In the morning, Bodhi told Raj and Vana what had happened, even though it still felt like a dream.
"It can't have been a dream Bodhi! The sword is right there!" Raj said as he pointed to the sword resting against a tree.
"I get it… but I still don't get it," Bodhi replied.
"So do you really think it was the shadow king who you saw?" Vana asked.
"It must have been."
"Alright everyone, it's time to go," Thelos announced to the group. "Are you guys ready?" He asked as he approached the three of them. He then glanced at the sword and his eyes opened wide as if he had seen a ghost.
"That sword!... How?!... Why is it here?!"
"Thelos, have you seen this sword before?!" Bodhi asked.
"That is the Sword of Light! I saw it once as a young man. And so I ask you once more, how is that it is casually resting right here?!" He stopped for a moment to reflect and then asked. "Bodhi, did you go somewhere last night?"
"Well… I am not sure. I think I did, but it doesn't feel like it was real. It was more like a dream."
"I see… You went to the temple."
"How did you know?!"
"Because I went to the temple when I was young and I know exactly what you mean. That is where I saw the sword of light previously. So I guess you also met Simi?"
"Yes I did!"
"Simi is the talkative monkey who is the guardian right?" Raj asked.
"Ahaha… I would love to see his face hearing you describe him that way."
"Do I hear someone wants to see my face?" Simi said as he jumped out of the light gem in the sword's hilt.
"Whoa!" Raj and Vana exclaimed.
"Simi! It really is you!" Thelos exclaimed.
"Long time no see little Thelos."
"Little Thelos?" the kids thought to themselves as they exchanged chuckles.
"Long time no see Simi. Thank you for your guidance back then." Thelos said as he bowed.
"Of course, it is my job after all. I hadn't had such a deserving guest as yourself until Bodhi dropped by last night."
"I still can't believe Bodhi was able to bring the Sword of Light out."
"I was a bit surprised myself. I thought it would be a while longer until anyone would be able to do so again."
"Again?" Bodhi asked.
"Yes, the sword hasn't been brought out from the temple ever since the first King of Light, a thousand or so years ago."
"A thousand years!" the kids exclaimed.
"Yup."
"Why now?" Thelos asked
"Not why, but who." Simi replied as he looked at Bodhi.
"I see." Thelos said in acknowledgment.
"Why me?" Bodhi asked.
"Why not?" Simi retorted.
"Fret not Bodhi, answers will come in due time," Thelos added.
They chatted for a bit longer till Thelos somberly said.
"Bodhi, if the sword was not meant to be with you it would not be. Just make sure no one sees it. Take this silk cloth to wrap around it. Do not reveal it unless it is an emergency."
"Ok, thank you Thelos."
"Alright, I am heading back in for a bit then. You kids behave yourselves, you included little Thelos." Simi said.
The kids chuckled seeing Thelo's slightly embarrassed expression instead of his usual stoic self.
Thelos walked back to his horse, "old friend, you really did find a special student after all," he thought to himself,
After several hours of journeying through the woods, they finally made it out and could see the town of Belen in the distance.
"We finally made it!" One of the kids exclaimed.
A short time later they arrived at the main lodge in the town's center.
"We will be staying here till tomorrow. Knight Russ will help you guys find your rooms and after that, you can head to the food hall. Enjoy yourselves and get some rest. We will gather back here tomorrow at daybreak." Thelos announced.
As the kids got off their horses and handed them to the lodge staff, the two local council leaders approached Thelos with pained expressions.
"Thank you for your hospitality council leaders. Has something happened?"
"Sir Knight Thelos, we have a serious problem."
"What is it?"
"For the last two weeks, kids have been disappearing."
"Disappearing?"
"At first it was a couple of them and we sent out search parties for several days, but even during that time others also disappeared and by now there are about a dozen who are missing. The town is in a state of panic."
"Have you notified the capital about this?"
"Yes, we sent word last week but it may still be another day or so until help arrives and we fear every day that goes by the kids may be at greater risk."
"So you want me to look into it while we are here."
"To put it bluntly, yes. Please, if you could." They begged.
"My only mission is to escort these kids safely to the capital."
The council leaders looked deflated after hearing his words.
"However, this situation may impact my ability to do so since these kids may also be in danger, therefore looking into this matter is aligned with my mission."
Their expressions immediately changed.
"Thank you sir Knight Thelos! We thank you!"
Thelos was troubled by their report, but it is not as if he hadn't encountered similar situations in the past. "Could it be one of the shadow groups?"
"Hey Thelos, what is going on?" Bodhi asked as they approached him.
"We have a bit of a situation on our hands. It seems some kids have been disappearing over the last couple of weeks."
"How can that be?!" Raj exclaimed.
"Raj, keep it down, I don't want anyone else to know about this. I am only telling you this since I will need you guys to help Knight Russ manage the other kids."
"What do you mean?! We are gonna help you look for the kids." Vana proclaimed as Bodhi and Raj nodded in agreement.
"You..." Thelos was in the midst of saying otherwise when he heard Simi in his mind, "little Thelos, let them help."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Thelos, there is no way we won't be helping you." they insisted.
"Ok, you can help. First, I will take a look from above." Thelos said as he grabbed a whistle from his hilt and blew on it to produce a melodic sound.
To everyone's amazement, a majestic falcon landed on Thelos's extended forearm.
"Whoa, she is beautiful," Vana remarked.
"This is Horui, she has been my eyes and ears in the sky for many years," Thelos explained. "Horui, fly and look for the reinforcements from the capital coming this way."
"Is she that smart to understand such a specific command?" Raj asked.
"Yes, we share a mind bond so she can understand my requests, and I can see and hear what she sees and hears."
"That's amazing!"
Thelos motioned his arm upwards as Horui took off and soared above them. Thelos closed his eyes and focused on his bond with Horui. After a few moments, he could see a group of knights from the capital in the distance. They were about a day away from the town.
"Ok, now look for the missing kids." He relayed the command.
Horui flew over the outskirts of the great forest towards the Great Valley a few kilometers away. Horui sensed some abnormal activity and headed in its direction. It wasn't long until she spotted a wooden cart, a couple of horses and the entrance to a cave. Horui landed on a tree close by and listened.
"I hear them," Thelos said.
"You hear them, but you can't see them?"
"They are being held inside a cave. And the knights from the capital will only be here tomorrow at the earliest. I wonder if I should wait for them."
"They are also aware of the knights from the capital so they will move out tonight," Simi said as he once again appeared and sat on Bodhi's shoulder.
"I was afraid of that," Thelos said. "So we must act. Are you guys sure about this?"
"Yes!" they replied.
"You must remain calm at all times and listen to my every command."
They followed Thelos for an hour or so to where Horui had spotted the cave. They stopped a good distance away to observe the area.
"I only sense two bandits, but they are both magic users and they each have a magic gem. There is also a relic."
"How can you sense all of that so precisely Thelos?" Vana asked.
"You will be able to as well once you train to sense mana. Bodhi can you sense anything yourself?"
"I could only sense there was someone who was a magic user in the area but that's about it."
"That's a good start. Close your eyes and try to sense the direction of where they are. We are constantly emanating waves of mana in all directions. Connect to the mana all around you as if it was a body of water and just sense where the ripples in the water are emanating from."
"I can sense one is to the left in the direction of the wooden cart and I want to say the other is in the cave but I can't be sure," Bodhi said.
"Yes, the second one is in the cave which already makes it more difficult to sense but he is also better at concealing himself."
"Oh, so you can do that?" Raj commented.
"Yes you can practice concealment, and even though he is good at it he is too complacent right now since he assumes none of the villagers would find them. The other is not even trying, it is almost as if he is inviting others to sense him. Their personalities also affect their mana output. One having a boisterous and arrogant personality that welcomes a fight while the other is more cautious and prefers to lurk in the shadows."
"But if we can sense them wouldn't they be able to sense us as well?"
"If I was alone it wouldn't be a problem but since you kids haven't learned how to conceal your presence, I am using an artifact to do so," Thelos said as he showed them an amulet hanging on his waist.
"That is neat," Raj said.
"Ok Simi, you told me to bring them but now I need your help."
Simi swirled out of the light gem and appeared on Bodhi's shoulder.
"Don't worry Thelos. You take care of the fiery ruffian and the kids and I will take care of the shadowy one."
Thelos handed Bodhi the artifact and headed to the left towards the cart while the kids sneaked towards the entrance of the cave to the right.
"Seems the shadowy one is busy deep into the cave system and the kids are all sitting next to each other not that far in. There are also many shadowy guests and a big boy in there as well."
"Shadowy guests and a big boy?" Bodhi asked.
"Yes, the sneaky one is using shadow magic to summon shadow elementals to guard the children. And as far as the big boy, you will see him soon enough but don't worry, I will deal with him."
"If you say so. But how are we supposed to deal with the shadow elementals?" Bodhi asked.
"Bodhi you have the Sword of Light. Vana hand me your quiver," Simi said as he grabbed it and touched the arrowhead of each arrow. "Ok, I have infused the metal with light magic so now you can do away with any shadow elemental you hit."
"Thank you Simi."
"What about me?" Raj asked.
"Raj you have a different task. I need you to stay outside and go observe Thelos from a distance."
"What?! You want me to just sit and watch."
"Trust me, you won't be sitting for long. You will know when the time comes to act. Just don't do anything before the little red one comes out."
"The little red one?" Raj said as he scratched his head.
Bodhi, Vana, and Simi sneaked into the cave and hid behind some rock formations. They could see the children and shadow elementals now. They looked like swirly and skinny humanoid figures.
"So creepy," Vana said as the hair in her arms shot up and a shiver ran down her spine.
"I will get their attention. You can then shoot them down while Bodhi takes care of any straddlers on the way to free the children."
Simi jumped out from behind the rock and started waving his hand.
"Wohooo... Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please."
The shadow elementals swiftly turned around and began to rushing towards Simi. Not only had they been instructed to attack anyone that showed up, but they also instinctively reacted since Simi was a light elemental and therefore their natural enemy.
Vana expertly began to shoot them down one by one as Bodhi quickly made his way toward the children, swinging his sword through any shadow elementals in his way. He freed them and told them to hurry outside, asking the oldest one to lead the rest back to the village.
"Hey, what is all of this commotion?!" The bandit had finally emerged from the depths of the cave system. "Who the hell are you supposed to be?!" He asked Bodhi.
"We are here to stop you."
"Ahahaha, a kid is here to stop us. What gives you the confidence to say such rubbish?"
The bandit manifested shadow spikes from the gem in his ring and sent them hurtling towards Bodhi. He evaded and slashed some while jumping and rolling to take cover behind a big rock.
"Now it's time to try out the sword's ability like Simi taught me."
"Don't focus on fighting against the shadows. Instead, focus on allowing the light to shine forth." Bodhi remembered Simi's words.
"Ahaha, how do you intend to stop us if all you can do is hide behind a rock?" the bandit taunted.
Bodhi revealed himself and pointed the sword towards him.
"Oh, I am sooo scared..."
The light gem on the sword's guard began shining brightly and suddenly a ray of light shot out from the tip of the sword, cutting through the bandit. Though it was not flesh it cut, but rather the corrupted shadow mana in his body. The bandit was stunned. He fell to his knees and then flopped onto the ground unable to move.
"What... did you do to me?!"
"I am not too sure myself, but you won't be causing pain to others for some time," Bodhi said as he tied the dejected bandit's hands and feet.
"RAAAWR..." A roar echoed throughout the cave.
"Simi, is this the big boy you were talking about?!" Bodhi said as a massive bear made his way out of the deeper parts of the cave system.
"Yes, this is the guardian of this valley, but he has been corrupted by the shadowy one who was manipulating him. Now he is out of control."
"Corrupted?"
"Yes, he corrupted his spirit with shadow magic so right now all he can do is act like an unruly beast."
"How are we supposed to stop him? Should I do the same thing I just did?"
"No, you won't be able to do so again for a while and at your level of comprehension of light magic it would not be enough for him," Simi said as he transformed from a capuchin monkey into a huge white-haired gorilla. "But fret not, I can also be a big boy if I want to," Simi said and began running towards the raging bear. "You are not in your right state of mind old friend, so I apologize in advance if I get a bit rough."
Simi and the bear clashed. Simi slammed both of the bear's hands down and then swiftly grabbed his waist and in a semi-circular motion, he moved behind him to lift and slam the massive bear into the ground.
"Be still my friend," Simi said as a ring of light formed around the bear's head who seemed to calm down and slowly drift into a daze. Simi then lay his hands on the bear's head and chest. The shadow mana started dissolving out of the bear as black smoke but a lot of it also flowed into Simi who was now enveloped by it.
"Simi! Are you okay?!"
"This is purification Bodhi. Observe."
Simi began to shine brightly and the shadow mana that flowed into him began to transmute and dissolve as black smoke until it was fully cleared.