use magic. You command it.” He fell to his knees and looked at the powerful being before him, in sheer terror, “By the grace of God—what are you?”