The Judgment of Celestial: Shadows Unleashed

Chapter I
Secrets of the Past

Dark clouds covered the skies of Igros over the nation of Gandriar. Gandriar is at the very center of Igros and here is where the capital city Gandra dwells where the Emperor of Igros lives at his palace. The city of Gandra has expanded vastly over the years and deep within it remains the ruins of Gandra that was known during the Silver Age. The old Igrian Castle can also be found here abandoned and slowly falling to decay.

Most of this part has been closed off by the Imperial Army to keep the city from further falling into desolation. All streets leading to what is now called Old Gandra has been blocked off and soldiers are stationed there constantly to prevent anyone from entering. Rain came pouring down flooding the streets themselves as a lone Imperial soldier ran down the streets of Old Gandra. The buildings around him were once white but have now turned black.

This was where many of the city’s people lived during the Silver Age and also the part of the city that suffered the most during the war with the dark Lord. The lone soldier wore the standard uniform of the Imperial army; brown boots, blue pants, a brown belt, brown gloves, a brown shirt, and slight body armor such as a metal chest protector, metal shoulder pads, and a blue helmet that had a yellow visor that covered his eyes.

The soldier had a bastard sword strapped to his back and the hilt of this sword had a gemstone at the tip. The hilt was finely made and was more impressive looking than any other hilt. He carried in his left hand a small brown sack and in his right hand was a sub-machine gun. Strapped to his belt are a standard handgun and two fragmentation grenades. He ran down the street being chased by six Imperial soldiers that were dressed like him and had all his equipment expect the sword.

The lone soldier ran inside one of the houses that had a column that had fallen inside blocking some of the entrance way. He jumped over the column and ran up the stone stairs. The stairs had carvings on them in the ancient language of the angels that has been all but forgotten in this day and age. The six soldiers soon entered the house and gave chase to lone soldier upstairs. The lone soldier entered the first room down a hallway to his left that came to a bedroom.

The sheets were covered with dirt, the three chairs had broken and were left on the floor, and the table struggled to stand. The lone soldier quickly ran across the room to the window and crawled out of it. He went outside to a small ledge where half of his foot was hanging over the ledge. He slowly made his way across the building and came to a statue that had tipped over. The statue was of an angel expect the wings had fallen into the streets below.

The lone soldier ran up the statue to the rooftop of the neighboring building and ran to the edge to see that he was trapped. He turned around to find the six soldiers behind him ready to fire. The lone soldier readied his own gun and waited for anyone to do anything that even remotely looked like pulling the trigger. The rain slowly begun to let up and no one was willing to make a move. It was a cold day and everyone’s breath was clearly visible.

~~~~
‘Stand down,’ a commanding voice spread throughout the rooftop. Another man stepped onto the rooftop expect this one was no soldier. He had very short blonde hair with piercing green eyes. He wore a long dark green coat with yellow at the tip of the sleeves, the bottom of the coat, and running directly down the front center. On the back was the Imperial symbol that looked much like a sword in a dragon’s torso.

The man had his arms folded behind him and strapped to his side was a two-handed sword. The soldiers all stood to attention but the lone soldier kept his guard up. All the lone soldier uttered was, ‘General Leo…so you actually decide to show your face on the battlefield instead of hiding behind your soldiers.’

‘Hand over the seed traitor,’ General Leo replied handing out his hand to accept the sack the lone soldier held. ‘If you do I’ll make sure you only spend a lifetime in prison instead of suffering the full wrath of the Emperor.’

‘I can’t do that,’ the soldier said. He smiled and threw down his machine gun and drew his bastard sword. The blade glistened even with no sun in sight.

‘Is that a challenge?’ General Leo asked and drew his two-handed sword that he could easily wield with one hand. General Leo tucked his left hand away in his pants pocket and spun his powerful sword with his right hand. The lone soldier clinched his fist around the hilt of his sword and the sack that held what General Leo was seeking.

‘I can’t give up here.’

‘Then you shall die here,’ Leo responded. The lone soldiers charged General Leo and swung his sword downward. Leo easily blocked the assault and the two locked blades. The lone soldier gave it his all to try and break through the general’s defense but it was too much to handle. With a sudden burst of strength General Leo threw his sword forward forcing the soldier to back up. The soldier quickly returned to the general and this time lifted his sword up and swung it sideways while descending it.

General Leo parried the assault and quickly spun around and aimed for the soldier’s legs. The soldier quickly countered and struck the blade deflecting as he backed up. The soldier fought with power and strength while the general fought with speed and elegant attacks to tire out his opponent quickly and maintain a steady defense. The other soldiers watched as the two fought one another and both seemed to be equal; expect the general was toying with the soldier.

The two locked blades again and General Leo smiled, ‘I grow tired. You offer no excitement so I think I’ll go ahead and end this.’

General Leo leapt back breaking off the struggle. He held his sword vertically above his head and grabbed the end of the blade with his left hand. All the soldiers including the traitor knew what was about to happen. The six soldiers backed off to the edge of the roof and the traitor braced himself. General Leo quickly raised his sword up as though he was challenging the very heavens themselves. Sparks of fire started to shoot out from the blade.

Within a second the entire blade was engulfed in powerful flames. General Leo smiled and pointed the tip of the sword at the traitor. The flames encircled the blade in perfect formation. The colors of the flames shimmered brightly and the rain has ceased. The traitor backed up to the edge and grabbed his sword with both hands while keeping the sack within his grasp between his palm and the hilt. He readied himself.

General Leo pulled the sword back as though it was a gun he fired off. A fireball shot out from the blade and struck the traitor. Most of the fire struck the sword but the force threw the traitor off the roof and down to the alley below. The flames around Leo’s sword vanished and the moment it did it became cool enough to touch. General Leo returned his weapon to its sheath and turned to face the six soldiers.

~~~
‘Reclaim the seed. If he is still alive kill him,’ General Leo ordered and the soldiers ran off. They traveled down the same way they came up; using the fallen statue. The soldiers lined up in front of the alley and looked around. Smoke came out of the alley but there was no sign of the traitor. They looked around not seeing anyone within the alley.

‘He’s…gone,’ one the soldiers said keeping his machine gun in hand and walking into the alley.

‘That’s impossible…he took a direct hit from the general’s attack. Even if he survived he would be in no shape to walk,’ another soldier argued. Suddenly a loud roaring sound echoed through the alley. Gunfire came in and a soldier was shot dead. Before the others could react the traitor came flying past them in a motorcycle. Black and sleek with the feet positioned behind the rider, the bike raced down the streets with the soldiers unable to follow.

The motorcycle had no frontal mirror and it was capable of carrying two people. The soldiers ran out of the alley and opened fire but the traitor weaved from side to side dodging the bullets until he was out of range. General Leo stepped out of the building and looked at the dead soldier laying on the streets then turned his gaze to where the traitor had rode off to. ‘So…he escaped. Very well then. Men; it’s time to send out the storm troopers.’

~~~
The traitor rode down the streets keeping his lights off to avoid as much detection as possible. He was heading for the ruined Igrian Castle that was still a bit further off and past the inner walls. He passed the broken down gates that were once gazed upon by people from miles around. What is now ruined in decaying was once made to glimmer brightly in the dark but now the gold that once outlined the gates have been taken by the Emperor.

The traitor came to a stop and got off his bike and looked up at the once proud castle. During the Silver Age of Igros this was where the Chosen of Celestial fought the dark Lord from the land of Darkice and saved Igros. The traitor’s sword was placed back in its sheath on his back and still clinched in his left hand was the sack. He walked down the pathway leading to the doors. The bushes still have life and have grown flowers of all sort and they started to blossom this time of year.

He came to the large doors of the castle that had the ancient angelic-language carved into it. He pushed open the doors and entered the main hall of the castle. Rubble and debris filled the room. Many columns have come crumbling down. The statues of the kings of old have become nothing more than gravel. The soldier removed his helmet to reveal his sky blue eyes and his dark hair. His hair came down below his eyes but his veins were spread out so he could see.

‘Welcome little brother,’ across from the soldier stood three men in black robes. The middle looked like an older version of the traitor but with much longer hair. One was far larger and was bold with a face of a psycho killer while the other was a bit shorter. He seemed more gentle and calm with white hair flowing down his back.

‘Kether…where’s Leyna?’ the soldier asked.

‘What no hello? How are you? Little brother, you betrayed your Empire just for this girl. You are a traitor to the strongest nation on Igros,’ Kether replied slowly walking around the room. ‘Dear Jack; the girl is safe. Do you have the seed?’

Jack held up the sack carrying the seed. ‘I have that vine looking thing you wanted me to get. I went through hell and back to get it.’

‘Good work little brother. Chokmah, acquire the seed would you?’ Kether asked as the tall bold man started to walk towards Jack.

‘No! Where is Leyna?’ Jack demanded to see her and wasn’t going to give anything to anyone until then. Kether sighed and snapped his fingers. Two men in uniforms much like Jack’s expect all black entered dragging an unconscious woman. She seemed a bit younger then Jack with brown hair tied into a ponytail that still went a little below her chest. She wore a plain white t-shirt and black pants with matching black boots. On both her hands were black gloves.

‘There; you see? She’s not harmed at all,’ Chokmah told Jack. ‘We just had to put her asleep so that she wouldn’t escape, but she hasn’t be touched by us.’

‘Now brother, we’ll release her once you hand over the seed,’ Kether said turned to face Jack. Jack seemed unwilling to hand the bag over to Chokmah for some reason he knew that they still might betray him but he couldn’t do anything at all. He gave the bag to Chokmah who opened it up and looked inside. He smiled and threw it to Kether. ‘Good work Jack. I knew you had it in you. Now leave.’

‘But…’ before Jack could finish Kether again begun talking.

‘I decided that Leyna stays. After all we need someone to start the Great Revival and I don’t want to go through all the work on finding someone else.’

‘We had a deal!’ Jack shouted.

‘I’m altering the deal. Now go before I decide to take your life as well,’ Kether replied. More soldiers in black entered the room until nearly forty filled the hallway. Jack looked around knowing full well he couldn’t do a thing now expect get killed. Anger and hatred was all the emotions that filled his face as he gazed at Kether then to the unconscious Leyna. Jack turned around knowing he would have to wait to save her.

Before Jack could reach the door it flung open and in came Imperial soldiers. Jack jumped out of the way as they opened fired. Chokmah jumped up so high he managed to get on the second floor. The dark soldiers spread out and took cover behind the wreckage and started to fire back. Kether and the other man in the black hood walked up the stairs joining Chokmah on the second floor and with that they entered a room with doors almost as big as the main doors.

~~~
Jack jumped to his feet behind the Imperial soldiers and started shooting the dark soldiers. The Imperials believed him to be one of their own so they paid no attention to him. Jack slowly made his way across the hallway to where the two dropped Leyna to fight off the Imperials. Jack made it to Leyna and knelt down and grabbed her by the shoulders, ‘Leyna! Leyna!!’

‘Jack…I knew you’d come to me,’ Leyna uttered back eyes still closed. It became clear now that the Imperials vastly outnumbered the dark soldiers. Jack sat his handgun down and picked up Leyna and ran upstairs needing to escape the turmoil of the battle below. Jack entered the same room Kether and the other two went through and was now standing in the throne room. A tethered red carpet ran to the alter where two large thrones sat.

One was directly aligned with the center of the door with much more work and much more design and details. Columns ran alongside the carpet but some had fallen over halfway. Jack walked down the throne room still hearing the battle outside. Inside the throne room the three men in black were gone as though they never even entered the room. Jack saw behind the king’s throne a large window with torn curtains blowing in the wind.

Jack hurried down to the window jumping up past the few steps and hastening behind the throne and looked out the window. Jack smiled and jumped out the window and landed on a broken column a few feet below. From there he jumped onto the ledge of the castle and nearly lost his balance. With that Jack jumped down into the courtyard below in the midst of rose bushes. He laid Leyna down on her back but before Jack could do anything else he heard Imperial soldiers leaving.

Jack looked around the corner and saw them marching in twos leaving the castle with some dark soldiers taken prisoner. Jack returned to Leyna and checked her pulse; she was breathing fine. It seems all that they did to her was put her under a sleeping spell. Jack picked Leyna back up and ran down the courtyard. Jack hurried down the path trying to conserve his energy just encase he ran into more Imperial soldiers.

So many things have changed over the last few years; ever since the Bulma Academy was destroyed…

~~~
Eight years ago on a nation-island west of Gandriar in the Eastern Igrian Ocean is Uplian. Uplian once housed the Bulma Academy; a training facility that trains children into Cielo Warriors. A Cielo Warrior is a mystical wielder of Celestial. Celestial is a field of energy that surrounds all living things; humans, animals, plants, and anything else that lives or dies including the planet; Igros itself. Celestial was given to all living things by the Grand Creator himself; Aon.

During the second age of Igros more commonly known as the Silver Age a man named Pathos learned that it was possible to use Celestial in different ways such as healing and increasing physical strength. Pathos spent thirty years learning the angelic ways trying to learn the secret behind harnessing Celestial Energy. Pathos traveled through the Unexplored North searching for the sacred Tower of Aon where his word was written at during the first age or as it is called the Golden Age of Igros.

Whether or not Pathos found the Tower of Aon is unknown for he never spoke of it after he returned from seven years in the wilderness; but what was known is that Pathos learned how to harness his Celestial. Pathos learned also to see Celestial and learned that one’s Celestial moves faster than the body and thus Pathos was able to predict what someone was about to do physically. Pathos also learned how to create false Celestial to make it difficult to predict his own movements.

Pathos came to King Samuel III at Igrian Castle in Gandra and showed the king his discovery. The king’s strongest knights were easily defeated by Pathos and his ability to use Celestial. Pathos told the king about Celestial and wrote what was soon to be called the Book of Cielo:

~~~
‘Celestial was a gift from Aon to all his creators that lived so that they may remember who gave them life and who it was that brought them peace. It is possible to harness Celestial to increase your physical attributes beyond normal limits. With it you can run faster, jump higher, and lift more than any man could ever hope to without harnessing Celestial.

‘It is also possible to use Celestial as a healing tool. A terrible stab wound would be healed within seconds of using Celestial but there are limits. Everything has a Celestial Level; that is a limit to how much Celestial one can use in any given time. If one uses too much Celestial they would lose consciousness or worse; die.

‘If one dies naturally his Celestial simply vanishes and his spirit goes into the heavens; but if one is killed or uses up his Celestial it is absorbed by the planet itself. Both are needed for Igros needs the Celestial to continue living and without it the planet would fade into nothingness. Untimely deaths help the planet but that doesn’t give the right to anyone to kill.’

~~~
Pathos went on back to his hometown Eldin, Uplian. There he started to teach young children how to harness Celestial for it is best to learn it at a young age so you can better control your emotions. With this power it is very dangerous to allow anyone to learn it for many would abuse its powers. Pathos started training only four ten-year old children; Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. When they turned eighteen the five trained to an unpopulated island south of the main island.

There Pathos and his four disciples started to build a school to train more students. Pathos named this school the Bulma Academy. The academy had a training room, a cafeteria, a playroom, a classroom, an office for Pathos to do work in, and ten bedrooms that could house four people each plus one for Pathos and one for Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. It took them half a year to build the school and the first class consisted of 32 students; each took eight students while Pathos would teach them all three times a week.

Pathos became the first headmaster of the Bulma Academy and watched his students grow stronger and older. Within two years more construction started on the Bulma Academy expanding it further. The class soon reached the hundreds and Pathos learned more techniques to use with Celestial. One could learn how to control fire, water, wind, earth, or lightning but it was difficult and thus it was best to focus only on one.

Pathos was becoming older and older and his time on Igros was nearing an end. Yet he still believed he had much work to do and that his disciples would have to carry on his work. Three years later Pathos died at the age of one-hundred and twelve. At that time the academy had grown into nearly three hundred students who paid tribute to the first Grand Master. The disciples decided to pick a new headmaster and Luke was chosen.

It was placed on Luke to carry on the works of Pathos and continue learning the secrets behind Celestial. Luke continued into research trying to discover what was left to be known. And yet no matter how hard he tried it seemed like only Pathos could figure out the secrets. Luke left the academy to try to seek out what Pathos found in the Unexplored North expect Mark went with him not willing to allow him to venture alone.