The Zelut's Awakening

I didn't know how to react to his declaration of my aunt being a traitor. Before I could oppose the sultan, Khalid quickly grabbed my hands, his grip were tightening.

Sultan Ibrahim's expression remained keen, "Khalid, didn't you hear me? Take Sarina to her chambers. She must rest and prepare for the ceremonies ahead."

Even as Khalid bowed, his eyes never left mine. "As you command, my lord."

With a gentle but firm tug, Khalid led me out of the throne room, down a labyrinthine corridor, and to a beautiful door.

"Your new home, my love," Khalid said, "You will find everything you need here. Rest now, and I will return for you soon."

I stepped back, trying to create some distance between us.

"Well, if I'm to marry you, may I at least know your age?" I asked, trying to keep my voice strong.

Khalid's expression turned cold, "You will not ask me this ever again, it is...not your concern." He replied, turning around to leave.

I stood there, frozen in uncertainty, and the silence of the chamber seemed to swallow me whole.

The sultan's words rang a bell, "You are a child of the source pillar." What did that even mean? 

I tried to remember the message I had received earlier, the chilling warning about "The one with dark garments." Who was it for? Was it for me?

I was just a stranger in a strange land, surrounded by people who seemed powerful to know more about me than I knew myself. And now, I'm expected to marry the sultan's son, a man I barely know, a man who seemed more like a predator than a prince.

Suddenly, attendants approached me,

"Are you alright, my lady?" One of them asked, with a soft and concerned voice. I managed a weak smile. "I'm fine," though my voice was a little shaky. "Just a little overwhelmed."

Finally, they opened my chamber. It was a masterpiece of design, with a four-poster bed draped in silk and a balcony overlooking the sprawling gardens.

"This will be your home, my lady," one of the attendants said, curtsying. "If you require anything, please do not hesitate to ask."

With that, they left, leaving me alone in the intimidating room. I sank onto the plush cushions of the bed, thinking. I had to find a way out of the situation, I couldn't marry the sultan's son. I didn't know him, neither do I trust him.

I just knew I couldn't stay there, not if I wanted to survive. I had to find a way to escape, to find answers, and to uncover the truth about my destiny. But how? The overwhelming thoughts, made me cry, I cried profusely. Especially because I didn't have answers to them.

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As minutes turned into hours, I was already asleep, exhausted from crying. Suddenly, I heard someone calling my name. When I turned around, I saw a human in red robes, he was burning, yet his flesh remained intact. He seemed to have some kind of immense power to control the fire, he had a symbol of fire on his robe, forehead, and on his hands. He stretched his hands forward for a handshake, but I was scared of exchanging pleasantries.

"Where am I?" I questioned in fear. "You are safe," he replied, "This is a dream, and I am just a reflection of you."

"You are me?" I asked. "Yes, I am you." He declared. "Sarina, you must never trust the one with dark garments, dark armors and dark wings."

"Why does everyone keep telling me that?" I snapped. "Hmm," he pondered, "It seems you have no knowledge of the past."

"1,000 years ago," he continued. "The 'source pillar' was on the brink of the skies. It was a magnificent bliss and a powerful deity of magic. There, the zeluts were born and killed."

"The zeluts?" I muttered, "What are you talking about?"

"Will you let me finish?" He snapped, letting out a sigh. "The zeluts are powerful gods that comes from the source pillar. They are formidable creatures entangled and weathered in the world of ancient magic. Each zelut are bestowed different powers according to their nature, and are a force of purity and peace...."

"This is clearly just a myth.." I interrupted. 

"Goodness-gracious!" He yelled. "You have to listen to me Sarina, this is not a joke." He added.

"The first ever zelut was Lord Carison, the one who was regarded as the controller of the sun, he is the only zelut who's name doesn't take the letter 'z'. He was a gentle and fearless god, and just like I have the fire symbol, he had his power symbols, on his robe, hands and forehead..."

"Woahhhhh," I remarked. "So you're also a zelut? Why don't you use your zelutic powers to take me back to Saudi Arabia and I cook you a nice meal, then we draw the curtains of all this supernatural mumbo jumbo?"

"You really are a case, I can't believe Lady Zeleuva was reincarnated into you." He replied, sounding disappointed.

"Lady what now?"

"Can you just let me finish?" He grumbled, "Lord Carison blessed the world with the sun, amongst other things."

He paused for a moment, to see if I would exclaim. After getting no responses, he continued.

"After many years, Carison went back to the source pillar to go extinct and was reborn into Lord Zebuk, the moon god, who blessed the world with water..."

"Can you speed this up? I think I have to wake up now, I have a wedding to attend to." I continued getting on his nerves.

"You're not meant to be a wife, you're a god. And you must never mate with a human, especially, an acclaimed zelut's son. This will stop the lineage of the zeluts and disrupt the balance of the world." He retorted.

"I don't understand what you're talking about!" I yelled, "I am so confused. From what I was taught, the almighty Allah created the moon and the sun! And his messenger, Prophet Muhammed, was Allah's final message to humanity."

He paused for a moment, "I know how frustrated you are, but you will learn to accept this, the minute you wake up. Hear me out, till the very end okay?"

"Okay." I sighed.

"So, Lady Zeliv followed," he continued. "She was the controller of light and darkness, and the bestower of the stars. Then, Lord Zegax accompanied her, he created the galaxies and was the controller of time and space."

"Why are you telling me all this?" I grinned, "It's clear I don't believe in it, yet you still continue wasting your time."

"Because you need to know your roots!" He whispered, "Sarina, I'm very serious about this. We're all descendants of gods, and you! My friend, are one of the very few lucky ones. The source pillar produced about seven gods, each of them had an impact on the world before they died."

"What about the god you told me I was reborn after then?" I queried.

"Good question. Something actually happened, the source pillar produced a dominant and the most fearless god ever, lady Zeleuva. She was the strongest and most ruthless god in the Djinn era. She was the controller of life and death, the creator of animals, and when she was about to go extinct, she was reborn into two gods. Now that's where you come in."

"Me?" I snapped, "How?"

"Sultan Ibrahim is the one who came after Lady Zeleuva, he's not who you think he is. In his real form, he's extremely powerful, he has a dark angel-like structure, and he always holds a very sharp devilish knife. He is the one, you shouldn't trust. He is the one, with dark wings...."

"What...." I stammered, "He looks like a regular human to me!"

"That's because he hasn't shown his true form... His twin was Lord Zeleuve, a gentle god in white robes with golden linings that represents strength, the only zelut who's face has never been seen, he is the supreme godfather sitting on the throne of zeluts..."

"What happened to him?" I asked, already getting entangled in the magical mess. 

"I don't know, everyone thinks he's gone extinct." He replied.

"But you said the Zeluts are forces of good, how did Lord Zerunjok become a menace?"

"He was angry, angry that he was the only zelut that came in a pair. He's a twin, and his twin, Lord Zeleuve, is stronger than him, he felt like he was a mistake. And ever since, no zelut has been reborn in a thousand years. Zerunjok has destroyed the source pillar, and very soon, he will destroy the one who came after his brother." He added.

"I don't think he wishes to destroy me, he wants me to marry his son." 

"This is a disaster." He replied, "The rumors say Lord Zeleuve was reborn into a smaller version of Lady Zeleuva, and that is you. Zeleueva died and was reborn into two gods, one good, one bad. She's the only one strong enough to fix this mess. You're the hope of the world, Sarina. A reincarnation of Lady Zeleuva."

"You said she's the god of life and death. Maybe you can get her out of me and tell her to fix the world, cause I have absolutely no idea of what's going on." I exclaimed.

"It doesn't work that way Sarina," He replied, "Both zeluts were to be good. I don't know why Zerunjok took the path of evil, now that his brother is gone, there's no telling the darkness he'll enforce."

"Sarina, I can feel a force of powerful magic coming from you. You mustn't let Zerunjok fuse with you, because if he does, then the world is in grave danger." He added.

"What do I do then?" I snapped.

"You have to create a new source pillar, or find the existing one. I don't believe Zerunjok destroyed it completely, and when you do. Force Zerunjok in it, so he can go extinct, hurry! Wake up and run away, run away!" He yelled.

I stirred, gasping for breath, as if I had just been rescued from drowning in the sea of my own nightmares. With one hand pressed against my chest, I tried to slow my frantic heartbeat as I sat up in bed.

So, I was in fact, a descendant of a powerful lineage, a child of prophecy destined to play a crucial role in the future of Thesuba. I didn't have a plan, but it became clear that Thesuba and the entire beings of the world were created by Lord Zeleuve, and Zerunjok plans on destroying everything.

Feeling overwhelmed by the weight of these words, panic swept me. I was just a girl, used to playing hide and seek with my friends and dreaming of becoming a model. All of a sudden, I was thrust into a world of magic, a world where I didn't belong.