Mane was unaware of Ancestor Origin's – nay, the Origin King's – resurrection. The old man was like a leech and it seemed that killing him wasn't enough. Anyway, it wasn't the young Supreme's current concern. Right now, sleep was far more important. He slept peacefully, like a man worn out after a long and tiring trip. But to be fair, he had experienced much in the last hour or two So his slumber made sense.
Crystal was almost at Amalgamation by now. The journey should have been much shorter, but the new topography of the land made traversing it much more difficult. For there were craters everywhere. And the chasms that reflected the depth of the strength of Mane and Shiva could be found almost every hundred steps. Crystal had to evade these obstacles most of the time. For though she had the strength to easily call upon Chaos now, she was in no hurry to return to the city. She felt that her Lord would awaken when that moment came and was trying to avoid that as long as she could. She had already cast a Sleeping Lease and could only hope that Mane was too weak to overcome it.
It took Crystal a few more minutes to arrive at her destination. Soon the large gates of Amalgamation were right in front of her, staring at her timidly. For the proud city didn't look as grandiose as it was before. There were several large openings in the formerly impenetrable walls and part of the gate had been shaved off. Even from the outside, Crystal could tell that the formerly grand city had taken a lot of damage.
"Indeed, a battle between gods affects the common folk," Crystal sighed and cast a look to her sleeping prince. The young Supreme was still fast asleep. Crystal breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this. It was all good as long as Mane remained unconscious for now. For her master needed to rest.
Crystal walked towards the gate and easily made it through the formerly iron tight gate. Before, no one could enter Amalgamation so easily. Now however, the several openings in the wall made this a simple task. As for the opposition the Nature Barrier could impose, it was nonexistent. For the Nature Barrier clouded surfaces of objects that stood. It didn't just cover empty space. It was by use of these surfaces that it was able to form a dome around the city and keep everything within safe. But with the walls that surrounded the city broken down and the gates torn apart, the Nature Barrier was redundant. To be able to rely on the resourceful tool again, the Elementals would have to fix their city. And there was no doubt that the repair of the walls and gates would be their first priority.
Once Crystal stepped into the city, a small frown appeared on her face. Since she was carrying her master, obviously her cloaking Lease had been undone. And this meant that she could be seen. Thankfully for her, the city was mostly empty. There weren't many people around that would see her – except the one who had been tasked with waiting for the Supreme. And it was because she noticed this person that Crystal was far from happy.
"You're back," Ancestor Ice stepped out from behind a heap of rubble and approached Crystal with some degree of wariness. Ancestor Ice's words were meant for Mane, but the young man didn't give her a reply. And that caused her a bit of worry. Not only was Mane Ashera's boy, he was also a great talent she had placed all her hopes on to beat Pazuzu. He couldn't fall now – not yet.
Ancestor Ice had no idea who Crystal was, but her instincts screamed at her to stay out of the strange woman's way. And Ancestor Ice would really like to listen to her own voice of reason today. Unfortunately, that didn't depend on her. She had been tasked to make sure that Mane was the only one that entered Amalgamation – not Ancestor Origin. For Ancestor Specter predicted that even if Ancestor Origin was able to evade death at Mane's hands, he would be gravely injured. And if the old man was foolish enough to come to Amalgamation first to start his recovery, Ancestor Pier and the others were going to make sure that he would never step back out. While it was a good thing that Mane had returned, it wasn't so good that he had returned with a person who had never been spotted in this city before. And it definitely didn't help that Crystal had a dangerous smell about her.
"The young Lord is asleep. He tired himself out dealing with the threat." Crystal noticed Ancestor Ice's worry and spoke to clear a few things out. By relaying her subservience to Mane, she would eliminate herself as a threat to the young Supreme and remind the woman who stood before her of her young master's mysteriousness. For the Supreme didn't belong to Ashera, neither did he belong to Dan. He belonged to no one. He was his own!
"I didn't think Ancestor Origin would be this powerful," Ancestor Ice lowered her guard a bit after Crystal revealed her identity as a handmaiden to the Supreme. For to Ancestor Ice, it did seem that way. For what woman would allow a man to rest on her back and act so gently towards that man? So she led the two away – towards Ancestor Pier's mansion. And though the old man wasn't there, she would call for him after Mane was settled.
"It wasn't Ancestor Origin the young Lord was dealing with," Crystal replied, stunning Ancestor Ice so much that she ceased her steady stride.
"It wasn't?" Ancestor Ice asked with her expression filled with curiosity. Now a lot of things made sense to her. For there was no way Ancestor Origin's power was enough to shake the world like it had. If he had that sort of strength, there was no way he would bargain with Pazuzu and give up the lives of his own people.
"It wasn't," Crystal replied simply, causing a wry smile to stretch Ancestor Ice's lips. It seemed that she had come across a woman who was allergic to saying more than a sentence.
"Can you please tell me who it was?" Ancestor Ice probed politely. Her gentle demeanor was a bit surprising to Crystal for she expected a different reaction. The Chaos Witch stared at Ancestor Ice for a while. For the woman had managed to increase her image before the eyes of the Chaos Eternal. After a brief pause, Crystal nodded her head and told her a little bit of what ha happened.
"That was Shiva. He is a god – a god of destruction. And he is from my home –the home of Master Mane." For the first time since their conversation began, Crystal spat out more than a sentence. Ancestor Ice was stunned by what she heard. A god? How were there other gods in this world? A feeling of helplessness filled her heart and she felt lost. They were helpless against Pazuzu. How were they supposed to deal with several gods now?
"Don't worry. There will be no others. He came here for my Master. Master made sure he was buried here." Crystal soothed Ancestor Ice's worry and shook her at the same time.
Here they were, struggling to kill a god, yet a young boy had done it already. This was unbelievable! But it did bring Ancestor Ice a lot of hope. If Mane could kill a god of destruction – whatever that was – then surely he would be able to contest with Pazuzu!
However, that was for later. Right now, there was something else that Ancestor Ice wanted to know. The young man sleeping so soundly was much more than he had introduced himself to be. He was a boy who killed a god! Such a feat was unheard of in the World of the Three Great Races! And this god was one who had arrived because of him. Ancestor Ice wanted to know who Mane was.
"Who is your Master anyway?" she asked, forgetting her manners in her shock.
"That I cannot say," Crystal responded blandly. "You will have to wait for Master to wake up first. Whether he will tell you will be is decision and his alone." She added before walking towards the large gate that represented the entrance to Ancestor Specter's home. Even amidst the chaos, the old man's home was still fine somehow.
"When do you think your Master will awaken?" Ancestor Ice asked with some caution. She dared not refer to Mane by his name neither did she dare to call him Ashera's Herald. He was the boy who killed a god. She dared not refer to him by his name!
"I do not know," Crystal shook her head in reply. Based on her Master's state she expected a long sleep. Added to the fact that she had used Chaos on him, he may be asleep for a long while; maybe till his power was stabilized.
"Do not disturb him," Crystal stated before entering the house and closing the gate behind her. Her intentions were clear. This was no longer Ancestor Pier's home. This was her Master's place!
"One last question please," Ancestor Ice quickly stopped Crystal before she could completely enter the house. Crystal did halt her steps. She turned to face the Ancestor whose curiosity knew no end and gestured impatiently for her to get her question out. And Ancestor Ice quickly did so.
"Who killed Ancestor Origin?"
Since Mane was occupied with a god, Ancestor Ice felt that Ancestor Origin didn't die by the boy's hand. Although her thought process was wrong, the end result of her thoughts were not. Crystal stared at Ancestor Ice briefly before ultimately deciding that it was better for her to know the truth as a form of deterrence.
"I did," she replied, leaving Ancestor Ice who suspected all along that she was the one slightly shaken by the acquaintance she had just made.