by A. M. True
Xabiel: I saw what you were about to do with her, brother.
Thorenel: I cannot help my feelings for her.
Xabiel: Nonetheless, you know Emalickel is going to question you about how all this happened.
Thorenel was silent but glared at Xabiel with an annoyed look for bringing up such an obvious matter.
Outside, two lights shot down from the sky at incredible speeds. They were from Romenciel and Emalickel. The ground shook when they landed, and a cloud of sand filled the air around them. The two of them almost immediately emerged from the thick dust. They were both marching with purpose. Emalickel looked straight ahead as he walked. His fists were clenched, and he appeared tense. He questioned Romenciel.
Emalickel: When did this happen?
Romenciel: Nine minutes ago, brother, while you were in the higher planes. We knew her thoughts would not transmit to that plane, and we also could not reach you to inform you of her danger. I came to meet you as soon as we knew you had returned to Lapoi.
Emalickel: Who took her?
Romenciel: It was Lord Barthaldeo and his celestials.
Emalickel: Where did they take her?
Romenciel: They pulled her into their ship perhaps, headed back to Haffelnia. There was a strong force-field around her. I am sorry we could not break through it, brother.
At first Emalickel was silent as they continued walking, but then he suddenly stopped in his tracks. His face grew angry. Then he roared.
Emalickel: Thorenel!!!
It began to rain. Emalickel scanned the scene for Thorenel. Once he sensed Thorenel’s location, Emalickel jerked his head to the Warrior’s Temple. Thorenel and Xabiel were standing inside. Clenching his fists even harder, Emalickel teleported to his brothers. He stood, breathing heavily, only six inches from Thorenel’s face, staring straight into his eyes with anger.
Emalickel: I want to know how, in the name of our Holy God, this happened, Thorenel!
Thorenel: I created a cottage for her, brother. She was safe in bed at the cottage when Barthaldeo’s ship suddenly arrived. It blew off the roof and lifted her away. They bombarded us with attacks. We did everything we could.
Emalickel spoke slowly, as if trying to fight the urge to unleash himself on Thorenel.
Emalickel: Had you been doing what you were supposed to be doing, Thorenel, you should have had ample time to forecast Barthaldeo‘s arrival and construct counteractive energies far before he even came close to the atmosphere of Lapoi. So, what I want to know is, what were you doing all that time?
Thorenel gulped and looked at Xabiel. Xabiel returned an insincere look, tilting his head and lifting an eyebrow. Thorenel then bowed his head to the ground, and there was a brief moment of silence. Emalickel, still with his face right in front of Thorenel’s, stood up straight, making himself a few inches taller.
Emalickel: Tell me, brother, why were you not able to forecast Barthaldeo’s arrival?!
Thorenel kept his head bowed as he hesitated with an answer.
Thorenel: I was… distracted.
Thorenel made brief eye contact with Emalickel but was unable to hold it there. He looked back down at the ground, almost as if in shame. Emalickel’s expression turned fierce. He bitterly mumbled.
Emalickel: And exactly what had you so distracted Thorenel?
Again, Thorenel was silent, but Emalickel turned bitter. He had finally gotten a read on Thorenel’s thoughts.
Emalickel: Thorenel, you defective sideliner! I chose you to protect her and keep her safe!
His tone became even louder.
Emalickel: I trusted you to protect her! Your only job was to protect her! Instead, you allowed your reckless school-boy emotions to interfere and now…
He ground his teeth as he spoke.
Emalickel: … Now, she feels nothing but fear and abandonment.
He flung his cape into Thorenel’s face as he turned around and began pacing towards the large group of warriors who had gathered outside. As he walked, he conjured armor and weapons onto his body. He positioned himself in front of the warriors to address them. Thorenel reluctantly emerged from the temple behind him.
Artist: Audiomachine
Song: Guardians at the Gate
Emalickel: Warriors, you will join me in battle! Lapoi is being tested. Our peace has been disturbed! Our strength has been challenged! Barthaldeo and his warriors intruded the parameters of Millattus. We shall make them face judgment! We shall make them beg for mercy! Their trespasses against us will not be tolerated!
He opened his arms to the crowd before continuing. He spoke very slowly and clearly, with power and ferocity.
Emalickel: We are all celestials of God and should behave as such! Today, warriors and brothers, we will open the eyes of Barthaldeo and his warriors and of all else who may be in contemplation of defiance and corruption! Today we will make a statement that will never be forgotten by any one across all the realms! United by brotherhood, we are the celestials of Lapoi! We value our peace and our serenity! We value our love and our loyalty to God! Most importantly, my warriors, today we value our strength! We value our tenacity! We value our power! Thus, we can be certain our dominance will persevere, and the echoes of our eminence shall resonate through eternity forever!
The warriors cheered. Thorenel stepped to stand beside Emalickel. Still facing the warriors, Emalickel had a disgusted expression on his face. He shook his head and spoke under his breath.
Emalickel: I expected so much more from you.
Thorenel spoke quietly and looked directly at Emalickel.
Thorenel: I meant not to intrude, Emalickel.
Emalickel shifted his feet to turn towards Thorenel to look at him. Emalickel’s voice became louder and more agitated.
Emalickel: Intrude? What do you mean intrude? Not intrude, Thorenel, but rather fail! You failed at your mission miserably! I put my complete trust in you. You may not have defied orders, but you certainly failed in your line of duty. A physical abduction is inexcusable!
Thorenel: I feel like the majority of your anger is from resentment of what I—what she and I—were about to do. I am worried how you can exhibit such extensive negative emotion in our plane.
Artist: Epic Score (Aaron Sapp)
Song: You Were Born for This
Emalickel looked to the side, at the crowd of warriors who were standing at attention, watching the conversation. With both hands, Emalickel snatched Thorenel by his armored-vest and forcibly pulled him in closer. Emalickel turned his back to the crowd of warriors as he spoke discreetly and firmly through his teeth to Thorenel.
Emalickel: The majority of my anger is from your failure to do your job, Thorenel!
He pushed Thorenel away as he released his powerful grip on his vest. After taking a moment to recollect himself, Emalickel stepped closer to Thorenel. Emalickel spoke in a peevish tone.
Emalickel: And more thing… as for my ability to feel the emotion of rage—believe me when I say it is a blessing to behold such an ability as I lead us in the pursuit of Barthaldeo.
Turning back around to face the warriors again, Emalickel looked to the sky, took a deep breath, and darted into the air and out of Lapoi’s atmosphere. The warriors followed him. One by one they positioned their helmets over their heads and burst into the sky. Romenciel, Xabiel, Dennoliel, and Seronimel were standing at the bottom of the stairs outside the temple. They were looking up at Thorenel, who stood speechless at the top of the stairs. Romenciel nodded at Thorenel before he shot into the air. The other three brothers followed suit.
Thorenel paced on the landing at the top of the stairs, infuriated and breathing heavily. He grunted as he punched a nearby concrete wall with such great force, it crumbled around his fist. He nibbled on his bottom lip in anger as he closed his eyes and caught his breath. When he appeared calm again, he too, looked to the sky and vanished into the galaxy behind his brothers.
The celestials of Lapoi stayed grouped together as they began the search fo
r Barthaldeo’s ship. Capable of seeing thousands of light-years away, they scanned the vastness of space. Romenciel pointed to the left.
Romenciel: It is over there. They are headed for Haffelnia.
Romenciel pointed at a galaxy in the distance. They all simultaneously traveled in that direction at warp-speed. Upon arriving, the ship was located on the outer arm of the galaxy. There was a maroon-colored planet illuminated in white star dust. The ship appeared to be headed towards that planet. Emalickel slowed his speed and turned to face the others. He communicated to them.
Artist: Epic Score (Aleksander Dimitrijevic)
Song: They Fought as Legends
Emalickel: Everyone hold back here. I will break down the force-field around their ship. When it is done, we will invade together. Take down any enemy in your path. If you find an enemy, openly attack him. If you see a fellow warrior in need, go to his aid. If you find Adrienne, enclose her into your safety shield and communicate to me. If you find Barthaldeo, I want you to trap that selfish bastard. Bind that vermin in a restraining spell for me so that I may have the pleasure of throwing him into the deepest pits of isolation myself.
Emalickel turned back around and sped up directly towards the ship. Everyone else remained back as he had instructed. Emalickel continued approaching the ship. He made himself invisible and started creating some type of clear energy in the palms of his hands over his head. It gradually increased in size until it was the size of a small house. It was colorless, like water. Emalickel grunted and began trembling as the ball became larger and grew denser.
Upon reaching the ship, Emalickel re-materialized himself. He struggled while stabilizing the giant ball of energy above his head. He looked at the ship, scanning it for the best place to direct the energy. Then he thrust the ball forward with his hands. Large powerful lightning bolts shot out from the palms of his hands, and the big energized ball collided into the ship. The hazy, blue force-field surrounding the ship began to flicker and fizzle. As the lightning bolts from Emalickel’s palms contacted the ship, the haze rapidly began to fade away. Emalickel continued dispensing the lightning energy until the ship’s protective field was completely broken down.
The others immediately rushed toward Emalickel. Xabiel flew underneath the ship. He looked at the closed, sliding doorway and shot powerful heat lasers from his palms in an attempt to burn a hole for entry. It only created sparks. He called to Emalickel.
Xabiel: Emalickel, how do we get in, brother?
Everyone flew down to Xabiel’s aid. Seronimel and Dennoliel, although guards, had the abilities of the warriors because of their extensive training among them. They shot fireball explosions from their palms, but after several attempts, it was evident that their method was not going to work.
Artist: Epic Score
Song: You Must Overcome
Romenciel and Thorenel attempted forcefully opening the doorway together by using waves of energy which burst straight from their palms directly at the door. Xabiel joined them. The door slightly cracked open, but the three of them were unable to sustain enough energy to open it any further.
Thorenel blew ice cold air onto the doorway until it was frozen solid. Then he backed up, several hundred feet away, and zipped toward the door at full-speed, attempting to shatter it like glass with the impact of his body. Although this made an extremely loud, thunderous sound, he was unsuccessful at breaking in.
Then, Emalickel flew to the door. He placed the palms of his hands directly onto the doorway. He looked at the door as if in deep concentration. He spoke to his brothers.
Emalickel: Get back.
They flew back, but not too far away from their brother. After taking several quick deep breaths, a powerful burst of red energy flew from the palms of Emalickel’s hands directly into the doorway. Upon contact, it sounded like the powerful strike of a deep-rumbling bass drum. The energy continued flowing from Emalickel’s palms, but it came out in pulses. It shook the entire ship and sounded like thunder crashing with each pulse. Emalickel groaned in struggle to maintain the energy. Sweat began dripping down his face. Still, he kept his hands on the door, emitting the red energy, and clenching his teeth. He roared as he fought through the effort required to perform such a skill. Not giving up, he finally managed to warp the door enough to create an opening for entry.
Emalickel turned back to look at everyone, who were all staring in astonishment. Xabiel rolled his eyes and muttered to himself.
Xabiel: Red energy? Show-off.
Emalickel adjusted his shoulders and turned back to head inside the ship. Once inside, he knocked the doorway clear out of sight with a final blow of his booted foot. The others followed him inside. As soon as Emalickel jumped on board he was greeted by several hostile dark beings. He pushed them out of his way using the red energy which derived from his palms. He did not even have to touch them. He used a unique and powerful telekinesis while fighting.
The others jumped onto the ship and immediately joined in on the fight. Some used swords and weapons, while others used unlimited energies and telekinesis. They battled using epic techniques. With each hit and contact, time seemed to slow down, and my perception zoomed in on the movements until they played-out. Not only was there a lot of swinging, punching, and kicking; but there was lots of jumping, spiraling, and flipping. The techniques they used were like that of the best martial artists of Earth. Things were exploding, crashing, and breaking. Beings were being tossed and thrown, shattered and crushed. Fires were being conjured, and bodies were being thrown.
Artist: Epic Score (Edward Brawdoshaw)
Song: Prepare for the Onslaught
Then, I was startled back into consciousness. I was still on Barthaldeo’s ship. He had just re-positioned himself next to me. He expressed a sultry gaze as he held his hand to my torso again.
Barthaldeo: Try to relax. Make this easier for me. I could do without your squirming and disruption.
Suddenly, the ship shook, and I heard the voices of men grunting as they battled one another.
Barthaldeo: What the hell?! Surely they haven’t arrived already?!
Barthaldeo jumped up and conjured his armored garments. He opened the French-style doors and peered down the hallway. Although I was unable to move my body, my eyes were able to look down the hallway. I recognized several beings wearing black armored suits exactly like the ones worn by the Warriors of Lapoi. I exclaimed a sigh of relief when I realized it was the Lapoian Warriors there to retrieve me.
Coming back into the room, Barthaldeo slammed closed the doors. He looked alarmed and was breathing nervously. He paced for a moment around the room. I heard the continuing sounds of battle outside the chamber. Barthaldeo began placing a force-field over the entire chamber room by waving his hands in the direction of each wall. He appeared exhausted from doing this as if it had taken all his energy to conjure such a thing. He turned to look at me once again. He was still breathing hard.
Barthaldeo: Maybe I still have enough time! At least make this worth it.
He reached for me with his arm again and began pushing inside me.
That’s when I heard a loud crash at the doorway. It had been knocked down and crumbled to the ground. My paralysis ceased, and I ran behind a table near the door. One of the beings from Lapoi had flung a dark being through the door. There were six beings battling in the chamber room now—three Lapoian Warriors, two dark beings, and Barthaldeo. The dark being, who had just been thrown through the doorway, was being finished off with a great sword of a Lapoian Warrior. He had been the one who broke the concrete doorway down.
A different Lapoian Warrior, who appeared to be the Archer from the Warrior Temple, entered the room while suspending a dark being in the air via telekinesis. This dark being was clearly disoriented, but the Archer proceeded to taunt him by displaying his control as he continued to slowly twirl his body in the air. After a moment of playing with him, the Archer suddenly threw a bowling ball sized amount of energy directly at the dark bein
g, pinning him against the ceiling. The Archer then conjured a bow and some arrows. He pulled one of the arrows from his quiver. It was golden and sparkled at the sharp tip of the arrow. He set up his aim and held it there for a moment. The dark being struggled in attempt to get away from the binding energy, which pinned him to the ceiling. The Archer shook his head at the dark being and ticked his tongue a few times. Finally, he released his arrow directly into the dark being, right between his eyes. The golden arrow pinned the dark being to the ceiling, as his body dangled beneath.
Meanwhile, the third Warrior of Lapoi had been battling it out with force-fields with Barthaldeo. Finally, he had Barthaldeo cornered. He shot out lasers from his fingers to surround Barthaldeo in a circle of fire. He used his palm to shoot electrically-charged restraining symbols which etched themselves on the floor within the circle of fire. Barthaldeo dropped to the floor in pain. He was flitching and jerking, exhibiting electric-like pain.