While Jacob was writhing in pain somewhere in the wilderness, a group of people, donned in extravagant robes of different colors adorned with gold and white embroidery, ran along the edges of their robes.
The robes had hoods that were likewise embroidered; the hood was generously cut such that it only exposed the lower half of their faces. And it likewise didn't help that they all had their heads angled downwards.
A total of six of them sat around the circumference of an arc-shaped table; the woodwork of the furniture was quite exquisite, and the designs on them were obviously carefully designed. And it was only natural as the chambers they were in were no less imposing; contrarily, the furniture only seemed to be doing justice to the chamber.
The walls were high, but they were mostly pillars rather than walls as tall and broad windows were interspersed between them. However, the windows were not left bare but were covered by massive grape-colored drapes that shielded most of the light entering the room. The ornamentations on them were, however, drawn in light gold, forming different patterns on it. The light gold parts of the blinds allowed in more light, making the embroidery seem to glow and become more life-like, giving the chamber a more regal appearance.
The ceiling, likewise, was another work of art, with depictions and paintings of men dressed in medieval armor wielding swords and spears as they battled ferocious beasts of tales and legends.
The inconspicuous double doors that blended with the architectural designs of the walls slowly opened up, and a figure walked in. A kid with black curly hair who looked not more than 13 years old walked in wearing crisp white shirts ironed to perfection with a black bow tie that was knotted perfectly to the midline of his collar, not deviating to either side.
He accentuated it with shorts with blade-like creases on the sides making his shorts flare out. He had suspenders, black and white-striped suspenders that went over his shoulders to make a cross with a circular hook at his back.
His bearing was unique, bordering on extremely earnest and extremely childish. It was difficult to put a pin on it. The boy kept walking until he reached the middle of the room, the center of the circle of which the arc-like table would have formed.
He stood upon a circular platform and boldly glanced at every member in the room.
The doors closed, and silence reigned. It was not known whether it was a power play or not. It was a ridiculous thought, especially considering the other party was a kid in front of a council of what was probably veterans.
"Speak," one of the hooded figures enunciated.
"Oh, should I or should I not, I can't seem to make up my mind. You know I'm just a kid and you all are so scary, and I think I already forgot what to say. You know I'm still too young, and I don't do well under pressure-"
"Raphael Galvanus,"
another hooded figure exclaimed, interrupting Ralph. It was a wonder why they continued to tolerate whom was obviously a brat, but it was more of a surprise how witty and composed a child was facing pressure from these people.
"I've mentioned before, not once, not twice, but apparently y'all are getting too old to do much remembering. But it's fine really; you can count on me to keep reminding you."
Ralph responded scintillatingly; then his aura changed, all traces of childishness completely vanished from his eyes. He now completely looked like a tiger ready to pounce, and he spoke in the most profound and serious his body could allow.
"My name is Little Butterfly."
The hooded figures seemed to all collectively sigh in sync. They obviously hadn't forgotten this, but it was just too ridiculous for them to acknowledge. They couldn't wrap their minds around how one could be so serious towards something so mundane.
But maybe it was they who had the problem; it really wasn't as outrageous as it sounds considering it was coming from a child. Still, how could they see this monstrosity as a child?
A female voice came out of one of the hooded figures; it seemed she was tired of this farce and hence decided to back up a little.
"Little Butterfly...it's been a few weeks since you've been secluded, working with the creatures we captured, and in all this time, you've not reported a single time, and you've also been refusing hearings more often these past weeks; the council demands an answer."
"Cough, cough...creatures I helped you capture."
"Well, I was busy, so I couldn't come; y'know these things can't just be paused when you've begun. For now, nothing much has been discovered; I'll still need more time to work on it. However, y'all can relax; I didn't come empty-handed; I brought a little present for you.
A wide toothy smile that disfigured the boy's expression appeared on his face while he dug his hands into his pockets then brought it out quickly, making a throwing motion at the hooded figures. The hooded figures all flinched, brief thoughts of treason flashed across their minds.
"What's the meaning of this?"
One of them bellowed out in rage, bringing his right hand towards his waist to grab the hilt of a sword that wasn't visible before.
"Hahahahahahaha, you should have seen yourselves. Y'all supposed supreme rulers, no? The highest authority in this kingdom, right, more like a bunch of scaredy-cats, hahhahhahahah-
"Silence, boy," yet another roared out.
"Alright, alright, it was a joke, a joke; you can all sit down. Y'all just seemed so uptight; I'm sorry...I'm sorry."
"Hmm...mhmmm," Ralph cleared his throat repeatedly in an attempt to get back his composure. The council members who had stood up in fright took back their seats.
"Alright, so here's what I wanted to show you," Ralph said as he stretched out an empty hand towards them. Puzzled, the council members looked at Ralph with questioning gazes, and one of them voiced their thoughts.
"Enough of the jokes; we've had enough of this. Leave immediately if you don't have anything noteworthy; you've got your daily laugh in, haven't you?"
Ralph widened his eyes as if he had just suddenly come to a realization.
"I can leave?? Why didn't you say so before? What I had wasn't noteworthy in the slightest,"
Ralp said as he waved goodbye to the council.
As he was waving, the inconspicuous bracelet on his wrist glowed and broke apart like a puzzle piece, with each piece strung together by a pale blue string of light. The pieces began to reform, growing and reducing in size, duplicating and fusing as they arranged themselves around his hands until they covered it up to his elbow.
The 'bracelet' now resembled a sleeve with a maze-like pattern of the individual pieces separated by a thin layer of blue.
He ceremoniously drove his fist into the floors. For a second, it seemed nothing would happen.
One second passed, two passed, even until the 5th second passed, they all waited with bated breaths. However, their spirits had already been riled up, and their patience seemed to run out, as evident from the ugly expressions underneath their hoods.
The one who had almost drawn his sword before seemed to have had enough as he took a step forward, distorting his face as he roared out.
"ENOUGH!"
His voice was loud and reverberated throughout the whole chamber. The floors grew cracks that ran unimpeded up the walls and through the ceilings. The room shook violently until it couldn't hold any longer and split open like a blooming flower from the ceiling, six large portions falling outwards in sync.
It was a wonder how a mortal's voice could do so much damage; it was something within the realms of impossibility. And that exactly was what it was; impossible, which was evident by their now-wide eyes that had been exposed by their hoods blowing off.
Their eyes seemed to unfocus for a while, and the expressions in them were plain as day, greed intensified by the maddening desire for power. Their gaze still fixed at the origin of the cracks, the epicenter of the destruction around them which coincidentally was exactly where Ralph's fist had struck.
"Satisfied?" Ralph asked as the grin on his face grew wider and wider, radiating the aura of a demon in a child's skin.
"E..excellent," one of the councillors managed to whisper.
The woman who spoke earlier was the first to recompose herself, and she took the liberty to assist her colleagues in the same with a light cough.
*Cough* *cough*
It took a little more than a light cough to bring them all back from their daydreams, but eventually, they all came around.
"Leave us for now," they uttered.
"Leave you, you all might as well leave too; ain't much privacy here any longer y'know?...hehe."