The Dawn of the New World

The Grand Priestess opened her eyes halfway when she heard the door open.

"You're back...finally...the light is almost here..." she muttered weakly, her voice barely audible.

Jin Wang's brow locked in a tight furrow the moment he laid eyes on her. He quickly walked around the table and went up to her, placing his right hand on her forehead.

"Your mind palace is greatly damaged. If it was anyone else they would have died just from the pain and aftershock. What the hell happened here?"

The Grand Priestess swatted away his hand before taking a puff from her smoking pipe. Her hand trembled wildly just from bringing the pipe up to her lips and she wheezed and coughed uncontrollably right after.

The white lake and waterfall were part of her Mind Palace which were damaged by the light.

Jin Wang sat on the edge of the table and patiently waited for her to settle down before speaking up again.

"What happened?"

The Grand Priestess wiped the blood from her mouth, "It did, what you said might. What shouldn't have come to pass did, and what should have did not... it's all...wrong"

Jin Wang's eyes opened wide from astonishment despite her rambling on by herself. She seemed a little out of it but that was expected considering her condition.

"Really? What did it look like?"

"It started...with a yellow light that...shot up into the heavens. You were right, I could see his future, a very small glimpse of it. It was bloody and awful and he was alone...but then the chaos spread inside it an-and it started to change..."

"One into two, two into four and four into more and then even more when the other two touched him."

"The other two?! Who was it?"

"The girls, Ceni and Ma Jiang."

Jin Wang jumped to his feet, "How? How did the future change? What did you see EXACTLY?"

The Grand Priestess shook her head wearily trying to recall everything but her memories were foggy, "It was still fine when one of theirs and his fates clashed. They were both destined to be alone in this lifetime but by a miracle it became one. It wasn't going to be easy but both of them would be in each other's lives for a very long time."

"Complete opposite somehow fit well together and their future did not change greatly."

"It was still bloody but he would live a long time with her by his side. But when the other one's fate collided with them it changed everything, EVERYTHING! A completely new thread of destiny came into being weaving them all together."

Jin Wang's patience was running low even though she was making enough sense, "Who was it?"

The Grand Priestess paused to take a breath before meeting his gaze. She seemed at a loss for words as if she couldn't understand any of it.

"It doesn't make sense at all. Despite her problems she is a good child. By herself, she would have led a peaceful existence that would have brought prosperity to all around her. But with her and the boy combined it will turn disastrous."

Her gaze turned somber and resolute, "They are not meant for one another, it is unnatural. They should have never come into each other's path, never met to begin with. Together it will always end in disaster, with one of them losing their life before its appointed time. And whoever is left behind would be the source of a great calamity for us, one who could bring about another era of ruin."

She grasped Jin Wang's hand as tightly as her feeble body would allow it, "Listen to me, they can NEVER be together, no matter what. You must always keep them apart."

Jin Wang stared into her eyes and only saw fear. Whatever she saw in that brief moment had scared her so much that she couldn't even utter the words out loud.

"I understand, you don't have to worry, I will keep an eye on them. Which of the two girls are you talking about?"

"NO! You don't get it, they were not meant to be, not ever, not in this lifetime or any of the others. But their fates are sealed, intertwined for eternity and it won't be possible...and the white light, the white light mixed with their fate too. It was someone else's doing, someone controlling his fate from somewhere far away..."

She lunged at him while screaming, "KEEP THEM AWAY! The Daughter of the Hell and Son of Chaos must never meet!"

She started rambling on and on without making sense, pushing any coherent thoughts to the back while giving center stage to fear and dread.

He met her gaze and saw a sheet of yellow light stretched over her eyes. At this moment she probably couldn't even see him.

And he realized that it was not only because of what she saw. She was quite literally the one keeping the roof from collapsing over the city of Argham with her magic and after three full days of staying awake, it had taken a serious toll on her psyche. (Reminder: 1 day/night cycle is anywhere between 60-100 hours)

Jin Wang swiftly reached out and pressed a spot on the back of her neck. Her eyes closed and she promptly fell unconscious on the spot. He gently laid her down back in the chair but she was still mumbling something.

"Keep...them apart...

"Shh, we'll talk once you've recovered. Rest for now," he whispered into her ears and finally placated her.

She hadn't mentioned the girls by name but he had a pretty good idea who she was talking about.

Princess Ceni's father held the vampiric bloodline that came directly from the first blood demon, one of the strongest ones to have ever existed.

The curtain of silence fell over the room and out of nowhere Jin Wang heard a laugh, a hollow laugh that sounded like it came from somewhere very far away, like it was both real and imaginary at the same time.

"Hahahaha."