Chapter 22
Dawn of Glory [the half-breed]
twenty-second chapter.
Theme: "The warning
Letting out a great battle cry, Micah Tyler swung his blade at Joy. A deadly blow that meant two cuts down her head. At the last second, Joy raised her blade and parried the blow. She rolled to the ground as she felt something sharp coming her way. Just then, a sharp knife whistled past her head. Without being told, she knew it was Sarah's doing.
She jumps to her feet as Micah whacks at her again, this time ducking aside to evade a blade. She raised the blood sword and attacked back. She performed a different brawl with the blood sword and slashed at Micah without relenting. She tapped into her power, channelled it to the sword, and used it to drive Micah back. She cut at him from different angles without relenting. Front and back, up and down, side by side, she will swat at him.
All her blows were so fast that Micah couldn't block them all. Joy was giving him a cut, and his arms were growing weaker. Seeing this, Joy didn't give him time to relax. She raised the blood sword high, and it turned red instantly, which meant she was enraged. As she brought it down on Micah's head, Sarah parried it with another blade. Before Joy could swing her blade again, Micah kicked her in the chest, and she went stumbling backwards, her back hitting the wooden table in the process.
Joy groaned in pain as she managed to stand on her feet. She quickly surveyed the room with her eyes and could see that she was stuck with the two beings alone. Dan was outside, fighting some D'arcy soldiers while Mrs Sandra was protecting the entrance from hundreds of lycans that were trying to rush in. She was casting a spell that created an invisible shield.
Taking a deep breath, Joy twirled her blade, threw it to her left hand, and dashed at the two beings by using her superspeed. She attacks them violently, knocking both of them back. She was pushing them further and further back towards the entrance of the room. She raised her blade, turned around, and swung it at Micah. She aimed for his exposed neck and attempted to chop it down.
Seeing this, Sarah quickly steps forward and blocks the blow again. Before Joy could swing again, Micah cut her on the arm with his blade. Faster than the eyes could comprehend, Sarah appeared behind Joy, conjured a huge Hado Hans ball in her hand, and used it to knock her from behind. The impact made Joy crash against the wooden wall of the room before she crashed to the ground.
She spits out blood, and her vision is blurred. She tried to stand on her feet by using the blood sword as support. However, she ended up crashing to the ground while blood started oozing out of her mouth and nose. A few minutes later, her vision was clear, and she could see Micah squatting beside her.
"I warned you, didn't I?" With a chuckle, Micah says. "I have never failed in my mission, and yours won't be the first."
With that, Micah stood up, picked up his blade, and stabbed Joy in the chest. Joy let out an agonizing scream, which lasted for a few seconds before she blew her last breath.
********
"Noo," Jerushah, daughter of Zodak, screamed. "This can't be happening."
"What did you see, my mistress?" Jotham, one of her loyal servants, asked.
"We must stop the half-breed from going to Moab," Jerushah said. "If not, she will be killed." Says Jerushah as she moves, dropping the bowl in her hand.
Inside the bowl was a green liquid, which was shimmering with the help of the morning sun that was penetrating the room through a small hole in the ceiling. Jerushah stepped down from the altar which was made of palm trees and zebra skin. Her long, white, armless gown was sweeping behind her.
Jerushah, the daughter of Zodak, is a white witch. She learned how to control her power and healing methods from Alexander.
When Alexander was sure that she could stand on her own, she sent her to another territory where she was using her power to serve and save the people. Apart from Jerushah's healing and white witch power, she can also see the future. All she needed to do was pour a small quantity of her green liquid into her bowl and whisper the name of the being she wanted to check her future with.
Before the witch in the old world received the revelation of the true half-breed in the prophecy hall, Jerushah had seen it. She had tried to spread the word throughout the middle country, but no one believed her. Even when the creator sends it to the prophecy hall, no one believes it.
Well, she couldn't blame them. Lord Darius had not only slain the previous half-breed, but he had also installed fear in the people's hearts. He made sure they served him only.
"Mistress, what did you suggest that we should do now?" Jotham asked as soon as Jerushah stepped down from the altar.
Jotham had been serving Jerushah since he was ten years old. He abandoned his home, left everything behind, and dedicated his entire life to serving the white witch. That made Jerushah cherish and trust him so much.
"We have to warn them," Jerushah replied. She walked towards the exit of the room and stood in front of it as her hand went to the doorknob. "If they don't abort whatever they are going to do at Moab, the half-breed will be killed, and the middle land will be put into darkness again. Lord Darius will eliminate all the resistance, and we won't be safe." She clarified while trying her best not to sound too selfish.
"Let me do the job, mistress." Jotham offered. "I'm sure they would listen if I told them that you sent me."
"Never!" Jerushah replied sharply. "I will do that myself. They might not heed your warning, but a little trick from me will make them believe that it's the truth."
"The choice is yours, mistress," says Jotham, with his head, bowed in respect.
Not bothering to reply, Jerushah opened the temple door and stepped out.
*******
"Did you mean what you were saying?" Mrs Sandra asked an old woman in front of her. "If I get you right, what you are trying to say now is that the three rings of terror still exist."
"It does not only exist; it's here in the middle land." The old woman retorted. "One of the rings is with Lord Darius." says the lady.
"What about the remaining two? Where are they?" Mrs Sandra asked.
"My source tells me that one of the rings is with General Clark in Moab, while the last one is in the purple queen villa." The old woman clarified, and Mrs Sandra took a deep breath.
She placed her hand on the small rectangular table that was placed in the middle before she directed her gaze to Joy. With the look on her face, Mrs Sandra was sure that she was only trying to suppress the urge to ask her questions.
"What did you mean by the ring of terror?" Joy finally asked the question that was bothering her. "You said once we find her, we would know how to defeat Lord Darius. But know, you are talking about something else."
"The three rings of terror were forged from the doomsday fire. They were created by a great sorcerer of the middle land. After the ring had been forged, he discharged all his power inside each ring and used it against Lord Darius. This happened after Lord Darius killed his father and claimed the middle land throne." The old woman, whose name is Claire retorted. She stared directly at Dan and Joy before continuing.
"The being who created this ring was a faithful and loyal servant of Lord Darius's father. That's the first Lord Darius. He used this ring to take out everyone under his command and maintain order in the Middle-land until he was betrayed by one of his servants. After he was slain in cold blood, nobody heard anything about the terror ring again."
"If I heard you right, you are saying that these rings were dangerous just like Lord Darius himself." Dan mumbled. He is sitting beside Joy, and both of them are facing Claire, the old woman, and Mrs Sandra. "What would Lord Darius gain if he acquired all the terror rings?"
"Just like it was called, the ring could wipe out the whole middle land." Mrs Sandra answered back. "If Lord Darius gets hold of the ring, he will be able to control every being in the middle land."
"Does that include you?" Joy asked in confusion.
"He won't be able to control me alone, but everyone else. I mean, every sorcerer or sorceress in the middle land; not excluding the Olympian gods themselves." She clarified, and Joy gasped in surprise.
Hell No! She thought. How would someone be able to control the whole universe and multiverse beings with just three rings? That's insane.
“What are you suggesting now?" She asked after coming out of her doubting thoughts.
"Like I said earlier, one of the rings is with General Clark in Moab, while the last one is with the Purple Queen Villa." Claire elucidated. "Our primary quest now is to reach Moab before them, and retrieve the ring before Lord Darius goes for it."
"What's the assurance that he won't be able to control us with just two rings?" Dan asked.
"That's impossible," the old woman explained. "The rings can't work without each other. That means if we can get one, then the score is settled. After that, we would look for ways to defeat him once and for all."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Joy asked impatiently.
"Today is my cousin's wedding, and I'm the only one left for him as a mother. I must be present for the anniversary. We can go at dusk or nightfall. We can even go to Moab tomorrow morning before the sunrise." says the elderly lady.
Seeing that nothing was going to change their mind, Joy let out an exasperated sigh and stood up from the chair. "I would like to get some fresh air outside. Unless you guys are about to choke me with your words." Joy said, and walked towards the exit.
"Can I tag along?" Dan asked, getting ready to follow her.
Under normal circumstances, she would have allowed him. But now, she needs to be alone. She needed time to process everything she had just heard. She couldn't believe that there was more to defeating Lord Darius than she thought.
"No Dan, don't worry." She declined his offer while trying to be polite at the same time.
Even though Dan has been a great help to her, she needs to be alone this time. She needs to be alone for once.
Without even turning back, Joy could feel the sadness on Dan's face. But she doesn't care now. "Don't worry, Dan. I just need to be alone for a few hours. I will be back soon." She said and walked out without waiting for his reply.
As Joy stepped out of the small house, the cool morning breeze hit her face and sent a cold shiver down her spine. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before she rebounded the rest of it into a ponytail.
"Bingo," she called before whistling to attract her dog. Not long after, her dog emerged from a corridor, leaping at Joy's leg and licking it while her tail is wriggling in excitement.
Joy squatted down beside her dog and rubbed her fur before planting a kiss on her forehead. She could still remember how small the dog was when she and Dan helped her in the woods. Now the dog has grown up. She had long, sharp claws like a vampire, strong bones like a lion, and the speed of a cheetah; not to mention her sharp canines.
"Let's take a run in the woods," says Joy as she continues rubbing the dog's fur. "Let's see who can run faster between you and me." She suggested.
Even though Joy knew the dog couldn't match her speed, nonetheless, she decided to have fun; just like she always did with Dan before everything changed. Now she was beginning to regret how she declined Dan's offer.
As if the dog understood what she was saying, it took off in the direction of the woods, and Joy followed suit.
Instead of activating her full speed, she reduced it which made the dog have a good lead ahead of her. They hadn't covered twenty miles when Joy felt the presence of humans in the woods. It seems her dog also felt the strange presence and the smell in the air as it halted.
Not wanting to take the risk of an unexpected attack, Joy's hand went straight for her scabbard, and she drew out the blood sword.
She walked closer to her dog who was now barking and staring in the front direction. Joy conjured a small Hado Hans ball and tossed it in the direction. She watched in anticipation as the Hado Hans hit a tree which she suspected to be harbouring the strange being. The tree went up in flames, and green smoke filled the woods.
"That was quite harsh," a female voice said, followed by the cough of the strange being. Emerging out of the smoke is a young, beautiful woman in her early 40s. "You should have asked the creature to come out instead of firing at the tree. What if it hurts me?"
"Who are you?" Joy asked with a stern voice, her hand tightening on the blood sword. "Explain yourself or I won't hesitate to whack down your head. Why are you stalking me?"
"Easy, Darius Joy. I'm not here to harm, but to warn you.'' Says the old woman, her voice now solemn. "You must not go to Moab, or else your death is certain."
At the mention of that, Joy shivers in fear. This strange woman did not only called her Darius Joy, but she knew of her journey to Moab. "Who the hell are you? How did you know everything about me?" Joy asked, her voice rising in alarm.
"Listen, I haven't got much time because your friend is now coming closer. But I came here to warn you. You mustn't leave the lower Isle until you feel that it's safe." says the lady.
"Joy, what's the smoke about?" Joy heard Dan's voice from behind. She turned quickly in his direction before looking back towards the woman's position again. To her surprise, she wasn't there again. The strange old woman has mysteriously disappeared.
Perhaps you were daydreaming. Joy heard her inner mind say.
Hell No! She thought. She wasn't daydreaming. It was real. She looked at Bingo, and she could see the surprised look in the dog's eyes. That means she wasn't daydreaming. It was real. The woman, the warning, and the vanishing stuff.
"What are you thinking about?" Dan's voice brought her back to reality.
"It's nothing," Joy simply said and walked back to their abode while Dan and her dog followed her.
T.b.c