Mane's eyebrows twitched in annoyance at what had become a norm since he was confined to his home. After his application for a two months leave had been accepted by the academy, Mane assumed that he wouldn't have any trouble for a while. His peaceful training days were no longer peaceful when Aegeus showed up. Mane had to admit that he was impressed by the boy's tenacity. Although Aegeus was only older than him by a year, the boy was very strong willed. His actions had Mane questioning if he would do the same thing were he in the boy's shoes. He was certain that he would have given up long ago after being rejected. But Aegeus kept coming back. Even when Mane had instructed the guards to rough him up a bit the net time he showed himself here, Aegeus did not relent. Mane thought the threat of a beating will have the younger brother of Frederick running away with his tail tucked between his legs, especially considering the trauma from Mane's assault sometime back. He still showed up with a bruised face, eager to achieve his goal. Although Mane admired his persistence, he still didn't think Aegeus was a good fit for his team. To be honest, Mane was done accepting members from Zandor. The quota he had prepared for this minor world had been filled already. He wouldn't accept another. So there was no way he would consider including Aegeus. It made him feel bad. There was someone here ready to better himself, yet Mane wasn't in the right place to accept another.
After all, all that he gave his members came from his masters. And it was his masters that gave him the Zandorian quota. In their words, there were any worlds out there with greater talents that Mane could recruit. It would be a waste to use their teachings on those of average talent. And this was the opinion of all the masters- except 3rd. 3rd was the only one who believed that the talents of Zandorians was greater than what it appeared to be. Although she was trapped inside him, her spirit was still as strong as ever. According to 3rd, there was a dormant power that was present in every Zandorian body, and with the right conditions, this power could be awakened. But the others argued that they didn't have any such means, and they didn't even know what could trigger this power. It would be naïve to accept members based on hidden talent, for everyone had potential, but only a few were able to truly live up to expectations.
Though Mane normally sided with 3rd, this time he had to take the side of his other masters. They were right. They didn't know what requirements had to be met before this dormant power could be awakened. It wouldn't be wise to fill their ranks with Zandorians just because of this. After all, even the 3rd, a powerful spiritualist couldn't tell the conditions for awakening. So although Mane admired Aegeus' determination to get what he wanted, the older boy wasn't going to succeed.
"Why don't you accept him as a disciple?" Alexis smirked playfully. Mane was startled by her words.
Indeed, why didn't he just accept Aegeus as his disciple? His mother knew about his masters. And she surely knew that each member of his team must first be given the nod by these proud masters of his before he could invite them to join his team. They had been softhearted by allowing him to include his roommates and two more Zandorians. If they had their way, only one person from this tiny planet will have the privilege of joining their student. After all, getting to conquer the world under the banner of the Supreme was a great privilege. That was how they saw it. To Mane, it was just pride. But he didn't complain since he had his way anyway.
But if he accepted Aegeus as his disciple it would be different. He could teach the boy what he knew, without including him in his team. But that would mean he couldn't divulge the skills of his masters and their wielding techniques to Aegeus. He would just have to ask his parents to teach Aegeus. His father couldn't accept a disciple because it was too dangerous. He had so many enemies that even his own family wasn't safe, how much more a disciple. His mother's criteria for accepting a disciple lay in their intelligence, not their strength. And so far the only person she had shown any interest in was Abe. Even Frederick wasn't good enough for her. But if Mane accepted Aegeus as his disciple, they would have no choice but to teach him what they know. Now he only wondered why he never thought of this before. It was a loophole that he should be able to exploit.
Aegeus eyes twinkled as brightly as the stars in the sky. He felt that the position of a disciple was lower than what he wanted. But his indignation didn't last for long. When he thought about the fact that he would still get his way, his misgivings were replaced quickly with joy. Anyway, Mane was stronger than him, so it was no shame being his disciple. Besides, he would get more guidance because of this title. He looked to Mane eagerly, waiting for him to speak. Although it was Mane's first time receiving a disciple, he knew what to do. After all, he had accepted nine masters, and he remembered how that had gone.
"Are you okay with this? Are you truly willing to study at my feet?" he questioned genuinely. It was no easy task, accepting that someone who was younger than you was also stronger than you. And it took a lot of humility to acknowledge such a person as your teacher. Although Aegeus had become more reserved, Mane knew that his pride was still intact. He didn't know if Aegeus would accept this.
"I am. As long as I can learn and grow stronger, I am willing to do anything." Aegeus nodded vigorously to show that he didn't mind at all. He just wanted to grow stronger. As long as the means weren't dishonest, he would welcome them at any time.
"Great" Mane exclaimed. He had to admit that he was a bit excited. This was his first disciple, and he was looking forward to it. He ignored the grumbling 6th and shut off his communication with his masters. He was too lazy to listen to their blabbering.
"Wait. Where is dad?" Mane finally realised that there was someone missing. His father wasn't one to take a long bath, so he should have been out by now.
"Oh Butler Fin came for him. There is someone here to see him." Alexis replied. "I see" Mane nodded. He wondered who it was. His father didn't have any friends on this planet, so receiving a visitor was rare. Mane was curious.
"Who could it be?" he wondered.