"I am still waiting. Did you not promise me answers?"
Mane was lying on his bed, his gaze fixed onto the ceiling of his room. At had been five hours- five hours since his class had ended. Normally, he would have paid a visit to the library after class but he had no mood for that today. He returned to the dormitory immediately after class.
He wasn't alone. The soft breathing of the twins could be heard in the dark room, which had been deprived of its' lights a short ten minutes ago.
This room which had two bunk beds, was originally designed to accommodate four individuals. This implied that they were missing a roommate. The twins had picked the bunk bed that was at the left side of the room, extremely close to the bathroom yet far away from the window. A window that coincidentally was at the right side of the room, where Mane's bed was.
Mane was accustomed to luxury, but even he had to admit that the rooms the academy provided for the elite students were truly extravagant. Each room had a balcony and a bathroom. The bathrooms were fitted with both a bathtub and a stand-in shower that was bordered by glass wall.
Mane had chosen the upper bank. Unlike the twins who wanted to be as far away from the window as possible, Mane liked to watch the moon. The glowing moon and the glistering stars that littered the sky helped in calming him down but the dark room served as a constant reminder of the events that occurred this afternoon.
The darkness of the room that had acted as a safe haven just yester night and all the nights before, brought back memories of what had happened in the classroom.
Those icy hands that had gripped his being and the terror that had latched onto his very soul.
He shook every time he recalled the screams of the voices that took refuge in the darkness. As for the hand that had rescued him and the light that gave him hope, Mane understood that he had the 3rd and the 8th to thank.
He owed them his life!
He did not want to imagine what would have happened if they did not take action. The light was produced by the 8th. He called it a spell of clarity, a high rank alchemy technique that was difficult to master but gave bountiful results when it was.
This spell was able to clear one's mind and hence was a perfect tool to use when dealing with dark lifeforms. The 8th also mentioned that the spell of clarity could be used to cancel out any distractive thoughts when comprehending a technique or a skill. In the higher worlds, it was a skill in high demand. According to the 1st, even nobility and ascended realm experts would pay handsomely for an alchemist who could cast this technique.
Under normal circumstances, Mane would have been curious regarding the depth of the 8th's ability but not today. Today, he only wanted answers.
As for the hand that had dragged him out, it belonged to the 3rd. The 3rd was a spiritualist! Spiritualists were able to invade the minds of others and hence they are feared across the worlds.
Apart from the royal family of the Northern Empire, Mane did not know of any other spiritualists on Zandor. However, that family had a flaw. They had no fighting capabilities. The 3rd was different. From what the others told him, the 3rd was a battle freak! The 2nd mentioned that the third could not only invade the consciousness of others but could also control inanimate objects.
The third was a psychokinetic (telekinetic)!
Luckily, there weren't many spiritualists since it was a very rare profession due to its stringent qualifications.
For one to become a spiritualist they had to have a high level of intelligence. Secondly, they should have a soul based bloodline. As for becoming a spiritualist at the level of the 3rd, one had to have at the very least, a legendary bloodline. This made practicing as a spiritualist extremely difficult.
There was a leeway though. If high ranking spiritualists could transfer their bloodlines to others, that person would inherit their abilities!
"Why aren't any of you answering? WHAT IS HAPPENNING TO ME?"
Mane's furious shout was so deafening that the space in his inner psyche shook. Even then, no one stepped forward to answer him.
"Please, tell me what is going on?"
Mane's voice no longer held the power to move the space. He was pleading now. When he was in the classroom he could maintain his composure. The only reason he could do that was because he was in public. He even had the composure to trick his teacher.
Things were different now. He was all alone. There were nine lifeforms with him- nine- but he still felt alone. He missed his parents. He missed Uncle Jake. The man always knew what to say to comfort him. He had never felt so vulnerable before. He began to cry.
Listening to the sobs of the little boy, the nine lifeforms that stayed in this space were distraught. Though all of them were hegemons of their worlds, none knew how to comfort a kid.
*Sigh*
A sigh resounded. The sigh was filled with resignation.
"Okay kid. We'll answer your question"
*******************
"Did you feel that?" Alexis asked her husband. Ray nodded, a rarely seen seriousness etched on his face.
"We have to go there now!" Ray restrained Alexis as she struggled to break free. Alexis was a very intelligent woman. No matter what happened she was always very well composed, rarely losing her cool. In the myriad worlds, Alexis was renowned not only for her beauty but for her intelligence and excellent deductive skills. Ray on the other hand was called the brute king. He always handled things with his fists and rarely considered the consequences of his actions. Unfortunately, when it came to their son she was anything but tactful. In times like these the Brute King was the calm one. Though this wasn't the first time, the irony of this statement had not been lost on him.
"We can't. Come back to your senses Alexis! If we could feel it, so could they." Ray's words were very effective. Alexis had regained her sanity. She knew Ray was right. If they could tell what that power was, she was positive they had felt it too.
"We'll go and see him, I promise you that. But not now, okay?" Alexis nodded her head at her husband's words.
"It's just that we are his parents but we have barely spent any time with him. Even when he needs us we cannot help." Alexis bit her bottom lip as she struggled to restrain her tears.
"I know. It pains me as well"
Ray sighed in frustration as he hugged his wife. Her trembling shoulders and sniffs were a clear indication that her tear ducts had failed her. He looked up at the night sky as killing intent filled his eyes. He would make them pay for this. The ones that had separated their family. His father's clan.
The Greek Pantheon!
On a major world, high above the clouds was a mountain. A mighty mountain that caused all who cast their eyes upon it to feel awe and fear. That mountain was the home of the Greek gods, Mount Olympus!
"That power… Could it be?" A man with white hair that ended just below his shoulders and an unruly beard that reached his chest stared at the clouds below with his blue eyes. Though he had an average height and an average build, there was a formless aura around him that caused one to feel fear. He stood straight like a javelin as he stared at nothing in particular, his thoughts in such a jumbled mess that he ignored the figure that stood at his side.
The figure that stood at his side was different from him. For starters, he was at least seven feet tall and completely dwarfed the 5 feet 8 inches middle aged man he stood with. He had an impressive build, his muscles struggling to break his leather armor apart.
Unlike the older man, this figure stopped down on a railing, his elbow was propped onto it as his hand cupped his chiseled chin. The huge sword strapped to his back only served to increase his grandeur.
He had an indifferent expression on his face as he said, as if to no one in particular, "That power could only belong to him. Father, we must act now."
"No, Ares we cannot. Even I cannot locate the boy. What makes you think we can do anything?"
The tall man sneered, "Old man I know you could have located him if you wanted to. Why don't you just admit that you cannot do it! You are weak, just like that bastard."
"I am weak?"
The originally docile weather took a sharp turn. Dark clouds gathered above the castle on the mountain.
"Did you just call me weak?"
In response to his words, the thunderous roar of the lightning elements, lit up the sky.
*BOOM*
*crackle*
*BOOM*
Two huge bolts of lightning, each as thick as an adult man descended with ferocity as they aimed at the tall figure.
Ares's expression changed as he watched the bolts descend. He unsheathed the large sword strapped to his back as he slashed towards the sky with all the strength he could muster. A bright sword light ascended to confront the deadly attack!
*BOOM*
The sword light canceled out a lightning bolt and reduced the strength of the other by a small fraction.
Unfortunately, that was all it could do!
The remaining lightning bolt came crashing down on Ares! He bent he legs and raised his sword above his head as he held it horizontally, welcoming the attack.
*BOOM*
The thunderous sound of lightning crashing down on its prey resounded loudly, alerting all who lived on the mountain.
Ares looked up at his father. His fingers clenched as he seethed silently, his rage at its boiling point.
He knew the man looking down on him right now was not going to admit it but he regretted the decision he made seven years ago.
But Ares was different. He did not regret a thing!
If he could turn back time he would kill the damn kid! It seemed that he had to seriously consider the offer that THAT MAN gave him.
The lightning clad figure looked down on the sorry figure that lay sprawled on the ground, not at all resembling the grandiose figure of a few seconds ago.
He ignored the look of bitterness and resentment that was directed at him and declared with a loud, booming voice.
"Remember this Ares. Don't you dare disrespect me. FOR. I. AM. ZEUS!!!!"