“So what do you think happened?” Clover asked. She was wondering if she should be as concerned as she was about the boy – as his father had recently vanished – but he didn’t seem the least bit worried about that.
“Oga and Kizer must have found out that this group was watching them. I think these two got to my father and his team before they could make a report to the government. Up until now, remaining in the shadows was the first priority of these so-called gods.”
“Up until now?”
“Things are about to change very soon, Clover, and we must act quickly.”
“Wait, wait, wait,” Clover slowed the flow of things, and took a seat while she made a deep sigh. “So your father and his team knew the truth about Oga and Kizer, and soon after, they disappeared.”
“Yes. I know what you’re thinking. And you’re right. Just knowing about these men put you in serious danger.”
“Why did you call me here? What do you need me to do?”
“All of the intel I have amassed, there is only one man in the world capable of putting it to good use – the mastermind behind our victory in the Black War – King Azar.”
As Ruben said, that, Clover just noticed a massive portrait of Azar pasted on the farthest wall. Even in how Ruben said Azar’s name, it was clear that the boy revered the young king.
“The enemies’ strength lies not only in their god-like prowess in battle, but also in their ability to see and track everyone in this world. Almost nothing is hidden from these men. To balance the playing field, you must get me to Azar.”
Clover nodded. Things were starting to make sense now. A little at least.
“Another thing you must know… The Elders have returned.”
“The E—What?! That’s impossible!”
Ruben snickered. “Such words lost all meaning the moment Oga awoke,” he said. “After you get me to Azar, getting to them will be our next priority.”
“But how will I get you to Azar to begin with? There’s no way I can shift that far!”
“Hmm. And Azar is yet to fully develop the--”
“Hawthorne!”
“She did run across my mind,” Ruben said, “but do you think she would co-operate? In fact, she might even have us severely punished for treason and blasphemy.”
“If I can get her to Azar, I’m sure that he will be able to prove to her all that we know! Once she believes us, there’s a chance we will have the entire Notherland on our side!”
“That does sound promising, but going to her is a risk--”
“--That we’ll have to take if we should have any chance against those two!” Clover said.
“If we are going to use Hawthorne to get to Azar, we must move quickly. Hawthorne’s life is in a brittle state at the moment?”
Clover didn’t bother to ask him what he meant by this. “Then I will get to her now!” Clover said.
“No. She has been in a top-secret government meeting for the last six hours. It should end soon. And then, she will be too exhausted to think clearly. Tomorrow after school you must get to her, and bring her to me.”
“How can you know all of this?” Clover asked, still bewildered.
“Unlike you, Clover, I am not a powerful sorcerer. In fact, I am not a magician at all. My power is in the pervasive eyes I have created. Shift back to your dorm before your roommate wakes. Get some rest. Tomorrow, we will begin to weave things together.”
Clover nodded. “Good night,” she bade Ruben, and shifted off.
***
Ohm, Shade, Lukia and In sat tensely around the table, looking at Vis, who had been sitting there for nearly two hours with his eyes closed. Lukia’s hand was tightly gripping Vis’ forehead, and mana left Lukia at a rate that would by then drain an entire Ogal Council. Lukia had become weary. Even so, his mana was not dented. Ohm started to wonder if Vis had fallen asleep. Vis had used the Mind Shift technique. On time itself. His idea was that this way, he could, with the help of Lukia’s mana, see the entirety of time from the moment they were sealed off up until the moment they were revived. Vis was certain that due to the power of his mind, this immeasurable amount of data could be absorbed, sorted and understood within a couple of hours.
But before the second hour had elapsed, Vis opened his eyes. Lukia sighed heavily and removed his hand from Vis’ forehead, massaging his aching muscles. “This better have worked,” he said.
“It has. I have seen all things,” Vis said grimly, his face pale with worry.
***
Clover went through the day absentmindedly, giving focus only to her thoughts of Ruben and the meeting she should have with him and Hawthorne later. Her last class for the day was History. She noticed that Ruben was missing. Terrible thoughts crossed her mind. I hope Oga hasn’t gotten to him.
As soon as she got to her dorm, she told Emma that she was going for a walk. Of course, Emma insisted on accompanying her. “I’ll only be a few minutes!” Clover said. “I’ll get us some snacks at the stall!” But as soon as Clover was out of sight, she vanished in a cloud of blue. She moved straightway to Hawthorne’s room, busting the door open.
Hawthorne’s head flew up from the table it was resting on. Her hair was all messy. Papers were scattered about the table and the floor. The woman’s face was drab and over-contoured. It was obvious that she hadn’t been sleeping well – or at all. “Clover,” she greeted, “what are you--”
“Hawthorne, you must come with me,” Clover said immediately, walking up to her.
“Come where?” But Clover only grabbed the woman and shifted with her. Hawthorne looked around quickly, immediately bewildered.
“Councillor,” Ruben said. Hawthorne just noticed him at a table. A pile of books and papers had hid his face.
“Clover, explain!” the woman said. Her eyes reached to a chart with her face on it. She read the details written about her in fine print. “What the--” Then she recognized the boy. “You,” she said, and walked over to him. “You are…” she struggled to remember his name for a moment, “Ruben Wester. Son of Reach Wester, the man who led the--”
“Yes,” Ruben said. “Pardon me, Ma’am, but there are matters that we must attend to with no delay.”
Hawthorne had given him a full scholarship to attend her school as some form of restitution, as his father and only parent had disappeared while serving Notherland.
“This place… All this…” Hawthorne moved around the quickly. The more she saw, the more impossible this all was to her. “How did you…”
Ruben understood the look on Hawthorne’s face. “I know you’ve been keeping tabs on my grades, and my general progress here at school. Based on what you’ve seen, I’m not supposed to be a genius, like my father was.”
Hawthorne could only nod.
“Well, getting exceptional grades would bring too much attention to myself. In my line of business, staying in the shadows is preferable.”
“You’ve deliberately been getting average grades, so as to keep yourself under the radar,” Hawthorne surmised.
Ruben nodded. “Councillor, I know that Clover has tried to convince you before that Oga and Kizer are alive, and that they were the instigators of the last war, and that they are about to start another.”
“That’s what this is about?” Hawthorne asked, sounding upset.
“It’s all true,” Ruben said. “Evidence of all this is all around this room. “Please, have a seat, Councillor; let me show you the truth.”
***
Thin flames crackled, flinging bits of orange up to the darkened sky. Ohm sank his teeth into the fish that was nearly too big to fit in his hands. He chuckled as he rummaged through the fish.
“How can he be so carefree?” In whispered to Lukia.
“It’s been many centuries since I’ve eaten! You think I’ll let the revival of a few gods and the disappointment of not having the Crystal Eye I’ve spent my whole life waiting for ruin my appetite?” he said with his mouth full, hearing In’s whisper.
A little distance from the three were Shade and Vis.
“Strange, isn’t it?” Vis said. “You were always so adamant on finding a way to go back in time and kill Oga. It turns out you have jumped forward through time instead, and here he is.”
“Kizer and Oga,” Shade said, “what chance do you think we have against them?”
“Remember, this fight isn’t only ours. There are others whose strength we must rely on.”
“We are in the distant future of our time,” Shade said. “No doubt, the men here are weak – too weak to stand a chance against Kizer and Oga. And the Crystal Eye, it has fallen into the hands of those two. Our great creation in the end is used as a weapon against us.”
“Need help with your fish, Lukia?” Ohm asked, tossing aside the bones of the one he had just combed through.
But Lukia was too upset to respond to such trivialness. “I have waited for thousands of years… I abandon the Council and destroy my reputation… all for nothing,” he muttered. “With the Crystal Eye, I could have… I could have surpassed even… Dammit!” he roared, and slammed his staff into the ground, stirring a small quake. “No one steals from me… Not even you, Oga!” Lukia blasted.
In sighed and shook her head.
“Relax, Lukia, there are still moves we can make,” Vis said, as he and Shade moved closer to the others. They sat about the fire.
“The gods and their children are about to wage war upon the world,” In said. “Without the Eye… our techniques cannot work against them.”
“They are men like us,” Lukia said. “They may be powerful, they may be etched in history as the strongest of all, but to say they are gods… I have never accepted that. They too, like all others, have weaknesses, and can be defeated.”
“That’s right,” Vis said. “Whatever goals you had tied to the Crystal Eye, they must not necessarily be abandoned. We will find a way to attain that power. But for now, we must focus on the matter at hand. Our power has been used to resurrect the sages, along with Witch and Wizard, but what’s done is done. We were the ones who made this possible, so it is our duty to defeat those that our power has brought forth. This will be an uphill task, but I already have a plan.”
***
All Hawthorne could do was shake her head. Speechless for minutes, she finally spoke. “No… No, this can’t be right. This can’t be true,” she said. She simply could not bring herself to believe that the god she had been serving, praying to, and representing for her entire life was a villain. What would this make her? And how could Oga and Kizer possibly be stopped?
“I know this is a big and bitter pill to swallow,” Clover said. “But right now, we don’t have time for disbelief. Notherland is the strongest continent – with millions of magicians. You, Hawthorne, are a Councillor! Surely, you can get word to the entire world with the power you have here. You can ready your army to stand against--”
“I cannot,” Hawthorne said with her head lowered.
“What do you mean?” Clover asked. “Are you saying that even after hearing and seeing all of this, you’re still--”
“I’m no longer a councillor. The council is no more,” the woman said, sounding empty. The words had to be forced out. She felt strange.
“What do you mean?” Clover asked, confused.
“The meeting,” Ruben said. “That’s what it was about,” he realized.
“The Prime Minister has officially disbanded the Ogal Council,” Hawthorne said. “The Council has fallen to ruins since the war. Even before then, the higher-ups have been pushing to remove the council.”
“Look, Hawthorne! Titles and positions are meaningless in a time like this!” Clover said.
“You don’t understand,” Hawthorne said. “Without my title as Councillor, I have no power in this country! How will I--”
“You’re still a sixth grade witch, aren’t you?” Clover said.
“Please, get us to Magma Land – we need to get in touch with King Azar,” Ruben came in. “He has on his watch a team of warriors who were crucial in the last war. Let us meet up with him and come up with a strategy to defeat our enemies.”
***
Even through his dream, Shade felt the sudden grasp on his shoulder. He opened his eyes quickly, and Vis felt his mana stifle for a moment.
“Come,” Vis said in a whisper. Without question, Shade arose and went with Vis away from the other three.
When Vis thought they were now far enough, after minutes of walking through thick, cold trees, he began. “I told you that Kizer and Oga plan to erase mankind, and start a new race of hybrids.”
“Yes,” Shade confirmed.
“Unfortunately, that is not the whole truth,” Vis came clean.
Shade sighed heavily. He didn’t know what Vis was about to say, but he was certain that it would only make things more complicated, more dire.
“Shade, Zagans are coming here. I thought that only The Seven remained of them, but in truth, millions more exist, and they are on their way to our world.”
Vis gave this some time to sink in. Even after a full minute, Shade could say nothing.
“This new race those two are preparing--” Vis said.
“It is an army to fight the Zagans… If the world continues as it is, the Zagans will no doubt destroy everything. But if Kizer and Oga cleanse the world and create this new race…”
“Shade!” Vis said, trying to supress his voice. “There must be another way.” Vis grabbed on to Shade’s shoulder. His hand shook slightly. The possibility of Shade aligning his mind with those of Kizer and Oga was his greatest distress.
“The Zagans, how long until they reach here?”
“Several centuries,” Vis said. “But men like us, we cannot see time like others do – not us who sleep for 20,000 years.”
“I know,” Shade said. “And their power?”
“Immeasurable,” the answer came. This answer was especially frightening coming from Vis, the man with the mind that could quantify and make sense of all things.
“You have not told the others,” Shade said.
“I fear they might think as Kizer and Oga do. Even I can’t yet see a way to save the world.”
“Besides their solution,” Shade said.
“That is not a solution!” Vis countered. “Kizer and Oga are not about saving this world; their plan is to forsake it, and create their own. Shade, we cannot allow this.”
“Let’s say Kizer and Oga have their way; what chance does the new world stand against the Zagans?”
“Quite close to zero,” Vis said. “The power that is coming… I can’t begin to imagine a force to stop it.”
“Those demons… Only one kind can fight that many,” Shade said.
Vis waited for the answer. He was desperate for it.
“Angels,” Shade said with a slight laugh.
“Well we must either create or become them,” Vis said. “Shade, I trust you now see it – our true purpose, the reason we’re here, in this time – it is because we are needed to destroy Kizer and Oga before they crush the world.”
“And our purpose is to fight with you as ignorant pawns,” a familiar voice came in. Eyes scattered in the darkness. It was definitely In who had spoken. In, Ohm and Lukia were just now revealed.
“Dammit,” Vis said under his breath. Lukia cloaked their mana perfectly. He could have…
“I knew you two couldn’t be trusted,” Lukia said, a bitter disappointment in his voice.
“Vis, what the hell is going on here? What the hell are Zagans?” Ohm enquired.
“Tell us everything, or I will kill you where you stand!” Lukia blasted, and his mana raged, heating the air. The powerful wizard felt a sudden weakness as Shade’s eyes touched him.
“Forgive me, all of you,” Vis said. “Having come this far together, I should never I have--”
“You acted correctly,” Shade said straightly.
Lukia gripped his staff tightly, and a quake fell upon the whole island.
>
“Lukia, relax!” Ohm pacified nervously, “Vis will tell us everything!”
Lukia calmed in a moment.
“There was a people,” Vis began. “A people called the Mananka…”
***
Magmalian guards drew their swords swiftly as the three appeared out of a cloud of purple mana.
Azar stood quickly and beckoned unto the guards to stay still. “They are friends,” he said, looking at Clover, and nodded.
“King Azar, I suggest you discipline your ‘friends’. We can’t have just anyone randomly barging in on meetings like these. This is not some kind of club house!” one of the wrinkled advisors scolded. Azar was at a round table with the thirteen most important men in the kingdom.
“King?” Clover said, then grinned widely. “Finally!” she twittered, and ran to hug him. Azar received the hug embarrassedly.
“Clover, what is this about?” he asked in a whisper, looking out at the woman and the boy. His face was pink.
“I am Ogal Councillor Hawthorne of Notherland!” Hawthorne declared. “I need a meeting with your king.”
At this announcement, there was a kerfuffle of mumbling and disbelief. Azar nodded at the men, and they quickly cleared the room. Azar stared forward at Hawthorne in reverence. Indeed, he could feel a powerful and even regal power emanate from her. “Madam Councillor,” he said. “What brings you here?”
Hawthorne walked up to the massive table and pulled out one of the twenty-pound chairs. She filled it up with her flamboyant dress. “You may be seated,” she said.
Clover chuckled.
Chapter 23: Seven Weeks
“What is your decision?” Vis asked those who sat still marvelling around the fire.
“This exposition changes everything,” Lukia said, and stood up. The look on his face concerned Vis and Shade greatly.
“Even so, we cannot allow the gods to destroy this world – not for any reason!” Ohm said.
“I agree,” In came in. “I suggest we collaborate with the heroes of the last war and take down the gods. Then, we can worry about preparing for the coming demons.”
“And you, Lukia?” Vis asked. “What is your decision?”
The Ancients Page 30
