Chapter 7

Lolly and Josh discuss Otellus, Ethaniel trains the teenagers how to bond with Praestia... Anna is introduced to the group, and Shadow under Xagraver's command, plots against them.

Chapter 7

Lolly pulled her brown jacket free of herself as she gazed out at the water with a frown.  She was sat on a wooden bench beside the river that ran south to the sea beneath Pacaris.  This spot of the river was about a mile south of Puteulus, and the paved pathway beside it proved a good walking destination for civilians and tourists.  Even if the town of Puteulus was entirely different to back on Earth, areas like this made the young girl almost forget she was in a world that shouldn’t exist.  Also, the various wildlife that flew around while occasionally sparking, levitating bugs with their minds or randomly combusting into flames made it easy to remember where she was also.  Lolly didn’t ever see herself getting used to that.

 

She looked up as footsteps approached from the south, and watched curiously as two rather formally dressed men walked past.  Apparently guards, as a white tiger and small rhino walked at their feet.  The tiger gave Lolly a glare as it passed, causing Lolly to cringe briefly.  But then they were gone, and the footsteps were shortly lost under the trickling of the river. She gave a sigh, running a hand through her hair, before frowning as she pulled a twig that had somehow become entangled in it.  “...Geez, I probably should’ve had a shower after all.”

 

“And that makes you sound like a... well...”

 

“A hobo?”  Lolly looked over her shoulder at Josh, who was stood there with his hand on the bench, looking down at her.  She then smiled weakly, “...Well, I’m glad to see you’re okay.”

 

“Am I?” Josh questioned, sitting down next to her and looking out at the river as a middle-aged couple walked by with a couple of children, “I don’t feel okay.  I actually feel like I belong in an asylum somewhere.  But still... you have to admit, I made a pretty freaking awesome world here.  Though I don’t recall making this place up.  Or describing you as a... yeah.”

 

“Hobo?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Hm.”

 

Josh chuckled briefly, before giving a sigh, “Are the others awake yet?”

 

“No.  And Ryan’s gone missing.” Josh frowned at this announcement, looking to his friend questioningly, “And also, Laura poofed away somewhere so god knows where she wandered off to. She’s probably still at home playing Kingdom Hearts... then again...” She broke off in a frown, before her eyes seemed to cloud over, “...Er, nevermind. Forgot what I was gonna say, there.  But... it was kinda scary hearing about you collapsing like that. Apparently, you started hallucinating and stuffs... and then just keeled over.”  She swung her legs gently, looking back to the river, “Kinda creepy.”

 

Josh sighed again, “Yeah, well... sorry about that.  It was quite creepy for me too, y’know.  Is Laura okay? We kinda had a... fight just before that whole thing happened. And I kinda saw her being devoured by a purple tornado of doom.  That was rather terrifying.”  There was a pause in the conversation as another two guards patrolled by, and Josh watched them leave before continuing, “But that aside... I’m still not entirely convinced that this is real.  It just seems very... cliché.  Though I suppose if it is... then hooray, I can finally have some pets that aren’t fish... and that can blow fire or something. That sounds fun.”  He hesitated, “I’m not sure what my element would be though... I guess I always saw myself as water or lightning.”

 

“Don’t you think we should...” Lolly took a moment to think of what to say, before gazing to him, “Y’know, work out why we’re here before deciding what mutant animals we’re going to have as pets?  Because... as much as a flying llama sounds awesome right now, I’d rather go home. Wouldn’t you?”

 

Josh considered the question, before shrugging briefly, “Maybe.  As weird or selfish as it sounds, I wouldn’t really mind living here.  I did... make this world, after all.  Then again, I did also make a villain who wants to kill us... so maybe you’re right, home sounds a tad safer.  But hey, the good guys always win... at least, that was the plan.  We’ll be fine.”  Though in his mind, after his conversation with Ethaniel, he knew that was far from the truth.

 

*             *             *

 

“Right...” Ethaniel gazed at the six children gathered around him inside his office, examining each of them.  Five of them were stood close together, including Josh and Lolly, while the other one was doing some weird kind of dance by herself on the opposite side of the room. The one with sunglasses who was also now wearing a beret and strange scarf.  Clashing clothes, funny jewellery, wild hair...  She looked... special.  The others seemed unfamiliar with the girl, however, which was quite... interesting. “There are six of you here... yet there are eight in the prophecy.  Five of you are familiar with you, yes?  Introduce yourself one more time.”  The five on the left of the room did so... Tom, Molly, Josh, Lolly.  Ethaniel gave a nod, “And... then there’s... erm, please don’t touch that... who are you?”

 

The black-haired girl with the funny hat turned to face him, before smiling wildly, “...Haha, you’re old!”  Ethaniel cast a glance to Lolly, who smiled guiltily, before looking back to her, “Yes, I have noticed... now what is your name?”

 

The girl ignored the question, before literally skipping over to the other five, facing Tom, before suddenly beaming widely and pulling him into a hug.  Tom quickly shoved her away, looking perplexed, “The hell?  What... who the frick are you?”

 

“Anna!” The girl replied brightly, now shaking his hand ferociously, “I’m Anna, I’m NOT an alien, despite what my mum says... My favourite colour’s yellow, my nickname is banana, and I have an obsession for ducks.  And penguins.  And chinchillas.  Hi!” She continued shaking his hand wildly, causing the boy to wince before she finally let go.  “Nice to meetcha, in this totally awesome magical worldy thing that we’re apparently in!  What’s it called?  Oh tell us, Ethaniel!”

 

“...Otellus.”

 

“Oh tell us what?”

 

Josh groaned loudly, facepalming.  Ethaniel stared at her in both fear and irritance, “...The world is called Otellus.  It’s... not said like oh tell us, more like... oh... tell... um... us, like rhyming with... puss.  Not rhyming with bus.”

 

“Haha, you said puss.”

 

“...For god’s sake.” Ethaniel turned away from the strange girl, looking back to the other five, “Well, unfortunately for you... you’re stuck with this girl during your journey.  She’s part of the prophecy too, so make sure she doesn’t go wandering off any cliffs or doing anything remotely stupid.”  Those in front of him exchanged glances, before Anna proceeded to move and hug each one of them.  “...Onto more important matters...  I am not able to tell you as much as I’d like to, but the prophecy is that you either rise up as powerful Praedux and defeat Xagraver, the traitor of Voxilitis... or if they fulfil certain conditions, they destroy... and kill you.  However, the prophecy itself has not been triggered... When it is triggered, however, someone will die.”

 

Tom raised his eyebrows above his glasses, “Oh, lovely. And how exactly do we stop it from being triggered? And, in more cheerful questions... when do we get our first... what do you call them?”  Josh murmured something in his ear, and he nodded, “Right. Praestia.  Cool name, by the way.” Josh smiled.

 

Ethaniel gave a nod, as if accepting that as a good question, “It is out of your control, and I cannot say.  However, if the prophecy is triggered, remember... you can still win.  To defeat Mortalitas, Xagraver’s name for his group, and go back home... the prophecy has to be fulfilled.  So do not waste time worrying about preventing it from starting, worry about finishing it.  The only way for it to finish and you go home safely, is for Xagraver to be killed and Otellus return to peace.  As for the Praestia... we first need to work out each of your elements.  And lucky for you, I’m a bit of a scientist in my spare time.  I have several Praestia in this lab, each one belonging to various willing residents of Pacaris.  Each of them has agreed to letting me use them as tests whenever we suspect potential in newcomers.  It’s a completely harmless process... unlike in the wild, the Praestia will attack you while you try bonding with them. And in that situation, if you lose focus, it can be deadly.  This time, however, the Praestia know you mean no harm, so it’s literally a case of looking for reaction.  Follow me.”

 

The old man turned and headed for a back room, the six teenagers following him at a distance.  As they entered, the first thing they noticed was the dozen or so animals running around or relaxing.  They ranged from birds and cats to more exotic animals such as a rhinoceros.  Anna gasped dramatically, moving forward from the group and covering her open mouth with a hand, “Oh my gosh! Look at all the fluffy animals! Yay!”

 

“Well... she’s certainly... unique.” Lolly murmured quietly, causing Josh to chuckle, “...I’m worried for her if she ever ends up in a life threatening situation, though.  Fun times.”

 

“They’re fluffyyyy, and squishyyyy, and cuuute.”

 

“Does she ever stop talking?” Ethaniel grunted to Tom, who simply shrugged, “Be quiet, girl, and get back in line... actually, seeing as you’re... here... We’ll test you first.  I have at least one Praestia of each element here.  So what I need you to do... oh, wait, first... take these.” He approached a nearby shelf, pulling down a box and opening the lid.  After the cloud of dust emerged and vanished, he revealed the box’s contents as several various items such as jewellery and various other small objects.  Anna immediately grabbed a silver tiara, slipping it on her head, eyes widening with amazement.  Josh grabbed a simple looking watch, Lolly a shining ruby ring and Tom a plain armband.  Finally, Molly grabbed a rather expensive looking pearl necklace, fastening it around her neck.  At raised eyebrows from Tom, she simply shrugged, before admiring herself in a nearby mirror with a slight giggle. “Right... these are simple objects, and what I am about to teach you could be done with anything as small as a breadcrumb or as big as a wardrobe... though I do not recommend doing the latter, because you’ll need to carry a massive wooden thing around whenever you want to fight.”

 

“You could use it to flatten enemies, though.” Molly suggested, still looking in the mirror.

 

Ethaniel chuckled, smiling to the younger girl, “Perhaps.  But no offense, I do not see you being able to even lift a wardrobe.” Molly turned her head, sticking her tongue out at the old man.  “Anyway, as I was saying... the object that you use as your power is not important, but it is best to use something you can carry with you easily and touching your skin.  Any obstacles such as clothes, something in pockets or whatever can disturb the mental flow.  This may sound complicated to you, but you are almost certainly capable of becoming Praedux... you need to channel the power you should have inside you, to the objects I have given you.  It is up to you to transfer as much energy to them whenever you can, because you use the objects to bond with Praestia, not your actual mind.  If you exhaust the energy in the object while still bonding, it could well lead to disaster.  So... All you need to do now is focus on your object... wait until you feel the power inside you, and direct it towards it.”

 

Ethaniel clasped his hands behind his back, bowing his head as he waited.  The six children, even Anna, immediately began attempting what he had just explained.  The first to smile in triumph was Josh, which formed a shocked response from the others.  Josh simply shrugged, “I did write this story and method, you know. You’d think I know how to actually... do it.”

 

“Great for you.” Tom commented sarcastically, “Now how about giving us a hand?”

 

“There’s... really not much to do it.” Josh replied uncertainly, “Just... look inside you for a source of power. It’s all spiritual kinda stuff, like when people meditate... or fortune tell or whatever.  There’s no, like... science to it.”

 

Tom sighed in frustration, face fully concentrated, “Yeah? Next time, make it so that we can literally just instruct our brain to bond with Praestia, and none of this magical wikka sounding crap.”  Josh simply shrugged.

 

Ethaniel looked to Josh, “Alright, as you’re done... do you know your element, by the way?”

 

“I was going to give myself water or lightning.” Josh replied, looking around at the animals, “But I never made a final decision...” Ethaniel nodded, before leading him over to a toad, gesturing to it.  Josh focussed intently on the creature, unblinking.  The watch on his left wrist began glowing yellow, and a barely visible line of energy extended towards the green pond animal.  The toad croaked, before sparks released from its body.  Josh smiled, “...I guess I’m electric then.  I began to bond with it.”

 

“Excellent.” Ethaniel nodded in improvement, before interrupted by a cry of ‘aha!’ from Lolly, “Alright then... Lolly, you try.  Do you have any ideas of what element you might possess?”

 

Lolly thought, biting her lower lip, before eventually replying, “Hmm... Water, maybe?  Or grass.  Maybe wind.”

 

“Very well... try this carp, here.” He led the short girl over to an average sized aquarium in the corner, where a rather dull brown carp was swimming around, mouth opening and closing.  It stopped in its daily routine, peering out the glass at the curly-haired brunette that was now staring at him.  “Focus on the energy in your ring, and direct it towards the fish’s mind...  This carp is water.  Rather typical choice of element for a fish, but considering its habitat, it is very common for aquatic creatures to possess the water power.”  Lolly nodded, a determined smirk on her face as she concentrated.  There was no glow from her ring, and the fish simply swam away. Lolly looked disappointed. “Don’t worry, you’re probably doing it right... it just looks like you’re not water.  Let’s try grass.  I hope you’re not afraid of snakes.”  The Praedux master led Lolly over to a rather huge boa wrapped around a lamp-stand.  The serpent lifted her head, red tongue flicking out of its mouth as she gazed at the arrivals.

 

“Okay, then.” Lolly nodded, before repeating the same process as before.  Still nothing.  “Damn it... I’m going to end up with... rock or something rubbish like that... what do you have for wind?”

 

Ethaniel smiled gently, “Fear not...  wind?  Try this iguana.”  He gestured to the average sized green lizard relaxing on top of an ancient appearing book, “And if you are wondering... those of the air element that do not possess wings can still fly.  They use the air to move around, thus they don’t rely on wings.”  For the third time, Lolly extended the power of her ring towards the reptile.  This time, her ring glowed grey, and the beam of energy extended towards the lizard.  The iguana woke from its slumber, peering up at the girl as he sensed her bond.  “Aha... You possess the wind element.  Very good.  Tom, you ready?”

 

“I sure am.” Tom replied, actually sounding rather excited at the prospect of this, “I hope I’m something awesome like... mind control, or maybe even illusion. Do those even exist as a power? Or is it just the more basic things like fire, water and air?”

 

Ethaniel considered the question, “The main elements are indeed the more popular ones... perhaps element is not the right word to describe it.  But you get what I mean...  Perhaps try the more common elements first.  Which of the main ones do you think yourself to be?”

 

Tom thought, adjusting his glasses, before saying, “Water, I suppose.  Either that or Earth... or dark.”

 

Ethaniel led him to a rather ordinary looking house cat, a Siamese, “Try her.  She’s water.”

 

Tom grabbed the armband to help him concentrate, fixating his eyes on the sleeping cat.  Almost immediately, the armband glowed blue, and again, the beam of energy extended.  The process continued for the other three children, with Molly getting ice and Anna psychic.  “Ooooh, I’m psychic!  Does that mean I can read minds?!  Can I levitate stuff?  Can I... okay, I’m out of ideas.  What can I do?”

 

Ethaniel shook his head with a weary sigh, “As the Praedux, your powers are limited.  You do have certain abilities from your element... Molly, for example... say she has a bow,s he can freeze the arrow and shoot it.  Or, in normal scenarios, she can freeze things with his mind.  Lolly, though after a long time of training, can even fly.  Tom, you will eventually be able to breathe underwater... Josh, you’ll possess incredible speed.  Anna, you... er... well, I suppose you could read minds, yes.  But you cannot control them, at least not yet.  There is a separate power that Praedux can have, which focuses on mind control.  But your Praestia are more combat related with their powers.  The Praedux are limited with what they can do, and whenever you use your powers, it will wear you down quickly.  The Praedux are leaders and guides, not usually warriors.”

 

“Well, this is suddenly sounding a lot more awesome.” Tom smirked, folding his arms and leaning back against the wall, “Nice to know you can actually write a rather fun novel that sucks us in, Josh.  Thank god you didn’t write Twilight.”

 

Before the conversation could proceed, Ethaniel cut them off, “The next matter is... what you do next, after bonding with your first Praestia.  And if I can suggest something, it would be to head to Industrictus, north of here.  There, an associate of mine with the name of Lenfei studies Praestia in one of the labs. Meet with him, and he will tell you what to do next.  Meanwhile, however... I shall accompany you into the woods to assist in bonding with your first Praestia." 

 

*             *             *

 

“Shadow, report.” Shadow frowned, looking down at the silly watch on his wrist.  There, the rather unpleasant face of Xagraver appeared, glaring up at him. 

 

The boy sighed, before replying irritably, “Really?  It’s only been twenty-four hours- okay, okay.” Shadow raised his free hand in surrender before Xagraver could shout at him, and continued, “I am keeping close watch on Puteulus... The teenagers have all awoken.  I suspect Ethaniel is instructing them on how to bond with Praestia.  My guess is they will move north, perhaps to Industrictus.  Either that, or Ethaniel will send them straight to Capulus.  They have yet to bond with their first Praestia, though it won’t be long before they do.”

 

Xagraver smirked, “Excellent.  Well... let them bond if they wish... but I think they are in need of an icy welcome to our world... if you get my meaning.”

Shadow smiled, showing his teeth before looking up to Glacird, who was perched on a branch keeping watch, “...As you wish.”