Chapter 319 Birth of the Empyrean Blacksmith II (1/2)
CHAPTER 319
BIRTH OF THE EMPYREAN BLACKSMITH (II)
A starkly silver hair fell over high forehead and a pair of eternally-swirling black eyes, the former seemingly shimmering beneath the darkness of the night. The eyes suddenly looked up and beyond, off into the distant horizon, the thin lips curling downwards into a bitter frown. A sigh escaped her, simmering the air around her and suddenly breathing life into it as a cradle of Spirits emerged and entered the world. The few danced around her for a moment, chirping in like the song of the birds, before flying off into the eternity.
Her eyes, however, remained peeled to the distant beyond -- there, far off, beyond her reach, a man cradled in swirling mist of light sat cross-legged, his hair dancing between snow-white and jet-black, a pair of eyes shining like eternal stars of fire. The air about him was majestic and imposing, causing all of the surrounding Elements to seemingly bow down to his Will, and all Laws to obey his command. Somewhere deep in those eyes, she observed the metamorphosis happening; a change she had failed to predict, a path she could not remark. Light suddenly flashed by her side as a swirling mist of red threads appeared, eyeless yet still seemingly peering off at the same scene she was.
The two remained silent as they watched a pillar of nigh-holy light ascend from him, blasting off into the sky and toppling over the clouds. Light conveyed itself over the entire world, tremors so deep they caused chills in countless spines. A Will so overbearing suddenly washed over the world most found it difficult to breathe in that moment. The void itself trembled, threatening to crack open under the pressure. Life ceased in that monolith. Sound went silent. Colors went blind. Shapes turned flat.
She heaved her head up and looked toward the sky where a pillar still shone majestically. Though she couldn't examine it from so far away, she could still feel its almost saintly warmth; her expression briefly turned mellow, eyes littered with distant memories. The red mist next to her shook, jolting her out of her thoughts.
”If only he were as clever as he were determined,” she spoke out in a soft, melodic tone. ”We were so close... so close.”
”We can still make it,” the red mist replied in a strange, overcast tone void of emotion. ”Nothing is lost.”
”No, we can't,” she said. ”Nothing can stand in his path anymore. Ataxia really lucked out,” she chuckled bitterly for a moment. ”He only need have provided strength; that boy gave everything else. As it goes, he will win over the world.”
”I won't let him.” the red mist replied. ”Whatever it may take, we will finish it.”
”I had a chance to stop it,” she said after a short silence. ”I was right there, both him and Ataxia being none the wiser. But... I couldn't...”
”... there is still hope, you know?” the red mist replied. ”That he will realize it himself.”
”No,” she shook her head. ”Ataxia has already won his heart. Perhaps, even if he found out the truth, he'd still remain his soldier.”
”No, he wouldn't,” the red mist said somewhat angrily. ”We both know he wouldn't. Whatever others may spew, we both know who he really is deep down.”
”... hah, you're right. He really wouldn't. Instead, he'd take on all the blame that isn't his to begin with, and it would cripple him further... until he was on his knees. No... he would never fall on his knees. He'd find a way to get back up, time and again. Ataxia, really, always had the keenest of eyes... only, this time around, it won't be the same.”