CHAPTER 7.5: FUTURE

***The Saint’s Tower***

An old decree from the heavens forbade Alexa to physically come out of her tower, even as when she became the saint ‘Natasha Bellingsen’. Nevertheless, she was aware of the events happening all over the five realms, for she could always ‘project’ her presence into any place she wanted…provided she met certain conditions.

So Alexa watched in horror as the first shots of the long-frozen war was fired into the school she founded eons ago. The Conclave stood side-by-side with her tower, so it’s not rocket science to say that even if she didn’t use her ability, she would still hear the battle outside her yard. And to add to her woes, her teacher, Greg, was inside, and leading the defense together with his allies.

“Sir, what are you doing? Please don’t come to the walls!” was all that she could do. But Alexa knew that her shouts, no matter how loud it was, would never reach her teacher. Greg inched his way to the Conclave’s parapets, dodging artillery shells and stray bullets that eventually found its mark in some unfortunate goblins around him.

Not wishing to stand by doing nothing, the Saint of Darkness then used her power to ‘go out’ of her place. She may not be as powerful as the other saints after her ‘reincarnation’, but she would definitely help in preserving the peace in the realm she had responsibility.

However…

“Oh no, you don’t!”

“!!!”

Just as Alexa was to ‘project’ herself, she was stopped; her ‘presence’ pulled back to her body in the most forceful way. When she regained her consciousness, she was surprised to see someone familiar standing before her…

“G-Gaius!” she blurted out.

The hooded man smirked, “In the flesh. You thought I wouldn’t be able to enter this tower of yours, Cassandra?”

“I never did,” she replied. “I always thought of you as a dangerous man! But how—”

“Seirna told me,” he chuckled. “Or rather, based on how she told of your sentimental reunion with your old teacher, I surmised you have returned from your detention. After all, that old High King is too soft to be a proper authority.”

“Don’t you dare blaspheme the High King of the Gods, Gaius!”

“Oooh, I’m scared,” the former god laughed. “Are you worried that, because I’m a mortal now, he’ll punish me? Well, not to worry, my dear Cassandra…after this war, I will be back in my rightful place among the gods in heaven!”

“I won’t let you!”

“We’ll see…after all, you’re putting too much trust in your old teacher.”

“Sir Greg is way better than you!”

“But he does not possess what it takes to be a proper deity! He’s too soft, weak…always trying to save everyone,” Gaius’ grin was sarcastic. “He’s a walking cringe! The only ones I know who do that are martyrs, and martyrs end up dead for their cause! His fate is the same as them!”

Alexa had enough; she chanted a spell that brought forth her sword. Glaring at the former god, she challenged him, “I’d like to see you try to kill him!”

“How brave…” Gaius answered his former champion, summoning a Roman gladius in his hand, “…even though you’ve grown too weak, Cassandra! Well, it benefits my goal, making it easy for me to keep you from intervening in Cherflammen. En garde!”

However, the Saint of Darkness wasted no time. She immediately went on the offensive, combining skilled footwork and precise strikes to pierce through the Roman’s defenses. A strike aimed at his head, then a feint, followed by an attempt to kick his shin; the former hero’s moves were relentless. The former god had difficulty in looking for openings in her attacks.

Gaius, for his part, was quickly put to the defensive, trying to parry Alexa’s strikes. His gladius lacked in reach, compared to his enemy’s sword. This, and the former hero’s combat skills, was enough to push him into the corner.

“…”

But the Roman had experience on his side. His memories of his wars against the Gaul barbarians were still fresh in his mind. The battles he fought against Pompey after he crossed the Rubicon still ingrained in his body. His education forged his tactics and strategy in dealing with threats against him. Even though Alexa initially had the upper hand, soon, he was on the counter-attack.

The former hero, though she put up a fight, was slowly losing her ground. Though Alexa could still remember her training when she was first summoned to Chersea, her new body as ‘Natasha Bellingsen’ wasn’t prepared for melee. As ‘Natasha’ she didn’t even involve herself in physical battles, and because of the limitations placed on her, she just spent an eternity locked in her tower.

“!!!”

Soon, Alexa’s moves were turning erratic. Gaius was quick to notice that, and he knew that she was panicking. Seizing on the opportunity, the Roman continued on battering the former hero with his own attacks, at which, the Saint of Darkness had to parry in succession. In Alexa’s desperation, she resorted to deflect Gaius’ strikes with magic, dividing her focus between her melee and chanting spells.

“I got you now!”

“!!!”

In one forceful attack, the former god disarmed the saint and threw her down the floor. Alexa tried to get up, but Gaius would never let her. Soon, his gladius threatened to pierce her neck.

“It’s over, Cassandra,” he smiled in glee. “You’ll have to stay here; I placed a barrier around your tower to prevent you from ‘going out’, anyway. So, you better leave Cherflammen’s affairs to the people outside.”

“I’m afraid you’d have to kill me to convince me to do that.”

“Ha! What, are you confident that I can’t do it because you’re a saint?” Gaius grabbed her by the hair and whispered, “Well, coincidentally, I’m also here to take back what is rightfully mine. Thank you for safekeeping the god-power of foresight for me, Natasha Bellingsen!” He took hold of her forehead, chanting a spell that caused strange runes to appear on his hand, as well as the air around them.

It was a painful process, though the saint kept herself from screaming. Alexa never trusted Gaius, and so the transfer of her god-power couldn’t be done normally. His was a forced one, and she tried to hold on to it, fighting against the former god’s magic. But she could feel that a part of her god-power was being sucked by Gaius; nevertheless, she was determined to persevere.

Not wishing for their struggle to drag on, the former god intensified his attempts. By that moment, Alexa matched his ferocity with her resolution. To each increase in his magic spell, so did the former hero’s hold on her god-power. Natasha Bellingsen’s body may not be suited for physical combat, but she was a demon…and demons were known for their magical prowess.

And then, it reached the tipping point…

“!!!”

A powerful explosion flung Gaius away from his victim. Both of them were surprised at what happened; neither of them moved for a few moments. However, when the former god tried to get back to Alexa…

“!!!”

A series of visions appeared in his mind. He saw himself, standing, peering into the blackness of the Void. What’s strange about it was that, the other images showed the same. Him looking into the endless Void, with nothing else that he could do except to remain in his spot, waiting for nothing.

“I…I guess you got some of my god-powers…” Alexa struggled to pick herself up; she was severely weakened by her fight against Gaius’ magic. Nevertheless, there was a defiant smile on her lips as she taunted him, “How…How is it, Gaius? What’s the feeling of knowing the future once again? Yes, all of those are your possible futures—not one promised a better fortune for you!”

The former god was desperate; this was not what he expected. His mind raced for reasons to explain what he just saw. But nothing came out of it. Lost in hopelessness, Gaius let out a deafening scream, picked his gladius and charged at Alexa.