“You went through all that? I am sorry I wasn’t there to help you out. As for scum like Ivor, they deserve to die!” Dan’s eyes flashed with great maliciousness when he mentioned Ivor’s name. It was one thing for the large man to attack Mane, but he did all this behind a veil. Besides, betraying someone was a highly despicable act.
“Oh don’t worry about Ivor. I took care of him.” Mane shook his head and said.
“You killed him?” Dan asked with some surprise. Mane had just resurfaced from whatever rock he was under. How was it that he had already found and killed the one who betrayed him?
“No, I broke his spine. He wouldn’t be capable of moving anywhere on his feet again.” Mane’s eyes were cold when he said this. And Dan felt a chill travel down his spine. He always sensed that Mane’s heart was immune to the death of his enemies. But crippling someone in a world such as this on
“Yes,” Dan nodded. “Have you never heard of it before?” Dan was slightly surprised that he knew something that Mane didn’t know, given how much the young boy had learned in his absence. But when he thought about it, it made sense. After all, the legend of the Dark Spear was an Ancient legend. And the fact that it was paired with a legend of himself meant that his people must have been very reluctant to let the other races in on this secret.“No I haven’t,” Mane admitted. There was no need to lie.“Well it originated from my race. We believe that it is because of this weapon that the Dark Valley is engulfed in darkness. But over the years many have rubbished it since it hasn’t been found. I have been searching for the spear all this while because my gut told me it was indeed real. And now that I know of Pazuzu, I am all the more confident in my initial assumption.” Dan told Mane what he knew and what he t
“Now let’s get back to the twins and see what they have found,” Mane mumbled to himself and slowly walked back into the city.“Are you okay? You seem awfully stiff.” Mane asked Hildegarde. For the usually talkative fairy had been quiet for a very long time.“I am fine,” Hildegarde’s lost expression was quickly replaced by her usual playful gaze. Her stiff legs started to swing up and down again, and her demeanor changed to what Mane was used to.“It was just that I realised that we are alone again. Like how things were before.” Hildegarde combed her hair with her thin fingers and said.Although to the World of the Three Great Races Mane was only gone a while, he was stuck in the Barrier for a very long time. It was a couple of months at the very least. And in all that time, the Watchers kept their eyes on him. So he and Hildegarde were never truly on their own. And when they left, they left
Lam’s words were like a detonating explosive to Mane’s mind. And he blanked out for a fraction of a second. Yet the words Lam spoke kept resounding in his head. During that brief spell Mane could have sworn that his brain replayed those words at least 5 times. And each time it sounded more unbelievable than the former. “Hold on Lam,” Mane rubbed his temples once he had recovered himself. “What do you mean by ‘all of them are traitors?’” Mane asked. How could every Elemental Ancestor turn their back on the Elementals? “It is exactly as I said,” Lam started before continuing thusly, “When we searched their places like you asked us to we saw all we needed to see. It didn’t even take long. For they didn’t take much care in hiding evidence of their conspiracy. The only home we had to search a little bit deeper was Ancestor Origin’s. But what we found showed that all of them are indeed traitors. The only person who has no idea of this is Grandpa Pier.” Lam sighed a
“That was a long meeting,” Ancestor Ice sighed in exhaustion as she dropped her tired body onto her couch. The large furniture caved in to accommodate the new weight and allow its mistress some much needed rest.“Yeah,” another voice chimed in as Ancestor Storm walked into the room. While he didn’t look as worn out as Ancestor Ice, traces of exhaustion could be seen on his face.Both were in Ancestor Ice’s mansion. They had retreated here, having been dismissed formally by the oldest Ancestor. Ancestor Ice and Ancestor Storm were very close. They had grown up together in their youth and had achieved a lot individually and collectively. In fact, there was a time when their families thought the two were in love with each other because of how close they were. But they weren’t. They were best friends and their friendship extended so deeply into their core that their close relationship remained even after both became Ancestors.
“Now as seasoned warriors and individuals of great understanding, you certainly know what I mean when I say do not get in my way, don’t you?” Mane asked rhetorically. He did still receive an answer.“The Barrier.” Ancestor Ice said as her beautiful face scrunched up into a frown. Ancestor Storm was quick to pick up on what Mane really wanted as well. The young man was asking them not to use their Keys when the time came. As for the moment he needed them to be quiet, it was certainly at the time Mane would be ready to strike.“Yes, the Barrier. I need you to do the needful. Do not invoke the right to your Keys. That’s all I need you to do.” Mane tapped his fingers on the armrest of the chair he sat on. His eyes conveyed a calm that put both Ancestor Ice and Ancestor Storm off. For they were not used to having people acting so confidently around them.“And what next after that? If you kill the Ancestors Amalgam
Back in Mane’s room, Sunflower was lying prone on the bed wearing nothing but a large black T-shirt. The size of the attire suggested that it wasn’t hers but was likely Mane’s. But since she was wearing it now, Mane could probably say goodbye to it. For there was no way he was getting it back, and events of the past had proven that retrieving any of his own clothing articles from Sunflower was akin to fighting a Battle God.“I thought he said he would only be out for a couple of hours?” Sunflower furrowed her lovely eyebrows with slight concern showing on her face.The sun had already gone down and the night had come yet Mane had still not returned. Considering that the young man told her that repairing the barrier would not take much time so he would be back soon, this was worrying. For though Mane was strong enough to fend off an Ancestor or two, he wasn’t even at the Pseudo Phenom level. Even as the young Supreme it would be diffi
Two years ago, when he first learned about Pazuzu, he sensed that Ashera was hiding something from him. But when he asked Sunflower about it, she was hesitant. Not wanting to put her in a tough spot, Mane asked her not to worry about it. But now that Ancestor Ice had informed him that Ashera was part of Pazuzu’s requested ‘items’, he had a feeling that it was this information that was hidden from him. What he didn’t understand was why they just hadn’t told him? They had him thinking she was the demon god’s daughter or something. And while Pazuzu treating human beings like property was horrible, it didn’t beat the kind of assumptions Mane had conceived concerning the situation in the past two years.Sunflower was silenced by Mane’s words. And her silence lasted a couple of minutes. Mane could sense several complex emotions running through her mind and flooding her heart. And so he hugged her tightly and said, “I am not accu
Hildegarde looked at Mane’s sleeping figure with a gaze that told of many stories – many unhappy stories. How would her own Tested do when the time comes? Initially she was confident Mane could easily leave this world behind because though he had friends in it, his heart was strong enough to abandon it as long as those friends were well equipped to handle the chaos of this world. It was one of the reasons Mane had helped the twins and Dan to grow stronger. But now what was he going to do? The feelings the boy had for Lily were best described as crushes so though Hildegarde used to tease him about it, she knew it wasn’t going to last. And as Hildegarde correctly predicted, time apart from each other erased those feelings from Mane’s heart. Now he regarded the Elemental Princess like a sister; news that would crush Lily’s heart if she knew since she genuinely was in love with Mane. It was different for Sunflower. With her, Hildegarde could see that Mane g