Quest of Keeling(1)

It had been a long journey indeed. From the moment he met with Astrid, Jason's daughter. At first, he didn't know how to make of her, since she introduced herself as his guide.

In the process of verification, it was normal for one to leave behind a guide for the one who will be doing the verification. It was an easier having someone guide you than if you had to do it all by yourself. This was where she came in, problem was, if you didn't know the guide, then you stuck with the same problem, as one had to verify the guide was who they said they were.

Worriedly, Kedan had wondered if his big brother's secrets had been found out, but she assured him that he would be able to confirm all that she said she was by the time he was done with the verification, then the real work would begin.

She had him make a journey, one that she couldn't come as she was also to be verified in.

The next part of the process was that he need to get the totem left behind by Dane, and that is why he had embarked on this journey. At that moment, even the god Jason still thought his guest was in his home in the suburb planet at his daughter's invite, which was why he invited the faction protector.

Astrid was known for her fondness of powerful beings, and faction protectors were as powerful as they come, so when she asked her father to delay the faction protector, he'd seen nothing wrong with that request. In fact, she was the reason why he met with the faction protector in person.

This was how Astrid had met with Dane. She had been thoroughly impressed by his power and ability, and this was before she knew he was a faction protector. Both were immortal beings, and asking someone to remain faithful for an eternity was just too much.

Partnership at this level was really meant for companionship. It may sound obvious but one of the greatest heartaches for powerful beings was that they eventually outgrew anyone they grew close to, hence, finding someone that they could face the expanse of time together made all the difference. While they may have many harems, their love did not wane, if anything it grew stronger.

These 2 had met in one of Jason's planets. Dane was looking for Kedan, he needed to find his brother before the banishment was in effect. Problem was, he didn't know where he was and he couldn't risk asking from help as he didn't want anyone finding out what he was up to.

To find the faction protector, the only way was to start enough trouble to arouse attention, and that was what he did. He couldn't go overboard as to get Jason's attention, but he needed to do something big enough to attract the faction protector's attention.

What followed was a tale of rebellion, heroism and of course, love. 2 powerful beings met each other in a foreign planet. Both were not from around there, and both had hidden agenda. One was facing banishment, the other a princess, what could possibly go wrong.

Long story short, Dane my not have found Kedan, but he didn't leave empty handed either. At this point, people weren't exactly lining up to help, so he took help where he could. It took a leap of faith to trust Astrid, and even then she wasn't privy to all his secrets. Only person he could fully trust was his small bro.

For now, Astrid had served her purpose well, for now. Kedan had found the loophole set up and he was now in the planet. While she acted all knowing to irk Kedan, she only had access to limited knowledge, just enough to accomplish her task. This wasn't done in bad faith, just that in order for Kedan, the executioner, to trust her, it had to come from him, it couldn't be dictated by someone else.

Contrary to what you'd expect in an inn, the place had a forlorn atmosphere. The few people present spoke in low tones, the meals were not in any way inviting at all. The only refreshing thing was that there was some excitement brought about by the ship that was docked.

The sailors chatted among themselves as they ate and drunk. There weren't enough prostitutes to go around, so even the ones present were seated on some lucky sailor's lap, entertaining the entire group. Don't get twisted, they were just in the halls laughing and chatting, whatever amorous activities that awaited them would have to come much later.

As the captain and the guest made their way for the evening meals, a hushed silence enveloped the group, but only for a moment. It was a trademark sign of respect, acknowledge the entry of their superiors, before resuming to whatever they were up to before.

As they ate, Kedan took the time to observe his surrounding before deciding on what was his next move. It wasn't lost on him that the ship captain was very curious about him. For some reason, he felt the captain saw a potential threat in him. In a way it did make sense, there were few willing to venture in this part of the planet, so there was always business.

What most people didn't know was that while any who ventured this deep would face tribulations and discrimination, it was worth it. This was a closely guarded secret as many who dominated this market did not want those from the mainland to figure out just how cheap iron ore was. What they bought here with pennies worth of supplies ended up being a massive haul that would keep the rich for a long time.

Now with a potential trader and competitor on board, why wouldn't the ship captain be worried. He had debated with himself not to ferry the man, but upon seeing the bag of coins he'd been paid with, he quickly changed his mind. It made sense that should he refuse, the man would just find someone else to take him.

"So tell me, if I offered to marry you, would you come with me to the mainland?" This was said by some half-drunk sailor at one of the maids.

"Do you think the likes of you qualify to marry me?" The reply caused peels of laughter to erupt by many of the drunk sailors, some even piled on some more insults.

"Haha, even if I just offered to make you my whore, as long as I offered a way out of this hell hole, you'd just in with both feet, wouldn't you?" The sailor who'd instigated this whole retorted. He wasn't angry at all, this was just the usual dally where drunks would trade insults with bar maids, whores or waitresses, he really had no ill intent. How could he know that his statement was a direct attack on all that were listening in, and even some turned away with shame in their eyes.

"Say what you will, but one day, the Quest of Keeling shall be completed, and we humans shall rise again!" She was new and young. Kayla was only 16 years old, the abject apathy had yet to creep in her heart. Her ailing mother was too weak from a certain sickness that was eating her bones, and hence it was up to her to fend for the household, which consisted of her as the elder sister, but she had 3 other siblings, 2 sisters and the smallest was a boy.

The others were seasoned sailors, and seeing her fervent expression, they could only laugh. Complete the Quest of Keeling, what a joke?

There wasn't any human who frequented this region who didn't know what the Quest of Keeling was, and while it promised untold prosperity upon completion, there weren't many who had notions of completing it.

As the girl turned away in frustration, carrying a plethora of utensils she'd just picked up from the sailors' table, she bumped into a tall man. The dishes were sent flying, making quite the raucous. Just as he was bending over to pick them up, they moved on their own and gathered back to the tray she had them on. It then levitated back to her.

Fear and shock. Those were the emotions on her face when she turned to look at the man whom she had bumped into. Contrary to her expectation, he had on a kind smile, and a warmth that made her feel totally safe around him. He reached for the tray and handed it to her saying, "Tell me about this Quest you spoke of."

***

Bamboo had lost. Not even Krea, the person responsible, could believe it. She expected a reply, a counter, something. Just like everyone else, she expected that she would put up a spirited fight before being put out.

She hadn't been so afraid, nor were there any adverse emotions. She had tasted Bamboo's power once, and while it had given her quite the jolt, it didn't scare her, not as much as meeting Hasilo's fists or Khalia's arrows.

Bamboo had been totally undisputed. No matter what was placed in front of him, he would destroy with a bored expression on his face. He was totally invincible, yet it had been her who put an end to his dominant run?

Bamboo was also still trying to come to terms with his loss. This was the first real loss he'd ever experienced. Previously, he hardly applied himself on anything, hence he had nothing worth losing. Now, he had built a name, an image, a brand. Suddenly all that had been taken away.

What he didn't know was that his greatest undoing was physics, or to put it in better terms, he just didn't understand the element he controlled. All elements had their characteristics. These could either work for or against the user, depending on how well the element was applied.

A proper mage would learn about the properties of their elements, and make proper use of the element's properties for their purpose. While this was apparent to Dane, for Bamboo, it was still a mark of shame.

"Thunder element was extremely powerful, but it is also a close friend of water." This was a statement made by Maple on their way back to the shelters. After such an exciting night, there was naturally mass excitement. People were in heated conversations all around them.

After his loss, Bamboo had been flanked by his team mates who picked him up from where he had been thrown. While many were shocked, they naturally wouldn't let it show. Every single one of them had faced defeat, and Bamboo had been there to pick each and every one of them.

"Besides, you're lucky, you get to have your revenge tomorrow." Hasilo's words were like lighting in Bamboo's heart. He had a chance to do over, to save his face from eternal scorn. As they walked back home, Bamboo had a determined expression on his face.