This is a passion work. So, I would really appreciate it if you leave behind a review when you're done reading.
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CH26: REUNION
"Wait! What?! What do you mean by 'to wake my allies'?" Korede is so shocked that he asks out loud.
[That was what I initially wanted to tell you before we digressed. Though your allies are alive and well, when I shielded all of you from the explosion, a combined pulse of your soul and mine was released that scattered their minuscule Will. It was like throwing a boulder close to a sandcastle. Just the force of impact of the boulder will scatter the sandcastle. I'm basically immortal so the strength of my soul is unimaginable compared to that of individuals at your level of strength. Just the strength of your soul, one carrying the Mark of Time, is enough to cause the same effect. Not to mention a combination of both our souls. So, until their scattered Will is pieced together, they will not wake up. Even if they do, they will be retarded at best, dead at worse.]
'The deal was to save their lives.' Korede yelled in his mind.
[They are alive.] The Symbiote refuted.
'You call this being alive?' Korede argued.
[Look, this isn't my fault. It was merely an unfortunate occurrence. I had to absorb all the energy that could have harmed you and your allies immediately after our bond was formed. It was either I saved you or I cleared the residual soul bond energy. I could only do the former. Besides, it's not as if you can't save their lives. As long as you can gain control of your Will, you can help them piece together their Will.]
After hearing the Symbiote's explanation, Korede calmed down.
'So everything comes back to this Will. What exactly is this Will you speak of anyway?'
[Explanation of Will can be different for every race, you will have to find out for yourself. It's possible any explanation I give may be wrong and lead you astray.]
'How am I supposed to find something I don't even know about?! Can't you give me a clue?' Korede asked frustratedly.
The Symbiote had not been helpful at all since their conversation started. It was always 'I can't tell you.' It was starting to get on Korede's nerves.
The Symbiote didn't answer Korede's question immediately as it seemed in thought. Just when Korede had enough of the silence, it responded
[The closest thing in your memories to a conscious application of Will is the so called 'Sword Intent' or 'Sword Will']
Korede was stunned. He could not believe the advice the symbiote gave would be a nonsensical technique or ability from old fantasy martial art movies.
'Don't you know Sword Intent is just a myth from the movies? How am I supposed to learn something that doesn't exist?' Korede said, annoyed. He was starting to wonder if this so-called symbiote was purposely trying to get on his nerves.
[Hey, don't get angry at me. You asked for a clue and I gave you one. Sword Intent might be a myth to you but Will is real. Besides you, of all people, should know that most myths have a foundation of truth.]
Korede was left speechless. What the symbiote just said was, in fact, true.
Wasn't a human with no limit on his potential a myth? He is exactly such a person.
Are aliens not myths? He was talking to one. The said alien was bonded to him.
Are the River of Time and other Supreme Laws not myths? Yet it has haunted his dreams for years. He even carried the Mark and was Childe of said myth.
'Indeed, every myth has a foundation of truth.' (1) Korede mumbled in his mind.
'Okay then. Let's say Sword Intent is real. According to the movies, it is only known to people that practice ancient martial arts and swordsmanship.' Korede reasoned.
He began to feel delighted after having a clue to trace. However, a few seconds later, he realised something that drops his mood again.
'True ancient martial arts, in themselves, are also myths. It's not so hard to find a place that claims to 'practice' ancient martial arts but to find the real deal will be difficult. Even if I do find, getting them to teach me will be another huddle.'
Korede was starting to feel the thread of this clue become thinner. He considered giving it up until heard the beeping of the vitals monitors in the ward. His attention turned to his comatose teammates connected to these monitors.
He recalled the time he spent with them. Though short, each of them left an impression on him. Out of all of them, he had known Champion the longest since he had been learning programming from Mr. Onuoha. They grew close during those times
Then there were Temitope and Abdul-Lateef. Temitope was an annoying person to him but he was the person that could truly become a close friend. Abdul-Lateef was also one of the few people he wanted to be friends with.
Then Mary. Although they only just met, he had heard a lot about her the Onuoha father and son. His impression of her was also good.
As for Fatima. Though she seemed like a quiet person, every time she spoke or even gestured, it was always for something important. Korede found her interesting.
Above all else, they were teammates. He was their team leader. They fought together and they were his responsibility. Determination once again returned to his face.
'Even if the thread was thin, for my team's sake, I have to follow it to the end.' He made up his mind.
All through his contemplation, the symbiote could hear everything. However, it said nothing. It wanted to catch a glimpse of its new Host's character. Throughout its life, far longer than what any human could imagine, it had seen almost every type of person. It was beginning to see what kind of person its new host was.
[i will continue to watch and decide how much help I'll offer him.] The symbiote also came to a decision. One which Korede was unaware of.
After making up his mind, Korede sat and replayed the entire conversation he had with the symbiote, ideally, to get a better understanding of this new partner of his and their relationship going forward.
'Oh yeah. You said you are immortal. How does that work? I'm guessing I'm not your first Host.' Korede asked. The symbiote was somewhat surprised by the abrupt question but answered anyway.
[indeed, you are correct. You are not my first Host. I have had numerous Hosts before you. I can not die. So, every time the natural life span of my Host comes to an end or they die, I will fall into dormancy until the day destiny brings forth my next Host.] The symbiote replied with an emotion in its voice that escaped Korede's grasp.
'They must have been very strong, at least stronger than me from the way you talk. Can't you teach me their technique for controlling their Will?' Korede asked, hopeful. Alas, he was to be disappointed.
[Yes, they are… were far stronger than you. Most of them were stronger than you even before we met and they became my host. Some were around your level or a little weaker. They all, however, became strong. Strong, not in the sense of your planet but the sense of the entire universe.] The symbiote suddenly chuckled [The weakest host I bonded with was a baby. It drove me insane as I had to wait almost fifty human years before it was grown enough to communicate with me.]
Even though it sounded like it was complaining, its chuckles show that it enjoyed its time with that Host.
[Anyway. No, I can't teach you their methods. Like I said earlier, the concept of Will can be different for each species or race. Their method may not work for you. In the best-case scenario, you may just waste a bit of time. In the worst case, however, you will be crippled and forever be incapable of harnessing your Will.]
When Korede heard this, he involuntarily swallowed his saliva. His teammates were waiting for him to wake them up, he couldn't needlessly take stupid risks.
[Besides, I cannot tell you anything about my previous Host, Ever. That includes their identity, race, age, date of birth/death, their techniques, or even how they died. Anything that can be traced back to them. The little I told you earlier is already reaching the line I cannot cross.]
'Okay. Sorry, I asked.' Korede apologized. 'Well, I guess I don't have to worry about you leaking my secrets after I die then.' He said trying to lighten the mood.
An awkward silence descended on the both of them. After a while Korede coughed, trying to shift his mind elsewhere.
'There's still the problem of how I am going to find an Ancient Martial Arts Master to teach me.' Korede began to weigh his options. Eventually, he narrowed down on one. A smile appeared on his face as he heard someone's footsteps walking in. It was a footstep he would recognise any time
'I guess I can just ask him.' Korede thought as he turned to face the person who was now standing in front of him silently. (2)
Eagle Squad Camp, Dodan Military Base
Colonel Balogun had not been in the best of moods lately. Who could blame him? At work, the Eagle Squad lost a team of some of its best veterans. Another team of top recruits had been hospitalised with no recovery date in sight. Due to the last attempt of the Haram Boyz to acquire a 'dirty bomb'(3), some of the higher-ups in the military have been pushing for more significant action against them. Thus, the already member-stressed Eagle squad was getting more missions. Not to mention they were still doing 'peace-keeping' missions and as well as covert missions for the Nigerian Department of Intelligence(NDI). Work had never been so stressful.
At home, with his brother still in a coma, his parents were sick with worry. His father, Department of State Security(DSS) D.G Babatunde Balogun, had been strongly pushing for his retirement to keep an eye on his wife's health. Fortunately, the woman would not allow it and had buried her head in her work at the Supreme Court. However, he was concerned this was just a temporary measure. If his brother didn't wake up soon, their mother, Supreme Court Justice Shade Balogun, might have an emotional meltdown. He could handle the stress of work but he didn't even want to imagine such a scenario.
After another hard and long day at work, which finished at 11:30 pm, he had a light snack to fill his tummy before picking up the files he brought to his room in the camp to read. The files were mostly about active missions and future planned missions. By the time he was done, he discovered that it was around 2 am so he decided to sleep. Just as he was removing his uniform, he receives a call on the base's intercom.
"Who is it at this time?" he wondered. He picked the call.
"Hello"
"Hello, Colonel Balogun. This is the Hospital. Sorry to disturb you at this time but since you asked that you be informed immediately if there's any change, we wish to inform you that one of your comatose soldiers has woken."
"What?! Really?! Are you sure?"
"Yes sir. The information came from Dr. Makinde."
"Alright, that's good news. I'm on my way over now."
Colonel Balogun could not wait. This was probably the first good news he had heard in a while. Though he didn't ask which soldier woke up, a part of him dearly wished it was his brother. You can't blame him, can you? He is human after all.
He quickly made his way for the ward. Hardly anyone didn't know Colonel Balogun on the Military Base, so no one got in his way. He soon arrived at the ward and saw the patient sitting on the bed furthest away into the ward by the window. The patient was sitting with his back facing the door, looking out the window to the night sky. Colonel Balogun's body shook as he was overwhelmed by his emotions. A bit of relief, happiness, and various others.
Noticing his presence, the patient stood up and turned towards him. With a smile on his face, the patient said, "Hello Big Brother. It seems like I've been asleep for a while. Hope everyone was not too worried."
Kola Balogun did not reply his little brother. He just walked to him and hugged him tightly. After a while, Korede tapped his back with an exaggerated expression, "That's enough Bro, you're choking me here. Do you want to put me back to sleep again?"
Only then did Kola release his brother. Still holding his shoulder, however, Kola examined Korede's body and posture. After a while nodded his head. Korede showed a wry smile. He was about to say something when Kola suddenly knocked him on his head.
"Hey! What was that for?!" Korede complained, holding his head.
"Is you going back into coma something to joke about? Do you know how worried we were?" Kola admonished him.
Realising his joke might have gone too far, Korede apologised, "I'm sorry Bro."
"Don't worry. All that matters is that you are Okay."
The Brothers began discussing the events that happened at home while he was comatose. The major sporting events and the likes. Eventually, Korede asked Kola a question the latter had been trying to avoid.
"So Bro, How did the mission go? Did Bro Kunle capture the Emissary?" (4)
[A.N: Please, don't forget to leave a review of the work to encourage me. Your opinion really matters to me.]
AUTHOR'S NOTE
1 This is true. Check every myth we have today, there is always something real that caused the existence of such a myth. Though, that truth might not be as crazy as the myth. Some are even boring and disappointing
2 This would have been a wonderful place to end the chapter, nice cliffhanger, but since I said I wanted to increase the word count for each chapter, I had to continue. Damn it.
P. S Don't mind the lazy author. He is just complaining because he just realised how much more work he gave himself.
3 Not sure if I've explained this before. Anyways, a dirty bomb is an improvised nuclear bomb. It's basically an explosive bomb with a nuclear material attached. The explosion acts to spread the radiation of the nuclear material. Not as deadly or sophisticated as a real Nuclear bomb but it's deadly enough.
4 Babababam. Take that word count. I found another cliffhanger ending. Bet you're wondering how he replies to his brother. Does he lie, tell the truth or avoid the question? Stayed tuned for our next chapter.
How can the great me lose to a measly word count? I will find the perfect ending for the chapter, even if I had to write more than I expected.
P.S in case you haven't noticed, the author is childish.
[A.N: Please, don't forget to leave a review of the work to encourage me. Your opinion really matters to me.]