Chapter Twelve
Kina woke up in the academy clinic it was already noon, her head pounding as she strode down the hallway until she reached the room where infants were treated. Tesh, wrapped in a white bandage covering his healing sight, lay there.
As Kina entered the room, she felt pity for Tesh. Not long after, an elder known for his dark shades stepped in behind her. Sensing his presence, she bowed, and he responded with a slight nod.
Noticing Kina's troubled expression, the elder inquired, "What troubles your heart, child?"
After a moment of thought, Kina voiced her concerns, "I may not know the full story behind the animosity towards the Kayan red eyes, but he's just an infant."
The elder approached Tesh, examining him closely. "Allow me to share a bit of history, dating back six centuries," he offered.
An ashasin knelt before The Skulled Man, then rose and handed over a briefcase. The contents were revealed to be the creature found in the Royal Institute. The briefcase was then passed to a woman who inspected its contents.
"I have another assignment for you," The Skulled Man announced. "A woman is traveling west of the empire. I want you and your cohort to take care of her."
The Ashasin swiftly left the presence of The Skulled Man.
Meanwhile back at the hospital room, the elder sat down, crossing his legs.
"Young ones never bother to know their history," he remarked. "The Kayan bloodline began with Talug, whose ancestors hailed from an island in the Caspian Sea. Talug abandoned his family, who were mages known for their eyesight abilities, but were referred to by a name I will not speak."
Kina was shocked by the elder's refusal to reveal more. "But we need to know," she insisted.
"Even if I were to tell you, it wouldn't change a thing," the elder explained. "Humans have forgotten about magic and mages. They are blind to it, and we prefer to keep it that way. Yet, it seems some seek to lift the veil, perhaps to control the populace. Have you ever considered what might happen if these slumbering humans were to awaken without warning?"
"Perhaps some would lose their minds, I think," Kina replied, uncertain.
"That would be just the beginning. The Ashasin were created to protect such secrets and maintain balance in the realm," the elder stated.
Kina had heard this many times before, finding it increasingly frustrating to keep this knowledge hidden from humanity.
"Talug departed from his family due to his unusual physical traits. His people viewed him as a curse," the elder continued, removing his dark glasses to reveal his heterochromatic eyes—one blue and one red.
Kina, as a member of the Kayan bloodline, had never seen eyesight like the elder's before, only reading about it in books. Now, witnessing his unique eyes, she understood why he always wore glasses.
The elder continued, "Talug was the first to possess both types of eyesight from birth, a genetic trait I lack. Mine developed over time through training. He started his own family bloodline and had two sons, Bantui and Cranu. Bantui had the blue sight, while Cranu had the red sight. Interestingly, those with red sight often have weaker bodies unable to sustain mana, despite their overwhelming abilities. Cranu, criticized for his unique trait, made a strategic move by marrying into the Hassan bloodline, known for harboring abundant mana."
"Yes, the Hassans," Kina affirmed.
"Cranu, more of a scientist than a fighter, conducted experiments by marrying multiple women, resulting in the birth of Darius Gold," the elder explained.
Kina had heard of Darius Gold, known as the tyrant and killer of red-eyed bloodlines, and she suspects it was because of Cranu that inter bloodline marriage had been abolished.
"Know this, Darius is the only one who possesses the Golden eye, evolved over time. Normal humans from Kayan bloodline with red eyes haven't activated theirs yet. So, this child is seen as a threat not just because he has a red eye, but because he has activated his, potentially fulfilling a foretold prophecy," the elder explained.
The red eyes amongst humans were the lost bloodlines who don't possess mana because of the defiency of their ancestor Cranu.
"What prophecy? It sounds like you support it?" Kina questioned angrily, rising to her feet.
"I do not," the elder clarified. "The prophecy speaks of the return of the golden eyes, which will tear the veil and bring the world to its knees. I believe I've said enough," he concluded, then left abruptly.
Kina knew she had to research more about Darius Gold. Tesh, overhearing everything, absorbed the information within his consciousness.
Suddenly, a loud alarm echoed through the academy, prompting Kina to rush into the hallway. "What's happening?" she asked a passerby.
"Hey, Kina, someone broke into the academy lab and stole something. That's what I heard," the passerby informed her before departing.
Kina remembered the valuable items in the lab, especially the recent creature obtained from the institute.
Chanda was thrown into a dark hole as punishment for assaulting a nurse and doctor by biting off his nose. She decided to squat in the darkness and drifted off to sleep. Within her mind, she saw the draconian or dragon lady in an open hall, observing as her skin began to change, scaling over.
"What's happening to me?" Chanda asked in alarm.
The draconian lady, wagging her tail as she circled, replied, "You ate my apple, dear. Cause and effect."
Chanda recalled the moment at the royal institute when Dr. Harten ate the apple and then she did too. Now, awakening to see her skin undergoing the same transformation filled her with fear. Two days later, still trapped in the hole, she noticed the skin phenomenon had worsened.
"Is anyone there? Please, I need help," she pleaded desperately.
The guard at the first gate ignored her, engrossed in his meal of mac and cheese.
Another two days passed, and Chanda found herself unable to move after lying down. The following day, she was buried within a cocoon she had unwittingly created, her attempts to free herself proving futile. As days turned into weeks, a nurse began to lower food down to her from the top of the hole.
"Hey, Chanda," the nurse called out. "Your meal's here, your punishment's lifted. The cook made mashed potatoes, gravy, and steaks; hope you love it."
She lowered the food down into the dark hole, but couldn't hear any indication that it reached its destination. After several failed attempts to pull the rope back up, she called for more colleagues. They struggled to retrieve it until one decided to check the hole in person and noticed a weird phenomenon.
"Guys, I don't know what this is, but we need to report it to the authorities," he said, visibly terrified.
The police arrived to find the cocoon had grown, covering the space and now pulsating. Setting up lights for a clearer view, a Chief Police Officer arrived and observed with binoculars.
"What in the hell is that thing?" he asked, to which there was only silence. Eventually, an order was given to burn the cocoon.
Three officers geared up for the task, roping themselves into the dark hole. The one with the gasoline canister carelessly poured its contents, causing it to spill all over the cocoon, while the others shook their heads in disbelief. The sound alarmed the cocoon, triggering the release of slimy tentacles that dragged the first officer into its belly of teeth. The remaining two officers screamed in terror, struggling to escape.
As they attempted to climb out, the officers at the top tried to help, but they were too far down. One more officer was ensnared by the tentacles, and as the last man tried to flee, he was caught by the ankle. During his struggle, he accidentally sparked a lighter, causing a loud bang as they all ran out of the space.
Returning to the hole to assess the situation, the officers were shocked to see the cocoon had grown larger and remained unaffected by the fire.
Three days later, two officers sat near the entrance, observing as a group of people dressed in matching grey attire made their way into the area with the deep hole. Alerting their superiors, the chief arrived with his men.
"Excuse me, you're not authorized to be here, whoever you guys are," the chief commanded sternly.
The new faction paused briefly before continuing to set up their sophisticated devices around the hole. One of the officers attempted to intervene forcefully, but to the chief's astonishment, his subordinate was effortlessly thrown from point A to point B with a mere wave of their hand.
Unable to comprehend what had just transpired, the chief watched as a dazzling beauty stepped forward, her blonde hair and grey eyes captivating.
"Chief, apologies for our rudeness. We are mages representing the crown, some call us The Sphinx. I mention this because you won't remember any of this ever happened," she said with a child-like grin before walking away.
Two Sphinx mages cast a spell, manifesting as green seals adorned with runic, Hebrew, and Enochian lettering, which they placed on the foreheads of all the officers.
The Sphinx faction swiftly locked down the facility, leading to the evacuation of all patients and staff from the nut house.
Princess Bianca clutched the letter that Dr. Harten had slipped into her hands before his demise, revealing Ariella's twin brother. With determination, she rose from her seat and entered Ariella's room, observing the child closely.
"We have much work to do, my dear," she said with a determined grin.
Meanwhile, in the palace, the Empress, a middle-aged woman with beautiful grey hair and dark glasses, sat upon her throne. The lady from the Sphinx approached, bowing before her.
"Your Highness," the lady mage began, "we have secured the cocoon, but we cannot predict when it will hatch."
The empress rose from her throne, her demeanor resolute. "Then we shall prepare and wait accordingly."
The cocoon pulsed with life, its colors shifting from amber as it breathed in, to red as it exhaled, their glow intensifying. Suddenly, its roots pierced through the concrete ground, traversing the depths of the earth and spanning across realms. Manifestations of cocoons emerged in mountains, the deepest seas, and forgotten forests, unnoticed by most but sensed by those attuned to mana. The beasts of air, sea, and land could feel the impending danger lurking in the shadows.
Meanwhile, Tesh found himself once again in his inner world of darkness. A panel popped up, bearing the ominous message: "Your quest is at hand, for the doomsday clock ticks, young warrior."