Everyone spun their heads toward the doors as they banged open and Hessin’s men entered the room. Their eyes widened with surprise and relief when they recognized the man walking in the middle was Hessin himself, alive and well. No doubt they were thrilled that he was still alive because that meant that they could go home now. One of the leaders’ personal guards – a Thyrcan, he believed – ran out of the room and shouted the good news, which quickly spread throughout the palace and most likely throughout the city.
“Your Majesty, you’re alive!” General Valentus gasped as he bowed before his king. Hessin smiled at his faithful friend and nodded.
“How did you survive?” Zelis wondered as he stared at him with amazement. “It’s well-known that no one has ever survived an Enkrum assassin’s attack before so I’m rather impressed.”
Hessin paused to think and then motioned a soldier to hand him the bundle of bloodied clothes. Tossing the clothes onto the middle of the floor, he admitted to the stunned audience, “I did not though it was by the gods’ divine powers that I still live.”
Then he turned his attention to Maruk, who slowly moved aside from the throne. “Do you know what I found interesting?” he said quietly. “As I surrounded by those men, one of them told me who hired them. He told me that it was you.”
Everyone in the room turned to look at the culprit, who turned quite pale. “P-p-preposterous!” he stuttered as he backed away from the angry mob. “Why would I betray my king? My best friend’s son?”
“Why, indeed,” Rylea purred angrily as she flicked her fingers and flame sparked out. Hessin noticed that that Gregios was fingering his dagger dangerously as well. In fact, everyone appeared to get ready to draw out their weapons; they were probably incensed that the man who accused them of murder was actually the one who did the deed.
“But wait!” Maruk exclaimed. “How would you know that it’s me? I could have been set up! That assassin might have said that to trick you in case you survived the attack so you would place the blame on me, and the true culprit would escape scotch free!”
The Kahlin hesitated. That was true, he hated to admit. It was Maruk’s words against the assassin’s and the latter wasn’t here to defend himself. That was when he saw something astonishing. There was an image of him standing behind Maruk. The only difference was that this doppelgänger was bloodied and pale. “He’s the one who ordered my death,” his ghostly image declared as he pointed accusingly at the advisor.
Hessin blinked at what he saw and looked to see if anyone else saw it. Based on their still hateful expression, no one did. Was this one of his new powers that the stranger told him about? If so, that meant that his advisor was the one who hired those assassins. Now he was certain that he was right about his allegation, but how he could prove it? He couldn’t say that his bloody image told him so. Without evidence, Maruk would escape justice, and the traitor knew this as well.
Just then, one of the palace guards dashed into the room. “Your Majesty!” he shouted. “There is a boy who wished to see you at once! We didn’t want him to disrupt your meeting, but he showed us your ring. He also claimed that he had evidence that revealed the person who planned the hit on you!”
“Bring him in at once!” Rextin ordered roughly. “I’m curious about this evidence and whether or not it would exonerate this suspect.”
Imagine his surprise to see Lezak approaching the room. The thin boy gaped when he realized he was in the presence of every leader in the world and stood there in awe until General Passeck cleared his throat. “You say that you have proof on who tried to assassinate your king,” he began. “Do you have it with you?”
“Yes, sir,” Lezak responded as he pulled out a folded parchment, which was slightly crumpled and handed it to a guard. The guard then gave it to Hessin, who examined it with great interest, while Passeck looked over his shoulder.
After making sure it was authentic, he asked the boy, “How did you come about this?”
“It happened two evenings ago, Your Majesty,” Lezak confessed. “I was walking home for dinner when I overheard two men talking in the alley. Curious, I hid behind some crate and eavesdrop on their conversation. It was too dark so I couldn’t see their faces, but I could hear everything that they said. One man asked if the ‘deed’ was done and the other, who had a strange accent, said that was though there were complications.
“The first man, who was an Isharan, wanted to know what they were, but he just said that it didn’t matter since the ‘deed’ was done. He also said that his men needed to leave immediately so they wanted their payment now before they go. The Isharan said that he had the money and handed him a small pouch, which the foreigner took readily and counted them carefully to make sure he had the right amount. Afterward, he thanked the Isharan for his business, shook his hand, and left in my direction. I held my breath and made myself as small as possible so I wouldn’t be seen. Then the Isharan walked away in an opposite direction.
“After waiting a few minutes to make that they were not around, I decided to follow the stranger. I don’t know why, but something in my guts told me that it was necessary. Anyway, I followed the man to the harbor where I noticed that he was discreetly tossing aside papers into the water, which I found to be odd. Then he boarded a ship and waited. Twenty minutes, a group of Isharan soldiers pushed through the crowd as they took off their uniforms and entered the ship, which immediately left the board when the last one set foot onboard. While everyone was distracted by what happened, I noticed that one of the papers didn’t land in the water, which the man had hoped. Instead, it landed between two boxes located on the lower dock. I jumped down and stretched out to grab it.
“Unfortunately, I’m not a good reader so I didn’t know what the letter said, but I decided to keep it just in case. Then I heard the rumors that you were dead and I realized that I must have encountered the men who planned your death. At first, I didn’t know who to report this to because I did not want to accidentally tell your killer about what I’ve seen and heard. That changed as soon as words spread that you were alive and well. I immediately rushed over here and begged the guards to let me in. At first, they refused until I showed them your ring and told them I had proof of the assassination attempt. That’s all, Your Majesty. I hope it’s enough to help you.”
The Kahlin gave him an appreciative smile and answered, “Yes, it had. Thank you, Lezak.”
“What did it say?” Eskar asked curiously. Everyone looked at Hessin and the letter with great interest.
Clearing his throat, he said, “From what I’ve read, it mentioned that I was supposed to meet with other leaders of the world for a peace agreement. During that time, the writer wanted the assassins to kill me so that suspicions would fall on any of people, which would mean the peace accord would be unsalvageable. He said that he would lure me away so I would be ambushed and killed. After my death, the assassins would cut off my head and deliver it to him. Then he would place my head into one of the emissaries’ luggage so that they searched the premises, they would discover it and cause another war. Unfortunately, the person did not sign his name. However...”
Then he turned his attention to his former advisor, who inched farther away from the group. “You proclaimed your innocence, Maruk,” he said as he glared at the man, who froze in place, “but why did this boy, who has nothing to benefit from this, found a letter which was written in your handwriting and had your seal? I doubt anyone even the most skillful con man could make a perfect forgery. What do you have to say about that? It made sense now why you refused to go with me to the ruins. It’s not because you were scared of some ‘ghost’; it’s because you don’t want to reveal yourself in case the assassination attempt was botched!”
Maruk hesitated and glanced around the room to find himself surrounded. “Your Majesty,” he began slowly, “it was not my intention to harm you. I just...”
Suddenly he activated his green elemental ring and blasted the marble floor. Shrapnel scattered everywhere and the guards protected their leaders by using their bodies as shields. A coughing Hessin sat up and wiped the dust from his clothes. Looking around, he saw several dead soldiers lying on the ground; some had their limbs torn away. Worried about the others, he saw that his guests had minor injuries and much to his relief, he noticed that General Valentus had shielded a terrified Lezak.
“Are you all right?” he asked them, and they nodded. Luckily for them, the blast did not damage the birdcage or otherwise, they would be torn to shred by the carnivorous birds.
A movement out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and he quickly looked up to see Maruk trying to flee through the exit. Using the sunlight that was beaming on the floor, he manipulated it into becoming several jagged lines and placed them in front of the doorway to block his escape. The traitor almost tripped as he tried to stop and swore an oath. “What on earth did you do!?” he shouted incredulously. The room was silent except for the moans of the injured and the dying. Everyone in the room stared at Hessin and his new powers.
“It’s quite simple really, Maruk,” he replied coolly as he approached his killer. “Because of your attempt on my life, you awakened my powers, and this is one of them." He then quickly moved the light so that it surrounded the man and formed a prison. During his recuperation, he had practiced controlling the light and found out interesting things about his power. First, it could only work if there was a light source close by. Second, the strength of his power depended on how strong the light was. Lastly, he could not curve the light though he could reflect it if he used a mirror.
“Remarkable!” Maruk breathed. “Who would have thought you would have great potential? However, I refused to surrender just yet!” He then threw a handful of sands into Hessin’s face. Distracted, the Kahlin lost concentration as he tried to wipe the sand from his eyes and felt his power disappeared.
His former advisor grabbed him by the hair and slammed his face to the ground. He could hear Maruk sneered, “Since those buffoons failed to complete the job, I guess I will have to do it myself! I also might as well kill everyone here. With all of the leaders dead, the world will fall into disarray and I’ll be the one to bring the world together! Farewell, Hessin. It was nice serving you, but my time has come to rule!”
Hessin tensed his body for the attack, but nothing happened. He slowly opened his eyes and blinked since sands were still stuck in them. Istra had come between the two men and formed a shield to protect him. “What the!?” Maruk shouted annoyingly as she glared angrily at him. “A water spirit?”
“Thank you, Istra,” the king said graciously. She smiled and wrapped herself protectively around him. “I’m all right.”
The traitor frowned unhappily. “Now you’re a summoner as well!?” he said with disbelief. “My, Hessin, you performed a lot of amazing feats these past few days. But how long would it last? Since her elemental is water, I can’t use my blue elemental ring against her, which means...” He pulled out a red elemental ring from his pocket. “I’ll have to use fire.”
Alarmed, Hessin ordered, “Istra, get out of here now!” She complied and fled as a fireball blasted toward her direction. Now that she was gone, Maruk refocused his attack on his former king. Seeing that, Istra then transformed herself into a bird and tried to swoop down on Maruk to try to distract him, which seemed to work.
“Stupid bird!” Maruk cursed angrily as he tried to blast her and Hessin at the same time. However, his attacks kept missing though Hessin knew that he needed to end it now. Sooner or later one of the bystanders could get hurt by one of the blasts. That was when it dawned on him that the fire was a source of light and he could use it against Maruk.
“Istra,” he quickly commanded mentally, “I want you to provoke him so that he would make a huge fireball. Got it?”
“Understood,” she replied and increased her attacks on her opponent. She would peck at him and pull some hair from his head, which infuriated Maruk. Finally he had enough and just as Hessin anticipated, created a large fireball that was twice as big as his fist.
“Let’s see if you can dodge this, water spirit!” he crackled as he was about to hurl the fiery orb at Istra. Remembering what happened in his dream, Hessin caused it to explode, which caused a flash of light that blinded everyone.
Hessin walked over to the unconscious Maruk, who laid collapsed on the ground. His elemental rings were shattered to pieces – useless trinkets now. The man stirred and opened his eyes to find the Kahlin standing above him. He must have noticed that Hessin has only the royal scepter on hand because he quickly tried to pull out a dagger hidden inside his robe, but the king was much quicker. Pulling the Sword of Palenthor out of its scabbard, he pointed the sword at Maruk’s throat; the whitish-blue tip of the blade only a mere centimeter away.
“Give it up, Maruk,” he said softly. “You lost. Admit defeat now and I may consider mercy on you.”
Maruk just laughed bitterly. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?” he finally answered. “Who would have thought you would be able to unsheathe that godly sword too? All right, I surrendered.” He raised his hands and some of Passeck’s men seized him roughly.
They pulled him up and quickly searched him for more hidden surprises. “He’s clean, Your Majesty,” one of the guards announced. “What shall we do with this traitor?”
Normally, the law stated that all traitors would be executed. However, Maruk has served his father well and he was a good advisor to him before he tried to kill him. Hessin pondered for a minute and then said, “Before I pass judgment on you, I want to know why you want me dead. I doubt it’s because you wish to rule the world.”
“It’s because you’re too idealistic,” the older man answered resignedly. “You think that once you solve every problem in the world, you will have peace. While you talk of world peace as if it is so easy to achieve, I worked in the shadow to pull strings and make compromises to ensure your dream came true. You only see the big picture without thinking about the little details that helped you achieve your goals! And in the end, you will be credited for ending the wars and I will be remembered for nothing even though I deserve the recognition!”
Hessin listened with a sense of pity and bewilderment. “You’re a fool, Maruk,” he muttered. “I would have greatly honored you, but you ruined that chance.”
Exhaling deeply, he announced, “I have decided your punishment. Due to your countless help with my late father and me, I won’t sentence you to death. However, you will be marked and exiled to the Loredan Desert. You are no longer allowed in the kingdom of Ishara and I doubt no other countries will welcome you with opened arms.”
The other leaders concurred with that statement. “In fact, they would most likely hunt you down and execute you once you leave the country so I decided to give you a fair chance. I will have my men give you enough supplies for you to survive at least two days in the desert. Afterward, you must depend on the desert folks for aid though I’m not sure if they’re willing to help a marked man. Thus, that is my decision. I’m sorry that it has to be this way, Maruk, but you left me with no choice. I’ll try to remember the good side of you. Now take him away.”
The Isharan soldiers dragged the former advisor away so he could get his face tattooed. Now whenever someone sees him, he or she would know that he was punished for something grave. As they watched the scene, King Kelvin inquired, “If you don’t mind, Hessin. I would like some of my men followed them just to make sure that he did not try to do any funny business.”
The Kahlin relented and other leaders gave permission to their soldiers to follow as well. Facing his guests, Hessin apologized, “I’m sorry about this incident. If I have known about th-”
“Nonsense, Hessin!” Callen exclaimed as he slapped his friend’s back. “None of us saw this coming. Not to mention the fact we got to see your amazing sword skills and your new abilities!”
“Agreed,” Rylea smiled as everyone murmured with agreement. “I have never seen that form of magic before. I’m sure Lady Aundra would be most curious about you.”
Hessin nodded and slowly walked back to his throne, which was still intact surprisingly. He looked back to the birdcage to find the birds were still and quiet; their black feathers were mottling to the ground. “You must be wondering about these birds,” he said aloud. “These are known as Quentis, and they are used to determine if a war is brewing or not. You have seen their black form, which meant that the birds sense that time of chaos draws near, but...”
Some of the birds began to perk up and fly gracefully around the cage. Instead of being black, they were now white with a pink undertone. They sang a cheerful melody and were docile enough that the king could pet them. “When there is a time of tranquility, the Quentis transformed into their white form. As you can see, they are much less aggressive and much easier to handle. They had helped the rulers many generation before me know when there is unrest or peace in the country. They are a valued asset to this country.”
Then he sat on his throne and looked at everyone. Upon sitting on it, he realized how exhausted he felt. “You must be tired from what happened,” he said. “Why don’t you all retire to your rooms and get ready to head back home tomorrow? You need enough energy for tomorrow. Oh, have one of the servants prepare a guest room for the boy. He will be handsomely rewarded for his actions.”
Having saying farewell, everyone except Passeck left. “Is something the matter, Passeck?” Hessin wondered. The general hesitated and scratched his face though he was careful not to touch the large battle scar that was on his left cheek.
“It’s just...” he paused. “I never expected that I would encounter another Ilmarian especially one who is a king.”
“An Ilmarian?” Hessin asked as he felt Istra perched on his shoulder. “What is that?”
“He or she is someone who has been gifted with immortality and extraordinary powers, Your Majesty,” the general explained. “In fact, you’re the second one I met.”
“Tell me more,” the Kahlin sat up straight as he listened attentively. He knew that the water spirit was interested as well based on the strong grip on his shoulders.
Passeck just chuckled and said, “It’s a long story so bear with me. It started fifty years ago when...”
Lunsk 7, 1844
A week or so has passed since then. By then, many of the palace staff was interrogated to make sure that no other conspirators were still around though it appeared that Maruk acted alone. Since that incident, everything went mostly back to normal though there were a few changes. First, the palace had more security and every person was inspected to make sure that he or she did not have any hidden weapons on his or her person. Likewise, all ships that arrived at the harbor were to be searched thoroughly to make sure that no assassins were on board.
As for the Kahlin, General Passeck had ordered more guards, who must undergo a security check beforehand, to protect him though Hessin thought it was unnecessary because he has Istra around. However, the man insisted so the king has no choice but to relent. Most likely the old man felt terrible about what happened and wanted to make up for it. Due to the fact that Hessin managed to “survive” his assassination attempt, many people has begun to call him by his nickname, “The Immortal King”, which was very ironic since it was true. Passeck had a laugh about it and teased him about at whatever chance he has.
Meanwhile, all of the international officials had returned home and started to set up Bartheomos headquarters in their lands. Hessin hadn’t heard words on Maruk’s whereabouts though he was probably wandering the desert. Knowing the man, he would be quite resourceful in finding foods and shelter. As for Lezak, he was given a medal of honor by the king himself and was paraded around the city while everyone cheered his name. In fact, he and the boy had been corresponding ever since, and Istra was quite fond of his sister and him. Hessin had also grown to view Lezak and Hanzo as his children in a way.
That night Hessin was in the throne room by himself though Istra was perched fast asleep on a golden perch, which was shaped as a growing vine, next to him. He had snuck into that room without the guards because he wanted to be alone with his thoughts. For some reason that he could not explain, the king knew that something amazing would happen tonight.
Sure enough, the air in front of the throne shimmered before a large circle appeared. On the other side of the circle, he could perceive a lush forest, which looked it was from Kreesia. Before long, a line of people walked through the gateway though he only recognized Lady Aundra from a meeting he had with her once. Other than that, he noticed that a Xavian with strawberry blonde hair, one of the Loredan Desert dweller based on her clothing she wore, a Kreesian boy with gray hair and inquisitive eyes, a Doran priest who had a dog with him, a Bisahan woman who appeared to be from some nobility, and a Sendoan who looked around the room suspiciously.
As soon as everyone entered the room, Hessin spoke warmly, “Welcome to my kingdom. You must be the Ilmarians whom Passeck told me.”
“That is correct, Kahlin Hessin Soleri Ostrom,” the Xavian consented as she curtsied. She must be the leader of the group. “My name is Kejuta and I’m known as the Ilmarian of Fate though you may know me as the All-Mother. You already met Aundra, who is the Ilmarian of Magic, and this is Brenton, the Ilmarian of Time. Over here is the Ilmarian of Worlds, Marika. Lanskas is the Ilmarian of Beasts, Oraji is the Ilmarian of Nature, and Zentran is the Ilmarian of Seasons. There are two more, but unfortunately they cannot make it. They are my children, Adia and Pendance. You already met my son, who is the Ilmarian of Death, when you died. He was the one who told me about you, but you haven’t met my daughter, who is the Ilmarian of Life, yet. If you don’t mind, would you come with us to a more private setting?”
“Of course not, but please call me by my name. You don’t need to be formal with me,” Hessin said quickly as he stood up and walked down the steps. He heard Istra woke up and flew down to perch on his shoulder. Aundra watched the bird with great interest. “I hope you don’t mind if Istra come along.”
“Not at all,” the Ilmarian of Magic told him as she petted the bird. “An elemental spirit must follow its master wherever he or she goes.”
Marika bowed her head formally to him before piercing her index finger with a ring of some sort. After making sure that the ring was covered with her blood, she threw it in the air where it stood suspended in the air and became bigger. Hessin noticed that there was a field on the other side. “We’re going to Corawell, where the Pillar of the World is located,” Kejuta explained. “This is where my daughter currently lives.”
As they waited to go through the portal, Oraji walked toward him and curtsied. “I want to thank you for being so kind to Passeck,” she told him. “He’s a dear friend of mine, and he has told me how wonderful and kind you are.”
“You must be his childhood friend he mentioned about,” he answered. “Passeck has also told me he was quite fond of you.”
“Of course he would,” she smiled. “Though, to be honest, I wished he would settle down.”
Hessin chortled. “Unfortunately, he is not the marrying type,” he told her. “He’s the type who married to his work and would make his wife sick with worries.”
Oraji sighed. “I supposed you’re right,” she acknowledged wistfully as they entered Corawell, “though it would be nice if there are little Passecks running around.”
“Your Majesty, you’re alive!” General Valentus gasped as he bowed before his king. Hessin smiled at his faithful friend and nodded.
“How did you survive?” Zelis wondered as he stared at him with amazement. “It’s well-known that no one has ever survived an Enkrum assassin’s attack before so I’m rather impressed.”
Hessin paused to think and then motioned a soldier to hand him the bundle of bloodied clothes. Tossing the clothes onto the middle of the floor, he admitted to the stunned audience, “I did not though it was by the gods’ divine powers that I still live.”
Then he turned his attention to Maruk, who slowly moved aside from the throne. “Do you know what I found interesting?” he said quietly. “As I surrounded by those men, one of them told me who hired them. He told me that it was you.”
Everyone in the room turned to look at the culprit, who turned quite pale. “P-p-preposterous!” he stuttered as he backed away from the angry mob. “Why would I betray my king? My best friend’s son?”
“Why, indeed,” Rylea purred angrily as she flicked her fingers and flame sparked out. Hessin noticed that that Gregios was fingering his dagger dangerously as well. In fact, everyone appeared to get ready to draw out their weapons; they were probably incensed that the man who accused them of murder was actually the one who did the deed.
“But wait!” Maruk exclaimed. “How would you know that it’s me? I could have been set up! That assassin might have said that to trick you in case you survived the attack so you would place the blame on me, and the true culprit would escape scotch free!”
The Kahlin hesitated. That was true, he hated to admit. It was Maruk’s words against the assassin’s and the latter wasn’t here to defend himself. That was when he saw something astonishing. There was an image of him standing behind Maruk. The only difference was that this doppelgänger was bloodied and pale. “He’s the one who ordered my death,” his ghostly image declared as he pointed accusingly at the advisor.
Hessin blinked at what he saw and looked to see if anyone else saw it. Based on their still hateful expression, no one did. Was this one of his new powers that the stranger told him about? If so, that meant that his advisor was the one who hired those assassins. Now he was certain that he was right about his allegation, but how he could prove it? He couldn’t say that his bloody image told him so. Without evidence, Maruk would escape justice, and the traitor knew this as well.
Just then, one of the palace guards dashed into the room. “Your Majesty!” he shouted. “There is a boy who wished to see you at once! We didn’t want him to disrupt your meeting, but he showed us your ring. He also claimed that he had evidence that revealed the person who planned the hit on you!”
“Bring him in at once!” Rextin ordered roughly. “I’m curious about this evidence and whether or not it would exonerate this suspect.”
Imagine his surprise to see Lezak approaching the room. The thin boy gaped when he realized he was in the presence of every leader in the world and stood there in awe until General Passeck cleared his throat. “You say that you have proof on who tried to assassinate your king,” he began. “Do you have it with you?”
“Yes, sir,” Lezak responded as he pulled out a folded parchment, which was slightly crumpled and handed it to a guard. The guard then gave it to Hessin, who examined it with great interest, while Passeck looked over his shoulder.
After making sure it was authentic, he asked the boy, “How did you come about this?”
“It happened two evenings ago, Your Majesty,” Lezak confessed. “I was walking home for dinner when I overheard two men talking in the alley. Curious, I hid behind some crate and eavesdrop on their conversation. It was too dark so I couldn’t see their faces, but I could hear everything that they said. One man asked if the ‘deed’ was done and the other, who had a strange accent, said that was though there were complications.
“The first man, who was an Isharan, wanted to know what they were, but he just said that it didn’t matter since the ‘deed’ was done. He also said that his men needed to leave immediately so they wanted their payment now before they go. The Isharan said that he had the money and handed him a small pouch, which the foreigner took readily and counted them carefully to make sure he had the right amount. Afterward, he thanked the Isharan for his business, shook his hand, and left in my direction. I held my breath and made myself as small as possible so I wouldn’t be seen. Then the Isharan walked away in an opposite direction.
“After waiting a few minutes to make that they were not around, I decided to follow the stranger. I don’t know why, but something in my guts told me that it was necessary. Anyway, I followed the man to the harbor where I noticed that he was discreetly tossing aside papers into the water, which I found to be odd. Then he boarded a ship and waited. Twenty minutes, a group of Isharan soldiers pushed through the crowd as they took off their uniforms and entered the ship, which immediately left the board when the last one set foot onboard. While everyone was distracted by what happened, I noticed that one of the papers didn’t land in the water, which the man had hoped. Instead, it landed between two boxes located on the lower dock. I jumped down and stretched out to grab it.
“Unfortunately, I’m not a good reader so I didn’t know what the letter said, but I decided to keep it just in case. Then I heard the rumors that you were dead and I realized that I must have encountered the men who planned your death. At first, I didn’t know who to report this to because I did not want to accidentally tell your killer about what I’ve seen and heard. That changed as soon as words spread that you were alive and well. I immediately rushed over here and begged the guards to let me in. At first, they refused until I showed them your ring and told them I had proof of the assassination attempt. That’s all, Your Majesty. I hope it’s enough to help you.”
The Kahlin gave him an appreciative smile and answered, “Yes, it had. Thank you, Lezak.”
“What did it say?” Eskar asked curiously. Everyone looked at Hessin and the letter with great interest.
Clearing his throat, he said, “From what I’ve read, it mentioned that I was supposed to meet with other leaders of the world for a peace agreement. During that time, the writer wanted the assassins to kill me so that suspicions would fall on any of people, which would mean the peace accord would be unsalvageable. He said that he would lure me away so I would be ambushed and killed. After my death, the assassins would cut off my head and deliver it to him. Then he would place my head into one of the emissaries’ luggage so that they searched the premises, they would discover it and cause another war. Unfortunately, the person did not sign his name. However...”
Then he turned his attention to his former advisor, who inched farther away from the group. “You proclaimed your innocence, Maruk,” he said as he glared at the man, who froze in place, “but why did this boy, who has nothing to benefit from this, found a letter which was written in your handwriting and had your seal? I doubt anyone even the most skillful con man could make a perfect forgery. What do you have to say about that? It made sense now why you refused to go with me to the ruins. It’s not because you were scared of some ‘ghost’; it’s because you don’t want to reveal yourself in case the assassination attempt was botched!”
Maruk hesitated and glanced around the room to find himself surrounded. “Your Majesty,” he began slowly, “it was not my intention to harm you. I just...”
Suddenly he activated his green elemental ring and blasted the marble floor. Shrapnel scattered everywhere and the guards protected their leaders by using their bodies as shields. A coughing Hessin sat up and wiped the dust from his clothes. Looking around, he saw several dead soldiers lying on the ground; some had their limbs torn away. Worried about the others, he saw that his guests had minor injuries and much to his relief, he noticed that General Valentus had shielded a terrified Lezak.
“Are you all right?” he asked them, and they nodded. Luckily for them, the blast did not damage the birdcage or otherwise, they would be torn to shred by the carnivorous birds.
A movement out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and he quickly looked up to see Maruk trying to flee through the exit. Using the sunlight that was beaming on the floor, he manipulated it into becoming several jagged lines and placed them in front of the doorway to block his escape. The traitor almost tripped as he tried to stop and swore an oath. “What on earth did you do!?” he shouted incredulously. The room was silent except for the moans of the injured and the dying. Everyone in the room stared at Hessin and his new powers.
“It’s quite simple really, Maruk,” he replied coolly as he approached his killer. “Because of your attempt on my life, you awakened my powers, and this is one of them." He then quickly moved the light so that it surrounded the man and formed a prison. During his recuperation, he had practiced controlling the light and found out interesting things about his power. First, it could only work if there was a light source close by. Second, the strength of his power depended on how strong the light was. Lastly, he could not curve the light though he could reflect it if he used a mirror.
“Remarkable!” Maruk breathed. “Who would have thought you would have great potential? However, I refused to surrender just yet!” He then threw a handful of sands into Hessin’s face. Distracted, the Kahlin lost concentration as he tried to wipe the sand from his eyes and felt his power disappeared.
His former advisor grabbed him by the hair and slammed his face to the ground. He could hear Maruk sneered, “Since those buffoons failed to complete the job, I guess I will have to do it myself! I also might as well kill everyone here. With all of the leaders dead, the world will fall into disarray and I’ll be the one to bring the world together! Farewell, Hessin. It was nice serving you, but my time has come to rule!”
Hessin tensed his body for the attack, but nothing happened. He slowly opened his eyes and blinked since sands were still stuck in them. Istra had come between the two men and formed a shield to protect him. “What the!?” Maruk shouted annoyingly as she glared angrily at him. “A water spirit?”
“Thank you, Istra,” the king said graciously. She smiled and wrapped herself protectively around him. “I’m all right.”
The traitor frowned unhappily. “Now you’re a summoner as well!?” he said with disbelief. “My, Hessin, you performed a lot of amazing feats these past few days. But how long would it last? Since her elemental is water, I can’t use my blue elemental ring against her, which means...” He pulled out a red elemental ring from his pocket. “I’ll have to use fire.”
Alarmed, Hessin ordered, “Istra, get out of here now!” She complied and fled as a fireball blasted toward her direction. Now that she was gone, Maruk refocused his attack on his former king. Seeing that, Istra then transformed herself into a bird and tried to swoop down on Maruk to try to distract him, which seemed to work.
“Stupid bird!” Maruk cursed angrily as he tried to blast her and Hessin at the same time. However, his attacks kept missing though Hessin knew that he needed to end it now. Sooner or later one of the bystanders could get hurt by one of the blasts. That was when it dawned on him that the fire was a source of light and he could use it against Maruk.
“Istra,” he quickly commanded mentally, “I want you to provoke him so that he would make a huge fireball. Got it?”
“Understood,” she replied and increased her attacks on her opponent. She would peck at him and pull some hair from his head, which infuriated Maruk. Finally he had enough and just as Hessin anticipated, created a large fireball that was twice as big as his fist.
“Let’s see if you can dodge this, water spirit!” he crackled as he was about to hurl the fiery orb at Istra. Remembering what happened in his dream, Hessin caused it to explode, which caused a flash of light that blinded everyone.
Hessin walked over to the unconscious Maruk, who laid collapsed on the ground. His elemental rings were shattered to pieces – useless trinkets now. The man stirred and opened his eyes to find the Kahlin standing above him. He must have noticed that Hessin has only the royal scepter on hand because he quickly tried to pull out a dagger hidden inside his robe, but the king was much quicker. Pulling the Sword of Palenthor out of its scabbard, he pointed the sword at Maruk’s throat; the whitish-blue tip of the blade only a mere centimeter away.
“Give it up, Maruk,” he said softly. “You lost. Admit defeat now and I may consider mercy on you.”
Maruk just laughed bitterly. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?” he finally answered. “Who would have thought you would be able to unsheathe that godly sword too? All right, I surrendered.” He raised his hands and some of Passeck’s men seized him roughly.
They pulled him up and quickly searched him for more hidden surprises. “He’s clean, Your Majesty,” one of the guards announced. “What shall we do with this traitor?”
Normally, the law stated that all traitors would be executed. However, Maruk has served his father well and he was a good advisor to him before he tried to kill him. Hessin pondered for a minute and then said, “Before I pass judgment on you, I want to know why you want me dead. I doubt it’s because you wish to rule the world.”
“It’s because you’re too idealistic,” the older man answered resignedly. “You think that once you solve every problem in the world, you will have peace. While you talk of world peace as if it is so easy to achieve, I worked in the shadow to pull strings and make compromises to ensure your dream came true. You only see the big picture without thinking about the little details that helped you achieve your goals! And in the end, you will be credited for ending the wars and I will be remembered for nothing even though I deserve the recognition!”
Hessin listened with a sense of pity and bewilderment. “You’re a fool, Maruk,” he muttered. “I would have greatly honored you, but you ruined that chance.”
Exhaling deeply, he announced, “I have decided your punishment. Due to your countless help with my late father and me, I won’t sentence you to death. However, you will be marked and exiled to the Loredan Desert. You are no longer allowed in the kingdom of Ishara and I doubt no other countries will welcome you with opened arms.”
The other leaders concurred with that statement. “In fact, they would most likely hunt you down and execute you once you leave the country so I decided to give you a fair chance. I will have my men give you enough supplies for you to survive at least two days in the desert. Afterward, you must depend on the desert folks for aid though I’m not sure if they’re willing to help a marked man. Thus, that is my decision. I’m sorry that it has to be this way, Maruk, but you left me with no choice. I’ll try to remember the good side of you. Now take him away.”
The Isharan soldiers dragged the former advisor away so he could get his face tattooed. Now whenever someone sees him, he or she would know that he was punished for something grave. As they watched the scene, King Kelvin inquired, “If you don’t mind, Hessin. I would like some of my men followed them just to make sure that he did not try to do any funny business.”
The Kahlin relented and other leaders gave permission to their soldiers to follow as well. Facing his guests, Hessin apologized, “I’m sorry about this incident. If I have known about th-”
“Nonsense, Hessin!” Callen exclaimed as he slapped his friend’s back. “None of us saw this coming. Not to mention the fact we got to see your amazing sword skills and your new abilities!”
“Agreed,” Rylea smiled as everyone murmured with agreement. “I have never seen that form of magic before. I’m sure Lady Aundra would be most curious about you.”
Hessin nodded and slowly walked back to his throne, which was still intact surprisingly. He looked back to the birdcage to find the birds were still and quiet; their black feathers were mottling to the ground. “You must be wondering about these birds,” he said aloud. “These are known as Quentis, and they are used to determine if a war is brewing or not. You have seen their black form, which meant that the birds sense that time of chaos draws near, but...”
Some of the birds began to perk up and fly gracefully around the cage. Instead of being black, they were now white with a pink undertone. They sang a cheerful melody and were docile enough that the king could pet them. “When there is a time of tranquility, the Quentis transformed into their white form. As you can see, they are much less aggressive and much easier to handle. They had helped the rulers many generation before me know when there is unrest or peace in the country. They are a valued asset to this country.”
Then he sat on his throne and looked at everyone. Upon sitting on it, he realized how exhausted he felt. “You must be tired from what happened,” he said. “Why don’t you all retire to your rooms and get ready to head back home tomorrow? You need enough energy for tomorrow. Oh, have one of the servants prepare a guest room for the boy. He will be handsomely rewarded for his actions.”
Having saying farewell, everyone except Passeck left. “Is something the matter, Passeck?” Hessin wondered. The general hesitated and scratched his face though he was careful not to touch the large battle scar that was on his left cheek.
“It’s just...” he paused. “I never expected that I would encounter another Ilmarian especially one who is a king.”
“An Ilmarian?” Hessin asked as he felt Istra perched on his shoulder. “What is that?”
“He or she is someone who has been gifted with immortality and extraordinary powers, Your Majesty,” the general explained. “In fact, you’re the second one I met.”
“Tell me more,” the Kahlin sat up straight as he listened attentively. He knew that the water spirit was interested as well based on the strong grip on his shoulders.
Passeck just chuckled and said, “It’s a long story so bear with me. It started fifty years ago when...”
Lunsk 7, 1844
A week or so has passed since then. By then, many of the palace staff was interrogated to make sure that no other conspirators were still around though it appeared that Maruk acted alone. Since that incident, everything went mostly back to normal though there were a few changes. First, the palace had more security and every person was inspected to make sure that he or she did not have any hidden weapons on his or her person. Likewise, all ships that arrived at the harbor were to be searched thoroughly to make sure that no assassins were on board.
As for the Kahlin, General Passeck had ordered more guards, who must undergo a security check beforehand, to protect him though Hessin thought it was unnecessary because he has Istra around. However, the man insisted so the king has no choice but to relent. Most likely the old man felt terrible about what happened and wanted to make up for it. Due to the fact that Hessin managed to “survive” his assassination attempt, many people has begun to call him by his nickname, “The Immortal King”, which was very ironic since it was true. Passeck had a laugh about it and teased him about at whatever chance he has.
Meanwhile, all of the international officials had returned home and started to set up Bartheomos headquarters in their lands. Hessin hadn’t heard words on Maruk’s whereabouts though he was probably wandering the desert. Knowing the man, he would be quite resourceful in finding foods and shelter. As for Lezak, he was given a medal of honor by the king himself and was paraded around the city while everyone cheered his name. In fact, he and the boy had been corresponding ever since, and Istra was quite fond of his sister and him. Hessin had also grown to view Lezak and Hanzo as his children in a way.
That night Hessin was in the throne room by himself though Istra was perched fast asleep on a golden perch, which was shaped as a growing vine, next to him. He had snuck into that room without the guards because he wanted to be alone with his thoughts. For some reason that he could not explain, the king knew that something amazing would happen tonight.
Sure enough, the air in front of the throne shimmered before a large circle appeared. On the other side of the circle, he could perceive a lush forest, which looked it was from Kreesia. Before long, a line of people walked through the gateway though he only recognized Lady Aundra from a meeting he had with her once. Other than that, he noticed that a Xavian with strawberry blonde hair, one of the Loredan Desert dweller based on her clothing she wore, a Kreesian boy with gray hair and inquisitive eyes, a Doran priest who had a dog with him, a Bisahan woman who appeared to be from some nobility, and a Sendoan who looked around the room suspiciously.
As soon as everyone entered the room, Hessin spoke warmly, “Welcome to my kingdom. You must be the Ilmarians whom Passeck told me.”
“That is correct, Kahlin Hessin Soleri Ostrom,” the Xavian consented as she curtsied. She must be the leader of the group. “My name is Kejuta and I’m known as the Ilmarian of Fate though you may know me as the All-Mother. You already met Aundra, who is the Ilmarian of Magic, and this is Brenton, the Ilmarian of Time. Over here is the Ilmarian of Worlds, Marika. Lanskas is the Ilmarian of Beasts, Oraji is the Ilmarian of Nature, and Zentran is the Ilmarian of Seasons. There are two more, but unfortunately they cannot make it. They are my children, Adia and Pendance. You already met my son, who is the Ilmarian of Death, when you died. He was the one who told me about you, but you haven’t met my daughter, who is the Ilmarian of Life, yet. If you don’t mind, would you come with us to a more private setting?”
“Of course not, but please call me by my name. You don’t need to be formal with me,” Hessin said quickly as he stood up and walked down the steps. He heard Istra woke up and flew down to perch on his shoulder. Aundra watched the bird with great interest. “I hope you don’t mind if Istra come along.”
“Not at all,” the Ilmarian of Magic told him as she petted the bird. “An elemental spirit must follow its master wherever he or she goes.”
Marika bowed her head formally to him before piercing her index finger with a ring of some sort. After making sure that the ring was covered with her blood, she threw it in the air where it stood suspended in the air and became bigger. Hessin noticed that there was a field on the other side. “We’re going to Corawell, where the Pillar of the World is located,” Kejuta explained. “This is where my daughter currently lives.”
As they waited to go through the portal, Oraji walked toward him and curtsied. “I want to thank you for being so kind to Passeck,” she told him. “He’s a dear friend of mine, and he has told me how wonderful and kind you are.”
“You must be his childhood friend he mentioned about,” he answered. “Passeck has also told me he was quite fond of you.”
“Of course he would,” she smiled. “Though, to be honest, I wished he would settle down.”
Hessin chortled. “Unfortunately, he is not the marrying type,” he told her. “He’s the type who married to his work and would make his wife sick with worries.”
Oraji sighed. “I supposed you’re right,” she acknowledged wistfully as they entered Corawell, “though it would be nice if there are little Passecks running around.”