“Enough!”

The voice echoed in the room, Mother was furious.

It was both visible and audible through our voice. We all were unaware of her raged expression. Never had we imagined that she would be mad at us, that it made us aware of our mistake.

She wore a blue dress, with her yellow hair tied up and an pendant in her neck which was made of five different stones. She was just mesmerizing.

“You are the Quadrants; a quarrel amongst you is distress between mankind. I thought you all were aware of that, weren’t you?” She asked us with a pained reaction.

We downed our heads in response. Not being able to answer her is another thing, but facing her right now is the worst possible situation we had been.

“Mother,” Scientia spoke out, “We are…”

“Don’t apologize.” Mother interrupted with her speech being as terrifying as seeing nightmares in real life, “The damage has already been done.”

She looked at all of us and then fixed her gaze on Summa who stood unfazed about the whole ordeal he had created.

“Presenting your trial to the committee is acceptable, but you need to understand the place and timing to do so. Did you not take that in account?”

She asked Summa, who now looked her in the eyes. He respected her a lot and so did we, but the respect we showered was always different than him.

“Even so, you would have never accepted my point.” He said in a soft tone, as he was kitten which got scared by barking dog.

“We would not, because Summa that is not how we work. The way you presented is not ethical.”

“Ethical, mother?” He said like a haptic feedback, “We are trying to save the world—“

“By murdering innocents?” Alias said out loud.

“The world will be a better place, trust me.”

“Summa,” I tried to say something but then Summa walked in front of me.

He placed his hands on my shoulder and looked straight into my eyes, “Mortis, remember the time when we were alone. On the roadside, without parents and without friends. People nowadays are corrupted and their minds are filled with unessential thoughts. We can make this right. No one should suffer the way we did, right?”

I had my memories refreshed, though they weren’t much beautiful but painful. I have all those sketches in my mind, which I dearly want to eradicate.

“I—“

“Is this what it is about?”

Aetas asked with a investigating face, “Creating something—“

“Call it a pipe dream or anything, but I will work my hardest to make it happen.”

Summa expressed his emotions with a melancholy tone. The wind and light felt different around. It wasn’t completely heavy nor was it was lighter. It was just unrecognizable.

“I admire your resolve to do so, but a perfect world—“

“I don’t need your sympathies or your opinions.” Summa protested, “You’ve never supported me and not that I expect you do that.”

He said as he lashed out of the room and left us all behind.

“Summa—“

I called him out as he left. My steps forwarded, but were blocked Scientia.

“We’ll handle this. You should meet Mr. Lauren.” She said as she walked beside me, “Go, he’s been waiting for you.”

I looked around and saw the door being ajar. I saw Teachers shadow moving.

“Scientia, have a word with Rex and the others.” Mother ordered and gestured me to leave.

I nodded and with heavy steps I walked with my heart racing to the beat of an horse. I was panicking, but more concerned about my Teacher’s reaction.

I left the room and closed the door behind me. I knew where he had left to and where I had to go.

It was place where we always met. Unique in itself, it was something where our heads cooled off.

My steps had led me to a terrace which opened itself to the world, showing the beauties of flowers and glimmers of water.

The wind drizzled over my face and the scent of the surroundings was carried towards me.

“Teacher,” I called him out, “You wanted to speak with me.”

“Thou shalt speak, then only shalt prevail,” He said as he looked towards the scenery, “Speaking out is a vital aspect of living and as a Human with responsibilities, there shouldn’t be anything that you should hide or press inside.”

“I am not—“ I revolted but then agreed with him, “I was just trying to cope up. Everything was sideways for me. The blame center was I and Malum was definitely targeting me.”

“There is a reason why we chose you to reside you on the throne. It is not a fluke that you have now become the so-called ‘God of Death’. We could have chosen his candidate, but we chose you.”

I don’t know if this sentence was supposed to relive me or something, but one thing was clear that I had become tenser than before.

“Death is an important subject in the course of life. Understanding it gives you the knowledge of eternity. I was with Mother when she picked you and Summa from the streets. You were alone, without parents and without friends. Living your day in darkness was routine for you, but it all changed when Mother saw you. It was that day when Father himself had asked to bring someone in and it was you. He saw something in you that day, don’t let him down kid.”

I faintly remember their faces then, but the times which we both went through were tough. I always respected them all as if they had not been there with us then we both still would be on the streets, either stealing someone’s food or becoming an hawker.

“All these years being with you and learning everything; I still don’t consider myself worthy of this throne.”

I said with my head facing downwards. It was a shameful sentence to say as they had always trusted me and still do to take right decisions and here I was trashing their hopes.

I had hoped that Teacher would get angry and so I prepared myself for a lecture of displeasure, but instead I got a smile.

“I don’t know why, but you are different. Your maturity is the reason why you were selected, but you are just……unalike anything I have seen.”

‘Again with that statement.’

It always bothered me that he considered me something special and I never thought I was anything special.

Though I never minded him calling me special; it always helped me margin myself, but it was no time to discuss such trivial matters.

“Summa—he proposed something.” I let my mind out, with hesitation in my face and on my face. I clenched my fists and continued, “What do you think about it?”

I asked him. He was more experienced as he had been the consultant to Father and also a Throne-keeper himself.

He had spent most of his life teaching the basics of each subject to every respective candidate. It was the job of ‘Preachers’ to do so, but he never did it as a job. His love and affection for all was the same though he always kept a keen eye on those who he thought were different.

If anyone I knew could answer the question and clear my doubts, it was him.

“That I don’t know.” He answered swiftly. As much hesitation I showed on my face, he showed none. He had his mind prepared and answered the question as if he knew that I was going to ask him this question.

“The world has changed from then and now; it may be right or maybe wrong. You never know…”

He answered.

The reply he presented seemed a lot vague, but it I felt like he was trying to tell me something.

“But the actions he want us to perform are against the laws of Nature, aren’t they?” I questioned again.

“You should ask that question to your mother.” He answered with the same swiftness, “After all she is the embodiment of Nature. Every element is her, every being is her.”

As Tempus was the all-father to everything, Mother was…..well Mother Nature. Her very existence was why we existed in first place.

“I can give you an answer, but as much I can be right; there’s a possibility that I can be wrong as well. It’s your decision, take it as you want.”

I shook my head at his response.

My hopes were shattered, I didn’t have a clear mind.

He then walked beside me and looked down at me, with his right arm patting my head, “Never consider your duty a crime. You won’t understand that now, but someday you will that living an immortal life is actually a curse “

He said.

‘How did he…?’

I thought as I looked at him. He could always understand what I was thinking, but still this was something that I had been hiding from my friends, Father….everyone.

“Tempus said that you will be the best among best, then I guess you will be.”

He completed and looked away, with his feet marching towards the door. I was seeing him leave, but that was the last time that I could see him as the moment he stepped inside.

Through the door, I saw a knife travelling its way towards Teacher. Teacher was unaware of it and so was I.

I had no time to react and he didn’t as well. The knife plunged itself into his lungs and blood was splashed out his mouth. He fell down on his knees and then on a side. I ran towards him.

“Teacher!!!” I screamed as I ran and took his head on my lap.

“You can’t die, I won’t allow it.” I said, but then I saw a shadow walking towards me.

“You won’t? Well, you don’t decide that anymore.” The shadow spoke with hysterical laugh.

“Soli?”

I exasperated in surprise.

“You? Who released you? Mother?”

No answer came from him, but then I heard a loud noise.

I ignored Soli’s presence and then ran towards the noise made. On my way I was joined by Aetas and Alias.

We all pushed open the door and there we saw Summa holding Mother by her neck, with her pendant in his hands.

“He released them?”

I remarked with sheer astonishment.

“Released who?”

Alias asked, but then shifted her eyesight to the pendant in his hands. Her face turned grim and she asked the one and only needed question.

“Where is father?”

She asked in a heavy voice, her fist clenched and eyebrows together.

“The All-father Tempus is no more here…..”

Summa replied.

‘No way!....”