Chapter 10
"Introducing Monafik Monarchy"
"🅰️🅰️🅰️❗❗❗"—groaned Wamaro.
"Hey! Wake up! Wake up!🥱"—shook Endang.
"🅰️🅰️🅰️❗❗❗"
"🅰️🅰️🅰️❗❗❗"
"What the heck happened to you, bro?" ruffled Harris.
"It's too early! I want to sleep. AHH!" exasperated Tatukwe.
Endang wakes up Wamaro, who is having nightmares. He wakes up and gets up. He is startled to see his siblings joyful. Furthermore, he screams and everyone hesitates to laugh.
"What happened? Where are they?" seeks Wamaro.
"Nah, you're just having nightmares," Ahn-ahn tells him. She is monitoring the radar compass that lost the signal.
"Why are we here?! What happened to them?!" Wamaro screams.
"You're very noisy. I want to sleep. Please, Wamaro, go back to sleep," Tatukwe tells him.
"WHERE ARE THEY?!" he yelled again.
The still-sleepy Harris and Tatukwe woke up. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at Wamaro's behavior, wondering why their older brother was behaving like this.
"🅿️🅰️🆖‼️"
"OUCH!" yelled Wamaro.
Tatukwe moved towards him and patted him gently.
"You're just dreaming," clarified Endang.
"What happened to Black Padrone, Alexxuz, and the others?" insisted Wamaro. He couldn't help but ask his siblings about them.
"Who is Black Padrone? Who are you referring to as Lexxus?" mumbled Endang.
"What are you talking about? The one who trained us in Isla de Leslin?!" exclaimed Wamaro.
"Huh? What are you talking about, Brother Wamaro? Isla de Leslin? Black Padrone?" Jrazm was confused.
"Well, Brother, you must be dreaming. Go ahead and prepare something to eat, kid. I mean Ahn-ahn, so he will wake up and presumably still be asleep," mocked Tatukwe.
Even though he was mystified, Wamaro still couldn't get the last thing that happened on Isla De Leslin out of his mind. Little by little, he began to acknowledge that maybe it was all just a dream because his five siblings had no idea about any of it.
"Then, tell me, where have we been in the past few days?" asked Wamaro.
"Oh, come on. Just eat. Then, I took a shower. Okay?" sneered Jrazm.
No matter how hard he tried to make them understand, they didn't grasp what he was insisting on. They didn't care because, according to them, it didn't exist.
What he always remembers is the battle on the island, where Alexxuz is always the reflection that he discerns. In his mind, they stayed there for a month for training.
No matter how hard he tried to tell his siblings that what happened was real, no one believed him. Was he really revealing the facts, or just imagining it all?
***
(••• after a couple of days •••)
Baba Matuwa's directions point to the Skasta peak range, but first, they will traverse the Monafik Desert.
"According to the Data Server, we are now in the Monafik Desert of Pollace sovereignty," announced Ahn-ahn.
"Finally, we get to experience the desert," Tatukwe exclaimed.
"Oh, bro. Isn't there another way?" Harris asked.
"This is the easiest route, big brother Harris," Ahn-ahn replied.
"What's happening to you, Wamaro? How many days have you been like this? We are apprehensive about you," Endang said.
Wamaro remained dumbfounded in the corner. He stayed silent and looked at the monitor. He couldn't forget what had happened. What's worse is that he is the only one who remembers what happened on the island.
***
The Monafik Desert has an abundance of resources in terms of fuel and special metals. It is led by Queen Krizzilda, who is the youngest daughter of Emperor Pollace.
This area is one of the most famous sources of various varieties of metals such as iron, manganese, uranium, phosphorus, and Monafik Metal.
If you look on the surface, it's just a typical desert, but underneath the Monafik Desert is its monarchy.
They trekked across the desert, but Wamaro still hadn't bypassed the events Black Padrone had taught them. He no longer forced his siblings to believe him because he was the only one who thought back about it.
Furthermore, he is looking for solid proof that the training they did on Isla de Leslin happened, and it wasn't just intuition or hallucinations.
In his sense, they should help Black Padrone and the whole island because their lives are in threat. But he could not convince everyone because he had no proof to show his siblings.
***
(••• A few days later •••)
They were on board, crossing the warm desert, when suddenly Tatukwe's boomerang stopped functioning.
"What's wrong, Tatukwe?" called out Jrazm.
"Something is wrong with the system," declared Ahn-ahn.
"What about?" asked a shocked Endang.
"A system collapse has occurred, possibly due to a hardware failure or a serious software problem," explained Ahn-ahn.
"I don't understand what you're saying," started Endang. Then she asked everyone what they would like to eat for dinner.
They decided to stop at a small pond where three date trees stood. Ahn-Ahn was fixing the spaceship while Tatukwe tried to repair his boomerang. Jrazm and Endang decided to pick the dates.
On the other hand, Wamaro was digging and searching for evidence to prove that what happened to them was real. Meanwhile, Harris couldn't bear the heat of the climate and didn't think twice about taking a bath in the small lake.
***
W/
"H E Y ‼️"
"A L L E X X U S‼️"—he smiled.
As Wamaro walked away, he noticed a boy who looked like Alexxuz.
"Hey, come here. Explain to them that you're real."
"What happened to them?!"
"ARE THEY OKAY!?"
"Why are you not answering?"
"Where are you going? Come back!"
Wamaro continuously questioned the kid who was far away. The boy just stared at him, and after a few minutes, turned and stepped away.
Wamaro followed him. Even though he was perplexed, he did seem to recognize him. He still went after this boy who was walking as if he were being instructed to follow him.
"Am I losing my mind?" he wondered.
When Wamaro turned around, the small lake had disappeared, and he could no longer see where his siblings were.
"WHERE ARE THEY?" he sighed. But even so, he seemed to be out of his mind and still went after that boy.
"I'm… Thirsty…" were his last words.
After his eyes rolled, he was suddenly knocked over and lost consciousness.
***
H/
"I really thought there was no water here in the middle of the desert," Harris expressed.
He was delighted to soak in the water after a few days of traveling.
"This lake isn't cozy."
"I'm going to hunt some fish here."
"I want to try fish in the desert, see how it tastes."
Harris believed that the weather was hot, except in the middle of the desert. On the contrary, it seemed to be water from Albany because of its extreme coldness.
"What are those things?"
He caught sight of the light and immediately paid attention to it, diving under the lake. Until he realized that it was minimal when viewed from above and would be considered very shallow, which was the opposite.
"No fish live in this lake."
"Why do we always encounter strange things like these?"
While he was swimming, he discovered something strange. The light stopped, as if waiting for him. He was not afraid and continued to search.
"I've swum in deeper oceans than this. You can't scare me."
"I think this is a bad idea. I'd better go back."
"🆑🆗 C L O O K🌊🌀 …"
"🆑🆗 C L O O K🌊🌀…"
Instead, he approached, unaware, when a whirlpool emerged from its depths and sucked him under.
"AAAAHHHH…"
He couldn't do anything; he was struggling. No matter how much he called for assistance, no one could hear him because he was under the lake.
***
"Kid, help me fix my boomerang," exclaimed Tatukwe.
"Wait. I need to check this ship too," responded Ahn-Ahn.
"Ahn-Ahnnnnn…"
"Ahn-Ahn, fix this first."
"PLEASE."
Ahn-Ahn is exasperated by Tatukwe's noise. Besides the complaints coming out of his mouth, he doesn't know anything about devices. Ahn-Ahn couldn't figure out what caused the boomerang's sudden breakdown, and upon inspection, everything seemed fine.
"I checked the interior and exterior, but nothing was wrong," explained Ahn-Ahn.
"Then why isn't it working?" reacted Tatukwe. He noticed that it had a little gash.
"What is this, then?" showed Tatukwe.
He implied it to Ahn-Ahn and got the idea that the boomerang had lost a spare piece. So, he recommended to Tatukwe that they go back to where they came from.
"And through this metal detector, we hope we might find it," stated Ahn-Ahn.
"We will!" he clamored.
They got on board the bike-craft and slowly returned the way they came. In the distance, Ahn-Ahn attempted to open the detector, and they were both horrified because they noticed a lot of metal around them.
"WHAT IS THIS!" terrified Ahn-Ahn.
"Hey, found it?" asked Tatukwe.
"No, we are in trouble!" she replied.
"🅱️⭕⭕⭕Ⓜ️‼️"
Abruptly, the detector broke, causing it to explode! Ahn-Ahn's bike-craft was also affected, and it fell to pieces. The two fell, but fortunately, they were not hurt too badly and both lost consciousness.
***
J'E/
Endang transformed into a pixie and flew up to the date fruit. While picking the fruit, she handed it to Jrazm and assembled it in a container.
"This is the first time I've eaten this fruit," an elated Endang said.
"Take it all. No one owns these trees," ordered Jrazm.
The two were delighted, particularly Jrazm. While Endang was grabbing fruit from above, she constantly ate what her sister got.
"SOMETHING IS COMING⁉️" Endang indicated.
It was getting closer and closer to where they stood. She whined until Jrazm caught sight of it too. She instructed Endang to go down and hide. This was the first time they had witnessed a sandstorm, which they believed was some kind of enormous demon.
"Where are you, Endang?" she wondered.
"What kind of monster is that?"
"I know my siblings will be okay."
"We've been through plenty of monsters this big. I hope they are all well."
Jrazm was unable to save her sister, Endang, and was knocked over by the storm. She was constantly sobbing inside the spaceship, which was trembling due to the impact of the sandstorm. She also gazed at her other siblings, but could not see where they were or if they were breathing safely.
Not only that, but she explained to the spaceship what kind of terror it was and replied that it was a sandstorm that usually emerges in the Monafik Desert.
Even so, she was still uncertain about what might happen to her siblings. She was also told that after a few moments, the storm would subside and things would return to normal.
***
W/
"Where am I?" mumbled Wamaro.
His eyesight was a bit blurry, and he caught a glimpse of a not-quite-old woman who was briskly stirring a steaming pan in front of him. He tried to stand up, but his body was still shuddering.
"Don't move, or your body will overexert itself," the woman spoke to him.
Wamaro tried to speak, but he couldn't loosen his jaws. At that moment, he thought this woman was going to cook him in the steaming pan. So, he attempted to move his body, but it remained motionless and impassive.
"You're extraordinary," the woman told him.
"What do you want from me?" Wamaro asked.
"Please let me go. I will help my siblings," he added, then he vomited green particles.
Shortly after, the old woman mumbled and was filled with amazement at what she had just witnessed. According to her, Wamaro was the first person she had seen endure this occurrence.
After a rapid sandstorm where they were, she found an unconscious Wamaro slumped on the sand.
"When I noticed you were still breathing, we didn't hesitate to bring you under this cave where we reside," she stated.
"What happened to me?" wondered Wamaro.
She admitted guilt to Wamaro for what the scorpion did to him. He had been bitten by a venomous scorpion that was one of her son Adroru's pets.
Adroru belongs to the HaO classification. Doctor Bharit named them HaO, as they are the cursed babies after the prophecy was fulfilled. Dalal does not desire to have kids like him. Nonetheless, not all expectant women have this outcome.
What Dalal did was decide to live here in the wasteland and incarcerate her son in this subway so that he would not injure other individuals and the possibility of being interested in some wicked creatures.
They witnessed for the first time that those who were bitten by Adroru's scorpion venom did not starve to death because most did not last longer than 30 minutes.
***
H/
Harris woke up to the luminous light hitting his eyes. He couldn't change positions because of the apparatus affixed to his whole body.
"Am I dead?" curious, Harris asked as he stared at the humanoid robots.
He looked around and was besieged by machine men and various types of apparatus with various creatures suppressed in them.
Queen Krizzilda's fervor came as she was immediately awestruck to see Harris, as it was the first time she encountered a creature that lives or breathes in water.
"What's the data about this little creature?" asked Queen Krizzilda.
"Unknown, your majesty;," replied the humanoid robots.
The Queen loves collecting, where she transfers a creature into a machine and turns it into a bond slave. She also did this to her daughter, Princess Krizzia, who was suffering from severe asphyxiation and lung cancer. This is why she was compelled to put her fundamental body into a machine as soon as possible and save her dying stamina.
From the beginning, Queen Krizzilda had always yearned to help her constituents. However, after the death of her husband and son, the course of her life was reversed.
Ever since then, she has had no sympathy for any kind of factor because her goal is to strengthen her regiment.
"Fame, Money, and Power!"
Not all the creatures that were put in the machine wished to be in that position, but most of them were forced into it. And now, Harris will be subject to such a dilemma.
***
After the sandstorm stopped, Jrazm insisted on locating her siblings. After several hours of searching, she found another section of the spaceship wreckage covered in sand.
"Oh, Heavenly Father!" exclaimed Jrazm. She immediately shoveled out the sand covering and began to rescue them.
"Thanks, God," she prayed.
The two were barely recognizable as they lay motionless on the ground, covered in black dust.
They were quickly brought to the base of the Dates tree. Jrazm could see that Hahn's body was not severely affected, but Tatukwe was in worse condition. Not only were his clothes torn, but other parts of his body were also injured.
"Ah, help!" Tatukwe screamed in pain.
That's when Jrazm immediately searched for a remedy inside the ship. She assumed the sandstorm was the cause of her siblings' condition. Unbeknownst to her, the ship had exploded due to a trap buried in the desert, deliberately placed there under Queen Krizzilda's supervision.
"Hang on, Tatukwe. I have some first aid supplies," she said, starting to assist the two.
***
E/
Endang woke up amidst the turbulent machinery. This was the epicenter of the sandstorm.
"What are those? Oh? No! Oh! No! Is it a natural disaster or some kind of demon?" Endang exclaimed, terrified.
"I hope my siblings are okay."
"I need to go back to that lake."
As she flew back, she noticed the noisy machinery. She realized that a machine was generating the sandstorm. It was designed to repel intruders from the Monafik monarchy.
"What the… Hahaha."
"I wonder why. What's inside?"
She zoomed out and looked around. She flew slowly because there were too many rays in the room she was in.
During her excursion and exploration for a way out of that area, she encountered many iron men (humanoid robots) who lived a conventional life. They also had their secrets beneath the surface.
"Wow, this place is incredibly spectacular."
The Monafik Desert is a hidden monarchy that cannot be seen on the surface but exists beneath the desert. It is governed by a gigantic machine, with 90% of its inhabitants being robots.
After a while, she flew towards the core and slowly entered a room marked "Fact-Finding Room."
∆•∆•∆