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
It was noon when Mane opened his eyes. It took him less than a second to get accustomed to the bright light peeping through the blinds.“How long has it been since I slept so well?” Mane wondered. Since he was young – even during the times it was recommended that he sleep several hours so he could grow properly – Mane hadn’t been one to sleep for long hours. He slept an average of 6 hours each day and seldom awoke after the sun had fully revealed itself. Yet today he had awakened much later than he usually preferred. And he reckoned that he had been asleep for at least 9 hours.“Yes. I was actually quite impressed that you were able to sleep that long.” Hildegarde flew over to Mane’s side with a slight smile on her face. In her hands was a regular-sized lollipop. Of course since Hildegarde was tiny, the lollipop was as tall as she was.“So how was it? Do you feel refreshed?” Hildegarde asked as she sett
Ancestor Pier had been feeling uneasy these past few days. He didn’t know what the source of his anxious thoughts were, neither could he conceive any possible problem. Was it Ancestor Bold? Had the man somehow bungled an easy mission? But that didn’t seem to be a cause of worry for him. After all, Ancestor Bold failing was Ancestor Bold’s problem. It had little to do with him. So what could be the source of his worry? What was the issue burdening his usually calm heart?“Ancestor Specter. Or would you rather I call you Grandpa Pier like Lam and Lily.” Suddenly a calm voice invaded his senses and sent him on the alert. He jumped to his feet swiftly, knocking the glass vase next to him onto the ground. It was a valuable piece, but in his anxious state that mattered very little to him.“Who is that?” Ancestor Specter lifted his hand to reveal a dark brown aura as a golden armor was summoned around his body. His spirit was strong f
Ancestor Specter looked outside his study room’s window with a torn expression on his face. He had the gaze of a man forced to make the hardest decision of his life. The complexities within his turbulent gaze were expressed to the trees whose branches shook ever so freely in the wind. And for the first time in his long life, Grandpa Pier envied these trees.“How nice it must be to not have to make such decisions in one’s lifetime,” Ancestor Specter sighed, longing to be one of the trees planted in his large backyard. Even being a branch would suffice for now. For it seemed much easier to be a living thing that could be here today and cut down tomorrow than to be an Elemental Ancestor wiling to abandon his leader. But it seemed that his wish was never going to be granted.“I am sorry Grandpa,” Lily stood behind the old ancestor with a face full of regret and remorse. As the one who had found the evidence that implicated Ancestor Origi
Mane walked down the streets with calm, determined steps. His face was covered with a black mask; the very same one he had used years ago when he competed as part of the Orange Team. After all, he wanted t be able to visit Amalgamation again. And it would be difficult to do so with his face exposed. His blindfold was off, exposing his beautiful blue eyes. From time to time they flashed and transformed into his True Eyes, but only briefly. Everywhere he stepped his air of intimidation forced people back into their homes. And many scrambled to get back, knowing full well that this person was looking for trouble.“Sir, what do you want?” Many guards were alarmed by Mane’s strange getup. His mask aside, he was wearing a large black cloak with the sigil of a Silver Wolf printed boldly on the back. On his back were two swords that were delicately held in intricately woven sheaths. What ticked the guards off was that the sigil on the sheaths was that of the Black D
“Ah, the first one arrives,” Mane smiled as he stepped across the stones of the large street he stood on. Even without looking he could feel the approach of Ancestor Fire. Her fiery aura was like a blazing furnace, and the lesser man would have cowered before it. But the one who stood here was no lesser man. Mane’s smirk was impudent at least and mocking at best. He waved his hand like a man swatting away a tirelessly curious fly and the guards who lay fallen at his feet were pushed gently to the side.“Who dares to run rampant in Amalgamation?!” Ancestor Fire’ strong screech arrived even before she did. There was a kind of authority that couldn’t be concealed in that voice.“I do,” Mane smiled and responded. His voice wasn’t as loud, but it was clear and vibrant. His voice was like a judge – an arbitrator – and Ancestor Fire’s authoritative statement was crushed.“Ashera’s
Mane was formerly a boy of his word. Now he was a man of his tongue. Once his words were rattled off his tongue, a great aura filled the entirety of Amalgamation as the heat the young Supreme had summoned increased in power. Mane lifted up one hand and all the flames rushed above that palm as a large fireball, almost as large as a medium sized mansion, filled the street.“Magnificent,” Mane smirked and thrusted his palm towards Ancestor Fire whose expression was completely pale by now.She took a several large steps backward, trying to create as much space between herself and the large fireball as possible, all the while spinning her slender cane before her to gather a small fire cyclone that acted as a barrier. However, even with her great speed, Ancestor Fire couldn’t seem to escape the looming fiery contraption that approached. And soon it was upon her.“Boom” Mane whispered delicately, and the large fireball exploded.*BO