He was a soul from a peaceful world, one who had witnessed an age of peace and prosperity. That was why this wretched, ugly filth was so hard to bear.
He had nowhere to go. It seemed everyone wanted him dead. After his parents died, even the lowliest servants in the household dared to harbor wicked thoughts about him. From the moment he opened his eyes, moments of happiness were few and far between.
He had no idea how far away the beauty of the world he once knew was. He only knew that pain had seeped into every inch of his flesh.
Like vultures and crows pecking at carrion, they watched over his failing body, impatient for the end.
Violence and exploitation were carved into their bones. Shrouded in mist, he would never see the dazzling sun.
“What will you see in all this?”
“What will you see in destruction, in the wreckage, in the ruins, and in the abyss?”
Hibell Phoenix put pen to paper, writing across the long scroll spread over the desk. The sky was dim, blanketed by layers of cloud. Then a flame fell from above, taking the shape of a divine bird as it landed on Hibell's shoulder. The black feathers on its body burned and smoldered, yet the flames did not harm Hibell in the slightest.
“I saw life.”
“I saw despair.”
In the deep, hollow silence, his pen touched the desk with a crisp tap, as if shattering the stillness. He raised his eyes. His dark red gaze fixed on something, or perhaps looked beyond all things in this world toward something hidden away.
“Flames will light the way ahead. They may not dispel the mist, but they can at least illuminate the path beneath our feet.”
“Let the prisoners of the gods sing for a while longer, and the nobles of the world enjoy themselves for a while longer.”
“Until I destroy their power.”
“Until I carve fear into their very bones.”
