The dwellings of Shishun were souls resided till they received a pass to ascend to any of the upper heavens. The human idea that they would het a free pass to living the rest of eternity in heaven if the managed to break free of the Karma cycle was naïve. Shishun was a city that spanned far and wide and was growing every day. Thanks to that curses that most of the blood lines had on them these days. The souls were just stuck here till their curse was not broken. Ska had taken to living in this city. He had volunteered to stay back in the city to help with defense efforts.
Demons were aggressively trying to invade the Astra realm where the city was located. Ska has fought back many efforts by the demons to take over parts of the city. Earth was almost lost. The demons were the puppeteers the third world war. Pulling the strings from the shadows. Making humans carelessly use the deadliest weapon of the times. The fallout from the nuclear weapons had made the planet unable to sustain substantial life. Its beauty was now only the dust on the pages of history.
The heavens would never give up on earth though, a planet that was created to mirror the beauty of the higher realms. Priests and priestesses were descending into the earth realm to pull the planet out from absolute doom.
Isnu had done much to pay her debts, learn lessons to be able to ascend enough to be able to be here. Even though she had a long way to go to reach heaven. There was a sense of peace here. She watched over the ones below. The ones in her charge on earth and on Astra.. protect a few of those left needed it the most.
Isnu sat at the pond as a soft breeze brushed at her hair. Her eyes glazed over as she stared into the water. She occasionally dipped her hand inside the waters and moved it as though making symbols. Mostly after making a symbol the water came alive with a soft glow, but at other times, she winced in pain and her hand came out bloodied.
"Madam priestess," someone called her but the voice dulled through her intense focus on what she was seeing within the waters of the pond.
"Madam Priestess." The voice repeated as her hand bled again, Isnu winced again but kept her hand inside the pond even as the waters turned red with her blood.
"Madam Priestess. "She brought her hand out of the water cradling it with her other to ease the pain.
"Yes," Sir Pax, she acknowledged the man standing beside her.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, ma'am." The man handed her a sealed scroll bound close with a thin line of glowing gold cord, "but you have received summons ma'am."
"Oh, thank you for bringing it all the way here to me."
"Thats not a problem ma'am. There is a guard waiting to escort you."
Soft grass beneath her feet and the cool wind rushing past her face reminded her of the one planet that was fashioned to mirror this beauty. The planet that was being ravaged by warfare. Demons trying to establish their stronghold, corrupting souls, taking over vessels, tainting bloodlines with curses. It was getting difficult for the souls in the karma flow to survive the aggressive and cruel invasion. They had developed a taste of the human blood and were captivated by the innocence of souls on earth.
The demons were willing to pay any price to win the war. And accomplish their goal of ruling all the realms of existence. The demon kind had started seeping through to the Astra realm.
Beings were fighting with all of their might in the astra realm. Warriors and priestesses and priests ere willingly descending into the earth plane and Astra plane to help fight off the invading demons.
She knew very well what this summon was for. The bloodlines she was tasked with looking after were all being bound by curses. She knew that a time would come when she would have to decent into the karma flow to break these curses.
She was ready, a lot of her allies were already on earth plane fighting their own battles. She would not be alone. And besides. Earth was a planet that she loved dearly. It was her home at one point. The beauty of the planet was a close match to the heavenly planes. Beauty that was now tainted by spilling innocent blood and spreading fear and greed.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she said, trying to distract herself from the dark thoughts. The gold trim of her flowing blue robes brushing over the short grass as they walked, making their way back to her quarters.
"It is indeed ma'am"
"We could take the portal, ma'am?"
"I'd like to take in the scenery while I still can, sir Pax," she said as she unravelled the string on the scroll and opened it. The string dropped to the ground and disappeared into golden dust.
"Of course!"
They walked as she read through the scroll, it too disappearing into golden dust once she was done.
"Sir Pax, I have been asked to enter the cycle. Will you join me to guide me?"
"With no questions asked, ma'am."
"Thank you! I will put in an official request."
"Also, please summon Ska for me" With that sir pax opened a portal and disappeared beyond it. Ska was a fearsome warrior. Pax rarely got along with the man, but Priestess Isnu was right to put her trust in him to protect her soul core.
Pax had found Ska in the Shishun dwellings of the Astra realm. The man had taken up residence there refusing to ascend to the higher realms. He felt obligated to protect what he could in the Astra plane. In Pax's eyes that gained him a whole lot f points. But they all dwindled down to a fat zero when his sarcasm and arrogance came out to play.
Pax made his way to Isnu in her quarters once he had found Ska and dragged him along to meet with the Priestess.
Ska looked positively bored as he leaned against one of the overly ornate walls of the living quarters.
Pax knocked at the door, "madam Priestess?"
The door slid open, "Sir Pax, Ska, Please come in." She gestured them into her quarters.
They entered an elegant looking study space with a assortment of rare books and scrolls. Scattered amongst these were a multitude of intricate looking devices. A large table in the middle of the room with books, stacks of parchment, quills and other delicate looking trinkets.
"Sir Pax, you have been approved to descend into the river with one other. I leave the planning to you."
"Absolutely my lady." He moved aside, "at your request my lady," he gestured to Ska who was busy poking at a circular device of some kind. The device letting out short sparks every time he spun the wheel attached to it.
"You may not want to do that Ska. That is a celestial weapon," Ska jumped back at that.
"You have celestial weapons lying about your room!" He gave Isnu a skeptical look. "Dangerous, don't you think lady Isnu?"
"Any how, I heard you needed my assistance?"
"Yes" Isnu said, "I have been summoned to descend into the river. "I would like you to put together a team to bring my soul core to the star lake. "Ideally without anyone dying."
"Oh that's all? So like, take your soul core and waltz through demon territory."
" I thought I'd expect something more dangerous from you"
"How do beings in the astra realm tolerate your sarcasm is beyond me Ska"
"Hey, they all love me!"
"Sure, they do." Isnu said, "last I heard, they received a prayer that begged to have you banished from the Astra Realm."
"Soma is dead." Ska muttered under his breath.
"Who is soma?"
" Just some drunkard I'm gonna toss in the frontlines of this mission."
"So, you are accepting!"
"Of course"
"That puts me at ease ska," relief was evident in Isnu's voice, "how can I ever thank you!"
"I won't mind having some of those shiny celestial weapons"
"Ska!"
"What! Isnu, there are so many of those no one will ever know." He winked at her earning himself an eye-roll, "and besides everyone is dying. Now, is the time to use them!"