Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 428: Asrana (2)

'The Book of Prophecy?'

'Yes, the Book of Prophecy. There is the Doomsday Book which speaks of the Ages Beginning and the Ages Endings. And then there is the Book of Prophecy'

'I know the Doomsday book' Arial said nodding remembering his conversation with Paul years ago in the church.

'But Book of Prophecy? I never heard of that.'

'Not many do. It was banned and burned by the Church.'

'My Church? Or yours?' Arial asked. Smirking, Mikael said

'Both. My Dark God Church and your Light church both burned, ban, and execute anyone who knows about the Book during the past five hundred years during Montblanc dynasty before the power of the Church weakens in the Human Continent leaving only a handful of people who knows about the Book.'

'Why?' Arial asked.

'No one knows really. Some say it is their covenant with Levitia.'

And at that Arial remember, the Burning of Books and the killing of scholars.

'Some say it has something that the church wanted to hide. Some say the church feared its power.'

'If it was banned and burned, how do you get it?'

'Hehehe' Mikael smiles mischievously. 

'Davarus and Anvali is not the only continent in the world is it? It is said during the beginning the world is like flat bread. There is no other continent. Land stretches for thousands and thousands of miles without seacoast in sight. It was a large land until the Great Eruption happens and the Land separated themselves creating new continents. Laila live during the time before the Great Eruptions when Gods and Demons roamed the Earth like us.'

'And? Who is Laila?'

'Patience, my friend. I will tell you her story.' 

Then Mikael look upwards like he is reminiscing some romantic thoughts and said the name 'Laila' with such reverence that people might even thought he had loved her, the way he is calling the name.

'The story was, when the First Prophet went into one of the city in which he desires to spread his teaching, he came upon a child slave' 

Continuing, he said

'The child has no name, was feral and distrustful. No one wanted to buy her for she is very strong and rebel at anything the slave owner ordered her to do. The authorities of the city wanted to stone the child to death in the open square as a lesson to the other slaves. It was a different time. A darker time' as Mikael sighed

He then continues 

'The First Prophet buys her off to spare her from such terrible fate and clean her and teach her the way of kindness. One of the Disciples of the Prophet teaches her words and letters and soon enough Laila becomes the Scribe of the Prophet. She would write everything the Prophet say either she writes it in skin hide, on some rocks and sometime she even paints in the cave where many times the Prophet had to take refuge from the worshipers of Demons and Evil Gods. And as such every prophecy the Prophet has ever made is written by her and copied by the other Disciples of Light'

Smiling, he exclaimed 

'What a great deed! Laila the Scribe of the Prophet who wrote the word of God. Imagine that! The Book of the Church is written by a woman! If the church hears about this won't they have a heart attack after so long perpetuating the idea that man is the superior and virtuous sex?'

'And you have all of it! You have the book!' Arial said realizing the enormity of what Mikael is implying. 

At this Mikael laugh.

'HAHAHA. Of course not. Alas, I am not destined to see the entirety of the Book. Thousands of years have passed how many of her writing remains? But I have some of it. And that I think is enough. Like this' And Mikael brought out another book.

This book seems like a new book, no doubt compiled and written by Mikael and translated in the Demon language Arial mused.

And once again Mikael searches the page. 

'Here it is.'

'Look!' And Arial get up from his chair and come closer. 

'You can read Demon language right, Arial. I have my people to translate the book when I arrived at Arakath a few years ago.' 

Arial nodded and he reads.

'Asrana Mahava will have one great enemy, the balance of Him, for where there is light there must be darkness, for there is a shadow even for the brightest of Light. Balance in the world. Light and Dark. Evil and Good. Asrana and Vasir. Maharai Vasir will be his great enemy and their battle will determine the fate of the world.'

Vasir? Who is that? Great Battle? What Great Battle? All this question is in Arial minds. Is he Asrana? 

This seems too big even for him. And once again Helia words echoes in his ears. Could she be right? Could she have known something about me that even I don't know?

'Isn't Asrana supposed to win?' Arial said, there is some hint of nervousness in his tone, one that Mikael doesn't realize.

'Isn't that how stories usually supposed to go? The Hero wins?' Arial said again trying to convince himself perhaps.

'Yes. If it was a story. This is a prophecy, friend. And we both know how potent the power of prophecy really is. There are of course some charlatans, some tricks and even some outright lies. But one must admit the Prophet words seem to materialize itself into reality that it couldn't be considered as coincidence. I have seen many things in this world to believe there are are forces in the Universe that works in mysterious way. 'Arial said nothing to Mikael reply but instead he asks with trepidation.

'And who won in that prophecy?'

'That is the interesting part, I guess about this particular prophecy. The prophecy never specifies who would win and who would lose. It is one of the mysteries of the Prophecy of Asrana. There are two outcomes'

'From what I understand, if Asrana win, the world will experience great peace for a long time before the Beginning of the Next Ages. If Vasir wins, there will be darkness that will encroach the people until the time of the Next Ages. Either way the Prophecy of the Ages will still take place and ended either the Great Peace or the Great Dark Ages.'

Arial look downwards and nodded and said with a grave tone.

'Is there others? Anything more about Asrana?'

'Keep reading. There are some more about Asrana' Mikael said and Arial look at the book and once again read. 

'He who has the same Blood as Asrana, the debt of the old resolved in the Great Battle. The Debt of either Habel or Kane will be resolved and God will bless the victors of the Bloodline.'

'What does this mean?' Arial then asked.

'Like I said the story of Asrana is a long one. Bear with me here. In the church of light there is this story if I am not mistaken' 

And Mikael begin saying the words from the story of the Book of Light.

'And God casted out Man and Woman from the Garden of Eden when they defy His order not to eat the Fruit of Knowledge. Betrayed by the most beautiful of angels, Man regrets his actions and pray to God to spare his wife. But Light has decided. 

'And so Man was casted out in flames and the Angels of Heaven weep and pray for Humans to prosper on the treacherous world God has created. Man fall onto a hard land while Woman falls onto the other side of the world on a hill overlooking a vast sea, separating the two lovers. 

'And then by the Grace of God, Man survived the fall. The moment he opens his eyes he sees upon him the price of his sin. There was darkness all around him, and Man for the first time learns to have fears. In grief he prayed. 

'Yet God does not listen and He cast His gaze away so that Man may learn. So Man cry and begged God while he wanders the world searching for his beloved. Forty years in rain and storms, in terrible weathers and good weathers, days when cold bites the flesh, where the heat could burn skins, Man prayed and begged to Light to forgive his sins until God shows His Mercy and forgiven him and He who is Most Gracious united the man and wife together again.'

'Genesis' Arial said.

'Yes.'

'What does it have to do with Asrana?'

'Wait, the story is not over friend. Now there is another story in the chapter that you must understand to know what it means by the blood debt of Kane and Habel.' 

'Proceed' Arial said.

'And Man and Woman have two sons and two daughters. One become the killers of the other one, the firstborn spill blood upon the face of the world, a kinslayer to the Blood of his brother, what terrible sins he has committed, and God marked him so that the First killer will forever remember his sins, never to forget not even in Death. The first blood for Humans fall onto the Blessed Land that God had gifted to Mankind and darkness is unleashed.'

'So?' Arial asked not seeing the connection. 

And who would?

'So, friend the story is not detailed and no one really knows the detail of that story. That is not all of the story. And you must know friend, that not knowing the full story, sometimes the true meaning and purpose of the story will also be distorted' 

'You saying this means you know.' Arial said smiling in understanding

'I know. Though we have to steer away from Asrana for a while. And now I need to tell you the story of Vasir for without Vasir there is no Asrana and vice versa.'

'Do you have to?' Arial asked.

'If you want to understand the full story.' Mikael reply.

'So be it. Tell me then' And Mikael smiles.

'I will, my friend. Of course I will'

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