"Twinkle, are you okay?" Kira asked, her eye widening holding Lennox up.'Why was he about to fall is he injured' she thought.
Lennox shook his head, getting up. "Yeah... I'm good," he said, still sounding shocked.
Lennox's eyes snapped back onto Muette's drawing as his pupils shrank. "Just how can it be him... How is that possible?" he said with his shoulder tensed up.
Nadia walked toward Lennox placing her hand on his shoulder. "What, Lennox? You seem to act like you know this person," she questioned.
"Not to say I know him per se, but I have seen him," Lennox answered.
Nadia nodded. "Explain," she said.
Lennox turned to Theo with direct eye contact. "Theo, do you remember when you got ambushed by Kevin?" he said.
Theo nodded, remembering how he was injured by Kevin, and Lennox was angry about it, he tried not telling him about it but under his pressure he gave in then Lennox stormed out of his dorm no idea where he went or what to do.
"Well, when I stormed out looking for him... I also spotted that teenager being bullied by Kevin, taking his credits," Lennox said. 'I didn't think he would be linked to Voragor, but how?'
"Well, we know that Voragor, is a very cunning being. As he was also largely known for being able control minds, and with the teen's mind already weakened from constant bullying he was easily controlled," Kage said. "But then again, even with a weak mind, there is still resistance. So there's something else needed for Voragor to fully control his mind"
"A weakness or a leverage?." Kira suggested
"maybe"
Lennox clenched his fist tightly. "I thought his life would have changed for the better after going through something so bad... but I guess I'm different," he said softly.
"Hmm, what do you mean?" Vayuna asked, understanding a slight meaning in his words. 'What have you gone through to change your life for the better?' she thought.
Lennox scratched his head and shook his head. "Nothing."
"Enough... First, we need to go back to Gilen Forest and find Voragor, as he may still be there," Nadia walked to the side with her hand behind her back. "But this time, you will be using the Sealing Orb of Aetheria."
Lennox, Kira, and Theo nodded, but on the side, Vayuna and Kage weirdly kept looking at Muette's.
Kage focused on Muttel's katana. 'That katana has a secret to tell,' he thought.
Vayuna mindfully focused on Muttel's throat. 'She didn't lose her voice by any natural means,' she thought in shock.
Kage turned to Kira. "Kira, as a warning, Voragor may use shadows, but his real power is pure darkness from the world. So you won't be much help attacking him," he said. "Also, we don't want Voragor being set free, spreading out, as his cult will also come."
"A cult?" Everyone questioned in shock.
"Hmm... With Voragor's influence so big, he has created a cult, most likely because he couldn't do everything on his own. With this cult infiltrating everywhere in secret, he took over everything to clans, empires, and even countries, power by power. Of course, there are stronger people than him in the world, so with him being sealed, his cult went into hiding, waiting for his return or planning something," Kage explained.
Nadia walked back, handing Lennox the Sealing Orb of Aetheria a solemn nod,. "Voragor used his pure darkness to create low-level subordinates. So, I suggest that you use that as your advantage when you come up with a plan," she said.
Lennox's grateful nod to Nadia as held the soft claiming orb in his hand while his other he placed his hand on his chin 'If what I understand from Nadia is right, if Voragor used his darkness to make subordinates like the shadow golem, he loses his powers. So, if he's found, he mostly won't engage in battle,' he thought.
...
Leaving the academy once again, they found themselves under the midday sun as they made their way back to Gilen Forest where they just left. The sunlight illuminated their surroundings, allowing them to cover more ground on their search. To everyone's surprise, Muttie decided to join them, expressing her desire to contribute positively and relish in the adventure.
As they searched, Lennox couldn't shake off a thought that lingered in his mind.how did the boy become Voragor?
While Kira was walking at the side of Theo, she yanked him to the side. "Whoa!" Theo exclaimed.
"Hey, what was that down in the tunnels?" Kira asked, but Theo just looked at her questioningly. "When you said I'm a stalker to the shadow golem."
"Oh," Theo understood. "Well, because you're smart, but also deadly when it's time to be," he said, winking at her, then speeding up to Lennox.
Kira glanced back at Theo with a sense of confusion in her eyes. Although she had anticipated that facing the shadow golem would propel her to the next nexus rank, she couldn't shake the belief that her safest course of action was to flee the cramped tunnel. Every move needed to be flawless; any mistake could be her last mistake.
Amidst their search through the forest, a sudden scream pierced the air, carrying with it a palpable panic, their focus redirected towards the source of the cries.
"There are people this deep into the forest?" Lennox thought.
He then looked at the others and signaled with his head. "Let's quickly find out what's happening," he said in a hurry.
Upon reaching the source of the scream, they were taken aback to discover a handsome teenager precariously hanging from the side of a tree, on the verge of slipping off. Standing at an imposing 6 feet tall, he possessed a slender build and sported a pair of goggles perched atop his forehead. His distinctive features included deep purple eyes, thick eyebrows, and an air of distinction about him. Clad in flowing dark robes.
"Ha ha, what's wrong with four eyes?" Theo said, laughing out loud.
"Theo, stop laughing! Look," Kira said, pointing to the ground beneath the teen.
Beneath the tree, a cluster of small black creatures with razor-sharp teeth gnawed ferociously, attempting to bring down the teenager. Everyone was perplexed by the unfamiliar creatures, but their shock deepened as they noticed people lying on the ground nearby. The black creatures clamped onto their heads, as if attempting to consume or take a vicious bite.
"I wonder what they're doing to them... It looks like they just had their life force or energy sucked out of them," Lennox said as he saw black veins appearing everywhere on their bodies. "But they don't look strong enough to do a lot of damage. Possibly Voragor's dark creatures, but it's abnormal."
Aware of the nexus thread within humans, even though it's small, they understand its manifold uses. If these were Voragor creatures, their actions couldn't be good.
Amidst contemplation, Muette suddenly surged forward at an incredible speed that caught everyone off guard. "Muette, wait!" Lennox called out, but she forged ahead undeterred. With a swift stroke of her katana, she cleanly sliced through one black creature after another, effortlessly eliminating them with a rapid succession of slashes.
'She's so fast... maybe even faster than me,' Theo thought as he looked at Muette in surprise.
The teen dropped down from the tree onto his knees and started thanking Muette. "Thank you, thank you," he said repeatedly.
But Muette just looked at him coldly, as if he were some sort of idiot. Kira walked over to the boy. "C an you tell us why are you so deep in the forest, and how did these people get here?"
"Ahh" The boy's mouth remained open as he looked at Kira, captivated by her beauty. "Well, hello, beautiful miss. I'm Draven," he said, suddenly appearing at the side of Kira, raising both his eyebrows multiple times at her. "I was chased down by those vile creatures, as they always are, and I saw those people lying there. But after a while, I realized that the people kept disappearing from the forest so decided to find out why."
'He's a Nexarch, but why does he seem so weak and scared?' Lennox thought.
Kira stepped away from Draven. "Well, Draven, what are those creatures?" she said uncomfortably.
Draven shook and pointed at the dead black creatures. "Those vile ugly creatures take over your mind and control you."
With Draven confirming is suspicious that the black creature belongs to Voragor, Lennox smirked and put his hand on Draven's shoulder. "It seems that you know them well. Can you help us with them?" he said.
Draven backed away from Lennox, waving his hands. "No, no, absolutely not. I will not be fighting any more of those vile, ugly creatures," he said, terrified. "Thank you all for saving me, but I'm leaving immediately," he said, slowly backing away.
Suddenly, as Draven turned around he unconsciously stepped back, there was a cold, sinister voice spreading everywhere. "I forbid anyone from leaving."