On The Shoulders Of Giants [1]

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭. 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴.

"They might just tell us peacefully." Raphael said.

"They might, but I have a feeling that they won't." Azrael replied.

"Is your desire to murder that deeply rooted?"

"You say that as if you're not just as bad."

"I'm just saying, diplomacy seems like the easier option."

"Alright," as he shrugged Azrael looked down at the village, "But when things get violent, I'm not going to help you."

Shaking his head Raphael also looked down and thought to himself; like he was going to need his help. The two lightly descended towards the village center. The villagers surrounding the center only took notice of the duo when they were merely a few meters in the air and soon landing. The hustle and bustle of bartering ceased, surrounding men tensed up and looked warily, and women scooped up their tots and quickly ran back home. Slightly raising his hands Raphael proclaimed, "We come in peace." Due to the language barrier, Raphael infused mana into his words for it to be understood.

The surrounding men slightly eased up at this. The oldest of the group stepped up. With an old wooden cane, he pointed it at them and asked, "Travelers, what do you seek?"

"Information. We have traveled this planet from east to west, north to south and we have yet to find what we are looking for. But we asked around, and we know this is the only place that can tell us the location."

"The location of what?" The old man put down his cane and tapped it on the ground.

"An ancient ruin, the fallen capital of Zeca." Hushed murmurs immediately spread around the center. The once slightly relaxed men immediately had a hostile look on their faces. Some even turned courageous enough to step forward a little.

Among the pack, a teenager walked to the front and yelled, "We would never tell the location of such a sacred location to outsiders!"

Looking around to see the now very unhappy faces Azrael turns to Raphael and says, "How will you talk yourself out of this one?"

"I'll figure something out." Not even a few seconds after the statement was spoken, a rock was thrown at Raphael. Splitting his cheek wide open. Blood gushed out of the gaping wound spilling some on the floor. There was a lull of silence. Raphael looked at the direction in which the rock was thrown. It was the juvenile from before.

"Leave! You are not—"

In all but an instant a flash of light appeared. It was so bright, most turned away and closed their eyes. When the light cooled down and people opened their eyes they were stunned. A path of absolute ruination was left where the boy once stood. The houses that were once there, obliterated. The people beside the boy disappeared, only the shadows are left imprinted onto what's left of the segmented ground. There was nothing. Some of the villagers were left in a daze, while those remaining turned to Raphael and saw smoke coming out of his hands.

"I'm astounded, you really showed me the power of diplomacy." Azrael mocked, while doing so he found the rock that was thrown and picked it up.

"Shut up! It just ruined my face!" With fury in his tone, he scans the rest of the crowd.

"Whatever, just leave a few so they can tell us the location." Apathetically, Azrael begins to examine the rock. Beside him Raphael raised his index finger. Immediately, balls of intense white light formed around him. Flicking his finger, the balls of light shot into the sky and dropped at different sections of the village. Explosions and screams of agony were soon heard everywhere.

Those still in the village center awoke from their daze and did everything in their power to quickly run away. Raphael sneered at this, clenching his palm, the heads of those running popped. Showering the floor with a torrent of blood. Those still standing nearby were either too scared to move or too stunned. The old man dropped his cane and screamed, "Please stop this! You have made your point!"

"I'll stop when you tell me the location of the ruins." Raphael coolly stated while summoning more balls of light.

"… I—" Before the old man could reply, a thin ray of light pierced his head killing him instantly.

"You hesitated." Raphael stated while looking at the last two villagers near him. It was two other teens. The moment Raphael curls his finger towards them the two teenagers flew towards him suspended in the air. One of the teenagers, a girl, mumbled, "You vaporized my brother."

"Well, it wouldn't have become a gas if it didn't throw a rock at me. I'll only say this once, tell us the location of the ruins or I'll make sure to hunt down anyone remaining here."

"It's in the canyon" said the other kid suspended in the air pointing eastbound.

For the first time since his arrival, Raphael smiled. "See, was that so hard? Now kids, what have we learned? That's right, you don't throw things at strangers, or they might just exterminate your village in retaliation. I'm glad we got this valuable lesson out of the way."

Azrael began walking east as he shouted, "Let's go already, we got what we came for!"

Raphael looked at his brother walking away. He brushed his wound with his hand and as he did, the wound closed and healed instantly. Letting go of the two kids he walks off catching up to Azrael.

Azrael tossed the rock towards Raphael as he caught it. "It's Aplite. Still wouldn't have hurt you if you had your defenses up."

"Aplite, seriously? This planet truly is a treasure." Raphael exclaims and quietly pockets the rock in his storage space.

Ulmoria, a planet of breathtaking beauty; Animals peacefully graze the lush and fertile land, majestic ice-capped peaks soar towards the heavens, piercing through the ethereal veil of clouds, while a gentle lullaby-like breeze moves the dense flowers back and forth endlessly. Such picturesque scenery was slightly disrupted when the two men arrived and flew through it.

Observing the pair of men, an immediate impression of identical twins emerged. Their eyes possessed an unmistakable clarity yet diverged in color: one adorned with pastel sapphire irises, while the other bore a piercing scarlet hue. Their lean and undeniably masculine physique mirrored each other, accompanied by the cascade of long black hair that gracefully extended beyond their shoulders. Despite their striking resemblance, their contrasting manner of self-presentation stood in stark juxtaposition.

Clad in a suit of obsidian armor that clings to him like a second skin, Azrael, the man with haunting scarlet eyes, perpetually exudes an aura of somber melancholy. His presence carries a demonic allure, as if he embodies an eternal night that permeates the surroundings with an icy chill. While his brother Raphael emanates a radiant warmth akin to a resplendent sunrise, dissolving all darkness and infusing the land with boundless light. As they move with remarkable swiftness, Raphael's billowing white robes gracefully dance in the wind due to the speeds at which they are moving.

From his storage space, Azrael pulls out an old, tattered map. Yet despite its ancientness the map itself was glittering with cosmic wonder. The map details the capital city of Ulmoria, Zeca.

"Where did you get that?" Raphael asked.

"From our library back home."

"You went back?"

Azrael turns towards his brother then immediately looks back ahead. Slowly nodding, "I needed information, home was the best place to look."

"What's that dot on the map?"

Azrael looks at the small red dot on the map, "It's where the emperor's treasury is."

Zeca, the esteemed capital city of the Heavenly Realm, was once hailed as a pinnacle of beauty. Its architectural marvels boasted towering structures, with even the smallest buildings stretching for kilometers in both height and width. Roads extended seemingly to infinity, while paved sidewalks radiated enchantment through fragments of celestial stars. Words alone could not capture the indescribable grandeur that once graced the city. Alas, for those who still remain today to witness the city's former glory, such magnificence has now faded into a wistful memory.

On a wide street leading to the city's palace. Azrael and Raphael moved among the wind as they continued enroute to the emperor's treasury. After their tireless search the two finally landed on the palace steps. Or more specifically what's left of it. The high palace aptly named Eden's Citadel once had unmistakable luster to it. The citadel that once stood proudly is now reduced to rubble as nature overtook the structures of man.

Azrael, map in hand, begins to fly towards the center of the ruined palace. After a few minutes he stops. As he did so, the map that he was holding onto glowed ever fiercer as it ripped itself from Azrael's grip. The map blasted towards the sky as it began to break down into a multicolored flame. The winds pick up as they are sucked into the flame. Trees, rocks, even space itself began to rupture and flow into the flame. Soon the flame darkened and condensed.

It condensed so much that just a second later a pulse erupted quickly destroying everything in its surroundings. The leftover foundation from the citadel cracked and turned into fine powder. After the commotion settled down Azrael and Raphael looked at the black hole that was created just now. Oddly enough, it stopped absorbing its surroundings and just rotated silently.