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14.7% The Septitanic Kings Reincarnate / Chapter 2: The Septitans (1)

章節 2: The Septitans (1)

I was finally on my feet. After all these years… I was allowed to touch solid ground again.

It was a feeling I had long since cherished to experience anew but long since forgotten.

When my bruised swollen limbs grazed the ground, I couldn't sense a thing. Even as Tiff was letting me down, my skin went numb for the first time in a lifetime.

It was as if I was wearing a thick pair of boots and could not distinguish the texture of the ragged cave floor.

But enough of that already.

It was a soft breeze outside the room. To fill my lungs with such refreshing air reduced me to a state where I was in tears. Nothing spiked my emotions more than experiencing the world again, but…

"No!" I imagined myself slapping my cheeks.

I don't deserve to! These are emotions I should be distanced of and sooner taken back to my torture and daily punishments. I have stripped many of what I am currently feeling. What right had I to be enjoying them myself?

"Move along Akilaba!" Tiff pushed me, leading me through different tunnels amidst the endless peaks. "If we're late, it will be my neck on the line. Not yours."

"I wouldn't want that" I said out loud.

I thought of it and I couldn't bear the idea of making trouble with Demonic God.

He was an entity described as frightening. To anger such a being would be akin to signing my own death warrant.

I was doomed to never die in this place, but I can't say the same of my trusty torturer. After all, Tiff was but a servant of the god, easily disposable and replaced.

As I had nothing to do while being led to the hall, I could only admire the scenery of Kazalkar's majesty.

Even though it was a prison, nothing short of beautiful could describe the peaks. Their alignment was calculated, the clouds cut through them and the sun softly shone upon their rocks. Everything was made from scratch to be outstanding in terms of view.

What lied within each mountain was a different story though. Beautiful on the outside but ugly on the inside.

A perfect philosophy I might add!

It was quite easy to manoeuvre through the different layers. Many bridges, stairs and other structures were elevated to ease passage for the denizens of this place.

It was like a city of some sort where all the people worshipped Demonic God and worked in his favour. So to say, torturers were not the only professions in here.

But more to that later. I haven't explored enough yet to divulge any further anyway.

I could hear screams when we passed by a few torture caves. Occasionally, I heard laughter. Whether it was emitted by the torturer or the tortured…I never knew.

"Ah, Tiff. I knew I sensed a familiar presence."

Out of one of the curved passages that led to the one we treaded upon, two individuals came about.

One was bound like me and the other pushed him around like Tiff did.

"If it isn't Wart…" Tiff looked to be searching behind it as if someone should be following closely. "Please tell me Crass is not here too."

"He's not here with me. But should be heading to Demonic God's hall too."

The person called Wart was the same as Tiff. Its job was to torture its prisoner and serve the upper echelon.

Unlike Tiff who was still wearing the face of one of my victims, the other guy was faceless.

What I could understand from Tiff's explanation some time prior, is that torturers practiced a technique which allowed them to swap faces at will. But that evidently came at the cost of losing their own.

Till date, I had never seen Tiff in its faceless form. It must be dedicated to its work so much that it always wore my victim's faces.

"Crass, too? How many of us are going to the hall anyway?" Tiff squirmed its eyes and focused on the other person being dragged along. "Is that—"

"King Belgrat Hunimo in the flesh. One of the Septitans!" Wart responded proudly as if to mean that it was entrusted the torture of an important figure.

Hunimo was a very large fellow. He was robust and bulky. Unlike me, he had not a single thread of hair on his head and no colour in his eyes either. His face was grotesque and very rough.

To summarize, he was muscular but far from good looking. It was a wonder how his body's shape was almost the same as the time he was brought in here.

But what was most distinctive about him, was the notion that he was a king, just like me.

In fact, in terms of title, Hunimo was my predecessor. It wasn't until he fell and disappeared that I rose in the ranks and later became a Septitan too.

"What are you looking so smug about? I have a king myself as well."

Hunimo and I felt like their children at this point. They were brandishing us as if some prizes and valuable trophies.

Us two kings on the other hand, were staring at each other, measuring the other's potential. I had totally forgotten what we were doing and what the two torturers were saying. I was only focused on the staring battle ensuing between us.

"Wait. If you, Crass and I are going to the hall, does that mean the others are as well?" Tiff asked, the brows upon its borrowed face frowning repulsively. "Demigod told me that Akilaba was going to be exonerated…don't tell me that Demonic God means to do so with all seven kings."

What? The seven of us are being exonerated? No way!

While I was regretting my actions and strived towards my atonement, I doubt the six other kings had the same in mind.

If they were to be released back into the world, who knows what calamity might arise — again!

If that was true, then I can't let it happen…I won't let it happen!

How was I going to go about it? I had no idea yet.

But as a first attempt, changing Demonic God's mind about our release was a start. Not sure how effective it would be and if it would be some kind of defiance in his eyes, but I have to start somewhere. I sure hope my public speaking skills have not rusted.

Amidst my endless thinking and the torturers' ramble, another voice extended to interrupt all our activities.

"Standing idle, eh?" the raspy voice from behind a curtain of water emerged. "I expected nothing less of young Tiff here, but you Wart?"

"I'm ashamed to call you my junior!" another also broke silence.

Instead of one, two individuals, just like the two torturers, walked inside the path. They wore the same clothes and walked in a similar fashion so to say. Like twins would do…

"What do you mean you expected it from me? You bloody twins always criticize me —"

(Ah, seems I was right about the twin thing.)

"— but in truth you're just jealous that someone as low ranked as me was granted the handling of a king."

The twins laughed at Tiff and walked by anyway, ignoring his ranting as if they were late for their appointment while he was not.

Many times before, I was told by Tiff, that these two specific individuals were the ones that tortured another pair of twins.

(Ironic right? Twins torturing twins! Eh? Ehhh? …okay fine I'll stop…)

Similar as before, the tortured were also considered Septitans. Kings of old!

I have never heard my handler call them by their names. They simply went with the twins.

But looking at both, they were not leading any prisoners.

In life, when you speak of the devil, it always shows its face.

Not soon after I had these thoughts brimming my mind that a group of people followed behind the twins. Four were needed to restrain each of the prisoners.

Dastan Kiobi and Dastan Rubis. Those were the names of the two kings.

Their appearance was simple and duplicate. Red hair, no eyes shown due to their blindfolds, copy pasted noses and same drawn lips. But the two men were quite scarred. As it was, these two kings were the most bloodthirsty of our lot.

Unlike Hunimo and me who were complying with their little promenade, it was implied that the twin kings were not. Seeing as they were gagged, blindfolded and handled by four people, it was clear that they had no intention of going to the hall willingly.

One guard was holding the chains. Another had his weapon unsheathed and aimed at his prisoner just in case he broke loose. And the last two held long shafts to the king's neck with a grip at their ends.

"What did they do? Hehe" Wart chuckled at the sight of them.

"Trashed the cave and destroyed the bridge when we loosened their binds" one of the twin torturers answered.

"Well at least mine is civilized and not a savage" my torturer threw, looking at me with expectant eyes. "Right, Akilaba?"

I walked past Tiff and followed the other torturers, freeing myself of its lead. I shrugged and shook my head sideways.

"I do not wish to indulge in your childish competition, Tiff" I said somewhat coldly.

(Sorry Tiff!)

Every one of them bellowed with loud laughter, snorting like swine.

"Well said King Akilaba. Well said!"

Tiff, disheartened, marched slowly behind us, letting me walk freely. He could be right though. If anything, I could pass as civilized. But I had no wish in giving flame to their insignificant squabble.

The trotting quickly passed and we were in front of the hall before the allotted time.

A few guards were stationed before it, holding spears within their hands. Walking past, they did not flinch. Not even a glance was thrown at us. Maintaining an unwavering posture that was terrifying to say the least.

I was fascinated by it. Such formation. Such discipline. I'd call it perfect, but I have seen better during my days…

No, no, no!

I don't want to think about these things anymore. Focus! My goal is to stop the kings. Be it by convincing Demonic God to cancel our exoneration or by stopping them myself should the need arises.

I have killed countless before. Surely six more were not a problem, right? Especially those select six.

Right?

Right?


創作者的想法
CJJChedid CJJChedid

Back again with another chapter! i hope to see your thoughts in the comment section. Thank you for your time venerable reader!

章節 3: The Septitans (2)

At a first glance, the hall looked no bigger than the cave I was confined in.

When its doors clapped open, a darkness enveloped the room and deprived us of visibility. Anything within the hall was either barely dim or invisible for the first few seconds.

I was pushed inside regardless of the darkness.

With each step forward, the veil covering the walls, floor and ceiling diminished alongside us.

I could perceive only what was in a radius of a few feet around me.

Beneath me, the marble floor expanded in a chequered design. The tiles were a duo of obsidian and jade. In the polished jaded squares, I was even able to see my own reflection.

What tatters was I reduced to…

(Mhm! Moving on…)

A few columns brightened when in view. They reached the ceiling easily and were as wide as a pine tree's trunk. Coiling along their crimson paint were different depictions of golden snakes…or rather something akin to snakes…

The ceiling however, or at least what was visible of it since the dimness did not reach it properly, was a piece of mosaic by itself.

I could only tell what it represented until I walked through the whole length of the hall.

It was some kind of beast. On its fours. A multitude of horns or antlers. A terrible fanged maw. Glistening reptile yellow eyes. A serpentine tail…

It had features that were unlike anything I had ever seen in my previous life. The kind of beast that was along the lines of mythical creatures depicted in folklore.

We reached the end of the hall.

Similar to the mosaic, it was until we went across the entirety of the room that we were able to see that other people were waiting.

There were four present. Two torturers and two kings. Same sequence.

"Ah. Looks like some made it before us!" one of the twins sighed, feeling it was beaten to a race.

"Indeed!" the other one continued, its body's expression torn between disappointment and normalness.

We aligned ourselves with the current presences and stood in wait as well.

"No need to feel bad my dears. My cave is closest, so naturally I would arrive first."

One of the two torturers already present in the room, turned around and met with us.

Its voice was that of an elderly person. Like Tiff, it maintained a victim's face.

In terms of attire, it was very clear that this torturer was old fashioned and was probably one of the seniors of this profession.

"Elder!" Tiff gave salute, its hands crossed, a closed fist connected to a flat opened palm.

All the other torturers did the same.

(My assumptions were correct once more, hehe…)

They did not say its name for now. So I am just going to assume it is Elder.

But a name I did know was the man sitting on the floor beside it. Another king!

Bareyad Izaresius!

Second of the succession. Izaresius had the most prominent rule of the seven and the only one to have died an elderly man on his death bed.

Retaining the same appearance as the one he had before he died, he combed long hair like mine though entirely white of coloration. His eyes were destroyed, meaning he must have lived most of his life blind.

A beard entangled down from his square chin, the same length as his height was. His lips were parched and went along well with the wrinkles of his face and the loose flesh of his neck. He was as skinny as anyone could be.

More so, he was not bound by anything and walked freely when ordered to…I don't think any chains would be needed to restrain his slick limbs anyway.

"Geden. Please keep quiet until Demonic God arrives. Do not entertain these youngsters."

(Elder's name is Geden then. Mystery solved!)

By the way this one just spoke to another elder, I surmised it to be of a higher status.

During the 34599 years I was tortured, a single name came to Tiff's tongue whenever it came back furious to my cave.

Crass!

Tiff described Crass as an arrogant old fart whom always loved to criticize the lower ranks.

(Tiff's words not mine!)

But to Tiff, what fuelled the geezer's ego further than anything was the fact that it was entrusted to the torture of another king.

And not just any king at that. The first of the succession. The prime titan.

He was there, just beside Crass.

A tall and slender man. He bore short brownish hair accompanied by deep burnish eyes lost in thoughts.

It was rumoured that if you gazed long enough into them, you would fall under his spell.

After all, the rumoured king was said to have never killed, never stolen, never hurt anybody or ever done anything considered as a crime in his life.

Personally, I thought it was farfetched since he died before my time. But now, looking at him, I could definitely say that he could have ruled the world with his gaze alone.

That man's name…

He was known as Grivelkoriah! The man with the spell binding eyes!

He had no family name. Not one that was ever known. And his first name? It was given to him by the people.

All our names were as a matter of fact.

My name, Akilaba, is a rough compound word which means, the wise and ruthless child.

(We'll get to that later…)

Hunimo, was the word we used to describe the hardworking plebeians. And he was definitely that.

Kiobi and Rubis. The twins had names that complemented each other during their shared rule. The former described a sword while the latter described a whip. One ruled by the sword while the other ruled by the whip.

Izaresius! Simply, the old ruler.

Grivelkoriah. The man with the spell binding eyes.

One remained. One I wished never to meet again in another life.

The last one was in fact not a king by gender but rather by title alone. She was as slippery as a snake could be. Deadly not only by the sting of her poisonous blades but also by the sharpness of her tongue.

Her words twisted the minds. She targeted men most often and gave them a slow and torturous death when they least expected it. The woman found pleasure beyond anything while doing it.

That king, or queen, was given the moniker, Azra!

The hall's doors opened wide once more. In the darkness, we could hear dual footsteps approaching.

It must be her! The last of the Septitanic Kings.

The footsteps continued to echo until light cleared a few features of her face.

As anyone could have guessed it, words alone were not enough to charm another person. What aroused them more was the tender beauty that she harboured.

Anyone could fall for her blue lapis eyes and silky sombre hair. Flawless skin. No less, thinking that she has spent far more time in Kazalkar than half of us, it was a wonder how there were no blemishes spoiling her perfect figure.

Leikald Azra! Called a goddess!

"I have never seen Azra walk with such inelegance before…" Hunimo muttered under his breath. "Did the torture render her such? Even the goddess?"

Azra dragged her feet along the ground, scraping above the polished marble. Her head was prostrated, her hair sweeping the floor before her. She was hunched and loosened her limbs as if stripped of their control.

Truly…not the figure anyone expected the graceful queen to wield. It was as if someone had broken her spirit or something.

Of course, I knew the reason…and that was why I never wanted to meet with her again.

She raised her head slowly. Her gaze faltered and gave her an allure that a dead person inhibited. When she saw me, standing among the gathered, her eyes flared with several emotions.

"You…" her hissing voice expressed. "You backstabbing…you bastard…you little…" she struggled to find the proper insult. Her hand shivered, her body quaked.

At the same time, she hastened her walk and headed straight towards me.

"How could you? To me?" Azra teared up, her emotions flickering and jumping from rage to woe. "Me! The one you called your only love. How could you do this to me?"

I was immobile. The mood in the room took a strange turn. All eyes and ears were drawn to the conversation right now and nothing could be done to prevent it.

To hear the goddess say such things…many would wonder who the real snake was. In this specific case, it would be me.

"I gave you my love…but you" her face dripped with fluids, ranging from tears, sweat and snot, "but you betrayed me. Treated me like any common man I've ever killed…"

I was still unresponsive.

Back then, what I did to her…I did not regret it the least. But now, it haunted my dreams each day. I could still not reciprocate her feelings, but I was regretful nonetheless. Regretful of each life I have taken. Even hers.

"Why" she wiped herself with her sleeves, "why did you kill me that night?"

"Azra. I—"

"I trusted you…"

Azra was finally a step away from me. She charged with a final effort, her eyes dead set and striving towards killing.

At the last moment, she was pulled back violently by her chains.

The torturer whom had walked inside with her, restrained her cautiously.

"Pardon this mistake, Master Crass!" it said apologetically. "It will not happen again."

"No need, Asmilla! Make sure she doesn't act like this in front of Demonic God too!"

Asmilla had a feminine voice to her. She was faceless like her comrades too, but no less vicious in the way she handled Azra.

The hall, although silent after what transpired, was quite nervous. To discover that the queen was killed by none other than I, devoured and troubled their thoughts. Or at least those that were alive back then.

Other than Grivelkoriah and Izaresius, all other kings were alive and well during the reign of queen Azra.

It was always believed she had been assassinated by some unknown force sent by a neighbouring country. But now, everything was made clear.

"Oh boy!" Izaresius chuckled with his failing voice. "How love can make you blind. To be called Akilaba…I cannot wonder what he's done in his life."

Once more, the atmosphere had gone taciturn. We were waiting for Demonic God after all.

Azra was still sobbing in her corner, the rest of the kings mumbled about me, while the torturers were chatting between themselves.

The Dastans were looking quite amused. They even threw me a few nods of admiration when I glanced their way.

Eventually, the first king broke the silence again.

"Septitanic King…I wonder what that means..."

"Indeed" the old king replied. "Do you youngsters know?"

I, of course, as the last successor, knew what it meant.

A wordplay created by drunken scholars to define us in the history books.

Sept, meaning seven and titanic meaning great power. All together, we were named the seven great kings of old.

Or, in fancy terms, the Septitanic Kings.

But now was not the time or place to explain it to them.

For Demonic God had arrived.

He was here at last!


創作者的想法
CJJChedid CJJChedid

Another chapter done. A closure to the small introduction of the Septitanic Kings. Next, unto Demonic God's plans! What do you think will happen? Let me know your theories in the comments.

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