Chapter 13: THE VOW OF THE FALLEN EAGLE (part 1)
Only the coldness of death and the stench of burnt blood remained in the valley.
The dark, stormy clouds gathering in the sky were still witnesses to that terrifying clash, where just moments ago, a battle had taken place between Aslam, Maazin, and Abu Al-Salasil that shattered the very laws of reality.
Right in the center of that devastated valley, inside the massive crater, Aslam was on his knees in the dirt.
A warrior whose very name made demons tremble was now lying helpless in the dust like an orphaned child.
His right arm had been completely torn from his body, and the thick blood flowing from the wound was staining the ashes below red.
But Aslam was entirely oblivious to the agonizing pain of his body.
He held Maazin's lifeless, cold body tightly in his remaining left arm and blood-soaked lap.
Maazin's eyes were still open, but there was no light left in those golden eyes; only the empty silence of death.
There was a gaping hole straight through his chest.
The man who always spoke, who always gave courage to everyone, was saying nothing today. He was absolutely silent.
"No... why did this happen..."
a whisper escaped Aslam's throat, buried under the weight of grief and madness.
His tears continuously dripped onto Maazin's dust-covered face.
"Why aren't you saying anything,
Maazin...
why did this happen...
why aren't you getting up..."
And then, as the absolute truth of this death pierced Aslam's very soul, a horrifying, heart-wrenching scream erupted from his chest, shaking even the broken mountains around them.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!"
That scream tore through the chest of the sky, echoing through the winds of the valley and spreading for miles.
Right above that crater, on the edge of the broken cliff, three living breaths were hiding beneath a pile of dust and ash—Fatima, Ali, and Yusuf.
After the previous terrifying blast and lightning strike, they had buried themselves in the dirt out of sheer terror, holding their breath.
As soon as Aslam's agonizing scream reached them, Fatima fearfully pulled her head out of the dust.
Her lips were trembling with fear and cold.
She looked down towards the valley.
The smoke had cleared, and Aslam was crying alone in the dirt below.
"Allah forgive me..."
escaped Fatima's lips in absolute terror.
"Mother..."
Ali asked, crying with his dirt-covered face,
his small hands trembling.
"That's Maazin near Aslam, right?
Did he... did he fall?"
Without uttering a single word, tears streamed from Fatima's eyes.
She tightly grabbed both children's hands and, sliding down the path of the broken cliff, rushed quickly towards the crater below.
At the same time, miles away from the valley, in a dense and terrifying jungle...
Noor Jahan was moving forward, gripping her 'Star Gazer' bow tightly. After defeating Huba Huba in the cave, she hadn't delayed for a single moment.
She was leading Zainab and her two children (Hashim and Zayd) out of that shadow of death, guiding them through the jungle path towards the valley, knowing that Aslam and Maazin were fighting there.
The atmosphere in the jungle was dreadful.
The centuries-old burnt trees looked like towering black demons.
Zainab, holding her children's hands, was walking right behind Noor Jahan in fear.
Imran's death had completely broken Zainab, but she was mustering her courage for the sake of her children.
"We have to move fast, Zainab,"
Noor Jahan said, looking ahead.
"The scent of ozone and fire in the air is getting very strong.
The battle in the valley is still..."
Suddenly... a blinding blue and red light flashed across the sky.
The ground shook so violently that Zainab and the children fell to the jungle dirt.
It was the blast of Maazin's final 'Celestial Firework Finale' and Aslam's 'Thunder'.
After that massive explosion, a suffocating silence fell over the jungle. The wind stopped blowing.
Noor Jahan's footsteps halted right there.
Her glowing purple eyes were staring in the direction of the valley.
Her heartbeat suddenly accelerated.
And then...
piercing through that deathly silence,
Aslam's terrifying, soul-crushing scream from miles away crashed against the jungle trees and reached them.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!"
That sound was so agonizing that even the remaining ghost zombies in the jungle trembled with fear.
Noor Jahan's entire body shuddered as if someone had placed ice on her very soul. Her lips went dry.
"That voice..."
Noor Jahan's words turned into a whisper.
"That was Aslam's scream...
But Aslam never screams in pain like this.
No... something terrible has happened!"
"What happened, Noor?!"
Zainab asked fearfully, getting up from the dirt.
Zayd and Hashim had started crying from fear.
"We need to run towards that valley right now!
This very instant!"
Noor Jahan yelled in anger and fear, and they all began sprinting straight towards the valley through the jungle path.
At that exact moment, in another part of the village...
Haibat (who had effortlessly hoisted the blind and unconscious Omar onto one of his massive shoulders), along with Raziq and Zahira, were sprinting rapidly towards the valley.
They were passing through the ash-filled path of the ruined village when Raziq suddenly stopped.
Right behind him, Haibat's heavy footsteps also came to a halt.
Right in the center of the village, where Jabar had wreaked havoc... a 14-year-old boy stood like a statue amidst the piles of dirt and ash. Farid.
There were no tears in his eyes, nor fear.
There was only a death-like emptiness.
Right at his feet in the dirt lay his father's (Khalid's) heavy, burnt Iron Axe.
Farid slowly lowered his lifeless eyes and, with his small hands, gripped the handle of his father's massive, heavy axe.
He tried to lift it with all his might, but the axe was so heavy that the iron head remained on the ground. He began trying to drag it.
When Haibat saw the lifeless eyes of the child and his immense pain, even the heart of that mountain of a man swelled with emotion.
Haibat walked with his heavy steps and stood right in front of Farid. Omar was already on one shoulder.
Haibat reached out, gently grabbed Farid with his other massive hand, and without asking a thing, lifted him up and placed him on his other broad shoulder.
"Some burdens are too heavy for small shoulders.
Haibat said in a gentle yet deep, fatherly voice.
"That is why men like us exist. From today, you will not carry this pain alone."
Raziq, who was standing quietly observing everything, stepped forward.
The assassin lifted the heavy Iron Axe from the ground with one hand.
He looked at the burnt iron of the axe and, glancing at Farid, spoke in a cold voice:
"It's heavy...
but its time will come.
Until then,
it stays with me."
Farid didn't answer; he simply rested his head on Haibat's shoulder.
His eyes were still empty, but he was no longer alone.
Without uttering another word, Raziq (carrying Farid's axe), Haibat (carrying both boys on his shoulders), and Zahira rushed swiftly towards the valley through the jungle path.
In the final stretch of the jungle, where the path to the valley began, the two groups crashed into each other face-to-face.
From one side came Noor Jahan (with Zainab, Hashim, and Zayd) running, and from the other side arrived Haibat (carrying the two boys), Raziq, and Zahira.
As soon as the two teams came face-to-face, everyone's footsteps halted.
Noor Jahan was breathing heavily; a storm of terrifying fear raged in her purple eyes.
She looked at Haibat and Raziq.
"Tell me...
you guys heard Aslam's scream too,
didn't you?!"
Noor Jahan asked, panting with desperation.
"Yes,"
everyone nodded in agreement simultaneously.
Hearing this, Zahira's entire body trembled violently.
Tears of fear began to flow from her eyes, and her voice broke.
"My mind...
my mind is filled with terrible, terrible thoughts,
Noor...
Has... has something horrible happened to them out there?
Aslam's voice was so broken..."
Raziq stepped forward and tried to calm Zahira and Noor Jahan with his logic, even though his own mind was extremely restless.
"Control yourself, Zahira,"
Raziq said in a very steady, serious voice.
"Aslam is absolutely not the kind to give up so easily.
He is immensely powerful.
We know that even if all of us combined, we couldn't stand against him alone.
The truth is... he is much more powerful than both Noor Jahan and Maazin.
Nothing could have happened to him, I am absolutely sure of it."
Haibat raised his massive hands towards the sky, a deep sorrow and prayer in his heavy voice.
"Who knows what happened to them alone in that darkness...
May Allah ensure they are alive and safe."
These terrifying words made Noor Jahan's heart pound even faster. Her anxiety was now morphing into anger.
"Stop this useless talk, all of you!"
Noor Jahan ordered, shouting in a strict voice.
"And follow me quietly!"
(Chapter Part 1 end )