CHAPTER 28

“Wake up!” The old man’s hand aggressively tapped Sindri on his shoulders.

Like one who wasn’t sleeping from the beginning, Sindri had jumped up with a light speed that almost
alerted everyone else, but was quickly shushed by the old man. He signaled the now fully awake
human to wake the rest of his friends who were scattered across different partitions of the room. Their
sleeping positions were always awkward every night depending on the mood and the amount of food
they had eaten too. Zayir and Checy would sometimes wrap themselves up in manners that confused
the rest of the tent mates how they intended to detach from each other. Dara on the other end cuddled
herself up in the old fashioned way of inclining her legs at an angle to touch her forehead. In a moment,
Sindri had managed to bring everyone to their feet, hurriedly following the old man outside the tents
into the woods. Surprise was written on the faces of the four teenagers as they keenly watched the old
man jumping through the woods and shrubs with the agility of a middle aged fellow. Ever since the
beginning of their training, never for once had they seen this kind of activeness or response from the
old man. He had always appeared to be weak, frail and weary in terms of speech and appearance.
The night before, although he had acted weirdly and unusually different from every other story day,
they had felt it was the weather change or an unconscious sad illusion cast by Dara.

With each step he made towards a dark pathway they had never seen before in all their years in camp,
the teenagers got more impressed at the old man’s skills. The woods were tricky and even to the
Gnomes, navigation of an unpredictable pathway such as this called for absolute carefulness. The old
man seemed to know where he was headed and the right turns to lead them there. The journey was
looking like the end was near with the old man gradually slowing down his pace down. They quickly
swerved around a corner and met a cliff edge. The old man was practically aware of the cliff ahead,
comfortably applying brakes to his legs and stretching his hands sideways to hold back the running
teenagers from accidental falls down the cliff. Zayir and Checy were however barricaded by a stomped
feet in their case since their heads were way below his waist level. In unison, like they practiced in
camp, they had filed up in an horizontally straight line as the old man turned to face them.

His face read different meanings and it was obvious he was about to say important things, so everyone
paid attention.

“Alodo is in our midst.” The old man stated in a tone meant to send a message to the teenagers. The
tone was enough to change the mood of the clouds. It started to rain.
Sindri eyebrows raised. Dara was calm; it was in her place during moments like this to swallow every
word till the end. Zayir was scared; the nearby trees were beginning to shake and fragments of rock
started to move about, an obvious feature whenever her thoughts didn’t suit well with the atmosphere.
Checy was blinking. His entire body kept flashing like he was about to disappear into a different realm.

The old man continued, deliberately ignoring the expressions their body languages exuded, “Camp has
been infiltrated. As I speak to you, the Supremona forces have been sent out on a special order to
capture everyone within the camp and beyond. On an oath to die, they’ve sworn to take possession of
whatever held life that was in close proximity with the camp’s premise.”

He paused, “You kids have to go away now. Run as far and fast as possible.”

“What happens to you, everyone else, home?” Sindri had left the line. It was never advised to leave a
training position or interrupt an Elder, but darn the consequences, he wasn’t having a training session
now.
“From now hence forth Sindri, you have no home. You have nothing to come back to.” His voice this
time was full of emotions, but more than what he showed, a lot was concealed under the broken voice
that conveyed those words.

“Where do we go from here, Elder?” Dara was still in line. She was probably more concerned about the
way forward than the spill out of emotional display.

“Can you be less stiff-necked acting all superior when we know how much uncertainty you have
bottled up.” Checy was tired of her composure.

“Shut up, Checy.” Dara barked back. “Only babies are allowed to do what you are doing now.”
The rock fragments were gaining velocity in response to their increasing voices.

“Zayir, stop the chaos. I need you to focus.” The old man turned to her direction immediately.

“Here’s a map you will need on this journey.” He revealed a piece of rough paper from the side of his
dress; a silk clothing material that barely covered parts of his body.

“Your destination is an old haven of the Zanna race.” He pointed to a red marked spot on the map.

“In time past, it had served as a library where everything knowledgeable of good and bad existed. You
would be safe there, but the road you will go through,I can assure would be the most dangerous ever
faced.”

There was a rumble in the bush. Noises and far cries had been renting the air while they listened to the
old man talk. The Supremona forces were getting close.

“Elder, point the way for us so we can head on. Their footsteps tell almost a mile away.” Zayir was
back to her reality and was in better control of her doings.

“The way is west.” The elder announced with his hands directed in a distance across the cliff.

“But, how are we going to navigate through?” Sindri was approaching the cliff edge as he talked.

Down the cliff, there was the blue sea he had always heard about only in stories and fairy tales told by
the elders in camp. His life was about to change in split seconds and it was going to start with him
crossing over the blue sea.

“I don’t exactly understand what we are running away to do. What’s our mission?” He turned to Dara
in a bid to get her agreement. Unfortunately, her eyes had been captured by a rising smoke coming
from the tents area.

“Its time to go. Our ancestors are always with you.” The Elder issued a short prayer like sentence.
“Zayir” He called out, “you know what to do. Sindri, take leadership and make sure everyone crosses
the sea. The fate of the future is in your hands and you must not fail else our legends, legacies our
ancestors had left behind will fade off.”
Whatever the mission was, they weren’t entirely sure. They have been tasked with a location to get to
without looking back. The abandonment was a deliberate one and although they may live to regret this
day, it was mandatory for them to go.

“Elder!” a voice called out loud and quickly as it ended. One of the teenagers among the campers was
about to make an escape. She was already distances away from where they were gathering when an
entangled twine grabbed her legs, dragging her back into the covered bushes. The camp has been
totally invaded and races who tried to make a stand or run away were handled brutality in return.

Zayir dished out large fragments of rock into the air. The rocks were baseless, but large enough to carry
the weight of a single foot. Aligning them horizontally in a straight row down to the farthest sight she
could see, the rocks had created an evenly displaced pathway across the sea. The first step to their
destination was lying before them and irrespective of the skepticism attached to the unclear mission,
they still have to weed out any form of fear that wanted to arise.

“If we must get away, we have to go now.” Checy jumped on the closest rock fragment sitting few
centimeters from the ground. His body was no longer blinking and flashing as earlier. He had a strong
resolve written over his face too.

Sindri now administered with a new dose of inspiration hopped unto the first rock fragment directly
looking down on the blue sea. He stretched a hand in the direction of Dara who was obviously
surprised at the move. Beckoning her to come, his mind fast forwarded to the possibilities of losing her
in this unending journey of no mission. He had since come to terms that it wasn’t terrible to admit the
cheesy feelings he got each time their eyes met. This was however not a time to deliberate on his
selfish thoughts, but for the sake of the future and preservation of her kind, he was going to do
everything within his power to protect her in the course of their journey.

He vowed.

Figures were emerging from the bushes already as Dara placed her hands in his lifting herself unto the
next mass of stony material. Zayir led them, leaping from one rock to another. Whenever she met the
last rock, she positioned new sets in front. The other rocks falling in free motion after Sindri; the
formation held Zayir in front, Dara, Checy closely following, then Sindri.

At a comfortable distance while waiting for Zayir placements, they look back towards the camp arena.
The old man had earlier drawn a sharp blaring sword from his waist sheath separating them from the
swarm of attackers that emerged from the bushes. He was now in an intense battle with them; fighting
them off with everything he had. His life force was fading, yet his strikes ran deep as he relentlessly
defended on every side. They totaled over a dozen and in no distant time, he would be surrounded.

From the view where they stood, they could see other parts of the camp; scattered, smoky and full of
people. Not their people, but enemies. Everywhere was in chaos, the old man had surrendered in a
kneeling position, hands being tied to the back of a nearby tree.

He was human after all.

 29.
The last sight she saw of the old man surrendering had bothered her throughout the crossing of the blue
sea.
Dara had unconsciously recorded that scene as one of her illusions. She kept playing it in her head with
every rock pebble they jumped on and off from. The sea transition had been a quiet one, for there was
actually nothing to talk about. Nothing worth hearing asides from the swishing sounds of the moving
objects Zayir was placing for them to walk on.

The nearest land they could see was where they immediately headed towards. Touching down on the
ground, they carefully scanned their eyes around in search of threats. Their formation was in form of a
small circle with backs facing each other. They firstly moved round about in a full turn properly
observing every direction; north, south, east, and west.

After the survey and conclusion that the environment was safe to rest, they shifted from each other
towards the direction they originally faced.
Dara found a spot to sit down. Sindri was East, standing few meters away from her. She felt his eyes
watching her like in a bid to observe if she was okay.

“You should worry about where we are right now rather than stare at the tree shapes behind me.” She
lashed out sarcastically.

He instantly recovered his focus from her direction and proceeded to lean on a log of wood lying on the
floor.

“Is anyone hurt? Zayir? Are you fine?” Sindri deviated.

Checy looked down on hearing Zayir’s name being called out. He had climbed up a pine tree to view
the forest plans from the South side position.

Zayir simply nodded in response. Her head was bent into her short arms as she buried her face into
them. She was trying to recuperate from the work done. The journey over the sea must have been hours
long.

From the break of dawn when the old man had sent them off, they were able to just find their landing
spot at dusk. Sindri cast a blank stare in all directions to be sure he had their attention, “We need to
move forward. I think we have a map to read.”

The map was given to Sindri right before the armed men emerged and he had quickly jumped unto one
of those rock pebbles. Bringing out the folded piece of paper stuck in between his belt straps, he dusted
the surface of a tree trunk and opened up the map.

The marked red spot was still there at the center. That was their destination, but they needed a way to
get there. Around them, everything looked the same; the soil, the trees bearing a weird orange colored
fruit with parallel leaves arrangement.

“I think we’re in the Twin forest.” Checy declared. “Look, its right there on the map!” He continued
throwing short sticks from the height he was upon. His throwing accuracy was near perfect. The sticks
kept hitting the unnoticed spot on the map. It was marked with an awkward sign in brown paint almost
blending into the same shade as the map.
Sindri eyes widened in realization when he saw it. Zayir and Dara exchanged looks and shrugged in a
choreographed unison.

Drawn directly from the brown marked spot on the map was a line meant to point towards the next
location among the five marked out places. The line stretched in a zigzag pattern and closely followed,
it arrived at the red mark not touching any of the other marked spots on the map.

“What’s this?” Zayir impatiently withdrew from the gathering formed at the tree trunk.

“It only makes our journey easier. No other stops. If we can just find the pathways that will connect us
to our destination.” Dara explained as she also withdrew, leaving only Sindri standing by the tree trunk.

There was doubt labeled on Sindri’s face as he turned to face them, “I feel there’s something we might
be missing out somewhere, but I entirely agree either ways. Truth, we may not have enough training for
outside the camp experiences and whatever may come our way. We have to remain close to each other,
maintain a strong bond and no matter what, stick to instructions. Elder placed me as the leader on this
journey, as such it has become my responsibility to keep everyone safe at any cost.”

His face lit up with a sense of optimism, confidence and optimal ego.

“No matter what? I think that’s outrageous to say. Your decisions would not always be in our best
interests, so I’m sorry to say, but a part of your premeditated speech doesn’t suit right with me.”
Dara was stern with her words.

It was a norm for her to attack every of Sindri actions.

“This isn’t the right time to create a division, Dara. He’s the leader undisputed and for Elder to put him
in that position, it tells how much capability he sees in him. We can either choose to respect that or rule
out the success of this mission from our minds.” Zayir retorted.

“Besides, its not like what he said is against us. On a general note, we all know he even looks after
others better than he does to himself.” Checy quipped.

Dara wasn’t convinced with their attempt to support his words.

“I’ll be there when he tries to enforce an act on one of you and I will kindly drop a fair reminder of
what I said today.”

“That’s if we even live past today.” Checy let out in a careless manner. Sindri was busy having a
special moment with the map. He was engrossed in it turning it back and forth, curiously searching for
another lead. Dara watched him keenly.

“Are we moving out now or do we need to rest?” Zayir asked. “I’ll settle for the latter. I’m drained of
so much energy already.” She reached for the floor.

“Well, we can rest out tonight. But we’ll rise early to...”

“Sindri, wwwwww…...wwwwe may have to leave right now.” Checy interrupted in a stammering tone.
He was still on the tree top and his eyes were in a particular direction. They were bulging and exposing
the magnitude of whatever he was seeing.

“We really have to go now, guys,” he was running down the tree as he talked. Grabbing Zayir, he sped
into a right turn partly cleared to reveal a narrow track. The floor was laced with stones that shone like
pearls.

In a flash, Dara was making her way to follow the just disappeared duo. Reaching the entrance to the
pathway, she could tell Sindri’s heels wasn’t behind hers. She stopped to see a fearless Sindri standing
affixed to the same position he had been. He was actually waiting to see whatever Checy saw.

“What a fool!” She thought.

“Sindri, come on! Let’s go” Her voice rose and there was no doubt anyone could clearly hear her
distances away.

Whatever it was that Checy saw was definitely big. The trees were falling as the “what” came closer.

She didn’t know how to handle this impending doom and she wasn’t going to watch her supposed
leader die just now. Without hesitation, she ran to where Sindri stood half way hypnotized by the sight
he was about to witness. She grabbed his left hand where he loosely held the map and dragged him into
the open track.

The map dropped. She didn’t notice it as her eyes were focused on the uncleared path ahead. She
couldn’t any trace of Zayir or Checy. The trees were still falling behind them as they ran. Whatever
beast was pursuing after them had eyes and followed their footsteps too.

It was faster than them, but thankfully the obstacles between them slowed its movements. They got to a
dead end, now awaiting whatever was chasing them to catch up.

“Psssst...”

A whisper was coming from a distance. Dara was scurring her eyes around for the direction of the
sound. Sindri was a little more active now. The race down the narrow track had restarted his
consciousness. Simultaneously, he also was following the sound they heard. It was dark, so they could
barely see anything.

“Shush!” Checy whispered again. The voice was recognized and the running duo remained as quiet as
they could. Taking few steps back to gain more distance away from the beast, they almost collided with
Checy who had teleport-ed immediately to their location as soon as he spotted them.

“Ouch, watch where you guys are going.” He whispered again. Dara jumped up in surprise, only held
firmly by Sindri so she made less noise than expected.

Checy shook his head, placed his both hands on different parts of their body and in a flash, there were
only particles of dust rising up in the air.

Their arrival at the temple after days of constant running came as a relief. The beast had chased them
all the way. Once, they came face to face with it and they had no option but to fight it off. It wasn’t an
easy battle judging from the energy drained out from their life forces. Dara had to use her illusions to
distract the beast while Zayir launched elemental missiles on every unprotected part of the beast’s body.
Checy tormented the beast with his unexpected attacks and fast motility. The beast rained its own
damages, but Sindri was always there to speed up the healing processes of injuries incurred. Sindri had
single-handedly pulled a stunt before they made away with their escape plan. He attempted to take the
life of the beast through contact. Success in the act would have either killed him or squeeze out most of
his regenerative ability. A new discovery in the woods was that the beast was the guardian of the haven.
It was his lair and for them to gain access to the location, they would have to defeat it. There was
another option which they finally settled for– subdue it.

Exploring the location, it was an old abandoned building that looked like a temple. Its walls had
adornments, sculptures and images painted with abstract colors. There was no sign of life on the
building, but most of the apartments in it were full. Full of books, diaries and journals of old far back as
the Minoria times. Reading through some of them, they could recall some of the stories the old man
told under the moonlight while in camp. Checy could go through hundreds of the books in a day,
teleporting from one side of the library to another. A library there was as big as a three tents containing
books of different weights, sizes, colors and titles. Checy was up to the task though. Scavenging for
nothing in particular, he came across a locked apartment. All doors leading to apartments were usually
open or slightly locked using the door knob. This door was barricaded from the inside curiously
making the rest of the gang wonder what the door held. Checy had immediately reported his findings to
Sindri who led them to the particular place.

“Zayir can get this door open in seconds, I’m sure.” Checy teased her.

She replied him with a faint smile, “Air or Earth, pick your demon.”

“Whichever starts with a ‘Z’ and has a beautiful smile.” Checy winked.

Sindri and Dara just stood side by side admiring the duo. They were a lovely sight to behold and
although the show was applaudable, they felt too matured to show it.

Banging open the door to reveal a pulpit sitting in the middle of the room, all four of them stared at the
pulpit holding a book. It was a colorful red book with its pages open in almost equal halves. They
approached the podium where the pulpit was placed.

It was a diary with golden embroidery. There was a title on the cover page of the book. It read, Secrets
of a Minoria Race. A quick flip through its pages revealed the story of the wizards, the origin of the
amulets and the recovery.

On a page where Dara placed her hands, there were facts inscribed. The book was large in size and
written in bold texts to permit a lot of reading eyes. Dara and Sindri were the only ones actually going
through the book; Checy and Zayir were looking through other books, playing with ornaments around.
A part of the wizard story stated clearly that a wizard cannot absorb the amulet into his bloodline as
they have been made to believe. Originally, the composition of the amulets was designed to kill the
ancestors of the wizard, so the wizard could not possess the amulet’s power.

“If this is right, it means the amulet is still somewhere in existence and can be retrieved.” Dara voiced
out.
Sindri stares at her shockingly and beckons to Zayir and Checy at the other end of the room.

“Guys, we may just have a clue to our mission.” Sindri announced.

Zayir drops down the jewelries she held up in her hands. Checy was munching on something and
immediately stopped as the chains clanged on the floor.

While Sindri shared the discovery made from the books with Zayir and Checy, Dara surveyed more on
the book.
As expected, the discovery was shocking and unexpected. They had been taught a different thing all
their lives and here was something that gave hope.

Something that promised a new home for all of them. Minoria.

Dara was reading another part of the book and wasn’t conscious when she interrupted the meeting
Sindri was having with Zayir and Checy.

“Sindri, read this paragraph.” She directed the book to Sindri.

“A day shall come when a Merovian blood will one day wield all the artifacts and power of the gods to
save the world from a unworthy enemy.”

He stopped at the closest punctuation.

“A merovian blood?” Checy queried.

“There is actually a hero who would come and save us? These things still happen?” Dara responded
back with a question.

“I’m curious about this Savior. So much unique races, where would he come from?” Sindri started
prancing to and fro.

“I will just hold unto this.” Dara attached the book underneath her arm like someone wanted to take it
away from her. The book surely had a lot to tell them, as with every page turned and digested had a
new discovery inside. They kept learning, studying the book and others like it.

This place was a preparation ground stocked of resources. A whole library full of adequate knowledge
for their mission.

THIRTY
“We have been here for a very long time already. It could be years out there and we don’t know
because we are enclosed within these walls. I wonder what we actually do here everyday.” Checy had
been complaining.
The temple was frankly no fun asides the books and journals that littered in the several apartments. A
person like Checy was easy to get bored having seen all the rooms in the entire building – literally.
While Dara studied, Sindri kept on strategizing, Zayir used to being on her own either busied herself
with new tricks or slept off amidst piles of gold and silver accessories.

One night as they were preparing dinner, Checy decided to bring up the topic for another round of
discussion. It was a topic that had never left their lips for a day. Since the discovery of the book with
those secrets, the urge to leave the haven had been resting in their individual minds.

“I still think its time we move out of here, Sindri.” He broke the silence of the meal. Dinner was always
the same kind of food every night. It was a particular mushroom that grew off the walls inside of the
libraries. There were of different colors; red, purple and the favorites – green which combined a sweet
and sour taste on getting to the taste buds.

Sindri swallowed a piece of what he was already chewing before he proceeded to answer.

“We are ready to move, but are we sure of what to do when we actually leave the haven.”