The gods came down just as they promised. This is their daily routine to come and visit humans who live on Earth. They always come on January the fifteen. This happened a long time ago, to the point that the whole village makes it a celebration every year. This time will be a little different. Because there is a message received by the chief that the gods will add another person to join the descent. This is great news, but the tribe is worried because they haven't seen this new god. They don't make a statue for this god. There is a picture sent about the appearance of this new god. But there is not enough time for them to carve the statue.
The gods told them it was right. The most important thing is not the celebration, but the number of people who will join the gods to go up. This is the most anticipated event for the tribe. Since only a few of them can have the privilege of being in Nirvana. Nirvana had always been thought of as the realm of the gods. To be living under gods' protection in the same realm as their world is something the Sky-nomads had been wishing for. Except for some eccentric people who would rather stay aboard on the ship. Though they know that eventually one day they will rendezvous with the gods above. Oath, the chief, and Jisu's father are among those people.
"Today, we gather to welcome the great divine creature to greet us! I am always amazed by the presence of the gods. They are the loving and caring gods. I pray that those of us who will be chosen to join them can also share a little bit of joy with the family and friends who would be left behind. But rest assured! One day, all of us will join as one big family. Under the protection of the gods, we would be as one!" The chief began his speech.
"I have recommended ten people, female and male, to be the representatives of our nomads. These people have followed the criteria of the gods, referencing the previously chosen people. These people would be recommended as offerings to our gods. Of course, it might be that not all who got the recommendation will be taken to Nirvana. And I must say that it's alright! There's always another year. Let us have a feast and joy to greet this glorious day!"
With that said, some humanoid figures appeared in the night sky. There were ten in total. As there are three among them who have a distinguished look. The rest are the Armament of Nirvana, they called it. They are humanoid Artificial Intelligence whose sole purpose is to protect the gods. The color of their body is pitched-black. All of them are soaring in the sky, descending slowly to reach out to the ship.
Oath was looking at them, the gods and the armaments. The system recognized a pattern and immediately popped up names and statuses.
The Dragon Fang God
[Status]
Health: ???
Fatigue: ???
Strength: ??? points
Agility: ??? points
Intelligence: ??? points
The Snowflake of Summer God
[Status]
Health: ???
Fatigue: ???
Strength: ??? points
Agility: ??? points
Intelligence: ??? points
The XYZ_Richie God
[Status]
Health: ???
Fatigue: ???
Strength: ??? points
Agility: ??? points
Intelligence: ??? points
All of their names are highlighted in red. This indicates that they are higher in terms of status compared to Oath. Oath, gazing at the gods. Like anyone else in the village, he has faith that he will surely end his life in the presence of the gods. One day, he would surely join.
Next to him, Jisu stood up. She's wearing her prettiest dress.
"It's about time, right?"
"Yeah. They are coming."
"How's your dad?"
"He doesn't like it until the very end. We had a fight."
"I see."
A moment of silence.
"Are you going to be alright?" Oath asked her.
"Of course! I'll ascend with the gods!"
"That's not what I meant, Jisu," Oath stared at his best friend. This is the last moment for him to imprint the remaining trace of Jisu's face into his memory before she vanishes.
"You know, once you go up, you can't go back down."
"You said it."
Another moment of silence.
"I'll always love you," Oath said to her. He kept his gaze towards the descending gods. He could barely keep his cool. His heart is pounding crazily as the words come out.
As for Jisu, her eyes grew bigger. A feeling that she has longed for has met its soulmate. That's it. That's the sentence that Jisu has been waiting for her entire life. This is the moment. Oath was finally able to say that.
"Wait, wha-what?!"
"I won't repeat that."
"No! I mean, since when?"
Oath took some quiet moments to ponder.
"I think it has been there for a long time. But I came to realize yesterday. When," Oath glanced a little bit towards the girl next to him. He was blushing red.
"When? When we kissed?"
"I suppose, yeah. Sorry, it took me longer to confess. But seeing you will be away, for most likely forever, I think I should say it today."
Jisu's heart becomes so troubled. She took another glance at the boy next to him.
"Don't look at me, c'mon. It took courage to say that," Oath averted his eyes.
At that time, Jisu made up her mind. She loves her mom. She wants to be together with the gods. But she wants to feel those cherished moments when she will be the spouse of the boy she has always loved. Oath. He has become the manifestation of all her dreams, things she truly wants, her deepest desire, and her lifelong soulmate. She could imagine living with him; every second wouldn't be boring. And all the time would be full of meaning.
"We need to go," said Jisu, throwing off her high heels.
"What?"
"I want to go with you! Take me out of here, before the gods see me. I need to make a run!"
"What? Are you sure?"
"Yes! I want to live my life with you, dumb dumb! Why didn't you say it sooner, you moron?!" Jisu wasn't able to control her expression. A few drops of water fell from her eyes.
"Well, like I said, I never really thought of it. I just imagined how lonely it would be without you."
"Ah, damn it! Okay! We should go now! Hurry, we need to go down! Let's go to Maxwell's place."
Jisu went ahead leaving the speechless Oath. She sneaked around, walked hurriedly, and arrived at the mini-capsule.
"Hurry, Oath! Let's run away!"
"But the chief has recommended you to be one of them!"
"Hurry! They would always find someone to replace me!" Jisu waved her hand, inviting Oath to come with her.
Oath shaking his head in disbelief. He stopped thinking for a second. With each second, the gods descended lower to meet the villagers. On the ship, the tribe cheers on the gods. Dragon Fang and Snowflake of Summer waved back at them. Only one god did not do it. XYZ_Richie seems like the new god that the chief was talking about.
"Welcome our dear gods!" The chief greeted them.
From a close distance, Oath is able to see their appearances. The Dragon Fang has a reddish ornament all around his body. He is skinny, small, and slouching. For a god, he doesn't seem marvelous at all. On the other hand, The Snowflake of Summer has a pretty face, good posture, and is eccentrically enchanting. XYZ_Richie is just a god with orange spandex all around him. He has a tall posture, long hair, and gleaming eyes.
"Hurry! What are you looking at?!" Jisu from the other direction calling out Oath, whispering to him.
Oath decided to follow the girl.
They entered the mini-capsule, which was located far away from all the commotion.
As when the gods descended, the new god realized something fascinating.
"That human, she's gorgeous," he thought to himself.
"Why would somebody like her haven't been chosen yet? I think this must be my lucky day," he licked his lips sinisterly.
"I should keep her as a secret. I don't want these other wretched gods to see her," the grin on his face didn't completely fade until the end of the celebration.
He gave command to one of his armaments in secrecy.
---
Oath and Jisu rode on a mini-capsule. Usually, they would ride each for themselves, but this time they only managed to get one. She's afraid there would be no time to get into another one.
So there it goes, the two youngsters packed in a small cabin of the mini-capsule. With no other choice, Jisu sat on Oath's lap.
"Don't think about anything, okay?!" Jisu gave him a warning.
Oath remained speechless. He couldn't muster a word, like a tame sheep.
"But, at least you can hug me," Jisu said quietly.
"It's cold, and I don't want to catch a cold after this," she tried to come up with a reason.
Oath wrapped his arms around her.
"Starting from now, I will be the one to embrace you," Oath resting his head on her right shoulder.
She could not muster a courage to see the boy who's hugging her now. So she said something to reply. "It's a promise, right? Your name is Oath for a reason."
"It's an Oath, for the sake of my name."
Jisu touched the strong, muscular arms of the boy. Unconsciously, she smiled.
The youngsters descended to visit their long friend, Maxwell.
"What the heck are you guys doing?" Maxwell greeted them. He went out the moment he heard the whirring noise of the engine.
"Sorry, Maxwell. We need a shelter at least until the celebration is done," Oath hopped out of the mini-capsule right after they landed safely.
Maxwell let out a big sigh. "This is just like last year, huh?"
"You can say that."
"Okay, perfect timing. There's something that I want to tell," Maxwell opened the door to his cabin.
The duo followed him to get inside.
"What is it about? Hey, can we have some of your watermelons?" Jisu opened the fridge.
"I don't know why, or how, but I can sense it. Today will be the last day I can be together with you, guys," Maxwell let out the sentence.
With that said Jisu and Oath halted their hands to grab the watermelon.
"What? What do you mean?"
"That means, I won't be around. I also don't get it, but the end is approaching. I can sense it," Maxwell sat down on the floor.
"To think that this will be the end of me, I can't believe it," he took off his glasses and took a deep breath.
"Hey, hey, what are you talking about? Are you high?" Oath walked closer to him.
"Heh, I'm not."
"Please explain it again to us. What do you mean by that?" Jisu followed Oath from behind.
"I don't know. Again, I only can 'sense' it. I just don't know when, or how. But my end is near."
Oath and Jisu looked at each other. "Well, I can say that sometimes I also feel that way. When I faced a great danger, the sense of getting killed is real."
"This is different, Oath. This is a sure death."
A whirring noise appeared from outside.
"Something is coming," Maxwell stood up instantly. Oath and Jisu also heard the noise.
"I think it's the iron-walker. We just need to let it pass. Don't make a noise," Oath whispered to the two of them.
Both of them nod their head.
The steps of the thing outside can be heard. It walked one step at a time. Slowly, it approached the cabin.
"It seems this is a level three iron-walker."
"It's odd, there has never been an iron-walker in this area before," Maxwell replied still whispering.
"Quiet!" Jisu reprimanded the group.
The voice from the steps disappeared.
"Seems like it's gone away," said Maxwell.
"Look out!" Oath sensed the threat from outside.
The thing outside the cabin attacked them with a strong pulse of laser beam. It destroyed the whole cabin instantly. The wooden walls are shattered after the incoming attack. Maxwell got injured so badly.
"Maxwell!" Oath tried to hold him.
"Quick, we need to carry him to the medicube!" Jisu helped him to carry the man.
"No, it's no use," said the injured man.
"Here, take this and leave. I ...can only leave ... this item as ... my legacy ... to you," Maxwell opened his system window. He gave an item to Oath. A small blinking orb with a color of blue. A name status popped up.
The Orb of Ancient Manifesto.
"This is it, this is the way to fight them, Oath."
"Who, them?"
"The creator ... of this mess," with that last sentence, Maxwell let out his last breath.
"No! Maxwell!" Jisu tried to wake him up.
But he already lost a lot of blood.
"Maxwell!"
"Take cover!" Oath gave the command as another attack was initiated towards them. The laser beam once again splits the cabin. All books from the bookshelves are burnt. Aga and Igo both died because of the attack. The smell of burning woods thickens as Oath and Jisu breathe. Luckily, none of them gets hurt.
"You take care of him, Jisu. There might be a chance to save him," Oath opened his hand.
"What about you?"
"I should take care of this bastard," Airi suddenly appeared on his right hand. Oath charged onward.
Combat mode: activate
Powered by wrath, Oath launched a critical strike towards the enemy. But to his surprise, there's a blue virtual shield protecting it from harm.
"The Armament of Heaven?!" Oath couldn't believe his eyes when he realized the identity of his enemy.
"What is it doing here?!" Oath still figuring out the situation.
But the head of the armament rotated towards Jisu. It flew towards the girl, ignoring the presence of Oath.
"Jisu! Look out!"
Jisu didn't have the time to react. But just as the armament is about to hit her, Oath casts Javelin Throw towards the robot. It collapsed instantly, not having time to shield itself.
"Jisu!" Oath screamed at the girl. He ran quickly reaching out to her.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, why is it attacking us?"
"I don't know," Oath checked the armament once more.
"We can figure it out later. We need to help Maxwell now!"
"Oath," Jisu held her friend's hand.
"He's gone," Jisu looked towards the dead body of the Nostradamus.
"Damn," Oath holding the hand of his best friend for one last time.
"He's still a mystery, even until the end. But he has a kind personality. Something I didn't expect from a person with his look," Jisu gently helped Maxwell to close his eyes.
"Now, what should we do?"
"We need to go up and take a look at the situation. I'm afraid that they are doing something terrible to the ship," Oath looked up to the dark sky.
----
Oath and Jisu arrived at the ship. They immediately staggered by the scene.
The tragedy that happened in the ship was unspeakable. People were running away from the armaments who destroyed them. The scent of blood is thick, with the amount of people who died.
The three gods who supposed to protect them, now helping in killing everyone.
"What is happening?!" Oath looking at the scene in shock.
"What in the world...," Jisu closed her mouth, tears are streaming from her eyes.
"Gods who take, gods who give. Praise to our gods. Praise to them!" some religious people still giving the gods adoration and worship.
"Stop this nonsense! We need to escape from here! Quick! Run!"
"Dad!"
"Jisu? You came back?"
"Dad," Jisu quickly ran towards her dad.
"I'm sorry, I think you're right. We shouldn't trust in the gods."
For a moment the daughter and father holding each other.
"They are the false gods, Jisu. We need to escape from here, now!"
"Watch out!" Oath throwing his spear on the incoming attack.
The missile that launched towards them was destroyed.
"We're in battlefield. Quick, get to the mini-capsule!" Oath instructed them.
"What about the villagers?" Jisu asked.
"I will stay. You guys can go ahead! Go down!"
"No, Oath," Jisu's father holding the boy's shoulder.
"You should also go down, when you still can."
"No! This village, is my only home!" Oath stood up, still want to protect the village. He dashed towards the armament. He tried to cleave it.
The armament held it's guard.
"I said, go! Go away! I'll not let this ship sink! I'll make sure to comeback!" Oath screaming at them.
"No, Oath!" Jisu still want to run towards Oath. But her father held her back.
"Jisu! Put your trust in him! He's the strongest warrior we have!"
Jisu still reluctant to go.
"Trust me! I'll fulfill my promise with you, Jisu! For my name's sake!" with that sentence Oath push the armaments with a heavy grunt and began to fight them.
Combat mode activate.
"C'mon, Jisu. We don't have a choice!" Her father dragged her out of the ship and quickly entered the capsule. They went down.
Oath took a glance at them during the very last second. Jisu's adorable face looking at him in tears. She sure wept a lot. Oath gave her a faint smile before they completely departed.
"Now," Oath turned his head towards his enemies.
"Who the fuck, dare to mess with my ship?" he gave a cold gaze towards the deploy of Armaments that descended from the atmosphere.
The Armaments of Heaven
Status
There are dozens of them keep coming to the ship. All of them shooting the ship with their laser beam. The ever-soaring ancient ship will go down like this.
There are some mens who shoot the armaments, the male as well as with the female. Those people who used to be hunters. There are only seven people. But they can't do much damage towards the armaments.
"Attack them! Attack!"
Their weapons shooting out iron bullets. That will not break through their shield. Oath knew this.
"Everyone!" He jumped towards one of the armaments.
"I'll make an opening! Make sure you support me with all that you got!"
Oath soaring in the sky, he threw his spear with his special skill.
Javelin throw has upgraded.
"Nice, this is what I need."
With a movement of his right hand, Oath throwing the spear with all power that he has.
The armament was reacting too late to anticipate that. The shield appeared, but then it quickly broke, shattered into blue pieces.
"Shut it down!" everybody screaming in unison.
They gunned down the armament in ease. It collapsed after a barrel of ammos drenched its body.
"Don't stop now," Oath opened his right hand. Airi went back again to the owner's hand. It flew back.
"Another one! Javelin Strike!"
Activate an upgraded skill, Javelin strike.
With a more powerful force, the spear piercing through two armaments at once. It also caused them to crush and shut down.
"What a magnificent strength," one shooter can't help but admire his power.
With Oath on their side, their morale greatly improved.
"Pathetic humans," Dragon Fang came to the scene.
"We will teach you a lesson. I'm sorry to wipe you all down, but it's something we must do."
Dragon Fang opened circles of black hole behind him. It teleported hull of missiles out of them.
"Find cover! Run!" Oath gave his command.
But it was too late. The missiles launched at them. It exploded and obliterated everything. The scream of their agony leaving Oath speechless. He was the only one who quickly enough to dodge.
"This rabbit over here is surely fast. You can react to that attack in a matter of second. I shall praise you," Dragon Fang soaring on the sky and approaching the quiet man.
"But, there's no rabbit hole for you to hide. This shall be quick," Dragon Fang God opened his claws.
Oath able to dodge that attack. He dashed instantly to run away. He couldn't help himself but escape from the battle.
"He was nonchalantly arrogant, yet he came to his senses. This is a battle you can't win."
----
Oath knew that there is no hope for the ship. When he watched the gap of power between him and Dragon Fang, his inner sense causing him to run away from the battle. But there's also another thing. He saw one of the gods went down. He needs to make sure Jisu and her dad are alright.
He entered another mini capsule, and went down. On the way, he saw that lots of people from his village also ran away with mini-capsule. They were pursued by the armaments and quickly shot to death. The capsule will explode, leaving them to be like ashes. The armaments were so effective that nobody able to escape. Tons of armaments were tailgating Oath from behind. Myriads of laser beams launch to hunt him down. Oath maneuvering his capsule.
He saw Jisu and her dad together. But behind them, the god with a name XYZ_Richie approaching from behind. He launched a hull of iron missile coming out of the circle of black hole behind him.
"Jisu!" Oath closing in his distance.
The missile hit the capsule. It's losing the control. The god, hopped onto the burning capsule.
"You're a nuisance," he punch through the glass and throwing out Jisu's father out of it.
"No! Dad!"
The man is without parachute, and will surely die because of fall damage.
"Uncle!" Oath directed his capsule to reach to Jisu's father.
Unfortunately one of his wings got shot. It rotating wildly, and went down. Oath decided to escape the capsule. He cracked the glass and jumped out of the capsule.
"Damn, damn it!"
The capsule exploded behind him.
"Jisu!"
"Save him, Oath! Please!"
The god who has destroyed their capsule looking at Oath. He grinned. "Ow, so you guys are something, ah? Don't worry boy, I'll hold onto her," he licked his lips.
Oath was still soaring in the sky. "Don't you dare to touch her!"
"Whops, too late. I touched her! touched her!" He stretched his hand and touching all over Jisu's face.
"You bastard!"
"Oath, it's okay. Please save my dad! He's the only family I have!"
Oath pondered to himself at that time. He nodded towards the you g girl's request. "Okay, but you better hold your promise, you fake god."
XYZ_Richie laughed like a maniac. He hopped again and held Jisu on his back like carrying a bag.
"Don't worry, I'll wait down there. Next to the cabin of your dying friend," with that sentence Oath knew that he's the one who sent that armament to kill Maxwell.
But now, Oath doesn't have time to think about that. He is free-falling. On top of that, he needs to save Jisu's father.
"Uncle! I'm coming!" Oath dashing his way to reach him. He stepped on the junks that also falling from the big ship.
"Oath!" Jisu's father gasping in panic. He frantically moving his hands.
"I'll help you!"
Both of them are falling down. Oath accelerated his speed. Oath noticed that the land is visible now. In no time they'll crush to the ground.
"Hold my hand!" Oath stretched out his arm.
Oath was so close to hold him. He's running out of stepping stone.
"Hold it!"
"Oath," Jisu's father stopped moving his hands.
"Take care of my daughter," with that said, he knew that his end is near. He threw a parachute and binded the sling to Oath's leg.
"No! Stop!"
Tha parachute spreading open.
"Take a good care, Oath."
"Uncle!"
Their distant grew larger and larger. Oath would never forget that moment when he saw that. Jisu's father died heroically to save his life. His body landed on a vast field, and red is his final color.
---