Chapter 122: You’re A Primordial
Elián;
"Burn it!! She has forsaken us!" A man screams as he rushes towards the statue of Goddess Thalyra with a torch.
I gasp as I watch the commotion unravel all around us.
Some women and men are fighting on the side to end this disaster, but their number is little compared to the number of the perpetrators.
"We will no longer bend the knee for a sleeping god! A spineless force!" Another man screams as some other men pull ropes tied around her statue to topple it over.
The heat from the flames licks my skin, but I’m too shaken to move.
Are these the same people who were previously giving garlands and flowers to her?
Because she decided not to indulge them any longer... this is their response?
I gasp and cup my hand over my mouth as her statue finally topples over, and the men and women in charge of this commotion cheer like they just conquered a villain.
Goddess Thalyra looks away, and I don’t need words to tell that reliving this hurts her. It’s obvious.
I can hear pain, and I’m not even the one who’s been stabbed in the back like this...
I watch with my mouth agape as men pee and spit on her statue.
If it were some other god, I’m beyond certain that there would be an absolute annihilation of these people.
But... she didn’t hurt them...
The scene vanishes, and everything changes to pure white, just like it was at the very start of this vision.
"Ninety-eight per cent of my children and followers turned on me. They turned to other gods they either created themselves or found in other planes. I couldn’t bear it." She speaks in a soft, dejected voice, and I stare at her in silence.
"The powers I gave them... the prosperity they enjoyed... the freedom to travel to other planes... why should they enjoy it after all they did to me? Why should they receive my blessing while bowing to other gods? Why would they use the powers I gave them to bully the people who still worshipped me?" She continues, and then she looks up at me with tears in her eyes.
"I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let them keep enjoying the same gifts my loyal children enjoyed... so I took it away. The gifts of Premodials... I took it away from all of them except the ones who stayed loyal by my side." She says, and goosebumps rise along my skin as I feel this is where the real chaos began.
"I blessed Premodials with many gifts." She says as she looks back into the vast white space of nothingness ahead of us.
"Speed." She says as she waves her hand and a splash of colour appears, showing a beast girl running at unimaginable speed.
"Longevity." She speaks again, and another splash of colour pops up with an elderly but fit man playing with little children.
He has grey hair, but looks so availed it’s impressive.
"Prosperity, harmony with whatever beasts they chose, and most importantly... the strength to possess all designations." She says, and more visual depictions of what she just said pop up, but my brows crease at her last words.
All designations? What does she mean?
"Alpha, Beta, Omega... they didn’t exist in my world. Everyone was equal. Everyone was important. Everyone was powerful..." She says as she looks up at me, and I blink in silence.
"Every Premodial had daunting abilities and gifts. There was no hierarchy to the order of things. They were unimaginably powerful beings, and perhaps that’s what made them forget that they needed me to maintain that power. It came from me, and I could take it back whenever to wanted..." She says, but then pauses.
"You took away their powers?" I question in awe, and she takes a deep breath.
"Not all of it. I just... took away the harmony of it. How easy it was for them to cultivate crops... hunt... the easy life I gave them, I took away. I made them see what life was truly like without my blessings... what it meant to toil without me there to bless their every effort." She says with a heavy sigh, and I gulp.
"I thought it would help them see that they needed me... That it would help them retrace their steps, but oh... how wrong I was!" She cries, and my heart slows down.
It got worse!? How much worse could it get!??
"They turned against the children I had left, Elián... It was a blood bath... they murdered them... all of them..." She cries as she looks up at me, and my heart breaks.
The scene changes in front of me, and I stare wide-eyed at the massacre displayed.
People are killing each other. Men, women, even children...
I step back in horror as violent shivers travel up my spine, and in the moment all I can see... is the wickedness of man...
"I couldn’t do anything to save them. I had grown too weak..." Goddess Thalyra mutters as she stretches her hands in front of her, and I see faint stripes like patterns glow weakly under her skin.
"I had been weak for a long time... I watched my children die at the hands of their envious brothers and sisters. I... watched my children die while crying out to me... and I couldn’t do anything to save them. I couldn’t do anything..." She breaks down, and my jaw drops as I watch her crumble to her knees in front of me.
She’s crying... in front of me!??
What am I supposed to do? How do I comfort her?
"I was angry. I lost all faith in what I had created... I wanted justice... So I cursed them." She says in a croaky voice as her hands fall from her face while she stares into the nothingness ahead.
"I cursed them. Initially, Premodials could switch between the three designations; however, they pleased. They could decide what they wanted to live as and for how long they wanted to live like that..." She says, and I quietly kneel beside her and sit on my calves as I listen.
"I took that away from them. That freedom that made them so arrogant... I snatched it away. Now, they could only have one designation and had to live like that for the rest of their lives. Fate would decide whatever designation they would be born with. After all, that was already how the people under the Moon goddess were living. It was punishment for all their sins." She adds, and silence wraps around me as everything falls into place.
So... that is how this chaos of Alpha, Beta, and Omega began... It’s a curse!
It only makes sense, seeing all the division and vile wickedness it has brought with it.
"This wasn’t enough to make them repent. They got worse. Started writing stories and books and lies about me and Primordials. They called us vicious, wicked, destructive... but the one that stuck was calling us myths. Fairytales that never really existed." She says, and my throat runs dry.
She turns fully to face me and then takes my hands.
"The fact that you exist is enough proof that Premodials were never myths, isn’t it?" She questions, and my brows crease.
"Me? What do I have to do with any of this?" I question, and she smiles softly at me.
"I know you may be clueless on a lot of things and may not know a lot about the things your body is capable of... but I’m pretty sure Elièn can fill you in as soon as you get past the communication hurdle between you both." She says, and I blink at her in confusion.
What is she talking about??
"You are a Premodial, Elián." She then says, and I feel my heart drop into my stomach.
"You are the second Premodial I have in this world since the battle of blood. You’re my second chance to finally regain my power and restart the rise of Premodials..." She adds, and my jaw drops.
"Wh...what?" I question in horror as my heart starts pounding.
"This world is crumbling. Evil is taking over. I need to regain control of the beautiful world I created. I can’t do this without you. The one I sent before has done his best, but it isn’t enough. It’s your turn to take the baton... We will all perish without you. Both of you. You and Elien need to come together and fulfil your duty. That is why you’re here. Your purpose is to begin the new era of Premodials," She says, and I start breathing heavy as it suddenly feels like the weight of the world has been placed on my shoulders.
She gently lifts my chin so our eyes can meet.
"You can do this. You know you can. I’ll be with you every step of the way." She whispers, and before I get the chance to say a word or complain, she leans forward and kisses my forehead.
Light explodes against my vision, and then everything goes dark... and silent, with just one word replaying in my head.
You are a Premodial, Elián...