Free Web NovelChapter 347: Planting A Seed
The night over Beirut was unusually quiet. Far away from the government compounds, military checkpoints, and luxurious estates occupied by those loyal to the Blood Dunes, a modest apartment remained lit well past midnight. Stacks of papers, newspapers, and handwritten notes covered the small dining table while a television silently replayed footage of yet another checkpoint inspection carried out by armed members of the Blood Dunes.
Seated before it was Karim Haddad.
A lawyer by profession and a vocal advocate for civil reform, Karim had spent the last six years exposing disappearances, unlawful detentions, and abuses committed under the ever growing influence of the Blood Dunes. His speeches had earned him admiration among ordinary citizens and hatred from those who truly ruled the country.
Every article he published, every interview he accepted and every speech he delivered brought another anonymous threat to his doorstep, yet he refused to stop. If someone had to speak for the people, then he had already accepted that it would have to be him.
He rubbed his tired eyes before closing the folder resting on the table.
"There has to be another way..."
The words escaped him almost unconsciously as he leaned back against the couch. At that exact moment his phone buzzed on the table. Karim lowered his gaze toward the screen and sighed upon reading another anonymous message.
"Stop talking while you still can."
He stared at those words for several long seconds before locking the screen without replying. His shoulders slumped with exhaustion. Sleep had become increasingly difficult over the past few months, yet tonight fatigue finally overwhelmed him. Resting his head against the back of the couch, his eyelids gradually became heavier until they finally closed.
Unknown to him, several figures quietly stood around him.
Linda quietly watched the sleeping man with genuine surprise written across her face. Throughout her years serving the Order of Moses, she had witnessed exorcisms, miracles and spiritual battles, but never had she seen a skill that renders people invisible from human sight.
Damian calmly stepped forward until he stood directly behind Karim. Without saying a word, he gently placed one massive palm upon the sleeping man’s head.
Buzz!
The surrounding world dissolved.
Karim slowly opened his eyes and found himself standing barefoot upon a massive dune. Endless golden sand stretched beyond the horizon beneath an amber sky, while an unnatural silence blanketed the entire desert. There were no birds. No wind. No heat. It was a place that felt both lifeless and impossibly alive.
He frowned deeply.
"Where..."
His voice suddenly stopped as he heard soft footsteps steadily approached from behind him.
Karim slowly turned.
A towering figure nearly twelve feet tall walked across the dunes without leaving footprints behind. Long white robes flowed naturally despite the complete absence of wind while golden ornaments decorated the edges of the flowing garment. A veil concealed the stranger’s face completely, revealing only two radiant golden eyes that seemed older than time itself.
The surrounding sand gently rose around the giant’s feet like faithful servants welcoming the arrival of their king.
Karim instinctively felt his knees weaken. His breathing became difficult as m Damian’s golden eyes flared brilliantly.
[Soul Weight Activated]
An overwhelming pressure descended upon Karim’s soul.
Every instinct within his body screamed for him to kneel. His heart pounded violently while every muscle trembled beneath the invisible weight pressing upon him. Even drawing breath became difficult as though the desert itself demanded his submission.
Yet...
He remained standing while his legs shook violently. His vision blurred and sweat poured from his forehead but somehow he refused to kneel.
"Ooh?"
Damian genuinely raised an eyebrow.
Very few ordinary humans possessed this level of willpower. Even while bearing a fraction of the full weight of a demigod’s soul, Karim stubbornly remained on his feet.
Interesting.
Without another word Damian slowly raised one hand.
The desert answered.
Millions upon millions of grains of sand erupted into the heavens. Towering hurricanes formed all around them, swirling violently in circles that stretched high into the endless sky. Entire mountains of sand rose and collapsed repeatedly, creating an overwhelming display of divine authority.
Yet despite standing at the very center of the catastrophe neither of them felt so much as a single grain touch their bodies.
Karim stared in complete silence with his mouth hung slightly open. His entire understanding of reality was collapsing before his eyes.
"The land remembers those who ruled through fear," Damian spoke calmly, his voice echoing across the endless dunes. "It remembers those who traded justice for power."
Karim’s breathing became increasingly uneven.
"Who... are you?"
Damian ignored the question entirely. Instead, he continued speaking.
"The desert does not belong to tyrants. The desert belongs to those chosen by Heaven."
He calmly walked forward until only a single step separated them. Then he gently placed one enormous hand upon Karim’s shoulder.
Their eyes met and Damian’s golden pupils glowed brighter. To Karim’s astonishment his own eyes suddenly began glowing with the very same golden radiance.
"And I have chosen you to be the one who saves this nation."
Karim’s eyes widened until they almost left their sockets.
"But... how?"
His voice cracked with desperation.
"How can I possibly save this country?"
Damian merely raised one finger.
Immediately, a small whirlwind of golden sand formed beneath Karim’s feet. The tornado slowly lifted him into the air. His robes fluttered violently as the world beneath him continued shrinking.
From that elevated vantage point, Karim finally saw the true scale of the desert. Countless colossal sand hurricanes surrounded them in every direction like living walls stretching endlessly across creation itself.
The sight robbed him of speech. Damian looked up toward him calmly.
"Is there anything impossible for God?"
Buzz!
The words struck Karim harder than the storm itself. His breathing stopped and his racing thoughts suddenly became quiet.
Is there anything impossible for God?
He slowly looked around at the impossible world surrounding him.
The hurricanes.
The floating sand.
The towering deity.
The impossible serenity amidst absolute chaos. The answer was obvious.
Tears welled within Karim’s eyes and his lips trembled. He wanted to speak but instead his eyes violently snapped open. Karim jolted upright upon the couch, gasping loudly as though he had nearly drowned. His heartbeat pounded against his chest while cold sweat soaked his clothes. The dream had felt more real than reality itself.
Then a burning sensation erupted across his forehead.
"Ah!"
He clutched his head instinctively before stumbling toward the bathroom mirror. His breathing became increasingly frantic as the burning intensified with every passing second.
Finally reaching the mirror, he slowly lifted his gaze. His pupils contracted. Etched upon the center of his forehead was the glowing symbol of a fox. Its elegant tails curved around themselves while its narrow eyes seemed almost alive beneath his skin.
Karim reached toward it with trembling fingers. The symbol was warm. Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the glowing mark slowly faded until nothing remained.
His legs gave out beneath him and he collapsed beside his chair. Tears poured freely down his face he clasped his trembling hands together.
"My Lord... I don’t know your name, I don’t know where you came from. But if You truly chose me, I will not fail You."
His cries echoed throughout the silent apartment as he prayed with every ounce of faith he possessed to a nameless God he had only met within a dream.
Yet although Karim did not know that God’s name, his faith did.
Standing silently within the room, Linda watched everything unfold with complete disbelief. She slowly turned toward Damian, her blue eyes filled with confusion and astonishment.
"What exactly did you just do?"
