It was a good, sunny morning, so good that people would love to rest in it, but the world was cruel. Asaranda, who people believe will become the strongest soldier in human history, was leading an army to defeat a king. No ordinary monarch, but an evil tyrant with an army of his own—an army of animals with powers.
"Today is the day we all have been waiting for. We stand outside the very cave from which those monsters arrived, attacked our cities, killed our people, and feasted on them as if they were food."
Asaranda stood in front of her army and looked at her side. A teenager stood beside her determined to win the war.
"I know that I am a woman, but thank you all for trusting me and when we return from this war, when we all return home with the tyrant's head around my neck, we will yell so every other village, cities, and countries that refused to help us will listen to the winner's cry."
Asaranda was a proud warrior, not a ruling queen but her determination to save everyone despite not everyone needing the help, granted her an army made up of loyal companions.
"We march tomorrow!"
As the sun drowned at the horizon, the teen entered the tent of Asaranda and enquired about the war.
"You say that you will hang his head around your neck?" the teen enquired.
Asaranda, who was staring down at the map of the place, laughed a little and replied, "That was just to increase the morale of our army."
"Maybe it was just to increase the morale, but you gave them a chance to see their enemy's head around your neck. What happens if you need him alive and ask your army to defend him until you say so."
"That will never happen. Sars will die and that is tomorrow." Asaranda angrily replied by turning her head back to see him.
The teen was a bit scared, but he still spoke, "You know what powers he holds, the ability to create and destroy."
Asaranda laughed and spoke, "Maxon, one can only have one power. Either he has the power of creation or destruction, but it doesn't matter because I have the strongest power in the world."
The teen named Maxon replied, "You have never travelled the world to claim your statement."
Asaranda laughed and asks him for advice, "Come here and tell me how shall we fight tomorrow."
Maxon approached her and looked at the surrounding map and speaks, "There are few possibilities for us to lose to. We are in a canyon if we have to win, we need to make sure that no one can attack us from top."
At that moment another person entered and spoke, "I will take my people to guard the top."
Asaranda and Maxon turn around and smiled, "If it is not our warrior friend James." Maxon taunted.
Asaranda quickly rushed at him and leans over to him with a kiss; Maxon disgusted by the sight spoke, "Can you please do this alone or at least not when I am present."
Asaranda still in the arms of James turns her head and replies, "Why are you jealous when you have the most beautiful, soul-grabbing beauty, Cate"
Maxon blushed a little and replied louder than before, "I said this to her one time and you made this a joke."
James smiled and replied, "Unfortunately, Cate's father caught them both and since then he hasn't been in contact with her."
Asaranda looked back and walked towards him, "Don't worry, after this war I will personally meet her father to convince him."
Maxon looked up in her eyes and replied, "Like I need your help."
Asaranda grabbed Maxon's head and threw him on the ground, "I offered my help bastard."
Maxon looked up, "You still haven't convinced your father for James."
Asaranda blushed and looked back at James, "I-I haven't told him, not that I couldn't convince him."
James laughed confusing the two, "We are at war and both of you are fighting as usual."
Maxon stood up and replied, "What can I say, I chose wrong teacher and her company ruined me."
Asaranda looked at the two and spoke, "Tomorrow we will win this war and return back home for the people Sars had murdered."
The next day, the army of Asaranda stood outside the cave, beside her was Maxon and on the top of the canyon was James with his army.
"So, if the king won't march forward then I can assume that we have already won the war." Asaranda asked her army to mock her enemy.
"No, Queen. I just woke up late." A voice came from the cave and everyone positioned themselves.
With slow steps, a creature came from the darkness of the cave and faced the sun after a very long time.
He was a mountain of armored muscles, His eyes were perfectly round, sunk deep into the skull. The flesh around them was a ruin of twisted, pale scars, making the dark eyes look less like organs and more like black stones violently planted into a living mask.
"A Komodo Dragon." Maxon spoke to himself.
"I can't remember when I last left this cave because my armies were enough but you defeated them, located my place. You were wise." He spoke.
Asaranda smiled, "I heard that Sars was weak in English and I was correct."
"Why so?" Sars asked.
"Because you should have said that, 'You are wise'."
Maxon was a bit anxious during this conversation when Sars started laughing, "I was using past tense because you are going to die today."
Asaranda laughed too and asked, "So, you do the talking."
Sars looked up and saw the top of canyon with armies, "I believed that if someone ever found me here, I would have attacked them from top b—"
Asaranda didn't let him complete his statement and she spoke, "You took us as idiots, of course we will take the top first."
Sars looked at her and replied, "But those are my people."
Both Asaranda and Maxon turned around to see people on top pointing their spears at them and not Sars.
James jumped from the top beside Sars and spoke, "You should never believe words of someone who survived destruction of an entire country."
James spoke it but those were words of someone else, someone who did warn them about James from the very first.
Maxon looked at Asaranda, who was not heartbroken but angry. "I believe that a battle is imminent, now."
Sars turned around to enter his cave to speak, "Unfortunately, you would not be the one fighting me."
Once he completed it; he entered his cave to be fully consumed by the absence of light and to let James fight the armies of human.
"You betrayed humans." Maxon spoke.
"I serve whoever saves me." James replied.
The battle took on, people died, people lost their lives but for the first time; people entered his cave—to fight and kill him.
James body lay on the ground, killed by a thousand swords.
Sars was tired too, his cave was not all dark but just a glimpse of light was enough for him and for Maxon and Asaranda; the light from his eyes.
"You are the only two humans who have fought so far." Sars complimented.
Asaranda with a deep cut on her forehead and clothes covered with blood for his friends and foes stepped forward, "And you are the first one to be alive after so much time of our battle."
Maxon was tired enough, his ability to telekinesis was strong but it couldn't work against Sars since powers demand a purpose and fighting battle of humans was not a purpose.
"You can't win against my eyes." Sars taunted.
"Yes, we can. I can." Asaranda replied back.
"Thousands of abilities against one, huh?"
Maxon looked forward to see something; something he never wished.
Sars' arm piercing Asaranda's chest, blood all over the ground.
Everything went silent for Maxon and the only thing he could hear by his breathing and Asaranda's fading heartbeat.
Sars threw her and stepped forward to end Maxon as well but during that time, Maxon realized his purpose—Avenge his teacher and protect people she sacrificed her life for.
Maxon stood up and rushed at Sars; they shared some powerful blows but the only one to feel the pain was Sars.
"How and what is happening?" Sars wondered but Maxon had the answer—the glow in Sars left eye was gone; the eye of destruction.
"I now understand what your powers are; you have no powers but these eyes." Maxon yelled as he pulled both of Sars' arm from his body with just his brute force.
Sars screamed echoed in the cave while blood falls on the ground, "Your right eye; eye of creation allows you to learn every ability you see." Maxon yelled as he punched Sars in his chest.
Sars fell and tried to stand up but Maxon stepped on his right foot and crushed with his force.
Sars screamed once again but this time the rage in his eyes screamed something else, "I will kill you!" they yelled.
"And your left eye permanently takes powers from someone and left them weak, that is how you killed her." Maxon yelled.
Sars angrily looked at him, "Go on, kill me if you can because no matter how many times you chop my arms, destroy my heart, I will always come back and when I return again, I will kill you just like I killed your teac—"
Maxon punched Sars' face crushing it in an instant, the blood violently spread all over the place, on the ground, on Maxon's clothes.
"You speak a lot." Maxon calmly spoke.
He stood up, turned around and walked up the stairs when he felt something in his grip from the one with which he blew Sars' head.
He opened it and saw a glow—an eye, he thought maybe he could save Asaranda. He quickly rushed over to her, tripped over Sars' body but still rushed on his four feet.
He reached her body and tried placing the eye but the eye rejected, it tried to forcefully bond with Maxon but he used his strength to stop it and when he tried again; he understood.
Dead cannot be revived even with an extraordinary power and if they do, they return as someone else and the lessons from history books were a proof of that.
Maxon kept the eye and took Asaranda's lifeless body in his arms and carried it to outside of the cave, there were countless bodies of humans and animals and only a few people survived.
"Take anyone who was important to you," Maxon spoke.
"But then other animals can—" someone tried to speak but Maxon interrupted, "The war has been won and the dead cannot come back."
A few surviving people took their friends' bodies and followed Maxon with the body of Asaranda and when they were near their city, a loud horn's sound echoed in the city to mark the return of heroes.
People gathered around to see the head of Sars and in front of all were two people; a teen woman and her father.
"Father, who do you think survived it?" she asked.
"They are coming, you can ask themselves Cate." Her father replied.
Cate looked at him and replied, "Yes, I will. I will ask Asaranda, James, and Maxon how they defeated the legendary Komodo Dragon named Sars."
Her father looked at her and smiled.
The gates opened and the first person Cate and everyone saw was Maxon carrying someone but all Cate saw was that Maxon was alive.
She rushed towards Maxon and tried to hug him but she saw blood all over him and a deep cut at his forehead.
"Are you alright?" she asked.
Maxon looked at her, his eyes filled with tears and all he could say was her name.
"Cate!"
"Yes, I am here. Where is everyone?" she asked.
Soon only a few people entered all carrying someone with them.
"Maxon, where is Asaranda and James?" Cate asked with concern and then came her father, "Where is my daughter, Maxon?"
"Father, he is speaking." Cate spoke.
"James betrayed us, he was always involved with Sars and"
"And what?" Cate asked.
"Asaranda died."
Maxon uncovered the body's face to reveal Asaranda, both Cate and her father dropped to the ground with tears and screams.
"What happened to her killer, don't tell me you all came back running." Cate's father yelled.
Maxon showed them the right glowing eye of Sars to tell everyone that he defeated Sars to end the tyrant of animals.
35 Years Later