9 JUNI’s little SECRE

Her eyes were tired, and her cloak was clinging unevenly on her shoulders. The wind is blowing sparingly as if denying her comfort while she dragged herself away, step by step, forcing every will within her, from the charcoal black path to the gates. Sweat and tears dribbled from her face joining together in her perfectly carved chin only to drop down to commune with the earth, abandoning her in her plight. Her eyes blurred in vision while she felt her heart pumping disturbingly fast, choking her in her every breath, in her every step, and in every muscle she moves, in her attempt to reach the end of the road: the exit to the shrine of Bakunawa. With her last energy she commanded all of her remaining spirit to create an illuminating light to open the old creaking door to reveal her travelling companions outside.

"YOUR HIGHNESS!" alerted Karr, the ever loyal Daomagarian guard, as he ran to catch her fall as soon as he saw her wavering in her walk with a visage of extreme pain and obvious discomfort.

He had never witnessed this side of her like this. She never shown any signs of weakness to anyone - even to her most loyal subjects. Her proud character gives her the twisted philosophy of being a person bound in the realms of logic devoid of any encumbering emotions. She is convinced that if she ever makes a mistake of sharing her pain with someone, it will lead for her to be exposed to weaknesses and that is what she is afraid of the most. Even in the midst of pain and discomfort, she will stand indifferent, powerful without flaw, and would not give anyone the idea to think otherwise. She likes other people - especially her enemies - to think that she has an impenetrable and indestructible persona and an act like this would greatly destroy her reputation. The last time he saw her dwindle like this was when she was six years old - and this means that this time, it's serious.

They all saw her now gasping for air with blood now dripping from her nose, eyes and the Amplifyers in her forehead. They huddled in anxiety awaiting any comfort from her words till Zeba entered wailing.

"Your excellence! What happened?!" she said with her concerned face while pushing her wet handkerchief on her soft forehead trying to soothe her wretched state. "We saw the skies getting dark with the blood moon rising; and the Nanreben being awaken; and a huge fireball being summoned. Did you fight Bakunawa?"

Prodea's eyes began to flutter weakly as she struggled with words while still gasping for air. "G-g… get… me o-h… out o-f here…" she said blurry before she fell into a slumber losing all her consciousness at their hands.

Zeba noticed Prodea's Amplifyers light flickering. This troubled her and all the Daomagarians around her for it means that she used an excessive amount of elemental energy that would lead one to be extinguished of one's soul - a dire state one might call the early stages of the Sleep of Death.

The Sleep of Death is a state of the body, in which if left untreated, would lead for her to sleep paralyzed, unable to be awaken ever again till the rest of her remaining life, like an aging statue.

"We must bring her immediately to the Palace..." said Zeba frantically, fearing what the queen might do to her if anything happened to her only daughter on her watch. "But we can't. She'll get mad. We must keep this as silent as possible... but how?"

"Madam Zeba!" interrupted Karr. "I could run to the Palace and grab a Nagozulian Healer and bring her at the nearest rest stop south from here."

"Yes! Yes!" agreed Zeba panicking but having a little bit of comfort with his suggestion.

Karr was about to leave when Zeba yelled stopping him on his tracks.

"Wait! If you call a Water Caster here, will the Princess be..." she stopped panning her eyes to Prodea, frightened on what the princess might do after regaining consciousness and then continued, "... I don't know - angry?"

"With all due respect Madam, the safety of the charge is my priority. We should deal with the consequences later."

Zeba then thought about how furious the princess will be to everyone if they include a healer in their dilemma. They knew about how fast the rumors go and as much as she wants to make her state strictly confidential, the idea of the princess dying is far more troublesome to face than her wrath.

"Okay, okay!" she finally decided with a shaky voice, "We will wait for you in the nearest village south from here, hurry!"

Karr dashed with Zeba's last words without a sound, running fast into the horizons till he vanished in the woods.

-------ooO0Ooo-------

"BOO!" shouted Karus as he popped at the kitchen trying to scare of the people inside.

"Hmmn, that's odd," entered Kayzar after Karus, walking around the corners as if looking for someone.

"Hello? Anybody here?"

They walked inside the dimly lit kitchen cautious on every step. There are black curtains that are blocking the windows which they thought to be deliberately set up there since the room is unusually bright as a summer's day even in the darkest of days. No tongues of candles can be found all around the room. Only a sliver of light traced the corners and lines that suggest the figure of objects to the hungry eyes.

"Tch, Not Again," groaned Kayzar figuring what they were into as he drew a knife that's hidden in his new fashionable robe.

Karus grabbed a knife at the table, still cautious as he is.

"Come out, come out wherever you are," Karus whispered smiling, looking back and forth, sideways and at the top, searching for people inside the room.

A knife flew from Kayzar's back and went forth to Karus' location. Kayzar saw this so he threw the dagger he was holding to intercept it. His timing was perfect for the knife that was coming directly to Karus's back was deflected but at the cost of his own vulnerability since he surprisingly stashed only a single dagger. He thought he really doesn't need that many for security unlike when they are outside, so he mistakenly stashed a lonely dagger in his attire. He usually goes too far in hiding weapons around his spacious long sleeved apparel mounting to more than a hundred ranging from the small throwing pins to the long strike blades but today of all days he practically loosened up and carried a single thin short dagger which is good only for peeling fruits - a very disappointing act that he extremely regrets.

"Karus! Palms! Shield Stance!" ordered Kayzar, in a code that only they understand, while running to Karus' location.

"Affirmative!" replied Karus as he kicked the pots and cans at his immediate vicinity and clear any obstacles for him to defend Kayzar who's running towards him.

A silver hand suddenly appeared below a table on the dark corner that grabbed Karus' right foot before he'd jumped. He looked at Kayzar to warn him but it's too late. The arm that's been pulling Karus's leg is so strong that it led for him to fall on the ground. He forcefully pulled to retrieve his leg back in futility from the clutches of the grasping unknown silver hand coming from the darkness, but it was in vain. The hand is so strong and sturdy it didn't even shook to his struggling fit.

Kayzar saw the hand pulling his brother's body under the table so he removed a strap on his bracer and grabbed the needle dangling. He fixed this needle to throw but before he could react and help Karus, an individual unexpectedly appeared from behind grabbing his body and locking him on a hug with a knife directly pointing at his neck.

"Game over," said a female voice that's been holding Kayzar immobilized.

"Yit! You and your cheat skills!" protested Kayzar as he dropped the needle that's in his hands.

The hand that's been holding Karus's leg let go and disappeared. Suddenly, between the tall cupboards, Kudos appeared grasping his right arm as though it's been seriously strained.

"I tot' imma lose my hand 'der for a second but yer' gettin' rusty - 'd two of ya. Ya 'shud be trainin' more on 'yer reflexes."

As he was saying this Madj withdrew the dagger fixed at Kayzar's neck, stepping slowly away grinning at them. This irritated the twins feeling as if they are being played at.

"Isn't it just possible for us to grab some lunch here without being attacked?" roared Karus. "You always plan your deliberate assault to test us every time we meet and it's just really tiring especially when you're hungry."

"Yeah! That's unfair! You've been using the shadow step -again. How could you possibly think we could escape that!?" Kayzar grumpily added looking at Kudos with much frustration while he pulled the dagger, he threw that ricocheted piercing the wooden wall.

Karus stood up and sat on a chair in the corner of the table checking his foot to see if Kudos had done anything bad to it while Kayzar went and followed him grabbing an apple on the table and taking a furious bite.

"He's right that's really unfair. You should teach us that and we'll see who's better," immediately pointed out Karus after finding nothing wrong on his foot.

"Well, too sorry for 'ya bein' Nagozulians," laughed Kudos grabbing the knife he threw and went on every window to remove the silky black cloth that's been veiling the room. "Yer little Nagozulian feet can't do 'wat 'd Daomagarian feet can. Besides, even if 'ya train really really hard, 'ya cannot achieve 'd full Shadow Step."

"Hmph, as if you've really mastered the shadow step like Liv..." said Karus.

"True," he replied. "'Dat's 'cos we're not usin' 'd Shadow Step on you. We're not even halfway 'der yet."

Madj cleaned the pots that were earlier kicked by Karus and went near the table to put them there. She then grabbed the vegetables to prepare the meal that the two wanted.

"So, what d'ya want for lunch," finally entered Madj as she chopped vegetables and spices at a frightening rate and with superb accuracy.

"What do you want?" Karus smiled returning the question back to the chef, changing his mood instantaneously looking hungry with all her chopping and the scent of the broth boiling.

"I'll have what you're having."

"Seriously, 'wat d'ya guys havin'?" stopped Kudos with eyes squinting towards Madj stopping her from repeating asking all circling questions that happened before wasting about half an hour before conceding.

"Hmnn... Do you have red meat readily available there," replied Karus smiling as if having the upper hand which Madj ignored snobbishly turning her back at them returning to her fast chopping.

"And some veggies," added Kayzar. "We certainly need some vegetables. We always eat meat at the training, and we don't 'wanna destroy our diet."

"Alr'ayty 'den. Pork brot' wit' a mix stew, fallow'd by a ju'sy midyum-rer reds an' a t'ird cors o' broyl'd w'ayts garnis'd in seaweeds wit' ice cold mangoes for dessert. How d'ya like 'dat?"

"No, no. it's too much," declined Karus though his eyes are panning on the background with much weariness as if already regretting the things he'll be missing. "We're kind of in a hurry..."

"He's right. We have plans later this afternoon so we really need to eat really really fast."

"It's 'ol right. We'll just heat 'd reds so 'dat you can be on 'yer way."

"And Kudos," persisted Kayzar, "don't forget the veggies..."

"Ha ha, comin' r'ayt up..."

The brothers are the only ones who dine with the servants. Most of the elderly nobles think that it is not proper for the servants to join up with them when they're having their meals. The twins probably thought that the Nagozulian Royal Family acquired this tradition from the easterners when their ancestors had their Quest for Wisdom hundreds of years ago or so, but they have a different take on this. They thought that it's improper to starve the servants, forcing them to eat only after the Royal Family had ended their every meal. That is not what they learned from their parents, Artemus and Anagea, and they certainly wouldn't really abide on doing this kind of tradition now.

They also feel sickened on how Prodea and Sarram treat their servants as slaves as if they practically own their souls with their unreasonable workloads and unrelenting verbal abuses. Servants in the Palace who deserves their hard-earned wages should be treated like a person not a property but that's not how it goes in the Palace. And it doesn't help that the other nobles tries to emulate Prodea and Sarram's streak of pushing the servants to their extreme thresholds - that's saying much because they are Daomagarians and they are known to have a surprisingly extraordinary thresholds that no ordinary mortal can fathom. This is why they try so hard to deviate from this practice and maintain a close relationship with the servants and guards as much as possible. They actually don't want to be associated with their bad behavior even if it means that they won't be popular with the noble crowd.

"So, where's Liv anyway?" asked Madj as she put plates in front of the twins disrupting their thoughts.

"She's with mom at the north I s'pose," replied Karus. "But seeing as she liked having her adventures, I think she's somewhere in the mountains or at the jungles."

"She can't be seen here y'know," added Kayzar. "Being our half-sister means a lot of trouble from the upper ups and the queen doesn't hide her wrath and anger - besides it doesn't help that she's an adopted daughter of mother now proclaimed a Nagozulian princess by right of the marriage of our parents."

"ohhhhh~" interrupted Karus laughing. "Just remembered how red Grandmama's face boiled up after seeing her in her combat uniform all scary."

"Plus, the fact that she's a Daomagarian clearly marks her as a target for insults and humiliations by most of the snobs here -y'know how it is here... right?"

"Yep," nodded Karus now finishing his snickering, "That's why it's best if she isn't around."

"Though I kind of miss her lately," followed Kayzar resting his chin on his palms remembering something, "She has promised to teach me a lot of things and she really didn't even follow through on that promise, not even a single one..."

Silence ensued for a long time as the two brothers waited and the two chefs busily prepared the meal that they ordered. They cut and mixed and chopped the ingredients with remarkable style and grace that made the twins clap their hands several times from the wonderful sight of them throwing and cutting things in midair.

"So..." Madj broke the silence once again to give some small talk. "...Where are the two of you going? Rushing in the city?"

"Yup. Me and Kayzar here are going on a little research slash interview to one of the locals there, Uncle Juni, I think you know him."

"Yeah! That crazy old man!" she exclaimed grinning, "What about?"

"We're looking for clues to Karus' condition."

"Oh. Is it acting up again?"

"It's so weird but when I'm trying to ignite the air and create fire it starts to hurt - really really bad - but if I'm manipulating the air around it's not."

"We have reason to believe that Karus is an Elemental Prodigy."

"So, you're saying you can control wind and at the same time you can conjure fire?"

"I believe so, yes."

"What!? I'm sorry to have heard that. I would have congratulated you, don't get me wrong, but you can get yourself killed for that kind of combination - fire and wind. I heard stories way back years ago that Fire-Wind Prodigies are being rounded up because they said that, theoretically, they can summon the mythical white fire. Like what happened a thousand years ago."

"Yes, we know," replied Kayzar. "The White Demon or so they call it. The story suggests that someone with this power can enchant his whole body with the mythical white fire and incinerate everything that went close to him. We know this by rumors, but we really weren't sure if it existed."

"You're lucky you are of royal descent. A commoner having found out about being a prodigy at that age would automatically be signing his death sentence. They could either end up being branded as an exile, thrown in the Palace's inner catacombs, or be killed by execution."

"Oh, don't worry," replied Karus. "That's not really happening now. Our great-grandpa passed a law prohibiting that act tens of years ago, so we don't have to worry 'bout that. And besides, none of them knew this secret. I'm sure that we can trust you, right? That's why we told you about it."

Kudos went near them as he laid the stew and the red meat at the table. "I knew 'd story 'bout 'd Wayt Demon. Our great great great grandfa'der told his descendants 'dat 'dis myt'ical Wayt Demon massacred almost a t'ausand Nagozulian, Daomagarian, and Yagisivian all on its own in less 'dan t'ree minutes. Legend has it 'dat 'der'll be a second comin' of 'dis Wayt Demon and 'dat he'll be reborn to anod'er Nagozulian."

"Wh-What?" said Karus with a frightened face.

"No, No. I'm juz' teasin'," laughed Kudos as he begins to serve large portions of meat at their plates. "Ya 'shud've seen the look on 'yer faces!"

"Heh, no kidding," he replied trying to force a grin on his face.

"But 'd massacre is true 'dow. 'Dat Wayt Demon is so powerful, he immediately incinerated a hundred feet radius from 'wer he's standing. Consequently, he died in 'd process. It's juz' nature's way of tellin' everyone 'ya can't play wid' fire'. Well, dig in! Hope you like mah' special recipe!"

They all smiled and said their prayers before eating - though the twins faked having their smiles. They knew about this prophecy of a White Demon and his apparent second coming. They thought - just for a second there - that this might not be true and that they can stop this from ever happening. They got a glimpse of this prophecy and a name really stands out in it. A name that they thought they have misread; a name that would affect the future of Nagozul by either protecting it or destroying it; a name that spelled as K-A-R-U-S.

The Palace gates began to radiate its usual golden light as the sun starts to leave the mid sky. It's been two hours past midday and the twins were ready to set off in their journey to the city. It is the weekends which mean masses of people are to be expected at the inner part of the metro. Karus and Kayzar are strolling fast in the busy streets maneuvering themselves with great precision avoiding any obstacles that may hold them throughout their long way to the Outer rim.

They occasionally saw some of Yosh's admirers playing in the streets here and there and that made their journey more challenging at best. They've taken quite a long cut in order to avoid them and luckily, they've succeeded. Sure, there are times that their mission was almost compromised by a kid or two, but they've avoided it by bribing them with gold coins and candies that they were in good supply of.

The twins were rather famous in the Silver Lane and the Outer Rims. Royalties are not usually fond of going there because practically there is nothing there to do except buying a variety of things. Commonly, most of the royalties that live in the Royal Residences orders their servants to purchase what they need so that makes them look like snobbish rich men but the sons of Artemus was not like them. The four brothers like to shop for their own things. They were always there persistently haggling with merchants who sometimes thought that they were either servants or Daomagarians. If not because of their fused Amplifyers at their foreheads, they can easily be thought to as a commoner - a very handsome, very rich commoner.

They speak and talk to people without prejudice and they don't boast around bragging their titles to anyone especially shop keepers which some royalties do in order to achieve some discount or free items. In fact, a few years back, they wore bandannas to hide their Amplifyers in order to play with children at the outer rims. They created cover names for them not to be recognized by the commoners.

Sometimes they try and help out the poor people there to get back on their feet without ever getting the credit from the deed. They create elaborate plans to build a good community in the southern part of the Outer Rim. As some prince and princesses flush their money to buy fancy shiny things, the four princes have their money invested in some parts of the Outer Rim that now became fully established and is earning thousands of gold pieces a week. They even have small towns outside the capital subsidized from the earnings that they receive from the markets. The older nobles created rumors of them being crazy from their expenditures, but they didn't try to even listen. Their plan is to do some good and that's what keeps them being so popular to the people of the Outer Rim, especially when they found out that they are the ones responsible for the help that they were receiving.

They have gathered so many friends from shops to ordinary people there that they don't need to be a prince to have some discount. They would gladly give things for free just to see them again.

The two princes know their way to the mazing streets of the Outer Rims even if they were to be blind folded and left there alone and without a guide. All those years of hide and seek gave them a great advantage in knowing what roads to take, what streets to avoid, what alleys are the closest way to cut through major obstacles. That's why they can stride without being caught, seen or heard. It's like they're the wind passing back and forth sprinting wherever and whenever they want without being predicted of coming.

"This is it Karus," said Kayzar while looking around the area searching for people that might see them. "Ready when you are?"

He nodded smiling. "Let's do this."

The two jumped to a mossy grey wall and helped each other to get near an old house that was brown and tall. The house is made of bricks, but the upper portions are made with wood which is warping because of all the weather it's been through. The paint that was put in the walls of this house is scraped because of strong rains and harsh winds that the past storms inflicted. The two balanced themselves to jump at the ledge near a glass window that seems to be open. They quietly sneaked inside the seemingly empty room from the open glass windows that have big cracks on them.

A disappointed sigh startled them as they were fixing their long robes after the strenuous effort that they just did.

"I really should lock that window up. Clearly you all haven't got any manners of knocking at my door downstairs," grunted an eccentric and groggy voice of an old man now walking to their directions to reveal himself. "Now if I'm not mistaken, I already told Yosh yesterday not to do that. Clearly the message isn't passed!" he continued as if snapping. He revealed himself having tired eyes and shaking hands clasping together as if something's bothering him.

"Hey Juni. What's up? You look rather pale and flustered," Karus queried smiling trying to divert his moody temper.

"Hey, is something burning?" asked Kayzar sniffing all around trying to find the source.

"I'm depressed because you're ruining the wax, I just put on the floor you... you.... Argghhh..."

"Hahaha sorry. We don't know," Kayzar immediately replied as he pushed Karus to give him a hint to remove their shoes which they did really fast. They put their shoes in the corner and jumped in Juni's bed forgetting to pursue on the topic of what's burning.

"Ooooh! Not the -"Juni reacted with wide eyes but the twins already made themselves comfortable at the bed with Karus stretching and lying on the left side hugging the fluffy pillows that he just grabbed. "- bed," he sighed and then kneels to continue to wax the floor, "I just replaced those sheets..."

"Oh - uh. Sorry?" Karus flinched now un-hugging the pillow, fluffing it to retain its normal comfy form in its original spot then going near the far side of the bed to just sit.

"No, no. You go and sit or lie there. It's already done. What can we do about it?"

"Hey, uh - are you okay? You're not yourself today," Kayzar mumbled.

"And what's with the new bed and pillows? Where is the old one, we used to throw at you?" added Karus.

Juni hesitantly grabbed a chair and went close to them.

"I- uh... Last night, I - I accidentally conjured a - a ball of - uh - white fire."

"Whoa!" jumped the two with excitement.

"No way!" said Kayzar.

"What does it look like?" Karus cried with glowing eyes.

"This is not a JOKE!" he shouted standing and walking back and forth stammering and talking to himself for a couple of seconds. The two princes got worried and stood up now looking concerned. "I was - uh - It's night, and I - uh - I think, It's after dinner - then the ball. It destroyed - I mean, it incinerated..."

The two inspected the room while he was talking and notice then that the ceiling was charcoal black, and the walls have burns that can be thought to be the remnants of last night's explosion all around.

"Wait a second, you mean you conjured the white fire in this room!?" Kayzar stood up trying to calm him down in his muttering.

"Slow down, we can't understand you," said Karus pulling him gently to sit and to be calm.

"No! I can't sit! I - uh... I'm losing control with my Fire Element! Do you know what they will do to me if they found out?! No - no, you can't know - no one has to know. No one knows... It's between me and him... It's between me and him..."

He then returned to his duties waxing the floor and scrubbing the walls with much effort ignoring the two bewildered princes standing.

It isn't normal for him to look like this. The great Juni was as stubborn as a water buffalo and no one in their right mind wants to cross him. He is acclaimed in his unbreakable spirit, so this led them to believe that the fire within him is causing a disruption in his brain processes. Although in theory, the idea of a fire elemental to have disruptive mental processes even with an amplifier means that his elemental essence is above the highest there is. Juni is the only one capable, in a thousand years, to ignite a white fire using his elemental powers and that constitute the idea of him being one of those people with possible elevated essence they call a Supreme Elemental. They grew concern with this because Supreme Elementals usually can't control themselves and that can really be dangerous to anyone especially himself - or at least that's what they know considering their research about the White Demon.

"What? What will they do to you? Who are you talking about?" Karus asked with much confusion trying to understand the situation.

"You don't know? You don't know a thing! I don't want to die! It's too early for me to die! Now get out of here before someone knows, before they know."

"Nobody is going to kill you," reasoned Kayzar now agitated. "Come, pack your bags. You're going to the Palace with us. We're going to -"

"NO! I'm not going to the Palace! It's not safe there. You don't know about the revelations of the King!"

He created a small blast that made the two to jump a few paces back and pulled their concealed blades on instinct. They were surprised to see Juni making a warning attack to them. They know that Juni wouldn't hurt them, but their natural instincts kicked in a rush which troubled them also since they wouldn't really use weapons to one of their best friends. Juni then realized what he did and, with all concern and sadness in his eyes, he turned back and moved away from them. He then sat at the corner of the room frightened.

"You can't make me go there! Just leave. Leave! Before I seriously hurt you!"

The two threw their weapons away into the far corner and walked near him. The stubborn infuriating man they once knew turned into a frightened little boy right before their very eyes. His mental processes are clearly mixed up and this gave them mixed emotions that led to them having teary eyes. The situation created a stressful state to the twins. They loved Juni so much that they thought of him like a grandfather. Seeing him like that creates a crack in their hearts that pulsates to every part of their body making them weak and helpless and sad.

"No, Juni! I know you! You can control this!" said Karus finding words to comfort him holding back his watery eyes from dropping its heavy load.

"No, I can't. The prophecy say that I can't!"

The word 'prophecy' created a snap to the twin's attention. They have been curious about some prophecy that was predicted by the king before he died; the prophecy that they heard only from their dad and Narra when they were spying in secret; the prophecy that they went for the trouble to read but was burned right after their dad read it; the prophecy that they tediously recreated from the remnants of the ashes containing future events that includes them in it; the reason why they went there in the first place.

"Tell me Juni!" confronted Karus. "What is this prophecy!"

"The prediction of my death starts with the sign in which I would conjure, once again, a white fire without me doing it on purpose! It's happening! I know it is! I sent an eagle to give Artemus the signal and he's going to save me... he's going to save me. I know he will... he will save me. I've done so much for him and I didn't ask something in return. I know he will save me," Juni mumbled crying with his eyes moving fast all around the room paranoid. The two brothers felt sadness again as they saw their old friend break down in this state. They don't know what to do and they certainly can't promise anything since they are powerless even in the Palace.

"A-are there any ways to prevent it!? Can we prevent it?!" inquired Kayzar.

"No! No, you can't do anything about it!" he shouted with his eyes still crying. "It's proven to work, and no one can do anything about it. There are a hundred predictions written by the king in secret. In one hundred days that he waited for his son Artemus, he had one hundred visions that he scribbled, and these one hundred predictions are compiled to be his revelations, the prophecy! These one hundred visions are a combination of the past, present and future events. The one being the first vision is the birth of a twin elemental prodigy of the son of the light! That is the two of you! Nobody knows about you two being both prodigies. It's just me, Artemus, Anagea, Jowl and Narra. Not even the king knows that, but he did and that's because of this cursed prophecy!"

"No, it can't be!" denied Kayzar. "I'm only an elemental, my innate is wind and that's it."

"N-No! You are an Elemental Prodigy and - and your second innate element is Water," persisted Juni.

This gave a lot of sense to the twins. Kayzar being fond of poisons came from the fact that he isn't affected by one. He thought that he was special and that he can purge poisons without being a Water Caster.

"So, it's true that I am a Fire-Wind prodigy?!" added Karus seizing the opportunity of the situation.

"Yes! Yes!"

"Am I included in the future prophecy?" he pushed.

"No!" Juni diverted his attention to them and had his teary eyes facing the wall.

"Am I included in the future prophecy? Please don't lie to me Juni!"

"Y-Yes. Please don't ask me more!"

"Am I the second coming of the White Demon!?"

"Please don't ask me..."

"Am I the second coming of the White Demon!?"

"It's best if you don't know!"

Juni's eyes began to glow fiery red and then created a warning blast again trying to scare Karus away but he didn't flinch. Juni then realized what he did and looked away to crouch in shame.

Karus grasped his right arm with both hands pleading and eyes seriously sad and calm directly looking at Juni's.

"Juni! I need to know! Am I this White Demon that will kill hundreds of Nagozulians and Daomagarians!"

Juni burst out crying and sobbing loudly. "Y-Yes! Yes! But not just hundreds... it will be thousands..."

Karus felt weak and stumbled to the floor away from Juni. He felt his world breaking into pieces as he felt his body going numb and his head feeling light as if floating into nothingness.

Juni suddenly stopped crying and looked him with serious red glowing eyes illuminating the dark room. The twins were surprised seeing his face turn empty and calm performing a technique that even they don't know.

"Forty-second Prediction. And Karus who is born to the son of light will turn his emerald into a burning red sun. It will give fright to the people as the marvelous green emerald can never be turned to red and yet it is so. The Goddess of beauty will try to pry the gem from him but will fail.

"Fifty-third Prediction. And the day will come as Karus, the Great, born to the son of light, will exact vengeance to the unjust mortals and will incinerate everyone who looks into his fiery eyes of justice! And he who is Karus the Great will be summoned as the coming of the White Demon of the Rain for the mighty heavens cried their sorrowful tears as the greedy mortals carried the contempt of mankind to the lands of Bathala in which created another Demon from Nagozul,

"Ninetieth Prediction. And so there will come a time where the White Demon Karus will choose to be free from his bondage for the sins that he has committed in the past. He will be the Harbinger of Death that would restore the balance of the Holy Lands. The White Demon's allegiance will result to the birth of a new world in this realm that Bathala created."

Silence engulfed the room as Juni returned to his gloomy state and his big brown eyes then started to cry cowering in the edge of the corner of his room.

The two brothers were stunned at what they heard. They sat there looking upwards at the ceiling looking through nothingness. The idea of Karus being a very dangerous person created a shock that made them statues for a few minutes.

Juni spoke after a long time of silence.

"I know this will sound stupid, but - but you're a-Aunt will kill me sometime in the future. The king - uh - predicted that she will arrest me - and I, uh-while I was outside my house. So, you see, I can't go out of my room. Only your father can take me away from here! Only your father can. Yes, he's the only one. He's the only one I trust and he's the only one that knows. Your aunt doesn't know, the queen doesn't know..."

The two grab their shoes weakly and slowly put them on having their faces blank and clearly depressed.

"No one will hurt you Juni," assured Kayzar. "I will order a Daomagar to look after you."

"No! No Daomagars. You're going to the north, yes?" he finally smiled as if a little hope is in sight. "Tell your father, Artemus, or your mother, Anagea, that I will wait here. Yes, tell them to come here and get me... yes, they know the way. They know what to do. They always do. They will save me. They are powerful. They will not let me die. Not like the prophecy stated. Not like that."

Juni grabbed his wax and, again, scrubbed the floor ignoring the two who are very depressed and frightened. He was now smiling while crying a river of tears to the floor.

"Goodbye Juni. Be safe. We'll be back with Dad," whispered Karus now releasing his tears that he tried hard to contain as they jump to the window away from Juni's place.

A long silent walk was all there is for the two brothers. They didn't bother being sidetracked by Yosh's fans. They didn't bother if they didn't take their shortcuts to cut in the busy streets. They didn't care less if someone calls their names or pushed them back. Their faces were filled with great sorrow and disappointment.

Kayzar should be celebrating now after finding about being an Elemental Prodigy. He has been dreaming to be a Wind-Water Elemental that can summon Storms and can direct lightning bolts for years. Oh, how he dreamt for this day for a long time and now that he knows he is, he isn't feeling any joy at all. He can only think of his twin brother's situation and their dear friend Juni's state. The thought of their lives becoming so twisted and complicated, especially at a young age, gave him a frightening sense of hopelessness. He only wished that their father could fix this. Their father is smart and powerful. If someone can find a fix in a sticky problem, he's the one to inquire about. The problems in their lives keep stacking up like hundreds of pieces of puzzle on top of the others. Too many for them to handle, he thought, but still he has his hopes up.

As he was trying to figure out his resolve, the words of Juni returned lingering in his mind. He thought of many complicated possibilities on how to deal with the difficult revelations they heard about but he already knows that his mind is just escaping the reality, and that reality is horrifyingly catching up on them that it cannot be compartmentalized anymore. It revolves into one simple but frightening truth - that they can't do anything about it.