Solomon and the others returned in the nick of time. Sweat enveloped their bodies as they swiftly scanned the area for any survivors. Falan desperately looked around for her child until she noticed a burnt child whispering words of anguish and pain. She knew that this was her child.
"Tess!! No!" She cradled his head and whispered nothing but soothing words. Wahid dropped to his knees at the sight of his dead son. His only blood was dead amongst the others. Ithnan glances around for his brother but he, too, was devastated to know that he was gone. Ugo, Sheba, Solomon and Arba could not fathom the pain they all felt. The feeling of knowing that nobody will welcome you home anymore was truly tearful. However, Solomon did not want to wail for their loss. Right now, they need to survive and live for them.
"Everyone. We need to catch David immediately. If we leave him alone, more of our comrades will die in his hands." He uttered. Arba asked where they could find him and he assured them that the elder might still be in the cathedral. They were about to get ready when a flash of light zoomed through the air. In front of them was Elder David and the believers themselves. Solomon gritted his teeth in anger before lashing out to his father.
"David!! Why did you attack our base!? You shouldn't even had the reason to leave the cathedral and kill them." He seethed.
"I have but only two reasons. They were sacrifice for today's event. It is Ill Ilah's Anniversary, have you forgotten? It is our duty to offer a massive amount of magoi to him. Second is because of this young woman with me." He motioned for a crystal to be brought forth. Incased in it was the body of Demeus. Solomon and the others gasped at the sight.
"D-Demeus... What have you done to her!?" Ithnan asked. David roared in laughter. He told them that she was already dead and will be a great offering to their father. He also told them that she will always belong to him. Ugo and Arba were angered by his presumptions.
"How you could you do that to them!?" Solomon asked. He just smirked and continued to provoke them. Ithnan was beyond livid.
"I will fucking kill you! Ramz Al-Salos!" From their, the battle commenced once more. With one swish of David's staff, he was able to shake their faith. That was not his original goal though. It was to be one with god. David and Solomon has their one last fight before he gave his staff to him and disappeared without a trace. Demeus' corpse was nowhere to be found as well and they all thought that David took her with him.
Several days later, Solomon finally woke up after collapsing. Sheba stayed by his side and rarely left him. The others wallowed in their pain and suffering. Solomon reaches for David's staff and told them that there was still something they had to do. He quickly fetched Ugo and Arba despite his weakened body. The charm that Demeus created hang by his neck and he clenched it tightly as if to assure that what he was doing was right. He led them to the Great Hall and brought the staff down. The world around them distorted and they were delivered to Ill Ilah. Demeus' charm glowed and her spirit materialized with the help of the rukh. The others could not believe what they were seeing especially Ugo. He reached out his hands to touch her.
"D-Demeus? Is that really you?" He whispered. She smiled and reached out to touch his face but it passed through him. The fifty year old magician clenched his hands tightly in frustration, knowing that his friend was dead by the hands of his former master.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I could not protect you." She shook her head and led them to the center. Solomon tried to talk to her but she just smiled and showed them Ill Ilah. From then on, they understood destiny. It pained them to know that they were nothing but a bunch of puppet in the hands of god. Some accepted it while some detested the truth. Solomon, without their consent, decided that he will change it. They will no longer be controlled by this god. Arba was against it but Demeus stopped her. It was Solomon's fate to be one with the rukh. With this also, she will be able to be one with the the path.
'I hope that the next generations will be able to create a brighter and stronger future for them to hold dear.' She thought before disappearing for good.
Sheba cried for the loss of her friends. Arba felt the angst in her heart as she desperately wished to be with the Father. The others were at loss after knowing that there will never be a future where they could be free. This was the start of the dark premonition Demeus dreaded for a long time.
Day by day, Sheba tried to talk to her Solomon but as expected, his body was nothing more than a discarded shell. She could not accept it, yet she knew she had to. The rukh whispered things to her and from then on, she became his voice, hands and legs. She did that so that there will be peace among the other species.
But just like any other, there will be people who will oppose her views and methods. They were at each other's throats but soon, they fell silent. Sheba drowned in depression and stress but assuming that Ithnan and the others understood her livened her. How wrong she was.
Arba and the others revolted just after Sheba created the magic tools with the help of Ugo and the project Demeus left them. They were called the Al-Thamen. Sheba and Arba fought till their last breath and the winner was none other than, Arba. Sheba gave her one last glare and the black magician declared that the red magician was deceived and controlled by Solomon's rukh. They were terrified. They were afraid of what the world has come. Before the fallen queen could rest, she forced her rukh to relay one last message to Ugo.
"Ugo, I will leave this world without anything but a small gift. Please take care of my child. He lives, yes. And he shall be called Aladdin." Her final breath gave rise to the path that will lead to Solomon's return. They thought that the battle with David was the last one but this will be the biggest of them all.
The chiefs of the other tribes became djinns thanks to the metal vessels and Solomon's magic. And just as Demeus' requested, her tribe joined in the battle. Solomon was forever thankful but Lord Guamenti thought otherwise. They destroyed several avatars and black djinns who were on the verge of making Ill Ilah descend from the sky. It was not an easy battle considering that a lot of djinns had already died and not many lived long enough to see the end of it. Arba was the one who made the most damage. Solomon and Ugo tried to help out but Ill Ilah still descended.
"This world is already done for." One of them muttered. Solomon refused to give up. He encouraged them that those who took refuge underground must be protected no matter what the cost. It sparked a new flame in their hearts. In his final moment, Solomon glanced at Ugo.
"Don't forget, Ugo. You are the strongest magician. Create the world anew." In the flash of light, Solomon lost his life. With the last of his magic, he pushed Ill Ilah back into a different space. The Al-Thamen, on the other hand, was also sealed in the same space but quite far from their so-called Father.
The world slowly decayed and the others found it difficult. Ugo could not stand seeing them cry so he proposed a project that was quite similar to his friend's research on the rukh. It was going well at first until the food became scarce and feuds occurred everywhere. Ugo desperately searched for answers but he could not find any.
"Everyone, please calm down." He reprimanded. One of the species did not listen to him until he was forced to go back to his room. There, he was able to grasp little Aladdin with hands. He was about to lose hope when he understood the role that the young child will perform one day.
The next day, Ugo asked for an audience with everybody. He introduced the young Magi to everybody and they rejoiced. They spent five years and everything above underground was exhausted. Alma Toran was dead but that did not stop Ugo from creating a new world.
The new world was entitled to have kings and magi. Ugo made sure that every leader and representative of the tribes knew about it. Even Demeus' tribe agreed to it. It was absurd at first knowing that a living person will spend their lives inside non-living things for an eternity and in solidarity. However, Ugo assured them that they will be freed once a conqueror enters and completes their dungeon.
"Lord Ugo. I have no reason to say no to you." Zagan replied. Phenix and the others also agreed to become djinns. Finally, Ugo decided to be a guardian. Not just any guardian, he will become the Guardian of the Sacred Place where everybody's souls shall rest after death.
Everybody was finally moved to the new world. There were some exceptions, of course, considering that there were others who retained the same language and memories of Alma Toran. They were called the Toran people. They lived peacefully until 1000 years later. Al-Thamen was resurrected but not fully. Their minds were conscious and they caused havoc amongst the people of the new world. Ugo noticed that. This time, their goal was to succeed no matter what the cost.
Aladdin was born afterwards. It was not an easy feat for Ugo. He barely even knew what to do considering that Demeus was always with him while taking care of Solomon. In spite of that, he tried his best.
"Demeus... I miss you, everyone. I almost forgot. Lord Guamenti told me about Demeus' magic but what could it be about?" He used his magic to survey the land when a familiar tingle in the air brushed through his senses. It was so familiar that it moved him to tears. There, below the world, was a tiny spec of life that carried Demeus' magic. His friend was not truly gone forever with David and was still in this world. He vowed to watch both of these people grow into something amazing. Yes, that will be a part of his reasons why he should continue being the Guardian of the Sacred Palace.
Thais watched in tears the hardship of everyone in the Alma Toran. She felt great ache in her heart as she yearned for the lives that were given up just because of some stupid misunderstanding between the other species. It hurt her that her ancestor fell in love with a demon and that she could only do so little. This time, she vowed that she will do more for them. For the world. Carefully, she placed her hand on top on Sinbad and held it tightly. Her husband did the same and lightly kissed it as if to assure her that he will not be going anytime soon.
The display ended and Thais could feel a presence near her. It was comforting, warm to say and it whispered.
"A future I pray to be held by these hands. But cursed I am, I could no longer hold it. I am asking you Thais Demeus to continue my work. Help me weave a new path for them. Don't let this be a new Alma Toran who lost everything."
=END=