Again those uncomfortable shivers slithered up and down my body like a warning sign.
"If you're not Elyon, then who are you?"
Cold sneering snickers echoed through the deserted chapel. The voice was coming from in front of me, from the statue, and yet the voice was telling me that he wasn't Elyon...
"No, I'm not Elyon. I'm much much better. Rejoice human for a god has answered your prayers."
Suddenly huge black feathered wings shot out from behind the statue and gleamed magnificently in the moonlight. I was so confused and disorientated but I still admired their dark beauty.
I watched, unable to look away as the wings slowly lowered down the Elyon statue. I followed them with my eyes, inch by inch, partly out of admiration but mostly out of fear. The large wings came to a stop halfway down Elyon's legs and I stared puzzled waiting for their next movements.
Slowly the pair of wings shifted to the left of the statue and revealed the body they were attached to.
A lean muscled masculine body, barely concealed behind a thin white shirt and black trousers. His feet were bare and he was crouching down looking at me with a terrifying smirk on his lips. Broad shoulders, intimidating, frightfully beautiful, hair as black as his raven wings, and undeniably godly.
"W-what are you?" The shivers again.
"Weren't you listening before? I am a god, and I am about to make all your wishes come true."
His voice was hypnotic and so I found myself being pulled into every lull of his speech and the seductive way he said his words.
"Revenge right? That's what you want. You want to make them pay, don't you? You want to crush them underneath your feet and see them beg for mercy. Don't you?"
As he spoke, his red eyes glowed like fire jewels in the dark chapel. In his fierce eyes, I saw everything I wanted. I could see my stepmother and half-siblings crying out in pain, begging me for forgiveness. On their hands and knees clinging to my skirts. There was a crown on top of my head. The Emperor crown, that was only worn by the supreme leader of Cawdor. I was finally seated on the throne that belonged to me, with the entire empire bowing to me. In his eyes, I saw everything I ever wanted. Every good dream I had ever had.
The strange winged man grinned a wicked expression for a second. I froze in my place. He was crouching down only a few feet away from me, while I was still lying on the floor lifting my head up to look at him. That's when I saw it. My hand was up reaching toward his, while his hand was outstretched waiting for mine to grasp his.
It was his voice that hypnotized me, while his eyes had tempted me. I felt like I had just broken free of a spell this thing had cast on me. Quickly I pulled my hand back and I saw his eyes darken. By taking his hand it would have meant accepting whatever deal he was putting forth. I was relieved that I had come to my senses before I had taken his hand.
"What is wrong human? Don't you want those things? Just a moment ago you were praying so pathetically for them."
I winced at the sudden cruel tone in his voice, it seemed that moving my hand away had foiled whatever he was planning.
"I still want them..." I admitted. "But at what cost are willing to give these things to me?"
I may be half-dead lying in a pool of my own blood, but I wasn't an idiot. There had to be a price for what this strange creature was going to give me, a price that probably wasn't worth it.
For a moment, his red eyes stared down at me emotionlessly. And in that moment, I felt like the weight of his gaze was too much to bare. However, his expression suddenly relaxed and he broke out into a sinfully wicked grin.
"Good. It's good that you're smart. You'll need your intelligence for what is to come."
The winged man suddenly stood up and tucked his huge black wings behind his back. From measuring him against the statue I could see that he was very tall, almost seven feet tall. Once again I couldn't help but admire his physique, he was ridiculously beautiful for someone so terrifying.
"I'm a god you see, an ambitious one..."
Him being a god honestly didn't surprise me at this point. I was too mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted to even come up with another theory as to who the winged man in front of me was.
"Did you know that a god's powers are dependent on how many believers worship and pray to them?"
I simply blinked up at him not knowing how to answer. I had never really questioned how gods got their power, or even thought about what makes a god strong or not. I had just been taught my entire life that gods are omnipotent beings and that Elyon was the god that watched over Cawdor.
"I can see that you don't know."
He smirked down at me and then turned towards Elyon's statue.
"If a god wants to become strong, he must gain believers who will worship him and pray to him and thus send him spiritual energy to add to his power. At this time, Elyon has the strongest following with the greatest number of believers in this world. So, for the time being, he rakes in all the spiritual power his believers send him while he simply relaxes in the heavens..."
I could quite literally hear the resentment in his voice as he spoke about Elyon. I had always thought of gods as almighty virtuous beings, it never occurred to me that they might feel jealousy or disdain for others.
"He has grown complacent over time, so while he plays up there, I will be down here helping myself to this magnificent pool of spiritual energy."
The god's red eyes twinkled with cruel pleasure. Faster than my eyes could focus on, I just saw a blur and possibly the slightest movement from the man's arm. For a moment there was silence wherein I was left gobsmacked as to what he had done.
I watched in disbelief as the golden head of Elyon slid off of his statue and hit the stone floor with a mighty Clang!
The decapitated golden head lay on the floor on its side with Elyon's blank eyes staring at me.
"That is where you come in, my little human..."
As he grinned down at me I felt my chest tighten in fear. If he could slice the head of a solid gold statue in a split moment, what could he do to me? It was then that I realized that I wasn't in pain anymore. Ever since I had spoken to him I hadn't coughed up any blood. The bleeding from my ears and eyes had stopped since I had seen him. This god, was he keeping me alive?
"The rules have changed since the olden days. Back then gods were allowed to perform a few miracles and appear in front of humans. Obviously, that allowed a god to increase followers very quickly. However restrictions have been put in place since then, and meddling to that extent is no longer permitted. So I have to do things in the roundabout way you see. By using you to be exact."
"By using me... How? And you just said that you weren't allowed to appears in front of humans, but here you are appearing in front of me."
"Well you are dead, so it doesn't count for you."
He sounded annoyed that I had interrupted him, but I didn't really care about his feelings because this creature had just told me that I was dead. As if sensing my pending breakdown, he hurriedly replied.
"There is no need to fuss because I'll resurrect you. Now don't interrupt me again."
His red eyes warned me that if I did, there would be trouble so I kept quiet.
"I need a powerful figure that can lead the rise of a new religion. A strong charismatic leader who can convert Elyon's followers to my own flock. And who better to win over Cawdor's people than the long lost princess who was wrongfully disinherited?"
He looked down at me with red eyes that shone of greed and pride, but I couldn't be sure that at the moment my eyes weren't shinning the same way. The thought of taking control of Cawdor, of seeing my family begging at my feet. The idea made me froth at the mouth.
A sinister chuckled came from the winged god as he recognised the ambition in my eyes.
"Yes. I'll help you achieve everything you have ever wanted, in exchange for the spreading of my religion and an empire of followers."
I couldn't stop the smile from creeping onto my face.
"I am powerless right now. I don't have anything I can use to fight my family. How will you help me take back my empire?"
I wanted to take the deal straight away and begin again, but I couldn't lose my head right now. This deal had a lot of uncertainties, all of which could end very badly for me.
"Do not fear, I will give you the strength to defeat your enemies, however, it is up to you to utilise it properly."
He nonchalantly brushed me off. I wanted to know exactly what type of strength he would give me, but I had a feeling that asking again would not be good for me.
"And if I fail... What will happen if I am unable to take back the empire and get you new followers?"
Although his eyes were glowing a bright warm red, they suddenly became as cold as ice. An expression that chilled me to the bone.
His gaze moved from me to the golden head of Elyon laying on the floor. His gaze lingered on the decapitated head for a moment before looking back at me. A sinister smile on his stone face.
He didn't have to say anything. I understood that failure would be the end of me, and since he was a god, I might still have to pay for my failure after my death.
"On the other hand, If you succeed, I promise to grant you any wish."
A wish to be granted by a god. Now that was something extremely valuable...
"So what do you say, Rowena? Will you take this deal?"
Once again the winged god stretched out his hand. His palm and long fingers waiting for my reply.
I hesitated for a moment, but only for a moment. Then I reached up and placed my left hand on his right hand. I found his skin cold but smooth to the touch.
His dark chuckle rumbled through the entire chapel and made the whole space shake. The dust and grime began to rise like black smoke clouds and the small creatures who had made homes for themselves in the chapel scuttled away in terror.
The dust clouds began to thicken and rise, creating a black mist that obscured my vision. All I could see in the room were his bright red eyes and the faint gleam of the headless golden statue.
"Good choice Rowena."
Again, my vision began to fade. And with it my consciousness. The last thing I saw was the pair of predatory red eyes watching me before I fell into darkness.
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