1 PROLOGUE

Sea of fire.

That's what I woke up to. The cries and screams of the people made me dumbstruck and immobile.

What has happened? I silently asked myself.

My knees trembled and my body shook in fear. Then my eyes widened when I remembered the most important person in my life.

Father!

I silently uttered and my eyes widened. My body moves its own and turned away from the balcony and I ran out of my room. My heart beats wild as the cries and screams filled outside. I didn't mind running barefoot as it touched the cold white marble and of course, I am not properly dressed.

Curse modesty. You can think of that later Lilith.  Father is more important.

I silently admonished myself.

With the adrenaline rush through my system, I ran out of the house and I suddenly stopped in my tracks. The scene before me already etched in the confines of my memory. The cobbled stones are filled with blood and the marble houses are on fire. It is all carnage. Then, I saw some fully armoured soldiers killing Esmur's citizen's peace-loving citizens.

My beloved Esmur.

I lamentedly uttered. A soldier saw me and he shouted to his comrades in a language I never expected to hear again.

What are they doing here invading my beloved country?

There is no answer to my question yet but my eyes widened when the soldiers clad in their black armour running towards me. This made me realize that I needed to move and run away or I'll see myself as one of the corpses lying on the stone cobbled floor.

My heart thundered in my chest as my breath starts to get laboured. I ran towards the ginormous temple where I'm sure I will find my father but what welcomed me is not the beautiful temple but bodies and blood plastered all over. I cannot hold my fear at bay any longer and so, I started crying. Then I heard the men shouting in their language that says,

CATCH HER!

I ran again. I am slowly out of breath and my legs are getting heavier. I only pray to our gods that my father is safe but alas, I guess, the god of ESMUR is not here at the moment. I saw my father kneeling on the white marble with my sisters and step-mother whimpering and begging to spare them. My father has blood on his head while my sisters have bruises on their cheeks and eyes. My step-mother has a wound on her shoulders and she too shivered in fear.

The *Yatagan is on my father's neck and the wielder raised it. Fear crept into me and before the wielder can behead my father, I shouted and my voice rang on the wide marble temple and I said,

"Please...I beg of you... don't hurt my father."

The wielder of Yatagan halted his strike and slowly looked into my direction. He slowly put down his yatagan as I saw my father, my sisters and my step-mother looked into my direction.

"Lilith. Thank the *Akinu's and you are unharmed."

I saw my sisters and step-mother glared at me but as I walked closer to the person who wielded the yatagan, I realized how tall he was. I stopped a meter away from him and I saw the guards wanted to come into where I am standing but he raised his left hand. It made the guards stop on their tracks and retreated.

So I guess, this is their leader.

I silently thought.

The leader, like his subordinates, is clad with black metal armour from head to foot but the only difference is just, he has a gold cape adorned on his back. The leader walked slowly towards me and unconsciously, I stepped back. To my surprise he said,

"Don't move."

With his words, I stood frozen and didn't move. 

He took off his helmet and like the time slowing down, I saw his black silky long hair cascaded down to his back as his face slowly revealed to my gaze.

My eyes widened and I gasped then uttered,

"Why?"

His charcoal-coloured eyes met mine and he replied,

"This is a punishment."

"What did Esmur do? The country and its citizens are innocent!" My father replied with tears cascading down his cheeks.

The leader's cold gaze landed on my father as he gave off a menacing smile then said,

"Well, high priest, since your country and its citizens don't listen to the emperor, it really should fall and be ruined don't you think?"

My father's eyes widened in disbelief as the fear and sobs of my sisters are getting louder.

I can only close my eyes and realize that my country is doomed to fall into ruins.

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*Yatagan- a kind of traditional sword

*Akinu- gods of the Esmur