Chapter 28: Behind Gardens (2)
<<The Great Cataclysm, Past>>
Sorin couldn't comprehend the sight in front of him—an entire city devastated by a singular being.
...A human?
A human that led a parade of demons to extinguish the lives of the kingdom's people. The city was in ruins, filled with debris and ashes.
Death had a very specific stench; it was acrid and bitter. The scent would forever haunt his memories; Sorin could almost imagine the screams that echoed within the kingdom's walls.
Now, the only thing that Sorin could hear was an eerie silence.
Kieran stood behind him as Sorin almost couldn't take any step further. His stomach churned at the cruel sight; he couldn't even properly pray for their souls.
Sorin wiped a lone tear that fell down on his cheeks. "Who could have done something like this?" he whispered.
Kieran's expression hardened, just like his resolve to kill the perpetrator. "One of the calamities. A traitor to humankind." his voice trembled with anger.
They proceeded through the kingdom's wreckage, and a trail of corpses filled each and every corner of the city. Innocent lives were taken by an evil being who saw human life as mere playthings.
"Kieran." he cautioned his friend, his steps halting, ready to unsheathe his sword. The sheer amount of demonic energy he felt was dizzying, an assault on his senses.
His eyes frantically scanned the towering buildings, looking for the source, until a sudden explosion rang through his ears.
Kieran cursed behind Sorin. "We have to turn back!"
Sorin was determined to find the one responsible for the kingdom's destructions; risking his life was nothing for the souls this being had taken.
Kieran seemed to have noticed his plan. "Sorin, don't you dare—" he warned, preparing to grab Sorin's arm, trying to guide him away.
"Warn the others, I'll be fine." Sorin pulled his arm away from his friend, but before Kieran could retaliate, Sorin had already run away, following the thick trail of demonic energy.
It was a sickening amount of miasma; Sorin could feel it trying to gnaw on his soul. If he didn't have divine magic, he was sure that it would have affected him.
Sorin was met with the sight of a small house, untouched by the devastation. The door creaked open even before he could step in.
The air was heavy with miasma, and Sorin knew that whoever was inside was the cause.
"So, you're here, Saint." A warped voice greeted him.
Sorin scanned the inside of the house, finding a cloaked figure seated at the corner of the place.
"There's nothing more you could do, the deed is done." the figure said, his voice strangely calm and devoid of any emotion.
"How could you do these things to the people? Are you not human?" Sorin asked cautiously, his hand gripping the scabbard of his sword.
The figure tilted his head. Sorin couldn't see the man's face as it was being distorted by magic. "Human?" he echoed, testing the word on his tongue. "Don't associate me with these hypocrites." he spat out.
"Hypocrites, Hypocrites," the figure repeated. "Humans who turned a blind eye to their own, selfish beings who thirst for nothing but power, and those who preach righteousness yet allowed suffering to thrive?"
He let out a laugh, his voice distorted by magic; it was painful to Sorin's ears. "You are all the same."
The figure stood up, closing the distance between them. "Are you the same as them, Saint?" he mocked. "Will you kill me for them?"
Sorin's expression faltered. "I do what the Gods tell me to. I will not let humanity fall." His reply felt wrong, so distant from the figure's question.
"Always righteous." Sorin could trace a hidden bitterness in the man's voice. "Did the gods tell you to spare even the most vile of humans? I'm simply doing this world a favor."
For a second, Sorin caught a glimpse of the figure's eyes under his hood. It was a piercing blue, his pupils a pale white—a stigma of a demon carved inside his pupils.
"Get out of sight, Saint." the figure dismissed him, leaving Sorin confused. "I'd rather spare you."
And there it was. A hint of the figure's kindness, a semblance of humanity still running in his veins. Sorin did not want to give up on this being; he wanted to know what caused him to betray humanity.
In the end, Sorin did not find out.
The only thing he heard was distorted screams as Kieran's flames razed every single trace of the man to the ground.
Sorin felt sick. Sorin felt like a hypocrite.
***
Adrien trembled against his touch as Sorin familiarized the seal within the child's eyes. Sorin's memories flashed inside his mind like a broken record.
"S-Sorin?" Adrien shuddered.
Sorin smiled at him. "Ah, I'm so relieved." He hummed, still not looking away from Adrien's eyes.
This child's past must have been the biggest factor as to why he had become a calamity. Sorin wanted to change that fate so that Kieran wouldn't be able to kill Adrien just like what he did in the past.
"Fate has brought us back together." Sorin said, his voice dripping with honeyed malice. "You deserve a better future."
–A better future where he could be so much more than a 'calamity', a chance for him to become stronger; this time he won't let Adrien perish under Kieran's hands.
Adrien looked away from Sorin, confusion and fear flickered on his face. The saint pulled back, taking a step back to compose himself.
"I'm sorry." Sorin apologized. "I scared you." His eyebrows knitted together in worry, Adrien could see regret on his face.
"You've always been such a misunderstood child. In this world, no one wants to face something they couldn't comprehend." Sorin's smile was gentle despite his words.
"But you're different from that. You were given a gift."
Adrien's heart was pounding in his chest, trying to make sense of Sorin's words. "I... don't understand." he whispered.
"You don't have to, not yet. I just don't want you to hate the gift that you were given." Sorin placed a hand on top of Adrien's dark hair, a sign of comfort.
"You're a strong child, Adrien." Sorin comforted. "It must have been hard, hasn't it?"
Adrien blinked, once then twice before his lips quivered. Then, just like a child, he cried, sobbing into the saint's arms. Not even realizing that he was hugging the Saint so tightly.
Sorin held the child gently, allowing the young boy to cry. Adrien clung to him, feeling a strange sense of comfort within the saint's arms.
"It's alright, child." Sorin reassured, his voice like a soft melody to Adrien's ears. "You won't have to carry the burden alone."
The sun had set, leaving only murky skies above them when Adrien's sobs slowly subsided, until he had no more tears left to cry.
Sorin gently wiped away the child's tears with a fond smile; it was an unimaginable sight to see that the person capable of destroying an entire city was a mere child.
He must be at least ten or eleven by now, and during the cataclysm, Adrien must have been eighteen. It was still far too young.
"T-they told me I was cursed." Adrien sobbed, his tone bitter. "That I was possessed by a demon."
Sorin snorted. "They're fools who do not understand worth."
"A-am I even worth anything? I'm a bastard child." He sniffled.
Sorin's eyes shone brightly. "You're so much more than them."
So much more than those filthy scourges.
"I'll help you." Sorin offered. "It's much better than staying here, isn't it?"
Adrien took a deep breath as he tried to steady himself, looking up at Sorin with tear-filled eyes. "Huh?" he asked.
"You're parents asked for my help so that you can be free from your 'illness'," Sorin said, a hint of venom in his voice. "I find it rather tasteless."
"They're throwing me away." Adrien breathed out at how easily his parents would just abandon him.
"Don't say that."
"No. They want to get rid of me."
Sorin sighed, holding out his hands towards Adrien. "Don't worry, I'll protect and guide you." he smiled.
Adrien considered Sorin's words, still, he knew that he had nowhere else to go. If the Saint was the one seeing his potential, then he could finally be away from this wretched manner.
A dream that he had never dared to wish for.
"...You won't leave me?"
Sorin chuckled, and he offered his pinky to the child. "I won't, even if the world burns down."
Adrien sputtered out a laugh. "That's a weird thing to say, Sorin."
"Is it?"
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