Chapter 9 : the fateful destiny .
In the spirit world, maki, now the god of hell, spent his days trying to find a way to get to the mortal world: not knowing whether his old scepter was still as effective in hell, he had nevertheless managed to send one of his servants to earth, and it was he who gave the pendant to jacob. But maki's presence on earth was required to establish direct contact with the chosen one, which took time. The talissement was a stone from the crystals of the supreme guardian's scepter which was still in maki's possession, and which Taõ, the new guardian, asked to be taken away from him after his sanction, but this was refused. Each stone in the sceptre was the key to a specific portal, and the one given to Jacob was the only one that didn't correspond to it. It was used for communication between worlds, and legends tell of its great but little-known powers. Maki was unaware, however, that the mortal world could not be linked to any other world, whatever it might be, because of the chains blocking her portal in the cave...Having scoured the entire City of Oblivion for a way out, he came across several artifacts that all the deities, including himself, believed to be legendary. He then brought back to his lair the Sphere of Darkness, which could call upon an unlimited number of spirits, as well as the Jade Stone, which had the power of teleportation, and which was banned because its power rendered the use of portals useless and thus made travel from one world to another uncontrolled. And finally maki found the book of tebocle: the first sorcerer, the one who was at the origin of evil even before the beginning of the era of the current gods. Tébocle's grimoire was relatively powerful but dangerous, having imprisoned his own master in one of its pages.
Maki's eyes sparkled at the discovery of this treasure, which legend had it destroyed when the sun was created by the powerful god "jerves"... The guardian's old heart, once filled with love, now has no room for anything but hate and vengeance. The evil book allowed Maki to grow in power, but not knowing how to control his incantations, Maki was cautious lest he suffer the same fate as the book's author. Finally, the jade stone was placed on the guardian's scepter and the grimoire was still in his hand. At last, Maki the Great had found a way to reach the mortal world, but before doing so, he transformed the basilisk that lived in hell into a swan and sent it flying over the underworld to mount celeste in the palace of the gods to spy on them. Dazzled by the animal's splendor, the gods made him their companion.
On earth, Jacob continued to visit the manor, gaining more and more trust from his tent. Months later, the latter offered him the chance to leave his family of vaux-rien and move into the luxury she could offer him. Jacob didn't accept Berthe's offer, but he was soiled by the desire for lust, and obviously by the thirst to know the identity of his friend and foe. He moved into the manor even after numerous warnings from his father, with whom his relationship was more than tarnished. But Jacob had to know, he had the right! Every room in the manor was open to him, with the exception of Berthe's estate, where no one ventured. This made the young man's desire all the more intense. Berthe, confident that the wretched young man would be tempted by riches, remained wary all the same, ordering her men to keep an eye on her nephew. The latter realized this and managed to distract them one of these days by entering Berthe's estate, where he tried to open the drawer his father had told him about. In Berthe's bedroom, a sturdy cabinet centered one corner of the room,It was made from old wood and the ornaments on it were impressive, executed with great precision. Jacob approached the burreau but the drawer was locked. The young man came to know nothing at all, and day by day his love for his father waned, believing everything his tent told him, with all the past and mysteries working against him. Berthe's real aim was to turn the son against his father, so that the growing hatred between the two men would eclipse the truth she wanted to conceal behind the incessant quarrels. One day when Jacob was having coffee with his tent, he noticed that she was wearing a necklace around her neck, ending in a key. He asked her, "Why do you wear a key around your neck?" She laughed and replied, "They're the keys to paradise", and immediately changed the subject. Jacob had some soupçon about these keys, but how was he going to get hold of them without her noticing and try to open the drawer?
Meanwhile, maki was waiting for the right moment to intervene. Night fell on the men and Jacob prepared to spring into action, but how to go about it:the chain that held the necklace to Berthe's neck was made of gold, so it was impossible to cut it off in her sleep, and she kept it on her, even at night. the young man then went into the kitchen and comically asked his tent's handywoman: "the necklace on my tent has been rusty for so long that she wears it around her neck, doesn't she ever take it off? The latter replied that Berthe only removed her necklace during her nightly aromatic baths. But this routine would only apply in two days' time, giving the young man time to perfect his plan. Two days later, as the sun set, Jacob prepared for action. Berthe had fallen asleep in the bathtub's foaming water, under the pleasant scent of the fluted candles. He went into the cabinet and opened the drawer - the keys matched! and the surprises continued. All the documents concerning the young man's father were in the drawer. His father was right. Berthe suddenly woke up and shouted: "O thief! The servants of the house rushed over and Berthe hastily put on her dress, went straight to her room and saw that the documents that could be her undoing were no longer there: Jacob took them and left the residence. But the mistake the young man made was to head straight for his parents' house to reconcile with his father, whom he had disappointed and who was telling the truth, the only truth. Berthe followed the young Jacob, accompanied by his men, and when he took his father in his arms, having surprised him in the middle of the night, the sound of a rifle was heard. Jamil, protecting his son to the bitter end, took the bullet in the neck and fell to the ground dead. Berthe had killed him so she wouldn't have to deal with the whole thing.
How ironic! She who mourned her dead brother was his murderous executioner.
How insignificant life is! Jacob fell to the ground with his father, begging for an answer, but to no avail. On a full-moon evening, when the air grew heavier and Jamil gave up the ghost, Berthe left the manor house where she had been living. Where could Berthe be, and more importantly, where could her heart be? What does the future hold for jacob , his sister , his mother and the family , what will be the fate of mortals and maki's designs , all this will be detailed in the chapters to come .
..... to be continued .....
Chapter 10: A foolproof plan .