Finally, the terrible noises coming from the volcano as a result of the battle being fought by the Masters and Students had died down. The battle against Apollo, Souryu's strongest general was finally over. The students had been informed earlier on about the connection amongst the seven generals and their abilities but they were yet to realize just how great that connection was. They did not understand it yet but by defeating Apollo, they had triggered a chain of events that would lead to the diminishing of the generals' hold over the world and their eventual downfall.
Jo-lan led the Masters and Students to the entrance of the cave Jason and Silas were in. They waited patiently for the one whom though they hadn't met yet had aided them in their battle against Apollo and Apollo's defeat. The Students felt Apollo had been defeated the moment they crushed him but the Masters knew that Apollo's true defeat began to manifest when life began to return to the continent.
Slowly, they began to perceive footsteps and a shadow approaching them from within the cave. As they watched, a boy about their age walked out of the caves with a white elk.
"Jason, I'm taking my leave now. You can call on me whenever you need me" the elk said and slowly disappeared in a stream of light.
"So you're the Jason we've heard so much about" they greeted with smiles.
"And you must be the ones that battled the evil that was once in this volcano. I'm grateful" Jason said with a slight bow.
"You did more than we could ever do. If you hadn't restored the continent's life, we wouldn't have had the moisture we needed to defeat Apollo" Josec said.
"True that" Harry said with a smile.
"I'm curious. Who amongst you is Harry Bane?" Jason asked.
"That would be me" Harry said with a laugh.
"Really?! I've always wanted to meet you! Jo-lan told me so much about you!" Jason greeted excitedly.
"Looks like Harry has a fan" Buern said with an amused look in her eyes.
"Jo-lan told me you were the first to forge a Jo-lan class of your own making. I belong to the class of Dryad. It was a class I forged on my own with Jo-lan's help so you can understand my excitement in meeting someone similar" Jason said.
"Yeah, it's not such an easy thing to do, rejecting what is mainstream" Harry said.
"You children should head on back to the village with the Masters" Jo-lan said.
"What about you? Aren't you coming with us?" Buern asked.
"My mission here is complete. I was born to aid man in their confrontation of the Black Dragon. You said it yourself Buern that wherever the Black Dragon strikes, the Crimson Phoenix will strike back" Jo-lan said.
"H-How did you know that? And that was a while back" Buern said.
"Marina told me, and I must admit I felt an air of pride for you when I heard those words so I must go…seek out the place I must be, where I can deal most damage to the Black Dragon's schemes and I must be there to act. Your next destination is the continent of Gaeia. There hidden deep within the ground is the animosity called Gargolem, Souryu's sixth general responsible for plaguing the continent through Earth Shattering Quakes. He is currently the greatest danger amongst Souryu's generals irrespective of rank" Jo-lan said.
"It's one thing to deal with a gigantic flaming being. How on earth do we fight an earthquake?" Estelle asked.
"You seem to have forgotten that battling Apollo was actually the last thing we did and we only did that after sufficient preparation. We confronted Apollo by turning the climate itself into an ally. That was how he was defeated, not necessarily by your own strength. You have the Earth-Suturing Seeds, sow them and Apollo was right about one other thing…heat does indeed intensify motion" Jo-lan said.
"I see" Jason said.
"What do you see Jason?" Josec asked.
"You know…if you leave light metals in the sun for a prolonged period of time, they begin to expand and warp. The earth is made of minerals that are nested deep within it. I'm guessing the greater the heat, the more they expand as well" Jason reasoned.
Harry laughed.
"Are you saying heat can affect tectonic movement?" he said.
"I don't know, it's just a guess but one thing I know for sure is that all of this began when that evil ball of flame nested itself in the volcano and the air began to heat up" Jason said.
"Is that why you suggested we challenge Apollo first?" Josec asked Fencer.
"I cannot verify the science behind it but one thing I know for sure is that these disasters were not as common in the past as they are today. It is true that when the generals began to make their move, these disasters began to occur with great frequency and like we said, the generals have the power to affect nature itself. It is also entirely possible that these disasters are an omen of sorts" Fencer said.
"An omen of what?" Buern asked.
"Our final confrontation with Souryu" Fencer said seriously.
"I suggested we battle Apollo first because his ability affects the climate itself and to a large extent amplifies the other generals' abilities in one way or the other. By diminishing his ability, we can increase the earth's natural ability to heal itself and in turn diminish the other generals' abilities" Fencer said.
"But Jo-lan do you…" Buern was about to ask when she noticed that Jo-lan wasn't there.
"Huh? Where did Jo-lan go?" she wondered.
"Where do you think?" Master Ayumi said with a smile.
"Let us return to Jason's village for now" Buern suggested.
When they arrived in Jason's village, there was a great celebration. The villagers were celebrating their harvest festival which they had not celebrated in five years. Jason excused himself and walked around searching for his sister and fiancée.
He found them under the tree Jason had once said his farewells to Carol. The tree was green with abundant foliage. They were watching the road to see when he'd return. Their backs were turned towards him so they didn't notice him. He smirked mischievously and snuck up behind them. He suddenly cleared his throat quite elaborately thus startling them.
"I'm back, Carol, Ivy" he greeted.
"Jason! You're home!" they exclaimed in surprise and ran to hug him.
"Did you miss me?" Jason asked.
Carol and Ivy burst into tears.
"Stupid brother! You scared us! Why did you keep that long?!" Ivy yelled angrily.
Jason laughed gently.
"I was searching for water and I found hope" Jason said.
"Shortly after you left, the volcano erupted again and there was a sound as though explosions were occurring in the atmosphere. If kind old Mr Jollyman hadn't been here to guide us, I don't know how we'd have survived. Things began to get better shortly after you left" Carol said.
"Maybe it's his bad luck that caused the drought eh Carol? Maybe he should return to wherever he came from" Ivy said and began to push Jason towards the road.
"Hey, that's pretty mean Ivy!" Jason growled angrily.
Ivy burst into laughter.
"I'm just pulling your leg" she said.
"You really get along with your sister don't you Jason?" Carol giggled in admiration.
"Get along?" Jason feigned surprise.
"This dolt here never listens to anything I say. He didn't even listen when I said he shouldn't leave" Ivy said.
"Why don't you tell me about your journey?" Carol asked.
"Looks like you two have a lot to talk about. I'm heading into the centre of the fun" Ivy said and left them.
Jason sighed and began to tell Carol everything concerning his journey. That the volcano had become the abode of a great evil. That he had received a Book Of Jo-lan and was now Dryad and he also told her about his companions who fought against Apollo. It all sounded far too extraordinary to be believable but Carol knew that Jason was not a liar. She didn't think she could believe everything he said but she didn't doubt him.
"There must be a logical explanation for all of this" she thought.
That was until Jason showed her the Book Of Jo-lan decorated with the emblems of the Crimson Phoenix and Black Dragon and Fencer, Josec, Buern, Harry, Estelle and everyone else showed up.
"Carol, these are the people I told you about. You guys this is Carol, my fiancée" Jason introduced Carol and the companions to one another.
"Jason here tells me of an incredible adventure I find hard to believe" Carol said.
"Your doubt is completely natural. What he said must indeed be hard to believe but this might be less of a question concerning what you believe in and more of a question of your faith in Jason. Would the man you know make up lies and what does he have to gain from such an action?" Fencer asked with a slight laugh.
"I guess that settles it then" Carol said and held Jason's hand.
"I don't understand everything he said and I don't know if I ever will but I believe in Jason" Carol said.
"Carol, there's something else I need to tell you" Jason said seriously.
"What is it?" Carol asked.
"I've decided to journey with these people to their next location. They may need my abilities but I'll be back soon, after all of this is cleared up" Jason said.
Carol smiled.
"I think you need to tell your sister before you leave" she said.
Jason nodded.
"We'll be hanging around Jason, in case you need us" Josec said.
Jason nodded.
The companions headed into the centre of the festival.
"It's amazing and a bit frightening" Buern said suddenly.
"What is?" Estelle asked.
"That the generals could hold so much influence, so much dominion over so many people's lives. Look how drastically things have changed after the defeat of only one of them. The continent has regained life in more ways than one. The people too have regained the will to live. Apollo didn't just starve the continent of biological life. He starved it of spiritual life too. Feelings like joy, hope, the will to live…he crushed all that and when he was crushed, it all just came back naturally. The generals are scary Josec and I mean that in a very bad way" Buern said.
"Then aren't we quite grateful that they can never agree about anything? Their inverted Jo-lan itself says it all. Each of the generals pride themselves in their individual strength. They have no use for teamwork but are only concerned of their ranks in the hierarchy of power. That is their inverted Jo-lan. It's the reason our Jo-lan which augments the strength of many into one will never lose" Master Fencer said.
"And you have made another very important observation. The fact that the earth and the people recovered quite naturally after the defeat of one of the generals. Life may be fragile but it is also very resilient. The fact that the earth itself has survived for this long and still thrives is proof of that" Master Kyem said.
TWO WEEKS LATER…
The Masters, Students and Jason had made their final preparations and were ready to leave the continent of Vung. Their task there was complete. The continent of Vung was slowly beginning to flourish. Jason's village had commenced trade with other villages and towns further inland. Over time, people from other villages moved into Jason's village and the village began to expand. This was mostly as a result of their abundant harvests. The influx of many traders gave many the chance to establish inns and recreational grounds and soon, traders from other villages set up their own stalls in the village. Traders from Jason's village journeyed to other villages. They established stalls and made many Trade Agreements with villages and towns outside the village. This gave them a source of external revenue. The diversity of trade items contributed greatly to the growth of the village. Now that the villagers did not have to worry so much about food, they could direct their efforts towards newer ventures.
Jason stood with the Masters and Students as they prepared to leave.
"The village sure became interesting in a short while" Jason said.
Fencer laughed.
"It hardly seems like the same place anymore. It's now more of a town than a village" Jason said.
"I sent a letter to my father in Avalon asking him to send food to the continent of Gaeia. They should be able to survive until we make it there" Estelle said.
"Impressive" Master Ayumi said.
"And I'm certain by now Jo-lan has already began to move against the General there" Fencer said with a smirk.
"I wonder what that old man is up to now" Harry said with a smirk.
TWO WEEKS EARLIER…IN THE CONTINENT OF GAEIA…
The people had just suffered from one of Gargolem's rampages. He had afflicted them with an earthquake. Many were killed and many more injured by the collapse of their homes. Most of the people in the continent of Gaeia lived in heavy brick houses and it was a very hot continent. In many ways, it was like Vung, rapidly losing its forest life.
The people were depressed however, right around that time, Vung had begun to recover from Apollo's malice. The king who ruled Vung from its capital of Ignis had heard of the plight afflicting the other continents. He was a very wise man, well informed of the happenings within his kingdom and the other continents. He even knew of the arrival of the Masters and Students and suspected that Jo-lan had a hand in the continent's recovery. He himself was a Jo-lan warrior with the class of Sage and he had other Jo-lan warriors under him that kept him informed of all that happened in his kingdom.
Sensing that Jo-lan was soon to act again, most likely in the continent of Gaeia, he sent fleets of ships with food and many architects. Jo-lan was glad to have shared his power with such a wise king and resolved not to waste his kindness.
Jo-lan immediately sent the architects to work, surveying Gaeia's lands and architecture. Gaeia was a land of cities. There were buildings of many sizes and shapes. The architects returned to Jo-lan eventually.
"I'm guessing you can see the problem here" Jo-lan asked.
"The buildings here were not built to endure the stress of an earthquake" the architects informed him.
"Earthquakes certainly are troublesome but the quake itself isn't nearly as devastating as the catastrophic chain of events they cause. When they occur in the sea, they can trigger tsunamis and when they occur on the land, they kill mostly through the collapse of large structures. Apollo certainly did worsen this ability through the heat he inflicted on Vung and in turn, the climate here. We have two goals, our first goal is to cool the air here by restoring forest life. Our second goal is to preserve life by reducing Gargolem's ability to kill through the collapse of large structures. Many of the buildings that are already deteriorating should be pulled down and lighter structures with enforced foundations should be put in place. For the stronger buildings, we need to enforce their supporting pillars. Send a message to the kings of your land and this land to afford us some skilled builders" Jo-lan said. "We also need to commence work on the restoration of this continent's forest life".
THREE WEEKS LATER…
So it was then that when the Masters and Students finally arrived on the continent of Gaeia, Harry was forced to exclaim…
"I feel I've stepped into the centre of an architectural revolution".
Fencer and Andrea who had noticed what the students had not, the efforts to restore the forest's life smiled to themselves.
"A war on three fronts…that old man never stops surprising me" Fencer said.
Meanwhile, Jo-lan was smiling to himself as he watched the architects and builders work in harmony, the friendship between the two kings, the efforts to restore the forest and the arrival of the Masters and Students.
"It appears the Earth-Suturing Seeds are already being sown" he thought.