Pillar

The first thing that he noticed as soon as he opened his eyes was a colossal cross that was hundred-metres tall. Then he instantly looked down at himself and allowed himself a sigh of relief for the moment when he saw that he was not only in one piece but also felt brisker and fresher than ever before. It almost felt like he was reborn; well, considering his situation, that description wouldn't be far off.

After once again making sure that he was fine, he looked around and discovered that he was sitting in a long wooden row inside of what appeared to be a church made of the bones of every mythical creature, from dragon to elf, from giant to phoenix, all of them were here, embedded on the surface of each column, arch, and dome, but instead of appearing eerie, everything was filled with holiness.

'This is the corpse cathedral.' He thought, but his emotions were mostly calm, not like someone who had just confronted death and was almost corrupted by the Outer Gods. There was also the fact that he was within the domain of arguably the most frightening being in the cosmos.

"You're finally awake." A gentle voice spoke, catching his attention and prompting him to shift his gaze to the cross. A stately figure stood up from the praying posture and turned to look at him with warm eyes. He was none other than Adam, the Angel of Imagination.

"How should I call you, Lucien, or by your previous name?" Adam asked, walking towards him.

Even though he expected Adam to already know all about his previous life, hearing it personally made him feel a tinge of dread that managed to break through his serene emotions.

He forced himself to calm down, which proved simple because whatever kept his emotions calm helped him. Then he looked ahead at Adam, "Lucien," he said silently, accepting his new life without any reservations as he didn't have any privilege to struggle on that, considering his situation. He needed to be steadfast and determined if he wanted to survive in the end.

"Lucien." Adam nodded and took a seat next to Lucien. "He" looked ahead at the cross and continued, "You are adapting fast. This solves most of your problems."

"Problems?" Lucien inquired solemnly, his gaze unconsciously trailing his body to double-check himself. "Did you save me?"

"Partially." Adam said frankly. "You resisted the corruption of the cosmos until I arrived."

"What?" Lucien asked, unbelievably. After all, this was the corruption of the cosmos that only angels and above could withstand, and he was a thorough and thorough mortal in essence.

Adam didn't respond; instead, "He" took out a white-as-snow rose and gave it to Lucien, who felt a strange connection to it. "What do you see in it?"

Lucien looked thoughtfully at the rose in his palm. After a short pause, he said, "Death, I see Death." He genuinely did, and he couldn't explain how, but he truly saw death, the end of all things, in the rose.

"That's what you are." Adam revealed gently, "His" limpid eyes gazing at Lucien. "Death."

"I am Death?" Lucien pointed to himself, clearly feeling the irony of the moment. He didn't doubt what Adam revealed, as there was really no reason for "Him" to lie. And if Adam had wanted to do something to him, he would have already been dead.

"You are not as mortal as you believe yourself to be." Adam said, "His" gaze was deep and faraway. "You carry a power that embodies death, even more so than the authority held by Salinger in the past." "He" paused in a moment of reckoning silence. "To be frank, the power within you resembles a pillar of the cosmos, and the strange thing is, it seemed to be part of the cosmos, like a missing piece of the cosmic puzzle."

"You don't mean...?" Lucien's eyes widened at the implications involved in the words of Adam.

Adam confirmed his guesses; "His" tone was as gentle as ever, despite the shocking truth "He" was revealing. "Given your existence, my preliminary findings from research into the existence of the fourth pillar should be incorrect. It might not be hidden at all but rather broken—one component within you, the other within the western continent."

"Is that even possible?" Lucien asked, while thanking the power, which most likely belonged to Adam, for keeping his feelings calm and serene in the face of these constant shocking revelations. The Angel of Imagination just implied that the combination of his power and the River of Eternal Darkness should result in the birth of the fourth pillar, one that does not, he hopes, end the cosmos.

"It is—if my assumptions prove to be correct in the end," Adam said calmly.

Many questions about his existence raced through Lucien's thoughts, but only one remained in the end. "How come I feel so good if my power is part of the cosmos?" He enquired of Adam. "Just look at me; can you see any madness?"

Adam's lips twitched as though "He" was smiling. "Madness can be subjective when it involves the divine. For example, most people who are aware of the True Creator consider him to be completely insane and crazy, which he definitely is, but his insane state is not the same as it is for humans. He is just much more emotional and humane compared to other deities. In your case, though, I am not sure."

The Angel of Imagination continued, casting a sidelong glance at Lucien. "Your existence is shrouded in mystery, some of which I unravelled and some of which I didn't, for I foresaw that if I uncovered all of your mysteries forcefully, then the Apocalypse would begin immediately."

'Just what have I become?' Lucien thought, gazing at his hands. Adam's final remarks sent shivers down his spine—Apocalypse, the unavoidable end of the world, and in it, the Solar System would become a battleground between Outer Gods and Great Old Ones, with Earth caught in the centre. And his existence could genuinely lead to something as terrible as that; he wasn't really sure how to feel about it.

"I can see your struggles with your power." Adam held the silver cross that hung from "His" neck. "So I give you a choice: accept it and embark on a divine path, or ignore it and spend the rest of your life in peace and obscurity."

Lucien didn't even bother to contemplate the choice, then, with a wry grin, he shook his head. "I don't really have the luxury of choice; after all, my very existence changes everything. I may face a lot of paths in the future; however, the path of peace and obscurity isn't one of them." He squinted at Adam. "But you already know all of this, so was that a test?"

Adam didn't answer; instead, "He" merely asked, "His" clear gaze fixed on Lucien. "Do you accept it or not?"

Do I accept it or not?….Lucien thought heavily, and then he answered with grim determination. "Yes."

What? Did you expect him to hesitate and brood on it? Never! This was the world of mysteries, and as he had already decided, he needed to be resolute and determined if he wanted to survive and live his new life in the end.

Adam said gently. "Good."

Lucien was surprised to hear a compliment from Adam "Himself", but he suppressed it and focused on the most pressing issue that he was facing. "There is something; my power, I can't feel it." He asked Adam. He really couldn't feel the power of death; he tried to sense it within himself, but he didn't find anything that proved he wasn't a mortal.

"That's because your power is dormant." Adam revealed. "When the Outer Gods noticed you and tried to corrupt you, it awoke and protected you from them instinctively until I arrived and saved you completely."

"So it was losing to "Them"?" Lucien pressed, seeing through the nuances in Adam's words.

"Yes." Adam nodded. "Only a portion of your power intervened to protect you; the rest remained dormant, because if everything had awoken, your new body would not have been able to withstand it."

Lucien mulled over "His" words for the moment, and then he asked sombrely. "So how can I awaken my power?"

Adam stood up from Lucien and walked before him, gazing down at him. "I will help you awaken it."

To say Lucien was surprised would be an understatement; after all, he didn't expect Adam to assist him with this; rather, he expected the Angel of Imagination to instruct him to take the pathway of Death. But this didn't make him feel any elation, for nothing was ever free in the world.

Lucien met "His" gentle gaze as he gathered courage and asked outrightly, "Why?"

Adam answered, "His" tone as serene as ever. "Your existence breaks the trend of the times, so changes have to be made, and you are going to be at the centre of it all, Lucien."

Lucien gulped. "Will I be able to bear it?" He asked, steering the subject away from the trend of the times.

"Ultimately, it is up to you." Adam stated. "All I'll do is slightly simulate your power out of dormancy, and it'll be up to you how much of the power you'll bear in your current state."

"I couldn't bear it all, that's for sure." Lucien said rationally, then looked gravely at Adam. "What exactly do you mean when you say I'm not mortal? Is this linked to why I'd be able to bear the power that resembles a pillar?"

"It's your soul," Adam said calmly. "That's really special and different. And yes, it is what allows you to bear and hold the power."

Lucien asked another question about his power, as he really didn't want to delve into this path blindly. "So if I only awakened a part of my power, do I have to take the path of the divine to awaken the rest of it?"

"Yes." Adam answered patiently, "Though your situation is special, you probably don't have to start from the low sequence. So now that you have asked all of your questions, are you ready, Lucien?"

Lucien took a deep breath, preparing himself for what was about to happen, and then nodded resolutely. "Yes, awaken it."

Adam raised "His" hand and pointed at his glabella.

"Ascend."