5 OLD MAN JUNI (1/2)

The three brothers ran hurriedly into the dark wilderness both happy and nervous at the same time. They couldn't believe what happened at the training field as if lady luck was on their side once again. Kayzar carried his older brother Reus on the arm while Karus tried his best to carry the heavy sack which supposedly carries the messenger's articles. The owl Stella flew right above them, tailing them as they go.

”Whew! I really thought this would never work out...” exclaimed Karus breathing heavily in excitement. He ran a quick baby-step at a time wearing the gauntlets to carry the large sack on his back which is very cumbersome. ”...after all the delay and the imperfect timing, not to mention the blackout thing that I thought would never come... I mean, whew, you gave us a hard time waiting Kuya-Reus...”

Reus, who's being carried by Kayzar in his left elbow, quickly jumped in agony to match Kayzar's speed. ”...I know, I had a hard time concentrating,” he replied with a hint of pain in his voice, maintaining his pace with his left foot almost touching the ground dripping blood. ”Taking out all the light out there is a difficult thing to do if you should know.”

With a sharp groan of pain, the twins were forced to stop for a while immediately finding the closest tree they can rest upon. They haven't escaped that far ahead but thinking that they have miraculously paralyzed their enemies, they thought that they can steal away some minutes to catch their breaths and clean his wounds first before they can travel any further. The two waved their hands to the sky to signal Stella to fetch Yosh who they thought is waiting at the big tree that they should be at.

”I'll have to dress you wound so please don't move?” Kayzar said as he gently puts Reus to a sitting position.

They all sat together beneath a tall slender tree which is very ghastly and scary, not to mention moldy, but they didn't have time to be so choosy to where they should stop because of Reus' condition.

”What is that technique, Kuya-Reus?” asked Kayzar while prepping to sit beside him. ”I've never seen, read, or heard that technique anywhere!”

”Yeah!” said Karus dropping the sack as carefully as possible. ”The whole Black-out thing is really unique and new I can tell you that! And oh... did you really transmit your body there? 'Cause I saw you blinking appearing and reappearing at different locations.”

”Yes! I really did transmit! It's cool right? Aah... whsss...” replied Reus while Kayzar cuts his pants to see the wound he will treat. ”Anyway, I am in the verge of having an epiphany for a name. I don't really have a name for that yet, but it should be a cool one, right? One that's catchy and can be remembered by anyone...”

”Yep...” responded Kayzar looking closer at the wound with great effort. ”You should find a good name for that! It's new, unique and quite useful-”

”Not to mention you're the only one that can use that -” interrupted Karus.

”-You could end up in the books for the generations to study...”

”D'ya want the White Angel mix or the antiseptic?” Kayzar hurriedly asked looking at the deep wound that almost severed the artery on his thigh. The wound is serious enough for him to consider the White Angel which Reus explicitly expressed he dislikes.

”Do you even know me Kayzar?” grinned Reus almost annoyed he even asked. ”I told you I don't want to use that White Angel stuff. I like my wounds to be healed by my body. I don't want to...”

”Rely on new medicines and Magicks,” Kayzar droned finishing the point he persistently recounts every time he's lucky enough to get a wound, which is every mission simulation they've taken. ”Ooops! Look I slipped a drop... I'm sorry, you took your time to reply.”

Reus pushed Kayzar looking directly at his wound and noticed the flesh almost closing up stopping the bleeding but still the injury and pain is still present.

”Why'd you do that?!” Reus groaned looking at him angrily. ”I specifically told you not to!”

”Well, I'm preventing you from losing your blood on our way to the nearest village so yeah, thank you very much,” Kayzar snickered pouring his bottle of antiseptic from a clean white cottony cloth. ”Now do you want your wound to fester or do you still want your body to clean that wound for you?”

Reus grunted leaning back as if giving him permission to continue with his battle-wound dressing.

”Hey Karus, go check the sack and see what's inside,” said Reus changing the topic all of a sudden, still with flinching eyes feeling the antiseptic mixture Kayzar is applying, ”Apparently, that's not what you think it is...”

”Oh! Right! Almost forgot this one over here...”

”What do you mean 'not what he thinks'!?” Kayzar shouted as he looked quickly at the drooping sack.

”PUTEK!” Karus cursed in loud vexation seeing the sack now opened: the sack that he tried to frustratingly carry as gently as possible earlier thinking there might be valuables, even fragile, articles there. Even with the enchanted gauntlet equipped, which gives strength to the arm if worn, the sack was still inconveniently heavy for him and what he saw obviously disturbed him very much. ”What is this!? Oh no they didn't!” he smiled, almost snickering, as he lifted the sack forcefully, ”this doesn't look anything close to the messenger's articles at all...” He grabs the end of the sack and pulled upwards leading the contents to stumble upon them.

”Hahaha! Told you so!” Reus shouted laughing at the disfigured thing that is before them, ”I sensed its figure in the void back there. Apparently that black space back there seems to be my - some sort of - spatial territory. It's weird but I can somewhat vaguely sense every figure there. That's why I know that that sack doesn't contain what it's supposed to contain.”

A poorly made straw mannequin loosely rolled on the ground. They all gasped smiling as the head of the dummy got separated from its barrel-like body right after it rolled to a couple of fist-sized stones. This gave them an impression that it's created in a hurry along with its face which appeared to have been smudged with ink. One could only assume that whoever fashioned it originally made it smiling and whoever it is, forgot to let the ink dry first before putting it inside because, obviously, its face was scraped by the rough texture of the sack.

Karus found a paper note stickered at the chest of the dummy. He went close to read it aloud as he unequipped the big gauntlets and shaking his hands with extreme frustration: ”Please, bring me back to the Palace. Chopped Herbal Leaves inside. Many thanks.” They all went into a deep dazed look. ”I'm not going to carry you there! Not now that I know you're a useless metal thing!”

”Young masters...” suddenly whispered by a deep gloomy voice behind them. A sudden fright aroused from their faces almost giving them a pale look.

”Captain Gab...” murmured Karus with a surprised gasp as he gently picked his weapon that was on the ground. He turned around as he unsheathed his sword quickly to defend his brothers only to find out five Daomagarian soldiers kneeling in front of them bowing. He immediately sheathed it back and hid his weapon behind him. Seeing someone wield a legendary sword which is allegedly stolen can be a big problem, especially if you are of noble descent. That can ruin one's reputation and honor and they seriously don't want that. He was just relieved at the moment that no one noticed the legendary short sword.

”We have orders to escort you two to the Palace and rush the first-born to the nearest medical station...” enunciated the soldier with the deep voice at the middle who's still kneeling on the ground.

”Oh...” he replied as he smiled to ridicule his paranoid brain tricking him to believe that the captain followed them as they escaped. He smirked as to why all guards have this annoyingly deep voice which tone appears to be the same as every military guard he knew.

Karus quickly helped Kayzar to lift Reus and put him in an improvised stretcher made with entangled vines that the two soldiers provided. Karus and Kayzar then picked out all of their weapons and the dummy and placed it all in the sack while their escorts were busy discussing some orders. They saw the two soldiers immediately running after securing their brother Reus to go to the nearest infirmary.

”Young Highness,” said a young soldier with the same deep voice, ”may we carry your burden?”

”err... No thanks...” said Karus while looking at Kayzar behind who is carrying the back part of the sack, ”ooff... we... we can manage...”

”Yes... this is NOT... HEAVY...” added Kayzar emphasizing on his last words as he looks sharply to Karus. The guards revealed a creased brow on their faces, baffled to their words. Though they knew that the two aren't capable of carrying the ridiculously heavy sack, they just trusted their orders and walked behind them giving a watchful eye to help as they trip and fell for a couple of times down the road.

The sack which they are carrying contains the stolen artifacts of the Nagozulian history museum. Giving the sack to the soldiers would increase the risk of them finding that out and a scandal to be rumored around which is the last thing that they needed.

The sack that they were carrying is outrageously heavy even though it's only a doll made of straws. Without the Gauntlet of Deito to help them about, the idea of buffing up their physique in the future lingered in their thoughts so that the next time they are required to rely on their own physical power, they will be rewarded with ease. But all the effort is not for naught, so they ignored the excruciating pain in their shaking scrawny muscles and just visualize looking forward to their sweet prize vacation up north.

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

”Master Narra?” asked Tarni with a sharp uneven voice as she sits up to a bed still having a blurry vision, coughing a few times.

”Hahahaha! At last! Good Morning Lieutenant! A bright and sunny day it is today.” said Narra standing in front of the window close to her. He was dressed up in a white robe looking at the skies as happy as a boy waking up to see his weekends.

She looked around and noticed they were inside a rest house somewhere south finding some clues on the ornaments that are placed here and there. The house is a one wide room flat with ten beds around the wall which are made with thick tree logs. There is a cabinet at the far back and numerous chairs lay scattered around. She saw the two commanders sitting at the table in the center of the room weakly drinking their cup of tea - or something that smells like it. She sat at the edge of her bed and immediately put her hands to her forehead as a reaction to the sharp stabbing pain surprising her in her wake. ”ahaaa-Ow! My head is still spinning, how long am I asleep?”

”About thirty-two hours give or take...” contemplated Narra now moving close to her giving her a cup of what the others were having. ”We don't know the kind of poison he was using. It's not a generic one I'll tell you that. He deviated from the poisons regulated by Nagozulian Protocol on Concoctions that are known by Daomagars and the military. He must've concocted it himself. An almost lethal one if you should know.”

”A personal recipe, huh?” she grabbed the cup and drank it hurriedly. It smelt like tea but it's a black nasty drink leaving her in disgust after finishing it.

”You don't like it, huh? It's my own brew of cure. I don't know the components of his venom, so I created a variety of antidotes instead. Better to be sure than to be sorry, eh?”

”You're very unlucky Tarni.” said the Captain Gab whose voice appears to be still gloomy but weak. ”You got a different dose of their poison.”

”Yes,” said Major Camyl entering the conversation as she took a sip in her cup. ”We immediately reacted to the second set of the antidote while you made yourself on your fifteenth. You must've done something to make them angry enough.”

”Oh right...” jumped Tarni with a concerned look. ”Narra are they...”

”Yes, they're alright...”

”Is Reus...”

”Yes. He's ok too, though he might not be able to walk for another week or so because of the big hole you gave him on his thighs.”

”I'm sorry, Master. I didn't know. I thought...”

”Well it's alright. He's a strong man, that Reus. Just apologize to him and he'll forgive you.” He stood up and went to grab his long coat. ”Well, seeing my old students up and about brings joy to this old man! I really am happy that you're all alright. I will personally mail a replacement on all of your weapons considering they've wrecked it all up there. I know you three are very sentimental about your weapons, but I'll give you one better just to thank you tremendously for what you all done and as reparation for what you have endured. I would love to chat, but I have so many duties to take care of. Too many that now I'm delayed at stocking the supplies to the north.” he grabbed the door and opened it. ”Thank you again for doing this for me. I really appreciate you all to find time to travel a long way here for this old dog. Oh! By the way, I'll appreciate it if you don't tell anyone about this little thing, we're having....” He paused for a few seconds and then continued. ”Major, please wait for me at the Northern Encampment before returning to the Hishmas,” he then turned around and smiled as he closed the door leaving them in silence.

”So, you really threw your broken halberd to Reus?” said the Major breaking the ice after some time. ”If Master Narra didn't hit you, you would've killed Prince Artemus' heir. That would have been very troublesome for us not to mention yourself...” she smiled and drank the remaining portion of her antidote.

The lieutenant sadly crouched in her bed thinking of the drastic idea of an alternate situation where she might've actually killed the future king of Nagozul.

”Don't worry kid. I'm just joking,” laughed the major almost crying, seeing her take it so seriously. ”Master Narra is there at the scene. I'm sure he can prevent you from killing his charge as he did so.” The two commanders laughed as they saw Tarni having a very troubled purple face.

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

Kayzar and Karus finally arrived at the city just below the Palace. The morning is beautiful as the clouds opened a big way for the sun to shine almost everywhere. The soft breeze blew in short intervals giving a cool misty comfort to all hectic shoppers and shop keepers who are keeping themselves busy under the warm daylight sun.

The city streets were lined up with stores that never end: From meat products, vegetables and fruits to kitchen wares, accessories, weapons, armors, toys and even small trinkets of jewelry. You can find almost anything that you would ever need at that market area near the gates to the Palace of Nagozul. To the twin brothers, this somewhat bright and sunny day is adding more pain and irritation for them at that time for they're still carrying the big sack all the way from the Nilad Plains where they were training. The painful prickly sting of the tormenting sun gives them a hot angry feeling lurching deep inside as they lug away their ever-heavy baggage. With their muscles aching, tired with all the lifting, and the busy shoppers who were now staring at them, being filthy and bruised with their disguise as a commoner still intact, the twins tried very hard for a smile and not to look as haggard as they were in reality. They cut through the whole market and town with great haste. The worst thing that they might encounter were the deadly stalkers of Yosh and that would literally make their way to the Palace impossible.

”At LAST! The GREAT DOORS OF NAGOZUL!!!” shouted Karus with great happiness as they stood at a big metal gate of the Palace which would ordinarily take five strong men on each side to open but is only done by two Daomagarian guards who appears to be at ease as they lazily push them while yawning, then they saw Yosh running with his best pals Stella and Luna behind him.

”Ey! Why're you late! I arrived here YESTERDAY, SHOCKED to FIND OUT that Kuya-Reus had a TERRIBLE ACCIDENT when he FELL from a TREE!!!” he shouted oddly loud for all to hear and winked so obviously that everyone around them gave a puzzled look. ”Is THAT the FRUITS you were DESPERATELY PICKING that YOU IRRESPONSIBLY put YOURSELVES in DANGER?” he continued still exclaiming strangely while giving a large wink at his brothers trying hard for the others, guards included, to hear which are either not listening doing something important or just plainly not interested on listening.

He is aiming to create a rumor about Reus's accident to hide the fact that they are training in the Nilad Plains in secret, so he is almost shouting the concocted details in the air. He's almost too proud of this plan but the twins are not as impressed as they are now, turning red in anger for Yosh's delay in their anticipation for their much-awaited relief inside their quarters.

”Shut up Yosh and help us carry this thing upstairs,” scolded Kayzar with a serious gaze. The twins gave a stern look at Yosh who is still standing and a bit sad as he apparently wanted to give more of the speeches and was shunned.

They carried the great sack upstairs to the fourth floor at the south wing of the Palace. The walls were filled with great paintings depicting the legendary battle at the Elven Rebellion a thousand years ago. The hallways are with soft red carpets and the walls are made with yellow marble. There are antique vases with fresh flowers on top of every long table that are in every corner of the hallways which Karus inspects every morning appreciating their fragrance but today were sadly not that day. Today he doesn't care about anything but to get to his room as quickly as possible.

”Almost there!” said Karus with servants tailing them behind persistently asking if they may carry the sack instead of them.

They reached a golden twin door twice as big as they are. They hurriedly opened it and asked the servants politely to give them privacy which the servants followed with great haste, mystified as they were to the contents of the brown sack.

They sealed the door to a shut and when they were sure that silence engulfed the hallways outside, they began tossing the sack at the corner and dropped their bodies at the carpeted floor giving a loud bang on impact. They lay there for a few seconds, arms spread wide, giving their very exhausted sighs then smiling in silence with glad eyes shut.

”So... Now that we're alone... can we please discuss what happened to the three of you?” Yosh asked as he rummaged the sack ignoring the dummy immediately grabbing every single item that belonged to his private loot.

”Shhh... Enjoying.... Silence... peace... happy...” said Kayzar as he immediately fell to slumber together with Karus.

The two of them just laid their arms still widespread and slept peacefully ignoring their brother murmuring as if stopping them in their voyage to dreamland. Yosh, who saw the two having bruises in their palms and obviously filthy filled with dirt all over, left them in peace, ever so grumbling feeling left out. He took the sack with him in spite and glum then helped himself out of the room with his two best friends following him out.

After he secured his precious collection in his room together with the weird looking straw doll, Yosh immediately remembered that he should review for his studies in his primary education. The princes and princesses of nobility that are in direct line with the king are given private tutors instead of them attending school. The tutors who were assigned to noble princes and princesses were no ordinary teachers, they were either high seers or esteemed scholars who gave their best to literally teach everything they know - even the little and unimportant things like how to properly button one's shirt and what color is appropriate in every occasion - and this gave them the fright. Every second they spend with their personal professors was a living bore that's why they should study hard in order not to fail and have additional personal bonding time with their beloved private teachers.

”What am I 'gonna do Luna,” complained Yosh as he steered left running at the halls of the Palace with his best buddies following him. ”Kuya-Kayzar and Kuya-Karus were the only ones that gave me the whole lecture and summarization of all topics given by my professor every year.” He dashed through stairs and other hallways treading to the great library, even though it is forbidden to perform the Great Dash in public as per their master's instructions, keeping only a keen eye for any wandering soul that might see him.

”meow-aerw-mouewriwewow” shouted Luna in reply to what Yosh had said.

”Yeah, yeah I know I should've listened to my professor. But he's so boring and I've relied on my brother's expertise in research for the whole summary. I wish Kuya-Reus was here. He's the second one on my list. Though he explains the topic longer than anyone alive, still he can prove useful in this direful situation.”

”kuh-kuhh- kuhhh.” whistled Stella in reply who is kind of sleepy as she flew gracefully to follow Yosh.

He stopped for a moment and realized a great idea.