 
### Tales of the Arter Gems

### Episode IV

### A

### Twist of Fate

### Mario Walsh

Tales of the Arter Gems

Episode IV

A Twist of Fate

Mario Walsh

Published by Mario Walsh at Smashwords

Copyright 2013 Mario Walsh

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Thank you for downloading this free eBook. Although this is a free book, it remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied or distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoy this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy at Smashwords.com, where they can also discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

Other books by Mario Walsh

Episode III - The Chosen One

Episode V - Syra's Paradox

Episode II - The Pinnacles of Fate

Episode I - The Prophet and her Legacy

COMING SOON

Episode VI - The Syndicate of Time

Episode VII - The Mentor of Time

Episode VIII - The Guardian of Time

Episode IX - The Martyr of Time

Episode X - The Bounty of Time
Dedication to both

Life & Death

◊ Life ◊

BELLA DAVIES

"The cutest little niece in the whole world. Your uncle loves you very much. Every time I see you, I feel blessed to have you in my life. Hopefully one day, you'll want to read what I've left behind. I love you bells"

◊ Death ◊

MARCUS 'GOO' FALLON

23.06.1983 - 11.09.2008

'Lord of the Ringlets'

"One of the smartest guys I've ever known. You left this planet long before your time. My Gemini partner in crime. I will never forget our good times. This one is for you. See you one day, Goo. Love you, brother"

### Table of Contents:

Preface

I – And then there were four...

II – The Whispering forest

III – The Pond of Destiny

IV – Finally, another female

V – Bottom of the Food Chain

VI – Lair of the Goblin King

VII - Go on, SPIT out the Details...

VIII – The Parmyr Colossus

IX – Come on, just SPEW it out already...

X – What time is it Modnar?

XI – Time to be nice to dad

XII – Decisions, decisions, decisions...

XIII – It's time to split

XIV – What would we do, without Craboo?

XV – Where did you PLANT the entrance?

XVI – What time is it now, Modnar?

XVII – Make up your mind; Spit or swallow?

XVIII – Modnar's uprising

XIX – Worst case scenario

XX – A kink in the chain?

XXI – Difficult to see

XXII – My fiery adversary

XXIII – What a beautiful mourning

XXIV – Four Arter Gems, Three deceased, Two volunteers and a Phoenix only for me

XXV – The Send off

XXVI – My new powerful allies

XXVII – The final battle

XXVIII – Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory

About the Author

### Preface

Where do I begin? Do I start with the fact that I'm stuck in a foreign world without a map? My only guide was a ten thousand year old time guardian, who literally just disappeared; through a ball of kinetic energy. I'm sitting on a ledge high in the air, looking down on a city that's been completely destroyed, with no sign of life anywhere. I have two of the four Arter gems of Tharp and have no clue of where to go next. So, as I said before; where do I begin?
I – And then there were four...

How am I supposed to deal with what's happened in the last few days? Weak-minded people would turn to drugs, or even the knife; but not me. I'm too important to choose either of those options. I have to face my issues, head on, exactly like a Westie always does. 'Water off a ducks back' is what my mum would say to me; how accurate is she in this situation? Quite accurate.

Enaz and I are sitting on the ledge beyond the waterfall, looking down at my feet dangling over the edge, feeling quite blank. How else did Enaz expect me to act; what he has just told me isn't exactly something I expected to hear.

"You haven't said anything for several minutes now. I know I didn't pick the best timing to tell you, but I had to say something. I wanted to tell you when we first met, but Modnar informed me not to. I'm sorry," Enaz says, with much sincerity in his voice.

"Sorry, I've just been processing my thoughts; it's something that I do by the way, but I suppose you wouldn't know that though, would you? And with you being my father, you expect me to just start calling you dad? I still haven't fully forgiven you for what you did to Mum and me. You just took off. No note, no messages, no visits; nothing. You just left us there to rot. I know I now share the same air as you; I have wound up on Tharp and been here for the past three and a half months, and I haven't made contact with her to say that I'm okay. Just imagine how your wife and child felt for the past fifteen years? Look Enaz, I'm not ready to let the others know that you're my father. Sorry what can I say; the timing just isn't right!" I say, before diving off the ledge into the water below.

While I'm swimming to shore, I see Zekai wrapping some cloth around the gash on Vetor's leg.

"Sorry Vetor, no Modnar to spontaneously heal your wounds anymore. We have to do this, the old fashioned way!" Zekai says, while Vetor wriggles in pain.

"Argh man its sore! Wish we had some Flork on us, heal it up right away!" Vetor replies as I approach him.

"That looks really sore. Are you okay?" I ask, while crouching next to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Where's Enaz? How are you doing?" Vetor replies while Zekai wraps his injury.

"Enaz is still on the platform. I've just been digesting everything that's taken place in the last twenty minutes. Just can't get over any of it. But, we must press on. We have to quickly find the Western and Northern Arter gems; but now that our Tharp tour guide is gone, I wouldn't know where to start! Any ideas, Zekai?"

"Well, as you may have guessed, we're at the southernmost town on Tharp. Simple logic would suggest that we continue through Neca city, and leave via the Western exit. I'm sorry to say Syra, but once we head west, then we have travelled beyond my knowledge of Tharp. I'm a warrior; Modnar is the cartographer."

Enaz walks towards us and when he enters the vicinity, he begins to speak.

"I have never ventured very far West; there are tales of warriors not making it through the 'Whispering Forest' alive," Enaz says, a shiver goes up my spine.

"The Whispering Forest?" I reply.

"The Whispering Forest is filled with these creatures called 'Roobes'. They live in the trees; and they can smell your worst fear. All you hear in your mind when you travel through here, is the Roobes whispering your worst fear to you."

"That doesn't sound all that bad?" Vetor says.

"Well, if the whispering doesn't scare you, they'll jump down and attack; hence why no one has made it through alive," Enaz explains.

"Well let's not go through there then! Let's back track and head the long way to the last two Arter gems!" Vetor jokes.

"Vetor, we really can't really afford to do that. The amount of time that we would waste backtracking, would cause us to become behind schedule. We must travel through the Whispering Forest!" Zekai says.

"Are you sure that no one has made it through alive?" I ask.

"Quite certain. I suppose if someone has survived, then I'm sure we'll come across that legendary individual soon enough. I know I haven't heard of any survivors in all my years on Tharp, and I spend a lot of time in Neca City, at the old pub. Man I'm going to miss that place," Enaz adds.

"Well the sun is starting to set, so I think we should set up camp and leave at daybreak. Vetor and I are going to wander around the city ruins, see what we can find," I reply, helping Vetor to his feet.

"Be careful you two," Enaz replies as we walk away.

"We will!" Vetor yells back.

Vetor is resting his left arm around me, as I help him limp around the remains of Neca City; it's sad to see the state it's in. A plethora of ruins and bloody corpses; and it's now the second city on Tharp that we haven't had the pleasure of seeing, before being destroyed. I can't even really describe the city, as it's an interesting blend of black stains, ashes and large slabs of rubble. As I look left, remains of all the houses are everywhere. I can make out streets in between the rubble, with black smoke and dead bodies everywhere. The only structure remaining which bares any similarity to its former self; is the Colosseum. I want to head there now and check it out. Enaz says that a lot of history has taken place there; its history that I'll never see, but part of me still wants to stand in something so legendary.

"I'm glad you survived that battle with Gurdon and his army. It got a bit crazy, and I was scared of losing you," I say, as we continue to walk.

"It did get really crazy, didn't it? I'm glad we survived too! Rodland really trained us well; and he'd be so proud. We fought off hundreds of orcs and I'm not being macho, but I wasn't as scared as I thought I'd be!"

I giggle for a few seconds, but choose not to reply to Vetor. Instead, I stare his direction and smile. Sometimes in life, it's better to just take a step back and assess a situation, and if it's unnecessary to speak, then don't. I believe that you must do what needs to be done; and nothing more. Right now, I need to stay silent and let Vetor feel like we're doing okay, because in my honest opinion, until we progress closer to the next Arter gem, I don't feel like the fact that we are alive is enough to be happy about.

Suddenly, in the midst of the battle I'm having with my thoughts; I see a middle aged woman crawl out of a building in the distance. She is wearing a light blue gown that has been charred from fire; her skin is light, and stained black from the ash.

"Vetor! I have to go help her!" I yell, sprinting towards the survivor.

I approach her, bend down and cradle her neck in my lap.

"Don't you die on me! I'm Syra, the chosen one of Tharp! Did Gurdon and his orcs do this to you?" I say, wiping the blood off her face.

"Cough! Cough! We knew that death was coming to our beautiful city, Daweson saw it in that cursed pond! If only I had of listened to what he said, then me and my family could've escaped. It doesn't lie! The future is what it tells, yes it does! Cough! Cough!" The woman replies, coughing blood all over the place.

"What pond? Where in the city is that pond? Surely you don't mean the lake? Do you know where the Western or Northern Arter gems are?"

"Cough! Cough! The forest..." the woman says, in her last breath.

"Damn!" I say, gently laying her on the ground, and closing her eyes with my left hand. Vetor limps towards me as fast as he can.

"What did she say?" Vetor asks.

"She mentioned something about a cursed pond, and that she should have listened to Daweson, who said that the pond doesn't lie?"

"Well I can't say that I know what she was talking about, but we must definitely ask Zekai and Enaz about it."

"Well, let's continue to the stadium," I reply, as I put Vetor's arm over my shoulder.

Vetor and I slowly continue hobbling through the ruins of Neca City, and it quickly became apparent that there is nothing and no one left. While we continue in the direction of the Colosseum ruins, I look back over my left shoulder, and see Enaz and Zekai in the distance; they are seated in the same spot, chatting to each other. I'm keen to leave them to it. We'll be fine by ourselves.

It's sad to see a Colosseum in this state. The front entrance - which I'd imagine to have been breath-taking - is seventy percent collapsed. In its prime era, this Colosseum would have stood at least one hundred metres high.

I approach the remains of the doorway to feel the material of the structure; see if it's even similar in any way to our Colosseum in Rome. As I'm rubbing my finger along the pillar, it does feel like the piece of rock my high school teacher brought to class; Travertine, which is a limestone that the Romans used to construct the Pillars and exterior of the Colosseum back on Earth. Makes me wonder how they found these materials on Tharp? Guess some things you actually never find out knowing; such as life.

"Should we enter?" Vetor asks, while still leaning on me.

"Yeah, of course; I want to stand in the centre, and breathe in the history that I'll never get to see," I reply, before leading Vetor and I inside.

A few moments pass, and we are now inside the Colosseum; I'm looking up and marvelling at the architecture, which is simply breath-taking. It's modelled so well after the Colosseum in Rome; that you'd think I'm on Earth rather than a foreign planet. The Western side of the Colosseum is fully demolished; just a pile of large slabs scattered everywhere. The stands on that side have fully caved in; dust and sand are everywhere. The Eastern side is quite intact; it's like Gurdon purposely attacked one side. The Eastern stands have only been affected by debris from the Western side, which has clearly flown across and destroyed a lot of the seating. It's not hard to guess that the catapults did all this; what a real shame.

I look down, returning my focus to the arena floor; the dust slowly parts and I see a few hundred civilians, huddled around a fire. They aren't making a noise; just staring my direction, with fear plastered on their faces.

"Who are you?!" A female civilian yells.

"We mean you no harm," I yell back, slowly walking forwards.

"I asked who you are. Please don't come any closer!" A male yells, armed with a small sword.

"We are here to help, please lower your weapon," I say, calmly.

"We don't want to die!" A young girl yells, running out towards me. I kneel down and speak to her.

"Gurdon and his army are dead. Sorry we arrived too late."

"Are all the bad orcs dead?" The little girl asks.

"Yes. I promise all the orcs are dead."

"Is this true?" a male asks, approaching the girl.

"One hundred percent true. Gurdon and his brethren of orcs are dead."

"And who killed all these orcs, you?"

"Yes, my guardians and I."

The male starts laughing, before a few other males join in. I had an idea, I just had to execute it quickly.

I stab Finito into the ground and close my eyes.

"Ice pillar!" I yell.

Seconds later, one massive ice pillar breaks through the Colosseum floor, and stands a few metres in the air. I walk up to it and run my hand along the freezing cold ice. I then clap my hands, and the snow leopard leaps out of it, landing next to me; shards of ice fly in every direction. She starts growling at the civilians, but I don't mind; they need to believe what we're saying. I've also been thinking of a name for her, and I think now's the time to let the snow leopard know.

"This is Krenshi," I say, running my fingers through her cold fur.

"AARRRGGGHHHH!" the majority of the civilians scream.

"No need to panic; I'm merely proving to you that we did in fact slay all the orcs," I reply, before clicking my fingers, making Krenshi shatter into thousands of ice fragments.

The civilians slowly huddle closely again, and all begin cheering. They run up to Vetor and me, and shower us with appreciation. We hear mixes of 'thank you heroes' and 'you saved us'. When the survivors settle down, I speak.

"We're really sorry that we couldn't save your city."

"Don't apologise; it was inevitable. It couldn't be stopped anyway," A female replies.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Daweson, the owner of the pub told me that," the female adds.

"Sorry, told you what? I don't understand, what was inevitable?"

"The destruction of Neca city. Daweson told me that it was doomed to be destroyed."

"How did he know all of this?" I'm intrigued to find out."

"Well, he said that ten thousand years ago, he and a few others shared an evening with the Prophet, whom revealed this all to him."

"Wow really, with the Prophet? Where is Daweson now?"

"He died in his bar. He refused to let the orcs take it, so he perished defending it. We are the last alive of our great city."

"I'm sorry that this has happened. We will make Akiad pay for what he's done, you have our word!" I yell, drawing Finito and holding it above.

The survivors start cheering again and this gives me a feeling of hope. This event motivates me to rid the planet of Akiad and his pestilence, let alone everything else he has done.

Once they stop cheering, I begin to speak.

"Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support. Vetor and I would like to look around the remains of the Colosseum. We wish you all the best of luck."

I look around and notice Vetor isn't with me. I see him behind me, so I run towards him.

"Vetor, where are you going?" I ask while gasping for air.

"To see the holding rooms; it's where the warriors would relax before a showdown in the arena. That's what I used to find interesting in history class; what is was like, moments before you fought to your death," Vetor replies while the survivors cheer for us.

"Well, you could have waited for me!" I reply, messing up his hair.

Cobwebs are the first thing that spring to mind while entering this dark corridor, which runs directly under the Eastern stands. The whistling wind sounds like a plea for freedom; souls, trapped here from years past, begging for their release from this existence.

Leaves start blowing out of a doorway further down the hallway; third from the left.

"Syra, did you see that?" Vetor asks while limping slightly ahead of me.

"Yeah, the leaves blowing out of that room. Let's check it out."

Upon reaching the doorway, Vetor peeks in and starts smiling to himself.

"What's so funny?" I ask.

"Well, the leaves are explained. There's a tree growing through the side of the Colosseum; there's even bird nests in the branches. Wait look!" Vetor replies, before entering the room.

The room itself is quite small. There's a broken wooden table in the centre, and the wall - opposite the door - is cracked, and has branches growing through. Six chairs are tipped over in various places of the room; the echoes of chirping birds fill the ambience and make me smile from ear to ear. I look over at Vetor and see a small bird on his head. It's small enough to fit in the palm of my hand, has beautiful black feathers and its tail is a palette of different colours, which glisten in the light.

"Wow," I say, standing next to Vetor while he pats the small bird.

"Yeah, I was about to say the same thing."

"It's so beautiful. Quite nice to see after all the carnage we've endured."

"Hey, look at that," Vetor replies before pointing towards something that's behind me.

Scratched into the wall - next to the door - was something I really didn't expect. There is an infinity symbol and a message written below it; 'infinite loop of time'. I'm baffled as what to say, but intrigued to investigate this further. I run my finger along the scratches and grooves, before looking down and seeing a nail; it's in immaculate condition, could almost be brand new.

"What's that?" Vetor asks.

"A nail; exactly like one you'd find back home. The strangest part is the condition of it. It looks brand new," I reply as I bend down and pick it up.

The nail feels as immaculate as it appears. Rubbing it between my thumb and index finger makes me feel how untarnished the nail is. I think I might take it with me as a souvenir; I'm sure nobody will care. I put the nail in my pocket before Vetor taps my shoulder.

"What do you think the message means?" Vetor asks.

"Infinite loop of time....I'm actually not sure. If only Modnar were here, he'd be able to shed some light on it. I miss him so much already," I reply, before Vetor starts rubbing my back.

"Let's head back to the others; it's becoming dark, and we should get some sleep," Vetor says before leaving the room.

I glance at the message one last time, not knowing who did it, or who it was for. But it makes me think about life and how weird it's been for me; and obviously someone else.

Enaz and Zekai have prepared a fire, cooking Dupat shells over it. Vetor and I approach them and the smell of wonderful food fills my nostrils.

"Where did you two go? Did you hear cheering from the Colosseum," Enaz asks.

"Well, we just had a wander around the city; we found survivors in the Colosseum, and a woman that mentioned something about a cursed pond? Does that ring any bells?" I reply.

"Survivors? That's great; how many? Now, come to think of it, I've heard something about a cursed pond; in the middle of the Whispering forest. From what I've heard, when you look into this pond, the reflection you see is of yourself, but not immediately like any other reflection. What you actually see is a reflection of yourself directly after your next major fate altering decision that you have to make. For example, your reflection may be of you in a month's time, it could even be of you in twenty years' time. It really just depends on you and the choices you make," Enaz explains.

"That's so cool, but freaky at the same time! What do you think, Syra?" Vetor asks.

"Umm, yeah it's very.....cool," I reply, while being distracted by my thoughts.

I really don't want to look into that cursed pond. I have a feeling of what I will see in there, and I really don't want to know if I'm right. Zekai told me a few months ago that I'm going to die. If my calculations are correct, then that means when I look into the pond, I shouldn't even have a reflection; and that just gives me the shivers. I've been comfortable about my fate until now, but this pond is making me a tad nervous.

As nightfall consumes the sky, we are lucky to only see stars and the moon. This makes my bed for the night, easy. On the ground by the lake, falling asleep, to the sight of the stars. Enaz and Zekai are asleep on the ground about five metres away from me, and Vetor's going for a late night swim.

"No way! It can't be!" Vetor yells as he dives underwater.

I quickly spring to my feet, as I'm curious to see what Vetor is yelling about. The water is dark and murky; Vetor's been underwater for about twenty seconds, and I still can't make out what's going on.

"Yes! I thought it was that!" Vetor yells as he surfaces.

As he swims to shore, I notice that he's holding onto a long object. I can't believe it, if it's what I think it is.

"Vetor, is that Modnar's staff?!" I ask as Vetor swims to shore.

"Yes, it is! I saw it when I was swimming underwater!"

Vetor slowly limps out of the water and hands me the staff; it's definitely Modnar's, there's no doubt about that.

"Well Vetor, you are my best friend as you know, and I already have quite a lot of responsibility on my plate as it is. Are you able to look after Modnar's staff until we find him again?" I ask.

"Yeah, with honour! I won't let you down," Vetor replies enthusiastically.

"Well, that was some good spotting. Maybe we should get some sleep; we have to rest for the Whispering forest tomorrow. Sleep tight," I say, lying back down.

I start looking at the stars, letting a lot of thoughts blend about in my mind. I think about my mum. I miss her so much, and it makes me wonder what has happened to her in the last few months? I hope for her safety, and wish her the strength to persevere and not give up on me. Modnar is the next thing I ponder about; I have a hunch that he isn't dead. He just can't be. He's such a powerful wizard and I just know that he's alive somewhere, I'm sure of it. And my father 'Enaz', what to do about him? I know that after this is all over, I'm going to make him apologize to mum, that's for certain. At the moment I'm still mad, but I don't want him to know that. He's a great asset to my cause, and I don't want to jeopardize that. I will tell him when the time is right; and I'm sure that my timing, will be better than his. And the cursed pond. What will I see when I peer in there tomorrow; assuming our own fears don't scare us to death before we make it.
II – The Whispering Forest

"Hey! Hey! What are you guys doing?!" I yell, as soon as I rouse.

Enaz is holding both of my arms, and Vetor has both of my feet. They are swinging me to and fro, towards the lake.

"Okay seriously you two! NOT FUNNY!" I yell as they continue to swing me.

"On three! One! Two! Three!" Enaz says, and after the third swing, they let me go; I'm flying straight towards the lake.

When I surface, I see Zekai, Enaz and Vetor laughing hysterically.

"Yeah, yeah, very funny gents," I say, swimming towards them.

"It's actually quite funny!" Vetor replies, while continuing to laugh.

I glance towards Enaz, and he's giggling to himself. It's good to see my father so happy, as being stranded on this planet must have been scary; but right now I want to formulate a plan. It's first thing in the morning and I'm already soaking wet. It's not really something I'm a fan of. I'll get them back, I just need one more nudge.

"WET there, Syra; I'll get a towel," Vetor jokes, while briefly holding his left palm out.

Enaz, Zekai and Vetor start laughing harder; Enaz falls backwards and keeps laughing while lying flat on the ground.

"Haha, very funny," I reply before quickly drawing Finito and chopping in the direction of my companions.

"Water tube!" I yell.

A huge water tube - about the width and pressure of a fire hose - comes flying out of Finito, and completely drenches my three companions. I continue to spray all three of them, even when they're helplessly lying on the ground. I begin laughing as I spray them; they're slipping around the vicinity like rats getting washed off a deck by a garden hose. Revenge is always so sweet.

I sheathe Finito, while watching my completely drenched companions approach me.

"Oh would you look at that, you're all drenched. WATER coincidence!" I quip.

I laugh, and shortly afterwards they all join in. It's good to see that even with two of our companions gone, we still have that spark of humour lingering around; it's soothing for our tarnished souls, and removes a little bitterness inside.

"Okay, let's collect our equipment and head west for the Whispering forest," I say moments before the four of us gather our belongings and start our trip.

I leer over my right shoulder and say my subliminal goodbye to the ruins of Neca city; I hope the survivors keep safe.

After walking for a while, an interesting subject sparks between my companions that I'm not prepared for. I've been keeping to myself; not participating too much in the evolving conversation.

"So Vetor, are you responsible enough for such a task; watching over Modnar's weapon?" Zekai asks as we continue to head west.

"I have to side with Zekai on this one, young fella. Shouldn't we have a meeting?" Enaz adds.

"Syra said its fine," Vetor replies while frowning back at them.

"But you're young and naive, you may not be ready," Zekai says, sounding slightly concerned.

"Excuse me, gentlemen! I decide what happens, and according to all of you, I've done a good job. So leave him alone, and mind your own business," I reply.

My comment shuts them all up, quick smart. How dare they, raise suspicion about my friend. Well, at least that gets them off that topic, because I have to admit, even I'm getting a little uptight in my head about it; I've never let it cross my mind at all that Vetor can't handle watching over Modnar's staff, and he's my best friend. There is no one else I'd rather have protect it then Vetor.

After an hour of walking, we can finally see the forest; in front of the entrance, I can make out a small statue. Upon stopping in front of it, my curiosity gets the better of me.

"What's this a statue of? Does anyone know?" I ask.

"Well, if that up ahead is the Whispering forest, then I'm guessing that this is a statue of a Roobe!" Enaz replies before running his left hand along the long nose the statue has.

The Roobe statue is constructed out of stone, and in great detail. It's holding a spear in its right hand, and has a hooded cloak. It's about one metre tall, and all you can make out of its face is this long, thin nose, with a wart on the end of it. The rest of the face is shrouded from the hood over its head.

"What's with the long nose? It's the only thing visible on this little creature!" I ask.

"Well Syra, how did you think they could smell your worst fear? Their sense of smell is one hundred times stronger than any other creature on Tharp; the Roobes in this forest, can smell us right now," Enaz replies.

"That....is....creepy. So how do we avoid them?" I ask, before swallowing a large mouthful of saliva.

"Well, my copious hours spent at the pub in Neca city have taught me this; think of something that makes you happy, and forget that they're even in the forest. Mind you, this is all based on assumption. No one has ever made it out alive."

Shivers run up my spine as I stare at the Roobe; peering down below the statue, I notice a stone plaque with something written on it. I bend down and begin to read.

It says:

Those in the forest who casually roam

Their worst fears will turn them to stone

Never again will they ever wake

Wishing they hadn't made that mistake

If they are fearless and bearing a knife

The forest will happily conquer their life.

"Glad I'm bearing an axe! Bet I'll be fine!" Vetor jokes.

"Everyone, let's go! We'll keep our weapons sheathed so we don't instigate a fight with the Roobes," I reply, before leading everyone into the forest.

The Whispering forest is so dense. You can't see the sky, because the canopy of leaves from the endless sea of trees, shrouds our upward visibility. Only specs of light peek through certain sections of the forest - dimly illuminating the surroundings - and there is only one path, heading all the way through. Small bushes grow around the base of the trees, and some of them have spread to the path we're currently traversing.

I have goosebumps running up my arms, the mystery of this forest is giving me the creeps. After only a few minutes, I can already hear whispers of my worst fear echoing through my head; my hands are trembling like I'm still in the snow, back in Yorkshire.

"Akiad is coming for you; he will kill you!" The Roobes whisper in my mind.

I frantically look around for their whereabouts, but can't see anything.

"Psst Syra, remember not to let the Roobes get to you. As the plaque said, you will turn into stone; mind you, I'm one to talk, they're freaking me out a little," Enaz says, looking around while he speaks.

Vetor also looks quite bothered by the Roobes. Zekai is slithering behind us, with a very relaxed look upon his face; in fact, he's smiling.

"Zekai, how can you be smiling at a time like this?" I ask.

"Because I don't hear anything; no whispers are in my head at all."

"Huh? That's not fair. Why's that?" I say, while walking backwards.

"Because I don't fear anything. I used to fear my encounter with Muhbac, so that would have been my only fear; now I am fearless!" Zekai replies while keeping a huge grin on his face.

I can't believe how lucky Zekai is. I'm not freaking out beyond all recognition, but hearing no whispers at all would be much more relaxing than listening to what's echoing in my brain.

"Akiad will end your life. Just give up Syra. There's no point going on!" The Roobes whisper.

"Psst Syra! I don't know how much longer I can pretend that I'm not afraid!" Vetor whispers from behind me.

"Vetor, don't let them get to your thoughts; you will turn to stone, remember!" I whisper back.

I look back and see Enaz looking around for the Roobes. He doesn't seem as nervous as Vetor and I, but he must be just as frustrated. Then he suddenly freezes, and turns his head until he's leering over his right shoulder.

"Shhh! Everyone stay still. I think I see one of the little critters! Look up there, at the hole in the tree," Enaz whispers.

I divert my attention towards the hole - which Enaz is walking towards - in the trunk of the tree. I can faintly make out a long, teal coloured nose sticking out of the hole.

"Psst Enaz, I see it! What exactly are you going to do? Please don't attack them," I whisper.

Enaz hasn't answered; he's too busy heading towards the suspicious nose. He starts reaching for his samurai swords, gripping each handle, but leaving them both sheathed.

"Psst be careful Enaz!" Zekai whispers.

Enaz continues to carefully head towards the tree, until he's directly below the teal nose. He looks back at us, with a massive grin on his face. Seconds later, Enaz swiftly draws his two blades, and slices the nose right off. Blood flies out of the hole, landing all over Enaz's face.

"Aarrgghh!" The Roobe screams as it falls backwards, inside the hollow trunk of the tree; it's cloak lands on the ground, next to Enaz.

The scream is deafening; it resembles that of a young infant.

Suddenly, Roobe screams come from all over the Whispering forest. Enaz is standing there, with one samurai sword in each hand, looking extremely confused.

"Draw your weapons, people. I think a Roobe attack is imminent!" Enaz yells.

"Wait everyone, they don't seem hostile," I reply.

"Don't hold your breath," Enaz says, sarcastically.

As I look left and right, I notice all the bushes around us move, and spearheads starting to emerge from all over the place; they begin closing in on us.

The first Roobe jumps out from behind a bush; its dark hollow is looking right at me. It stands a metre tall and like the statue; you can't make out the Roobes face. Just a black coat over its whole body, and poking out of the shaded hollow that hides its entire face, is a long, teal coloured nose. The Roobe grips its spear and points it towards me.

"Eerrgghh! Aarrgghh! Eerrgghh!" the Roobe screams in agony.

"Umm Vetor, what is it saying?!" I ask.

Before Vetor could answer, dozens more Roobes appear from the bushes, surrounding the four of us.

"It apologizes for killing us all, and says that the statue at the entrance of the forest should have been enough warning to prevent us from entering. Anyone silly enough to enter, either becomes a statue for their collection, or food; I guess we better be on our guard!" Vetor explains as he places Modnar's staff down on the ground, and draws his axe.

I take a few steps back, and look towards Vetor and Zekai.

"I think we're going to follow Enaz's lead. As soon as you see me draw Finito, then do the same!" I instruct.

I clench the hilt of Finito and in one swift motion, I swing horizontally towards the Roobe in front of me, slicing it in half; blood sprays all over the place, but the weirdest thing happens. When I briefly look down to verify the diced pieces of its corpse, I notice that all that's left is blood. Apparently when a Roobe dies, its body disappears.

I look towards Vetor and nod. As he nods back at me, all the Roobes simultaneously attack. Vetor follows through with one huge, overhead chop, cutting the first Roobe through the head. Blood gushes all over him, and before he knows it, he's on the ground; one of the Roobes behind Vetor, smacks him in the back of his leg, with the blunt end of its spear.

"Aarrgghh!" Vetor yells.

"Vetor!" I yell, seconds before slicing another Roobe through the midsection.

Zekai stabs one Roobe right through the face and as soon as blood gushes out, he appears to only have a black cloak draped over his spear. He turns around and immediately thrusts forward; he now has another two cloaks on the end of his spear, and blood is all over the ground.

"Water tube!" I yell as I hold Finito forward, spraying water all over the incoming Roobes.

"Syra! The Roobes are dying the instant their hood washes off them!" Zekai yells.

"I don't know how long I can hold them off for! There's too many of them!" I yell, frantically spraying water towards as many Roobes as I can.

Two Roobes charge towards Enaz, he cuts one in half with his left samurai sword, and at the same time, he slices the other Roobe in half with his right sword. Straight after he kills them both, he swings both his swords horizontally to the left, dicing another three Roobes in half at the waist. Blood is staining the surroundings, quite rapidly. It makes me realise that I'm becoming quite accustomed to all this casual brutality.

"Vetor behind you!" Zekai yells, as he smacks two Roobes in the head with the butt of his spear.

Vetor turns around and limps forward, before leaping onto the back of two Roobes, pushing them to the ground; he pulls their hoods off and blood squirts him in the eyes.

Enaz digs his swords into the ground, then bends down and picks Vetor up; I dive and slide over his back, knocking over three Roobes in front him. I quickly rip their hoods off and close my eyes; blood shoots all over the place.

Wiping my face, I stand up and start duelling with several more Roobes; they begin screaming at me.

"Vetor, what are they saying?!" I yell.

"They're saying you're worse than her."

"Wait, worse than who?"

"I can't ask now, they're dead."

"Well they're trying to attack us, what else am I meant to do."

Enaz and Vetor are fighting near each other, while Zekai appears to have my back.

Zekai stabs one through the stomach, and throws the cloak over a few others; I jump down and dissect them in two.

Vetor chops at a couple of Roobes, then when he swipes at the third one, he misses and falls to the ground.

"AARRGGHH!" Vetor yells, holding his leg.

Enaz vanishes and reappears behind several Roobes, with his blades around their necks.

"Syra, the Roobes are retreating!" Vetor yells as he stands up.

I look around and notice that Vetor is right; the Roobes are in fact, running away.

"Where are they going?!" I yell.

"I don't know?! I don't hear any whispers though! A big sigh of relief is in order!" Vetor yells back.

I sheathe my weapon and take a moment to catch my breath. We shouldn't waste any time, or Akiad will beat us to the remaining Arter gems.

"Well, we should carry on. We can have a rest when we find the pond," I say, walking ahead of everyone.

As the four of us sheathe our weapons, and collect our belongings, I feel a huge weight lift off my shoulders. No more whispers, and no more Roobes; it feels great. The only thing pondering my mind is what that Roobe said. I'm worse than her; what could it possibly mean by that? Maybe the pond will have some answers for me.

### III – The Pond of Destiny

I can't take my mind off of what the Roobe said; I'm still trying to work it out. I'm worse than her; what does that even mean? They were going to either turn us into stone with our own fears, or kill us; so what other choice did we have?

Anyway, Vetor is whistling, and hasn't stopped since scaring off the Roobes; he looks a lot happier, compared to when we first entered the forest. The absence of whispers is soothing to my mind, and I'm sure to my companions as well.

"This path is never ending! I just want to get out of this bloody forest!" Vetor says in a whiney voice.

"Just be patient, okay! I'm sure the pond won't be too far away, we can rest there for a while, and then hopefully we can have some questions answered," I reply.

"Hey can I please speak with you?" Enaz asks.

"Could you two please walk ahead? I'm going to speak with Enaz," I say, slowing my pace to match his.

"Anything, Syra. Vetor and I will secure the path ahead," Zekai replies.

Zekai slithers ahead aiding Vetor's limp; he braces Vetor's arm around his neck. Enaz starts firing questions at me.

"Do you think that was the right thing to do? Fighting them?"

"Well, we could have turned to stone. I'd rather risk dying than have that happen."

"Do you think Modnar is dead?"

"Did we really need to slow down from the others to talk about this? Do you think I've forgiven you already? Not by a long shot. Now, my turn to ask you something; and don't think by me asking you this, that you're any further forward to me forgiving you!"

"Sure thing, ask away."

"Do you miss mum?"

Enaz looks quite surprised that I have asked him such a direct question, but after a deep breath, he answers.

"Of course I miss her. I miss you both every day, trust me. I had no choice but to come to this land; it was like my destiny, and now that I've been here, I've found some answers to my life. I never intended to stay here forever. That's just how my fate was laid out."

I stay quiet for a few moments to soak in his answer; I must say, I'm impressed. Maybe he is the real deal, and not a big let-down like I have always thought. If I think about it, what happened to Enaz, is the same thing that happened to me. Both of us, unable to say goodbye to our loved ones, before disappearing forever. Fate, can be cruel sometimes.

Before Enaz and I have any chance to progress further with our father-daughter bonding, Vetor makes an interesting discovery. He takes his arm away from Zekai's neck, and starts hobbling as fast as he can towards what he can see.

"Syra, this must be it; the Pond of Destiny! I'm sure of it!" Vetor yells.

The four of us hurry as fast as we can towards the pond, and once the path opens up, I take a moment to assess the surroundings.

The area we're standing in, looks amazing. The forest around us is still very dense, with a hollow in the canopy above us; light is shining through, reflecting off what has to be 'the Pond of Destiny'.

I walk ahead to peer into the pond, but Enaz stops me; he starts to speak.

"Wait Syra, let's peer into the pond, one by one. This will make it a more personal experience for us all, what do you think?"

"That's a great idea, one by one it is. Enaz can go first, then Zekai, then Vetor, and I'll go last," I reply.

We don't waste any time, and line up in single file; Enaz steps up to the pond. When he peers in, he begins to smile.

"Well, nothing has changed. I look exactly the same. Or is this pond not magical at all?" Enaz says.

Zekai is next in queue; he quickly slithers up to the edge of the pond, and starts scratching his head.

"Well, that's odd; I don't have a reflection?" Zekai says, sounding confused.

"Really? I hope it doesn't mean anything terrible," I reply.

"I wouldn't worry about it Syra, I'm not," Zekai says.

As Zekai slithers away from the pond, Vetor limps towards it, using Modnar's staff to lean on; Zekai taps his shoulder on the way past. When he peers at his refection, he starts laughing.

"That's a bummer, I look exactly the same! But my eyes look so cool!" Vetor says, while laughing.

I creep up and peek over Vetor's shoulder; his reflection in the pond is quite evil looking. He looks about the same age he is now. He's wearing the same clothes, and is holding Modnar's staff, like he is right now. The thing that disturbs me is his red coloured eyes. This makes me a little confused. Is this a possible future for Vetor? What is going to happen to my best friend; I quickly take a few steps back so Vetor doesn't know that I was behind him.

Vetor limps away from the pond looking quite chuffed with himself. He then glances at me with such innocence, making me smile. Hopefully my reflection makes a little more sense.

I slowly approach the pond again, not knowing what I will see when I peer in there. I have a hunch that I'll have no refection at all - the same as Zekai; which makes more sense to me as I know I'm going to die saving Tharp. I swallow a huge mouthful of saliva, and have my eyes closed; this is the most nervous I've ever been in this entire journey.

"Syra, what are you waiting for! Open your eyes!" Vetor yells.

I lean over the pond, still with my eyes closed. Thoughts run through my head, of whether to open them or not; but I've made my mind up, and begin to gradually open them. I see a reflection of myself, but I look much older. I'm wearing tight, faded grey denim jeans, a white singlet and the red and green Arter gems, around my neck. My hair is peroxide blonde, with red streaks running through; and it sits just below my shoulders. I have a colourful tattoo sleeve running down my entire right arm, and something I can't make out on the top of my left hand. The only similarity, is the fact that I have Finito by my side. This really does throw me off balance, as I thought I was meant to die? I once again have a lot of questions and no one can give me any answers.

"Can you answer my questions?" I ask, but much to my disappointment, I get no response.

I start brushing my hands through hair while looking at my reflection, and I see something beyond amazing. As I'm running my hands through my hair, my reflection is doing exactly the same - even though it's me in the future. Our planet just doesn't have the technology to create something like this, so I'm making the most of this magical pond. I wonder how far into the future this is? And why do I look a lot older? This just doesn't make any sense to me. I feel more confused than before I looked in.

I can hear my friends behind me, muttering amongst themselves, but patiently waiting for me to finish my turn; Vetor hobbles towards the pond and stands next to me.

"Cool Syra, blonde hair. I thought you hate light colours?" Vetor says while giggling to himself.

I nudge Vetor slightly and he begins to fall over, but I clench a handful of his shirt and stop him.

"Have a nice trip?" I joke.

The two of us laugh, but mine is put on. I watch our future reflections laugh with us, and see Vetor's reflection laughing in a rather demonic manner. It makes me quickly turn to Vetor; the confusing part is, when I watch him laugh, he looks like the sweet, innocent Vetor that I've always known. Like I've been saying since his disappearance; I really wish Modnar was here.

Vetor and I approach Zekai and Enaz; the two of them have waited so patiently for us to finish.

"Sorry that took so long. Are we able to rest here for the night, or will it be too dangerous?" I ask.

"It should be fine. I don't think any Roobes will be bothering us anymore!" Zekai replies.

"Good, then we shall set up camp. We don't have Modnar anymore, so for warmth, we'll have to collect some wood and make a fire, the old fashioned way," I say, before drawing Finito and heading over to a nearby tree; I scale the tree in front of me and get distracted by Enaz.

"Syra, what are you doing?" Enaz asks, drawing one of his swords.

"Trying to find a decent branch."

He begins laughing, which entices me to descend the tree.

"Gees, no need to tease me; not like I had a father around to show me."

Enaz nods and winks before throwing his sword directly above him; it cuts straight through a nearby branch like paper, and we both dive out of the way. His sword lands right between his legs.

"That would drive me nuts," Vetor quips.

While Enaz and I begin laughing, we drag the branch towards the lake.

About an hour passes by and Zekai is as amused as I am, watching Vetor and Enaz try to be a couple of boy scouts.

"No Enaz, you don't twist the sticks like that!" Vetor says as he snatches the piece of wood that Enaz is using to try get a spark.

I lean over to Zekai and say something witty.

"Gees, we could be here all night."

"I must admit, it's quite amusing to watch. Syra, you seemed quite puzzled when you walked away from the Pond of Destiny earlier on? Do you care to talk about it?" Zekai asks.

"Well for starters, the reflection of me appeared to be nearly thirty; I never thought I'd survive to that age. Remember, you told me that I die saving Tharp. Secondly, and more importantly; was Vetor's reflection. He looked so evil. I'm scared for him, and for us. What are your thoughts?"

Zekai doesn't reply straight away, rather he takes a moment to gather his thoughts.

"Well that's a tough one, Syra. Like you have said since his disappearance; Modnar would be the one to ask. He would be able to explain what happens to Vetor, and why you're still alive in the pond. Modnar told me many years ago that you do in fact die saving Tharp, so I'm as confused as you. I'm sorry my girl, but if you want any answers, then I'd recommend that we find Modnar. The sooner, the better. But this is if he's still alive," Zekai replies.

"Thanks Zekai, I feel a little better. I'm just going to have some time alone. And I'm fairly sure that Modnar is safe, he just has to be; I feel it in my gut," I say, standing up and walking towards the edge of the pond.

I gaze into the Pond of Destiny, and let my mind tick over. We have to find Modnar. Where is he? Where do we even start to look for him? And Vetor; do I have to be on my guard from my best friend? This situation is as frustrating as it is scary.

### IV – Finally, another female

I arise in the morning and discover that Enaz and Vetor never lit the fire; I have Goosebumps all over my arms. Enaz and Zekai are fast asleep but Vetor is looking into the Pond of Destiny. I decide to go up to him and see if he's okay.

"Vetor, what are you doing up this early?" I ask.

"Oh, good morning Syra. I'm just looking at my reflection in the pond, wondering why my eyes are red. I do think it's really remarkable, but I'm still curious none the less."

"I know, I'm exactly the same as you. I'm sure we'll find out in due time. The sun is up, so we should wake the others and continue on with our journey," I say, walking towards Enaz and Zekai.

"Sweet, I'll catch up with you in a moment. I'm just going stay here a bit longer."

I look over my left shoulder, and see Vetor scratching his head, while gazing at his reflection in the pond. The poor boy is as confused as I am, and wants answers just as much as me. Until we find Modnar, I guess we just won't have a clue.

"Rise and shine you two. It's time we pick up and carry on. We must find the other two Arter gems!" I say, shaking Enaz and Zekai.

"Aaaaahhhhh, good morning. Give us a moment to gather our things, and then we'll depart," Enaz replies, rubbing his arms for extra warmth.

I wander over to the Western side of the pond, and lie down, staring at the sky through the hole in the canopy; the others join me here after a few minutes. Enaz and Zekai are chatting amongst themselves, and Vetor is blankly staring at the ground while he leans on Modnar's staff.

"Why do you look so down in the dumps? What's wrong with you? ....Wait, is that what I think it is!" I say, before running West through the forest.

"Syra, wait! Where are you going? I'm not down?!!" Vetor yells in a confused manner as he hobbles as quickly as he can in my direction.

I run the fastest I ever have, hoping that the sound I can so vividly hear is true. I continue running west, and can actually see light peering through, between the trees.

I emerge outside the Whispering forest, and the broad daylight almost blinds me; I open my eyes, and the most amazing sight is before me. My ears were right all along! I can hear waves, crashing into rocks, like you would at any of the beaches back home. I'm at the top of a cliff, looking out towards an ocean; there is water as far as the eye can see. The base of the cliff is right on the beach, and there is a small port town close by. A rocky path leads all the way down the side of the cliff, towards the town. I close my eyes, and let the sweet smell of salt water and sea breeze enter my nostrils. Nothing can smell so pure at this moment.

"Syra, where did you?.......WOW!" Vetor says, emerging from the forest alongside Zekai and Enaz.

"Well, this is the furthest I've ever travelled west, and I'm so thankful that we made it through the Whispering forest alive!" Zekai says, sounding surprised.

Enaz walks up to me and whispers in my ear.

"Psst, I haven't smelt this in years."

I look towards him and wink back. It makes me think, I haven't seen such a sight in a long time either; last time I went to Piha beach would have been at least a year ago now. We would climb Lions rock and throw stones into the sea. It makes me miss home, a lot.

"All right everyone, let's carefully descend the cliff path and head down to that town. I'm sure we'll find some answers there!" I say moments before we start to scale down the cliff path.

The four of us take the better part of an hour to descend the cliff. There is no real rush. 'Slow and steady wins the race' my mum always used to say. So I figured, better to take our time and assure that all four of us live on this descent. Besides that, there are two reasons why it was a great idea to take our time. One reason is the danger involved, one slip up and we'd fall to our death from this height. The other reason, is the experience. I want to soak this in, as long as possible.

Once I arrive at the bottom, I see a young boy playing with some shells. He resembles a young human boy, except he doesn't have hair. Instead, the top of his head looks like a piece of granite.

I approach the young boy and when I'm close to him, I kneel down to his level and speak gently.

"Hey there, little fella. Could you please tell me where we are? We are currently lost, and could really use some help," I ask, while smiling at him.

"Well lady, you aren't lost anymore. You are at the port town of Gustar; my uncle runs the pub down there. What's that symbol moving on your arm," the boy replies, pointing at my wrist.

I look down and notice that my Brotherhood of Guytz seal is moving counter-clockwise. I turn around and notice that my companions are all looking at their respective seals too.

"Well, guess we better find out who in the Brotherhood, lives in this town!" Enaz says he starts to walk ahead with Zekai and Vetor.

"Thank you for your help little fella! I better catch up with my friends!" I say as I shake the little boy's hand.

After leaving the young boy, the four of us enter the port town of Gustar, and I take some time to assess the surroundings. All the buildings are made of wood; the walls and doors are crafted with wood of all sorts of different shapes and sizes. It seems like they've been constructed with whatever pieces of driftwood they could gather. The roofs have the only consistency; they're made of round logs, giving them a sort of cabin vibe. There are only a dozen or so buildings, and even two small piers, at the base of the town. Down by the piers is a tall, wooden lighthouse, about the height of one back home; there is a carving of a large dragon going up the side of it. The dragon looks like any other, except the end of its tail, resembles the tip of a morning star. I must go check that out before we leave. The main thing that gets to me, is the fact that there isn't anyone else around. The building closest to the left pier has smoke coming out of the chimney; there is a bell by the front door, and it's the only building in town where the wood is stained a different colour - light blue to be exact.

"Let's head for the blue building with the smoke coming out of it. I guarantee that's where the townsfolk are!" I say, while leading the way there.

Before we have a chance to open the door to the building by the pier, an Oathient serpent outcast leaves the building. I can tell he is an outcast without Zekai even telling me; his skin is rotten brown in colour, and he has the red 'X' mark on the middle of his forehead.

"Ish done need heny more Flork henyway!" The drunken serpent says.

His comment just makes me register; this must be the Gustar pub.

"Wha ya looking at! I'll tak that smile off ya face real fasht!" The Oathient serpent says as he pushes me back.

I signal to Zekai to sheath his weapon.

"It's all right Zekai, I've got this," I say confidently.

The drunken Oathient serpent looks over towards Zekai and completely forgets that I'm there.

"Ish that you, marshta Zekai? The bigshh hero, dat casht me owt of Noradi, like a Dupat shhhell!" The serpent outcast says, slithering towards Zekai.

"Yes, it is I. And if you hadn't drunken too much Flork, you would have known, that it was for good reason!" Zekai replies, sounding quite angry.

"Zekai, don't let him get to you. The mark on his forehead, is to let everyone in Tharp know of his bad doing, and to be weary of him!"

Seconds after my comment, the serpent turns his head towards me, and slithers my direction.

"Yoush fink for one shhecond that I don't remember dis mark up here! Of course I do! And little lady, youshh going to pay for shhhaying that!" The serpent says.

Before I even have a second to think, a huge thick chain comes flying out of the Gustar pub, wraps around the drunken serpent, and throws him into the water, between the piers.

I look up, and an attractive female emerges from the pub. She looks about twenty seven, with long un-kept sandy blonde hair, electric blue eyes and a tanned complexion. She has ripped blue, skin tight denim jeans and a tight, low-cut beige shirt on - with a similar fitting black vest over the top - and brown leather boots resembling a cowgirl. The thing that puzzles me; where the heck is her huge chain? I guess in a few moments we will find out.

The blonde female starts suspiciously looking around, before diverting her attention my way.

"Hey lady, are you four with the brotherhood?" she asks.

The four of us simultaneously show her our seals, and in turn she shows us hers.

"Great! Well come inside, and have some Flork with me. I have a private room out the back, where we can talk" The lady says.

"Thanks!" I reply before we enter the pub.

Once we're within the confines of the Gustar pub, every being in there stops what they're doing, and looks our direction. There are more Oathient outcasts in the corner, a few Nogleps - who are playing some sort of board game in another; and several other humans, which have granite heads, much like the child outside. The bartender is human, and also has a large granite head, with wispy grey hair around the sides. He's wearing a long, brown, dirty coat and brown pants; the weirdest part is he recognizes Enaz.

"Enaz, is that you?!" the bartender calls out.

Enaz tips his head sideways and frowns, as he's trying to recognize who it is.

"Gus?" Enaz says, sounding unsure.

"Yes you old thing, come here! Look at you!" Gus replies with his arms open, prompting a hug.

While they hug, I decide to let them catch up; I follow the blonde lady to her private room.

"You two, please stay with Enaz; I'll be back soon!" I say, entering her room.

"Okay Syra. We'll have some Flork!" Vetor replies.

Just after I close the door, I notice the blonde female is sitting behind a desk. She's leaning back in her chair, with her boots crossed on the table. She speaks to me.

"Please, have a seat. So, what are you doing in the port town of Gustar? By the way, the name's Tatarina, It's nice to meet you."

Tatarina stands and offers to shake my hand. As I shake hers, I answer her question.

"Well, my name's Syra and..." I say, before getting rudely cut off by her.

"Syra, the chosen one of Tharp?! Could it be?"

Without answering, I draw Finito and hold it in my open palms, with the Arter gems facing up.

Tatarina can't believe her eyes. It's like she has seen a ghost.

"So, as you can see, I am Syra, the chosen one of Tharp. The two empty slots in the blade are for the remaining two gems; the Western and Northern Arter gems. My friends and I are quite confused and very lost, because we are heading to the Western gem first, yet this is as far West as I can see?"

"Well hold up there little lady. There are far more towns beyond that big ocean. It's just a matter of crossing it. Let me guess, you want a way across?" Tatarina asks, with a big smile on her face.

"Yes please! Can you?" I reply enthusiastically.

"Well, why didn't you just ask in the first place?" Tatarina says, giggling to herself.

"I...I...I'm not really sure? But thank you so much; when can we leave?" I sincerely reply.

"Sorry to change the subject, but I have to ask; how's Rodland these days?" Tatarina asks.

I don't reply. Rather, I stretch my arms out, look towards the ground, and turn around to face the door. After a few brief moments of silence, I speak with my back to her.

"Sorry Tatarina, that's quite a touchy subject for me. Rodland died just a few days ago, I'm sorry to say," I reply in a sad voice.

I look over my shoulder and see a huge chain come out of nowhere, and destroy the cup that's on the desk behind me. Before I'm able to track where the chain went, it vanishes.

"Excuse my mood, it's just that Rodland was a good friend," Tatarina says.

"It's fine, don't worry about it; now you know how I feel. I have to ask you something though. Where did the chain go, that you just smashed the cup with?" I ask while checking under the desk.

Tatarina shows me the insides of her two wrists. She has a big slice - four centimetres long - on her right wrist, and the Brotherhood of Guytz seal on her left.

"I knew I could trust you all, as my seal stopped rotating, when I came into your presence. Now as for my chain," Tatarina says, suspiciously.

She then quickly turns her right wrist upwards, and a huge chain comes shooting out of the gash, smashing the door. I follow the chain with my eyes. It puts a hole in the door, then quickly retracts into her arm; all of which happens before I can blink.

My jaw is wide open, I've never seen anything like it. Her arm is as thin as mine, so where does it go? I have no idea.

Tatarina makes eye contact with me, then speaks.

"About nine years ago, I helped out this crazy old man - with a staff exactly like your friend out at the bar. I had a chain that I found in the middle of the Yenom grasslands - I never knew what it was, until that old man told me; I used it as a weapon, but hated having to carry it around everywhere. So this old man magically crafted the chain, to come in and out of my wrist at my own will. It was the best gift I've ever been given. My memories so bad, that I've completely forgotten his name," Tatarina says as she runs her thumb along the gash on her wrist.

I look down at the floor, and my stomach sinks a little. I slowly look up at Tatarina and say "his name was Modnar."

She looks back at me with quite a shocked look upon her face.

"Yes that's it! Wait, where is this Modnar? Is he dead too?"

I look back at her and nod, ever so slowly. I really hate being the bearer of bad news, but it's becoming a role that I'm stuck with, more often than not.

Tatarina seems quite distant and to be fair, I can understand why. She has only just met me, and I've informed her of the death of two people that she feels quite close to, or at least has a lot of respect for.

"I'm sorry, Syra. Could you please join your friends for a while? I would like some time to myself," Tatarina says in a polite, yet sad voice.

"Sure. See you in a little bit," I reply before closing the door behind me.

A few moments later, I hear banging and crashing coming from the room. I don't even want to know what she's doing in there. Gus the bartender and Enaz are laughing. They watch me walk towards the bar, while looking over my shoulder in concern.

"She does that a lot. Short temper on the poor girl. No family, and she isn't sure where she came from. She pays us a few Ralop every week to have the room, so we just don't let any other travellers live there. Enaz has told me about Rodland and Modnar, so I'm betting that's why she's upset. Oh and to explain the noise, she'll be playing with her chain, no doubt in my mind! Here, have a bottle of Flork," Gus says, seconds before attempting to push the poor Goy into the drink.

"Ah, ah, ah, leave the little Goy alone," I say, as I put it down onto the bar.

The Goy looks back at me and smiles, before disappearing.

"Your two friends sitting over there, took their Goy's out too, why is that?" Gus asks.

"Because it's what I believe in; each Goy has their own existence, and I choose not to shorten it by dropping them into a drink. If I want to get merry drinking Flork, I will just consume more."

Before Gus could respond, Tatarina storms out of her room and quickly heads outside.

"I'll go after her. I'll be back in a few minutes. I think she just needs to talk to a female, for once," I say then follow Tatarina.

When I get outside, I frantically look around to see where she is. As I glance towards the two piers, I see her sitting on the edge of the right one; she appears to be patting something.

I walk towards her and call out "Tatarina." The water begins rippling, and she looks around suspiciously; she starts smiling when she sees me.

When I approach her, I must admit I'm a little bit nervous; I don't know what she's going to do next.

I look down at her, and notice that she's wriggling to the left of the pier, to give me room to sit down.

"Come Syra, sit next to me," Tatarina says, patting the pier to the right of her.

Without any hesitation, I sit down and stroke the hair out of my face.

"What's wrong, Tatarina?" I ask.

"Well, where do I start? I don't even know where I come from. I look up at the stars at night, wondering if I'm even from this world. So as you may have guessed; I don't have any family, nor do I know who they are. The only family I have, is Gus the bartender and a few others around Tharp. Amongst those few others, were the two people that you claim are deceased. The clothes I wear, were a gift from Modnar, which don't appear to be from this world either. I don't know, it just hit a nerve. When I'm upset, I come down to the pier to chat to my friend, Pukit. He can't speak or respond to me, but he really helps me get through each day."

"And where is Pukit now?"

All of a sudden, Tatarina jumps to her feet and yells "Pukit!"

"He also responds when I'm sad, and my tear drops land in the water; he'll be here soon," Tatarina explains.

The water starts to bubble and ripple, like a submarine is about to surface right in front of us.

"What's happening!?" I say, sounding slightly worried.

Tatarina doesn't speak, she just smiles towards me and winks. Seconds later, a huge creature emerges from the gloomy depths of the ocean. Its skin is sky blue in colour, and looks like a crab, except closer to the size of a car. The texture of its skin is like extremely tough leather, but the water makes it appear slippery. It has two huge white pinchers - just like a crab - except it has a third, much thicker aqua blue pincher directly above its mouth. It's such a marvellous looking creature, especially to see it up this close.

"Come here, Pukit. Don't be shy. This here is my friend, Syra," Tatarina says, patting Pukit's middle pincher.

I'm hesitant to pat it, as I'm not sure how it'll react. My old Rottweiler Butch - before it warmed up to me - loved mum straight away, but I had to earn its love. But, the risk I took every day - almost getting my hand bitten off - was worth it in the end; hopefully, this is one of those times.

I slowly lean forward with my right hand out, and I make sure that my eyes stay shut. I'm shivering like a little kid, patting a pet dog or cat for the first time.

As soon as I make contact with its middle pincher, I gradually open my eyes. Pukit looks like it's enjoying what I'm doing. It's emulating a dog, when you pat its head. In some sort of weird way, Pukit is cute.

"See Syra, nothing to worry about. Good boy, Pukit. I will come back for you soon? Syra and I are going to go drink for a little while" Tatarina says before patting Pukit, and standing up.

"Well, thanks for being so helpful. It's not often we come across people like yourself" I say.

"Aaahhh, don't thank me, its fine. While I was alone, I decided to join you and the others, in your quest to find the remaining two Arter gems. Pukit can give us a lift across the ocean, and along the way, we can stop by and pick up an old friend; I'm sure that he'd love to accompany us. He's a relative of Pukit's, named 'Craboo Guytz'. I just know he'll be useful to our cause!" Tatarina says, offering her left hand to help me up.

"Sounds perfect! Let's join the others and let them know of the plan!" I reply, while being pulled up off the ground.

We walk back to the pub, and it dawns on me that there's finally another female in the group. I think she's going to fit in nicely.

Upon returning to the others, we all start to drink copious amounts of Flork, drinking deep into the night. Once Gus finishes his shift, he joins in. He put a tab on the bar; so we're drinking Flork for free, and Tatarina's bottomless pockets full of Ralop will help us pay for drinks, upon finishing the tab. After playing a board game called 'Infinite' - which is quite addictive - we move onto talking about an assortment of different subjects; where we've been, where we're going, and everything in between. All in all, Tatarina really fits in with the four of us, and like I said before; it's great to have another female on board.

"I'm going to go schlep. It wash nishh to meet you!" Vetor says, offering his hand to shake Tatarina's.

After briefly shaking hands, Tatarina swiftly lets go of Vetor's. I look into her eyes and notice that they're red; they have actually changed colour.

"That wash rudes," Vetor says, before staggering out of the pub.

Once he's outside, Zekai, Enaz, Gus and I huddle in closer to Tatarina. She looks like she has just seen a ghost.

"What happened? Why have your eyes changed colour?" I whisper.

"Do you trust, Vetor?" Tatarina whispers back.

"With my life! Why do you ask that?!" I ask, frowning at her.

Tatarina's eyes suddenly return back to their original electric blue colour, and she glances my direction.

"My eyes change colour when I sense danger. I fear that Vetor can't be trusted," Tatarina warns.

I promptly stand up, and storm towards the exit of the pub. Upon opening the door, I turn around and speak.

"Vetor is my best friend! I don't know how you could make such a crazy assumption!" I say before slamming the door behind me, leaving my ear against it, so I can eavesdrop on Tatarina's conversation...

Meanwhile back in the pub...

"You wouldn't lie would you? Because that would throw Syra's entire focus off! We need her on the highest alert, to ensure her safety!" Enaz says, sternly.

"I wouldn't lie as I have no reason to. I like Syra a lot, and lying to her was never my intention, nor will it ever be for that matter!" Tatarina replies.

"Well, why say those things about Vetor? Why upset her like you have?"

"I told you why already! I'm not trying to make life difficult for Vetor, I'm just being honest; my natural instincts don't trust him for some reason!" Tatarina says, before storming off to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Zekai and Enaz stare at each other, totally blank for about fifteen seconds before Enaz brakes the silence.

"Women, huh?" Enaz says before chuckling.

Zekai also starts laughing and the three of them continue for a long enough period for me to realise something; I need to promptly find my best friend.

Outside the confines of the pub...

"Vetor! Where are you?!" I say, frantically running around.

I'm so worried about him. Maybe he's oblivious to how Tatarina feels, but I'm not. I hope she apologizes to him, and if she doesn't, I will make her. I just wish I knew why she didn't trust him. I suppose I can ask her that later.

I stagger around town, peeking in every window of every building; but no luck so far. The port town of Gustar isn't exactly the biggest town in the whole galaxy, but to look for one person within it, is taking a while. I feel like I'm a young child lost in a mall, detached from her mum, naked without their entire world.

"Vetor, where are you!?" I yell out, turning my head towards the piers.

Then I see him. Pukit is propped up on the pier with Vetor. He is passed out and Pukit is using its middle pincher, trying to awaken the drunken boy from his slumber.

I tiptoe towards Pukit, and try not to startle it.

"Pukit," I say, gently.

It diverts its attention to me, and looks like it's trying to recall who I am.

After tilting its head to the side, I smile back and cautiously approach.

"Pukit, thank you for looking after my friend," I say, picking up the drunken Vetor off the pier, putting one of his arms around my neck.

As I drag the unconscious Vetor away from the pier, I look over my right shoulder towards Pukit. It's still perched up on the pier, and still smiling back at me. Moments later, it dives back into the murky depths of the ocean.

"Whoosh carrying meez?" Vetor says, slurring all of his words.

"I'm your guardian angel, Vetor. You're in heaven!" I say sarcastically.

"Heaven? You mean I'm...HICCUP...dead?"

"Na, I'm just messing around. It's Syra. I'm dragging you back to the pub; you need to sleep," I say, giggling to myself.

"Fanx Syra. Your best fends of me."

I just laugh to myself, as I have a feeling of Déjà vu come over me. Vetor always seems to drink just a little too much. Hey, what are friends for anyway?

We arrive at the pub and Vetor's feeling sick.

"Syra...I....oh I," Vetor says, hurling right next to me.

"Okay buddy, I'm going to lean you up against the wall and pop inside for a moment."

"Umm...yup," Vetor replies, bending over and throwing up again.

I enter the pub; Gus has fallen asleep, and I can't see Zekai or Enaz, but I'll worry about them later. I take off my sheath and put it down in the corner of the room - by the rest of our equipment - then walk over to Tatarina's room and slowly open the door.

I peek through the gap in the door, and Tatarina is over by the window, looking out to sea. I think I better be compassionate, as I feel a little sorry for her.

"What's wrong Tatarina?" I ask calmly, moving towards her.

"I'm just sad. It feels like we got off on the wrong foot, you know? I didn't mean to appear against Vetor; he seems like a really nice person. I just can't explain why my eyes went red, they just did. I'm going to apologize to him in the morning, and hopefully you can forgive me?" Tatarina replies, while continuing to peer out the window.

"Don't worry, I'm over it. Excluding the old man, I don't usually hold grudges; it's just not in my nature. So please keep your word and apologize to Vetor. I'd appreciate that," I say, rubbing Tatarina's left shoulder.

Tatarina turns towards me and smiles.

"Thank you Syra. You have my word that I'll say sorry in the morning."

I open the door and look over my right shoulder.

"Good night. We will meet outside the front of the pub in the morning" I say before leaving the room and closing the door behind me.

I pop outside to get Vetor, and he's nowhere to be seen. There's a note attached to the side of the pub, by a dagger.

It says:

Syra,

If you wish to see your friends alive again, you better do as I say. Your friend Tatarina owes me Ralop, so she'll know who it is whom left this message.

Tell her that the value of Ralop means nothing to me anymore; I'm only interested in her life, in replace of all the time she's cost me. You can meet one of my warriors tomorrow at sunrise if you wish to bring Tatarina to trade for your friend's life.

Yours sincerely

Anonymous

I rip the note off the wall, and snatch the dagger, then quickly head into Tatarina's room.

"Tatarina, are you awake?" I ask.

"Huh what...YAWN. What's wrong?"

"This note, please read it."

I hand Tatarina the piece of paper and she quickly reads it, pacing around the room.

"It has to be him," Tatarina says, continuing to read.

"Has to be whom?"

"Campog, the Goblin king."

"You owe him Ralop?"

"Yeah, kind of. Five years ago I was a bounty hunter, but it became too dangerous."

"Never finished a job?"

"No, I always finished my jobs. He just changed a contract halfway through, and I disagreed to complete the additional task. He wasn't willing to pay me the extra Ralop that I felt he owed me."

"So what are we going to do? My friends are now captured, and it's over a debt that you owe."

"Well, as the note states, one of his lackeys will meet us here in the morning. I know you're worried, but we should get some rest. I'll see you just before sunrise."

"Okay, I hope you're right, Tatarina. Please be bright eyed and bushy tailed when you awaken. If I lose any of my mates, I don't know what I'd do."

"Very well. Night Syra," Tatarina replies, as I exit the room.

I huddle up in the corner - next to our equipment - worrying about my friends. I hope this Campog hasn't caused any harm to them; or he will pay, with his life.

The beams from the rising sun shine through the window, and wake me up. I grab my equipment and notice my companion's equipment isn't here; I push Tatarina's door open, and she isn't there either. I quickly run to the front door of the pub and push it open.

"Oh there you are," I say, sitting down next to her on the steps, thankful that she's here.

"Sorry, I didn't want to wake you till I had to."

"Well, sleep isn't really what's on my mind."

"I'm sorry this has happened at the expense of your friends. I feel terrible; this fate was intended for me."

"It's too late to start dwelling on the past; if I did that, I'd start thinking about things I could have changed, to save the lives of my friends."

"Fair enough, Syra. Aren't you afraid?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing."

"No, not at all. When you've been through what I have, you would be as confident as I am."

"I'm not worried about us; more about my friends. If any of them have been killed by the hands of this Goblin king, I'll make sure his slimy race doesn't exist much longer."

"I really hope it doesn't have to get like that. There are thousands of them."

"Numbers no longer worry me. We defeated thousands of orcs outside Neca city, and there were only five of us."

"Well, that's a relief. It looks like our escort has arrived."

Approaching us is a goblin - armed with a little dagger. It's about three feet tall, with crimson coloured skin. It has little brown boots and gloves on; the body is round like a ball, and its head is in the middle of its body. The nose is short and fat, with a few warts on it. It's wearing a cloth hat, and has brown coloured eyes; it stops right in front of us.

"Please come with us," the male goblin says, and I notice five more goblins standing a few metres behind him.

The six goblins all look the same; three of them have spears, two have daggers and the other has a staff, with the top lit.

"I hope you have done my friends no harm," I say, following the horde of goblins.

They all start laughing; it makes my blood boil knowing that I'm not in a place to just cut their cheeky heads off.

The goblins lead us to the back of the village - right up against the cliff; they stand running their hands along the cliff face.

"What are they doing?" I whisper.

"Opening up the door to their lair," Tatarina whispers back.

"You failed to mention they have a hideout at the back of the village."

"You never asked."

A section in the side of the cliff crumbles, revealing a small entrance; looks like we're going to be crawling.

"After you, ladies," one of the goblins say.

"Shut up, shorty," I snap back.

"You want us to end your life? I'd happily do that for my lord."

"Why don't you commit suicide by jumping off a spoon?"

Tatarina starts giggling while we lead the way into this dark cavern.
V - Bottom of the Food Chain...

I'm glad I don't have claustrophobia, because this long, never-ending tunnel would give me the creeps.

The tunnel is slightly higher than the goblins heads, allowing an easy, walkable passage for them; not so much for us. Tatarina and I have no choice other than crawling through here.

"I'm going to try stand again....Aarrgghh!" I say, before banging my head on the rocky roof.

"Give it up, chosen one; we don't wanna bruise our dinner," a goblin replies, sounding slightly snarky.

"Wait, what did you say?"

"You heard me loud and clear, missy. Goblins eat humans, especially lying, cheating ones!"

"Not while I'm alive," I mutter, continuing to crawl ahead.

The small tunnel is illuminated by a torch that one of the goblins behind me is carrying; I still can't see very far ahead of me. Water drips into my hair as we crawl; it feels slimy as it runs down my face.

"I'm really sorry about this," Tatarina says, crawling behind me.

"Don't worry about, let's just hope we both taste good," I joke.

The goblins start laughing, before Tatarina joins in. I have to turn this into a little joke, or my anticipation will kill me long before any goblins get to chew through my tender flesh.

"We really don't have time for all of this," I say.

"What's the hurry anyway?" Tatarina replies.

"We have to collect the remaining Arter gems before Akiad does. If he gets his hands on them before us, then he'll be too powerful for me to defeat."

"What's this mention of Akiad the great? Do you know him?" a goblin asks.

"Yeah, he's my nemesis," I reply.

"Mine too," Tatarina adds.

"True? Has he pissed you off?" I ask.

Tatarina hasn't responded to my question. She's been quiet for at least thirty seconds. She finally begins to speak.

"Years ago he killed this family that helped raise me when I was a lot younger. They did nothing to him, and didn't know of him personally; he just slaughtered them without question. I was under the bed and saw the whole thing. I believe that if I was seen, he wouldn't have spared me either."

"I'm sorry, that's terrible," I say, slowing my pace a little while thinking about it.

Akiad is such an evil person. He has accomplished nothing good for anyone; he's only interested in what he can do for himself.

"Excuse me!" I say, as the goblin illuminating the surroundings pushes past me.

I notice something shiny drop onto the ground. As I crawl over it, I grip it in my right hand; I'm dying to see what it is. It feels just like a coin.

"Can we please stop soon, I need to pee," I say, looking down at my right fist.

"The tunnel opens up slightly further down, you'll have to hold it," the goblin up ahead replies.

"It's not far to go. We're almost at the open area that the goblin spoke of," Tatarina explains.

We crawl in silence for a little while; I keep stopping to click my wrists and neck. The anticipation of seeing what's in my hand is killing me. The goblin ahead of us stops and turns around; I continue to crawl ahead and now have the ability to stand up and stretch.

"If you need to stop and drain all the liquid you've consumed, please do so now," The goblin says, pointing the torch to his left.

I look around and see that we're standing in a much larger cavern. It looks like a massive forest, but not your conventional one; all of the trees are growing down from above us. The roots of the trees are growing out of the cavern roof; the way forward is being swallowed by the leaves of the trees, which dangle all the way to the ground. There are some bizarre looking birds flying around. They're about the size of a seagull, have yellow feathers, and a large beak, slightly bigger than that of a pelican; it could easily swallow a goblin in one gulp. Each of their feathers are so bright that they're dimly illuminating the cavern from up above, like a flying light bulb. On the ground there are bushes with small white berries; my stomach is feeling a little hungry, but I don't need food as much as I do answers.

"Hurry up ladies, we haven't got all day!" a goblin yells at me, snapping me out of my daze.

I hurry off to a corner of this gigantic cavern, and crouch down in the bushes. I pull out the coin and take a look, feeling its edges. I can't make out where it's from, as it's too dark. I push the coin through the nearby bush, until it hits some light. I can't believe what I'm seeing; it's a New Zealand dollar. What would a goblin be doing with this?

Someone jumps out and startles me, causing me to drop the gold coin.

"Hurry up already," a goblin says from the other side of the bush.

"Gees, don't rush me!" I snap back, as the goblin walks away.

I quickly drop to the ground and reach into the bush; I feel around for the gold coin but can't find it anywhere.

"Where are you," I mutter to myself.

"What is taking you so long?!" the goblin yells.

"Gees, just give me a minute!"

"Well, I'm going to count to ten. If you don't hurry back to me, Tatarina will die; the illustrious Campog will not like that one bit," one of the goblins yell out, holding a dagger to Tatarina's throat.

As the goblin starts the countdown, I quickly search through the bush for the coin; Tatarina's life depends on it.

"Three! Four!" the goblin counts.

Where on Tharp is the coin. I keep searching around for its location. Finally I find it! I quickly place it down my bra, and take a deep breath.

"Eight! Nine!" the goblin yells.

"Wait! Wait! I'm done!" I yell, jumping out of the bush.

"You're lucky; I was almost ready to slit her throat," the goblin yells back, throwing her down on the ground.

"There's no need to handle her like that!" I say, approaching Tatarina and helping her up.

"You're not in a position to....wait," the goblin says, looking around nervously.

The entire cavern starts to shake and all the birds in the air disappear into the trees.

"What's all the shaking?!" I ask, ducking to the ground.

"Ssshhhh," Tatarina replies, putting her left index finger up to her lips.

The cavern continues to shake, and the goblins wave at us to follow them; we don't hesitate. We carefully move through the bushes along the ground; the rumbling continues to shake us inside out.

"What's shaking the cavern?" I whisper.

"Physaurus, the meat eater," Tatarina whispers back.

"WHAT???!! There's a dinosaur in here??!!" I say, shocked.

"Wait a dino...what?" Tatarina asks.

"That's right, only I'm from Earth."

"Well, it won't hesitate in chomping us for breakfast; I suggest shutting both your mouths, before I shut them for you!" the front goblin whispers over his right shoulder.

The shaking slows to a minor rippling, and the goblins start prodding Tatarina and I in the back with their spears.

"Hurry it along," a goblin says from behind us.

"We have quite far too.....AAARRRGGGHHHHH!" the front goblin says before being ripped apart by its huge teeth.

The Physaurus is terrifying. It stands at least twenty metres tall, and has yellow eyes, with a large red vertical stripe for each pupil. It has skin like a crocodile, dark green in colour, and a long sharp tail - with a serrated edge, perfect for stabbing. With two human size claws halfway up its neck, and two large feet, it heavily resemble a Tyrannosaurus rex, but a much larger one.

"Everyone, scatter!" one goblin yells, running straight through the legs of the Physaurus.

I run to the left and smack Tatarina round the head.

"Where do we go?!" I yell, running into the forest.

"Follow me!" Tatarina says, running ahead of me.

We run and jump through the bushes like a track runner on their best day; Tatarina is dodging dangling leaves and branches like she's done this many times before. She slides under a low branch; I follow her lead, drawing Finito mid slide.

"What's the plan? Have you battled this thing before?" I whisper.

"Many times before; but it's like a stalemate between me and this meat eater."

"So how do we kill it?"

"Your guess is as good as mine."

One of the goblins run past us, screaming for his life.

"ARRRGGHHH! Tatarina, where AAARRRGGGGGHH!" it yells before being turned into a snack for the Physaurus.

"Don't breathe," Tatarina whispers, before the head of the Physaurus starts sniffing directly above us.

Without thinking, I stab upwards, and Finito pierces straight through its jaw.

"EEERRGGGGHHHH!" the beast yells, blood trickling from below its mouth.

"SYRA! RUN! NOW!" Tatarina yells, running further through the forest.

I chase Tatarina through the abundance of leaves; she dodges branches and runs as fast as she can, and the Physaurus chases us.

"It's too fast!" I yell.

"You have any more bright ideas?" Tatarina yells, before grabbing onto a branch and swinging across a small chasm.

"Actually I do," I yell back, swinging across with my left hand and stabbing Finito into the ground upon landing.

I yell "Ice pillar!" and it emerges from beneath the ground, freezing all the leaves it makes contact with. When it shatters, Krenshi appears to help us.

"What is this??!!" Tatarina asks, standing behind me.

"Our distraction," I reply, facing the huge beast.

I'm proud of my snow leopard; she walks up to the Physaurus and starts growling, she gets a similar response in return. She's my fearless little friend.

"Hey Tatarina, it's.........working?" I say, turning around to realise she's not there.

I quickly have a look around and can't see her anywhere. Looking up, I see her in one of the trees above me; I'm not going to blow her cover, so I approach the Physaurus, and start firing ice walls.

It continues snapping down towards Krenshi, but she sidesteps out of the way; thankfully the Physaurus is still quite distracted, and a couple of my Ice walls crash into it. The leaves in our direct vicinity are frozen upon Krenshi's arrival, and my ice wall has been clearing out the area, giving us room to battle this formidable adversary.

Suddenly, Tatarina dives out of the tree, and lands on the back of the Physaurus; she wraps her chain around its neck.

I charge towards the Physaurus and it bends down and smacks me flying to the side; Tatarina falls off its back. I quickly run to her aid.

"You okay?" I ask, helping her up off the ground.

"Forget me Syra, RUN!"

Tatarina and I quickly run through the copious amount of leaves; it's like a never-ending plethora of bush, making the way forward difficult to see.

We slide into a bush, attempting to catch our breath.

"What are we going to do?" I ask, sheathing Finito.

"Nothing comes to mind."

"Great, that's reassuring," I say, sarcastically.

"Well, I'm too busy concentrating on my footing; it's so easy to trip out here."

And that is it; my brilliant idea has arrived.

"Can you sneak ahead, maybe a hundred metres; I need you to hook your chain around a low hanging branch," I explain.

"Why, what's that going to do?"

"You're going to make the Physaurus trip over!"

"Wait, how?"

"With your chain."

"This isn't going to work, he'll just pull us along the ground."

"It will, I have an idea."

Tatarina runs through the forest and finds a more spacious area. She hides in a nearby bush and fires her chain around a tree on the other side of the open space; it wraps around a branch, and flies back towards her. Once she catches it, she wraps it around another branch next to her.

"I'm ready Syra!" Tatarina yells out in the distance.

"Okay, I'll get him to follow us!" I yell back.

I whistle at Krenshi, hopping on her back when she stops next to me. I draw Finito and wave at the Physaurus.

"Hey, over here!" I yell, before the Physaurus looks our direction.

It growls and begins chasing us through the forest; I'm chopping branches out of the way the whole time. A few seconds before we reach the chain, I flip off and stab Finito into the ground.

"Ice spikes!" I yell, as even more than usual emerge. The Physaurus steps on several of them, and loses his footing; it stands either side of me as it starts falling, and trips over the chain, sliding along the ground.

"AAARRGGH!" Tatarina yells as she gets pulled along.

Krenshi turns around and charges towards its head, shattering on impact; I stand up, snatch Finito, and approach the frozen face of the Physaurus. Without hesitation, I chop through it, and chunks of frozen flesh fly through the air, raining blood onto the ground.

"You did it!" Tatarina yells, running towards me.

"No, we did. Hey, I forgot to ask, was it a DRAG?" I joke while we hug.

We both begin laughing and gasping for air. What a sigh of relief that this huge dinosaur is dead. As I run my hand along its skin, I think about how lucky we are to be alive; which makes me remember the gold coin. I reach into my bra and search around; I can't seem to find it.

"Damn it!" I say, searching for the coin.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't find the coin I picked up from the Goblin."

"What's so special about it?"

"It's from my planet. I just wanted to know how they got it."

"Why don't we go ask? The Goblin lair is beyond the Countesi Forest."

"Please, lead the way."

While I follow Tatarina, I wonder about my friends. What's happening to Enaz, Zekai and Vetor? I hope they're still alive. And the New Zealand dollar; why would a Goblin have one of those? Well, they better be ready to answer some questions.

### VI - Lair of the Goblin King

Tatarina and I continue to walk through the dense Countesi forest; I have Finito in my hand, swiping the more annoying branches out of the way. It's such an odd thing to see a forest in this manner; I'm constantly looking up, marvelling at the trees growing down from above us. It's the weirdest thing to experience. It baffles me that the rumbling from the 'now extinct' Physaurus didn't drop a few trees onto us

"Tatarina, how come all of the Goblins didn't rally up against the Physaurus? Surely there must be thousands of them?" I ask, chopping a huge log out of our way.

"I don't know. They're still trying to work out how it got here. It just appeared, thousands of years ago."

"What, out of thin air?"

"I'll explain a bit further ahead. When it showed up, Campog and the entire Goblin race became a lot more hostile."

"Why? Because of the Physaurus?"

"Yes, that's right. They've been hostile ever since."

The Physaurus is messing with my mind. No one knows how it got there? It's clearly a dinosaur, and that is literally something that Tharp shares in common with Earth; but, it begs the question, how did it get here? I can't wait to mix words with Campog; I deem it necessary to pick his brain.

We approach a huge crack in the ground. It's even big enough to swallow the Physaurus; I look down and there's only blackness. It reminds me of the Naryp Canyon; the dejavu of Rodland's horrible fate is coming back to me. We can't afford to follow that same demise.

"How are we going to get across?" I ask.

Tatarina ignores me and starts looking around for a solution to our problem. She suddenly fires her chain towards an overhanging branch, then tugs it slightly to make sure she has a good grip.

"Ready to swing across?" Tatarina says, gripping her chain with both hands.

I sheathe Finito, then reluctantly look down, swallowing a mouthful of saliva. I nod towards her, and huddle under her left armpit; I put my arms around her stomach.

"Okay, ready when you are," I say, closing my eyes.

"You're going to have to keep them open; I'll need your help with this."

We start walking backwards, preparing a long run up for the huge gap. She looks towards me and nods, then we both begin to run. As we approach the chasm, I hold my breath; once we're above land, she retracts her chain and we land on the ground. She pats me on the back.

"See, that wasn't that hard."

"How are you so calm?" I ask, folding my arms.

"I've cleared this gap many times," Tatarina says, beginning to walk ahead.

I look over my right shoulder towards the chasm and see something that catches my attention.

"Tatarina, wait!"

She starts to walk back towards me and we stand next to each other, in front of the hole.

"What's that?" I ask.

"I've always wondered that myself. I've asked Campog, and even he doesn't know."

We're staring at a light pink lightning bolt, which is suspended in mid-air, just underneath the overhanging branch that Tatarina latched onto; the leaves shroud it from the other side of the gap. When I stand on my tiptoes, the pink dims down and I can see inside it a little bit.

"Come on, let's forget it about it and find the others," Tatarina says, tapping me on the back.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," I reply.

After an hour or so, the Countesi forest thins out; I can now see the back wall of this huge cavern. When I look up, a small pond is visible on the roof; the weird part is it's not dripping down. It seems like we're underneath it.

"Is that the Pond of Destiny?" I ask.

"It sure is. I've always been too scared to look in there; well, from the upper world."

"I was too. I've seen into it, myself."

"Really. What did you see?"

"Well, it was me, but I looked much older. And I was covered in tattoos."

"What's a tattoo?"

"One of these," I say, showing her my Brotherhood of Guytz seal.

"Oh. I wonder what it means."

"Yeah me too. Zekai said it's my destiny to die, yet I looked about thirty in my reflection."

"Well, I'm sure it'll make sense eventually. We're almost at the Goblins lair. No, keep your weapon sheathed," Tatarina says, stopping me from drawing Finito.

We approach a large pair of stone doors, which are in an arch; they're quite a bit taller than our height, and there are pieces chipped off all over the place. There is a large bell next to the door; Tatarina fires her chain and it gongs loudly. The doors creak open.

"Ooohhh, Tatarina. Where's the others?" the goblin asks.

"The Physaurus took their lives."

"That figures. Nothing funny please; Campog is conducting business, and does not wish to be disturbed."

"Come, Syra," Tatarina says, waving me to follow her inside; the goblin closes the door behind us.

We're in a long rocky corridor - about the same height as the doors - and there's water dripping into my hair. The goblin walks ahead of us, and collects a stick off the ground. He ignites it on a nearby torch - which is inside of a steel holder; there are many of them, all the way into the distance, on either side of the corridor, illuminating the way forward.

We walk for a few minutes until the corridor ends, and we are now standing on a rocky platform - which resembles a diving board. We're in another huge underground cavern. There is sand filling all the space, almost to the height of the platform, and you can just make out the top of some trees - with bright red leaves - peering out of the sand. The leaves appear to be the home for some Goblins, where others have made their residence out of branches and loose wood. Right at the back of the cavern is a huge, stone door; I'll worry about what's behind it after rescuing my friends. Next to the stone door is a large wooden house, two stories high; leaves and branches are growing right through it, almost like it was built around them. The roof is a canopy of red leaves, giving me the impression that the spine of the tree goes directly through the middle of the house. Sitting on a large wooden throne, on the highest mound of sand in the room - which is just in front of the wooden house - is a slightly bigger Goblin; my money is betting that he's Campog. He has a silver crown - embedded with jewels - and a beautiful golden staff. He's wearing a pair of pants made of white fur, and his fat stomach dribbles over the top of them; the stretch marks are disgusting. He stands up, and accompanies the thousands of other goblins that are surrounding a huge drop in the sand. I wonder what they're all cheering at.

"Follow me," the goblin says before jumping off the ledge onto the sand; we follow closely behind.

Eventually, we end up behind all the Goblins. They're all cheering so loud, that I can't hear myself think. I'm thankful that they're all short, allowing us to see what's going on in the huge sandpit.

There is a fire, with a human attached to a log, lying horizontally over it; looks like it could be breakfast. There is a goblin turning a handle at the end of the log, rotating him like he's on a rotisserie. He's half naked, wearing only some white briefs.

"Help me!" He yells.

"Quiet, I can't conduct business with you making all that noise!" Campog yells as he bangs his fists together.

I look up and see him speaking to a warrior of some sort. His physique would suggest that he's male, and he has a longbow over his back; I can see his quiver of arrows right next to it. He has long black and grey hair, which is growing through the top of an animal's skull, which he wears as a helmet. He's wearing a bark necklace around his neck, with large green leaves attached to it, covering most of his chest, arms and back; he appears to have a massive machete in his right hand. He pokes it into Campog's stomach and begins to speak; I wave at Tatarina and make my way towards them.

"Campog, don't change the subject; you owe me Ralop, lots of it."

"Now, now, Manix; how many years have we been doing business. Please, put that away," Campog replies, before Manix sheathes his weapon.

"Yeah, yeah, a long time."

"I'm just, well, a little short on Ralop at the moment."

"You, short on Ralop? You've got to be joking."

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Campog says, leaning closer to Manix.

"Oh, you're trying to scare me?" Manix replies, drawing his machete and placing it against Campog's neck.

"As soon as one of my brethren see what you're doing to me, you will be as good as dead."

"They can sure try, friend."

"No one is dying on my watch," I say, from behind Manix.

He leers over his right shoulder, then sheathes his weapon.

"I'll come back tomorrow for what you owe me, Campog," Manix says, before walking towards me.

"Something wrong?" I ask, sounding snarky.

"I thought I recognized you; guess I was wrong," Manix replies before walking past me, towards the exit.

"Here she is, Syra the Chosen one. I've waited a long time for this," Campog says.

"Where are my friends?" I yell, as Tatarina holds me back with her right arm.

"Oh hello Tatarina, I didn't see you there; I just needed you to bring Syra here alive. I don't actually care about what you owe me."

"Are you deaf?" I yell.

"No, I'm not. I have your friends, I captured them the moment I caught a whiff that you were in town."

"So what have I done to you? It sounds like your vendetta is with Tatarina, not me?"

"No, no, it's definitely with you; the event just hasn't taken place yet."

"Wait, what is that supposed to mean?"

"Many years ago, the Prophet stormed into my peaceful village and flooded the entire chamber in sand, destroying every Goblin in sight, like they'd upset her in a past life. She then said that one day the Chosen one would come along and finish us off. I had been thinking that this day would never come; how wrong was I?" Campog says, before standing up and placing his hands behind his back.

"Well why don't we change what you've heard. Let my friends go, and no harm will come to you."

"No, that's not going to happen. You see, Akiad and myself have a mutual respect for each other. When he needs someone to be eliminated, I obey his wish and he leaves us alone. I've heard there's quite a bounty on your head, young Syra, and I don't mind how I get paid; whether it's Ralop or gold, it don't matter, as long as it's shiny."

"Well it appears we're at a stalemate then. How about we leave Syra out of this, Campog," Tatarina adds, stepping in front of me.

"Tatarina, I've no use for you if you're dead. So why don't you just leave?" Campog replies before chuckling to himself.

"Well, she's here with me. Show me my friends, then we can start negotiating," I say, before looking over my shoulder.

"We'll begin our negotiation when you place your sword over here by my throne."

I obey his command getting briefly distracted by hearing the captured human, screaming for his life again; he has finally caught on fire.

"Yes, yes, YES!" Campog yells, making all the goblins cheer louder.

"You're going to burn your dinner," I say, sarcastically.

"No Syra, sometimes I do it to hear them beg for their life. I'm not even hungry. But you.... mmmmm," Campog replies, rubbing his stomach.

I feel my stomach curdle a little. He actually seems keen to eat me. I better put an end to him, before I end up on the breakfast menu.

"Psst," Tatarina whispers, getting my attention.

"What."

"Ask him where he got all his gold from."

I open my mouth to reply, but remember the gold NZ $1 coin.. Maybe he has hundreds of them...

"So where did you get all the gold from?" I ask, turning my attention back towards Campog.

"Oh wouldn't you like to know."

"Just tell me. I've already told you that no harm will come to any goblins, including yourself."

"I'm choosing not to say where I got the gold from."

"Fine. The pink lightning bolt in the Countesi forest. How did that get there?"

"Like everything in these caverns, they just appeared out of thin air. I'm not a magician and neither are my brethren."

My questions have me chasing my own tail, and I am no closer to any answers.

"Okay, so where are my friends?" I ask, before folding my arms.

"Over there, Syra," Campog replies, pointing behind me.

I look over and see Tatarina get knocked unconscious by Campog's staff; I quickly turn back around, and get clobbered right in the face. I begin to blink and try shake the cobwebs, but see a horde of redness surround me.

"Good night, Syra," Campog says before I see his staff heading towards my face.

I awaken and its pitch black. It's so dark that I can't see a thing.

"Damn, where am I?" I say while blinking, and trying to see.

I quickly look around, hoping to see something in the darkness.

"Hello? Hello? Tatarina? Vetor? Zekai? Enaz? Anybody?" I say, feeling slightly worried.

I'm sitting down, tied to what feels like a wooden stake, similar to the guy over the fire. It's too heavy to move, and my hands are tied too tight to escape. Where am I, and where are my friends?

"Enaz? Zekai? Tatarina? Vetor?" I say, hoping for a response.

"Syra, is that you?" A voice whispers.

"Who's there?" I reply.

"It's Enaz."

"Oh am I glad to hear a friendly voice. Where are we?"

"We're behind that stone door, in some sort of chamber."

"And are the others with you?"

"Yeah, they're all here; my guess is that they're still unconscious."

"Where are your weapons?"

"Sorry, I'm not sure. Last thing I remember, we were being dragged into this room."

I hear a footstep behind me, which lands in a puddle.

"Helllllll...." I say, before feeling a hand cover my mouth, catching me by surprise.

"Don't say a word," a voice whispers from behind me.

"Syra?" Enaz asks.

"Answer him," the person instructs me.

"Yeah, I'm here."

"You went quiet, I got worried."

"Just give me a minute; I'm thinking of a plan."

I feel the hand cover my mouth again.

"I'm going to untie you, then you don't say a thing until you escape. Kill the goblins, Syra; it's your destiny," the person whispers before cutting the rope holding my hands together.

I quickly stand up and turn around, but I still can't see anything.

"Wait, who are you?!" I say, putting my hands in front of me, walking blindly in their direction.

"Huh, who were you talking to? I could hear whispering; Syra, what's going on?" Enaz asks.

"It's nothing, keep talking; guide me to where you are," I reply, moving towards his voice.

Suddenly, a blue light starts dimly lighting the chamber. I can see Enaz and the others in front of me. I run towards him.

"What's that light, Syra?" Enaz asks.

"I'm not sure, but I can see your weapons, so I'll free you then check it out."

"I'll wake and free the others."

I grab one of Enaz's swords and carefully cut the ropes around his hands. I start running towards the blue light; it's coming from behind a large rock, about twenty metres away from me.

I peer around the corner and see the same blue electric sphere that consumed Modnar. It sucks into a small hole and all that's left is a pink lightning bolt, suspended in mid-air; its soft pink glow illuminates the surroundings.

"Syra, we must leave. We have the element of surprise, so let's use that to our advantage," Enaz calls out.

"Okay, be there in a moment."

"We don't have time. We need to escape this place."

I steal one more glance at the lightning bolt in front of me, wishing I had more time to investigate what it is. It looks the same as the one I saw in the Cortesi Forest. What is it? The person that saved me must have disappeared in the same manner that Modnar did, leaving this bolt behind. I wonder if there is a pink lightning bolt in Neca City.

"Syra?" Vetor yells, running in my direction.

"Vetor, are you okay?" I reply, running back towards him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Heck of a hangover though. What's that glowing pink light?"

"No time to explain. Let's pick up Finito and get out of here."

I run towards the others and check that they're not injured. Tatarina and Zekai head towards me.

"Are you two hurt? It's good to see you. I see you all have your weapons." I say, quickly hugging them both.

"We're ready when you are. This is going to be a gruelling fight. Let's open the door," Zekai replies.

"Best of luck everyone. Let's make it out of here alive."

We all stand next to each other and start to push the stone door open; luckily for us, it can swivel both ways, otherwise it would be a long wait for someone to open it.

Once the door is open, it lets light into our chamber; I look over my left shoulder and see gold lights shimmering on the roof.

"Wait, what's that?" I say, pointing at what the light is reflecting off.

I walk towards the gold lights, and just like Tatarina said it appears that the entire room is full of gold coins. Vetor runs past me and dives into them like a child.

"I've always wanted to do that!" Vetor says, throwing handfuls of coins into the air.

I bend down, pick one of them up, and hold it towards the light. I notice that it's a New Zealand dollar, the same as what that goblin had. I turn it over and see a side profile shot of a king - not the queen that we currently have; and the year it's printed, makes my brain spin in circles.

"Syra, what have you......wow that's a lot of mullah," Enaz says, kneeling next to me.

"It's one New Zealand dollar," I reply, handing him the coin.

"Why does Campog have a room full of New Zealand money?"

"That's not even the strangest part; turn it over."

"What? That makes no sense."

"Yeah, that's just what I was thinking."

"So who is this man? Where's the queen?"

"Well, I'm assuming dead."

"Wait Syra, what did you say?" Vetor adds, quickly crawling across the money to us.

I hand Vetor the dollar and he holds it to the light.

"Oh, it's New Zealand currency. What's the problem?"

"If you turn it over, you'll see it's from the year 2029."

"Syra quick, you better come here" Tatarina yells out from by the stone door.

Vetor starts examining the coins he's sitting on; I pick up one of them and pop it in my pocket, then run towards Tatarina, and peek through the door. I see that the goblins have been drinking Flork and most of them are falling asleep. Looks like a perfect time to strike.

"Everyone's, starting to konk out. I think we should sneak out first; I need to get Finito before we make any hasty decisions," I say, still peeking through the gap in the door.

"Let me do this, Syra. I'll take care of Campog," Enaz says, opening the door slightly further so he can squeeze through.

"Be careful, Enaz," I reply as he turns invisible.

**ENAZ**

I step over a few sleeping goblins, and looking ahead of me I see Syra's sword laying on the sand, next to Campog's throne. I tiptoe towards it, and the goblin I'm stepping over snorts in his sleep.

"Shit," I say, slightly startled.

I continue stepping over goblins until reaching Finito. I bend down, and see something odd; the Arter gems aren't in her sword.

"Damn, where are they?" I whisper.

Looking over at Campog, I notice them resting on his stomach. I creep forward till I'm leaning over him, and begin to hold my breath.

I see a goblin approaching Campog; it looks like he's going to wake him. Carefully drawing my sword, I place my right hand on the left arm rest of Campog's throne. Using my left hand, I thrust forward and my sword goes through the goblins face. He slides off my sword and falls onto the sand, rolling down into the pit. I better get these gems soon, or Campog's going to wake up.

I sheathe my weapon and turn towards him; I reach for the Arter gems with my left hand. When I grab them, Campog twitches and sneezes in my face, then moves his left arm onto the nearby armrest; my hand is covered.

"Dammit," I whisper, quickly trying to work out what to.

I quietly draw my sword with my left hand, holding it in front of him; I start a countdown in my head to move my trapped hand, out from under his.

ONE.

TWO.

THREE!

I move my hand and Campog awakens, and begins to stand up.

"What the....huh... oh, everyone is asleep," Campog mutters as he stretches.

I grip my hand around my sword, then reappear and swing horizontally towards the centre of his spine, chopping the Goblin king in half.

"What...have...you...done....KILL THEM!" Campog yells as both halves of his body slide down the sand, into the pit.

I look over my left shoulder and see the others pushing the concrete door open, and when I look around, I see all the goblins awakening from their drunken slumber.

"Where's the Arter gems?" Syra asks, picking up Finito and seeing that they aren't in their indentation.

"Here," I reply, passing them to her.

"Okay, Zekai and Tatarina; stay here by the throne, killing all that you see. Vetor, Enaz, cover me," Syra instructs, running back towards the door.

Vetor and I follow Syra; I stand in front of her with my sword drawn and Vetor has Modnar's staff out in front of him.

"Where's your axe?" Syra asks.

"I don't know. They must have dropped it somewhere. I have the old man's staff though; not that I expect to do a lot with it."

"Okay, here goes nothing," Syra says, inserting the two Arter gems back into Finito.

"What's happening?" I yell.

"The Arter gems are calibrating with Finito; I can't use my weapon for a little while."

"Heads up, Vetor!" I yell, while Syra throws me my other sword.

Upon catching it, I start slashing at the incoming goblins; Tatarina and Zekai are tussling in the distance.

"I need...to....help...the others. Have you got this, Vetor?" I ask, dicing another few goblins into pieces.

"Not...really....but...help...them," Vetor replies, smacking goblins out of the way with the staff.

I run towards Tatarina and Zekai; the horde of goblins are like lions, surrounding their prey.

"Damn little ankle biters. There's just too many of them!" I yell, stabbing two more through the chest.

"Keep the pressure on, Enaz. Distract them from chasing Syra!" Zekai adds, knocking a goblin with the butt of his spear and then stabbing him through the heart.

"When will the shaking stop?" Tatarina yells while winding several goblins with the force of her chain.

"It won't be long now!" Zekai yells.

I disappear and the goblins stop attacking us.

"Where is he?" one goblin panics, while a few start poking their spears through the air.

I begin swinging my swords horizontally from left to right - while still invisible; body parts fly through the air, while the goblins look around, trying to find me. A goblin with a red cape and silver helmet starts yelling.

"He's cutting through our line; ATTACK THEM!"

"EEERRRGGGGHHH!" Something yells from behind us.

All the goblins stop in their tracks and start to back away from us; I reappear next to Tatarina and Zekai and hold my swords in front of me. Syra is riding a snow beast our direction.

"Syra...what is that?" I ask as she approaches us.

"Oh this is Krenshi. She's my snow leopard. Don't hesitate; it's my destiny to rid the land of this race; let's kill every last one of them!!" Syra yells, riding ahead of us, chasing them through their sandy village.

I turn and slice two goblins in half, before forward flipping through the air; as I land, I chop the arms off another goblin.

Tatarina fires her chain and it wraps around three goblins.

"Hold them there, keep them prisoner!" I yell.

"I will. Wait, behind you!" Tatarina yells back.

Zekai slithers in the way and stabs his spear through four incoming goblins.

"Cheers Zekai, life saver!" I say, while fighting off more goblins.

"Need help?" Vetor asks, smacking a few goblins with his staff.

"No I'm fine, but she might," I reply.

"I was wondering where you were, Vetor," Tatarina says, struggling to hold the three goblins.

Vetor clubs one of them in the face with his staff.

"WOOD you like my help?" Vetor quips.

He and Tatarina start laughing.

"Vetor, protect Tatarina. Enaz, let's follow Syra!" Zekai says, before slithering towards her.

**SYRA**

I swing Finito forward and yell "Ice wall!"

Hundreds of fleeing goblins become frozen as the wall passes right through them; Krenshi tramples over and shatters them into bloody fragments beneath us.

I look over my right shoulder and see my companions in the distance; looks like I'm out here, all alone.

As I pass the top of a tree - sticking out of the sand - three goblins dive out and tackle me off Krenshi.

"AARRRGGHHH!" I yell, landing on my shoulder.

Krenshi suddenly stops and breathes cold air on all the goblins in front of her; she turns around and approaches me while I'm lying on the sand.

"That's it girl, come to me," I say, swinging Finito and chopping the legs off one of the goblins.

Krenshi then charges forward and shunts the two goblins close to me, and they fly through the air; she bends down and rubs the cold fur on her face against my skin.

As I pat her, I see I'm quickly becoming surrounded by goblins. They're so fast, and just appear out of nowhere. Some have even been surfacing near me from beneath the sand. I do hope my idea works, or this could spell my end.

I sheathe Finito and stand up. There are too many goblins around me, and my heart is racing; please, let my plan work. A goblin with a red cape and a silver helmet emerges, pushing through the crowd.

"Give up Syra. Tell your friends to let our captive free, and we'll make your death rather quick," he instructs.

I begin grinning, then start to clap, and Krenshi shatters into thousands of ice shards; they fly out in every direction like sharp daggers, stabbing nearly all of the goblins surrounding me. I hold Finito out in front of me. I wave my right hand, taunting the remaining goblins to attack me.

"Hey guys, help please?" I say, swinging at a few goblins.

Zekai doesn't hesitate; he slithers ahead and starts taking out goblins. Enaz runs up to me and covers my back.

"You took your sweet time," I say, sounding snarky.

"I was a little tied up," Enaz replies, clashing with a few goblins at once.

"Has Tatarina and Vetor got those hostages? I want you to interrogate them," I yell, while stabbing another two goblins.

"With pleasure," Enaz replies.

Zekai slithers back towards us, so now we all have our backs against each other.

"Not many to go. Let's keep the pressure on, we're winning," Zekai says as the last lot of goblins close in on us.

I run towards the centre of them and repetitively stab Finito into the ground, yelling "Ice spikes!"

The goblins charging towards me, meet their demise; Enaz and Zekai continue duelling the goblins attacking them.

Zekai rams his spear through a goblins stomach, and Enaz jumps onto his knees and chops it in half; I run in and finish off the last two, before nose-diving into the sand. The three of us are busy catching our breath.

"I'm getting too old for this," Enaz says, sheathing his weapons.

"You and me both," Zekai adds.

"Let's go and get some answers," I say, leading us to the concrete door.

Once we get back, Enaz ties our little friends up to the same poles that we once occupied; we drag them out to the throne, and place the first one over the fire.

"Mmm cooked goblin flesh is delicious," Enaz says, smiling and rubbing his stomach; I begin questioning the other two goblins, hoping that Enaz is lying.

"So, while we cook your friend, you're going to answer some questions; or your fate will be like his, and the rest of your race."

"It's our destiny to die anyway, so we're not saying anything," the left goblin says.

I quickly draw Finito and chop his head off.

"AAARRRGGGHHHH!" the other goblin screams.

I sheathe my weapon and bring my face closer to his.

"You're a menace, just like her," the goblin says, spitting blood on the sand.

"Like who? A menace like who," I reply.

Vetor starts giggling to himself in the background.

"It's like watching a good soap opera," Vetor jokes.

"A what?" Tatarina replies.

"It's a type of television show on our planet."

"Wait, a type of what?" Tatarina asks, still sounding confused.

"Ssshhhh, I'm trying to watch."

Enaz walks up and nudges me to the side; he then hooks the goblin across the face.

"The lady asked you a question!" Enaz yells.

The goblin spits in Enaz's face, which in turn makes him incredibly angry. He steps back then lunges forward and connects with a flurry of left and right punches.

"Let's try that again. Who's the menace?" Enaz asks.

"I'm not telling YOU anything," the goblin replies, before spitting in his face again.

Enaz steps towards him and head-butts his nose; blood shoots out onto the sand, and Zekai slithers in the way.

"Enaz, please stop. Allow Syra to speak with him."

"It's okay, Enaz; I'll speak to him for a while. Can you all please wait by the concrete door?"

The goblin looks towards me, scared for his life; he should be, as he's testing my patience.

"Now, what did you mean before? You said I was a menace, just like her," I ask, leaning closer to him.

"You are."

"But who are you talking about?"

"The prophet."

"She was a good person. Why would you despise her?"

"Because ten thousand years ago she destroyed our whole village. She spared about fifteen of us. We were such a friendly, peaceful race; until she brought evil to us. She told Campog that one day you'll show up to kill us all, and that we must train to fight you. This is why we kidnapped your friends. I'm sorry, we just listened to what she said. And, as punishment, she buried our whole village in sand."

The goblin starts crying. I let him weep, and draw Finito. I know it's my destiny to wipe this last goblin out; the prophet foretold this, and who am I to mess with destiny.

I swing Finito and finish the last goblin, then walk over to my companions.

"What did he say?" Tatarina asks.

"Well, it's all just confusing. Makes no real sense at all."

"He's a goblin; surely you don't think he's speaking the truth?"

"I don't know what to believe."

"Let's head back and sink a few bottles of Flork; we definitely deserve it," Enaz says, putting his arm around me.

I nod and smile at my companions, but can't help thinking about what the goblin said. Was the prophet really responsible for the near destruction of their race? Well, glad it was my destiny to wipe them off the face of Tharp; because we were nearly their dinner.

VII - Go on, SPIT out the details...

Out of all my time on Tharp, this is the best morning to awaken. Lush sea breeze, the smell of salt water rushing into my nostrils as I inhale deeply, the sun beaming down from above. To describe it in one word; perfect. A much better awakening then decomposing in the stomachs of the goblins.

Vetor, Tatarina and I are outside the pub, patiently awaiting the arrival of Enaz and Zekai.

"Where could they be? Well, to be perfectly honest, I never actually got around to telling them to meet us here in the morning. Let's just give them a few more minutes, to see if they show up," I say, growing impatient.

Literally a few seconds later, Zekai slithers towards us from the direction of the piers, holding a few full bottles of Flork in each hand; just behind him is Enaz, carrying his own stash of bottles.

"So chaps, where were you two last night huh? Escape the clutches of some goblins and ya feel like disappearing again?" Vetor jokes.

"Well, Zekai and I took a crate with a dozen bottles of Flork in it, and went for a wander around the town. After an hour or two, we ended up at the piers, very drunk. In fact, we were so drunk, that we completely forgot whether we had to drop the Goy in or take it out, so we just stopped drinking and fell asleep," Enaz explains, giggling to himself.

"Haha well that's okay. Now that we are all here and sober...ish, it's time for you two to gather your things so we can depart. We will meet you both, down at the piers in a few minutes," I say, as Vetor, Tatarina and I head towards the water.

"Gees, you could've brought our gear; we were already there," Enaz mutters to himself, sipping on one of his drinks while approaching the pub.

A further ten minutes pass, and Enaz exits the pub with a sack over his right shoulder, and Zekai slithers along behind him, with a sack over his left shoulder.

"Thank you Gus! Until we meet again!" Enaz yells out over his left shoulder.

When they approach us, curiosity gets the better of me and I have to ask what they're carrying.

"So Enaz, what's in the sacks?"

Enaz pulls the sack off his shoulder, and before he has a chance to open it, Tatarina's chain comes flying out of her wrist and grabs the bag out of his hands. She searches the contents of the bag and comments.

"Bottles of Flork, a? Thought you might get a little bit thirsty? Well, there will be plenty to drink where we're going, so why don't you lads give them back to your friend Gus, so he can make a little Ralop."

Enaz opens his mouth to reply, but Tatarina reacts too quickly. Her chain lifts the sack off the ground; she throws it over to Enaz, and he reluctantly catches it.

Enaz and Zekai just nod and head back towards the pub. Tatarina, Vetor and I giggle as we watch this hilarious event unfold; Enaz and Zekai knock on the Gustar pub door, with depressed looks plastered on their faces. We can't hear what's being said from where we are, but can see Gus open the pub door, and both Enaz and Zekai pass their sacks of Flork back to him. Gus looks really confused, and Zekai points our direction. The three of us start laughing, hysterically. Well, what's not to laugh about; they look like two teenagers, who have just been caught stealing. Moments like these, I really wish I had a camera.

When Enaz and Zekai approach us, I know its cue for Vetor to make a typical sarcastic comment.

"Tatarina might be taking over as boss for a while. Syra got the SACK!" Vetor quips.

The three of us start laughing again.

"Haha, very funny Vetor," Enaz grumbles.

Vetor starts limping towards Enaz - still using Modnar's staff as a crutch - and he places his left hand onto Enaz's right shoulder.

"Be open and honest with us, Enaz. Best not to BOTTLE it up!" Vetor says sarcastically.

We all start laughing even harder and this time, even Zekai joins in. Enaz is the only one not laughing, but I know he secretly wants to.

Once the joke has gone stale, the five of us follow Tatarina to the end of the left pier. She leans over and dips her left hand into the water. She wiggles it around, until you can see the water gradually rippling. Enaz and Zekai equip their respective weapons, and grip them tightly out in front. Vetor and I look at each other and start snickering.

Suddenly, Pukit leaps out of the water, and puts its three pinchers onto the pier, right next to Tatarina. Zekai and Enaz look quite startled.

"It's okay Pukit. These overprotective men behind me are my friends. No need to be scared," Tatarina says, patting Pukit's middle pincher.

Enaz and Zekai sheathe their weapons, and stand next to me.

"Thanks for the warning," Enaz comments.

"That's okay, it was much funnier watching you both freak out," I reply, winking back at him.

"All right you four, can you please line up, from left to right, with your hands out in front of you, palms up. Oh, and it would pay to close your eyes!" Tatarina says, giggling a little.

Enaz, Zekai, Vetor and I all close our eyes, and hold our hands out in front of us, palms up. I must admit, I'm a little puzzled about what's going on, but equally as excited about it. I close my eyes while my anticipation chips away at me.

Suddenly, I can hear someone making a snorting noise, like they're about to spit phlegm, followed by some fast intermittent spitting; I feel a clump land in my hands.

We all simultaneously open our eyes, and to our disgust, we all have big, clumpy green saliva in our hands.

"WAIT! WAIT! Don't rub it off!" Tatarina yells.

"This feels disgusting! Was that really necessary?" I say while screwing my face up.

"Well, yes it was. You want a way over the Western sea? So, Pukit is going to give us a way across. To grip onto the texture of his skin, you need his saliva on your hands. If you wash it off, you will not be able to grip on at all."

"Well, I do want a way across, and I'm very grateful that Pukit is helping us with this. But I'm not gonna lie, it feels pretty revolting," I reply, looking down at my palms.

"I'm sorry about that, not too much I can change. His saliva is the only say. Pukit, kneel down please. Good boy," Tatarina says, as she strokes Pukit's middle pincher.

Immediately after Tatarina speaks, Pukit turns around - so its back is facing us - and bends over into the water; it's now much easier to hop up onto its back.

"Syra, you're the leader, so you must go first," Tatarina says.

I nod at Tatarina, and scale Pukit's huge back, which looks like it can easily hold a dozen people or so.

I look down at my hands, and notice how sticky they are from Pukit's saliva. I spread my fingers apart, and can see saliva everywhere; I guess some things will always make you cringe, even if we see things far worse than this every day.

Once I'm at the front of Pukit's back, I can feel my hands becoming as sticky as an adhesive plaster.

Everyone else hops on behind me, leaving Zekai as the last one to climb aboard Pukit's back.

"Tatarina, I don't have legs like all of you, so what am I going to do?" Zekai asks.

"Just hop on and don't let go, Zekai. Pukit moves quite slowly, so you don't need to worry about falling into the water!" Tatarina replies, cheekily.

"That's a relief," Zekai says, before using his upper body strength, to pull his tail onto the back of Pukit.

Pukit then gently slips into the water and starts moving forward. You can only see its three pinchers and back - with us upon it - sticking out of the water. Then, all of a sudden, Pukit increases in velocity.

"Hey! I thought you said he only moves slowly!" Zekai yells out.

"This is slow. Do you want him to go faster?" Tatarina replies.

"NOOO!!" Zekai yells, while his body hangs down Pukit's back.

I look over my right shoulder and witness the most hilarious thing I've ever seen. It's like what you'd imagine in a cartoon, except I'm seeing it with my own eyes. Zekai is hanging onto Pukit with his hands, but his body - from his shoulders down to his tail - is flying, like a flag in the air.

"Please! SLOW DOWN!" Zekai yells.

Pukit continues to pick up in speed, and everybody starts laughing at Zekai's expense. I'm sure Tatarina is lying to Zekai, but I don't really mind. I definitely need the amusement.

A few hours pass and I have a weird feeling of déjà vu come over me. It reminds me of the Jonker desert that we travelled across on the Zabait, except this time its water. Equally vast in scope; no matter what direction you turn your head, you'll always see water. This also allows me to pass some time with my thoughts. I think about mum and how much I miss her. It's inevitable that she will be an emotional wreck, because if you think about it, I've been missing from home for several months now. Mum would've called the police, and made them search forever to find me. Who knows, I may already have a headstone in a cemetery somewhere. The thought of this gives me the shivers. I just wish I had a chance to tell her that I'm okay. This is my biggest regret.

I look around at my companions, and notice that it's only the ladies awake. Enaz and Vetor are asleep and Zekai has passed out.

"Tatarina, how much more travelling is there?" I ask.

"Oh, you mean to the Western continent? To be honest, I don't know. I'm just heading to Pukit's home. Hopefully his family will know where to go!"

"Are you serious? You've never been there?!"

"Sorry Syra, no I haven't. You have all told stories of your amazing adventure together, and I felt a little envious of that, because I have nothing, and no one; this enticed me to join you. I have the transport to get us across, but I just don't have directions. In the city of Zonek, is Pukit's race. One of them is a cartographer. He will be able to help us, I'm sure of it!"

"Well, I'm happy you're with us, and I hope we can find some help there..."

I smile back at Tatarina, and are trusting her that our destiny is in good hands. I hope she doesn't let us down.

As we race across this vast ocean, watching the sun set in front of us, I know it's finally my turn to hit the hay.

### VIII – The Parmyr Colossus

I suddenly arouse and start blinking, before noticing that it's the middle of the night. Tatarina's still awake, and I'm starting to become a little curious of where this city is.

"Psst, Tatarina, how much further?" I say, yawning.

"Oh, hi Syra. I know you must have been enjoying your sleep; you were snoring your head off. As for the city; we're quite a way off yet. I'm too busy keeping my wits about me, trying to avoid an encounter with the Parmyr Colossus."

"Wait avoid what?"

"The Parmyr Colossus. It's a gigantic sea Leviathan."

"How big is it?"

"Huge. In fact, it could swallow us whole without chewing."

"Has anyone tried battling it?"

"Are you mad? What a mammoth task that would be. The rumours confirm otherwise anyway."

"What rumours? Care to elaborate?"

"Well, legend has it that many moons ago, the prophet claimed to have tamed the wild Leviathan. Whether this is true or not, was never proven; none of us have questioned her wise words," Tatarina replies, while scratching behind Pukit's ear.

"So training the Leviathan is a possibility?" I ask.

"Haha you're so naive, Syra. I did mention that it was the prophet who tamed the Parmyr Colossus," Tatarina replies, cheekily.

"Yeah, fair call. I like your plan of avoiding the Leviathan."

"Consider it done. Besides, I would have dodged it regardless of what you said," Tatarina replies while looking back over her shoulder.

The wind is blowing harder and the water is gradually becoming rougher as we continue to ride through the night. The waves are rocking us around; we're dipping and diving like a roller-coaster, and the feeling in my stomach definitely matches. The rain starts bucketing down, adding to the treacherous stretch of ocean we are crossing.

"Tatarina, are we going to be okay?" I ask.

"I don't know; it's not usually this rough, well, unless trouble is around," Tatarina replies before we divert our attention to the right.

A huge tidal wave is rushing our direction; I swallow what saliva remains in my mouth.

"Hold on Syra!" Tatarina yells.

"Aarrgghh!" I yell, waking up the others.

"Wait, what...AARRGGHH!" Enaz screams as he awakens.

The wave pushes us underwater; we're all still clinging onto Pukit as its saliva is thankfully still doing the trick. The five of us continue holding our breath for as long as we can, before surfacing to face the onslaught of huge waves.

"I have a bad feeling about this," I yell.

"You and me both," Vetor yells back.

The water is still very choppy, but that's not what makes my jaw drop; the Leviathan is before us. It looks just like a blue whale, except much bigger. It's the height of an average high-rise building, and as long as a few running tracks. Its skin is split into two colours. The bottom half is almost white; including under the fins. The top half is a very dark blue; its skin seems almost rubbery in texture. It has long red hair from its blowhole to halfway down its back, and a large red goatee below its mouth. If it opens its mouth right now, we would be like a pea drifting into a human's mouth.

"I can't believe it," I say, shocked.

"It was an honour knowing you all," Zekai replies, sounding disheartened.

"Damn Syra, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared," Enaz adds.

"I know what you mean," I reply.

The Leviathan opens its mouth and swallows a large amount of water; we are quickly drifting towards the opening.

"Do we fight?" I ask.

"I'm not sure if I'd bother trying," Vetor replies.

"Great," I say, before closing my eyes.

The Leviathan closes its mouth, and swims towards us; we're pressed against its lips, and none of us want to open our eyes. I wish I could make this water colossus disappear; I can feel something between the energy the Leviathan and I share. It's heavily breathing on us, but isn't trying to make us its dinner; does it know I'm the chosen one?

Suddenly, it does what I expected it to do; the Leviathan opens its mouth, wider than before.

"He's either gonna eat his food; or play with it. I dunno what I prefer?" Vetor quips.

Even once its mouth is wide open, I can still feel it breathing on us. I'd normally want to fight this huge sea creature; but my instincts suggest otherwise. The Leviathan blows as strong as it can, and we fly - while still attached to Pukit - hundreds of metres through the air, before crashing back into the ocean. The waves are choppy and through the torrential rain, it's too hard to locate the Leviathan.

"Where is it? I yell, frantically looking around.

"I don't know! Let's get out of here!" Vetor replies.

Tatarina yells at Pukit, and it quickly starts moving in what I'd assume is the direction we were previously heading in; the waves continue to rock us, side to side. The rain continues to bucket down, making this dilemma we're in much harder.

"Hold on everyone, it's going to get bumpy," Tatarina yells.

"Thanks captain obvious," Enaz sarcastically replies.

"Tatarina, where's this village? We may die out here if you don't hurry!" Zekai asks.

"It's not far ahead, I need to get some Amora Dust from the pouch in my pocket!"

"What do we need that for?" I ask, as the waves continue to rock us.

"A long time ago, I trained with Rodland and he gave me some Amora dust, so I could see his village. He also said that if you ever wanted to breathe underwater, to swallow some Amora dust. I will throw a handful of it in the air, and you all just keep your mouths open, ready to eat it," Tatarina explains.

Tatarina detaches one of her hands from Pukit's back, and reaches into her small pouch, to get some Amora dust. As she throws it into the air, we all move our open mouths in the direction of the dust.

"Did you all get any? Please be honest, because we're going to be heading underwater!" Tatarina says over her right shoulder, moments before we all cry "WHAT!"

This revelation makes me a little nervous. Is it an underwater city? She failed to mention that before. She has definitely been hanging out with Modnar; not revealing all the information is one of his signature traits.

I glance at Vetor, and he looks like he's itching to ask a question; like a five year old kid, begging to have his moment to speak.

"Tatarina, where exactly is this city?"

Tatarina decides not to reply; she looks over her right shoulder and smiles.

"Hold on!"

Pukit suddenly dives straight underwater, and starts descending in a forty-five degree angle, towards a bright light. I look around to assess the terrain, but it's too dark and murky to see anything. The only thing I can make out, is that blinding light. Vetor is trying to communicate with me but as we are underwater, I can't understand him.

As we increase in velocity, I squint my eyes, trying to make out the light, but no such luck. We have been speeding towards it for well over two minutes, and I still can't see anything, other than the light becoming even brighter than before. My mind is boggled, as to what I'm looking at.

Seconds later, the once glaring bright light finally comes into focus. It's a huge clam, white in colour. When I say huge; I mean large enough to hold an entire city inside of it.

As I watch in awe of this massive clam, slowly opening to let us in, I wonder what is inside. I can see a large pearl in the centre; it is lighting up the entire city of Zonek, which is built around the outside of the pearl. It's unbelievable, yet right in front of me, proving that this isn't a dream.

I look over my right shoulder and notice the clam is closing behind us, locking us inside. I must admit, I'm quickly becoming worried about this place; surely this Amora dust won't last forever.

I lean forward and tap Tatarina on the shoulder. When she looks back at me, I shrug my shoulders, feeling ever so confused. Tatarina just winks at me and smiles, then diverts her attention forward.

Pukit lands on the base of the clam, and I realise that all the water is being drained out. What a relief, as I can't wait to be able to breathe and speak again.

Once all the water has been drained, the entire city of Zonek surround us. All the townsfolk look exactly like Pukit - sky blue colour skin and pinchers. A third pincher is right between the other two, coming directly out of their neck; the difference is that they're the size and dimensions of a human. Some of them have small shells covering their chest and have seaweed for hair - these are the females - and the males are more muscular, with a smaller tuft of seaweed for hair.

All five of us hop off Pukit, and I notice one different looking crab like creature, pushing through the crowd. He's half human, half crab, and is about three metres high. The top half of his body - the human half - is a sculpture of muscles. Big built arms, with large white crab pinchers on the end of each one, and perfectly ripped abdominals. He has a protruding jaw with a large mouth, and the rest of his head is normal sized. His skin is aqua blue, and he has two small antennas sticking out of his forehead. From his waist down, he literally resembles a large crab. Eight legs and a crab's body, but the difference between him and the rest of the townsfolk, is that his lower body and pinchers are white, instead of blue. One of the townsfolk walks right up to me, then bows.

"Make way for Lord Xeria Guytz!" the creature says.

When he approaches me, he appears extremely brassed off. It's like he's mad that we are in his city. To be fair, he does look a little scary, but I suppose that's just his demeanour.

"I am Lord Xeria Guytz, leader of all the Guytz tribe. Tatarina, why have you brought these land dwellers here with you! I barely permit Pukit and Craboo being friends with you!" Xeria says, sounding furious.

Tatarina bows towards Xeria, and he taps her head softly with his left pincher.

"I'm sorry Lord Xeria Guytz; we came to request permission from you, to ask your son Craboo Guytz to join us in our quest to bring down Akiad, the lord of evil," Tatarina says, continuing to bow.

Xeria spits to the side, and starts snapping his pinchers in the air. He seems quite frustrated with Tatarina's request, so he quickly turns his back to us and yells out over the crowd.

"Craboo! Craboo Guytz! Come here at once!"

I can make out a voice, faintly in the distance, gradually getting closer. I can also see a white pincher in the air.

"Excuse me! Excuse me! Coming through!" The voice yells, slowly becoming louder.

Another minute passes and Lord Xeria appears to be losing his patience. Before he has a chance to say anything, the creature with the white pincher pushes through the front row of townsfolk and says "Yes father, sorry I'm late!"

He looks just like his father, except even more human. The top half of his body is human - aqua blue in colour - and he is also well built like his father. He has the same protruding jaw, and two antennas on his forehead. His left arm and hand is human, but his right arms texture is like a shell, and he has a long white crab pincher, instead of a hand. He doesn't have the legs of a crab; instead, he has two human ones, and the texture of them is similar to that of barnacles. He's currently trying to catch his breath, and I must admit; Xeria looks furious.

Before either of them have a chance to talk, I look down at my left wrist, and notice my Guytz seal spinning counter clockwise. I glance over at Craboo Guytz's human hand, and notice that he has a Guytz symbol, which was also spinning. Without thinking, I run over and hold my hand next to his, flipping both of our wrists upwards, towards Xeria.

"You land dwellers make me sick! Taking our philosophies, completely destroying them, and changing them to make your own pathetic lives better! Son, why did you go and get one of those seals? You are the Guytz race, you don't need one of those!" Xeria yells.

"Only a member of the secret brotherhood gets to have one of these seals; I got one because I'm proud that our race inspired the philosophy," Craboo replies before getting rudely interrupted.

"I don't care! I bet you even make a few Ralop on the side!" Xeria yells.

I step in front of Craboo Guytz and look Xeria in the eyes.

"Trying to be a hero, are we, little girl?" Xeria says, sarcastically.

"Be diplomatic Syra," Enaz says.

"Enaz is right Syra, please think this through," Zekai adds.

I wink towards my companions, then divert my attention back to Xeria; I start laughing to myself, and it's making Xeria angrier.

"What's so funny, land dweller? Answer me!" Xeria yells.

"Well you see, in the eyes of all the land dwellers, I'm already a hero!"

Xeria walks right up to me and opens up his right pincher, wrapping it around my neck. All he needs to do is snip, and my head will detach permanently from my shoulders.

"I would stop threatening me. I came here in peace, and all you want to cause is trouble? Your pincher; move it or lose it!" I say sternly.

Xeria starts laughing hysterically.

"Some hero you say? You don't scare me, little girl," Xeria yells, closing his pincher so it touches either side of my neck.

"Dad, stop it!" Craboo yells, trying to pry Xeria and me apart.

In one swift motion, I drop to my knees, draw Finito and vertically slice Lord Xeria's right pincher off at the wrist. Green blood squirts everywhere, including on myself, right in the face.

"Aarrgghh!" Xeria yells as he holds his right wrist in his left pincher. I quickly jump to my feet and walk towards him, holding Finito against his throat.

"Not as nice in reverse, is it?" I say.

Enaz, Vetor, Zekai and Tatarina simultaneously yell "SYRA!"

"Stop! Please I beg you!" Craboo yells out, jumping in front of his father.

He holds me back with his pincher, and as I sheathe my weapon, he smiles.

"Thank you for listening. He is my father after all!" Craboo says.

"Sorry about that, I didn't mean to cause any trouble; he was just getting on my nerves."

I actually didn't want to chop off his pincher, but Xeria needs to take us and our cause seriously; hopefully, this does the trick.

When I turn around to smile at my friends, I notice that Vetor's sitting on the ground, looking at Modnar's staff in the weirdest way. Vetor has the staff cradled in his palms and by the stare on his face, he looks slightly demonic. As I approach him, I feel a shiver go up my spine.

I reach out to touch him on the shoulder, but he shifts away from me quickly, hiding the staff behind him.

"Oh Syra, sorry I thought it was one of the townsfolk. I'm in my own little world; surely you understand," Vetor says.

"Vetor, you looked quite...what's the word...different, as you gazed at that staff."

"It's just that I feel so much power holding this staff. Modnar was a powerful wizard, but maybe it was this staff that gave him the power he had? Or was he hiding a greater power that he didn't want us to see?"

"Maybe you're right Vetor, but don't go getting any ideas; it might be too much power for any of us to handle. You are the one to watch over the staff, not take command of its power, understand?"

Vetor nods at me and when he props up, he speaks.

"Yeah, I understand. Again, I'm really sorry. Come on, let's officially meet Craboo Guytz," Vetor says, as he comes over and puts his left arm around my shoulder.

As we both walk towards Craboo, I notice Vetor looking down at Modnar's staff in the same suspicious manner again; what if Tatarina's instincts are correct? I'd hate to think they are, and would also not enjoy having to come face to face in a confrontation with my best friend. I'm sure that won't happen, but it's a scary thought.

Craboo holds out his left hand to shake mine, so I don't hesitate to introduce myself.

"I apologize for all the hostility. My name is Craboo Guytz, but you can call me Craboo for short if you like?" Craboo says, shaking my hand.

"Mine is Syra. I am the chosen one of Tharp, and I'm on a quest to claim the four Arter gems. They will give me the power to vanquish Akiad, the evil wizard. Tatarina claims that you may be interested in joining our cause?"

Craboo finishes shaking my hand, then looks over his shoulder towards his father. He looks for at least ten seconds before diverting his attention my way, once again.

"I would be honoured to join you! My father has helped 'land dwellers' in the past, and was very fond of a human named Jacamatax. Ten thousand years ago, he and the Prophet helped my father, and I'm sure I can convince him to change his mind. Hopefully my father has realised what he's done, and will reconsider helping you all. Please give me a few moments to talk with him," Craboo says, before walking towards his father.

While Craboo talks to his father, I take the time to look at the architecture of the town. Like I said before, the entire town is structured around the huge white pearl in the middle of the clam. The base we are standing on is textured like the inside of a shell, and it matches the roof. All the homes in the city are actually massive individual barnacles, all varying in sizes - each home is hollowed out, with an opening to enter. You can see inside each dwelling, and it's easily visible who is home and who isn't. I don't know if I'd like the whole 'living in each other's back pocket' thing. But hey, that's just my personal opinion, it obviously doesn't bother anyone else in this city. There are a few quite larger barnacles in the distance; I can't make out what's inside them from here, but they must be some buildings of importance.

Craboo is a few metres away from me talking to his father; I - being the nosey Gemini that I am - sneak over and eavesdrop on their conversation...

"You should've been nicer!" Craboo says, bending down next to his father.

Xeria stands up and walks away from him, holding his sliced left wrist in his right pincher, green blood still gushing out by the cupful. He then stops and looks towards his son.

"Why do you always automatically trust the land dwellers? What if they give Akiad our location?"

"Land dwellers aren't always bad, father. What about Jacamatax?"

"Well, he was one of a kind. Every other land dweller is the same, they all are! Remember what that Prophet did all those years ago. She changed the nature of an entire species, by herself!"

"Yes, I remember that father; but this is about Syra. She is on a quest to claim the Arter gems of Tharp, and she has personally requested my help. If I aid her in retrieving these gems, this will allow her to put an end to Akiad's plans of madness! If you can trust Jacamatax, then please, trust Syra. I believe her, and sense good in her."

"Do you mean everything you just said, without a word of a lie?"

"I wouldn't lie to you father, you know that."

Xeria nods at Craboo and smiles, before giving his son a hug. I quickly scamper back to the others; they are in a circle, around Lord Xeria's pincher. Green blood is splattered all over the place, and I can hear the townsfolk murmuring amongst themselves.

"Syra, did you have to cut his pincher off? He's not really a bad guy," Tatarina says, pinching my cheek.

"Yeah, he's not so bad with one pincher now, is he?!"

"Ladies, ladies, would you both CUT it out!" Vetor says, sarcastically.

We all simultaneously start laughing, and like I have said many times before; his comic timing is brilliant. Maybe this isn't the best time to be laughing, but that's the simultaneous pro and con of having Vetor around.

I look up in my fit of laughter and notice Lord Xeria heading our direction, with Craboo running closely behind him.

"Psst here comes Xeria!" I whisper.

We abruptly stop laughing and divert our attention his direction. I stand in front of the others, but decide to be more civil and keep my weapon sheathed.

"Land dweller, show me your sword!" Xeria commands, in his usual manner.

Rather than making a big fuss - or chopping his other pincher off - I decide to do as he says. I draw Finito, and place it on the ground. Xeria stares at it like he has finally found the hidden treasure that he has always sought after.

"Confirm what these glowing stones are! Do it at once!" Xeria snaps.

"The Eastern Arter gem of Ice, and the Southern Arter gem of Water!" I reply, pointing at each respective Arter gem.

Xeria looks on in awe at the gems for a few moments, then with his right pincher he attempts to lift Finito.

"Aarrgghh!" Xeria yells as he tries to lift my sword.

After trying for a few moments, he bursts into a mad fit of laughter. Craboo walks out in front of Xeria and starts giggling.

"Father, what on Tharp is so funny?" Craboo asks while giggling with him.

"I'm laughing at the ultimate stubbornness, defining who I am. Only the Prophet could lift this up, and she said one day you'd come. Who was I to think I could pick up the legendary weapon!" Xeria says, before laughing even harder.

I look around at my friends, and we all start laughing with him. I figure that we may as well join in, even if we don't really get what the joke is.

"Syra, I apologize for my misunderstanding and hope that you can forgive me. I am honoured to have you in my presence, in our fine city of Zonek!" Xeria says, sincerely.

I open my mouth to reply, but Vetor walks out in front of me holding Xeria's chopped off pincher in his left hand, and Modnar's staff in his right hand.

"Stay still Xeria, I want to try something," Vetor says, before winking at me.

Vetor walks right up to Xeria, and positions the detached pincher next to the laceration. He holds his left hand around the cut - keeping the wrist and the pincher together in place - and Modnar's staff in his right hand. Both his right and left hand start shaking, and black smoke is coming from under Vetor's left hand. I run towards them to get a closer look at what's going on, but can't because too many people are blocking the way.

Black smoke is now filling the air, and I'm becoming slightly worried for my best friend.

"Syra, over here, quick!" Tatarina yells over her shoulder.

I'm positioned quite far behind Vetor, where Tatarina is currently right in front of him, pointing at something.

"Excuse me, sorry, coming through," I say, pushing my way through the crowd.

"Syra, there you are; look at Vetor's eyes!" Tatarina says.

I look at Vetor, and much to my horror, the whites of his eyes are florescent red. Seconds after I notice that, their colour returns to normal again and he drops onto his hands and knees.

"Vetor!" I yell, kneeling in front of him.

I put one hand on each of his shoulders, and start shaking.

"Vetor, are you okay?" I yell, shaking him some more.

Vetor blinks a few times, and his eyes come back into focus.

"Syra, did it work?" Vetor asks, clearing the cobwebs.

"Did what work, Vetor?"

Vetor ignores me, leaps back to his feet, and heads straight over to Xeria. I push back through the crowd towards the others.

"You three, come with me!" I instruct Tatarina, Enaz and Zekai.

Vetor snatches Xeria's left pincher and looks at it.

"You have attached my Pincher back onto my wrist! How could I ever repay you?" Xeria says, hugging Vetor.

"Free accommodation for my friends would be nice," Vetor replies with a huge cheeky grin.

As I watch Vetor and Xeria walk away laughing like they were the best of friends, I turn to find Tatarina walking away from us all. She walks over and stands next to Pukit, and rubs its back. I decide to run up to her and see what's wrong.

"Tatarina, what's wrong?" I ask.

"Modnar always uses the good power of the time guardian, which is flesh healing and structural repair of any bones, minor wound healing, to name a few of his powers. Vetor on the other hand, clearly showed evil power today. Reattaching limbs is a dark power, same as reviving from the dead. I know that his intentions weren't evil, but Akiad will exploit any sense of evil in any of us. I don't know Syra, I'm just worried about your safety," Tatarina says, while she strokes Pukit's middle pincher.

"Thanks Tatarina. We will keep a close eye on that boy, I promise," I reply, while also patting Pukit.

While we both continue to pat Pukit together, I zone out for a moment. Vetor is my best friend, and Tatarina is someone that I've only just met. I hate to believe what Tatarina is saying, as I'm such close friends with Vetor. But in saying that, if Tatarina is right about all of this, she may just save my life.

IX – Come on, just SPEW it out already....

Tatarina and I take a walk through the city of Zonek. It's truly an amazing city; which makes me wonder about my companions. It has been a while since I've seen them.

"Where are the others? You know your friends better than I do, so I wouldn't know where to start," Tatarina asks.

"I'm betting they'll be at the local pub. But hey, that's just a wild guess," I say.

"Should have guessed that. Wasn't that the first place that you all headed to, when you first arrived in Gustar?" Tatarina say, cheekily.

"Touché. Well, where can we find the pub?"

"Under the huge shell, right at the back of the city. You can't see it now because of the pearl in the centre, but it's there," Tatarina replies.

"Sweet, I feel like some Flork."

As we continue walking through the city, I close my eyes, and enjoy the smell of salt in the air. There isn't very many residents around, but I stop one passing by to ask them a question.

"Excuse me, do you know where everyone is?"

"Well, no sorry, I don't exactly. A few minutes ago, I saw everyone heading that direction," the civilian replies, pointing in the direction we're already going.

"Thanks for your time, appreciate it."

After about ten minutes of walking through the seemingly abandoned city of Zonek, the relieving sound of ambiance fills the air.

"The whole city must be at the pub!" Tatarina says, sounding shocked.

"Yeah, but don't sound too surprised; I've been thinking that for the last couple of minutes," I reply.

"Hey Syra, can I please ask you something?" Tatarina asks.

"Yeah sure, fire away," I reply.

"This may seem a little bit forward, but I just wanted to find out."

"Tatarina, stop mucking around. Please, just say it," I reply.

"Well, I've noticed that you get quite defensive towards Vetor. Do you have strong feelings for him?" Tatarina asks while awkwardly scratching her head.

"Haha, are you serious? Oh baby, I love Vetor with all my heart. I want to have ten of his babies!" I reply, sarcastically.

Tatarina bursts into laughter.

"That might be a few too many siblings!" Tatarina says while laughing.

"Haha, Tatarina, that was a joke," I reply, giggling away.

I love that I'm becoming comfortable having her around. I know that I consider Vetor my best friend, but I'm also very grateful to finally have a female friend, to confide in. Every time I try doing that with Vetor, people tend to think that there's something more going on. Besides, there are just some things that you'd prefer to confide in a woman.

After we finish laughing, Tatarina looks towards me like she has something more to say.

"So Tatarina, what are you dying to get off your chest," I ask, while smiling.

"Well, does Enaz have a life partner? I really like him and he's quite easy on the eyes," Tatarina says, blushing slightly.

I immediately trip over - I didn't watch my step, causing me to fall over a lump in the ground.

"Syra, are you injured?" Tatarina asks as her chain comes out of her wrist and lands next to me. I grab hold of it, and pull myself up.

Once her chain retracts into her wrist, I fire a question at her.

"Tatarina, can you keep a secret?"

"I sure can. What do you want to tell me?"

"Okay....well.....I'm trusting you with this information; and I haven't actually told anyone."

"I promise I won't tell anyone, even Craboo Guytz, who is my best friend."

"Okay, well, here goes....I found out a few days ago that Enaz is actually my father. I would feel a little uncomfortable if you tried anything on my dad."

"I'm so sorry, I didn't realise. How old is he?" Tatarina replies, holding her stomach.

"At least fifteen years older than you."

Tatarina stops walking and starts to look a bit sick.

"Are you okay?" I ask.

After a few seconds of silence, she starts to vomit. Poor Tatarina, I'd be hurling too if I were her. Not often you find out you're hitting on your friend's father.

I start rubbing her back and a feeling of déjà vu comes over me. I feel like my mother, when she would pat my back, while I was busy praying to the porcelain gods after a night of heavy drinking.

"I'm sorry Syra. Enaz is a very nice person, and I'm sorry I even felt that way, about my friends' father," Tatarina says, wiping spew from around her mouth.

"Haha, it's fine; how were you suppose to know? At least you're respectful to me, and changed the way you felt about him when you found out. I think the spewing helped too," I joke while patting her back.

We both start laughing and it makes me realise how rewarding it is spending time with her. I can't actually remember ever having a female friend in the last eight years of my life; I've been quite deprived.

"Hey, the pub is just over there, but I don't feel up to going in just yet; can't promise that my stomach has settled. Do you want to walk around some more?" Tatarina asks.

"Yeah why not, sounds good to me! Flork and socializing can take a back seat for once."

The two of us walk past the pub and start to circle back towards the pearl in the centre of the city.

We both don't talk for a few minutes, as she must be as deep in thought as I am.

I'm just pondering Tatarina's theory of Vetor. He can't be gradually becoming evil. I refuse to believe it. He did a good thing, reattaching Xeria's pincher back on, I'm sure of it. I'm positive that if my arm got sliced off, that Modnar would reconnect it. Well at least I think he would?

Tatarina is the one that brakes the silence between us.

"Are you nervous for the next part of our journey? None of us have travelled beyond these waters," Tatarina asks.

"Of course I am. My tour guide of Tharp, Modnar, is now gone. The only person who has lived long enough to see it all, to be able to safely guide us through the entire journey, has died," I reply.

Tatarina pats me on the back and when I look up at her, she smiles at me.

"Why so glum? You know as well as I do, that Modnar isn't dead. Who knows where he is, but he will be out there somewhere. I know that! Just trust me on this one?" Tatarina says.

"Okay, I know you're right. I don't know how I know, but my gut agrees with you," I reply.

Tatarina and I arrive at the huge pearl, and stare at it together in silence, with our hands in our pockets. I still haven't finished pondering my friend Vetor, and the possibility of him becoming evil; and the disappearance of Modnar, which is what troubles me the most. He makes me feel safe, and now that feeling has disappeared.

If Tatarina is right about Modnar being alive, then I will make it my life goal to find him. There is no one more valuable to our cause, then Modnar.

### X – What time is it, Modnar?

**MODNAR**

The sun is setting in the ruins of Neca city; I see Gurdon a few metres from me, flying there on the spot. Anger and rage consume me, making it hard to control my dragon form. All that's going through my mind is his demise; I start flying towards him at full speed. When we collide, a huge ball of electricity consumes us, sucking us through a small hole in the sky; what on Tharp is happening?

The skies immediately become black; lightning starts whooshing in a circular motion, spinning around and increasing in velocity. Suddenly a huge electrical sphere appears from a small hole and the lightning is emitting from that very location.

Gurdon and I fly out of the sphere and land onto the ground.

As soon as we make contact with the ground, the electrical sphere disappears; I feel completely drained of my energy, and by the looks of it, so does Gurdon; we've both been restored back to human form. The terrain we land in is muddy, as far as the eyes can see. It's raining, like the heavens have opened up and demanded the most torrential of all downpours. There are no trees anywhere, no signs of life; just us and all this mud.

I sit up and look towards Gurdon. He's wiping all the dirt off of his face and body.

"Why Gurdon?! Why side with Akiad! He will turn on you, when the COUGH...time is right! He is just hungry for COUGH...power!" I yell over the rain.

"You old fool! Akiad would never do such a thing to me! We are such old friends!" Gurdon snaps back.

I prop myself up off the ground, then start heading towards Gurdon. He stands up and runs his hand across his bald scalp, washing the blood from his forehead.

Once I'm in range, I suddenly throw a right jab and it connects with Gurdon's face, knocking him straight back down.

"We are stranded in the middle of nowhere!! Where are we?!" I yell, kicking Gurdon while he's down.

"The Dandum Mudlands."

"So that means only a prison is nearby? Look at the mess you've got us into!" I yell, kicking Gurdon in the face.

Gurdon starts to cough up blood. He has a busted lip, and he frowns my direction.

"My fault? How is this my fault? You were the one who had the big ball of electricity. I just combined my power with yours as we collided!" Gurdon replies, coughing more blood.

I step back and follow through with a huge right kick, connecting with Gurdon's mouth. Blood squirts everywhere, and a few teeth fly out; Gurdon is coughing, and beginning to choke on his own blood.

"Don't you die now!" I yell, kicking Gurdon in the stomach.

The instant my foot connects, more blood splashes out of Gurdon's mouth. He starts coughing again, begging me for his life.

"Please Modnar, I beg you! COUGH! COUGH! Please, don't kill me! We need each other out here! We're both very weak, and we both need food!" Gurdon pleads.

The downpour of rain feels like an unlimited supply of small nuts, pelting down on the two of us. Our fatigue is allowing the onslaught of rain to affect us, but we both know one of us has to die today, this is certain. Gurdon's main problem is that he only has the power to change into a dragon when he senses danger. Other than that, he's just a normal human being. He is far too fatigued to morph into a dragon right now, so I currently have the upper hand.

I walk over to Gurdon and kneel down next to him.

"You put the lives of my friends and the planet at risk with your actions! Why on Tharp would I help you?" I say, jabbing Gurdon in the jaw.

Gurdon spits out some more blood, and looks up at me.

"I'm working for Akiad. Nothing personal, it's just business!"

I never reply. I feel so disgusted and rage is building up in my stomach. I prop myself up and hold the palms of my hands out, so Gurdon's body is underneath them.

"Well, I'm sorry for what I'm about to do. Nothing personal, it's just business," I say, with a huge grin on my face.

My palms start lighting up like a fire and Gurdon begins to smoke all over.

"AAAARRRGGGHHH! Please stop, Modnar! Aarrgghh!" Gurdon yells as his skin starts to bubble.

More smoke starts radiating from Gurdon's body every second; his clothes ignite into flames, and Gurdon is twitching, turning and yelling.

"AAAARRGGGHHH!" Gurdon yells as his body is now completely engulfed in flames.

It only takes about thirty seconds for Gurdon to stop screaming. By his black charcoal body, it's fairly safe to assume that he's dead. I stand before his burning corpse, holding my right hand against my stomach. I run my hand over my face, and wipe any blood from it; looking at my arms, I stretch them, feeling battered and bruised. Whatever punishment I've taken when in dragon form, is now also felt in human form. I have cuts on my face, and on my feet. I have a large blood patch on my robe, which I'm putting pressure on with my right hand.

When I lift my hand off my stomach, it's covered in blood.

"I've got to find help. I don't have my staff on me, so healing this wound will drain too much energy. If my memory serves me well, the Dandum Prison should be north of here," I mutter to myself before starting to walk ahead.

The rain keeps falling faster and eventually, it changes to small droplets of hail. I too am coughing blood, and the wind is blowing against me, tremendously slowing my progress. I've been walking for hours, and given that I'm already fatigued, and trudging through mud up to my knees, I don't know how much longer I can last. I really need to rest, and I need something to drink. I open my mouth to swallow some hail, but it feels like thousands of arrows are hitting my wounds.

Walking around alone out here is reminding me of an event when I was much younger; about eight years old to be exact. My teacher made me and my friend Ryshua trudge out in a sea of mud, all alone. She said it was a test of perseverance; how far could we go? Would we give up? If I don't get some shelter soon, I might just have to.

"How much further is it? I wonder how Syra and the others are. I wonder if they're going to make it through the Whispering forest. I never got a chance to tell them about it" I whisper, while holding my left arm against my forehead, blocking some of the rain from blinding my vision.

I look over my shoulder and realise that I might be walking around in circles. Its mud as far as the eye can see, and I have no bearings as to where I've been or where I'm going. Not a landmark in sight.

"Where am I?" I cry before falling towards the mud...

Back in the city of Zonek....

**SYRA**

Tatarina and I are sitting down by ourselves, leaning against the pearl in the middle of the city. Neither of us have spoken a word for a few minutes. Tatarina breaks the silence.

"Syra, you seem distant; what's bothering you?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. I just have a good feeling about Modnar. I know he's alive, just like you said. I don't know where he is, but I know he's not dead."

"Is that a power of yours? To feel the whereabouts of your companions, when they're not present?" Tatarina says before we exchange a look and a smile.

"No, it's not. I like to call it women's intuition," I reply, winking at her.

"Well, I really hope you're right; he being apart from us is a big loss to the group."

"I'd also like to give him back his staff."

"One thing at a time, Syra. Let's head to the pub and meet up with the others. I'm sure a little Flork will take our mind off the stresses of life for a little while!"

The two of us start heading towards the pub, but the main thing on my mind is Modnar. I hope that he is alive, and if so, I wish he'd find me soon.

In the middle of the Dandum Mudlands...

**MODNAR**

I've risen from my unexpected slumber and have continued on with my journey. It's hard to judge how long I've travelled, and nothing but sheer determination drives my quest. With nothing to guide my way, I see something in the mud that catches my eye.

"Wait, what's that," I mutter to myself.

I double my pace and head towards what I have discovered. Much to my surprise - adding a lot of frustration to my fatigue - I see that it's in fact Gurdon's burnt corpse that I've stumbled across. I punch him in the stomach, and shake the disappointment from my face, before continuing to stagger in one direction, for as long as I can.

How long have I been out here? How much time has been wasted? Is Syra safe? She's all I can think about. I need to ensure her safety, and I can't do it out here.

Running short of breath, I fall forward into the mud again.

Suddenly, I awaken and find myself partially buried in mud, still in the middle of the Dandum Mudlands; in the distance, a Zabait is approaching me with two orc's occupying it.

I use all my strength to stand up, and wave them down.

"Don't kill him, sheathe your weapon," the left orc says as they grow near.

One of the orcs, hop off and head towards me. He swings his right fist towards my face and knocks me flying through the air, straight back into the mud; I lay with my eyes closed, awaiting my fate. The orc checks my pulse.

"Yes, he's still alive. Let's take him to the prison!"

Without any hesitation, the orc's drape me over the Zabait and head back in the direction they came from.

Here's hoping there's some shelter and some great hospitality; but I highly doubt it.

### XI – Time to be nice to dad

The entire town is at the Zonek pub. They have been partying for the last few hours. Tatarina and I are easily the most sober in the entire town. We have begun drinking a few bottles of Flork; have to be a part of the festivities, I suppose.

The bar is quite interesting to look at. It's made out of a rather large barnacle, and has moss growing on the ceiling; we are still standing on the base of the huge clam - which comes into every structure of the city - and there is also sand under our feet. The bar is made out of something I'm unsure of, but there is barnacles all over that too. The tables have seaweed covering them, similar to a tablecloth, and the stools are large stones.

There are townsfolk everywhere within the bar; my friends are all at a table by the entrance. Vetor is doing shots of Flork, showing everyone some variations of how we do it back home. Zekai, Tatarina, Craboo and Xeria all watch him, completely baffled by what he's doing. Vetor's picking his shots up with his mouth, while keeping his hands crossed behind his back. Enaz is nowhere to be seen.

"I'm just going to head to the bar for another drink, be back soon," I say.

"Can you pick us up a few....HICCUP....drinks?" Vetor replies.

"Okay, last drink for you chief," I joke, before heading towards the bar.

As I wait patiently at the bar, Enaz comes up and stands to the right of me.

"Having a good night, Syra?" Enaz asks.

I smile towards him and reply.

"Where have you been? And yeah, to be honest, I'm having a great time. Yourself?"

Enaz looks down at the bar and sighs.

"I've been sinking a few by myself. Just a little frustrated that you're so cross with me. I'm sorry about all the things that I've done; I just had to do it. If I could explain, I would. I hope that one day you can understand."

I smile towards him, and put my right hand on his left shoulder.

"Look dad, I just overreacted. I still feel the same about not telling the others yet, but I will in due time. Other than that, you're a great man. And from what little I remember, a good father too," I reply, as a tear runs down my left cheek.

I gaze into Enaz's eyes and notice that they're getting a little watery. Nice to know that my honesty can hit a soft spot, on the inside of a hard man.

Before he has a chance to reply, Vetor bumps into me from the left side.

"Dad? Who's your dads? Enazsh? Dats Shilly!" Vetor says, slurring his words.

"Huh? Vetor you're drunk. You're making things up," I reply.

"Yeesshh I dids! Yous said, that Enaz isshh your dads! A goods father...HICCUP."

"All right Vetor, you've had a few too many. Time to get you to bed, wherever that is!" I say, draping Vetor's left arm over my shoulders, preparing to drag his drunken carcass out of the pub.

"Where are you going to take him? We don't have anywhere to sleep tonight. Wait a moment, I'll run over and ask Craboo!" Enaz says, before running off.

As I hold Vetor, I begin chuckling. When Vetor and I drank Flork for the first time a few short months ago, it was I that couldn't handle my liquor, passing out on the bed in Toolore village. Oh, how the tides have changed. The other thing making me happy, is the respect that the townsfolk have for my 'Goy philosophy.' I look around the room and notice that all the townsfolk are taking their Goys out, and placing them far away from their previous fate; I can see Goy's disappearing all over the place.

I look over to the right of me, and see Zekai ordering another round. Before I say anything, I just watch him. He places several bottles of Flork onto the tray, pays the bartender, and takes out the Goys without even thinking. Then, he takes a swig of his drink.

When I stare at the Goys that have been saved, I notice them turn around and smile at me, before disappearing. I'm glad that they now know, that it's I that helped them, and that I'll make sure that as long as I'm still breathing, that no more harm will come to them. I place Vetor down on the stool next to Zekai and place his arm around my shoulder.

"Zekai, how is your night going?" I ask.

"Oh, hello Syra. Yes, it's going well thank you. Vetor drank too much again, right? Déjà vu is it?" Zekai replies, cheekily.

"Yes, well done, good memory. Where is our first stop when we leave tomorrow?"

"To be honest Syra, I'm not really sure. I'm getting worried though, I have a lot on my mind at the moment," Zekai says, before sipping some of his drink.

"Why, what's the matter?"

Zekai seems so on edge, he ends up drinking the remainder of his bottle. He then turns around, puts his empty bottle on the bar, and looks towards me.

"Another please! Sorry Syra, how rude of me. I'm nervous because the village of Soraki is on the other side of the ocean. I won't be very welcome there, I know that much," Zekai says.

"That's right, I remember you telling me a few months back. You had a war with them thousands of years ago, am I right? Surely they'll be over all that?"

Zekai sighs and looks towards the ground. It's not often you see him worried, even at the toughest of times.

"Syra, please don't worry about it. I got through that drama with Muhbac, so I'm sure I can get through this," Zekai says, patting me on the shoulder.

"There he is, the brave optimistic Zekai that usually graces my presence."

"Haha, well I'll see you in the morning!" Zekai says as he grabs his drink of Flork, places it on the tray with the others, and slithers off with it.

Seconds after he leaves, Enaz stops next to me, gasping for air.

"Syra, we'll have to put Vetor down in our corner of the pub. Turns out that this city doesn't even have an inn. It could be an opening for us, to make some serious Ralop, huh?" Enaz jokes.

"Haha, yeah I suppose; but I'm not gonna leave Vetor here. I'll see you in the morning. Tell the others, that we'll meet by the pearl in the centre, okay?" I reply, picking Vetor up and heading towards the door.

"Not a problem. See you in the morning! Sleep tight," Enaz says as I exit the pub, with an unconscious Vetor over my shoulder.

Once outside, I collect my weapon and see Modnar's staff. I pick it up and hold it for a moment; I can feel a small rush of power flow through me and realise why Vetor becomes how he does. Well, I suppose I better bring this with me, and drag Vetor to a cosy place to lay our heads.

After about twenty minutes of heaving him around, I finally reach our destination. I thought it would be amazing to go to sleep, with a night light for once. And by night light, I mean the huge pearl in the centre of town.

As Vetor and I lay our heads against it, I start to become sleepy, thinking about mum. I wonder how she's coping. She could comb Earth with a million police, and still not find me. Well, considering I'm not on Earth, it makes a search slightly trickier. I wonder what my funeral was like. Well, when all this is over with, I'll come back from the dead and surprise my mum.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see something shiny. I pick it up and see its one New Zealand dollar. I quickly check my pocket and see that it's my one, and must have fallen out.

"Glad I found this," I mutter to myself as I examine it.

Another thing that baffles me; this gold coin. How did Campog end up with an entire chamber, full of money from my world? And on top of that, coins that are from 22 years into the future. I pop it back into my right pocket, and it makes me realise something; the more time I spend on Tharp, the less things makes sense.

"Syra, wake up! Wake up!" Vetor yells as he shakes me.

"Huh? Oh heck, what's going on?" I say as I awaken.

"Everyone's at the entrance, awaiting our arrival. Gather your things, and let's go!" Vetor yells as he runs ahead to the entrance.

I attach my sheath, then stand up and run after him.

When I make contact with my friends, Vetor looks at me in a frustrated way, with his arms crossed.

"Fifteen minutes late! Fifteen minutes late! What do you have to say for yourself?" Vetor says, sarcastically.

We all start laughing, including me. The only person not laughing is Craboo; he actually looks quite sad.

I try my hardest to stop laughing, then walk over and rub his arm.

"Craboo, what's wrong?" I ask.

"It's just that I had such an amazing night, conversing with you all. You see, when any of the Guytz race are away from the sacred pearl, we lose the ability to speak, making us become mute," Craboo replies, still sounding sad.

Xeria enters the vicinity, and elaborates.

"Syra, it's true. To be honest, that's the major reason that our race stays exactly where it is; under the ocean. The pearl allows us to converse with anything that can speak. If that makes it hard to allow Craboo to join, then I understand," Xeria says before bowing before me.

"Are you kidding? Nothing can change my mind in wanting Craboo Guytz to travel with us! Besides, we may need him. None of us have been to the Western continent," I reply.

"Well I'm glad. If you could please allow Pukit to prepare you for departure. Craboo, may I please speak with you before you leave," Xeria says.

"Great, nothing gets me more excited than chunky saliva," Vetor replies, sarcastically.

The five of us wait patiently for Pukit to spit in all of our palms. I look towards Xeria, and listen to what they're saying. I guess I'm a little jealous he got to say goodbye to his family; something I never got the chance to do.

"Son, I'm proud of what you have achieved, and what you will become. It's your destiny to join Syra and her friends, one of which I fully trust, young Tatarina. Help them find the Arter gems, so they can aid you in battle, in destroying Akiad. Nothing could make me prouder," Xeria says before leaning in and hugging Craboo.

"I love you dad," Craboo replies, continuing to hug Xeria.

"I love you too, son!" Xeria says, pulling away from Craboo.

"I'll be home safe in no time, don't you worry!" Craboo yells as he runs towards us.

As Craboo clambers onto Pukit, it makes me a tad jealous. He doesn't have to sit here, with clumpy spit dribbling between his fingers. Sucks to be me, I guess.

### XII – Decisions, decisions, decisions...

The sea that we're travelling across seems endless. I'm the only one awake on Pukit's back; even Tatarina is asleep. But, I'm glad I'm not snoring away, as the ocean for all its vastness, soothes the soul.

This is the most exciting part of our journey for me, because none of us know what the other side of the ocean even looks like. Well, all except for Modnar; wherever he is. I like to keep reminding myself that he's still alive and out there somewhere.

You see, Rodland fell off a cliff, but Modnar and Gurdon just disappeared. I believe that you can't just disappear, and not reappear somewhere else. It just makes logical sense. It's like the 'yin and yang theory.' Everything has an opposite, no matter what. Happy and sad, angry and calm, appear and disappear, all exact opposites. Besides, whoever set me free within Campog's gold chamber, disappeared through a similar wormhole. Would they have killed themselves to save us; I don't believe so...

Modnar; where on Tharp are you.

In Dandum prison....

**MODNAR**

Lying on my stomach, I awaken on a concrete floor, inside a small, prison cell. There's no door, only iron bars; which look electrified. The other three walls are concrete; so nothing fancy here. I can hear a door creak in the distance - probably at the end of the hallway - and can hear some light murmuring. I peek with one eye and see two orcs approaching, dragging a helpless, naked man - who they dump onto the floor; I pretend to be asleep, while they stand outside my cell.

"You think he's dead?"

"Well, he's breathing, so I wouldn't say dead. But I suppose we'll see soon."

I feel something jab me in the face, but continue to act asleep. I slightly open my left eye and see one of the orcs poking a long stick between the bars; he then moves it further down my torso towards my back.

"He's still not moving. I'll keep nudging him."

"Wait, who's that; why are you trying to wake the poor old man," the person on the floor asks.

"Dowler, be quiet!" the right orc comments, before kicking him in the face.

"AAARRGGHHH, what was that for?" Dowler replies, spitting blood onto the floor.

"Dowler, I can't wait to lock you up and throw away the key. Look, would you please stop prodding him? He's not waking up. I'm putting my Ralop on him being dead. Let's just leave him alone and check the other prisoners."

The left orc immediately stops prodding me and pulls the stick out of the cell.

"Come on Dowler, up you get," the right orc says, lifting him up and they both begin dragging him away from my cell.

The moment they're out of sight, I begin to stretch and assess my situation...

Back on Pukit's back....

**SYRA**

In the distance I see a relieving sight. It's land, finally! Now I know that when I first saw the ocean, I was relieved to see it; but a change is definitely in order.

"Wake up! We're almost at shore!" I yell at the top of my lungs.

"YYYAAWWWN, it looks beautiful," Tatarina replies as she awakens.

The sight of beautiful pastures is upon us; small clusters of trees are randomly scattered around, some are bigger than others. The terrain is quite flat, with a few bumps here and there, and a dirt path, which splits off into two directions; the exciting part is what's on the horizon when I gaze both ways.

If I look forty-five degrees to the left, I can make out a dense forest in the distance. And looking forty-five degrees to the right, I can see a stream, flowing down a huge sloped cliff face. And if I look straight ahead, it's just mountains, which carry on to the right, beyond the stream. Too many places to go and too many decisions to make.

Once Pukit arrives at the Western shore, we all hop off and lay down on the sand.

"Look, I don't care how much sand I get in my hair, I want to do this," I say, laying on my back like a starfish on the beach.

Vetor jumps down onto the sand next to me; everyone else looks at us in a puzzled manner.

"I've wanted to do this for SUCH a long time," Vetor says.

"You and me both," I reply.

We start opening and closing our arms and legs, leaving scrape marks in the sand.

Tatarina rolls her eyes at us, then walks over to Pukit and starts to pat him down.

"Goodbye, I love you so much! I promise I'll visit you, as soon as this is all over!" Tatarina says, before hugging him.

Next it's Craboo's turn to say his goodbye; and because Craboo can't speak, he hugs Pukit, while a few teardrops roll out of his eyes. It must be frustrating not being able to talk whenever you want; I know it would annoy the heck out of me.

Once Tatarina and Craboo finish saying their goodbyes, Pukit slides backwards into the ocean, and disappears underwater.

I look over my shoulder and notice that Tatarina is crying.

"Hey Tatarina, its fine. Pukit will be okay, we'll see him as soon as this is all over!" I say, rubbing her back.

She looks up and smiles at me, and before I can react, I notice that there's a sign, dead in the middle of the crossroad. One direction of the dirt road goes West, and the other goes north.

The sign says:

West – Village of Soraki

North – Slopes of Vehtura

I want us to all have a chilled out day on the beach. I know we have only just spent a day, binge drinking Flork in the city of Zonek; but the truth is that I need to come up with a plan.

"All right everybody, I need to talk with you all, to let you know of the plan that I've conjured up. I've decided that we will camp here tonight, right in the middle of this crossroad. I haven't thought of anything beyond that, but that's what this stop is for. Anyone for Dupat shells?" I say, turning my head towards the water.

Vetor and Enaz nod like a couple of school kids, then start running towards the water.

"CANNONBALL!" They yell, before jumping in with a big splash. I'm glad more people than just me are hungry, as I'd hate to be considered a pig, there's only room for one; unanimously, that person has to be Vetor.

A few hours pass and we're all sitting around a campfire, filling in Craboo and Tatarina about the journey thus far. I think it's necessary, as they are the new guardians and should know everything we've been through.

It makes me sad watching Craboo silently chuckle away at comments being made; knowing that he can't add his own. We all hear tales from Enaz, Zekai, Vetor, Tatarina and even me; but unfortunately, due to his disadvantage, nothing from him. I think it might be time for him to share some tales of his own.

"Craboo, maybe you could have Tatarina tell a few stories of your past; share them with us all? Oh and Vetor, SLOW DOWN on the Dupat shells!"

"Ummm, mff hmm!" Vetor replies, with a face full of them.

Tatarina looks towards Craboo, and the two of them start laughing hysterically. She leans in towards him and whispers in his right ear. After she moves away, Craboo smiles at her and gently punches her with his nipper. She then clears her throat and starts to tell a story.

"Well, it would have been a few years ago now, Craboo and I ventured to the legendary Toolore Village, to get our Brotherhood of Guytz seals. And as you probably all know, Rodland had quite a short temper," Tatarina says, pausing as she looks around at us.

We all simultaneously reply "Yes".

"Anyway, Craboo thought that this whole 'seal thing' was a joke; so he thought he'd test Rodland's patience. We were standing before the Altar - with Rodland standing opposite us - with the only other person in the room, being Modnar. Rodland was giving us the instructions, to put our left wrist face down onto the altar. Now, the first thing Craboo did, was sit on it, making Rodland say 'you think this is a joke, boy?' Then he put his pincher down on the altar, further infuriating him. I was trying my best not to laugh, but I knew that if Craboo carried on, that I wasn't going to be able to hold in all that laughter. Just when Rodland thought that Craboo had settled down, he continued one last time. Craboo started shifting his hand from left to right, while Rodland kept trying to put the cloth over Craboo's moving wrist. Modnar burst into a mad fit of laughter, which started a chain reaction; all barring Rodland. He stormed towards Modnar and said "what they're doing, is just disrespectful!" His comment just made the three of us laugh even more. Oh, what funny times," Tatarina says, before laughing with us.

We're all in a mad fit of laughter now, thanks to Tatarina's story; it's nice to know something about our newest recruit, and to hear a funny story about Rodland and Modnar. I miss them so much, and I wish they were both here right now.

After recovering from my fit of laughter, I clear my throat and start to speak.

"Everyone, if I could have your attention please," I say, glancing around at my companions.

I scan my eyes across all of my friends, knowing that what I'm about to say, will shock everyone; I have made my mind up and that's the way it has to be. I'm the leader, so it's time to lead.

"Akiad is on to us, and we all know that. All this has made me think clearly about our next move, so here it is; I have decided for us to split into two groups of three."

They all start murmuring amongst themselves. It doesn't really surprise me, as I knew that my decision would surprise them; but I'm the leader, and that's just how the cookie crumbles.

"Syra, we are much more formidable, as a fellowship. Why do this?" Zekai asks.

"I know we are more effective as a group, but time is against us; and Akiad isn't messing around. Three of us will get the Western Arter gem, and the other three will collect the Northern Arter gem. Once you have your respective gem, head back to this location and wait for the others. You may wait for days, possibly weeks, but please respect my wishes and obey these instructions," I reply.

"Anything you say, Syra. Your leadership has been unsurpassed thus far, so your wish is our command," Zekai says.

Once he is right in front of me, he bows, prompting everyone else to stand up. Seconds later, Craboo bows, followed by Tatarina, then Enaz. Vetor walks right up to me, and bows so low that his head touches the ground, directly next to my feet; then they all begin clapping.

I smile back at them, and think about how lucky I am to have such loyal guardians, and amazing friends. They would do anything for the safety of their planet, and for me. I just wish us a safe journey, as I'd hate for anything to happen to any of us.

### XIII – It's time to split

It's deep into the night and the only three awake are Zekai, Enaz and I. We're all lying on the beach, staring at the stars. I'm in the middle, with Zekai on my left and Enaz on my right.

After a few minutes, Enaz rolls over, so he's lying on his side looking at me.

"Syra, splitting the group into two seems like a good idea, but I've been thinking; I agree with Zekai. It will make times tough not having the six of us together, to draw energy from each other," Enaz says, with much uncertainty in his voice.

"Both of you, please look into the sky," I reply.

I don't say a word until I can see both of them looking upwards.

"I've been gazing up there all night, and have noticed eight really big stars, that stand out from all the smaller ones; it made me think. Those stars represent us, all of us. It even includes those who have passed. Vetor, Modnar, Zekai, Rodland, Enaz, Tatarina, Craboo and I. Even though the stars in the sky are separated, they're actually together. No matter where those stars are, they're still connected, by the sky. So to compare them to us, no matter where we are in Tharp, we are together. That's how I'll draw my energy. Does that make sense to you guys?"

Enaz and Zekai prop up and look at each other, then Enaz glances my direction.

"I couldn't have explained it better myself. It doesn't fully answer my question, but I get your point," Enaz says, before lying back down in the sand.

All of us look at the stars in silence for a few more minutes. I don't know what they're thinking about, but I'm trying to decide what the two groups are going to be. You see, because no one has been to this continent before, there is no one with any sort of knowledgeable edge over the other, of the forthcoming terrain. I know one thing for certain; I'm definitely going to take Vetor with me. He's my best friend so he gets first priority; I sit up and spit into the water.

"Well, the captains of the teams are going to be Zekai for team A, and myself for team B," I say, looking down at the sand.

"And who is going to be in each?" Enaz asks.

"Well, you and Craboo are in Zekai's team; Tatarina and Vetor are in mine,"

"Sounds like a good choice to me. Well, that's everything settled then. We will leave at dawn, so goodnight you two," Zekai says, before slithering towards the fire.

Enaz and I stand up and start strolling down the beach.

"Syra, this could very well be the last time that we see each other," Enaz says, sounding depressed.

"I highly doubt that. I just want you to know, that I didn't choose you to be on the other team to be distant from you, it's just strategy. I have forgiven you for everything. I don't have any hard feelings, and I wish to finally have a father back in my life when this is all over," I say, before softly punching his left arm.

"Thanks, Syra. That's soothing to the soul knowing that I've been forgiven, for being absent during your entire childhood. I know I can't change the past, as it's already been paved; but I have room to change the future, that's for sure!"

I look at Enaz and am happy to have forgiven him for everything. It's good to see him smile. The whole journey so far, since revealing that he's my father, he has seemed a little bit on edge, because he knew I was angry with him. But knowing our situation and the decision I have made, I have to be mature and forgive him; just in case I never see him again.

"Hey I have a question to ask," Enaz says.

"Fire away," I reply.

"You're eighteen, right?"

"Yes....where are you going with this?"

"I was from 1993....so...2007 is your year, right?"

"Haha Enaz, I'm not sure where you're going with this?"

"So that coin you found, is even from your future?"

"Yes, the year 2029."

"Shit, so I wasn't seeing things."

"No, you weren't, see," I say, pulling the coin out of my pocket and handing it to him.

Enaz holds it under the moonlight and studies it, before handing it back to me.

"I wish I could offer some advice, but I can't. It just doesn't make any sense. I wonder if Modnar would know anything. Look, let's sleep on it, I'm getting tired."

"You're just old," I say, cheekily.

Once we get back to the campfire, Enaz and I sit down on the sand.

"I'm going to hit the hay now, I'm beat. I love you," Enaz whispers before rolling onto his side.

"I love you too," I whisper, before standing up and clicking my spine in several places.

I glance north and see the water further up the beach become choppier then directly in front of us. I briskly tiptoe over my mates, then jog towards the waves to get a closer look. After several seconds of running, I arrive and draw my sword. I swallow a mouthful of saliva and wonder what's happening.

Suddenly, the huge Leviathan surfaces from the ocean; water drenches me from head to toe. I'm standing before this huge colossus - which is slightly beached on the sand - and I'd be lying if I said that I'm not a little scared. I look to my right and see my companions quickly waking a few metres away; scampering towards their weapons.

"It's okay everyone; let me deal with this. Lower your weapons," I say, signalling to them with my right hand.

I sheathe Finito, and slowly approach the Leviathan.

"EEEERRRGGGGHHH!" The Leviathan grunts.

"Now, now it's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," I reply shutting my eyes, and slowly moving closer.

"Be careful!" Vetor yells.

I signal Vetor with my right hand, placing my left on the Leviathan. It starts making a light rumble. Could it be enjoying this? I really hope so, because a battle would be tough.

It starts slowly sliding backwards into the ocean, before blowing excess water out of its blowhole, knocking me off my feet. Looking to the right I see my companions laughing at the top of their lungs. I stand up and approach them while twisting my hair like a wet towel, draining all the water from it.

"Haha, very funny. Yes, I'm still alive," I say in a snarky voice.

"How come it didn't try have you for dinner?" Vetor asks.

"I don't know. I really felt its energy as I was patting it; I felt how happy it was. I'm pretty sure I could feel the warmth of its soul. It might actually be harmless," I say, while continuing to squeeze water out of my hair.

"But only the Prophet has tamed the Leviathan; how are you doing it?" Zekai asks.

"Could it have something to do with the Arter gems?" Tatarina adds, while sitting back down, next to the campfire.

"You took the words right out of my mouth. Zekai, the prophet was the last person to have the Arter gem of Water in her possession?" I reply.

"Correct. You could be onto something here, Syra; maybe the Arter gem of Water does have something to do with it," Zekai says.

"Yeah, maybe it does. Suppose we'll find out soon enough. Oh well, I'm shattered; see you all in the morning, good night," I reply before lying down, close to the fire.

"Good night," Everyone replies.

First thing in the morning, I arouse to the sun glaring in my face, and the tide right up on the sand, by my feet.

I quickly sit up and look around, and notice that I'm the last to awaken. All my friends are sitting around another fire, further inland, eating Dupat shells and mingling. It's good for them to have this time together, as we may be apart for quite some time.

"Good morning Syra," my friends say as I approach them.

"Good morning, everybody! How was the sleep?" I reply, sitting down next to Vetor.

I get a mixture of positive answers, then Tatarina fires a question at me.

"Syra, have you had time to think about what the two teams are going to be?"

Craboo is seated next to Tatarina, and he's nodding along to her question.

"I actually have thought about this and I've come up with a comfortable balance of teams. The captain of the North team will be Zekai, and the captain of the West team will be myself. Accompanying me, will be Vetor and Tatarina, and joining Zekai, will be Enaz and Craboo. The reason for Zekai not going west, is because of the Village of Soraki. He doesn't feel comfortable going there, as he reckons he won't be very welcome; thus why I made him captain of the North team. The rest of the placements are just strategy. Hope you are all fine with this?"

They all mutter amongst themselves for a few moments.

"Psst Syra, I'm happy with the teams. I just thought I'd let you know," Vetor whispers, before stuffing two Dupat shells into his mouth.

"That's cool Vetor. I tried to make them as fair as I could, across all fields. Zekai is a great leader, and already is one; so it made that choice easy. I wanted you to be with me, and knew Enaz and Zekai were old friends, so it seemed like a good choice."

Vetor smiles and nods at me, still with a mouthful of Dupat shells.

"Well, it seems that we're all happy with our placements. You're our main priority, and you need the Arter gems immediately, so this is what we will do, or die trying!" Zekai yells, holding his spear in the air and starting a loud battle cry.

Everyone jumps to their feet and joins in. I take part too, but add my own little twist to it. I jump to my feet, swing Finito to the West and yell "Water wall!"

As I look around, I don't really notice anything happening. But seconds after that, a huge tidal wave comes rushing towards us; it's about the height of a skyscraper. No one sees it approaching except me; I fall to the ground, and the wave comes rushing through us.

I look around, and no one has opened their eyes, or stopped cheering; the water wall has disappeared far into the Western horizon, and my friends haven't even realised that they're soaking wet. It makes me remember what Modnar taught me, during my training. My spells will only hurt who I want them to, and in this instance, it's a huge relief.

Seconds after my friends finish their battle cry, they all turn towards me, finally realising that they're completely saturated.

"Syra, why are we all drenched?" Tatarina asks.

"Haha, oh it was from a new spell that I came up with. Sorry about that!" I reply while giggling.

"Well, show us!" Vetor says, before stuffing his face with some more Dupat shells.

"Okay, don't blame me if you get frightened!"

I draw Finito and swing it west while casting the spell, waiting with the five of them to see what happens.

"Where's this 'move' of yours, Syra?" Vetor jokes.

I just wink at him and fold my arms; the huge tidal wave comes racing towards us from the East.

"Aarrgghh!" All my friends yell as they simultaneously jump to the ground.

I just stand there laughing, as the huge wave goes racing straight through me.

"Feeling a little bit wet, are we? MOIST have been that wave?" I quip.

Everyone immediately starts laughing. Vetor, Zekai and Tatarina were on the ground, holding their chest as they laugh as hard as they can. Craboo and Enaz continue laughing, as they approach me.

"Wow Syra that was mind boggling! You're becoming quite a powerful warrior," Enaz says as he rubs my right shoulder.

Craboo points towards Enaz and nods, showing that he agrees with him.

"Awww, thanks guys. Let's enjoy the rest of our time together, before we have to depart."

An hour or so passes, and the sun is overhead, so it must be about midday; it's time to get a move on. I look around at my companions, and they're laughing and joking with each other; I hate to have to put a damper on that, but we really have to go.

I stand up and clear my throat.

"Everyone, it's time to depart. Like I said yesterday, Akiad will be doubling his efforts to get the Arter gems before us, so let's follow his lead and do the same," I say, walking over to the sign in the path.

Nobody says anything, not even a murmur; just the relaxing ambience of the sea, washing upon the shore. Everyone quietly collects their belongings, and meets me at the fork in the road.

Once they're all at my location, they silently watch and listen to what I have to say.

"Come together, towards me. On my planet, we do this thing called a huddle. Vetor and I will start it and you four follow our lead," I say.

Vetor puts his left arm over my shoulder, and I put my right arm over his shoulders; we both simultaneously put our heads down.

"Tatarina, come over next to me, and put your right hand over my shoulders, like I am to Vetor," I say, as she approaches us, looking quite confused.

It's so funny, but I can't laugh. Something as simple as a huddle to us 'earthlings', is like learning how to walk for the people of this planet.

"Like this?" Tatarina says, putting her right arm across my shoulders.

"Exactly like that! Craboo, come here! Give it a go!" I say.

Obviously I know my father is from Earth, but I don't want to blow his cover; when I look towards him, I smile and wink. He looks back at me and chuckles.

Once Craboo is in position, I look towards Zekai and say "You're up."

He slithers over to us, knowing exactly what to do.

"When Enaz joins onto Zekai, we must form a circle by allowing Enaz's left arm to go around Vetor's. Then, we all put our heads down into the circle and talk. "This is called a huddle," I say, as Enaz completes the circle.

Now that we're all in position, we put our heads down and I start speaking.

"I just want to say, it has been an honour to travel alongside you. Now, I don't want to speak like I'm never going to see you again, but if any of us do fall to the blade, I would never forgive myself for not expressing my feelings towards you all. Regardless of how long you've been with us, you all play an integral role in the fall of Akiad. I want you to all know that. Zekai, leader of the Northern team. I don't know how to tell you, how thankful I am for what you've done for me. I've known you the longest of the remaining in my group - excluding Vetor of course - and you've been an amazing bodyguard thus far. Craboo, one of the new members of our group. It was an honour to converse with you, for the time we were able to. I know you will play an important part, in retrieving that Northern Arter gem. And last but not least, Enaz. Well he has the biggest secret between us all, and he hasn't even shared it with anyone. But, if he reveals it now, it'll make us all parting much harder. I'm sorry Enaz," I say, with a few tears rolling down my face.

The huddle disperses, and everyone backs away. I continue to quietly weep, and Enaz walks my direction and gives me a much needed hug.

Vetor looks at me, with what seems like a little bit of jealously in his eyes; I'll break the news to him when the times right, it's just not now. I didn't mean to let that slip, I just know I'll miss him, especially after finally patching things up.

As Enaz pulls away from me, he keeps his hands on either sides of my shoulders and looks me in the eyes.

"I'm so proud of you Syra. What a fine young woman you've become, and on top of all that; a legendary warrior," Enaz says, as he too has a few tears rolling down his cheeks.

I look down at the ground for an instant, then raise my head, to look Enaz in the eyes.

"Thanks dad," I whisper, before hugging him again.

While we're hugging, I yell out "Group hug!"

Everyone moves towards us and we all hug each other, then split into our two respective groups, and begin to depart.

"Good luck my girl, best of luck from us all!" Zekai yells.

"Good luck to you all, too! See you all back here in one piece!" I yell back.

As Vetor, Tatarina and I walk along the Western path, I look over my right shoulder and watch the others venture north. It makes me realise the potency of the decision I've made. As hard as it's going to get for us, it'll be the same for them. I wish the best of safety for us all; we're going to need it.

### XIV - What would we do, without Craboo?

** ENAZ **

So, here I am in team B, heading towards the Northern Arter gem of Wind. Zekai is our appointed leader, and Craboo is the third member of our team. I really wish Syra didn't make this decision, but it's her choice to make, and I have to respect that. I really hope that we make it back in one piece, as I - more than anyone - would like to see my little girl again.

Zekai slithers ahead of Craboo and I, then turns around to move backwards in front of us.

"Craboo, how are we going to be able to communicate with you, or make you feel included when Enaz and I spark conversion between us?" Zekai asks.

Craboo looks towards Zekai and shrugs his shoulders. If you think about it; what can we do?

"Well, please don't think we're ignoring you if we are speaking of something and you can't answer," I say, patting Craboo on the head.

Craboo smiles and nods towards me, then does the same towards Zekai. It's good that we continue trying to involve him because let's face it; how else can you handle having a mute in your group?

An hour passes by and the three of us are getting closer to the base of the Slopes of Vehtura.

"Hey you two, I can see a lake and a small waterfall," I enthusiastically say, walking on my tiptoes to see over the nearby hill.

Craboo starts sprinting at full speed, and the moment he does, Zekai and I stop moving and look on in awe, with our jaws wide open.

Admittedly, Craboo does run very fast, but that isn't what makes our jaws drop. As he runs, everything in the vicinity - except the three of us - immediately moves a million times slower. Particles of dust lift from the ground, gradually filling the air.

As Zekai and I look at each other, we notice that we both have a luminescent glow around us; red in colour.

In the distance, Craboo dives into the small lake, and surfaces before the water has even made a ripple from him originally entering. Zekai and I look around us, and notice all the small bits of pebbles and dust particles, passing our heads.

About fifteen seconds later, time bends back into shape, making everything catch up to normal speed; it completely knocks the three of us out of whack. Zekai and I both get a mouthful of dust, and Craboo - who is bobbing in the lake - gets splashed in the face with all the water, from his original entry.

Zekai and I hurry to the lake to get some answers, forgetting that Craboo can't really answer them. I signal him to quickly exit the water, and stand next to us. Craboo jumps onto the sandy path; Zekai hands him a nearby stick.

"Write your answers in the sand, with this," Zekai says to him.

"Craboo, what did you just do? Everything around Zekai and me, slowed right down. Then fifteen seconds later it sped up again, please explain," I ask.

Craboo starts laughing, hysterically. While chuckling away, he starts writing his reply.

'When excited, I can slow down time. If scared, it doesn't work.'

We quickly read what Craboo has written; it's ironic, we have the ability to speak, yet we're both completely lost for words.

"Craboo, if you get an opportunity to practice this ability in combat, please do so," Zekai says, putting his right hand on Craboo's shoulder.

Craboo just smiles at him, and runs towards the lake, diving in as soon as he's in front of it.

Zekai and I move around to the edge of the lake and look up. There is a tiny waterfall before us, but it's on an angle of about forty-five degrees, gradually going up into the distance. Water is running down the rocky slope, eventually ending in the lake we stand before. On either side of the waterfall are rocks, in the form of a staircase. I can see a long tree halfway up the rocky slope. The base of it is growing from the right staircase; the leaves and branches dangle over the stream.

"So, this must be the Slopes of Vehtura?" I say.

"Yes, I think it is. But how on Tharp am I going to get up there? I don't even have legs, making this much more difficult," Zekai replies, looking puzzled.

"I'm not sure, but we'll find a way. Even if I have to drag you up there myself, I will!" I say, lightly punching Zekai's right arm.

Meanwhile, in New Zealand...

Akiad is pacing backwards and forwards, annoyed at the recent disappearance of his friend, Gurdon. He starts muttering to himself.

"What am I going to do? Gurdon is gone. I don't have an ally to help me take over Tharp! Maybe it's time? Maybe it's time to reawaken Anjari, the ancient Shaman? Yes....Yes.....YYEESSSS!" Akiad yells.

Seconds later, he stops pacing and starts laughing like a crazy maniac.

"I must contact Brian, and ask of his whereabouts!" Akiad says as he walks up to his mirror, standing before it.

"Anjari, my old friend, I will find you, even if I've to search the entire planet with every soldier I have, I will find you!" Akiad says.

Back at the Slopes of Vehtura....

**ENAZ**

Craboo and I are almost halfway up the right hand side of the stream, further up from the waterfall; we turn around and look back at Zekai.

"Zekai! How are we going to get you up here?" I yell.

Zekai shrugs his shoulders, and looks around for an answer to his dilemma.

"Look, halfway up the slopes of Vehtura! There's a branch, draped over the stream, which has vines on it. Grab a few of those, and I could pull myself up!" Zekai yells, pointing towards the branch.

Craboo turns around, and quickly starts to ascend the slope. I'm being much more careful then he is, as I see how slippery these rocks are.

Suddenly, through his lack of common sense, Craboo slips off one of the rocks, and falls onto the slope. He slices open his hand, and blood gushes all over the place.

"Is everything all right?" Zekai yells out sounding quite concerned.

"Craboo, grab my hand," I say.

Once I pull Craboo to his feet, the two of us carefully scale the rocky staircase.

"Keep it up Craboo, we aren't far away!" I say, as he speeds up, towards the branch.

"AARRGGHH!" I yell, crashing down onto the rocks.

"What's happening up there?! The water is turning red!" Zekai yells out.

I land on my back; I try to answer him, but I've lost my breath. Craboo lowers his nipper, and lifts me up, draping me across it. He slowly scales the slopes, taking extra care this time. Our blood is dripping all over the place. The pain is excruciating, we are both coughing and spitting blood on the ground; I try to get a bearing of where we are, but my vision is still quite impaired from my fall.

Once Craboo is within a few metres of the branch, he becomes excited. The whole environment dramatically slows down around us, allowing him to carefully place his feet on the rocks, in the stream.

He quickly grabs three of the vines with his left hand, and secures me on his right hip. He hops from left to right, abseiling all the way down the slope towards Zekai. When we're almost at the top of the waterfall, we hear creaking in the distance. Craboo stops to look back up the slope, and notices that it's the tree branch the vines are attached to.

"I think it's going to snap," I say, while still in a daze.

Zekai looks up and sees us at the top of the small waterfall. Before he has a chance to yell anything out, Craboo throws me into the lake below, and immediately dives in after me; still holding onto the three vines.

He quickly surfaces, and passes the vines to Zekai. As soon as he has a full grip, time catches up and Zekai flies through the air, far out of sight.

Craboo grabs me and swims us safely ashore.

"AARRGGHH, my head! Damn it, that is...a...lot...of my blood," I say, putting my hand on my bandana, trying to stop the blood running down my face.

While I stand up, blood gently trickles between my fingers onto the ground; I try to get a better understanding of what has just happened.

"Craboo, is Zekai at the top? Are you okay?" I ask, as I help Craboo up off the ground.

Craboo nods and points towards the top of the slopes of Vehtura.

Blood starts falling from the waterfall, so Craboo and I don't waste any time. We carefully begin scaling the slopes again; I look up, towards the top of the slopes, but can't quite make anything out.

"I hope he's okay, Craboo. Thank you, I had no other bright ideas," I say as I follow closely behind him.

And there he is. Zekai, unconscious in the water, at the very top of the Slopes of Vehtura. Cuts and gashes, like a mural all over his chest. His blood is trickling all the way down to the lake below. We need to hurry to him, but this is the most treacherous section of the rock staircase.

"Quick Craboo, as fast as we can! We need to get to him, without causing any further damage to ourselves!" I say while carefully following him.

Craboo arrives at Zekai first, followed closely by myself; as Craboo rests his hand on Zekai's bloody body, he gets distracted by what he can see, as do I.

There are thousands of bird like creatures. Their wingspan looks about fifteen metres from tip to tip. They all have a head with no face, and just one small hole the size of a tennis ball, on the tip of each of their heads. Their skin colour is fluorescent pink, with white blotches all over. They're all sitting in a perched position, about three feet away from each other, in perfect rows just like that of a cornfield. One of them makes a growling yawn; it sounds like a mix of a car horn and a death metal scream, and makes us all jump. Thankfully, the birds are all asleep. It's almost like they're all in hibernation.

"Craboo, what on Tharp are these creatures?" I ask, while blood still streams down my face.

Craboo frantically looks around until he finds a stick, then starts to write in the dirt.

'They are called 'Losiktus.' Been asleep forever. Will awaken when destiny arrives.'

I feel a rush of nerves come over me, and don't really know what to say. I just gaze at the thousands of Losiktus, and struggle to swallow all the saliva in my mouth.

Zekai starts coughing and as he paints the dirt red with his blood, he awakens.

"Oh no....COUGH!... It's the Losiktus. I've only ever heard tales, but never have I ever.....COUGH! ...seen one in the flesh. We could be in a lot of trouble. Where are we?"

Craboo starts writing another message in the sand.

'At top of slopes. We will be fine. Shouldn't attack us. We should move through. I'm scared as well.'

After reading Craboo's message, Zekai and I turn our bloody faces to look at each other.

"All right, let's get this over and done with. What's to worry about? Just a few thousand birds, right?" I say, with a hint of sarcasm in my voice.

Zekai and Craboo nod, and the three of us stretch and take a deep breath. Zekai and I wipe the blood off our respective faces, then cautiously move towards the first row of Losiktus.

The three of us look left and right, and the sleeping birds span a few kilometres either way. I pick a row, and lead the way in single file, slowly progressing through the mass of Losiktus.

One of them yawn again, which starts a chain reaction of intermittent yawns from its fellow flock.

"Shit," I say, getting startled.

"Keep quiet Enaz; we don't want them to wake," Zekai whispers, before spitting blood on the ground.

"Craboo, it might have been better to let you go up front. Slowing down time would make this trip a little less stressful," I whisper, rubbing against the birds as I move ahead.

The sea of Losiktus - while still in their slumber - continue yawning; it's an echo of car horns and death metal growls that echo for kilometres.

All of a sudden, one of them yawns right next to me; I gasp so loud, that I can hear fear escaping my mouth.

"Keep going Enaz," Zekai whispers, rubbing my shoulder.

I nod and take a deep breath, before leading the way forward.

"So who have they attacked in the past?" I ask.

"Last I heard it was the Prophet, when she was here," Zekai replies.

"Did she fight them?"

"Yeah, it was gruelling; I heard Jacamatax saved her from dying. He is considered one of the true heroes of Tharp."

"I'd love to meet him. Where is he now?"

"I'm not really sure; I don't even know if he's still alive. I do know that he was instrumental to the success of the Prophet's mission."

"Which was?"

"Well, again, apologies old friend, but I don't really know. Modnar and I met her when we were much younger, but she never really explained why she was here."

"What was she like?"

"Very nice, and very focused. She cared a lot about the destiny of our planet."

"I wish I knew what her mission was. All I hear is 'Prophet this' and 'Prophet that'. No one seems to know anything."

"Well, if we ever bump into Manix, he could answer some of your questions."

"Who's he?"

"Manix is a legendary bounty hunter. He has no preference; good and evil are equal to him. If he gets paid, then he'll complete your request, no questions asked."

"And where does he fit into all of this?"

"Well, when the Prophet was on Tharp, she hired him to aid her in completing a task."

"So I could ask him about her quest."

"Sure, but he's as hard to find as Jacamatax. If you stumble into either of them, you could have some of your questions answered."

"This just keeps getting better," Enaz says, sarcastically.

We slow our pace down as we approach a Losiktus that is sleeping across the row we're walking through.

"Any bright ideas?" I ask.

"I was hoping you had one; I can't exactly step over it," Zekai replies.

"Shit, that's a good point. Craboo, can you possibly use your power?"

He nods and closes his eyes, then I feel the world almost slow to a halt. I quickly step over the sleeping bird and turn to look back at Zekai.

"Come on, hurry," I say, waving Zekai to come to me.

He moves back slightly, then slithers quickly towards the Losiktus. When he touches it, he trips and slams his face on the ground right in front of me. I bend down to help him up.

"Hurry Zekai," I say, seeing the world begin to speed up.

As Craboo steps over, he bends down and places his nipper around the bird's neck.

"What are you doing?!" Zekai whispers.

Time catches up and the Losiktus starts twitching. Craboo swiftly closes his pincher and snips the head off the bird; blood shoots out as it flaps around, and the rest of them start yawning. Are they all waking up?

"Oh shit...RUN!" I yell, feeling my heart race.

We're running like our lives depend on it; I'm glad there's only about fifteen rows left of Losiktus.

"Keep going, push harder!" I say, continuing to sprint.

"Are they awakening?!" Zekai replies, slithering behind me.

"I don't know. Don't look back!"

When we get to the last three rows, I dive, sliding on my stomach, eventually rolling down a small bank.

"Safety!!" I say, puckering my lips and passionately kissing the ground.

When Zekai and Craboo make it out of the seemingly never-ending crop of birds, they too dive down next to me, helping me kiss the ground.

"We made it!" I say, rolling over and hugging Zekai and Craboo.

"We did indeed, old friend," Zekai replies while we continue to hug.

Once we collect our thoughts, and our motivation, we prop ourselves upright and stand side by side, staring at the beginning of what looks like the start of a muggy swamp...

### XV – Where did you PLANT the entrance?

**SYRA**

Tatarina, Vetor and I watch in silence as Enaz, Zekai and Craboo head along the Northern path. I can't let myself get down about it; I have to continue leading us to the Western Arter gem.

"Okay you two; let's proceed. We may have a fair distance to walk, so we've got to hurry," I say as I start walking ahead.

Vetor and Tatarina have to run to catch up.

"Syra, wait for us!" Vetor yells.

He taps me on the right shoulder whilst we continue walking; I turn my head towards Vetor, awaiting what he has to say.

"Why didn't you wait for us? And what's the big secret with Enaz?" Vetor asks, gasping for air.

"No biggie, Vetor; it's not the right time to explain at the moment. To be honest, the village of Soraki has me a little bit nervous."

"Don't worry Syra, its fine to be scared," Tatarina adds, tapping me on the shoulder.

"I know it's just that I possibly...maybe...kind of...regret separating the group," I say, sounding unsure.

"WHAT?!" Tatarina and Vetor simultaneously yell.

I stay quiet for thirty seconds or so whilst wondering what to say; then suddenly, the answer dawns on me.

"My guardians are all loyal, each and every one of you. And you would follow my leadership, without question. But if I wasn't leader, then whoever was, would have done what I did in our situation. You can't change the past, and you just gotta roll with whatever hand you got dealt; whether the cards you drew are good or bad. So even though I'm nervous, at the same time I'm confident we will locate our Arter gem; and I feel just the same about our brothers. They too will find their Arter gem, before Akiad. I can feel it, as I believe it's our destiny."

There's an abundance of silence for a while, as we continue heading west. I think that maybe my companions are either one of two things; stumped for words, or nervous. I'm comfortable with either, but preferably not the latter.

After our small silent patch, Tatarina softly speaks.

"What are cards?"

Vetor and I look at each other and crack up laughing.

"I suppose we better give her an Earth rundown?" I say, cheekily.

Vetor nods, and over the next hour, we begin explaining as much as we can about Earth to Tatarina; even the similarity with her attire. It's interesting that Vetor's the one who knows all the pricing of her gear though. And what's even funnier; Tatarina not questioning this, and me just giggling to myself while they're chatting. It also gives me some time to myself; I wonder how Zekai and Craboo are doing, but most of all, I'm thinking about Dad. I realise what a hero he actually is. I can no longer judge him for what he's done. Leaving mum and I behind without a goodbye, is not something I can question; I just did the exact same thing. It would be interesting to know what his reasons were, if he isn't the chosen one, then who is he, other than my father. It's definitely something I must find out down the track, when we next share each other's company.

I'm not going to lie; I'm becoming slightly jealous of Tatarina. She's paying so much attention to Vetor, giggling a tad flirtatiously at his quirky humour. I want to intervene.

"So Tatarina, do you know enough about our planet, yet?" I say while walking backwards ahead of them both.

Immediately after I finish speaking, I trip over a rock, landing on my backside. I blush and the three of us burst into a mad fit of laughter. It makes me realise something; being jealous solves nothing.

Tatarina bends down and offers her hand.

"Thanks Tatarina," I say, while giggling slightly.

"No problem at all. To answer your question, I've learnt quite a lot."

"That's great. There's many things that differ between our two worlds, that's for sure."

"Hey Syra, sorry to cut in, but I've been doing some thinking, and wanted to ask you something," Vetor asks.

"Yeah, what's on your mind?"

"Well, we get ourselves into these crazy life or death situations all the time, yet we still don't know how each of us would like to be buried; granted worst case scenario. I would like to be cremated at a bonfire, with all my friends around, drinking Flork and celebrating my life," Vetor says, smiling towards Tatarina and me.

Vetor's random morbid change in subject catches me off guard a little, but I suppose he does make a valid point. We have been in many situations where any one of us could have easily been killed.

"I'd like a send-off, out to sea. How about you, Syra?" Tatarina says.

"I'd want to be buried under the Pohutakawa tree, in my backyard," I reply.

"Cool Syra, umm well now that we've got that sorted....umm.....creepy forest up ahead?" Vetor says, pointing past me.

I look up and notice a mass of green in front of us. The terrain up ahead is hard to distinguish; there are vines all over the ground. The trees heavily resemble huge palm trees, at least twenty metres high, and growing quite close together. They form a canopy of leaves above us. Along the ground are smaller bushes, with vines growing around them. The bushes have such beautiful purple flowers, which change to pink depending what angle you look at them; each one is about the size of a dinner plate.

We approach the entrance to the forest, and see a wooden sign that has 'Soraki forest' carved into it. I smile, knowing we're on the right track.

The three of us stand in silence, until I speak a few moments later.

"One would assume we're going the right way. I'm guessing Soraki Village is hidden in here somewhere. Let's tred carefully," I say, leading us into the forest.

We carefully progress for hours, watching our step as we walk, as there are vines everywhere below us, making it tricky to know exactly where to put your feet. I pick a flower off one of the bushes and hold it to my nose; its smell is similar to that of an orchid. I marvel at its size, thinking of how rare it is to come across one this big back at home. The ambience has also changed; gone is the soothing sound of crashing waves and the tide. The silence in its place makes me a tad suspicious. I feel like bringing it up with the others, but I'm far too slow.

"Man, its quiet in here. Where is everybody?" Vetor asks.

"I have to agree, it does seem very quiet," Tatarina adds.

"Speak of the devil," I say, diverting my attention towards the clearing in the middle of the forest.

Light shines down from a gap in the canopy above us; I notice a large plant. It's maybe eight or nine metres tall, about two metres wide, and has a lot of vines growing out of the base. It has purple leaves going around the middle of its body, and at the top of this huge plant appears to be a massive mouth.

Vetor continues staring at it, and starts tapping me on my right shoulder, then leans closer to speak.

"Psst Syra, is that a man eating plant? If it is, you two are safe," Vetor jokes.

Suddenly, one of the vines grab my left ankle and flings me around in the air, like a child would a ragdoll.

"AAARRRGGGHHHH!" I scream as I feel a warm rush of blood to the head, whilst helplessly dangling upside down.

Tatarina's chain comes rushing out of her wrist, and slices the vine that's holding me, forcing me to fly through the air. She wraps her chain around me, and safely places me on the ground behind her.

Tatarina nods at me, then runs ahead; her chain repetitively flies out of her wrist, whacking the plant in the body; it squeals like an injured piglet.

Vetor goes in to aid her, and starts smacking the plant with his staff; I join in, swinging Finito from left to right, chopping off five of the plant's vines in rapid succession. Green blood squirts all over the place, while the vines flap about on the ground.

The plant wails again, much louder this time.

"Oh, you like that?" I say, chopping off another vine from the plant.

Blood shoots out and the pressure knocks me onto the ground.

I rapidly stand up and begin stabbing the plant in the guts, before it whips Vetor and me, knocking us flying through the air.

"Aaarrggghhhh!!" Tatarina yells as she runs for the plant.

Once she's right next to it, her chain smacks the plant in its stomach section again. She scales its torso; at the top, she grabs onto one of its vines, looks towards me and winks. Tatarina fires her chain straight down the plants throat, leaving it down there. She grips onto one of the vines - near its mouth - as hard as she can with her left hand, while the plant continues choking to death.

Vetor and I shake the cobwebs, before sitting upright. I tap Vetor on the shoulder and start to giggle.

"I think it's safe to assume that Tatarina has got this one," I say, as Vetor and I sheathe our weapons.

We both quietly watch as Tatarina takes care of business. Her arm is now part of the way down the plants throat, bringing it closer to death with her chain. It squirms and fritters about, trying to snap at her arm, but it's too busy attempting to breathe.

"Not....long....now," Tatarina says, reaching further down the plants throat.

It squeals for every second of its remaining life, before making its final huge twitch; Tatarina retracts her chain and walks towards us with a big smile on her face. Vetor and I simultaneously start clapping.

"Well done Tatarina; Vetor and I knew you had everything under control. Am I able to add my two cents worth?" I say as I draw Finito.

While Tatarina ponders what to say, I start charging for the plant; I ram Finito straight through its midsection, splitting it open from left to right. A mix of green blood and digested human pieces spill out onto the forest floor.

I walk back towards Tatarina and Vetor, sheathe Finito, and then speak.

"You can never be too sure if it's truly dead or not, till you see some insides."

Vetor and Tatarina look towards each other with smirks on their faces.

"Oh are we ready to go? Better LIMBer up," Vetor jokes, moments before we all start cracking up laughing.

The three of us, walk past all the destruction of the plant, and something dawns on me. This plant is the only danger we've come across. It's almost like it's guarding something.

"Tatarina, how likely is it for you to wrap your chain around the plants body?" I ask.

"Well now that you've diced it up a little, I'm sure I could try, completely, why's that?"

I open my mouth to ask, but before I can speak, her chain comes flying out and wraps around the plant; the tip of it ends up at my feet.

"So let's pull, yeah?" Tatarina says, gripping the chain with both hands.

Vetor and I pick up the opposite end and grip as tight as we can.

"Three! Two! One! Pull!" I yell, as the three of us pull with all our might.

The plant is just too big for us to move.

"Aaarrggghhhh!" we yell, pulling as hard as we can.

"Syra, it's not working!" Tatarina says.

A few seconds later, we all stop tugging and we fall down, feeling completely exhausted. We look at each other and start laughing, while I skim the dark recesses of my mind to find a solution; we need to move this huge dead plant.

"Okay step back you two," I say, drawing Finito and gripping it out behind me.

As I swing Finito forward, I yell "Water wall" and a huge tidal wave comes barrelling from behind me, picking the dead plant up like it's a piece of driftwood; my companions shriek before realising they're safe, only issue being that they're a little wet.

Moments later, I sheathe Finito and look at the ground. There's a hole with vines disappearing into it, and I'm quite glad in this instance, I followed my gut. I know deep down in my stomach that this hole is our destiny.

We all approach the hole and stand around it. Before I have time to suggest anything, I feel something sharp dig into my back.

"I would recommend co-operating, as I could drive this sword right through your back. On top of that, I would hold you over that pit and let you slide off and drop in," the voice says.

"Tatarina, Vetor, please listen to him. I value my life," I say with a hint of sarcasm.

"No need to be smart lil girl," the voice, says before pushing the sword into my back a little more, puncturing my skin.

I bite my tongue as I feel blood trickling down my back.

"Okay! What do u want us to do?" I say, in a frustrated manner.

I look to the left and see about thirty Oathient serpents slither out of nowhere, from all around us.

"Syra, we better surrender, look over your shoulder," Tatarina says, pointing behind me.

I look over my right shoulder, and see a plethora of Oathient serpents; there must be at least eighty more.

"Okay, we submit. Can I at least tell you who we are, and what we're doing in your forest?" I ask.

"Fine, I'll allow you to speak your piece," the serpent replies.

"We're on a quest to retrieve the four Arter gems of Tharp, so we can bring down Akiad, before it's too late. I have the legendary sword in my possession, and two of the Arter gems of Tharp are currently embedded in it. By all means, please check for yourself, to prove that I'm not lying. I apologise for killing that plant. It attacked us first, so it was just self-defence," I say.

The Oathient serpent behind me lowers his sword, and reaches for Finito.

"Aarrrghhh," the serpent says, trying to draw Finito.

I look down at Finito and snigger; I know that he's not going to be able to even make it flinch.

"Why's your sword not moving!" the serpent yells in frustration.

Before I have a chance to reply, a voice yells out from behind me.

"Syra, is that right?"

Without turning around, I respond.

"Yeah, that's me. The wielder of the legendary sword, and it's my task to retrieve the four Arter gems of Tharp, and use their power to bring down Akiad once and for all," I reply before gulping a little.

Moments later, the serpent slithers in front of me. He's a dull yellow colour, and armed with a massive sword, rather than a spear like other serpents. He has medium length white hair, and only one red eye; his other is just a socket, where an eye once was. He seems a lot older than the other warriors, and the scars on his chest suggest he's been around a long time.

"May I attempt to remove your sword?" the yellow serpent asks.

"Yes you may ATTEMPT to," I reply, grinning.

The yellow serpent reaches over and tries to draw Finito, leaving my companions and me with a huge smile on our face.

"EEERRRGGGGHHH," the serpent yells as he pulls with all his might.

"You all right there, need some help?" I say, sarcastically.

The serpents around me start sniggering. It makes me wonder; are the serpents coming around? Suppose we're about to find out...

### XVI- What time is it now, Modnar?

**MODNAR**

I arise to the sound of a door creaking open at the end of the corridor; I slightly open my eyes and see two orcs approaching my cell. They are accompanied by someone else, but I close my eyes before they notice I'm awake.

"Akiad sir, we have Dowler as promised. Shall I open the cell?" an orc asks.

"Yes already! Make sure you thank Manix for Dowlers capture; now, I want to personally wake this old fool up," Akiad replies before cracking his knuckles.

"Yes Akiad sir!" the orcs say.

My heart sinks; I'm about to be in the presence of my arch nemesis.

The left orc reaches for his keys, and is shaking with fear as Akiad continues to crack his knuckles; I can hear him breathing heavily, making me slightly nervous.

"What's taking so long?!!!" Akiad growls, with much frustration in his voice.

Seconds later, the cell door bursts open; Akiad lifts me off the ground by my hair, then punches me square in the face, breaking my nose. Blood paints the vicinity and now he has my attention.

"Aaaarrrrrrgggghhhh," I moan, holding my broken nose.

Blood trickles through my fingers; I spit blood on the ground, and look Akiad in the eyes.

"What do you want from me?" I ask, before emptying my mouth of blood.

Akiad turns around, and faces away from me. Seconds later, he cracks me again in the face, knocking me back down to the ground; my head hits the concrete, busting it wide open.

"Is this really necessary, treating an old friend like this?" I ask.

"You tell me? Where's Syra."

"I don't know. I haven't seen her since yesterday," I say, before getting kicked in the guts.

"Why lie to me, Modnar?"

"Why be honest? My life will be worthless after helping you."

"Too late for that. The moment you believed the word of that Prophet, your life became worthless, especially to me."

"So what are you doing in the Dandum Mudlands?"

"I ended up here by accident. This wasn't in the plan."

Akiad kicks me in the side of my head; my vision is becoming slightly blurry.

"When's he going to get here? Wait, here he comes now," Akiad says to one of the orcs.

While lying in my blood on the cold concrete floor, the strangest thing happens; Gurdon enters my cell.

"What's he doing alive?" I ask, confused.

Akiad moves out of the way, and allows Gurdon to kick me in the guts. He then kneels down next to me.

"Hey old friend, how are you doing?" Gurdon says before punching me in the face, making my head bounce off the ground.

I slowly muster the strength to sit up against the adjacent wall, and say "didn't know there was a spell to cure a broken neck?"

Gurdon immediately punches me back down to the ground and responds with "I don't know what you're talking about old man."

Gurdon walks out of my cell, and leans against the wall opposite the cell entrance. Akiad approaches me, picks my bloodied corpse off the ground, and props me up against the adjacent wall.

"Where is Syra now, old man? Is she headed for the Arter gem of ice, like the rumours suggest?" Akiad asks, staring coldly at me.

I wipe blood off my face and rub it against Akiad's, then sarcastically answer "Yeah I suppose that'd be right."

Akiad punches me in the face, bouncing the back of my head against the concrete wall; I slide down, towards the ground. Akiad turns towards Gurdon, and exits the cell.

"We will set up a trap in the village of Elte, and you will head through the Yorkshire portal in a few days. Brian will liaise with you when Syra and her companions arrive. We'll let her think she's succeeding. Oh, and head to the Catacombs of Newace, and have a formal dinner with the Ediex clan; they are due to arrive in a day or two. If they don't side with us, we'll throw them in the cells to rot," Akiad says before looking over his right shoulder at me.

He stares at me like his eyes are daggers, piercing my soul with his gaze. I wish I could muster the strength to battle him, but without my staff, I'm almost powerless; especially in my current state.

"See you old friend, enjoy your new home," Akiad says, before walking off with Gurdon.

I listen to his manic laugh, echoing through the corridor. Once they leave the vicinity, the two orcs enter my cell.

They both begin kicking me in the stomach, and one of them hits the side of my head; I'm just too old to take anymore punishment like this. They lock my cell, and leave me to rot, giggling as they leave.

Once I hear the door in the distance close, I prop myself against the wall opposite the door, and begin processing the event I just encountered.

"Gurdon is alive? This makes no sense, I just killed him. My robe is damp and muddy; his attire is immaculate, and he doesn't have a scratch on him. Akiad mentioned the whereabouts of Syra? What's going on?" I whisper, starting to feel dizzy from loss of blood.

"Huh, where am I? Damn, still in this cell" I whisper, while awakening to the creaking sound of the door at the end of the corridor.

I can hear murmuring from two orcs that are gradually getting closer; eventually, I can make out what they're saying.

"Well he's quite battered. Akiad instructed us to keep him alive, so let's go easy on him," the left orc says as he's unlocking the cell door.

As they fiddle with the door, I rise up to my feet.

"You got some energy left, old man?" the orc says, entering the cell.

Immediately after his foul trap is shut, I open my palms wide apart and create a ball of kinetic energy in front of me - about the width of the door; the two orcs fall in, dropping the keys on the ground. I close my palms, and the ball of energy sucks through a small black hole, then disappears. I quickly snatch one of the four axes left on the ground, grab the keys, and then hobble away from the confinement of my cage.

### XVII - Make up your mind; Spit or Swallow?

**ENAZ**

The three of us stand before this huge swamp, which stretches far towards the Moorbess mountains in the distance.

"Do we really have to trudge through all of this?" I say.

Craboo starts miming something to us. It looks like he's trying to describe something very large. Zekai and I have our arms crossed, trying to work it out; we sound like a couple of kids as we fire suggestions his way.

"Ooohhh, Ooohhh, umm...mountains, you think it's not far from the mountains?" I say, excitedly.

"Yes, yes, what Enaz said," Zekai adds in a similar tone.

Craboo seems a little frustrated, but has a huge grin on his face; he doesn't get time to elaborate his performance, as the three of us notice the ground is intermittently shaking. Our heads turn north, towards the mountains.

"Wait, what's going on? Look, at that huge shadow in the distance," I say.

The three of us stand frozen side by side, facing the shadow, for the better part of a minute; until Zekai brakes the silence.

"By the gods, I can't believe it. It must be the legendary city of 'Grendaless', occupying the space within the bowels of this mammoth colossus. If my memory serves me well, its name is 'Mazelia'. As far as I'm aware, it's the only one of its kind alive. We should tred carefully, and best of luck my friends," Zekai says, while the ground continues to shudder.

I rub my eyes and swallow a mouthful of saliva; I can't believe what's coming into focus. The 'Mazelia' is huge, kilometres high in fact; it's stomach, easily big enough to fit a small city. You can faintly make out a huge white tower on its head, dirt on its skin, and most of its body covered in moss. There are large rocks on its shoulders, and going up its left leg. Maybe this colossus has stone underneath all the dirt, helping keep its solid shape. I must say, the Mazelia's eyes are the weirdest part. They are like two small planets; the left eye is covered in fire, and the right, in water. They're so animated, it's like you could hop on a bird, fly to them, and land. Magnificent is the first word that springs to mind, and the other is worried.

"Just putting this out there, I'm really trying to stay calm. Key word; trying," I say, sarcastically.

"It's not going to hurt us. I think it's not going to hurt us. I hope it's not going to hurt us," Zekai jokes as the Mazelia closes in on us.

Looking up at it freaks me out; it suddenly stops moving, making me fear the worst for us all. It has stopped in the distance, and we await its move.

The Mazelia bends down onto its knees, shuddering the ground all around us. Huge tidal waves of murky swamp, completely drenches the three of us; head to toe.

"May as well walk through it now," I say, wiping the sludge from my face.

The Mazelia slams its two hands on the ground, a kilometre either side of us, then moves its huge head down, so its chin is touching the swamp, right in front of us. I close my eyes in fear, and can feel the warm air blowing on us from its nostrils; a few large drips of snot fly our direction.

I gradually open my eyes and wipe the snot off my face; its mouth opens slowly, and you can hear ambience from within. My heart is racing too fast for my liking. I haven't been this nervous since the Elimination tournament all those years ago.

Once the Mazelia's mouth is fully open, its tongue comes right up to us; I close my eyes again and panic inside my head.

"All aboard to Moorbess Mountains. My name is Shion, I'll be your host today on board the Mazelia."

I open my eyes and see a weird man standing on the end of the Mazelia's tongue. He stands about a metre high, with acne all over his skin. His nose is the same as a rat's, with small whiskers at the end; he has two long tusks, coming out of his chin. His hair is the weirdest part; it's a plant. The leaves are green, but in the shape of a spade in a deck of cards. He's holding a long black stick, and I love his little green and blue suit and top hat; he reminds me of a leprechaun.

I look at Craboo, and he has a massive grin on his face. He's feeling his stomach with the nipper on his right hand.

"I was trying to tell you about the Mazelia," Craboo says, with excitement is his voice.

"Wait.....how are you talking?!" I ask, confused.

"The teeth in a Mazelia are made from Mozak; the same mineral, as the pearl that powers the city of Zonek. So your friend here will be able to speak," Shion explains.

"That's awesome! Is it safe for us to come aboard?" I ask.

"Of course it is, don't be ridiculous," Shion replies, waving us forward.

As the three of us step onto the tongue of the Mazelia, I have time to examine the inside of the mouth. It is massive, and what it seems that we have stumbled upon is similar to a train station; there's some many mixes of races, all in different rows, lining up to head down the Mazelia's throat, to the City of Grendeless. To name a few, there are Roobes in queue, some Oathient serpents, and even one or two Ediex clan members. They are scattered around the inside of the mouth, murmuring amongst themselves; some seated on the Mazelia's teeth, each one big enough to fit a few travellers. Two of the Oathient serpents, with outcast marks on their foreheads, are each holding a small worm; they're about ten centimetres wide, and roughly the length of a normal earthworm. When they squeeze the little creatures tail in the face of the travellers that are cueing up, it illuminates like a search light. If you speak into its mouth, it becomes a microphone. This creature is called a 'Crent.' Last time I saw one was in Neca City fifteen years ago. Man, I can't believe that it's been that long. I'm assuming that these Oathient serpents are the bouncers. I see an Oathient serpent throwing stones at the Mazelia's uvula; one of the bouncers run over and punch him in the face, before the two of them start rumbling, rolling all over the tongue. The teeth of the Mazelia are shimmering, lighting up the room.

The bouncers approach us, with Shion walking behind.

"Not amphibious, you won't survive in the underwater city. Next please hurry along. All non-amphibious creatures to my left please, all others to the right," The left serpent says.

"Hold on everybody, passengers are leaving the city of Grendaless," Shion adds.

Seconds later, the Mazelia starts gagging, and vomit comes flying from the back of its throat. A mixture of different creatures come out, and land on the tongue next to us. Spew is everywhere on the inside of its mouth; dripping down from above.

One of the bouncers slithers right up to us, and flashes his light in our eyes.

"Are you three causing trouble? Why aren't you in queue with everyone else? Answer me!" The Oathient bouncer yells.

"We're first time travellers. We've just been marvelling at everything," Craboo quips.

"Well hurry along you lot, queue starts over there," The bouncer says, chuckling.

"I'm so happy I can speak right now; you don't realise how important it is until you suddenly can't," Craboo adds, wiping his face.

"Good to hear your voice again, Craboo," Zekai replies, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Can you move closer to me, I need to speak with you both, in regards to Enaz accompanying us to Grendaless," Craboo replies, indicating us to huddle.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

Craboo reaches for something in Zekai's pouch, and much to our surprise, it's some Amora dust.

"I placed this in your pouch without you knowing. You never know when you need to breathe underwater; and now is that time. You'll need some of this Enaz, so you can follow us down," Craboo says, placing the pouch into my front jacket pocket.

"What do you expect me to do?"

"I know exactly what his plan is. Let them check and deny you. Then, turn invisible, swallow some of the Amora dust, and follow us down into the city of Grendaless," Zekai replies.

"Good idea guys," I say, looking down at the pouch in my pocket.

I look up and notice we're standing in queue behind an Ediex clan warrior, Zekai gets a little excited. He leans over, taps his left shoulder and says "hey fellow brother, how are you enjoying your granted time off?"

The clan member turns around, looks Zekai in the eyes and replies.

"What did you say, serpent. I'm not part of that clan, I don't listen to that idiot Muhbac, so if you want to die, keep going down the path your taking."

"I don't see why you are being so rude?" Zekai says, taken aback.

While their conversation heats up, I vanish, then reappear behind the Ediex warrior, samurai sword to his neck. I immediately slice the warriors head off, and blood gushes out. The bouncer quickly slithers over to assess the situation, with Shion closely behind.

"What's going on?" The bouncer asks as a bright light flashes in our eyes.

"Just a little mishap, which we've sorted out ourselves," Zekai replies, the body below him, still has fresh blood squirting out of its neck.

The bouncer slithers right up to Zekai, and starts breathing heavily on him.

"So you're the legendary Zekai. I.....remember....you. Maybe that's why you've had trouble. You don't want to be in a city, where there is no law. Grendaless will take your life," the bouncer says, right in Zekai's face.

He pauses for a moment and before either of them speak again, a voice comes from between Zekai and the bouncer.

"Excuse me, what's the issue? It's just a dead body. Throw it outside and let's get this Mazelia on the move, NOW!!!" Shion yells, looking up at them.

Zekai and the bouncer continue to stare at each other, while Craboo and I lift the dead Ediex clan member, by his hands and feet, and throw him outside.

Shion puts his fingers in his mouth and whistles as loud as he can. The Mazelia closes its mouth, and you can feel it start to prop itself up from the ground.

"Next stop, the Moorbess Mountains," Shion yells as he moves towards the front of the queue.

"I'm watching you, Zekai," the bouncer says, before slithering away.

While the jaw of this great colossus shakes like a 9.5 on the Richter scale, not only does my companions grip the Mazelia's tongue as hard as they can; but so does all the other passengers. I'm shaking around so much that I fall out of line.

"Excuse me sir, can you please line up so we can get you checked," Shion says, the Mazelia's mouth continues to shake.

"I knew you'd show up, right on QUEUE," I reply, sarcastically.

The three of us laugh and Shion looks on with utter confusion plastered on his face. To a stranger, it's hard to understand our group dynamic, but that's just how we work.

The shaking continues for a few minutes, then settles down, to just large shudders every step; we line up at the back of the queue again, to get 'checked'.

"Where are we going to meet down there? And who are we looking for?" I ask.

"Well, that's the hard part. I'm not really sure who to ask. But, the city is known for its bounty hunters, and hired hands. We hopefully will find someone down there. We just need a guide to take us through the Moorbess Mountains," Craboo replies.

"And I'm guessing we start at the tavern?" I suggest.

"That's not a bad idea, my old friend. We will head straight for the tavern, and find someone to hire. Craboo, do you have any Ralop?" Zekai replies.

"I have about thirty Ralop," Craboo replies.

"And you, Enaz?" Zekai asks, taking the Ralop from Craboo.

I reach into my left jean pocket and pull out my pouch, tipping the last of my stash into Zekai's hand.

"Five Ralop? When did you spend it all?"

"Umm, Gustar pub. You helped me drink it all, remember?"

"Hehe, sorry about that."

"Guess we have to bargain hunt," I say, realising that we're next in queue.

"I know you say you can breathe underwater, but it's my job to check. Open up, so I can flash the light down your throat!" the bouncer says, sounding snarky.

Zekai slithers towards the bouncer, and he squeezes the Crent to light up his throat.

"As suspected, you're free to go," the bouncer says, before letting Zekai slither past him.

Craboo steps up and the bouncer proceeds to check him.

"You're fine too, move up! Not so sure about your friend here though, he looks human!" The bouncer yells as Craboo walks past him.

The bouncer starts to flash the light down my throat, then looks up at me.

"Just as I suspected, a regular old human, huh? I haven't seen a human in a long, long time. What are you doing in the Mazelia, so far from home?" the bouncer says.

I pause, then look at Craboo and Zekai and smile.

"We're on a special mission, and need to find a guide to help us navigate through the Moorbess mountains. We have no idea how to proceed otherwise," I say.

"They should be able to find someone down there, but you have to stay here. As you can see, you've been declined. Non-amphibious won't live long down there. Leave your friends to find this guide, and you find yourself some entertainment up here," the bouncer says as I politely move to the side of the queue.

As the bouncer checks the last few people, Zekai and Craboo approach me.

"Find somewhere close by, then disappear and swallow some Amora dust; come find us and let us know when you're near. We should be about thirty minutes in the bowels of this Mazelia, and we will find the right person for the job," Craboo says as he puts his pincher on my right shoulder.

"Okay, I'll see you both soon," I reply.

While Craboo and Zekai move towards Shion, I look around and make sure no one is looking at me; I disappear, then quickly dip my hand into my jacket pocket, retrieving the pouch of Amora dust. I swiftly swallow some, remaining invisible, then move towards the front of the line. Shion walks ahead and starts yelling.

"Please prepare to depart to the city of Grendaless. Make a queue here, you will leave in a few moments."

I sneak up to Zekai and tap him on the shoulder, and whisper in his right ear.

"Psst, I'm here."

"Good. Did you swallow some dust?" Zekai whispers back.

"Yup, all sorted. Here goes nothing."

I swallow all the saliva in my mouth, in anticipation of our impending departure.

Meanwhile, at Fonewar Castle...

Akiad arrives at Gurdon's castle, and heads into Mevana's room. He reads the note and giggles to himself.

"Silly girl, you don't even know what you were guarding, do you?" Akiad mutters to himself.

He drops the note, and pushes Mevana aside.

He then walks to the corner of the room, and places his right palm on the wall; suddenly, all the bricks fly everywhere, revealing a dark corridor and stairs that descend into complete darkness.

"Anjari, I'm coming for you my old friend," Akiad says, laughing to himself while descending the staircase.

Back in the Mazelia, moments before disappearing down its oesophagus...

"You two ready for this?" I whisper, from behind Zekai.

Zekai turns around to answer me, and Craboo leaps down the Mazelia's throat.

"What are you waiting for, son?" Shion asks, confused.

Zekai takes a big breath, and closes his eyes, I do the same. He jumps down the Mazelia's throat, and I leap shortly after him; I feel my stomach sink. The saliva in its oesophagus, is creating a hydro slide for the 'passengers', making the trip much faster.

"Aaarrggghhhh!" I yell as we slide down.

I land into the gastric juices of the Mazelia's stomach, frantically looking around for Zekai; I quickly swim to the surface to get some air. I appear, wondering where my friends have gone.

"Zekai!?" I say, bobbing on the surface.

"BOO!" Zekai yells as he surfaces next to me.

"Shit, you scared me!" I yelp.

"Where's Craboo?" Zekai asks, looking around.

Craboo surfaces behind me and he too, nearly scares me to death.

"AARRGGH!" Craboo screams.

"Shit, not again," I reply, startled.

"You two ready to go further down?" Zekai says.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I reply.

"I'll speak as I can communicate underwater. Let's leave when we're all ready," Craboo adds, as I go invisible again.

"It's such a relief that you can speak; we actually couldn't do this without you," Zekai says, before we all dive down into the gastric juices.

As I swim around, I open my eyes and see the City of Grendaless. Swimming around the city is a mix of amphibious creatures. Oathient serpents, a few of the Guytz tribe, and some creatures I've never seen before. The city itself is made up of different objects that the Mazelia must have devoured; there are big pieces of stone, big enough to be houses for its residents. There is also many buildings made from large bones; the size of each bone would suggest they're from a dead Vulcalt. Some dwellings have the bones, from the wings of a Vulcalt, making up the roof. There are even homes that are made from shells, similar to that of the City of Zonek. There is no real structured layout to the way the Grendeless is. There is a stone, about the size of a small stadium, in the middle of the city, which is hollowed out, making it resemble a huge cavern. There are bright glowing rocks above the opening, it looks like they spell out the name of the structure; though, it's too far away for me to read.

"That's where we'll head first," Craboo says, leading the way.

Zekai and I nod, then the three of us swim towards the huge stone in the middle.

We swim through the city, and the abundance of poverty is disheartening. There's a group of Oathient outcasts, busking for some Ralop; they're singing a song from Tharp, in the form of a four part harmony. It's strange, it resembles a song from Earth. I look to the right and see a few Zilphee warriors mugging someone down an alley. Craboo looks back at me, and settles my nerves.

"Keep following me. Remember, this City is all about survival. People don't follow the rules; because there aren't any. Try to keep your wits about you, and try not to stare at anyone, we don't want any trouble."

I turn my head to the left and see a group of Nogleps beating up a female Oathient serpent, mugging all her Ralop. I quickly look away, and feel a shiver go up my spine as I turn a blind eye to all this violence. Am I a bad guy for not helping these people? I suppose as my daughter would say; eye on the prize.

We arrive at the stone, and I sigh in relief, knowing that we found a tavern. The flashing stones are illuminating the name of the bar, 'The Disgruntled Drifter.' The collective sound of laughter and murmur fill the ambience; the bar, tables and stools all appear to be made out of graphite, and the tavern is a mess. There are no staff working at all, and empty bottles of Flork are all over the ground. There are a group of female Guytz singing on a small stage next to the bar; their music seems a bit jazzy, and sets the mood for this dark city. We manage to slip in unnoticed.

Most of the occupants in the tavern, are these strange looking creatures that I've never seen before. They have a human's structure, but their skin is solid, and in the texture of wet clay; they all have grey coloured eyes, and no hair. One of the creatures has a cape on, and leggings - which look like the skin of an orc. He has a small dagger sheathed on one side, and a wooden club on the other. I look down and see my Guytz symbol moving; I tap Craboo and Zekai on their wrists, and they too notice their Guytz seals are rotating; the caped creature is looking at his left wrist also. Craboo discreetly points towards him.

"Let's start with him?" Craboo asks.

Zekai and I agree, nodding in approval.

We all swim towards the caped creature, and Craboo wastes no time to speak with him.

"Are you with the Brotherhood of Guytz? We are in search of a navigator, to lead us to the Arter Gem of Wind. We have no idea of where it is, and we need to find it."

He suddenly moves, grabbing Craboo and Zekai's left wrists; I reach for my swords, but I stop when he speaks.

"I'm Seven Raloid an hour, first hour is free. Name's Dowler".

"Seven Raloid?!! We have thirty five Ralop. Will this do?" Craboo asks.

"The hunters in here only trade in Raloid."

"Not even this one exception?"

"No, not even this once."

"But we're trying to find the Arter gem to give to the chosen one of Tharp."

"And what does this 'chosen one' want with the Arter gem?" Dowler replies, sounding snarky.

"With it, she can take the life of Akiad, and return safety to our land," Craboo says, sounding slightly desperate for his help.

Dowler moves in a little closer. He's quite jumpy to converse with.

"Seven Raloid, is the deal, as I have to make a living. Yes, I have a seal, but that's to prove you can trust me. No Raloid, no deal," Dowler says.

Craboo and Zekai look at each other and realise that we're getting nowhere fast.

"Thanks for your time," Craboo says before the three of us exit the tavern.

Once we're outside, we huddle together and discuss our plan.

"Let's wait for our departure, and head off alone. There is where we queue up. Looks like we need to tackle this mission alone. Sorry I couldn't convince him," Craboo says as the three of us swim for the terminal, to await out exit from the city of Grendaless.

The Mazelia gets down on its hands before the Moorbess mountains. As its head touches the ground, Shion makes an announcement; we can hear it echoing all around us.

"Moorbess Mountains! All passengers from the city of Grendaless are exiting. Please brace yourself."

The Mazelia starts making a loud gagging noise, and shortly afterwards, the passengers from the city of Grendeless come hurling out onto the tongue; vomit comes flying out with us. We all stand up, and exit the Mazelia.

"Should we at least watch the Mazelia leave? I loved being able to talk again for that short period of time, so I feel like seeing it walk away," Craboo says, disappointedly.

Zekai and I nod, the three of us watch the Mazelia, stand up and leave. We continue to watch until it's at least a kilometre away, then turn around.

"Dowler? What are you doing here? We have no Raloid?" Craboo asks.

"Wait, now how are you talking?" I ask, confused.

"I'll answer that for you. I have a crystal, which is a chipping off the Mazelia's tooth; I was given this by the warrior who captured me," Dowler replies, pulling the crystal out to show us.

"Wow that's fascinating; it still doesn't answer why you're here though," Craboo says, sarcastically.

Dowler reaches into his satchel and pulls out an ace of spades.

"An ace of spades? How'd you get this?" I ask.

"From a man named Brian, who lived in this village called 'Elte.' I was telling him how I was unlucky, and I'd give anything for my luck to change. 'It pays to leave an ace up your sleeve was what he said. He explained that it pays to have a backup plan for all moments in life. Now, to explain why I'm here... I put myself in your position. I could see disappointment in your eyes, yet I knew you both looked crazy enough to go without me. Where's your ace of spades in this situation? Well; it's me. I'm here to help you," Dowler replies, with a grin on his face.

"Dowler, I could kiss you. By the way, check this out," I say, pulling up my right sleeve to reveal my tattoo; an ace of spades.

"Wow, is that real??" Dowler asks.

"Yes, it's my seal, which I got done when my daughter was born; always keep an ace up your sleeve. I live by that same premise every day."

"You and me both. Shall we depart?" Dowler asks, smiling.

The four of us turn around and look towards the Moorbess Mountains; I'm very glad we have our guide.

### XVIII - Modnar's Uprising

**MODNAR**

I'm battered, bleeding and limping around more like an old man should. I quietly close the door behind me; I'm lurking in the shadows, in the room beyond my cell.

"Now, how do I get out of this place?" I whisper to myself.

I quickly look around the vicinity, and it makes me realise how hard it's going to be to escape; everything looks the same. Damp, wet, cold concrete walls and floors. Every cell door is made up of rusted bars, just like my cell; minus being electrified. I can see a door in the distance, at the end of this long straight corridor, the cells are on my right side, and a concrete wall is on the left, leading all the way to it. Most of the cells have three to four prisoners; this disgusts me. The screams of them all, echo throughout the prison, and I'm becoming a little worried about escaping. Suddenly, a voice whispers to me from the right.

"Psst, is that you Modnar?"

"Yes it is I; who is that?" I whisper back.

"Avondul. Remember about twenty years ago? I never died that day, I just got thrown into here, to rot away. Don't worry, no hard feelings, I understand you had to escape. It's good to see you. Please let me out!" Avondul whispers back.

"It's good to see you too. Don't worry, your freedom is imminent; how many people do you trust here?" I ask.

"Most of the folk in here are innocent. They would rather kill, than be left to rot in here. I knew it was you. I saw some orcs drag you past my cell," Avondul whispers back.

I unlock his door, and he runs out and hugs me.

"Thank you my old friend, let's start this uprising!" Avondul says, excitedly.

Avondul, looks like a much older version of me. His teeth are a rotten yellow colour, he has a receding hair line, no shoes and old, mole riddled skin. He has no shirt and his grey pants have many holes in them. I'm glad to have given him his freedom.

"Modnar, let me accompany you, and let my friends in here run free. It's finally time for our revenge. Every punch to the face we've endured, every meal we had thrown on the ground in front of us, this is it; payback time," Avondul says, running down the corridor, unlocking all the cell doors.

I nod back at him and start rallying up the cellmates.

"Have I got all your attention?" I yell, running my axe blade along the cell bars.

"Yeeeeaaaahhh!" everyone yells back.

"You all got thrown in here for your respective reasons, whether innocent or not. But if there is one thing I must say that I've learnt in my time, it would be that Akiad is never right! Let's leave this place with a bang!" I shout at the top of my lungs.

The entire cellblock erupts, and the free inmates, run up and hug me.

"We'll do anything you say. That's the least we could do for our freedom," one cellmate says.

"If we can please free my brother in the next cellblock, I'd die for this cause!" another cellmate says.

"Today, everyone's free!" I shout as I hold my axe in the air.

The cellmates all begin chanting "Modnar! Modnar! Modnar!" at the top of their lungs.

As I glance around in excitement, I realise that this is the best idea possible. It will save on a lot of my energy; I now have backup.

Once all the cellmates are out, I turn to them and lead the way towards the door, at the other end of the corridor. There are about eighty of us, now all we need are some weapons.

"Help me, please," a voice says from above me.

I look up and see a steel ladder, just out of reach. I wave my hand, and use my power to pull the ladder towards me.

"Who's up there?" I ask.

"I don't know. Only Akiad's most hated go into that room; most don't live very long. You get one meal a month, and water once every few days. The darkness is what would scare me," Avondul replies.

"Oh my. Wait here for me," I say, before scaling the ladder.

At the top is a trap door with a lock; I grab it with my right hand and melt it off.

"Watch out below," I say as the melted lock drops to the ground.

I open the trap door and use my left index finger to illuminate the dark room. I see a naked man, but he does not bare skin like us humans. His skin almost seems like wet clay. He has no hair, and is huddled in the corner.

"You're the old man, in the far cell," the person says.

"That's right, who are you?" I ask.

"I'm Dowler, are you here to help me escape?"

"Indeed I am. We need the numbers, and could use your help."

Dowler comes running towards me, slides onto his stomach, and hugs me.

"Thank you so much. What's your name?"

"My name's Modnar. Let's get you out of here, preferably with clothes," I joke.

"Lead the way."

I descend the ladder, followed closely by Dowler. The humans I've helped escape look shocked when they see him.

"He's been wrongfully imprisoned too, let's not judge," I say, putting my arm around Dowler.

Avondul introduces himself and then let's everyone know who Dowler is.

"Has anyone seen my weapon? It's a club, which is made from a special type of wood called Pumfone."

"Pumfone, how did you come across that?"

"This is the weird part; Manix gave me it, fifteen years ago, just before the Neca city elimination tournament. I paid him to acquire it for me."

"What's so strange about that?"

"Well, he's the one who threw me in here. I know he's a bounty hunter, but I considered him a friend, and a good one too. Just makes no sense. He kept rabbling on about the mission and how it was inevitable. He wouldn't tell me who was paying him."

"Well, hopefully we come across your club soon. Let's go everyone."

As I open the door, I realise that we're about to head into the eating quarters; and the orcs are all busy consuming dinner; the perfect time to attack.

I signal the cellmates to wait, as I sneak towards the nearest table. I see four axes there, but pause to listen to their conversation.

"Why does Dowler have this pathetic weapon? If he put an axe head on the end, then it could be half decent," the nearby orc says, investigating Dowler's weapon.

"I have to agree. Does anyone want to use this?" another orc says after being passed the club.

The room erupts into laughter; I use this distraction to my advantage.

I reach under the table, and carefully grab four axes for the inmates; I then sneak back and hand them to Avondul and three others.

"Dowler, they're laughing about your weapon, so you'll get it back soon enough. Avondul, and you three; follow my lead," I whisper.

Avondul and the three armed inmates sneak with me; we're positioned behind the five orcs sitting with their backs to the door - the room has about fifty tables that can hold ten orcs per table; five either side. Only a dozen tables have orcs, the others are unoccupied.

I look to the right and nod at my allies; we all simultaneously slice the heads off the orcs in front of us. Blood squirts everywhere, raining down on us from above.

"Aarrgghh! It's Modnar, he has escaped! Kill him!" one of the orcs yell, from the other side of the room.

The five of us that are armed charge in. Avondul and I start frantically slaying orcs before they have time to retrieve their weapons.

"Dandum prison massacre!" Avondul yells out.

All the prison inmates charge towards the unarmed orcs. Avondul, the three armed inmates and I, run ahead of the others, and start swinging at the next table. Avondul slices three orcs in half from head to toe. Blood and guts, spill all over the table, dribbling off onto the floor.

I chop two orcs straight through the midsection. Internal organs spill out all over the nearby table; the three orcs seated nearby get attacked from behind, and sliced through the neck by the three armed inmates.

The flood of remaining inmates charge past me and start jumping on the remaining orcs. A lot of inmates are losing their lives, but what we have is the element of surprise; the inmates are winning.

"Grab all the weapons. The tide is turning! ATTACK!" I yell as I point towards the remaining orcs.

The roughly thirty remaining armed inmates and I, grip our respective weapons, and battle the orcs; their numbers are double ours, but that doesn't faze us. We must succeed.

It's literally a bloody massacre. Bits and pieces from both the inmates, and the orc guards, fill the room. The floor's becoming very hard to stand on, as the abundance of blood makes it slippery, like ice.

"There's twelve of us and three of them! Don't be afraid to take back your freedom!" I yell at the top of my lungs.

Dowler runs over and reunites with his Pumfone club; he holds it in the air and yells at the top of his lungs.

"FREEDOM!"

The inmates yell with their axes held high; then charge towards the last three orcs.

I swing towards the first orc with all my energy, and we clash axes a few times; Avondul swings towards the orcs arm and slices it off, its axe hitting the ground.

"AAARRGGHH!" the orc yells before I chop its head off.

Blood lands in my eyes, blinding my vision.

"I can't see," I yell, quickly trying to wipe my eyes with my forearm.

Avondul charges in front of me, and cuts off the head of the attacking orc.

"Thank you old friend, you saved my life," I say, continuing to wipe blood off my face.

"That makes us even," Avondul replies.

The twelve of us surround the last guard. He panics and picks up a second axe off the ground. The nine remaining inmates rush in to take his life; he swings and kills two of our men, but gets killed in the process. Dowler starts bashing him senseless with his club; he then steals the guard's dagger and sheathe, attaching it around his waist.

"Well done, all of you; but it's not over yet. There are only ten of us left, so let's make this count. There's now a room full of dead orcs and their axes are everywhere. We'll free some more inmates and arm them here!" I say, struggling to regain my breath.

"Yeah! Modnar!" the remaining inmates yell.

I look towards Dowler and he seems to be doing the unthinkable; he's skinning one of the orcs with his dagger.

"Dowler, why are you doing that?" I ask.

"For many reasons. For starters, I need some clothes. And, I want the orcs to know how serious I am."

He cuts the skin off one orc and creates some leggings, washing the inside of the skin with water from a nearby pot; as he puts them on, he asks me a question.

"Do you have any way to generate fire?"

"Of course, why do you ask?"

"I need to heat up the end of my club."

"Pumfone...that makes sense. Pass it here," I say.

Dowler hands me his club. While he skins another orc, I cast a flame from my left index finger, and hold the end of his club over it.

"Modnar, we are gaining momentum. We must advance....what are you doing?" Avondul says, looking at me strangely.

"Heating up Dowlers weapon, while he...well...look," I reply, pointing towards Dowler.

He finishes skinning the second orc, and is covered in blood. He attaches the second skin around his neck, using it as a cape. Dowler approaches me, and I hand him his weapon.

"Thank you Modnar, now I'm ready to slay some orcs," Dowler says, looking like a menace.

"Follow me. Let's head out this door first," I say, heading towards the double doors at the side.

I open it and we sneak in. We quickly creep down the corridor and free another two dozen inmates; they equip themselves from the weapons in the eating quarters. We arrive at the end of the corridor and I grab the door handle.

"Wait," an inmate whispers.

"Why? What's behind this door?" I reply.

"I think it's one of the sleeping quarters. If we tackle this carefully, we may end the lives of many."

"All right everyone, quietly now," I say, softly opening the door.

The inmate is right; we're in one of the sleeping quarters, and there is quite a lot of beds. Dowler taps my shoulder and whispers in my ear.

"Let me sneak ahead, I'll go along the left wall. Let's try get one guard for all of us, then simultaneously attack."

Each of us take a position next to the sleeping orcs; there is enough of us to nearly wipe out the whole room. I'm glad our battle didn't alarm anyone in here. I look towards Dowler; he nods, then Avondul does the same. I signal everyone to attack on my command.

I put my left hand in the air and use my fingers to count down from three.

Simultaneously, we chop off the heads of the orcs; the remaining awaken and panic. Dowler runs towards them with both his weapons drawn; he rams his dagger through the head of the next orc, then hits it through the stomach with his club. The Pumfone club cuts cleaner than steel, and ends up chopping the bed in half too. There are about ten or so orcs left. Dowler looks ferocious.

We clear the room of the remaining orcs, bar one.

"Leave him alive," I say, walking towards him.

"Why? Let me slay him," Dowler replies, holding his club against the orcs face, burning through half of it.

"I need him to stay here, remind Akiad of what's coming. Someone tie him up."

I watch him twitch and try escape; Dowler and another inmate cut his legs off at the knees. I bend down next to him and hold my palms over his injuries. My palms heat up and seal them, stopping the bleeding. The orc screams in agony.

"What do you want with me?!" the orc screams.

"Nothing at all. Tell Akiad that Syra's coming for him. All right Avondul, let's get out of here!" I say, before leaving the room.

I lead Avondul, Dowler and the inmates from cellblock to cellblock, freeing prisoners from each one. Any orcs in our way, suffer a brutal death, just as we suffer losses too. Within thirty minutes or so, there are eighty of us still alive, and armed with axes.

We approach a large pair of double doors at the end of a corridor; we may be close to the exit. I open one of them, and peek outside.

"All right men, this is the main courtyard. We're going to be outnumbered, three to one. But I've faced and defeated bigger odds, literally just a few days ago. We can do this, for your freedom, for your redemption!" Modnar says passionately.

"Yeah! Go! Go! Go!" the inmates yell.

"You ready for this Modnar?" Avondul asks.

I look at him, and put my left hand on his right shoulder.

"Attack with every breath in your body, and don't stop until you get your freedom," I yell.

Seconds later, the inmates bash the door down, and charge into the courtyard.

As expected, it's hailing down, and the courtyard is covered in mud. The orcs are all kneeling, with their backs to us, praying to a huge ten metre high statue of Akiad.

We start charging in flailing our axes, and cut the back two rows of orcs, into a plethora of meat slabs. Blood squirts all over the place.

"Charge!" I yell, pushing past a few rows of orcs.

The remaining orcs scamper to their weapons as fast as they can, but many don't make it. Avondul, Dowler and I are the most seasoned in melee combat, but the element of surprise is also helping the outcome.

Two orcs charge towards Avondul; he blocks both their strikes, then drops to his knees, and cuts them open through the stomach. While he's on the ground, one charges towards me; Avondul throws his axe, which spins through the air and lands into the back of the orcs skull. I smile at him, then slice another incoming orc through the face.

"Thanks Avondul!" I yell, as he gets up off the ground, picking up a nearby axe.

Dowler rams his hot club through two orcs; as he pulls it out, burnt organs drop onto the floor.

Hail continues to fall, making battle extremely hard. An orc charges towards me, and slips on the concrete; I drop to my knees, and cut him open. Our lower numbers don't seem to be phasing us; guess freedom is the ultimate drive for someone who's trapped.

An inmate dives in front of me, and takes a full chop from an incoming orc; thankfully saving my life.

"That was too close," I say, battling another orc.

Avondul and Dowler are working in tandem, helping each other fight off waves of orcs, then Avondul runs my direction. We're standing with our backs to each other, slightly worried of our outcome.

"Have we bitten off more than we can chew?" Avondul asks.

"Never old friend. Keep at it," I reply, clashing with another orc.

The numbers are being cut down swiftly, and the orcs are in shock of what to do.

"They're panicking! Keep the pressure on!" I yell, before slicing another two orcs in half.

Three orcs charge towards Avondul, but he hasn't noticed; he has his back turned, fighting off two other orcs.

"Avondul!!" I yell as I charge towards him.

As he spins around, an orc slices him in half from the top of the skull.

"NOOOO!" I yell, as I ferociously swing my axe towards the orc who killed Avondul.

I duck as the orcs head comes flying off; blood from his neck squirting into my face.

"Modnar, behind you," Dowler yells out.

I swiftly turn around, and chop wildly; I can't see properly, as all the blood on my face is blinding my vision. Screaming and slicing noises fill the ambience.

The odds are nearing even. There are about fifty inmates - including Dowler and I - versus about seventy orcs. We have lost many, but the pendulum is finally shifting into our favour.

"Don't stop everyone! Freedom is near!" I yell, dodging a swing of an axe, from the orc in front of me.

Both sides are in the most intense melee tussle. You can hear a mixture of blood squirting, screaming, clanging of axes, and limbs hitting the floor; looking around the courtyard is intense. Arms, heads and body parts fly through the air, from both sides. Numbers are dwindling, and I hope that we can make it out of here alive.

I pick up a second axe, and start to make my advance. I start charging towards the group of orcs, screaming at the top of my lungs.

I cut through the first three, with a couple of huge overhead chops. They scream in terror, as they realise the impending loss of life. I look around me and notice all the inmates, copying me; they scream and all have a menacing look upon their faces.

"KILL THEM ALL!!" I yell.

"AAARRRGGGHHHH!" The inmates all yell as we stampede through the remaining orcs.

After a few minutes, our numbers are at about thirty; we circle the last three orcs.

Once we're surrounding them, I place my axe against one of their necks.

"How many more orcs are there? Answer me!" I yell, before spitting blood into his face.

Dowler walks up to him and stamps on his fingers.

"ARRRGGGHHH!" the orc yells.

The orc spits blood into the mud and sniggers to himself. I chop his head off, and move towards the next orc.

"Let's try this again. How many more of you are there?" I ask, placing my axe against his neck.

"I'll never tell you!" The orc replies, before spitting blood at me.

I immediately cleave at his neck, then charge towards the last orc, frantically flaying my axe from left to right screaming "Aaarrggghhhh!"

The moment the body parts of the last orc are flying through the air, the inmates cheer and run towards me, lifting me up like a hero.

"Modnar! Modnar! Modnar!" the inmates cheer as they continue to hold me overhead.

"We did it, Modnar!" Dowler yells.

"I know, and against all odds!" I yell back.

When they put me down, I smile then divert my attention towards the moon; the hail cleaning my face. I feel quite accomplished, and my current goal is complete.

I walk towards the severed remains of Avondul, and kneel down next to him, grabbing his bloodied hand.

While a mix of tears and rain are running down my cheeks, I speak to him.

"I'm sorry Avondul. It was great to spend a few brief moments together, before you died. We will avenge your death," I say, before standing up.

The inmates and I continue sweeping through, freeing more prisoners, aiding our escape from Dandum Prison. There are enough axes in the main courtyard to equip everyone that we have.

Once we exit outside the front of the prison, I turn around to speak; not showing the slightest bit of frustration, to be in the middle of a hailstorm, standing in mud.

"Your freedom is upon you. You deserve this. I must return to my quest; I'm trying to find Syra, the chosen one of Tharp. If any of you see her, let her know I'm alive, and looking for her," I say, before turning my back on the inmates, and heading out into the Dandum Mudlands.

"Modnar! Modnar! Modnar!" the inmates yell as I walk away.

"Modnar, wait!" Dowler yells as he runs up to me.

"What is it, Dowler?"

"Firstly, I want to say thank you for setting me free."

"You are quite welcome."

"Secondly, where are you expecting to find her?"

"I don't really know. She needs to retrieve the Western and Northern Arter gems. She could head to either first."

"Well, I'm heading to the City of Grendeless to meet with someone who owes me Raloid. If I come across Syra in my path, I promise to help her."

"Thanks friend," I say, limping away from him.

When I'm about a kilometre away, in the rain and mud, I leer over my right shoulder; realising the coast is clear, I create a ball of kinetic energy, by opening my palms apart. While it floats thirty centimetres in the air, I ponder my thoughts.

"All right Syra, where are you? Don't worry, I'll save you! I hope this leads me to you; I don't have my staff to control my destination," I say, before jumping into the ball of kinetic energy.

### XIX - Worst Case Scenario

**ENAZ**

The view takes my breath away. We all stand in awe for a minute, exchanging various compliments of what we can see. It's a long dirt path, with gravel on either side, all the way to the base of the Moorbess Mountains. There are bushes blowing around - just like tumbleweed back home; I feel like we're very alone out here. From where we stand, you can't see higher than the entrance, due to the abundance of mist.

"Well you lot, are you ready?" Dowler asks, walking slightly ahead of us, "Arter gem of Wind, right?"

"Dowler, lead the way," Zekai replies, following closely behind.

The four of us travel towards Moorbess mountains, along the dirt path, for quite a while. It takes about two hours to get to the base, and upon reaching our destination, Dowler stops walking, and turns around.

"We better set up camp here. There's nowhere else that's safe enough to rest, beyond the entrance. Besides, I need to prepare my weapon for combat," Dowler says, before picking up some loose wood from beneath the nearby trees.

Without hesitation, we all help prepare the fire, before sitting around it.

The four of us toast our Dupat shells we brought with us, and enjoy some Flork that Dowler acquired in Grendeless; I start to zone out, thinking about Syra and Modnar. They're the two major pieces to this puzzle; my daughter, and the time guardian that originally brought me to this world.

"Dowler, do you know who Modnar is?" I ask.

"Of course, who doesn't? The time guardian of Tharp. Why do you ask?"

"Have you bumped into him recently? We lost him a few days back, and haven't heard any trace of his whereabouts," I ask.

"Well, have you heard about the most brutal prison break ever? It happened last week sometime. Modnar released all the captive inmates, and they chopped their way out of Dandum Prison," Dowler replies.

I look over at Zekai and we exchange a puzzled look; what is he talking about?

"Wait Dowler, I can honestly say that story is false; because last week, Modnar was with us," Zekai says, sounding certain.

"Well I assure you this story is true; because I was there with him. I had been hunted by Manix, and was thrown in prison for nothing. He never told me why either. But then I heard someone freeing all the prisoners in my cellblock; Modnar was the name the inmates were chanting. He helped me escape, and I personally thanked him, upon our exit. I fought alongside him, and we would have died for that cause. I saw him with my own eyes," Dowler replies, in an equally convincing tone.

Dowler continues to talk, describing Modnar, and exactly what he looks like.

"Did he have a weird staff?" I ask.

"No, he had an axe, which he would have stolen from a dead orc," Dowler replies.

"The story makes no sense, yet still does a little bit. Does that make sense?" I say, unsure of myself.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Craboo asks, sounding equally lost.

"Well, last week we know Modnar was with us, I promise on my daughter's life that I speak the truth. Now, several days ago, he disappears through a ball of energy with Gurdon. He must have gone somewhere. Could it be the same Modnar? When I was twenty eight, I saw Modnar disappear through a ball of electricity, just like that," I explain.

Zekai looks at me with his eyes lit up like a child at guy Fawkes.

"So...what are you saying?"

"What if he travelled into the past?"

"Well he is a Time guardian, so that is possible, but are you sure?" Dowler adds.

"I don't really know. I'm just saying, that maybe that isn't such a farfetched possibility. There is one inconsistency though."

"And what is that?" Craboo asks.

"Why would he go back in time, just to get thrown into prison?"

"I saw him when I first arrived at the prison. He was quite battered, and had blood all over his robe; maybe he was attacked before being locked away?"

"Well, I'm not sure, but I always believe everything is possible; it's better than thinking about something negative," Zekai replies, before popping a Dupat shell into his mouth.

"Very interesting theory, Enaz. Sounds like a possible outcome to me. Now, you mentioned you have a daughter?" Dowler says.

"Well, to tell this story, I need to start from the beginning. The truth is my name's not Enaz; it's Zane. I was told to change it, when I arrived in Tharp fifteen years ago. I could change it now, but Zane was the old me, where Enaz is the new me. The me who left his wife and daughter alone, to chase some curiosity that Modnar led me to; has to stay back with Earth. I didn't want to hear my name anymore. What I did was selfish and wrong, but Modnar assured me it was my destiny to follow him. Here I am, fifteen years on, proving that Modnar is the most straight up person I know. Raise your bottles of Flork high in the air, and this toast is to Modnar. Oh and Dowler, please don't drop the Goy into the drink. My daughter Syra has a rule that you just can't do that," I say, before smiling towards Zekai and Craboo.

"Syra's your daughter?!" Zekai and Craboo cry out.

"Well, I figured I can trust you guys. Yes, she's my daughter. And that's why Modnar asked Rodland to train me fifteen years ago, and give me a seal, like you three. He never mentioned that I was her father, just stressed the importance of my training because he knew the truth. Please don't say anything yet, as I don't want to disrespect Syra's decision. I just wanted to tell you both, because I don't know how dangerous the road ahead is, and it would be a shame if something happened to me, and you didn't know anything about that yet."

"Wow, we had no idea. That does explain why she's quite hard on males. You leaving your family fifteen years ago would leave a fairly big scar on your daughter," Zekai says, rotating his Dupat shell to burn the other side.

"Wow......Syra is your daughter. That's intense," Craboo adds before stuffing his face with two Dupat shells.

"Not that I've actually been a father for fifteen years," I reply.

"Well gentlemen, sorry for the change in subject, but more importantly than all this banter, is the mountain. Let's find this Arter Gem," Dowler says as he starts heating his wooden club over the open flame.

"Wait, that's wood? Won't it just burn?" I ask.

"It's a special type of wood named 'Pumfone'. When it heats up over an open flame, it turns into a blistering hot solid object. It becomes so hot, that it passes straight through most objects," Dowler explains as he continues to hold his club over the flame - it's now bright red in colour.

"So Dowler, what's the climate like up, there?" I ask, pointing towards the mountains.

"Well, it's foggy as far up the mountain as you can make out; so I'm not really sure, but I've heard it can get a little chilly. We need weapons at the ready, it will be a blood bath. The guardian of the Arter Gem of Wind doesn't like visitors, so there are feral creatures everywhere," Dowler explains.

"What sort of creatures are we expecting?" Zekai asks.

"Feral ones..." Dowler replies, sarcastically.

The vague way that Dowler replies, makes everyone start laughing. You have to have these light hearted moments, to take your mind away from the reality of a situation. It makes me miss Vetor's humour. He and Dowler are going to get on, just fine.

"Well I'm glad there's four of us. To scale that trail alone would be unforgiving!" I say, staring at the mist.

"That's for sure. Let's depart in the morning. We have a lot of ground to cover, in very little time. Finish up what you're eating, and let's head to sleep," Dowler replies before rolling over and resting his head.

First thing in the morning, I arise. Dowler is heating his club - the same way he did last night - and everyone else is eating; I say my good mornings and do the same.

Once the four of us finish our meal, we gather our belongings and ready our weapons; we line up at the bottom of the Moorbess Mountain trail.

"You three ready?" Dowler asks, with his heated club drawn.

Craboo, Zekai and I nod, and the four of us start our trek up the mountain trail; Dowler and Zekai in front, Craboo and I at the back.

The mountain trail slowly reveals itself to the four of us. The beautiful blue sky beams down, and the sunlight glistens off the water that's trickling down the side; you still can't see the top, as there is mist shrouding the peak. The trees are dense; the tops of them are extremely bushy - fluorescent green in colour - and you can't see any light peering through the leaves. They're a mix of heights; some are high in the air, while others are just above our heads. The trunks of the trees are all the way along the left side of the path - the leaves hang over us as we walk; I glance to my right, and can see swamp and patches of mist everywhere below. Looking up I notice that the trees also bear some fruit. They have such a weird shape, similar to a banana, but halfway down the fruit, it splits into two; it's like a banana with two ends.

"Wow it's been a while since the sun has been glaring down on us. It's nice," I say, looking over my right shoulder.

"What's wrong Enaz? You keep looking behind you," Craboo replies.

"I don't know; I just feel like someone is following us," I say, looking around suspiciously.

"I'm sure it'll be fine.....ARRRGGGHHH!" Craboo replies, as a huge blade comes out of his stomach.

Blood trickles out of his mouth, and from around the exit point of the blade.

I quickly turn around and can only make out some red eyes from behind Craboo.

"Take your blade out of him, or expect to die a painful death!" I shout.

The blade slowly slides out of Craboo's chest, and the red eyes disappear.

"Hang in there, Craboo!" Zekai cries, dropping to the ground and cradling his head.

I turn around and notice the red eyes behind Dowler.

"Watch out Dowler!" I yell.

As soon as Dowler turns around, the huge blade comes flying out of his back, scratching me in the face.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO! Shit, my face hurts," I say, as blood pours out onto my hand.

"Are you hurt, Enaz?" Zekai replies, still cradling Craboo in his arms.

"Please both of you, let me concentrate," Craboo quietly says as he puts his right crab nipper in the air.

The environment slows right down all around us, and rather than enjoying the bizarre feeling, Zekai and I get straight to work.

I disappear and leap straight forward, chopping straight through the eyes of the invisible monster, from right to left. Blood sprays out of where its head is, and brain dribbles down its face and body, revealing the sections of the creature it lands over.

"Even after death they stay invisible! Be on guard!!" I yell out while remaining invisible.

Zekai carefully places Craboo down, and holds his spear out in front of him; his hands quivering while assessing the entire area around him; I've never seen him this scared before.

"Damn, it must be the Kranind! They only become visible from Amora Dust settling on them," Zekai says while slithering towards me.

"Zekai thrust forward," I shout.

Zekai immediately ducks, and stabs straight forward, going up on a seventy five degree angle, piercing straight through its midsection, and out the back of its neck.

"Aaarrggghhhh!" the Kranind screams to its death.

As he pulls his spear out, the dead Kranind falls straight onto him.

"Enaz!" Zekai yells.

I promptly lift the dead weight off Zekai, and he props himself up.

"I have decided to stay invisible, so those Kranind's can't see me, and assume you're all alone," I say.

"Enaz, taking leadership just like Syra. You're definitely her father. Please check on Dowler," Zekai replies as he slithers towards Craboo.

Time begins to speed up, and we both realise that our two companions have died without us having a chance to speak with them; this realisation is like a huge sledgehammer to the guts. As tears roll down my cheeks, I reappear and start to speak.

"Zekai, life has its challenges. From what I've been through, I think it's safe to say that life is a test. We need to get this Arter Gem, and deliver it to Syra, fast. Akiad's not stupid, and he'll stop at nothing to claim the only things capable of piercing his skin. Let's not let their deaths be a waste, and find this damn Arter gem!"

"Enaz, you're right. Please wait for me," Zekai replies after closing Craboo's eyes, and wiping the tears from his own.

Zekai and I share a few tears together, while standing over Craboo's body. It's sad, we have no choice but to leave their bodies here to rot; we'll have to sort out something on the way back down.

"Come on friend, let's get a move on," I say, rubbing Zekai's back.

"Coming brother," Zekai replies before I disappear, and we continue our journey.

After hours of uninterrupted travel, a river starts to run parallel to us, five metres to the right. The path has curved to the left, making the beautiful mountain our view to the right, while the trees still remain to the left of the path. I swing my blade at one of the oddly shaped fruits, and the weirdest thing happens; Amora dust bursts out of it, going everywhere.

When the Amora dust lands on me, it reveals where I am; my invisible silhouette is sparkling yellow.

I appear and start wiping the dust off me, then throw a suggestion Zekai's way.

"You should carry a few of these fruits to throw towards me; if we run into any more trouble, I'll slice them, and the dust will fall and reveal the Kraninds," I say, before throwing one of the fruit towards him.

Once Zekai catches it, he collects a few more yellow fruit, then replies.

"Good plan, Enaz; let's collect a few. Is something wrong, you're not talking as much as usual?"

"Just hurt, that's all. I just can't believe Craboo and Dowler are dead. It still hasn't sunk in yet."

"I still can't get over Rodland, let alone this. I know it's hard, but we must remain focused. Let's press on, friend."

As the two of us continue up the Moorbess Mountain dirt trail side by side, the trees gradually thin out, finally revealing the scorching hot sun. The river is still running to the right of us, and the mountain looks so beautiful up close. I have stayed visible, to allow me to mourn with my friend.

"There has been no trouble for a while," Zekai says, quietly.

"Yeah, that's true. We should still be careful. I'm keeping one samurai sword in hand at all times, just to be on the safe side."

"So, did we manage to find out exactly where this Arter Gem is?"

"No, unfortunately we didn't. And now that Dowler is dead, we're walking without a guide."

"And we're doing very well to be alive; hope we stay that way. I wish there was something we could have done to save them, including Rodland. I can't get the thoughts of them out of my head."

"I know Zekai, but keep your eye on the prize. It's not fair, but that's life. One mistake, just one; you'll end up next to them. Spear at the ready, let's do this," I say, before drawing my other samurai sword.

"My apologies, Enaz. You're..... Watch out ahead!" Zekai yells as he points ahead of us.

I go invisible, and drop to the ground. As soon as my knees touch the dirt, I slice my two swords outwards, cutting a Kranind's legs off, and spilling blood all over the ground. We know where it's crawling, as blood is gushing out of it.

I put my right foot roughly where its back is, and ram both my samurai swords into the ground, digging into its back.

"Turn around Zekai!" I yell, pulling my samurai swords out of the dead Kranind.

Shortly after, Zekai throws a yellow fruit above him, then thrusts forward, stabbing another Kranind through the stomach.

I jump in the air and slice the yellow fruit in half, causing Amora dust to go everywhere. Upon landing, I look around and notice five more Kranind, closing in.

"Think fast Zekai, back to back," I yell as the two of us press our backs against each other. The five Kranind close in on us, and I feel a perfect blend of nerves and confidence.

"Let's do this," Zekai says, slithering forward while ducking two swings from a Kranind, before stabbing it through the face.

I turn around and run forward, then jump off Zekai's back, and forward flip through the air. While mid-flight, I slice a Kranind's head off that's charging for Zekai; I land behind two more Kranind, and don't hesitate in ramming each end of my two blades into their backs. They both start spitting blood out of their mouths.

Zekai turns around, and thrusts forward, just missing the glowing red eyes. He then ducks under where its arm is, and pokes his spear through its face.

I walk around the other side of the five dead Kranind, and stand side by side with Zekai.

"Throw up another fruit, just in case there's more of them," I say, holding my blades out in front of me.

Zekai throws another fruit in the air, and I chop it into quarters. Amora dust falls everywhere, and just as the dust settles, it reveals another four Kranind.

"Zekai, four more!" I yell as I plunge my swords straight through the face of two Kranind.

Zekai dodges a swing from the left and ends up throwing his spear towards the right Kranind, plunging into its stomach.

I pull out my swords, and blood squirts everywhere; I start running towards another enemy.

As Zekai retrieves his spear, he ducks a swing from the last Kranind; I appear, revealing that my samurai swords are buried in the Kranind's chest.

"That's it?" Zekai says while panting.

"Be careful is about all that I'm going to say," I reply, pulling my two blades out.

"It really pays to.......COUGH," Zekai says, slowly looking down.

I see thirty centimetres of blade, sticking out the front of his stomach.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I yell, frantically looking for the red eyes.

I see another Kranind open his eyes behind Zekai; his blade is still buried in my friend's stomach. I jump forward and stab the Kranind through the face, leaving my sword in there.

I quickly push the dead Kranind off Zekai, and lay down with him on my lap.

"Don't die on me, Zekai. Please, don't die on me," I say, my voice choking up.

Zekai coughs up a lot of blood, before swallowing some, gasping for every moment of life he has in him.

"Cough...Cough! Enaz...you...must...get that...gem," Zekai says, coughing up blood in-between his words.

"Where is it, Zekai?" I ask, while putting pressure over the exit wound on his stomach.

"Around....the....neck....of.....the...."

I start crying, and as my lips quiver, I look down at Zekai, and shut his eyes.

"You will be with Fewmira now, where you belong," I say, while slowly laying Zekai down on the ground.

After I say my goodbyes to my fallen comrade, I know what I have to do; I have to face my destiny, alone.

### XX - A kink in the chain?

**SYRA**

The dull yellow Oathient serpent looks around the vicinity with shock; he can't help commenting on the situation.

"Oh do you think that's funny? You'd all laugh at my expense?"

His comment changes all the laughter into a dull murmur.

"That's better," the serpent says, grinning to himself.

"So, let's start this again; the name's Syra," I say, holding my right palm out in front of me.

The yellow serpent reaches out and shakes my hand, then leans in a little closer to my face. To be honest, I think he might want to kiss me.

"I have to make them all fear me, so they don't question my authority," the serpent whispers.

He continues to shake my hand, then pulls back to speak.

"The name's Vaughson. Pleasure to meet you."

"Well, let's see the infamous Village of Soraki," I say, cheekily.

"Infamous you say? What's so bad about our village?" Vaughson replies, promptly finishing our handshake.

"Oh, I've just heard stories from one of my companions. He's currently on his way to retrieve the Arter gem of Wind."

"What is his name, if you don't mind me asking?" Vaughson asks.

"His name is Zekai, the leader of the Village of Noradi," I reply.

Vaughson seems a little distracted by my reply. He slithers over and prepares the vines for our decent.

"Please don't mention his name in my presence. Let's lead you safely to our village," Vaughson says, sounding frustrated.

"Wait just a minute there, Vaughson. Why can't we mention our friend's name? Is that because of the war between the village of Noradi and Soraki? Or some other bitter rivalry," I ask.

"Just because that's the way it is. Do you wish to be our prisoner, or ally? I suggest you drop the questions," Vaughson replies.

"Okay, I'm just going to relay with my companions," I say, turning towards Vetor and Tatarina.

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but he's kind of twitchy. You mention Zekai, and he flairs up like a roman candle," I whisper.

"Well, I can safely say we should be okay. He clearly doesn't want to hurt you. In fact, he knew your name before you said it," Vetor whispers back.

"That's a good point. Let's go," I whisper, before turning around.

"You lot ready?" Vaughson asks, sounding slightly impatient.

The three of us nod, then walk up to the vines; I'm the first to grab one of them.

"So how far is the drop, distance wise?" I ask.

"Not too long, and not too short," Vaughson replies, grinning at me.

"Are you always so vague?"

"Yes. Have a great descent," Vaughson replies, tapping me on the back.

I have to admit, he really knows how to push my buttons. He reminds me of my old teacher at school. She knew exactly how to set off my inner box of dormant fireworks.

I start my descent into this hole, and I'm gripping the vine as tight as possible; I begin disappearing into the darkness beneath me.

I brace my feet against the wall, as I slowly make my way down; looking up, I can barely make out the top of the hole.

"Umm, does anyone have a light?" I yell up the hole.

"You should find a few Crents at the bottom! Keep going!" Vaughson yells back.

"Okay, got it! Wait, what's a Crent?" I yell back.

"I don't know; why don't you ask them?" Vaughson jokes.

I hear everyone giggling at my expense; Vaughson is really starting to piss me off.

As I continue to be swallowed by darkness, my impatience urges me to look up; the entrance is becoming further away. I can just make out Vetor entering the hole now; I secretly keep telling myself that this is coming to an end, but the never ending nature of it keeps me wondering the entire time.

A few more minutes of descending in the dark, and I can feel the vine ending; I let go and land on the ground. All I can hear is a plethora of splattering noises.

"Okay I've just squashed something," I yell.

"Nearly there Syra. I can hear murmur, just give me a moment," Vetor replies from further up the hole.

Once he lands next to me, he makes a similar splattering sound.

"What have we stood on?" I ask, not moving a muscle.

Vetor bends down and picks something up. Vetor squashes it, and all of a sudden, a light comes from the back of its throat.

"Gross Vetor; what is it?" I reply.

"It's a Crent. That's what they're saying to me anyway."

"Oh, that's what a Crent is. Can you light up the ground please?"

Vetor illuminates the surroundings; I look down and notice that there are thousands of Crents, including the ones unintentionally attached to the soles of our footwear. They look like fat Huhu grubs, just like the ones at the back of our property. I don't want to panic, but bugs are an old fear of mine, before becoming 'the chosen one.'

"They're upset we killed some of their family," Vetor says, as he flashes his light down on the Crents.

"Oh no, please say sorry. Can you tell them, that we couldn't see properly, so that couldn't be avoided," I say, with sincerity in my voice.

While Vetor speaks to the Crents, I notice Modnar's staff. It makes me wonder if it has become a burden for him at all.

"Vetor, how are you finding the task of watching Modnar's staff?" I ask.

"I'm quite proud actually. I get upset when I think about him, and watching it makes me important to him. I feel its power though, especially recently."

"That's good that it makes you feel important; but Vetor, are you sure you can handle the power contained in that staff?"

"Ha! Of course I am. Remember, I reattached the limb of Xeria Guytz. We both have Brotherhood of Guytz seals, do we not? So that means that we both can handle the power of this staff. Oh, and apology accepted from the Crents."

"Say thank you very much. Please be careful, Vetor. No abusing the power of that thing; it's not your weapon to mess around with."

"No worries, Syra; thanks for the lecture," Vetor says sarcastically, flashing me in the eyes with the Crent.

Meanwhile, in the catacombs under Fonewar castle...

Akiad is in a dark, dead end cavern, with a huge stone tomb, there's a throne directly behind him.

"Finally, I have found you," Akiad says, his eyes glowing white, illuminating the vicinity.

He pushes the stone lid off the tomb, and there lies an orc. He has a golden gown on, and a golden crown on his head; the front piece of it goes up about thirty centimetres. He's in a deep slumber, and doesn't appear like he's awakening any time soon.

As Akiad places his palms on either side of the orcs face, he speaks.

"Anjari, not long now my old friend. Jacamatax may have ended your reign all those years ago, but one day I will find him. He will pay for what he did to you!"

Back in Soraki Forest...

Tatarina is at the top of the hole, and hasn't entered yet. In fact, she's insisting she goes last. I listen in, and hear her witty remarks.

"Sorry, what's your name? You must make your way down now," Vaughson commands.

"The name's Tatarina, and I recommend you stand back," Tatarina replies, looking up.

She fires her chain upwards, hooking it around the overhanging branch.

"Bye," Tatarina says, disappearing down the hole, head first.

She rapidly flies down, gripping her chain with both hands.

"YYYYEEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Tatarina yells as she falls down the hole at top speed, passing the others on the way.

As she nears the bottom, she flips the right way up, and starts bracing her legs on either side of the hole, slowing her speed significantly.

"Watch out below!" Tatarina yells.

When her feet hit the ground, her chain retracts into her arm; she smiles towards me, "us woman, love the thrill of danger."

I smile back at her, "amen to that."

Vaughson is the last person to descend the hole, and once he's at the bottom, he informs us of our next move.

"Everyone grab a Crent. You three, please be gentle. Squeeze 'em a little bit, and then you'll have light."

"No shit Sherlock," I quip.

Tatarina and Vetor bend down and grab a Crent, where I hesitate slightly.

"What's wrong, Syra?" Tatarina asks, flashing her light in my face.

"Yeah I'm okay, gimme a second, sheesh."

Truth is that I don't feel too comfortable squeezing a living creature, even to get a little light. But, I do as everyone requests; I bend down, and pick up a Crent off the ground.

I squeeze the Crent in my left hand, and it lights up like a torch. It's weird I can feel the little creature breathing as I squeeze it.

I look around and notice everyone's silent, watching my every move.

"Yeah okay, the chosen one has her light. Move along now," I say, sarcastically.

I push ahead and walk alongside Vaughson.

"So where are we heading? What's down here?" I ask.

"Always with the questions, aren't you? Truth is, I've heard tales of a young female named Syra that fits your description."

"Oh is that so?"

"That is so. So let's cut the fat, and leave the muscle, yeah?"

I walk ahead of Vaughson and start walking backwards.

"Let's get one thing straight, Vaughson. I already think you're a prick, so let's just drop the attitude," I say, in a grumpy tone.

Vaughson stops slithering forwards and turns around.

"Everyone, Syra has something to say about me. Please, share your kind words with everyone, as I have nothing to hide," Vaughson says before looking over his right shoulder, and grinning at me.

When he turns around, I step forward and head-butt his nose, breaking it on impact.

"Vaughson's a prick everybody," I say, wiping blood from my forehead.

The Oathient serpents in the background are sniggering away. My intention isn't to embarrass him; it's merely a way of conveying my opinion with precision and haste.

I briskly walk ahead, and can hear a bone cracking from a few metres behind me.

"Was that really necessary?" Vaughson asks, clicking his nose into place.

"I only ever do enough. No more, no less."

Before he replies, I feel my feet lose traction beneath me.

"Aaarrggghhhh!" I scream, while suddenly slipping onto my backside, and sliding down a long water shoot.

It's like a hydro slide, but there are cavern walls all around me.

The screams of Tatarina, Vetor and I echo around us. Everyone else must've grown accustomed to this.

I eventually come barrelling out the exit, flying straight into a small lake; my companions exit shortly afterwards.

I drag myself out of the lake, I'm soaking; I assess the surroundings. We are in a huge cavern, which covers the entire vicinity; there are little houses made of wood, scattered everywhere.

The wood for the walls of the houses are different shaped branches, and the rooves are round logs. In the centre of the village is a huge wooden water monument - in the shape of a woman, wearing a cloak, with a hood - and the two biggest buildings of them all are next to it; one looks like a house, with a huge pointy roof, where the other is more like a town hall. Oathient serpents begin to fill the area quicker than vultures to a dead corpse.

Vetor and Tatarina exit the lake and stand either side of me.

"It's all right, she's apparently the chosen one. Leave Syra and her companions alone," Vaughson says, slithering from behind me.

I can honestly say that Vaughson has been put on Tharp to irritate me.

"How's your nose? BLOODY annoying I bet?" I quip.

Tatarina and Vetor start laughing, and all I get from Vaughson is a filthy look. To be honest; I actually don't care.

"Welcome to the Village of Soraki. We live a safe life down here, hidden away from the land of Tharp. We go up to the surface on a daily basis, but not through the way we brought you three. That was created for our emergency exit, if our village was ever found out about. Please, make yourselves at home," Vaughson says while holding his arms out, wide open.

"Thanks Vaughson," I reply.

"I will get someone to show you to your sleeping quarters for tonight. Meet out by the monument there in thirty minutes," Vaughson says, slithering towards his house; the huge wooden building in the centre.

As I turn around to my companions, I notice that trouble's brewing. A few Oathient serpents slither around the three of us.

"So, I gather you're close with Zekai? I wouldn't bother bringing tales of him into our village; no one will be interested. The mention of his name, sends Vaughson into a very strange mood, almost like he has a second personality. We have never asked him about it, but he seems to bring up Zekai on his own, at least once every few weeks," an Oathient serpent says.

"Tatarina, Vetor; stay here," I say as I storm towards Vaughson's hut.

Upon arriving, I don't bother knocking on the door; I kick it down.

"Vaughson, what is your..." I say before pausing at what seems like Deja vu.

The room has two book shelves, a mat - to sleep on - a desk, and two windows. On the desk is his sword, a few carefully diced up Goy's; their insides are sorted into neat lines, slightly to the left of their bodies. On the ground - below Vaughson's left hand - is a hollow, small piece of wood, resembling a straw. My guess, is that you can get high off snorting a Goy's insides.

"Vaughson?!" I say, quickly running over to him.

I start shaking him, but no one is home. I think he's overdosing.

I quickly run to the hole that is now the front door, and scream at the top of my lungs.

"VETOR! TATARINA! COME! QUICK!"

They run their fastest towards me; some Oathient serpents slither closely behind.

"What's wrong, Syra... oh shit!" Vetor says as he passes me in the doorway.

"Vaughson snorted the insides of a few Goy's and is currently overdosing!" I panic.

Vetor quickly walks up to him and holds Modnar's staff in his left hand. He then places his right palm on Vaughson's forehead.

"How long has he been like this?" Vetor asks.

I open my mouth to reply, but pause as soon as I see Vetor's eyes turn red; Vaughson's chest arcs out towards us, while still being passed out on his chair.

He begins shaking, within a few moments, he suddenly awakens, and Vetor passes out; black steam rises from his body.

"Vetor!" I yell, jumping to the ground.

Tatarina rushes over and kneels next to me.

"Is he okay?" I ask.

Tatarina puts her right hand on his heart, then briefly screams.

"He's hot, but I can feel his heart beating," Tatarina replies while looking at her hand.

I walk up to Vaughson, slap his face and look him dead in the eyes. I stand in a staunch pose, fold my arms, and then speak.

"Vaughson, you need to start talking; right now."

### XXI - Difficult to see

**ENAZ**

A few hours pass and I've been travelling much further up the Moorbess mountain trail. I've been crying, as I've been granted; worst case scenario. I'm all alone, scaling terrain that clearly needs a tour guide; I have no idea where I'm going.

I haven't come across any trouble since the passing of my comrades, but in saying that; life always presents the possibility of death.

"How far do I have to go? What am I looking for? This is suicide. Should I turn back?" I mutter to myself while pacing up the mountain trail.

I draw my samurai swords, and walk ahead while spinning around slowly, and yelling.

"Where are you, guardian of the Arter gem of Wind? Come out, I don't fear you!"

And just as I expect; no answer. No one's returning my confusing comments, not a whisper.

I continue progressing up this beautiful mountain trail, and the abundance of silence is bugging me just as much as the cold wind; it's starting to become a lot colder. This whole journey is messing with my head; how much further is it??

"Is this some sort of test? Why'd you kill everyone but me? You kill Zekai, the legendary warrior that has lived for thousands of years; but you leave me alive? Why test me more than life already has?! I left my family, approaching sixteen years ago, and yet I must continue, alone?!" I yell in frustration, while continuing to walk, samurai swords in my hands.

The further up the mountain I travel, the more pear shaped the weather turns; mist fills the air, and snowflakes begin to fall.

"Snow?! Now?! I'm already alone, and now SNOW?!" I yell.

The flakes fall faster by the second, eventually becoming tiny snowballs; have I bitten off more than I can chew?

My travelling speed has halved, and I finally sheathe my samurai swords. I have my right arm covering my face, pushing my hardest against the snowstorm. As scary as a group of invisible creatures can be; nothing is more ferocious than Mother Nature, ever.

"Damn, come on you old leather trench coat, give me warmth," I say, while my teeth chatter.

The wind becomes heavier within a short space of time. I'm taking a step every five or six seconds; that's literally as fast as I can move.

"Why me?" I say, while I continue to trudge through this blizzard, moments before nose-diving into the snow.

I awaken and nightfall has consumed the sky. The snow and wind hasn't stopped; I shake the snow that has buried me and prop myself upright.

"Shit...it...it...it's cold," I say, while I rub my face with my frozen hands; I remove them from my face and see they're blue in colour. I really don't know how much more of this blizzard I can withstand; hopefully I don't face any more Kraninds.

My steps have slowed right down, to about one every fifteen seconds. The wind is relentless and unforgiving. Snow covers ninety percent of my body, and my lips match the colour of my hands.

"How much further? Please!" I shout with all my might.

I stumble over, and fall back onto the ground. My energy levels have been diminished, but I'm determined to do this for my daughter. I continue to crawl through the snow, spitting it out of my mouth every few seconds; how do I avoid it from hitting me in the face?

I continue crawling up the mountain trail - which is now completely buried in snow - but my eyes are heavy, so I struggle to stay awake.

I arise again, and it's still night; I'm buried in snow, yet again.

"Shit it is freezing. I must press on for you," I say, pulling myself forward.

While I crawl through the snow, it makes me think of my little girl, and how much I've thought about her in the last fifteen years. I'll be damned if I die up here; I've finally reunited with her, and no blizzard is strong enough to slow me down, not in my lifetime.

In the distance, I can make out a long stone wall, with a gap in the middle - where a gate could be. I become excited, and gather the strength to stand up; I push a little bit harder, determined to see what is there.

I start laughing hysterically as I get closer to the gate; but the winds becomes even more ferocious.

"So, the wind gets stronger as I get closer to the gate?! Aaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!" I yell, pushing with all my might.

Once I pass through the gap in the stone wall, the wind suddenly stops. I look above me, and discover something even stranger.

The village seems to have an invisible bubble - in the shape of a dome - covering it. All the snow, is landing on thin air, about twenty metres above me.

"Psst, how'd you get here, alive?" the voice says.

I quickly disappear and frantically look around for whomever is speaking.

"Where are you?" I whisper.

I look a metre in front of me and see some yellow eyes open for a second, then close.

"What's your name, beautiful?" I ask, while rubbing my hands together.

"My name's Mattisa. And curious how you know I'm beautiful, when you can't see me?"

"I can judge a woman's beauty quite easily, as it comes down to just two things; eyes and voice. You have both those traits."

Mattisa starts to giggle flirtatiously, like she has never been hit on before.

"Well, we need to visit the village chief of Pactiondom. Stay invisible and follow my footprints in the snow," Mattisa says, before walking away from me.

I follow Mattisa's footprints, and start to assess the village of Pactiondom.

The village is littered with trees with thin trunks; they have white bark with brown blotches, and very few leaves. There are brown animal skins everywhere, each one is attached between two trees by thin vines, making up the homes of the residents. The only actual conventional house, is the wooden one facing the edge of the cliffs, at the back of the village.

"Psst nearly there. What was your name?" Mattisa whispers over her shoulder as she walks.

"Enaz."

"That's an interesting name. Well, here we are, Enaz. Please follow my lead," Mattisa says, knocking on the door of the wooden house.

"Come in!" the voice growls from the confines of the hut.

As we hop inside, I see nothing but an empty wooden chair, and a wooden desk, with an assortment of knives and one sword on it. No bed; literally nothing else other than the Givou skin that we're standing on.

"Noviwi, I have brought you a survivor," Mattisa says.

"Where is he?" Noviwi replies, I'm only able to see his red eyes.

"He can go invisible, just like all of us. His name is Enaz."

"Open your eyes, Enaz," Noviwi says, looking around for me.

"They are open," I reply.

Noviwi falls backwards off his chair, and quickly springs back to his feet.

"Is that the truth, Enaz?" Noviwi asks, soundly slightly nervous.

"I swear on my daughter's life, I speak the truth."

"Enaz, can you appear whenever you like? Without the Arter gem of Wind?" Noviwi asks.

I appear within a second, and look him dead in the eyes.

"Wow. So my next question to you Enaz is this; why do you need the Arter gem of wind?"

"Because the chosen one of Tharp is after the gems, so she can finish Akiad forever. She is on route to the Fire gem as we speak."

"So where are your companions? Surely the 'chosen one' would have sent additional help, on such a life threatening quest."

"I had friends, but your clan is responsible for their fates," I reply, disappearing again.

I draw my sword and walk behind Noviwi; I reappear with the samurai sword around his neck.

"I better be getting all the help I need to acquire this Arter gem. I pose no trouble, just wish to be able to move on; no further questions asked," I say, breathing onto the back of his neck.

"All right Enaz, I grant you the access to the Arter gem that you require. But, you go alone," Noviwi replies, looking down at the samurai sword.

I promptly disappear, then reappear by the entrance to the hut.

"Thanks for this, Noviwi. I will leave immediately; if you wish to help us defeat Akiad, that would be appreciated," I say, before disappearing, waiting in the doorway.

"Mattisa, I don't know how he made it to our village alive. I literally have no idea. How many have we lost? Obviously he must have killed a few," Noviwi asks.

"We have had over a dozen not return, sir!" Mattisa replies.

"A DOZEN?! Make sure our people know, to leave him to the guardian. We can't afford to lose any more of our village," Noviwi yells, slamming his table with his palms.

I quietly leave the house and walk towards the Northern exit of the village.

"Time to persevere, I suppose," I mutter to myself, exiting the warmer confines of this magically protected village.

The storm is so fierce. It's pushing hard against me, so I do the same to progress. The protective bubble around the village of Pactiondom, shrouded how hectic the storm has been. I continue to fight through it.

"You will not win! Hahaha!" I yell at the sky, while the wind becomes stronger and snow continues to pelt down.

I squint my eyes and put my right arm across my face; I notice a small cave up ahead in the side of the mountain. Time for a much needed rest.

As I stop in the cave, I get the biggest fright. I can see a partially visible female, who is seated, leaning against the cavern wall. When I say partially, I mean some partials making up her body are transparent, and some are more solid. She has red skin, yellow eyes and long flowing blonde hair. Her skin texture appears to be similar to nail polish; it's very shiny. She has brown animal skin as clothes.

"I figured you would stop here. It's Mattisa."

"Why is it that I can see you?" I reply, sitting down next to her.

"We are close to the Arter gem of Wind, and its guardian. When any of our race are in the vicinity of the Arter gem of wind, we become visible."

"Fair enough. We only need to borrow the Arter gem; we will return it after Akiad is dead."

"So Enaz, what's your story?"

I explain the most important parts of my entire story in Tharp thus far, spanning fifteen years. We exchange memories deep into the night, before eventually falling asleep, next to the fire we've started, huddling next to each other to keep warm.

I arise and notice that Mattisa is still asleep, next to the burnt out fire. When someone hands you an advantage in life, you should take it. Mattisa went out of her way to help me, so I know I should wake her up, rather than sneak off and leave her here.

"Rise and shine!" I say, gently shaking Mattisa.

"Sorry, I was so exhausted. You set to depart? Mattisa replies, yawning.

"Ready when you are."

The two of us quickly collect our belongings, and continue on the mountain trail, heading towards the top.

"Are you ready for this, Enaz? I'm here to help you," Mattisa says, patting me on my left shoulder.

"As ready as I can be," I reply, drawing both my samurai swords.

"That won't be necessary, please put them away."

"If you say so. Are you sure?" I reply, sheathing my swords.

"I'm positive."

The further we travel, the more treacherous the weather becomes. We both slowly stagger forwards, holding our arms up to block the wind and snow from smacking us in the face. Both of us are taking as many steps as we can, but the reality is the wind is too strong.

"This is the last part of your journey, Enaz. I know because this is called the 'Moorbess Straight'. At the top of this straight, is the location of the Arter gem of Wind," Mattisa yells, as we continue to stagger forwards.

"This wind is too strong, Mattisa! Get behind me!" I yell, peering over my left shoulder, I notice that Mattisa is now fully visible.

"Enaz, we are very close!" Mattisa yells.

As we enter the huge open area at the peak of the Moorbess Mountains, an old man is standing there. He has long grey dreadlocks, a bushy beard, bare feet, and an animal skin for shorts. He has a hooded, black sleeveless leather coat on - with red on the inside; the Arter gem of Wind is around his neck.

"Well done, you've finally made it. Give me a second to make the weather slightly more rewarding for your treacherous journey. How many of your comrades have fallen?" the old man asks, looking to the clouds, while snow falls around him.

"Three have died, unfortunately," I reply, looking down at the ground.

"I'm truly sorry for your loss. Let's sort out this snowstorm, you've earned it!" the old man says, putting his right arm in the air, staring at the sky.

He waves his arm from right to left, and the sky instantly parts. It's almost like he cut the clouds with his hand. Blue sky quickly illuminates the area, and the sun begins glaring down like a hot summer's day.

The old man walks up to me, takes the Arter gem of Wind off from around his neck, and puts it around mine.

"Who are you, if you don't me asking?" I say.

He looks at the sky, before looking back down towards me and smiling.

"My name is Jacamatax, the chosen guardian of the Arter gem of Wind. Happy to be of service, and honoured to finally meet someone who actually survived the Moorbess Mountains."

I look over and smile at Mattisa. I feel warmth fill my lungs. I know my mission is complete, and I have some questions to ask.

### XXII - My fiery Adversary

**SYRA**

Vaughson looks around the room in a haze, like he's just been saved from the brink of death, and is wondering what's going on.

"Come on, Vaughson. Back home, you would be what I call a junkie. What do you have to say for yourself? And better still; why?" I ask, with my arms stilled crossed.

Vaughson stands up and slithers towards the entrance.

"Someone make sure that young Vetor is safe. Syra, come with me," Vaughson replies, before slithering out the door.

I run over to Vetor, he's still passed out; black steam still rising from his body.

"Tatarina, please watch him; I'll interrogate Vaughson," I say, leaving the house.

I look towards the West of this cavern, and there is a small opening; Vaughson is patiently awaiting my arrival. From what I can see, it looks like a long rocky tunnel; the roof is barely higher than Vaughson's head. I quickly run towards him, as an interrogation from me is imminent.

"Before you start bombarding me with questions, I'm going to inform you with information on the Arter gem. Your quest lies a few hundred metres from us, in the most Western part of this continent; the Cathaerial Volcano," Vaughson says, before turning and slithering through the tunnel, leading the Western path.

I start firing questions at him.

"So, first two questions.

1. Why do you detest, Zekai?

2. And why do you snort, the insides of a Goy? Disgusting by the way."

"Well I detest Zekai because he wouldn't allow me to join the Brotherhood of Guytz. It was all because of me helping out Muhbac a while ago. But you see, I never knew Muhbac had killed Zekai's love, Fewmira; otherwise, I wouldn't have helped him. He stayed for a week, then left; Zekai hasn't spoken to me since, but I suppose family is like that," Vaughson replies, while looking down at the ground, slithering next to me.

"Family?"

"Zekai is my younger brother."

"Wow, I never saw that curve ball. My apologies for my rudeness there. Zekai is with us on this journey. He has headed North with my father and another companion, to retrieve the Arter gem of Wind, you never answered my second question."

"I snort the insides of a Goy because it makes me feel euphoric, and it raises my battle instincts."

"Can't you stop doing it? You're killing an innocent creature every time. Doesn't that bother you?"

"I don't kill those that are wild. Only those from a bottle of Flork. Their fates are written in stone anyway, so I don't mind."

"Why are they written in stone? I've personally been saving them all."

"Well sorry Syra, but if I don't snort some Goy innards, I can't function as a warrior. Hence why I wanted into the brotherhood of Guytz; to get training. But, he never let me."

What Vaughson is saying makes me think of how life really is. I personally stand up for an elderly person on the bus, or train, where a lot of people turn a blind eye, and don't move. They would see them often; and do nothing. I realise, that at some stage in your life, you must do something against what you believe. I now have to turn a blind eye to what Vaughson does; get high, at the expense of a Goy's existence. All this for his own balance in life. Once this is all over, we will get Vaughson off this stuff, and get him the Brotherhood of Guytz seal that he deserves.

"Look Vaughson, we could use your help. I know you and Zekai have your differences, but we could use your hand beside us; especially your leadership. Your men respect you, the same way your brother has respect from his men. You and your brother may never see eye to eye, but if we don't stop Akiad now; this planet is over. And not only your planet Vaughson, my planet too," I say, pointing to my heart.

Vaughson slithers ahead of me, keeping silent the whole time. He must be digesting my little speech. I don't overcook it; I just say what's necessary. If it hits home, it hits home. If not, then don't start pointing fingers at me. I've given him an honest opinion, and it's up to him what he does with it. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

After a few minutes, we reach the end of the long rocky tunnel.

"Come quick Syra; let me tell you what has to be done."

Once I step out into the open, the sun glares down on us. The rocky path we're on is about six metres wide, and leads to a volcano in the distance; either side of the path is molten hot lava.

"So what's in there?" I ask.

"Your destiny, Syra. The guardian of the Arter gem of fire."

"My destiny? Aren't I getting help?"

"No, not at all. This test needs to be completed by the chosen one, and must be done alone. The Arter gem of Fire is a powerful gem; hence why it has a guardian. Everything you have learnt has lead you to this test. Take the gem."

"Okay Vaughson, will do. Time to complete my destiny."

I turn around, and start walking backwards towards the volcano.

"Look out for Vetor!" I yell out before turning back around.

"He'll be out for a while, but you have my word!" Vaughson yells back before slithering back into the tunnel.

And here I am, all alone. To have to face this goal by myself, is pretty intense. I have no idea what I must battle in this volcano; I'm a little worried of the unknown. What awaits me in the next few minutes? I know one thing that's for sure; Krenshi is coming with me.

I draw Finito and stab it into the ground.

"Ice pillar!" I yell, before it emerges from beneath me, knocking me onto my backside.

I clap my hands and Krenshi leaps out of the frozen ice.

"Good girl," I say, running my fingers through her fur.

I pull Finito out of the ground, and clamber onto her back.

"Don't worry Krenshi, we should be fine," I say, as we walk along the path.

I look up at the top of the volcano, and see grey smoke coming out; is it still active? Surely Vaughson doesn't hate me enough to send me to my grave. I approach the entrance, and upon walking through, I'm frantically looking around for this guardian. What am I up against? Where is it? My instincts are ticking like a time bomb, and they're waiting to explode.

I hop off Krenshi's back and take in my surroundings. The space we're standing on is a massive round rock platform, elevated a metre in the air, all around the outside of the platform is lava. The opening of the volcano high in the air, is the only thing illuminating the darkness other than the lava. The inside of the volcano is stained black from all the heat, and dead in the centre is a suspended pink lightning bolt; the same as the one from Countesi forest, and in the Goblin cave. I approach it, and examine it closer. I wonder what it is, or how it got there.

"What's this Krenshi?" I say, as she purrs next to me.

I reach out to touch it, but a voice startles me.

"What do you think you're doing?" the voice says.

I jump out of my skin; Krenshi steps in front of me and growls.

"Where are you, guardian?! Show yourself!"

"Why? So you can kill me, like your destiny suggests?"

"And how would you know my destiny?"

"Haha, wouldn't you like to know?"

This guardian is frustrating me; I grip Finito as tight as possible, and stay dead still in anticipation.

A minute of silence passes and there is still no sign of this guardian. I know he's here, but maybe I should go back and see Vaughson, about how to get his attention.

"Come on Krenshi, let's go get Vaughson," I say, walking towards the exit.

Suddenly, a loud male voice comes from behind me.

"Where are you going? Giving up already?"

I quickly turn around, and a huge flaming bird is flying there. It's fully engulfed in fire, and its wingspan - from tip to tip - is about ten metres. Each individual hair strand on its body, is a single blade of fire. The middle section of its fiery tail is red, where the rest of its colour is more of a burning hot orange. Now's not the time, to sit and marvel at its exquisite coat of fiery hair; I'm about to battle a phoenix.

"Not in your life! Ice wall!" I yell as I turn and swing Finito forward.

The Phoenix flies straight up into the air, dodging my ice wall; but when it smashes on the volcano wall behind him, shards of ice bounce off the wall and hit him.

"AARRGGHH!" the Phoenix screams as he quickly dives into the lava.

"Be on guard girl," I say, as Krenshi stalks the arena floor.

I start storming around with Finito in hand, calling the Phoenix out to battle.

"Where are you, Phoenix? Come out, come out, wherever you are," I taunt, swinging Finito around, above my head.

The Phoenix comes flying out of the lava from behind, and starts nose-diving towards me, breathing a large stream of fire my direction.

"EERRRGGGGHHH!" the Phoenix yells as it closes in on me.

I quickly jump to the ground and roll to the side; Krenshi starts blowing cold air, and it freezes the right wing of the Phoenix. As he crashes into the volcano wall, his right wing shatters on impact.

"Good girl Krenshi!" I yell, lifting myself off the ground.

Krenshi purrs as she looks back at me, smiling at what she's done. The phoenix falls into the lava and disappears.

"Where have you gone?!" I yell, walking closer to the edge of the platform we're standing on.

The phoenix flies into the air, and his wing appears to have regenerated. Shit is the only word that pops into my head.

"I'm a phoenix, Syra. You can't beat me with a little cold air. I see you've acquired the legendary Krenshi."

"How do you know what our names are?"

"I'm a legendary guardian of the Arter gem of Fire; nothing gets past me."

Krenshi steps in front of me, and charges towards the phoenix - who flies straight towards her.

"ERRRGGGHHHH!" the phoenix yells, before being frozen stiff by the cold air.

I look over my shoulder and the frozen phoenix shatters on the wall behind me; the shards that are its body, drop into the lava below.

"Yes Krenshi! You did it!" I yell in excitement.

"Not so fast, Syra," the Phoenix replies, flying high into the air.

"How did you know I'd be here?" I ask, holding Finito in front of me.

"The prophet told me you would come."

"So why don't you just part with the Arter gem?"

"Because I've guarded it for thousands of years, I was told to give it to only whom defeats me!"

"Well, that person will be me!" I yell, firing an ice wall at him.

The phoenix flies out of the way, and the ice wall shatters behind him.

Krenshi starts charging towards the phoenix.

"AAAARRRGGGHHHHHH!" the phoenix breathes fire all over Krenshi.

"NNNOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I yell, watching Krenshi roll around on the ground, burning like a marshmallow over an open fire.

Krenshi shatters into millions of ice shards, and I stand up, with anger raging inside me.

"You'll pay for this phoenix!"

"So you say, little girl!"

The phoenix starts speeding towards me - with its wings tucked in - like a bullet from a gun. He then suddenly stops a few metres in the air above me, and starts breathing fire my direction.

"Water tube!" I yell, swinging Finito towards the Phoenix.

The water tube puts out most of the Phoenix's breath of fire.

"Give me the Arter gem!" I yell, refusing to budge.

"NEVER!"

I begin winning our duel, overpowering the fire from the phoenix; eventually, my water hose hits the phoenix in the face.

"AAARRRGGGHHH!" the phoenix yells as steam rises from his face. His hair is now charcoal black from fire being doused.

"Ice wall! Ice wall! Ice wall!" I yell as I repeatedly swing Finito forward.

The first two ice walls smash on the volcano wall, just behind him; the third ice wall, knocks the phoenix to the ground.

It lies on the ground, helpless. White steam rising from his blackened body, while it twitches like a killer on the electric chair.

"Syra, you are quite powerful. How did you get the other Arter gems?"

I never answer; rather, I run forward as fast as I can, and when I'm within range, I jump and slam Finito through its heart.

"AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!" the Phoenix screams.

I repeatedly stab the Phoenix a few times, to make sure it's dead, and as the blood squirts out of the gashes I've formed; I reach down and snatch the Arter gem of Fire from around its neck.

I slot it into the Western indentation on Finito and say "Arter Fire!"

The sword starts to shake and I struggle to control Finito once again. I feel the power of fire flowing through my body; a large flame engulfs my blade and the carving of the phoenix lights up, bright orange in colour. After about thirty seconds, fire shoots out of Finito in every direction, pushing the dead phoenix into the lava; two huge flaming wings come out of my back.

"What's happening?" I panic.

After a few moments, the wings disappear and the shaking stops.

I look down at the Arter gem of fire, realising that I've completed my task. Now it's time to check on Vetor, spend two or three days resting, then head back to the meeting place to wait for the others. Let's hope they got the job done, so I can ram this sword down Akiad's throat, and head home.

### XXIII - What a Beautiful Mourning

**ENAZ**

First things first. I need to ask him some questions.

"So, I hear a rumour that you met the Prophet; is this true?" I ask.

"You heard correctly."

"And she asked you to guard this Arter gem?"

"Again, that's correct."

"So what was her mission? What was her sole purpose for coming to Tharp?"

"To complete her destiny."

"And what did she look like when you met her?"

"Look, please stop with all the questions. I can't really answer them. The prophet told me you'd come."

"What else did she say? This is driving me crazy. I'm trying to put two and two together."

"Can you please follow me? I have something to show you," Jacamatax says, as he leads us to a cave in the background.

His change in subject frustrates me, but for now, I'm putting it behind me; he shows me a stone statue, of what appears to be Akiad. It has a message carved across its chest. It says 'Tell no one but Mattisa and Enaz; and only when they are both present.'

"Now, one would assume that you're Enaz, and obviously I know that you're Mattisa, from the Village of Pactiondom," Jacamatax says, pointing at each of us respectively.

"Yeah that's us. So what are we meant to do with the knowledge of this statue?" I reply.

"Well that's up to you. I personally wouldn't say anything, until you get to the moment of destroying Akiad. Or, maybe tell the chosen one, when she asks about what to do with his body. It just appeared here from out of a wormhole, about ten thousand years ago; a few hours after the prophet guided me here. She asked me to wait for my trial. To guard something of great value to this planet, and to guard it with my life. You must tell the chosen one, that she must instruct the prophet to guide me to this location last, as she instructed me to tell you now. Sorry this doesn't make much sense, but it must do one day," Jacamatax explains.

"That's okay, it makes perfect sense to me. I kind of have an idea of what's going on; if it links up to what I discovered fifteen years ago. Sorry about all the questions, I understand why you can't answer them. It was an honour to finally meet you. And don't worry Jacamatax, I'll let Syra know," I reply, before shaking his hand and departing.

Wearing the Arter gem of Wind around my neck is a great sigh of relief; I'm walking towards the Northern entrance to the village of Pactiondom, with Mattisa at my side. The warriors of Pactiondom must know something is happening, as the weather is suddenly beautiful, and they're all visible.

They all look like male versions of Mattisa. They have a brown animal skin covering their crotch region, and the rest of their body is naked. The main difference is that they're all bald; well, all except Noviwi. He stands at the front of the pack, with his arms folded, white flowing long hair blowing in the wind. He's wearing a red animal skin, which covers his shoulders, going all the way down to his knees; it reminds me of a poncho, like a cowboy would wear.

Once Mattisa and I are standing before Noviwi, he speaks.

"So, you broke the rules, didn't you?"

"Before you rip into her; she did help me find Jacamatax. Would you have cared, if I'd been granted the same fate as my friends?" I reply, crossing my arms.

"Well she's no longer welcome in the village of Pactiondom. She's exiled from our village!"

I firmly grip Mattisa's left hand, walk forward a few steps, and then stop.

"She's accompanying me anyway. She'd rather be a hero for her planet, than emulate a coward like you, staining your history books for all to see. Come Mattisa, let's go."

I continue holding her hand, guiding her through the village of Pactiondom.

"Shall we stop them?" one of the warriors say.

"No, let them go. Make sure they get to the Mazelia alive," Noviwi replies, sounding frustrated.

He actually lets us leave. One of the Kranind follows us, making sure we arrive safely at the Mazelia; Mattisa asks about the importance of the Arter gem, and she lets me know that Jacamatax has never told her anything, even after being friends for ten thousand years. We stop for a few brief moments, by each of the departed; I shed a few more tears, but we must persevere.

After a day and a half of travel - only stopping to sleep at the base of the Slopes of Vehtura - we approach the fork in the road, where we originally split ways. The sun is overhead, and I will be lying if I say that I'm not a little peckish. I guess we're the first to arrive.

"I've got some Dupat shells, would you like to eat? We can set up camp till they get here," I say, as I park my backside straight down.

"Sounds good to me," Mattisa replies as she sits down opposite me.

I start gathering sticks for the fire, and she glances my direction like she has something to say.

"What's wrong, Mattisa?" I ask.

"Oh nothing really."

"Don't lie to me, what's bothering you."

"Just how you deal with death. You lost some comrades, yet act like it doesn't affect you."

"Of course it does, I'm not emotionless."

"So how do you cope?"

"I don't, I just act like I do. Losing close friends and family is something I've been comfortable with for many years."

"How so?"

"Well, for starters, remember how I told you that I have a daughter?"

"Yeah, you never mentioned her name."

"My daughter is Syra."

"WHAT? Really?"

"Yeah, really. I left her in New Zealand, with my wife; fifteen years ago. No warning, no goodbye, nothing."

"I'm sorry."

"Look, please don't be. It was my destiny to come here, and speaking with Jacamatax hasn't changed much, but I feel our meeting subliminally answered a few of my questions."

"Are you going to tell Syra about what he spoke about?"

"No, not yet."

"Why's that. Shouldn't you keep her in the loop?"

"No, I'll let her know when the time is right."

I place the pile of sticks on the ground, and sit down next to it. Mattisa looks quite sad, so I decide to try cheer her up.

"How does it feel to be able to see yourself again?"

"Actually quite good thank you. I admire you a lot, Enaz."

"Haha, why on Tharp would you say that?"

"Because of the way you are. I'm guessing that you didn't leave your family without a good cause. If you don't mind me asking, what happened fifteen years ago?"

"Well, there was this old mental asylum not far from my house that had been abandoned for years. Then all of a sudden, they refurbished it and turned the asylum into a university. I headed down to take a look around and something about the place struck me as....odd. I snuck in at night time, and bumped into Modnar. We had a tussle with Akiad, and I got dragged to Tharp; I've never seen my wife and daughter since. Until I bumped into Syra, I hadn't seen her since she was three."

"Does she know you're her father?"

"Yes, I told her a little while before we split up to find the remaining two Arter gems."

"I'm glad that she knows the truth. You could've died up in the mountains, much like your friends. By the way, Jacamatax wasn't the only person to have met the Prophet, I have too."

"Oh really? When did you meet her?"

"About ten thousand years ago. She helped our village travel to its location."

"Really?"

"Yes. Have you ever met her? She came to our land, left her mark and vanished forever."

"No, I never got the pleasure."

"That's a real shame. She was such a gentle soul."

"I've heard a mix of things about her."

"Such as?"

"Sorry, hold that thought."

Suddenly, I stand up, and can make out a faint noise in the distance. The heat is making it hard to see who's coming......

** SYRA **

I squint my eyes, and put my right hand up above them, to block out the light.

"Is that Enaz?" I mutter quietly to myself.

I start wondering what it is that I can see in the distance. I begin to run, not removing my eyes from what's slowly coming into focus. As the blur phases out, I realise its Enaz, and some other weird creature.

"SYRA!" Enaz yells at the top of his lungs.

"ENAZ!" I yell back, continuing to charge towards him.

When I'm within range, I bowl him over and give him a huge hug.

"I'm so glad you made it back," I say, smiling back at him.

"You too, Syra."

I quickly stand up and offer my hand to shake, then say "Oh, Hi I'm Syra, what's your name?"

"I'm Ma.. Mattisa.. Sorry what did you say your name was?" Mattisa replies.

"Syra, the Chosen One, why's that?"

"Oh actually it's nothing, you just remind me of someone, pleasure to meet you," Mattisa replies.

"Yeah you too. Hey Enaz, where's the other two? Getting some Dupat shells?" I ask, oozing with excitement.

Enaz looks up at me, and I feel a bad vibe coming my direction. You know that instance in life, where you look at someone and feel like they're carrying a heavy burden that they wish to share? They peer beyond your eyes and you feel like their tears are bleeding into your soul. Yeah..... This is one of those moments.

"Syra....... Zekai and Craboo...... never made it," Enaz says, while his throat chokes up.

His words are like relentless dagger shots to the stomach. You can survive them, but the scars and repercussions stay for life. My eyes are filling up with tears, and Enaz knows that; he looks like he doesn't know what to do.

I run towards the water, and look up to the sky; the flood of tears stream down my cheeks. I'm shaking, as I now have to deal with the loss of two more friends. I know I haven't known Craboo that long, but he's still a friend worth crying over. But Zekai, I've known since I arrived on Tharp. Now the only long term friend I have left, is Vetor. And to be fair, he's been passed out for a few days.

I decide to sit down on the beach for a little while, and have some time to vent these emotions out.

**ENAZ**

I look at my daughter, and try to wonder what's going through her head. She's eighteen years old, no teenager should be mature enough to cope with this much death. I look west and see an Oathient serpent approaching me.

He's yellow, has white, medium length hair, and a muscly physique, covered in scars. His left eye is missing, and his other eye is red. He offers his right hand to shake mine.

"Vaughson's the name. Have you seen my brother, Zekai?" He asks, shaking my right hand.

"You're Zekai's brother? My name's Enaz, nice to meet you. I'm sorry to say, but he never made it. We lost him, and another two on the Moorbess Mountains," I reply, still feeling quite sad.

"Tell Syra I'll meet her back at the village. Tatarina is following close behind. Oh hello, what's your name?" Vaughson says, reaching over and shaking Mattisa's hand.

"My name's Mattisa. Nice to meet you Vaughson."

"Pleasure's all mine. See you both back at our village," Vaughson says, before slithering back towards Soraki forest.

"SYRA!" Enaz yells.

"I'll wait here, Enaz. She's hurting, so be there for your daughter," Mattisa replies.

"Okay, thanks Mattisa, I will," I say, approaching Syra.

**SYRA**

I'm sitting down on the sand, a few metres from our spot. It makes me sad to think of who we've lost; my friends and two great warriors. Honestly, it makes me regret the decision I made before. If I didn't split us up, they'd still be alive.

"Syra, I can read you like a book; don't kick yourself about the decision you made. We were battling against the invisible Kranind warriors. We didn't really have a chance to start with; and we did the best that we could. By the best, I mean this," Enaz says, reaching into his shirt and handing me the Arter gem of Wind.

"Dad, you did it!" I say, leaping to my feet.

"No, WE did it. I wouldn't have made it, without Zekai or Craboo's efforts. They made getting that Arter gem possible, at the cost of their lives," Enaz replies, holding his arms apart.

As I hug him, it makes me feel relieved that he's okay. It's nice to have an actual family member with me on this epic quest. When this is all over, it'll be great to surprise Mum with Dad's presence; it's only been fifteen years.

As I pull away from Enaz, I smile and wink at him.

"Dad, let's head back," I say, standing and leading the way back to the meeting place.

I turn around and can see Mattisa and Tatarina sitting down, having a chat.

"Tatarina!" Enaz calls out, approaching them.

"Enaz!" Tatarina yells back, as she leaps to her feet.

"It's good to see you alive!" Tatarina says, hugging Enaz while sniffling a little.

"I'm so sorry about Craboo. He was a great warrior and aided me in every way possible," Enaz says, tears forming in his eyes.

"And I'm sorry about Zekai. I guess we both have someone to mourn over," Tatarina replies, as her bottom lip starts to quiver.

They both stop hugging and wipe their tears, before giggling a little at each other.

"Haha look at us, bawling our eyes out. Are you okay?" Enaz asks.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Just don't know how to explain this to Lord Xeria."

"I'm sure he won't blame you, Tatarina; if anything, he'll blame me."

"All right you three, don't worry about any of that now. Let's head back to the Village of Soraki, and check on Vetor," I say, before leading the way back towards Soraki forest.

Once we arrive back, all I can think about is my best friend. While travelling, it was the main thing on my mind; not even the fact that I now have four Arter gems in my possession, held any great significance.

I look towards the monument and see Vetor; it's happy to see that he's alive and well.

"Vetor!" I yell, running over and giving him a huge hug.

"I'm okay Syra. How's Vaughson?" Vetor replies, pulling away from me.

Before I answer, I look into Vetor's eyes; they're fire red in colour. This disturbs me a little.

"Well, your heroics saved his life. By the way, your pupils are red. How are you feeling?" I ask, as we start to walk towards Vaughson's hut.

"My eyes are red? Wait, we'll talk about this later. I'm keen to see how Vaughson is doing," Vetor replies as we continue to walk.

I stand on my tippy-toes and peer into his hut; I swallow a mouthful of fear with what I see.

"Oh no, not again!" I yell as Vetor and I run inside Vaughson's hut.

And there it is, Deja vu all over again. Vaughson is passed out on his table, with a dagger stabbed in his arm; there is a note attached. Sliced open Goy's are all over the table, so it's easy to tell how he met his demise.

I walk around the table and place my fingers on his neck, then turn towards Vetor.

"He's dead, Vetor. Don't do it! Let's read what he wrote," I say, pulling the dagger out of his arm, freeing his bloodied, handwritten note.

Dear Syra

Sorry for this selfish act, but I had to do it. I had mentally prepared to sort things out with Zekai for you, but his passing made life just not worth living. If I wasn't so stubborn, then maybe we could've talked sooner. He will be in the afterlife, where I can be with him forever, and sort through our issues.

Please say sorry to my people, and hopefully they will help you on your quest to save both our planets.

In the box behind me is my supply of Flork, where you may free the Goys if you must. I'm truly sorry and hopefully if we meet again one day, in the afterlife, you will forgive me.

Yours Sincerely

Vaughson

Tears roll down my face onto the letter. I fold it up, and put it in my back right pocket. I suppose that someone needs to be strong in this time; that person has to be me.

### XXIV - Four Arter Gems, Three deceased, Two volunteers, and a Phoenix only for me.

I walk out into the middle of the village of Soraki, and call a meeting by whistling at the top of my lungs. Everyone, including Vetor and Tatarina, gather around me within the minutes to follow. They all start to murmur amongst themselves, until I command them to stop.

"All right everybody, silence. A few minutes ago, Vetor and I discovered Vaughson, dead in his hut (Everybody begins muttering, and some of the serpents start crying). The cause of death, was from snorting the insides of too many Goys. Now I wish to have a memorial, before we all head out to stop Akiad. Can I please have some volunteers, to head to the Moorbess Mountains, and recover Zekai and Craboo's body? I need to stay local, and practice my new powers before we battle Akiad. If I don't, I will fail. If I fail, then we have no chance of saving this planet," I say, looking at everyone.

"Well to be fair Miss Syra.....it would be faster for you to call your Phoenix," one of the Oathient serpents suggest, wiping tears from her eyes.

"Wait, what did u say?" I reply.

While the serpents present remain either silent or weepy, the female Oathient serpent slithers up to me, wipes the tears from her eyes and puts her right arm around me.

"Everyone knows that the holder of the Arter gem of Fire can summon the Phoenix, after they defeat it. That monument in the centre of our town, is of the Prophet; she revealed this to us, many years ago," she explains.

"And how exactly do I summon it?" I ask, gripping the hilt of Finito.

"We're not really sure, we've just heard the Tales of the Arter gems," she replies.

"Okay, I'll go and get the bodies with Enaz, as I'll need a guide to find them. The rest of you can relax, and drown your sorrows over a few drinks of Flork; Vetor here is in charge. You'll find Vaughson's supply in his hut, he left them there for you; please try to cheer up. I know that won't be easy, but you're definitely qualified for the job," I say, heading towards the Eastern exit of Soraki village.

The warriors of Soraki look devastated. They have lost their leader, and I can understand how they feel; Vetor approaches Enaz and me, looking a little glum.

"Please for the love of God, no more casualties," Vetor says, leaning in and hugging me, then Enaz.

"Don't worry, we'll be careful. I just need to work out how to summon this Phoenix," I reply.

"We'll see you by nightfall, Vetor. Keep these boys in check, yeah?" Enaz says, messing up Vetor's hair with his right hand.

"Will do Chief," Vetor replies.

Once Enaz and I make it out of Soraki forest, I stop to practice. We're in a large open area, so I have the space to work out how to summon the Phoenix.

"I want to work out how to call upon the Phoenix, and bring it back from the dead, is it okay if we chill here for a bit?" I ask.

"Yeah, no worries Syra. Take your time, it's important you master this," Enaz replies, moving about thirty metres away from me, and sitting down.

I honestly don't know where to begin. I swing Finito forward, and yell "Fire Phoenix," but nothing happens.

"Damn it dad, it's not working!" I yell out in frustration.

"Keep trying, okay? Remember that you killed the Phoenix, so it has to rise from the ashes; it's kind of what they do," Enaz yells back.

Enaz is right. Because I have full control of this sword, I also have the power to do what I want with it. I need to stop thinking like there's a certain way to do or say something, or this instance; summon.

I stab Finito into the ground, and speak with my palms open and facing each other; I look up to the clouds for a mere moment, before closing my eyes.

"With the power of the Arter gem of Fire, I command you to rise from the ashes, Phoenix!"

A ball of fire \- about the size of a soccer ball - starts to float directly in the middle of my open palms; some huge cracks appear on the ground, slightly further away from where Finito has been placed.

Suddenly, a huge fireball bursts from beneath the ground, and shoots into the air; the flames fizzle out, and the fiery bird spirals into the air, stopping twenty metres above me.

"Aaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!" the Phoenix yells as it opens its wings, blocking the sunlight in my eyes.

While it flaps its fiery wings, it looks at me from up above.

"Syra, I'm here at your every command. What would you like me to do?" the Phoenix says.

"Land for a start," I reply, sarcastically.

The Phoenix lands down next to me - draping its wings on the ground - I cautiously approach it, nervous about smouldering my skin.

"Am I going to get burnt patting you?" I ask, moving my hand towards its hair.

"No, I only burn those that wish harm on me. You and your friends will be fine," the Phoenix replies, propping itself into flight position.

"That's a relief," I say, swallowing some saliva.

The Phoenix looks back at us and says "you'll be fine! Where's the destination?"

"Come on Dad, hop on!" I yell, as I start to scale the Phoenix.

It's freaking me out a little, because as I sit with my legs over each side of the Phoenix's neck, fire engulfs them - but is as transparent as air. It doesn't hurt one bit.

"Dad, jump on. It's okay, it won't hurt at all!" I say, signalling Enaz to climb aboard.

Once Enaz hops on, he holds onto my shoulders, and the Phoenix launches into the air.

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!" we scream.

Suddenly we're soaring through the clouds; the view is amazing from up here. Looking at the beautiful scenery, I realise that I have to give this Phoenix a name. Something springs to mind quite naturally.

"To the base of Moorbess Mountains! Oh and I'm calling you Butch!" I yell.

I look over my shoulder and see Enaz weeping; I wonder what is making him cry?

"Hey, what's wrong?" I ask.

"I miss that dog. Is he still alive?"

"No, I'm sorry; he lost a battle to cancer. When you left, mum had less time to take him on walks, so the muscles on our really fit Rottweiler, turned into fat, which lead to his demise," I say, wiping some of the tears out of Enaz's eyes.

"So why did you call the Phoenix Butch? To remind you of the best pet we've ever had?"

"Well, a Phoenix has infinite life. So, now I have a chance to name a pet 'Butch', except this time, if he dies on us, I can bring him back to life."

Enaz continues to cry for a while. I suppose he's paying respects to our pet, which he had for a few years before I was around. I allow him to do his thing, while I look down to see the view that I haven't had the pleasure of seeing yet. Much to my surprise, Butch starts to accelerate, and ascend slightly higher.

"Butch, why are you climbing in altitude?" I ask.

"Just getting a better perspective; I thought I'd show you something amazing," Butch replies.

We sweep past a white tower on the top of a huge giant's head; he starts to circle around it.

"It's the one and only Mazelia. It has a city in its bowels also; the city of Grendaless," Enaz explains.

"Is that how Zekai and Craboo died?" I reply.

"No, it's very tame actually. It's basically like a train. It takes passengers across the swamp down below" Enaz says.

"That's right, Enaz. We're currently soaring over the swamp of Mazelia. That terrain never had a name, until the Mazelia came along, then well, it became its' home," Butch says, passing the Mazelia's left ear.

"Where did it come from? You make it sound like it appeared out of thin air?" I ask.

"It's almost like it did. No one knows how it got here. Thousands of years ago it just started crossing this swamp, and not a living entity has questioned it."

"That's so bizarre. Hey Butch, slow down!" I yell.

Butch ignores me and starts accelerating, but this time, he starts to descend. You can see Moorbess Mountains quite easily, as the weather is immaculate. The trail that Enaz travelled, must have been quite long. The Moorbess Mountains are beautiful.

"Syra, have you put the Arter gem of Wind into your sword yet?" Enaz asks.

"No, not yet. I was going to do it after we landed," I reply, just before Butch touches the ground.

"Wow, there's our old camp fire," Enaz says, pointing to the pile of burnt out sticks on the ground.

I explain to Butch what Zekai and Craboo look like.

"I'll be back in about ten minutes, give or take," Butch says, before launching into the air, flying off towards the Moorbess mountain trail.

"Wow, what amazing weather," I say, watching Butch disappear into the clouds.

"Yeah, it definitely is. Insert your last Arter gem, and you'll love the power that you'll gain. Jacamatax briefly showed me what one of the abilities are for the bearer of the Arter gem of Wind," Enaz replies.

I insert the last Arter gem into the Northern indentation of Finito and yell, "Arter Wind!"

Finito starts shaking the ground. I can't take my hands off the swords handle.

"Enaz, it's going crazy; I can't control Finito!" I yell.

"It's just aligning its power. Think about how many years it's been since the four Arter gems of Tharp have been in that sword. Just relax and feel the power; embrace it," Enaz replies.

I hold Finito out in front of me, and it continues to shake me uncontrollably. Grey clouds fill the sky, and hail drops from above. A mix of my repertoire of spells, either fall from the sky, or fly out of Finito. Ice walls, Ice spikes, Water tube, you name it; they're flying all over the place. Some other new spells fill the air too. There are tornados, fireballs, streams of fire; it's quite the Pandora's Box.

"Enaz, I can't stop all this madness!" I yell, in a panic.

"Try to stay calm; concentrate and regain control."

"I'm trying, what do you think I'm doing?!" I snap back.

"Relax Syra, and control the power you now have."

I close my eyes and concentrate on what's going on. I peek out of my right eye and see a huge tornado, devouring all of my powers in the air; it's gradually getting larger.

"A tornado must be able to be controlled, by the user of the Arter gem of Wind; try wave your sword in the air, and cut through the clouds. Think of what weather you want before you do it!" Enaz yells out.

I take his advice, and pull as hard as I can, trying to swing Finito overhead. The tension gives in, and I slice the sword, cutting the clouds directly above my head; they part from left to right, like a gash opening up. I regain full control of Finito, and the tornado gets sucked into the sky. The sun glares into my eyes, and I can feel the blood rushing back into my arms.

"Well done, Syra. That looked incredibly hard to do, and you did it quite easily. Now where's Butch?" Enaz says.

My trusty Phoenix flies in and lands next to us. He has our dead companions, draped over his back. I quickly sheathe Finito, and walk over to Butch.

I see them both lying face down, deceased, then turn around and immediately start crying; I'm so glad that Enaz is here to hold me. As he embraces me in his arms, he begins to sob a little too. Grieving is a natural process of life.

"It's okay Syra, let it all out. Life is life, you just have to respect what happens, whether it's what you want or not. My saying is this; 'respect the problem, support the outcome'. You see, in our instance, we have three deceased friends, and we must pay them respect, but move on. (Enaz pulls up his left sleeve on his leather jacket) This seal shows that you believe the cause, and would help the chosen one whenever you're called upon; it means you have no fear of dying for the ultimate goal of aiding the chosen one, to the destruction of Akiad. Our friends did not choose death, death chose them; they were comfortable with that" Enaz explains, continuing to hug me.

I pull away, and wipe the tears from my eyes.

"You know what, Enaz; you're right. Let's head back so we can prepare this send off," I say, mounting Butch, directly behind my dead companions; as soon as Enaz hops on, we depart.

After about fifteen minutes, we're back at the entrance to Soraki forest.

"Can you please rally up everyone, and bring Vaughson's body. The three of them will have their ceremony together. I want them to be sent off from the crossroads, because all three of them had that one place in common; the last time I saw them alive was there, so I feel it's the best place for them. Butch, please carefully place my friends on the ground," I say.

"No worries Syra, I'll do that now. See you soon," Enaz replies, before entering Soraki forest.

"Guess it's just you and me for a while, ay Butch?" I say, patting his head.

"I suppose it is. You can also tell me to leave if you need time alone, or to give me a rest," Butch replies.

"How do I bring you back?"

"Just throw my name around when you need me, and I'll be there; it's that easy."

"Okay Butch, you're dismissed," I say.

Butch leaps into the air, and nosedives straight into the ground, cracking and destroying it upon impact.

I draw Finito, hold my left palm out and say "Wind heal!"

Suddenly, a small gust of wind starts collecting all the clumps of debris, and they begin swirling in the air around the hole. Within seconds, the ground is no longer destroyed.

Well, that's proof enough that I should use this time to practice, before I prepare for the saddest event I've had to deal with, since the passing of Rodland. Like I've said before; I really wish Modnar was here.

### XXV - The Send off

I don't know where to start. I have some spare time before everyone turns up, and I've been dying to practice my powers, with the two Arter gems I've just acquired. I really need to be ready for Akiad.

"Wind whirls!" I yell as I swing Finito forward.

I run forward and notice that six very large whirlwinds are spinning around me in a clockwise direction.

"This could be fun," I mutter to myself.

I stab Finito into the ground, then open my palms apart; all six of the whirlwinds fire forward in single file, before disappearing into the horizon.

"That was so badass! Now to think of another cool spell."

I jog forward, and pick up Finito, then look over my right shoulder.

"Fire comet!" I yell, holding Finito high in the air.

Seconds later, a flaming comet the size of a football field, crashes into the ground about a kilometre away, shuddering the land.

"Holy shit!" I yell, as I sprint towards it.

It's ridiculously big; I honestly feel like an ant in comparison. I stab Finito into the ground, and face my palms towards it; my hands levitate it into the air, just above my head. I'm slightly nervous, because if this drops, I'm dead.

I turn around to face the entrance of Soraki forest, and see everyone approaching me in the distance.

I decide to throw the comet it as far as I can.

"AARRGGHH!" I yell as I heave the huge comet into the air; it disappears into the distance after about ten seconds.

I walk over and wave my hands over the crater, and say "Wind heal!"

The chunks of dirt fly into place before my very eyes; I retrieve Finito, and start to run in excitement towards my companions.

"Wow Syra, A COMET?! That was so wicked!" Vetor yells as he hugs me.

"You should have seen the huge crater the comet left. Where is it now you ask....? And...........gone," I say cheekily, while sheathing Finito.

"Are we ready to do this?" Enaz replies, winking my direction.

I look around at my peers that are still alive. Before I answer, I process what's about to happen. There are only four of our original crew left alive, and we're about to send off two people close to us; and Vaughson - who would have been an amazing asset to our cause.

The Oathient serpents from Soraki village, have prepared a flat wooden raft in my absence. I look towards everyone and speak.

"Everyone who is gathered here today, my deepest thanks. I was very close to two of the three deceased, but losing Vaughson was also very tragic, as he was a great leader to your village. A special thanks to whomever built this raft, as we will send them all off side by side, very shortly," I say, looking at everyone. Tatarina approaches me to speak, and it looks like she has something important to say.

"Syra, should I let Craboo's family and friends know about the funeral?"

"Yes, that's a great idea. We'll relax here in the sun until you all return," I reply.

"Syra, can I please have a word?" Enaz asks.

"Sure. What's up?"

"Well, we clearly have some time on our hands; would you like me to take you to my special place?"

"Yeah sure, is it far away?"

"Not by phoenix," Enaz replies, winking at me.

I put my fingers in my mouth and whistle; Butch comes dropping down from the sky, landing right next to me and Enaz. The Oathient serpents behind us all start clapping and murmuring.

"Let's go. Vetor, you and Tatarina are in charge. We'll return soon; I need to practice my magic, and Enaz is going to supervise," I say, hoping on Butch's back.

"Syra, I feel like a broken record, but please be careful," Vetor replies, as Enaz climbs on behind me.

"I will Vetor, you have my word," I say, before we launch into the air.

Butch flies Southeast, across the Parmyr ocean; the weird part is that I don't remember telling him where to go.

"Butch, do you know where we're going?" I ask.

"Yeah, to Enaz's special place, right?"

"That's right; but how do you know where that is?"

"Well, I've been there before. Umm, Enaz showed it to the Prophet, when I was her guardian."

"Wait Enaz, you met the Prophet? And you took her there?"

"Yes.......I did; but let's keep that a secret between us, okay."

"Umm, yeah sure. What is she like?"

"Rather determined, and very intelligent. She was incredibly helpful that fateful day in Neca City fifteen years ago; I had to show her."

"Why, what happened?"

"I don't like to talk about it."

"Okay, I won't prod. So where are we heading?"

"It's a surprise."

"Fine. Why have you never told me that you met the Prophet?"

"Because she didn't make her second visit to Tharp very public."

"And you'd hide that from even me?"

"She said I could never tell anyone. Here I am, breaking that promise, to tell my daughter."

"Sorry, I was just curious."

"Don't worry, its fine. I'll probably never see her again. I just don't like breaking promises, that's all."

"I understand."

I feel a bit guilty for prodding him about the Prophet. I guess I'm just curious about her. Since my time on Tharp, I've heard about how good she was, and equally how evil. I just want to find out myself. If only I was able met her. Maybe, if I ever get to see Modnar again, he could organize a meeting?

We fly silently for a while, and with the speed he's flying; Butch isn't wasting any time. We're currently passing over the port town of Gustar and what appears to be the Whispering forest.

"Butch, are we heading to Neca City?" I ask.

"You got it, Syra."

"Enaz, what's in Neca City?"

"Well, my special place of course."

"Damn, you and Modnar are always so cryptic."

Enaz laughs out loud, then rubs my back.

"We're nearly there. Just a few more minutes."

"Cool. Butch, when we get there, can you please hover us in the air above the lake. I want to look at something."

"Sure thing."

We arrive at Neca city and Butch stops flying above the lake.

"Syra, what am I looking for?" Butch asks.

"Give me a minute....There!" I reply, pointing slightly above me.

Butch flies us towards what I see; another pink lightning bolt. It's the same as the last few I've seen. I wonder what it means.

"Butch, what is this?" I ask.

"I'm not entirely sure, Syra. It's like an exit point of some kind?"

"Well I could have told you that; I saw them disappear into it," I say, sarcastically.

"No need to be cheeky. I'm just not sure what it is."

"I might have an idea," Enaz adds.

"So what do you think it is?"

"Butch, can you please put us down?" Enaz asks, before Butch lands at the base of the waterfall.

"You're dismissed Butch; thank you," I say, before Butch launches into the air.

"Well, we're here. The platform at Neca City. I'll tell you of my theory at the top" Enaz replies, starting to scale the steps behind the waterfall.

"Why didn't you tell me this spot was special when we were seated here before?" I ask, following him up the steps.

"You weren't really in the best of moods."

"Haha, fair call there. So we sat and chatted at the same spot as you and the Prophet?"

"Yes we did."

"Man that's cool."

"Yeah, that's one way to put it. She was an amazing person; she really helped ease me into life on this planet."

"Like how?" I ask, arriving at the platform.

"Well, she organized my training for me, then asked me to guard the Arter gem of Water for her," Enaz replies, sitting on the edge of the platform, next to me.

"WHAT??!! You were the Guardian? Why weren't you doing your job when we met? You could've stopped it from being pinched by Gurdon!"

"I........I...can't really say."

"Come on, you're lying."

Enaz smiles at me, then looks down at the lake below. I'm pretty sure he's lying to me - or hiding something about our conversation. I'll fish it out of him in due time; It's a skill that I have.

"So, anyway back to your theory of the pink lightning bolts," I ask.

"The last time Zekai, Craboo, Dowler and I were together, we spoke about possibilities of what had gone down. We all put theories into the pot, and discussed it."

"And?"

"Well, my hypothesis is this; I think Modnar may have travelled through time."

"So he's not dead?"

"I'm not a scientist, Syra, nor am I believing that I'm one hundred percent on this. But if my theory is correct, our old friend maybe still alive somewhere," Enaz says, smiling and rubbing my back.

I feel like I'm sitting in a church, and a whole choir of children are singing angelically. This news is warming my soul.

"The view is beautiful from up here, isn't it?" I say.

"It sure is. Neca city was so beautiful; I wish you had a chance to see it."

"Me too. I wish Modnar was here; I really miss him, but thanks for cheering me up about it."

"Don't thank me, I've been trying to find the right time to tell you. I really believe he's not dead."

"I believe your theory, but what makes you so sure? Share some of your evidence."

"Well, fifteen years ago he created a ball of energy - the same as he did in front of us - and jumped into it, right before my very eyes."

So Enaz has seen him do this before. It does make sense, Modnar is a time guardian after all. All this new information is making my head spin. I think about how long Enaz has been stuck here, and why the prophet made him the guardian of the Water gem.

"Syra, are you okay?" Enaz asks.

"Yeah I just....huh??" I reply, quickly moving backwards, away from the edge of the platform.

"Syra, what's wrong? You look like you've just seen a ghost?"

I crawl back towards the edge of the platform and run my hands over the scratching I found.

"Who scratched my name here?"

"You mean to say you never did this?"

"Does it look like I did?!"

Enaz shakes his head, and I continue to run my fingers over my name. It's so bizarre. Who put this here, and why? I guess this is just another question I have, needing an answer.

"Please don't look so confused. Not everything on this planet makes sense, Syra."

"How so?"

"It's like the Givou and the egg. No one knows what came first."

"Is it like the chicken and the egg theory back home?"

"Exactly. Same thing here. Still no answers after thousands of years. They just started popping up ten thousand years ago, breeding like rabbits. Well, at least that's what I've heard. Should we head back?"

"Sounds good to me. Butch!" I yell, standing up and clicking my back.

Butch swoops in from above, flying near the platform, with his back towards us. I leap off the platform and land on his back, followed closely by Enaz.

"Let's head back Butch; the sun is starting to set," I say, before Butch flies quickly towards the West.

"Syra; thanks for spending quality time with me. It's nice to be able to see your daughter, after missing fifteen years of her life," Enaz replies, while briefly patting my back.

"I enjoyed it too, Dad. It's nice to know that my father is actually a nice guy."

Its nightfall, and we arrive just as Tatarina returns. She didn't just bring Craboo's direct family; the entire city of Zonek is with her. Butch carefully lands, and Vetor walks towards us.

"It's good to see you both. You made it just in time. Where did you go?" Vetor asks.

"Good to see you too. We flew to Neca City, but can we talk later?" I reply.

"Yeah sure thing. Tatarina's just over there with Mattisa; they're loading the bodies onto the raft."

The bodies are placed on the raft - ready to be pushed out to sea - with the three of them lying side by side. They all deserve the best send off this planet has ever seen; I hold in the tears and hide the butterflies. This is the most people I've done a public speech to; but, it must be done. I begin the ceremony.

"Thank you everyone for attending. Now on my planet, this is called a send-off. It's the highest form of respect for a true warrior, and I couldn't think of any other way to pay tribute to these amazing warriors, who died aiding our quest to destroy Akiad. I can't thank you enough for coming here and I'm deeply sorry, that I was unable to save their lives. They all loved their peers, and spoke of you all, when we had time for a break along our journey thus far. They will await for you in the afterlife, and if you would like to pay any last respects to them, feel free by releasing the Goy from your bottle of Flork, and placing it on the raft, next to your loved ones. The Goy will look you in the eye, smile in the cute way it does, and disappear. This is their way of paying respect to you for setting them free; you'll be doing the same for your loved ones. After this service, there will be food and refreshments at the Village of Soraki, please feel free to come back and mourn with us," I say, turning towards the raft.

The tears roll down my cheeks, and people start forming two single file lines either side of me, placing their Goy onto the raft, next to their loved one.

It makes me realise that death is something that you have to deal with in life. When your times up, it's up. So embrace life, before death does.

Lord Xeria and a few Oathient serpents push the raft out to sea, and we all watch it drift off into the distance; I can hear a mix of weeping and screams.

Enaz walks over and stands next to me, while Tatarina starts singing an old song that I recognise from Earth. Just a little more subtle evidence that she's from there, or at least has ties with it.

"That's an old classic she's belting out, don't you think? Anyway, good speech Syra. I'm proud of you," Enaz says, putting his right arm around my shoulders.

"Thanks, that means a lot," I reply, wiping tears from my eyes.

Now, I know what needs to be done. After a good night's sleep, I'll prepare to take Akiad down. This is the end of his reign. Time to take back this planet, and mine.

### XXVI - My New Powerful Allies

I've been awake since just before sunrise. Everyone else is asleep, recovering from the merriness of the night before, back in the Village of Soraki; but that's tough bikkies for me, as I have to practice. If Modnar were present, he'd be telling me to do the same thing.

I'm currently by the beach, next to the fork in the road, ready to do this.

I've been giving some serious thought to what powers I could add, to aid me in battle. Before I fell asleep last night, I thought about that flesh eating locust I saw in the kitchen at Brian's house. Just seeing one of them made me scared; imagine being able to summon a whole army of those to gnaw on the skin of anyone who challenges me? That would be a scary power to harness, if I were ever able to execute it.

I draw Finito, then swing forward and yell "Wind swarm."

A small tornado magically appears from the tip of Finito, and spins around right next to near me. Within the tornado are thousands of locusts. They're swirling around, making the loudest buzzing sound I've ever heard; it feels like I have one flying around in my head. I'm a little nervous; are they going to hurt me?

I walk forward, and cautiously step into the swarm of locusts; they're staying a few mills off my body at all times. I breathe slowly through my nostrils, fearful to sniff any of them up. I hold my sword forward, then yell at the top of my lungs; the swarm of locusts fly ahead of me, remaining in the whirlwind formation. I think I'm really going to like this spell, but what else can I cook up?

One thing about my power is making me think a bit more than usual. When I summon Butch, or when I picked up that comet, it was with my hands. I didn't need to be holding Finito. Is it because I'm adjusting to the power flowing through my body? Or is it something that happens when you have all four Arter gems placed in the legendary sword? Or, am I so comfortable with being the 'chosen one', that I no longer need the sword? I might try using my hands from now on; keep them free for oncoming enemies.

I stab Finito into the ground, then hold my hands open above my head, and yell "Fire comet!" Seconds later, the comet comes flying down from the sky, suddenly stopping a few centimetres above my palms. I hold it suspended in place, and it isn't heavy at all; in fact, I hardly feel drained of my energy.

While I'm holding the comet, I start thinking about the wind swarm that I've just summoned. A scene in the movie that the locusts were in, had the main villain summon thousands of locusts from out of his mouth. I thought it would be awesome to copy that villain's idea.

So, while my eyes remain closed, I open my mouth and thousands of locusts come crawling out, walking all over my face. I don't panic because I know they're my allies and aren't going to hurt me; but the feeling of them in my mouth is quite revolting, and the curiosity of where they are coming from baffles me.

The locusts launch off my face and start flying around me; I finally decide what to do with the comet. I throw it gently forward, and the moment it's directly in front of me at eye level, I punch it with both my fists; two molten hot fist marks appear on the comet, and it flies forward, disappearing into the distance.

I command the locusts to fly forward in my mind, and they do. It's bizarre, I don't even need to say what I want my powers to do; I just think it.

I hold both my hands out in the shape of a gun, and start firing small, tennis ball sized fireballs; one every second, alternating from left to right hand.

I start laughing to myself, realising how powerful I am becoming in a short space of time.

As I continue to shoot fireballs from my fingertips, I imagine them becoming bigger, and more ferocious. I notice the fireballs gradually becoming the size of a soccer ball, still firing at that same lightning quick speed.

"Come to me, colossus of the sea!" I yell.

Without hesitation, the Leviathan surfaces on the shore next to me, squirting a tidal wave from his mouth, dousing my fireballs.

"Try that again!" I yell, cheekily.

I quickly put my arms out stretched in opposite directions, and a huge fire cape covers my back; it goes from one fingertip to the other. The Leviathan squirts more water my way, so I turn around and kneel on the ground. The fire cape covers my whole body, and stops all the water. I leer over my right shoulder and see white smoke coming off my back; the water has put out my cape.

I open my mouth and begin breathing fire; I can't believe how much power I have. Moments after stopping, locusts come flying out and land on my face. Then, I make my hands turn into the gun shape they have previously; the locusts all fire forward off my face, each in the shape of a bullet.

"BUTCH!" I yell, before he breaks through the ground near me, stopping in the air.

I wave my hands and heal the damage that he causes, then look towards him and smile.

"Do you feel powerful yet, Syra? You look it," Butch says, before landing next to me.

"Yeah I do. I could be ready," I reply, patting him.

"So why don't we gather some troops and take Akiad down?!"

"Give me just one moment," I say, walking towards the Leviathan.

I approach the huge colossus, with the intention to pat it. My hand runs across its slimy texture, and I feel it breathing; I wish it could speak.

"Thank you for protecting me. One day I will need your help. Protect this ocean from evil, okay?" I say, continuing to rub its skin.

Water shoots out of its blow hole and lands all over me; Butch manages to fly out of the way, just in time.

"Watch it big boy!" Butch says, flying next to its left eye.

The Leviathan shoots more water out of its blowhole; Butch dodges it again, this time being slightly more frustrated.

"Hey, I'm warning you!" Butch says, sternly.

I start laughing to myself; I whistle Butch over and he lands next to me.

"You're dismissed Leviathan, thank you! Butch, I'm slightly wet; is that going to be a problem?" I ask.

"No, it should be fine. Let's get out of here before me and the huge landmass end up fighting," Butch replies, as the Leviathan disappears underwater.

I know now that I'm ready to fight Akiad. It's time for me to rally up the troops. I hop on Butch's back and fly back to the village of Soraki.

Once I arrive, I look around and there are bodies passed out everywhere. I figure that I'll wake my companions first, then deal with everyone else later.

I head over to Vaughson's hut, and find Enaz, Vetor, Tatarina and Mattisa; they're all sleeping, in various spots in the room.

"Wakey, wakey!" I yell, standing in the doorway.

No one responds to my calling, so I hold out my left index finger; water squirts out, with as much pressure as a garden hose. I aim for Vetor's face first.

"Okay, okay, I'm up!" Vetor yells, propping himself to his feet. I turn my finger towards Tatarina and Mattisa; they jump up off the ground, and start screaming like a couple of adolescent teenage girls.

"Really Syra?" Tatarina says, sounding slightly frustrated.

"Yes, really," I reply, sarcastically.

As Enaz stands up, he shrugs the water off and fires a question at me that I'm not prepared for.

"How did you squirt water out of your finger?"

You see, I'm only just becoming comfortable with my powers; I really don't know how I'm doing it.

"I just did. I've noticed while practicing, that I don't even need to use my sword, just as long as it's in my presence. I just think of something, and it happens. Well that's how it's been so far. Anyway, we need to rally up the troops, from everywhere. I will take Butch, and spend a day flying around Tharp, gathering warriors; starting with the village of Noradi. Zekai's people need to know that their leader is dead," I say before exiting the hut.

"Syra, wait!" Vetor yells, chasing me outside.

I stand amongst everyone here around me, wondering how to wake them all up. I realise that I've been on Tharp now for several months, and haven't listened to any heavy metal since being on Earth. It makes me think of a brilliant idea; I know the way that I'm going to wake everyone up. I look up to the roof of the cavern, and start the loudest death metal roar I can do. It echoes in the cavern; people start waking left, right and centre.

"All right everyone, this is it. I'm fair and do not force you to fight with me to defend Tharp. Back on my home planet, it's also optional. So I offer the same choice to all of you. I will be departing shortly \- to fly around Tharp, collecting the various warriors that I've met; including the Village of Noradi."

The Oathient serpents present begin murmuring amongst themselves.

"It's up to you if you'd like to help. I'm ready to finish Akiad once and for all, whether you're with me or not. He will pay for what he's done, you all have my word. If you let petty old rivalries get in the way of the bigger picture, then that really shows me that your civilization, isn't as advanced as life on mine; we fight for what we believe in. Now, does anyone know where Akiad's castle is? If so, we will meet five kilometres south of his castle, in a few days. This will give everyone enough time to get there," I say, as I walk towards the Western exit.

"GOOD LUCK SYRA!" Vetor yells out, running towards me; I see Enaz, Mattisa and Tatarina waving in the background.

"Come here you," I reply, hugging Vetor.

"Can I ask you something?" Vetor asks, pulling away from me.

"Anything, you know that."

"What's with you and Enaz? I have to be honest; I'm a little jealous."

"Haha Vetor, no need to be. Enaz and I are catching up on lost time. He is my father."

"Oh wow...really? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have even asked."

"You're my best friend, so you can ask me anything. I promised I'd tell you, when the time was right," I say, leaning in and kissing him on the left cheek.

Vetor starts to blush, and I wink at him. I smile and wave while walking towards the Western exit; I hope my friends know that they have nothing to worry about.

Butch lands down at the base of the village of Noradi, right by the entrance.

"Thank you Butch, you're dismissed," I say.

While Butch looks my direction in a puzzled way.

"What's wrong Butch?"

"I might wait here if that's okay with you."

"Yeah of course that's fine, but remember you're free to leave if you like."

I walk up to the base of the tree, and place my palms on it, just like Modnar did when we first arrived.

The tree starts weeping, and the bark peels off, dropping onto the ground below me; once again revealing the entrance. I enter the tree and it seals behind me; I look up and all the vines are dangling down with no life left in them. I wonder what's going on.

I climb one of the vines all the way up to the village floor; the interior of the village seems deserted. The bark on the inside of the tree is charcoal black, and seems burnt; the smell definitely backs this theory.

I run through the village - passing the Altar - trying to find anyone alive, and no one seems present. A few dead Oathient serpents lay dead near Zekai's house; I run inside.

"Hello?!" I say.

I give up searching, realising that the village is deserted; I exit via the base of the tree and confusion is a mild translation of what's going through my head.

"Butch, no one's here? They could have been murdered?" I ask, hoping onto Butch's back.

"Or they could have relocated, south of here."

"Where?"

"The abandoned Village of Soraki. After the war between them and the Village of Noradi, Vaughson and his people relocated to where they currently reside. The old village of Soraki has been abandoned for thousands of years."

"Well, that's a good place to start. Let's go!" I say, before Butch launches into the air.

We fly south for a while until I see some fire through the heavy sandstorm.

"What's that down there, Butch?"

"The old Village of Soraki. Hold on," Butch replies, nose-diving towards the sand.

Upon landing, I hop off his back and run my fingers the hair on his neck.

"Wait here okay?"

"As always, Syra."

I draw Finito and approach the village; it's definitely not abandoned now. Each building looks like an igloo; perfectly crafted dome buildings, with sandy yellow coloured bricks. There are some bricks missing from each building, and there are three bigger domes in the centre of the village. Each of those igloos only have half of the structure still standing; the rest of the bricks that made up each one are piled around the outside. There's one large tree - resembling a palm tree - in the centre of those three igloos, and a small pond below it.

I head towards the palm tree and see someone gathering water in an old pot; it looks like an Oathient serpent.

"Hello?!" I yell out, sheathing Finito.

The serpent panics and slithers towards the bigger igloos; I run towards them, hoping to find an answer to this mystery.

"Hello, is anyone....oh," I say, seeing a few hundred Oathient serpents sheltering in the largest of the three igloos.

"Our home is destroyed, burnt to the ground," the female village elder says.

"I'm so sorry about that. Some Oathient outcasts attacked us and Modnar cast a powerful fire spell, igniting the canopy at the top of the village of Noradi. I never once thought his spell would destroy your beautiful village."

"Where's Zekai? We need a leader in this time," a male serpent asks.

"I'm sorry to inform you that Zekai died a few days ago. He is with Fewmira in the afterlife now."

The Oathient serpents all start to murmur. I hear a mix of things being said, some of which I wish I didn't.

"Please leave chosen one. We wish to mourn his death."

"As you wish. I have the four Arter gems of Tharp now, and will be challenging Akiad, the evil wizard tomorrow; the rendezvous will be five kilometres south of his castle. If you wish to aid me, I could use the muscle, and would greatly appreciate it. If not, I understand. Thank you for your time," I say, before leaving the village.

While walking back to Butch, I see a small well, made up of the same yellow bricks. I run up to it and peer inside, before pulling up the rope, hoping to find some water. I'm not going to lie, I'm rather thirsty.

I pull up the bucket and find that it's all dried up; bummer. As I lay the bucket down on the sand, I see another scratching on one of the bricks. It says 'Zelada was here.' I wonder who that is. Maybe I'll find her one day.

I hop on Butch's back and scratch his neck.

"Is everything fine?" Butch asks.

"No one wants to help. Guess we better check with everyone else. Let's go," I reply, before Butch launches into the air.

To be honest, this is what I spend the day doing - flying around Tharp on Butch's back, gathering up troops, to battle Akiad. I start with Puziac village. I look for the Ediex clan, but I can't find them; I'm guessing they never returned from their mission. It's a real shame, as they would have been great assets to our cause. I even try the Kranind, in the Moorbess Mountains; but they didn't seem to want to help either. The warriors of Toolore village, are my last stop.

I let Titu know that he must remain leader, as Rodland has died. Being the bearer of bad news is a drag, but someone has to do it. I decide to stay here tonight, because I know that come tomorrow, it's time for Akiad to die.

### XXVII - The Final Battle

I've been relaxing with the warriors in Toolore village, eating and getting merry drinking Flork, all through the night; I'm guessing it must be about 4am. We've been laughing and crying, and I tell them the whole story so far, not skipping a beat; from the good times to the bad. Why cut any corners? Like I've said many times, just say it how it is.

I'm seated at the end table with Titu, the new leader. I stand up and start tapping my bottle, for a much needed speech.

"Everyone, thank you for your warm hospitality. I can look around this room, and see your faces, and call you all family. Soon, I depart for the Jonker desert. There I will face Akiad and his army. I'm not forcing any of you to assist me, but if you'd like to help, it will be greatly appreciated. Also, does anyone know where I can get some petrification dust from?" I say, looking around the room for a nod in the right direction.

Titu stands up, taps me on the shoulder and moves his lips towards my left ear.

"Come Syra, let's go talk," Titu whispers, before vacating his seat, hinting me to follow him.

"Enjoy dinner everybody, please excuse me," I say, following Titu outside.

"Syra! Syra! Syra!" the warriors of Toolore chant as we walk outside.

It brings a tear to my eye to think about what it felt like a few months of my life ago; these warriors didn't respect me nearly as much as they do now. I won't let them down, or Rodland.

"Hey can I ask something? (Titu nods in approval) You have been acting a bit strange around me. Is it because of Rodland? I'm sorry I couldn't save him, Titu. Can you at least explain why I sense this?" I ask.

Titu becomes all awkward; he seems to be steering me away from that question.

"Ummm.... what do you mean? So.... how's your tempest spell going?" Titu asks, as we walk towards the main courtyard.

"Hmm... Smooth change of subject. To be fair, Titu, I never used it. Vetor and I came up with our own moves, and powers. Watch!" I say, before putting my palms into the air, and winking at him.

The night sky turns red, and grey clouds cover the red sky. A massive lightning bolt cracks down onto the courtyard, destroying the ground and throwing debris into the air. Titu raises his eyebrows at me in surprise, and I smile back at him, before waving my right hand, towards the crack in the ground.

Wind whirls around the courtyard, picking up all the debris, and flying it around, repairing the damage the bolt of lightning created. Seconds later, the clouds part and the bright red dissolves, turning the sky back into darkness.

"Syra I don't know what to say. I'm actually speechless," Titu says, sounding even more confused.

"Why thanks Titu. Now, do you know where I can acquire some petrification dust? Modnar told me when I was last here, but for the life of me, I can't remember. Obviously now is the time that I need it," I say, with a little desperation in my voice.

"It's not easy to get, Syra. It'll serve as quite a challenge. For starters, it is in Tarahe Tower, which is located on the head of the living giant, Mazelia. One day in the future Syra, you must educate me of this; you'll know the right time," Titu explains.

"What do you mean by educate you?? And are you meaning that huge walking landmass?"

"Yes, that's right, 'the walking landmass'. Now, on educating me...well, you'll see one day Syra; I'm not really allowed to say. I suppose that soon it'll all just slot into place."

"Why can't you tell me?"

"Again, I can't really say. Don't you want to know what the other part of your challenge is?"

I delay my response, by clicking my fingers, summoning Butch to come down from the clouds, landing in the courtyard of Toolore village.

"Hello Butch. So what's this challenge, Titu?" I ask, rubbing Butch's neck.

"Well, in Tarahe Tower, you will meet a doppelganger of the person you fear most; you will need to persuade it into giving you the petrification dust," Titu replies.

"Oh that won't be difficult, I don't fear Akiad anymore. Well, I better depart. I'll meet you and your warriors, South of Akiad's castle, about midday. His castle is roughly an hour south of the Eastern infirmary?" I say, hopping onto Butch's back.

"Correct Syra. I'm so proud of you, and I know Rodland was too. He was a great leader, and an even better friend. Oh and Syra, before you go....me acting weird around you....can I explain it to you after tomorrow's battle? I'd be more comfortable talking about it then."

"No worries at all. I don't really know what's going on, but I'll find out later today, after we kill Akiad!" I yell, and seconds later, Butch launches into the air, heading west.

Butch flies through the night sky towards the Mazelia. The cold breeze blowing through my hair is giving me goosebumps, but I don't care. It's relaxing in some weird sort of way. Knowing what I must do tomorrow, is slowly making my stomach churn. I have no room for failure; my entire journey has been all about this day. All my training, all the people who have died to aid me, tomorrow is for all of it. I feel my eyes becoming heavy...

"Syra, wake up," Butch says, as I awaken from my slumber.

I see that we're rapidly approaching the head of the Mazelia.

"That's it Butch. I don't think you're going to fit in the tower, so I'll enter alone. But if you could please stay lookout?" I say, as we quickly start descending towards the Tarahe Tower.

"Anything you say, Syra," Butch replies, landing next to the towers entrance.

I hop off his back, draw Finito and walk towards the entrance; I look up and get a good glance at this tower.

I touch the wall and it's made of white marble; intricate patterns and grooves are carved into the tower, spiralling all the way around, right to the top. Near the top of the tower is a railing - where you can peer out; I see some fingers over the edge of it. The roof of the tower is pointy, and has a huge round dome - also made of marble - on the point; it appears to be a planet, which could be Tharp.

I step inside the doorway; there is a long, ascending staircase that spirals up to the main platform at the top.

"Be back soon Butch," I say, before slowly ascending the staircase.

I'm by myself, like my father was on the Moorbess Mountains. All alone, with no one to back me up. Courage is the thing I look for constantly, and right now, it's clearly nowhere to be seen. It's very hard to stay one hundred percent stable, as I'm in a tower which is on top of a giants head; it continues to rock as I ascend the staircase. I brace my hands against the walls and scale it, one step at a time.

Once I reach the top, I quickly assess the room. Excluding the stairway behind me, there is a railing all around the room, which allows for an amazing view of Tharp. There are marble pillars attaching the railing to the flat roof above me, and the floor below me is a large world map of Tharp. I walk onto the platform to find a person with their back to me, leaning on the railing. They're wearing a purple and black gown, and have black medium length hair - with purple streaks; they're holding a staff that resembles Modnar's. My stomach sinks, because it just couldn't be him.

"Hello Syra, do I have something you want, or something you desperately need?" the Vetor doppelganger says as he turns around.

"Why do I fear my best friend?" I ask.

"You tell me, Syra? Is it because I'm so powerful now? Or is it more jealousy?"

"This is ridiculous. I don't fear you, Vetor. Hand me over the Petrification dust now, before I take it from you," I say, approaching the doppelganger.

"You think you scare me, Syra? You're just a girl; you're not ready to challenge me!"

I throw a fireball forward, and the doppelganger opens a ball of electrical energy that swallows the fireball up. I know that if I'm going to get through to him, it has to be with words.

"Vetor, stop playing around. It's your best friend, Syra," I say, in a soft voice; I carefully sheathe Finito.

"Really, your best friend? That's nice to hear."

The doppelganger walks towards me with a tear rolling down his cheek. I know from this exact moment, that my idea for reverse psychology is working.

"Come give me a hug, it's okay; I bet you've missed having me around," I say, hugging him.

"Thanks Syra, you're always here for me. I'll get that dust for you," the doppelganger replies, before digging into his pocket.

I continue to hug him, hoping he isn't pulling any tricks.

The doppelganger pulls out a handful of dust. I bend down, and rip the bottom of my jeans, I need something to wrap the dust in.

When I stand up, the doppelganger tips it onto the piece of denim; I then wrap it up, and place it into my pocket.

"Thank you so much Vetor, I must depart," I say, leaning in and hugging him.

As we pull away, he leans forward and kisses me on the lips. It feels like time has slowed down all around us, and we're flying off into the sunrise, that now glares into my eyes.

Moments later, I stop kissing him, and a tear rolls down my cheek.

"Be more confident, okay?" I say, walking away from him.

"Anything you say, Syra." the doppelganger replies as I leave the confines of the room.

As I descend the staircase, I pause; I hear the doppelganger say something that I can't believe.

"I love you, Syra."

I pretend he hasn't spoken, and look over my left shoulder and say "Take care, my friend."

It's a long walk down these stairs. I have no one else to help process what has gone down, except myself. Life gets like this sometimes though. I haven't had a father until a month ago, and haven't seen my mother in about four months, yet I'm responsible for so much. I don't know what that kiss represents; but I don't regret it.

Butch touches down at the meeting place South of Akiad's castle; it's good to see my companions there. What has me worried - other than a battle in the middle of a barren desert - is that our numbers aren't very many at all. We have about a few hundred, and I'm expecting Akiad to have thousands. One thing that does make me rather happy, is that I can make out the Ediex clan in the crowd. I have no idea how they showed up, without me getting a chance to tell them; but they have.

"Hey Enaz; it's good to see you. Where's Vetor?" I ask, while hopping off Butch's back.

"Not sure Syra. Somewhere here?" Enaz replies.

I walk through the crowd, trying to find my old friend. There aren't many warriors here; some Oathient serpents, the Ediex clan, some of the Guytz clan and a handful of humans.

Stepping on my tip-toes, reveals some black steam about fifteen metres ahead.

I quickly run forward, pushing through the crowd to find him, and when I see him, he's facing away from me; black steam is rising from his back.

"Vetor what are you doing?" I ask, confused.

He turns around, revealing a huge smile on his face; his pupils are red. He's healing the scars off the skin of different warriors.

"I was bored, so I started to heal everyone's battle scars and injuries," Vetor says.

"Well thanks Vetor, but can you please save your power now? You must be prepared as the battle with Akiad is approaching. I need your head in the game," I reply, turning away from him, and walking back to the front of our warriors.

"Is he okay?" Enaz asks, approaching me.

"Yeah but he's a worry. His eyes are always red now, it's bugging me a little," I reply.

"Don't worry about it. Hey look, isn't that the warriors of Toolore?" Enaz says, while pointing north and sounding quite excited.

I look into the distance, and notice Titu leading his warriors my direction. I run out towards them.

"Titu, you made it!" I say, riddled with excitement.

"Yes, we did. This is what our ancient village is all about. We train for centuries, to be the best for you; the chosen one," Titu replies as he bows his head in respect.

"Don't make me blush Titu" I say, walking with him and the warriors of Toolore to our attack post.

I see Lord Xeria Guytz approaching; he bows before me.

"How dare you bow at me, Xeria? Thank you for who you could bring," I reply.

Xeria starts to right in the sand with one of his nippers.

'Sorry there aren't many warriors. Most have families, and I hope we can win.'

"I feel confident we will. Let's relax, and prepare for the battle ahead."

The seven hundred or so of us chill out, and wait for Akiad to arrive. Some warriors are clashing with each other, some are doing push ups, others sharpening their weapons. Everyone seems as ready as I am. Today is the day that he will pay for all he has done. Today is the day he dies.

Three Ediex clan warriors approach me; two are about my height and the other is a little taller. The three of them are all either a bit smaller, or taller than the usual Ediex clan warrior. I'm not one to question where they get warriors from, as long as they can fight.

"Cough.....it's an honour to meet you, Syra," the tallest Ediex warrior says, shaking my hand.

After shaking his hand, one of the two shorter warriors shake my hand while nodding.

The last one that approaches me, has no bandages covering their left arm - right up to their shoulder; they have a tattoo of a dart, with a dirty red colour flight, on the top of their left hand. They hold it out, waiting for me to shake it. Do they have darts on Tharp?

"Wow cool seal," I say, shaking the warrior's hand.

"Cough.....thank you. I saw it a long time ago on another warrior's hand, so I decided to get it done too. It's an honour to meet you," she replies, in a familiar woman's voice.

"Yeah you too. Thanks for your help, we need as much as we can get," I say, as I finish shaking her hand.

The three of them walk away from me towards the rest of their clan; the female warrior looks over her shoulder and nods at me. I wave back and smile, before they disappear into the crowd. It's good that I have such loyal warriors on my side, I definitely need them. But then I realise something, how was I able to talk to an Ediex clan member, without needing Vetor to translate, it's almost as baffling as the dart tattoo on her hand. And why did she sound so familiar. Maybe we can chat when this is all over and I can get an answer to these questions.

A few hours flash by like minutes, and the cheers of warriors and clashing swords fill the air around us.

"Everyone stay here until you see my cue," I yell, walking about ten metres ahead of everyone else.

I stab Finito into the sand, and take a few extra steps forward. After whistling out for Butch, he dives out of a nearby dune and lands right next to me.

I keep my eyes on the thousands of orcs in the distance, and speak to Butch.

"We need to fly ahead, and get an estimate of the numbers; I need to know what to expect," I say, looking into the distance.

"Syra, what do you want us to do?!" Titu yells out from behind me.

"Wait here," I reply, hopping onto Butch's back.

I put my right hand out flat in the air, instructing our warriors to wait. We launch into the air and fly over the army of orcs.

"Shit. How many orcs do you think there is?" I ask.

"At least fifty thousand. Akiad is at the back of them all," Butch replies.

"And we have about a thousand. That's fair odds."

"Not much we can do. Let's head back and tell the others."

"Don't worry, Butch; we've got this," I say in a confident sounding tone.....

**AKIAD**

"How did the Ediex clan escape the catacombs?! How many men do we have left?" Akiad asks, in a panicked voice.

"I'm not sure my lord. I think we have about fifty thousand men accounted for," Anjari replies, sounding quite hesitant to explain that to him.

"WWWHHHHHAAAATTTTT?! Less than three hundred men, killed one hundred and fifty thousand orcs?! How powerful is she, Anjari. Now I have to worry about Syra and her!" Akiad yells, sounding angry and frustrated at the same time.

"Don't worry my lord, I'll take her. After I soften up Syra a little bit. I should have killed her in the Catacombs of Newace!" Anjari says, while clicking his neck and knuckles.

"All right my old friend, thank you," Akiad calmly replies while he stares into the distance, towards his destiny....

**SYRA**

The masses of orcs eventually stop marching about one hundred metres from me. The front row is high up on a dune.

"Surrender Syra, this is your first warning!" one orc yells out at me.

I take a few more steps forward, hold my right hand in the air, then reply.

"You surrender and this is your only warning!"

The front six rows of orcs start yelling, and begin charging forward; there is a few thousand orcs.

I stab Finito into the sand, then open my palms out, stretched to the left and right of me. I start a loud death metal scream; thousands of locusts come flying out, and swarm forward like a thick wall.

The locusts shroud the front six rows, causing many screams of agony; when the blanket of insects fly away to the clouds, all that's left of the orcs they devoured, are piles of bones, and buckets of blood.

I look behind me towards the sun, and summon a huge comet to come crashing down. Once it's about to hit me, I put my palms in the air; the comet stops dead in its tracks, ten centimetres from my open palms. I throw the comet a few metres in front of me, and run forward towards it. When the comet is but an instance before connecting with the sand, I punch it with both my fists, which propels it forwards, at the speed of a rocket. The comet splatters through Akiad's entire army from front to back, carving out a big, fiery hollow trench of blood and guts. Thousands more orcs lose their lives, all thanks to my carnage.

"Come on Akiad, what else have you got!" I yell as I run back and pick up Finito.

More orcs charge towards me, so I open my mouth while holding Finito behind me, and a fifty metre flame comes out, reducing another few rows of orcs, to burning waste.

"Aaarrggghhhh!" the orcs yell as their flesh burns and boils.

At least ten thousand orcs have fallen in the opening minutes of this battle, so it's time to send in the troops.

"Everybody! Attack!" I yell as I strike forward, releasing an ice wall flurry, from my sword.

As all my warriors and companions run ahead of me, all I can hear is chants of my name, and screams of death and pain.

I'm just walking forward, with Finito in my hand, slashing at the odd orc that slips past our advance.

There are only about a thousand of us, versus the remaining forty thousand orcs. I can honestly say, that I'm not too worried; I just want to know where Akiad is.

Vetor is using Modnar's staff, to great avail I might add. He's shooting fireballs out of his left hand - much like Modnar once had - burning hundreds of orcs at any one time.

Enaz is invisible, fighting alongside Tatarina, working in tandem. Tatarina wraps five orcs together with her chain, and Enaz reappears to slice all five of their heads straight off, gushing blood all over the place.

"Thank you, Tatarina! Behind you!" Enaz yells before throwing his left samurai sword through the face of the orc behind her.

"No, thank you!" Tatarina yells back, before wrapping another four orcs with her chain.

Enaz goes invisible and carefully retrieves his other samurai sword from the dead orcs face that it's stuck in.

Vetor fires another flurry of fireballs towards the four orcs that Tatarina has trapped with her chain.

"Aaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!" the orcs yell as their heads explode, splattering brain all over the sand.

Mattisa runs towards a group of orcs with a dagger in each hand.

"Bend forward, Titu!" Mattisa says, just before diving over Titu's back, and plunging both her daggers straight through an orcs face.

She promptly pulls her daggers out, and stabs another two orcs through the midsection with her left and right dagger respectively.

I look over to the right of me, and see those three Ediex clan warriors, that introduced themselves to me earlier. They fight with such precision, much more than a normal Ediex clan warrior. The female with the dart tattoo on her hand, battles in a similar style to me. She has no fear, chopping through orcs like poetry; but I have no time to let this distract me, as I need to stay focused on the battle at hand.

I walk through the massacre of Akiad's orcs and begin to smile; I think that we could be winning. We have lost a hundred or so warriors, but compared to the tens of thousands that they've lost, it's safe to assume that the pendulum has shifted into our favour.

"So, chosen one, we finally meet! I am Anjari the Shaman!" Anjari says, standing amongst thousands of orcs that charge towards me.

I wave my hand to the left, and a few thousand orcs fly kilometres through the air, out of my way. I signal Anjari to come towards me.

"What are you waiting for?" I yell.

Anjari holds his staff out in front of him, then pulls it apart so it reveals two swords; we then charge towards each other. CLANG! CLANG! CHING!

Our swords clash together, and sparks are constantly flying through the air.

"You will not win!" Anjari says, before pushing his blades against my sword, knocking me back a few metres.

"Butch, torch him!" I yell as I quickly prop up to my feet.

I stab Finito into the sand, and start throwing ice spikes at him like a javelin. As soon as one leaves my right hand, another ice spike appears in its place.

"Akiad, she's overwhelming me!" Anjari yells over his shoulder, as he back peddles, blocking all the fire bursts from the relentless Butch; flying his direction.

I continue to throw ice spikes, over and over again, towards the oncoming orcs, most spikes landing through their chest.

"We're winning! Keep the pressure on everybody!" I yell, as I pull Finito out of the sand, then walk forward.

Akiad is wearing a different colour hooded robe to usual. It's black, with silver on the inside; while approaching Anjari, he throws a flurry of lightning bolts towards Butch, with at least thirty of them nailing him through the heart.

Butch crashes into a group of orcs, exploding on impact. Fire and body parts fly through the air.

"BUTCH!!!! Everyone, let's get that bastard!" I yell with all my might.

"We're coming! Enaz and Vetor yell back, as they both kill another couple of orcs each, with Tatarina and Mattisa following closely behind.

I walk towards Akiad and Anjari in a very staunch manner. I'm slicing orcs through the midsection if they come anywhere near me. The whole time my eyesight is locked with Akiad's, and I won't take my eyes off him.

"Krenshi!" I yell, before an ice pillar emerges from the sand. As it shatters, my snow leopard makes her appearance.

"Please protect Vetor, girl."

Thousands of orcs charge the five of us, and we just decimate them, without a flinch of worry. Enaz is slicing orcs left, right and centre; each slice through the midsection, leaving blood and organs all over the sand. Tatarina is firing her chain, smacking orcs in the face, and knocking them unconscious, leaving them wide open for Mattisa or Enaz, to stab on the ground.

Vetor walks in front of me, looks at the sky, and starts yelling.

"AAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Vetor yells as dark clouds cover the sky, and hail starts bucketing down.

I start to realise what he's doing. It's that same spell that Modnar used in the battle outside Neca City.

"Vetor, what are you doing?!" I yell, stabbing an orc through the face.

"Cover me, Syra. I can't move!" Vetor yells as red and black lightning, curls around his arms.

"Enaz, Tatarina, Titu! Guard Vetor! I'm going for Akiad!" I yell as I walk towards him, passing Titu on the way.

**ENAZ**

Vetor stands there in shock, as the red and black lightning quickly consumes his arms, like ants to sugar.

"We are getting surrounded, what do we do?!" Tatarina yells as she fends off orcs with her chain.

"Come on, where is help when you need it!" I yell, ramming my samurai swords through two individual orcs at once.

"There is too many of them, Enaz!!" Titu yells in a panic.

"Need help?" A female Ediex clan warrior says, as she slices one orc open from behind it, with her axe.

"Perfect timing," I reply, while defending Vetor.

"How long is this going to TAAAAKKKKKEEE?" Vetor yells in agony, as multi coloured lightning still engulfs his arms.

"Not much longer," the female Ediex clan warrior replies, as she stands in front of him.

Vetor looks down, and sees the dart tattoo on her hand.

"Wow cool tattoo!" Vetor yells.

"Thanks, but is now really the time?!" The warrior yells, while chopping the head off another orc.

Two more Ediex clan warriors run in and help us; the three of them are such excellent warriors. They move with such finesse, such perfection. They kill hundreds of orcs, without even a scratch. Glad they are here right now, as we'd struggle without them.

"Behind you!" I yell, throwing both my swords at two incoming orcs.

"Thanks, here!" The female warrior replies, throwing one of my swords back at me.

I leap over her back and pull the other sword out of a dead orcs face, following through with an overhead swing, slicing another orc vertically in half.

Krenshi comes running towards us; she stops right next to Vetor and breathes cold air over all the nearby orcs.

"Good girl!" I yell out...

**SYRA**

"I am hell today, Akiad. Come down here and suffer with me...NOW!" I yell, taunting him with my left hand.

"Come get me, little girl. You're not powerful enough to stop me!" Akiad yells back.

"Careful Akiad, she is very powerful!" Anjari says, wiping out fifty of our warriors, with a massive piece of rock that he summoned out of thin air.

I'm about two hundred metres from my destiny. Akiad the evil wizard is within my grasps, and the balance of our future is on my shoulders. This is what all my training has come to; every spell learnt, every Arter gem collected; this is it. I stab Finito into the sand, and am waiting for him to speak.

"So Syra, we finally meet. I hear you have my Arter gems; hand them over!" Akiad says, holding his left palm open.

"You scared, Akiad? Where's Gurdon? Dead? Where's your shaman? Is he hiding? It's just you and me now, Akiad. It's time to pay!" I say; throwing an ice spike towards his face.

His right hand catches it; he spins it around and throws it back.

I instinctively spin around, and stretch my arms out to the left and right of me; from one fingertip to the other, a large fire cape appears. The ice spike dissolves on impact, and I turn around and flick up a fire hood, to cover my head.

"You're quite powerful, aren't you Syra?" Akiad says, as he too blankets himself in a hooded cape; his is covered in lightning. I'm not going to lie, his looks pretty badass.

I gaze at him with immense frustration. Every spell I cast, he matches with an equivalent of his own.

"Two can play that game, Syra," Akiad says, laughing away like a maniac.

I stand there, motionless. While I peer into his soul, I can feel several locusts crawling out of my mouth - pushing it open - and disappearing up my nose. It doesn't worry me, as this is my most intimidating stare down, with a complete menace.

I open my mouth wide and a swarm of locusts come flying out, and head towards Akiad. He starts laughing at me, and I see a swarm of his own insects fly out. The creatures are the same length and shape of an earthworm, but they have wings as long as a dragonfly. They are brown in colour and slimy in texture; their head is the size of a two dollar coin. His swarm flies towards mine, clashing as they meet; they start fighting each other.

I walk a few steps further forward, and blow fire over all the insects. Small screams of agony come from their direction, as they all drop to the sand in flames.

"Why don't you just give up? We're going to win!" I say.

"You think I'm going to roll over like a Givou and just die? NEVER!" Akiad replies, before holding his arms out in front of him.

Lightning begins coiling down his arms, and as it reaches his hands, he holds them together, like he's gripping an invisible weapon; before my very eyes, a lightning sword emerges, and he waves me to fight.

I pull Finito out of the sand, and run towards him, and begin duelling.

"You're very powerful, and remind me of her," Akiad says.

"Remind me of who?"

"Why does it matter, you'll end up dead like her."

"LIKE WHO!???!"

Akiad back flips a few metres away from me and starts laughing.

"Struggling to defeat me? Running out of ideas are we, Syra?" Akiad says, while giggling to himself.

I stab Finito into the sand, and change my fingers into the familiar gun position; I start firing intermittent fireballs his direction. Akiad retaliates by shooting lightning bolts of his own, that fly out of his palms. His bolts are firing at about the same speed as my fireballs; each one connects with one of mine, dissolving on impact....

**ENAZ**

I watch ahead and see my daughter battle Akiad. My entire fifteen year tenure has come down to this. She's making me so proud, and I hope she kills that evil bastard.

"Enaz, behind you!" Vetor yells, waking me from my daydream.

I turn to Mattisa and charge her direction.

"Duck Mattisa!" I yell, leaping off her back.

As I fly through the air, I slice the heads off a few orcs, landing on the other side of Vetor.

"Enaz, Syra told me you're her father," Vetor yells, still suspended in place.

"I'm a little busy champ!" I yell back, throwing both my swords towards incoming orcs; each sword flying past both of Vetor's ears.

"Shit!" He yells in a panic.

Krenshi is rumbling with at least a dozen orcs; one swings at her ankles, shattering straight through it. A frozen meat chunk slides towards the orcs.

"ERRRGGHH!" Krenshi yells, sitting back, swiping at a few orcs.

I jump in front of her, trying to help her live. I cut through a few orcs before dropping back. Krenshi shatters into thousands of pieces, freezing nearby enemies.

The female Ediex warrior charges in front of Vetor and battles a few orcs. CLANG! CHING! CLANG!

"Thanks for your help!" I yell, jumping in to help her, blocking a few enemy attacks.

"It's fine! Concentrate!" she yells back, before I disappear and reappear behind the two orcs; I slash my swords right and left, chopping them in half through the stomach.

Tatarina has seven orcs held with her chain; Mattisa slices their throats open, and blood shoots out all over the sand.

"Thanks Mattisa!" Tatarina yells, releasing her chain into the throat of an incoming orc.

"HELP!!" Vetor yells, as two orcs are lunging at him.

The two other Ediex warriors that accompanied that female jump in to help; they chop through the orcs and stand guard. They exchange a nod with Vetor; thankfully they are there to save him...

**SYRA**

While Akiad and I have this shootout, my peripheral sees beams of light coming out of every orc on the battlefield, straight up to the heavens. All around me, all I can hear are screams of agony, and blood splatters. Pieces of orc torso rain down all around me, as Vetor has been successful in casting that devastating spell.

I notice that when I look over my shoulder, there are only a few hundred left of our army, and none of Akiad's. Anjari moves closer to Akiad.

"It's over Akiad!" I yell as I continue shooting fireballs from my left hand, while I hold my right palm in the air.

"You will not win, Syra! I always win!" Akiad yells, as he continues to destroy my fireballs with his lightning bolts.

"Don't let her win, Akiad!" Anjari says.

I quickly look over my right shoulder towards the sky, and see the comet incoming, whistling through the air towards my location. As soon as the comet stops just above my right palm, I start badmouthing Akiad.

"Catch!" I yell, hurling the comet towards him.

Akiad takes the direct hit from the comet, knocking him straight to the sand. While Akiad is down, I cast another one; but this time, from behind him.

When it connects with him, it shatters into hundreds of fiery pieces, which fly through the air. Akiad is a bloodied mess.

I stab Finito into the sand, and walk towards him; I kick him square in the face, and blood splatters all over the place.

"Syra...cough....we could rule together?" Akiad says, while he coughs up some more blood.

I kick him in the stomach, knocking him flying about ten metres through the air. Anjari runs in towards me, and when he reaches out to touch me, he scolds his hands on my fire cape.

"AAAAARRRRRRGGGGHHH!" Anjari screams as he looks down at his burnt hands.

While Anjari is distracted, Enaz intervenes with our battle.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Akiad yells as Enaz rams both his samurai swords through the unsuspecting Anjari from behind. Blood trickles out of his stomach.

I walk towards Akiad and kick him in the face, yet again.

"Syra, don't you see? Earth is doomed for extinction. Your race is killing itself. I....COUGH....can help you rule, and save both planets. We will rule Tharp....COUGH.....and fix your world, Syra. Do you know how much power we'll have?" Akiad says, coughing blood all over the place.

"No deal, Akiad! No deal!" I say, before punching him in the face, hurting my hand in the process.

"Ouch! Why did that hurt?" I say to myself; I see Vetor walking over to Akiad.

He has black steam rising from all over his body, and his eyes are flaming red. It's scary, as I can literally see fire in his eyes. Vetor opens his right hand, revealing that he has removed the Arter gem of Ice and Water, from Finito.

I quickly roll back, retrieve Finito, and then walk up to Akiad and Vetor. When I stab it in the sand next to me, I start to reason with Vetor, and try make sense of his actions.

"Vetor, what are you doing? Why are you helping this maniac? Give me back the Arter gems, so I can kill this bastard, and we can head home!" I say, catching my breath.

Akiad laughs while he is helplessly bleeding on the ground, and Vetor stands in front of him, holding Modnar's staff.

"No Syra, Akiad is right. Earth is doomed; look at all the pollution, and all the war. We should take his advice, and his help," Vetor replies, frowning in an evil way.

I start to run towards him, but Enaz holds me back.

"Don't Syra, he has two of the Arter gems; you're not as powerful as you just were," Enaz says, holding me back.

Vetor helps the bloodied Akiad back to his feet; he coughs up more blood, then begins to laugh.

"See Syra, the weak never prosper. Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, are...COUGH...we?" Akiad says, sarcastically.

"Akiad, here's my rules. You let my friends go, and I'll get the remaining Arter gems out of Finito," Vetor says, while holding onto Modnar's staff.

He pulls his palms apart to make a ball of kinetic energy - the size of a car.

"What are you doing, Vetor?" I reply, while looking at him in utter confusion.

"This will take you home, Syra. Straight back to the university, and you'll never need to worry about Tharp again," Vetor says, before turning towards Akiad for a split second.

In that instance, I look towards Enaz and say "I love you" before grabbing Finito, and diving into the ball of energy...

**ENAZ**

The ball of energy disappears, and Syra is gone.

"NOOOOO! She has the Arter gems that we need! This is not good!" Akiad yells out.

"It's okay, she's gone now. Let my friends go!" Vetor calmly replies, sounding slightly confused.

"No. HER friends go into cells below my castle, the rest go," Akiad says, as he has a lightning bolt in his hand, ready to throw towards Tatarina.

"Leave her alone!" I reply, walking towards Akiad, with a samurai sword in each hand.

Vetor steps in front of Akiad; he holds Modnar's staff in his left hand, and he has a ball of kinetic energy in his right, about the size of a tennis ball.

"Just leave it, Enaz. You're my friend, I don't want to hurt you," Vetor says in a threatening tone.

I see thousands of orcs coming over the horizon, and realise my future is to lay in the cells. I sheathe my swords and walk up to Vetor, staring him in the eyes.

"You stopped being my mate, the moment you betrayed my daughter," I say, before spitting in Vetors face.

My companions know their fate, just as I know mine. I just wish Syra was here....

**SYRA**

I drop onto the grass, on the university field, near the site of the infirmary. I look up and see the ball of energy get sucked through a small hole, leaving a pink lightning bolt. Great, more dirty fingerprints left behind of Tharp. I stand and look at the site of the infirmary, wishing I had a way back to stop Vetor and end Akiad's life; but it isn't there.

I hear a lot of commotion coming from the main administration block, so I run over.

I see a few news vans, reporters, and lots of people. I walk closer to see what's going on. Upon arriving, I stand at the back of the crowd. A member of the crew starts instructing a news reporter.

"You're live in three, two, one."

"Hi, I'm Bella Davies, and welcome to your favourite 6 o'clock news. A lot has taken place here at Leviathan University in the last four months. Two students, seventeen year old Vetor Dawe, and eighteen year old Syra Walsh have disappeared, and were last seen here. Police reports suggest the involvement of Vice chancellor Akiad Zaruth, as he has been found taking compulsory blood tests from students upon their arrival. Akiad has been using bribery to keep students quiet; he offered to pay their University tuition. We are on the lookout for him, and a few of his accomplishes. One went by the name of Gurdon, the other, an elderly woman, and longest of his staff, beginning in the first week of Leviathan University being open. Her name is not yet known. More on this story after a quick break."

I quickly sneak away unnoticed, as I have witnessed enough of the horror. It's time to surprise Mum, and come back from the dead.

### XXVIII - Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory

"Well mum, that's all I've written. Maybe I'll write more by next birthday," I say, closing my diary.

"So what happened to Vetor? And is it true you saw your father?" Mum asks, rubbing her hands together in excitement.

"Yes, I promise it's the truth. He saved my life a few times, as he's quite an amazing warrior, and was a good friend. It's nice to know that I met my father, all those years ago," I say, picking up a nearby knife, to cut my birthday cake.

"I can't believe you're thirty today, Syra. I bet your father would be very proud," Mum replies, leaning in and hugging me.

I smile back at her, and realise that I've spent five or so hours reading my 'Diary of Tharp' to mum. It's something that I do every birthday, since my return.

Today is June 20th, 2019; my thirtieth birthday. My wish is the same every year; I want one more chance to set it straight. One more chance at Akiad, and of course; Vetor.

So many years have passed, since that fateful day. I've achieved a lot on Earth since returning. I started doing free reviews for a heavy metal/rock magazine called 'Chugathon', and my column became quite popular. I got a promotion within the company, and eventually became editor. In my mid-twenties, I had the experience and knowledge to become a journalist for the entire genre. So by the time I was twenty eight, I became quite wealthy. But even after all my hard work to be where I am today, I still think about my decision to leave Tharp. I wasn't stupid, because I know Akiad wouldn't have let me go; I had to leave while I still had some of the Arter gems in my possession.

I look the same, except obviously quite a bit older. I have platinum blonde shoulder length hair with red streaks, and I'm wearing black jeans and a low cut tight black top, and dangling earrings. I have individual tattoos going down my right arm, starting on my right shoulder, with a tattoo of Butch - drawn from bird's eye view. On my right bicep are some locusts, ripping through my skin. Underneath my right arm is a tattoo of Krenshi, and the Leviathan is on my right forearm - which is squirting water onto my hand; all are from birds-eye view. I plan to get the colour of the Leviathan finished tomorrow along with another tattoo - to commemorate my thirtieth birthday.

In the afternoon, I have to fly to Las Vegas, Nevada, and head to a spot in the middle of the desert called 'Metal Gorge'. It's named after the annual, five day heavy metal festival. I have to attend, as it's the best opportunity to review and interview dozens of bands. It's awesome every year, so I'm pretty excited.

"Make a wish, Syra," Mum says, waiting for me to blow my candles out.

I close my eyes, blow the thirty candles out, hug mum and smile towards her.

"When I was gone, what happened?" I ask.

"Well, we had a search party for you and Vetor. We had realised that you went missing together, and it was such a long four months, baby. I believed that you weren't dead, but the police couldn't find me the proof I needed. No evidence of a body, so no proof of an answer. That's why I waited patiently for your return, because I knew in here you would," Mum replies, pointing to her heart.

"Thanks mum. I have something to show you, please wait here?" I say, before walking up the stairs to my room.

Once in my room, I sit on my bed and pull out an old shoe box from underneath it. Placing my Diary of Tharp back in there, I scuffle through, lifting out a few items from inside. A newspaper article with me on the front.

'September 30th, 2007

Missing couple from West Auckland leaves nation shocked.'

"Pfft, missing couple. We were never together," I mutter.

I pull out another a stack of papers. Mum kept everything relevant to me.

'October 30th, 2007

Syra and Vetor presumed DEAD by police.'

'November 27th, 2007

Mother refuses funeral for her daughter.'

'December 3rd, 2007

Mother struggles with Christmas tree farm without son.'

'December 15th, 2007

Students at Leviathan University show support for missing teens.'

'December 25th, 2007

Lonely Christmas for parents of missing teens.'

'January 19th, 2008

Missing girl reappears with no injuries.'

'January 25th, 2008

Syra claims her friend was kidnapped.'

I reach into the box and see the nail that I found in Neca city. To anyone else, there would be nothing special about it. But to me, it reminds me of Tharp. I see what I've been looking for, and place everything else into the box, put it back under my bed, and head back downstairs.

"Mum, open your hand."

"Wow, what is it...oh, it's just a one dollar coin."

"Turn it over."

"What...the year 2029? Did you bring this with you?"

"Yeah, from Tharp."

"It's for ten years into the future from now; and you've had this since 2007?"

"Yeah, it's been baffling me ever since, but maybe you can work it out? Do you mind if I take a little wander? Might go pay dad a visit" I say, before hugging mum.

"No worries, beautiful. I'll hold onto this coin, and cover your cake for when you come back in."

I head outside to the back yard, and stand under the Pohutakawa tree. Dad and I planted it twenty seven years ago; this is where I left Finito. I walk over and pick it up, twisting it around while I study it. I slam it back into the ground under the tree, I dip my hand down the side of my bra, to reveal the Fire and Wind Arter gems, attached to gold chains around my neck. I grip them tightly, and smile up at the tree.

"Hi Dad," I say, briefly touching the trunk.

I look up at the sun glaring through the leaves of the Pohutakawa tree; I realise that my destiny was far from over, even if it's been twelve years.

###

### About the Author

Firstly, thank you for supporting my book; Episode IV: A Twist of Fate. A lot of hard work and time has gone into completing this story. I've been writing this series of books since September 2007. I released Episode III first as I felt it was necessary to tell Syra's story first. I released Episode IV second, then Episode V - my personal favourite in the series, recently released Episode II and now Episode I. The order that I will release the rest of the series is Episode VI, VII, VIII, IX then X - and now that the first five are out, you can read them in chronological order as well. Start from Episode I and read to Episode X.

A bit about me

I am a 31 year old author from West Auckland, New Zealand. Currently living in Australia. I love Science Fiction - especially time travel - and action; this series is my attempt of merging both these loves into one.

One last thing. My books have a lot of violence in them, which does not mean that I condone it in the real world. You see I dissect a scene in my head and describe it on paper how I see it. It's just how I have always been; I love vivid detail.

I have added the first chapter of Episode V on the next page, and I hope you enjoy it.

Again, a big thank you from the bottom of my heart, if you enjoyed reading this book, could you please take a moment to leave me a review at your favourite retailer?

Other books by Mario Walsh

AVAILABLE NOW

Episode III - The Chosen One

Episode V - Syra's Paradox

Episode II - The Pinnacles of Fate

Episode I - The Prophet and her Legacy

COMING SOON

Episode VI - The Syndicate of Time

Episode VII - The Mentor of Time

Episode VIII - The Guardian of Time

Episode IX - The Martyr of Time

Episode X - The Bounty of Time

Connect with Me Online:

Facebook:

 https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Tales-Of-The-Arter-Gems-Series/380099275345176

Smashwords:

<https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/SyrasParadox>

### Tales of the Arter Gems

Episode V

Syra's Paradox

###  Preface

Twelve years ago, I failed in an attempt to save Tharp. I was stripped of two of the Arter gems by the most unlikely of turncoats; my best friend. I had Akiad at my mercy, and just like that, a twist of fate and I ended up at the short end of the stick. Am I ever going to get another chance at making it right? An opportunity to get even with Akiad and of course; Vetor.

My name is Syra. Welcome to my paradox.

### I - Back in the Saddle

It's June 21st, 2019, the morning before I fly out to Las Vegas, Nevada. I have the morning free, so I feel like heading somewhere that I haven't been in a long time. On my way there, I begin thinking about how much has changed since 2007. When I was eighteen, smart phones weren't even around; now they control everything. You can download Modules for them, which are actually so useful, that most humans now depend on them. The latest smart phones have a sensor inside, adding a plethora of new additions to the human's number one necessity. A heartbeat monitor, a lie detector; it can even detect sickness. Run the sensor along your skin, and the module will say what illness you have. You can even pay $1.70 to remove the annoying advertisements, and upgrade the module, to allow cancer cell detection. And all this is just the cell phone industry.

In 2015, America was the first country in the world to release laser guns. They still work similar to a regular gun, where you need an energy clip to load inside the handle; but here's the difference. Cell phones can be used as the clip in certain models. If you need some ammunition on a hunting trip? Need to top up your laser rifle? You can just charge it to your credit or debit card, through a module on your smart phone.

In the medical industry, scientists have perfected the art of identical cell replication. With this, when our cells regenerate every so many years, they do with a perfect replica of the original cell. So this means, a human's life expectancy is about one hundred and fifty years old; also allowing us to age slower. At age forty, you look - and feel - like you're in your early twenties. Amazing and scary at the same time. This is only a smidgen of what has changed, and that's what scares me the most.

I arrive at Leviathan University, and it sends shivers up my spine. I haven't been here since I arrived back, and the horror of it all is overwhelming. The University is all boarded up. The windows and doors have thick wooden planks nailed over them, and different coloured graffiti coats the walls. Right across the top of the building it says 'R.I.P Vetor, we miss you,' which chokes me up a little. I miss him too, regardless of what he has done. 'Heretic' and 'Menace' are some of the other words that I recognize, and the rest is the handy work of West Auckland teenagers.

Standing at the main entrance to the administration block, I feel the urge to check out Akiad's office. Maybe I can find out something interesting that I didn't know?

I walk up to the largest plank blocking the main doors, and place my hands flat on it. My palms begin heating up, causing the plank to start smoking, and within seconds it becomes charcoal black and very brittle. I remove my hands and it crumbles, I then begin doing this to the remaining boards. Once their all removed, I enter the building.

Rats scuttle across the ground, and I brush spider webs out of my face. There must have been a culture week here before it closed; flags of different countries are hanging from the roof, going all the way down the corridor. I walk up to a glass cabinet against the wall, and see clippings from articles about Vetor and me. It's overwhelming to see the support they all had in us. Dead flowers are on the ground in front of the cabinet, and cards are all over the place. I pick up one of the cards, but drop it, lacking any real courage to dig up those past memories.

I continue down the corridor, and see tagging on the walls. 'We will kill you, Akiad' and 'we're not your test subjects!' are amongst what is written.

There are a few chairs tipped over, next to a door, halfway down the corridor. I walk up to the name badge on the door, and wipe all the dust off it.

'Akiad Zaruth Vice Chancellor.'

I slowly creak the door open and head inside.

Just as I expected, the room is a mess. Papers are all over the desk and floor, there is a smashed mirror in the corner of the room, and a wooden cabinet that is tipped over.

I lift it up, and open the doors. I quickly search, but find nothing. I see a movie poster on the ground; when I flip it over, the opposite side is far more revealing.

There is a hand drawn picture of what appears to be Tharp. I see 'Jonker desert' and 'Neca city', so I know I'm right. There are stickers on it, with 'Chosen one' next to it, running down the Eastern side of the map; It's almost like he's been tracking me.

I roll it up and decide to take it with me; better to be me to take this, then some vandal. As I leave the room, I remember the white lecture theatre; that's another location that I want to check out.

The doors are all boarded up; so I place my palms on each of the planks and reduce them to ashes. I slowly open the door, and enter.

I can't believe it's been twelve years; feels like I was in here only yesterday.

I see some writing on the blackboard at the bottom of the room, flags and cobwebs cover most of the walls, but neither of these observations strike me as much as this; there's a hole in the roof, directly in the centre of the room; with a pink lightning bolt suspended there.

"Hello, how did you get there?" I mutter to myself.

It makes me wonder who has been hiding out in here, and when? This place has been closed since early 2009.

I approach the blackboard and see a timeline across the whole thing. It starts at 1993, and goes all the way to 2119; one hundred years into the future. There are stops along the way, at certain periods of the timeline. 1993, 2007, 2019, 2029, 2099, 2119. Written in capital letters across the top of the blackboard is, 'BEWARE! THE SYNDICATE ARE COMING!' Who are they, and what does this all mean?

There is one line, jumping from date to date, which starts in 2019, and goes to 2007, then to 2029, then to 2099, then 1993, and forward. It crosses too many times to work out an order; but whoever did this sure knew what they were doing. I search the desk by the blackboard for a pen. After finding a pencil in the second drawer down, I quickly jot down the dates from the blackboard onto my poster. If I ever find Modnar someday, maybe he can shed some light on this. I leave the room, and shut the door; better head home and get ready for my flight. I want to visit the infirmary, but I just don't have the time.

A few days pass, and its day five of the Metal gorge festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. And in a lifestyle where recreational goodies come as easy as water from a tap, I manage to stay on just a little alcohol. I always smile when thinking about Flork, as nothing tastes better. Maybe it's why I got turned off normal alcohol; it just doesn't hit the spot near as much.

I'm currently backstage watching the second to last act, I spare a moment of my busy lifestyle, to head out the back of the venue and chill on my own.

I find a spot at the top of a hill, directly at the back of the stage. I can see for kilometres, while the sun is setting down the back of the canyons in the distance; it's an amazing view, matching some of the scenery I had seen on Tharp.

I don't know why I've been thinking about the events of twelve years ago so much lately. I mean, it does cross my mind sometimes, but since my birthday five days ago, it's been on my mind the whole time and the most annoying part; no one to answer my questions.

I start rubbing my eyes; I see a familiar sight in the distance. It's a bright red blur, but it can't be what I think it is. Of course, with me now not fearing anything, I leave the safe confines of this hilltop, to investigate.

I briskly walk out to this red blur, and the echoes of epic heavy metal music fill the canyon ambience. I'm curious to know what it is that I saw.

I look back at the venue, and when my focus returns forward, frustration sets in, because the blur has vanished.

"Wait! Where are you?" I yell as I start running. I'm a few hundred metres away, and I'm sure I'm not just seeing things.

After a few minutes of running, I arrive at the canyon wall where I saw that red glow. There is a dark cave here, so I do the only thing possible; I enter.

I hold my left index finger in the air, and a two inch flame illuminates the vicinity.

On the cavern walls are a series of pictures - primitive in quality, like a hieroglyphic - which tell some sort of story; they seem to be scratched into the wall with a stone.

I hold the light close to them, to see what they are.

There is one picture of a girl with a sword, and another with a girl casting lightning, and another with a white gem, held in the air. Before I carry on, I feel my stomach sink. I realise who these pictures are about; they're about me.

"Hello, are you in here? I mean you no harm," I say, as I walk further into the cave.

"Who are you? And what do you want?" the voice answers.

"My name is Syra, and I just wish to ask you about your drawings," I say, as I stay still, peering into the darkness of the cave ahead.

"SYRA?!" the voice yells in an excited tone.

Before I answer, it makes me think. That voice sounds so familiar, like I have heard it before, a long time ago.

"Yeah, it's me. Please show yourself," I say, holding my finger out in front of me.

To my surprise, it's a person emerges from the depths of the cavern. The fiery red I saw earlier was in fact the colour of this person's hair.

"By the prophet, am I glad to see you, Syra!" Rodland says, with a huge smile on his face.

"RODLAND! What are you doing on my planet? And how are you alive?" I say, before running, and hugging him.

"Well, that's a good question, Syra. Where do I even begin?" Rodland explains.

"Who saved your life? And how?" I ask.

"An old woman in a black hooded cloak. She was riding a black dragon. She brought me here and said that one day I would be saved by an old friend, and wouldn't tell me who or when," Rodland replies.

"Did she say her name?"

"No, she kept that hidden too."

"Where is your armour?"

"That was part of the arrangement. I had to take off all my armour, except my cloth leggings."

"Why on Earth would she tell you to do that?"

"Again, I'm not really sure."

"It just makes no sense. Well, at least you're safe now, that's for certain. Rodland, are you able to wait here until the morning? I'm working a gig in this area so I can bring you back home after that?" I say, before leaning in to give him a hug.

"Not a problem. It's really good to see you. You look a bit older too?" Rodland replies, sounding confused.

"Yeah, I'm thirty now. Twelve years have passed since we last saw each other."

"That sounds about right. It feels like that long; I have been here for many moons," Rodland says, before smiling towards me.

"I'll be back as soon as I'm finished. You know you can trust me," I say, before turning around, and leaving the cave.

As I walk back to the metal festival, excitement consumes me. Rodland is alive, and I can't explain how happy that makes me. With the way everything ended twelve years ago, it's good to see that I have an amazing warrior still alive; and not to mention a good friend.

I arrive back at the festival, and can't take my thoughts off Rodland. That poor guy, has been trapped on Earth for over twelve years. Is it destiny or coincidence that I bumped into him? Regardless of what it is; I know he's the link to us both getting back to Tharp.

"Syra, what's wrong? You seem distracted? And what were you doing way out there? It's dangerous!" the backstage security guard asks.

"I'm okay, just felt like a walk, I'm bushed. Look mate, you know how much I love heavy metal, my reviews describe how I feel about it, and have made me famous in the process. But I'd recommend not questioning my whereabouts. I do what I want, when I want, all right?" I reply in a frustrated tone.

"Oh yes, Miss Syra. Sorry I didn't mean to come across bossy or anything. I was just concerned for your safety. And, I thought I'd let you know that the headlining act, 'Spartan Overkill' are almost ready to be interviewed, then they will play their set, for you to review. Afterwards, you may take your private jet home, or you could attend the after party as usual?" the guard says, sounding a little nervous.

"Yeah, thanks; I'll be in soon."

I hate company suck-ups with a passion. Do your job and do it well, and you'll make it to where you want in life. Sucking up to people gets you nowhere, and if it does, it generally drives you sideways in your career, not forward.

Three long hours pass, and I've finished interviewing Spartan Overkill. They are the most successful metal act out of Greece, ever. Normally I would be over the moon getting to interview a band as prestigious as them, but right now; I don't care. All that's on my mind is getting Rodland home. Maybe we should head to the infirmary. That would give me as much nostalgia as my visit to the university the other day; it's like a time warp heading back there.

I look around the back of the venue to make sure no one is following me. When I know the coast is clear, I sneak out towards where Rodland is hiding.

"Rodland, are you there?" I say in a calm, soothing voice.

"I'm here," Rodland replies, as he emerges from the darkness with his sword in hand.

"Do you have anything else that you need to bring?" I ask.

"No, sorry I don't. As I mentioned before, my saviour took all my armour, so all I have are my leggings," Rodland replies, looking down at his attire.

"Don't worry, we'll sort something out when we return to New Zealand. Let's head outside, and I'll organize our lift," I say.

The night sky is definitely a good camouflage for our ride. I hold my hands stretched out to the left and right of me, and look towards the moon.

"Butch!" I yell.

Moments later he comes bursting out of the ground nearby, landing right next to us.

"Good booooooyy, Butch. How are you? Sorry I've been neglecting you a little bit lately, it's just hard to summon a Phoenix on our planet, without raising suspicion," I say, as I stroke his neck.

"Don't worry about it Syra, it's only been three months," Butch replies, sarcastically.

"When did you get a pet Phoenix?" Rodland asks.

"We have a lot to catch up on. Here, jump up," I say, signalling him to jump on Butch's back.

After he hopes on, Butch leaps into the air, and we make our way back to New Zealand.

Seeing Rodland gives me hope of some way to return to Tharp. I have a lot of unfinished business. Hopefully, that can start tonight.

After a very speedy flight, we land in the university at dusk, thankfully. For obvious reasons, I like to ride Butch during the night to avoid suspicion.

"Thanks Butch, you're dismissed," I say, just before he disappears into the sky.

"Where are we?" Rodland asks.

"We're at Leviathan University; this is where Vetor and I attended to further our education. Now, let's head to where the infirmary is," I reply.

When Rodland and I arrive at the infirmary, the sight makes my stomach sink. It appears to have been burnt, and the windows are boarded up - like the rest of the school. There is tagging all over it, but none of which I can read, or at least make any sense of.

Something that confuses me is the time that the infirmary is gracing us with its presence. It's long after 11am, so why is it here, for us to inspect? Hopefully we will find out. I look towards Rodland and smile.

"Let's get you home, Rodland," I say, as I lean in to open the door.

As soon as I touch the handle, the door falls off the hinges, and dust goes everywhere. I make a two inch flame come out of my left index finger, illuminating the dusty confines of the infirmary.

"Maybe cover your mouth?" I suggest, as we both enter.

"What is this place?" Rodland asks.

"This is the building that Vetor and I used to get to Tharp in the first place," I say, creaking open the door at the end of the corridor.

When the door opens, it reveals more darkness. If it wasn't for my light, we wouldn't be able to see a thing.

"There they are, the double doors that lead back to Tharp," I say, wiping the cobwebs off the door handles.

I creak the doors open, walk through and fall off a two metre high drop, landing face first into the grass on the other side. The connection to the portal is gone.

"Syra, are you hurt?" Rodland asks, as he hops down to help me up.

"I don't understand. Why is the portal not there? Is it because somebody burnt the building?" I mutter as Rodland helps me up.

"Possibly, possibly, not. At the end of the day, we can't change that, so I guess we could say that we need to find an alternate way back?" Rodland replies with a smile on his face.

"Okay, well let's head back to the entrance. I just want to see it one last time. It's just such a blast from the past," I say, leading us both around to the front of the building.

When we arrive, we both stand in silence. Mixed with my sense of nostalgia, is an abundance of fear. What are we going to do? How do we get Rodland back? Is there any way back?

Suddenly, wind starts whooshing around behind us, and bolts of lightning spark all over the field.

A huge ball of kinetic energy - about the size of a car - appears, and its emitting lightning like you wouldn't believe.

Once it disappears through a small black hole in the air, Modnar drops to the ground. Can anyone say perfect timing?

###

If you have enjoyed this chapter, please head to your favourite Ebook retailer and download 'Tales of the Arter gems: Episode V - Syra's Paradox' to carry on your journey in the land of Tharp.
