《Maker of Souls.》 Chapter One It was a cool spring morning in the small village of Lisenberg. The village was so small that only forty or so different family¡¯s calls it home. The town sits at the foot the red rock mountains, which got its name because they are full of iron ore which makes the ground a dark rusty red color. These red rocks can only be seen when there is a break in the thick forest that covers the mountains. It gives the mountains a red undertone that makes it very beautiful. The sun was barely above the mountain peak but a cold breeze blew in from the north. Some distance away from the main village stood a small four room house. Upon closer inspection one could see a young boy around ten years of age and an older gentlemen standing outside the house. The youth was holding a big rock in both hands squatting up and down. ¡°197, 198, 199, 200.¡± The young boy said while he cradled the stone in his arms. Letting the rock drop onto the grass between his feet the young boy fell to the ground panting in exhaustion. ¡°Stop lazing around, get up and do ten laps around the property! When you are finished head inside to eat,¡± yelled the other gentlemen. ¡°But you better hurry up or your breakfast is going to get cold.¡± He finished as he turned around to head inside the front door. Why me? I thought as I started to run the ten laps around the property. Of all the boys in the whole village none of them have parents that make them wake up before the sun evens rises to go and do exercise. They all get to sleep in a nice warm bed. Just thinking about warm beds makes me want to cry. I love a warm beds especially when it is cold outside, and even more so when I can wrap myself in many blankets. It is the best feeling to have a cold face, but a warm body as you falls asleep. Now, don¡¯t get me wrong, I truly love my dad, but why is he making me do this? He has never woken me up to do exercise in the mornings. Normally, he is very kind and nice but today he was stern and commanding. I wonder what is making him act like this. After running around the property ten times I was huffing and puffing. It is not like I am fat and totally lazy. I have always been on the skinny side no matter how much I ate, but I will confess that I could be in better shape but who couldn¡¯t be? Sitting down I tried to slow the heaving of my chest. When I could finally stop gasping for breath I stand up and go inside. Sitting at the table were three people a man, a woman and a little girl. The man was tall; he stood at six foot four. You could see the nicely toned muscles underneath his loosely fitted shirt. His face was good looking, it would have been better if not marred by a white scar that ran down his right cheek. He would try to hide it with his long brown hair but you could still see it when he moved his head just right. Even without the scar, his face would pale in comparison to the lovely lady sitting next to him. Her face was smooth as silk. Her light blue eyes seemed to sparkle in the morning light but the most beautiful feature of her face would have to be her smile. Her smile was like a divine angle''s smile. It would put your heart at ease and fill you with eternal happiness. She was tall for a woman at about around six feet. Sitting on her lap was a little girl of around two years old. With just a glace anyone could tell that this girl would grow up to be as beautiful as her mother. ¡°Hurry up, or your breakfast will be cold.¡± Said the beautiful woman as she gestured to the plate full of eggs and bread. Sitting down I began to eagerly eat my breakfast. ¡°Ajax when I get home from working in the forage, we are going to continue your training.¡± said the older gentlemen. Getting up he walked over to the beautiful woman and gave her on a kiss on the cheek. ¡°See you when I get back.¡± He told her. Seeing this, the little girl raised her hand and looked the older gentlemen in the eyes. ¡°Okay I will give you a goodbye kiss too.¡± He said picking up the little girl from the woman''s lap he gave her a big kiss on the cheek. ¡°Love you, see you when I get back.¡± He finished putting the little girl back onto the woman¡¯s lap he left the house. ¡°Ajax you better hurry down to the chief¡¯s house, you have school today.¡± The woman said as she was putting away the plates from breakfast. Getting up I started to go towards the door but before I was even ten feet from the door I felt a little body grabbing my leg. ¡°Don''t leave me!¡± Screamed the little girl. There was a waterfall of tears streaming down her face as she desperately clung to my leg. Bending down to the little girl¡¯s height, I gave her a hug. ¡°I promise I will be back before you know it.¡± I told her. ¡°You promish?¡± She said looking up at me with big wet yes. ¡°I Promise.¡± I replied as I picked up the little girl and gave her to the beautiful woman who walked over when she heard the crying. ¡°It always surprises me how much she loves you Ajax.¡± She told me. ¡°I know. This happens every time I go to leave the house.¡± I lamented. Turning around once more, I start my journey to the chief¡¯s house. ¡°Ajax! Tell your mother that we just got a new shipment of those three horned deer. I know it¡¯s her favorite meat.¡± Called out a voice. ¡°Okay, I will! Make sure that you save some for her.¡± I replied without even slowing my step. Oh! I almost forgot. Turning around, I added ¡°Thank you, have a nice day miss!¡±. That was a close one. My mother always said to be nice to the people that are nice to you. If my mother found out that I wasn''t courteous, I don''t think I could withstand the disappointment in her eyes. I always feel so bad when I see them like that. Thinking about what I was going to be learning, I pick up my pace. ¡°Huff...huff....huff. Slow down Ajax. We are not going to be late.¡± Turning around I hear the voice of my best friend Amman. We have been friends for as long as I can remember. His father and my father are good friends. His father owns one of the mines in these mountains, while my father is his largest buyer. During their business transactions they have become quite close, which is how I met Amman. ¡°So, are you ready for the lessons with the chief?¡± Amman asked with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. ¡°Sorry about that.¡± I replied sheepishly. ¡°I am just so excited! I have been waiting so many years for this day to come. We will finally be able to learn a breathing method.¡± Thinking about what we were going to learn, my feet once again pick up their pace. Only to be stopped by a hand on my shoulder from Amman. ¡°Slow down.¡± He told me and I struggled to do so. Once we finally made it to the chieftain¡¯s house, I noticed that we were the last ones to arrive. Of all the kids in the village there were five of us who were ten years old this year. Three boys and two girls. The other boy''s name is Reynolds, and we don''t get along. Just last week Amman and I were playing near the river and Reynolds and his crew showed up. They stated that we had to leave because the river was their area. Amman has never been the kind of person who would let others bully him, so he crossed his arms and told them that we were here first and this river is for everyone, and that he had no right to kick us out. ¡°If you will not leave, then I will make you leave.¡± Reynolds told us as his crew quickly tried to surround us. Before they could finish the encirclement, I took Amman¡¯s hand and ran back towards the village. Reynolds and his crew quickly chased after us, but they couldn¡¯t keep up with us. After realizing that Reynolds stopped chasing us. ¡°That''s right! You better run! Next time you should just bow and do what I say.¡± He yelled at our retreating backs. We completely ignored what Reynolds said and we kept on running all the way back towards the village. Pulling back from that memory, I refocused on the present. The last two people in the class are the Sarisin Sisters. They are identical twins. The only way to tell them apart is Sara, the older twin, always has her hair in a braid. While Julie, the younger one, always has her hair down. I was actually quite surprised to see them here, they don''t normally leave their house. From what my mother has told me, Julie was born weak and often gets sick so Sara normally stays home all the time to play with her. Finding some room on the floor, Amman and me started to talk about all the great adventures we were going to do when we become great mages or warriors. Not long into our chat, Reynolds got up from where he was sitting and walked over. ¡°Do you guys really think you can become a mage or a warrior? Don''t make me laugh. With your parents there is no hope for you guys to become a great warrior or mage. The only one here that will become a great warrior or mage is me.¡± Reynolds sneered. ¡°Just because our parents are not mages like yours, doesn''t mean that we can¡¯t become a mage or warrior.¡± Amman angrily retorted. Seeing Amman''s angry face, Reynolds smiled and without a comment he left to talk to the girls. ¡°Arg! I hate that guy. He makes me want to punch someone¡± Amman said was he watched Reynolds walk away. ¡°I agree. I hate him too.¡± Ajax replied. ¡°Everyone quite down and find some room on the floor.¡± A voice called over the noise of us talking with an air of someone that is used to giving orders. Without even thinking, I stopped talking to Amman and turned to see the chief. The first thing I notice is that he is short. His shoulders are hunched over and it makes him look even shorter. The next thing I notice is that his eyes are covered by his white hair. His hair seemed to flow down from his head like a waterfall and was only parted by his slightly large nose. ¡°I know that you are all excited about leaning the breathing method, but I will save that for the end so you better pay attention to what I am going to say or I will not teach you anything.¡± He told us. Hearing the seriousness of his voice I made a mental note to pay attention. ¡°A long, long, time ago, even before this world was born. There were two beings of great power.¡± The chief started to tell us. ¡°Where they came from or how they came to be, no one knows. Their names, if they had any, have been lost to the passage of time. These two beings were all alone in an endless expanse of darkness. After searching for countless years, the beings realized that there was nothing else but them in the darkness. Deciding that if there was nothing out there why not make something themselves? By putting together their powers they decided to make a place that they could call home. This is what we now call the heavens. After making their home they still felt lonely, so they each made another being in their own image. One was the god Lugh. He was given the power over light. The other being was the goddess Moot. She was given the power over darkness.¡± The chief paused briefly before continuing. ¡°After many years Lugh and Moot fell in love and had kids of their own. Wanting a place for their kids to call their own, Lugh and Moot pleaded with their creators to make a place like the heavens for their kids. Finally relenting to their pleading, the two beings decided to make this world.¡± ¡°They first created the earth and gave it to Lugh and Moot''s first child who was named Faust. They next created the seas that covered large sections of the earth. The second child, the goddess Lena, was given control over the seas. The beings next made the air which we now breath and gave dominion over it to the third child who is the god Hest. Finally, for the last child, they gave the power to control fire to the goddess Dianna.¡± He continued, ¡°After many years Lugh and Moot decided to make their own creations. Lugh created humans while Moot created many different kinds of beasts. After many years the humans were slowly being pushed towards extinction. Seeing his creations lose to Moot''s creation''s, Lugh got furious and decided to take matters into his own hands. He went down to the world and started to slaughter all the beasts. Seeing her creations dying by the hand of her husband, Moot started her own slaughter. Soon the rivers and oceans were full with the blood of the dead, the air was tainted by the smell of decaying bodies. The earth was soaked with the blood of the slain, making it unable to support life.¡± The chief continued solemnly. ¡°Before Lugh could completely exterminate the beasts Moot stood forth to oppose him. Their battle threatened to destroy the whole planet. Seeing their home being destroyed by their parents, Faust, Lena, Hest, and Dianna tried to stop the fighting, but it was too late. The hatred was already sown into their hearts. During the fighting Dianna was hit by a stray shot from her father Lugh, and was on the brink of death.¡± ¡°Seeing the fighting down below the two beings stared to feel sadness at the foolishness of their creations. They left the heavens and descended onto the battle field. They first appeared to Dianna. Seeing that she was on the brink of death the two beings sadness continued to grow. Healing Dianna until she was back to full heath, they decided that it was time to stop this fighting. Unleashing their power, all creations stopped fighting and felt an indescribable amount of power and fell to the ground in fear.¡± ¡°''Lugh and Moot, the two beings proclaimed to all, your fighting is not only bringing destruction to this planet, but you even could have killed your own daughter if we did not save her. For this we decree that no immortals are to directly interfere with this mortal realm. If any such person¡¯s tries, they will be destroyed with nothing of them left. We will also grant a gift to all the inhabitants of this world so that they too may have the ability to defend themselves. We will grant them the ability to transcend their mortal world and become an immortal like the rest of you. Lugh and Moot, the two of you were our pride and joy it brings us much sadness to see the two of you act like this. After this speech the two beings disappeared and were never heard from again. Even with all this Lugh and Moot would still not put away their hatred and still continue to fight to this day.¡± If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Once the chief finished his story the classroom was dead silent, not a single sound could be heard. Everyone''s eyes were glued to the Chieftain¡¯s face awaiting for him to continue. Looking at the faces of the kids eagerly awaiting for him to continue a rare smile crept on his face not that anyone could see it hidden behind his large beard and mustache. ¡°The gift that the two beings gave all the inhabitants of this world was the ability to harness the powers of the gods which we call mana. For us humans our bodies cannot handle this power and if we tried to gather the god''s power the person''s body would explode. This problem was not as bad for the beasts as they were created by Moot and could withstand the power of the god''s and began the journey of cultivation. With the rise of powerful beasts, humanity one again was on the brink of extinction. But before all the humans were wiped off the face of the planet, a breathing method was developed that allowed humans to strengthen their bodies before harnessing the powers of the gods.¡± ¡°With humans now able to use the powers of the gods, they were able to avoid extinction but that was not enough. We wanted a place that we could call our own so we kept on refining the breathing method creating better and better versions. Finally after many years we have been able to push the beasts away and make our own kingdoms. ¡°The breathing method I am about to how you is the very same one that was discovered that day all those years ago. Since the discovery of new and different breathing methods we have created a ranking system which ranks them from fist being the worst to five being the best. With each rank broken down into four smaller categories called low, medium, high, and peak. The stronger the breathing method, the faster one can strengthen the body and start their cultivation of their mana core. The breathing method that I will be teaching you is of the first rank, low category. It has been make public to the whole kingdom. If you want a better breathing method, then you will need to find it on your own or join a clan or an academy. To join a clan or academy you will need to show that you have talent in strengthening your body. When you are twelve years old all children are allowed to go and have their cultivation tested and if you do well enough then you could be invited to join a clan or a school.¡± Hearing this I could not stop my mind from imagining what it would be like to join a clan or a school. If I was able to go to a good school my family could increase their statues and maybe if I am talented enough, our family could become nobles. ¡°Okay class, I want everyone to pay close attention. I am going to teach you the breathing technique.¡± The chief said, pulling my attention away from my daydream. I once again gave my full attention to the chief. Reaching into his robes he pulls out an old looking scroll. ¡°This is aptly called the one cycle breathing method.¡± He said opening up the scroll and we looked at a diagram of the human body. ¡°As you should all know, the human body contains two different sets of veins. The first set of veins are the ones that all your blood flows through. The second set of veins are your mana veins, and these are the veins you will move the mana through. On this scroll is the path you will have to move the mana though. You must make sure that you have this memorized because if you don''t move it exactly as stated you could break your veins and no longer be able to cultivate.¡± For the next hour the chief had us memorize the pathway that we should move the mana. Only when the whole class memorized it did the chief move on. ¡°There are six different types of mana, Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Light, and Darkness. Earth, Water, Fire, and Air are considered the lower type of mana, while Light and Darkness are considered the higher type of mana. People who use light or darkness tend to be more powerful than people who use other elements. When one circulates the mana through their veins during the breathing technique a small portion of the element or elements that you have an affinity for will be absorbed into your body, strengthening it. As a side effect of absorbing the mana you will take some of the characteristics of the element you absorb. For example, a person who has a fire affinity will have more explosive strength while a person who has an Earth affinity will have a stronger skin and bones. These differences will hardly be noticeable until one forms their magic core.¡± He paused for a second before continuing. ¡°Now on to sensing mana. Mana is all around us but we can''t see it or feel it. You can only notice it when you spread out your consciousness to your surroundings. Okay class, I am now going to teach you how to that. To spread out one consciousness it is easiest to remove all distractions.¡± He paused before continuing. ¡°I want everyone to close your eyes. You should see nothing but darkness.¡± I close my eyes and everything turns black. ¡°Feel the ground that you are sitting on slowly start to disappear. You are now floating in the empty darkness. The fragrances in the air are getting fainter and fainter. You are all alone, just you, and the never ending darkness. The taste of your saliva is slowly disappearing, till you can''t taste anything. Slowly empty your mind. Don''t think of anything, just feel the never ending darkness. My voice is slowly getting quieter and quieter it is no louder than a whisper carried softly by the wind. You should feel something else with you in the darkness, there should be little specks floating slowly in the air going where ever they please.¡± He explained, walking us through the exercise. ¡°Once you feel it in the air, just wait for further instructions. Make sure you don''t do anything, just observe. Say out loud when you can feel it and we will continue when everyone can feel the mana.¡± Floating in my own world of eternal darkness, I slowly empty my mind of all thoughts and just feel the darkness that surrounds me, trying sense the mana in the air. ¡°I feel it.¡± Reynolds quietly said just shortly after the chief finished talking. That jerk was the first to find it! I bet with this he will become even more intolerable. Focus. . . I must empty my mind and feel the mana I told myself. ¡°I feel it.¡± This time it was Amman who spoke. Followed closely by the Sarisin sisters. Now it was just me who has yet to feel the mana. I keep on concentrating on the eternal blackness that was all encompassing. Time seemed to stretch on forever in the darkness, but no matter how long I waited I could not sense anything. Why can I not sense mana? Am I doing something wrong? These thoughts kept on flashing across my mind. The longer time went on, the more frequent and longer lasting these thoughts lasted. Maybe I should just lie and say that I can feel it so I don''t look like a bigger looser. I will just do this latter at home. ¡°I feel it.¡± I lied in a quiet voice. ¡°Good. Now that everyone can feel the mana you should feel lots of very small particles floating in the air. I want everyone to take in a small breath and try to get only one speck of mana. If you get more, immediately exhale and start again. If you try to continue past this point with more than one speck then your veins will explode and you will never be able to cultivate again and in extreme cases you may even die.¡± He told us with a serious voice. ¡°Once you can control the speck in your lungs, move it according to the paths you memorized from the breathing technique. Once you have completed the cycle, move the mana back into your lungs and exhale. As a reminder, when the mana is going through your veins, a very small portion on it will be absorbed into your body strengthening it. I will give you thirty minutes to practice what I have taught you. If you have any questions, just raise your hand and I will try my best to answer it.¡± Closing my eye''s once again everything goes black I rid myself of my senses and empty my mind. Sitting there I feel nothing in the air. How am I supposed to feel the mana? What does it feel like? Why can''t I feel the mana? Does this mean I won''t be able to cultivate? Will I be trash that will amount to nothing? What will my parents think when they learn that their son is a worthless human being? Will they no longer love me? No, I need to stop my thoughts from spiraling out of control. I need to clear my mind and put all my effort into sensing the mana all around me. ¡°Everyone finish the cycle you are on, then pay attention. I have a few things left to say then you can go home.¡± Opening my eyes I held back my tears, I could still not sense the mana. Is something really wrong with me? Will I really never amount to anything and be trash my whole life? What will my parents think of me when they learn I can''t feel mana will I be disowned and die alone on the side of the road? I could no longer hold back my tears, a single tear rolled down my face. Before it could fall to the ground, I wiped the tear away and got my emotions under control. Looking up I notice the chief looking at me with a sad look. Once our eyes meet I could tell that he saw me cry, seeing this I quickly looked away ashamed. ¡°There are nine different levels of body strengthening before you can be called a mage or warrior. The first three levels strengthen your skin, the next three strengthens your bones, and the last three strengthen your muscles and veins. Once you have done this you can finally form your mana core then you can finally start actually using mana. You all have started your journey on becoming great. You can all go home now, class is over.¡± I quickly got up from the ground and left not even waiting for my friend Amman. Before I could even make it to the door, the tears I have been trying to hold back broke forth like a dam breaking spilling all over my face and unto the ground. I ran as fast as I could while avoiding everyone so that no one could see the tears streaming down my face. I made my way home on instinct. ¡°Big brother you¡¯re home!¡± I voice said causing me to stumble backwards, back out the front door that I just opened. Looking down I see my sister''s black hair lodged into my stomach. I quickly wipe my tear stained face so she will not notice it. Bending down I picked her up and placed her on my shoulders. ¡°Ajax come to the kitchen. I made lunch.¡± My mother calls from the other room. Walking to the kitchen I put my sister down on one of the chairs and sit in the seat next to her and begin eating. ¡°So how did it go?¡± Mother inquired as we were eating at the table. Looking away from my mother so that she won''t see my reddened eye''s I quietly mumbled, ¡°It was okay.¡± ¡°What''s wrong?¡± My mother asked as she heard my reply. ¡°Nothing¡± I said still not looking at her. ¡°Ajax, it would make your mother happy if you look at me when talking. So please, look at me, I am always willing to listen to any problems you have and I will try to make them better.¡± She replied. Looking into my mother''s eyes, I could only see concern and love in them. The tears once again started to flow freely from my eyes. Seeing my reaction, my mother quickly pulled me into a hug. Feeling her warm embrace I could no longer think of anything else I just quietly cried in her loving embrace. After what felt like forever, I was finally able to get my emotions under control. Seeing me calm down she looked into my eyes and said with a tone of concern ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± Holding back the tears that once again tried to escape, I told her all that happened today, my fears of not being able to sense manna and my fears that she would no longer love me. After telling her everything I looked into her eye''s trying to see if she still loved me. ¡°Ajax don''t let it bother you that you could not sense the mana, maybe you just need more time than others to sense mana. Even if you cannot sense mana I am your mother and I am sure your father would agree. We will always love you, you are our special son even if everyone else leaves you, and we will always be there for you. Remember you are my son and I love you.¡± Hearing my mother encouraging words, I once again hugged her and left the house, but before I left I told her ¡°I am going out to practice how to sense mana. I will be back later today so don''t worry, your son won''t let you down. I will become a great mage in the future.¡± Once outside, I quickly ran to my favorite place. It is about two miles away from our house on top of a small hill at the foot of the mountains. The hill is covered in a soft grass with a lone tree that stands all alone amidst the grass. It is my favorite place to relax. Whenever I am having a bad day I would just lay in the shade of the tree and relax in the soft grass. But today this place will be where I start my practice of sensing mana. Sitting down in the shade, I can feel the soft breeze slowly brushing across my face. Feeling this wonderful sensation, my body that was over loaded with all that happened today, finally relaxed and I fell into a blissful sleep. Chapter two POV: Ajax''s Mother Eating breakfast with my whole family is always my favorite time of the day. I love waking up and seeing my lovely husband sleeping right next to me. Seeing his face completely relaxed without a care in the world; It''s a constant reminder of why I love him. Heading over to the kitchen, I grab some logs and put them into the iron stove to slowly drive away the morning chill. As I was warming my hands by the fire, I feel a sudden weight pressing around my shoulders and neck. Turning around I see my husband''s smiling face as he was hugging me from behind. ¡°Good Morning.¡± He said slowly. He pulled me deeper into his embrace. His embrace was warm and welcoming. Not wanting to spoil this moment, I just snuggled deeper into his embrace and enjoyed myself. After a few minutes he pulled himself away from me. ¡°Today I am going to start Ajax''s Training." He said. ¡° I know you have explained this before, but why does Ajax need to do muscle training?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s a secret that not many people know, but when you push your body to it''s limits and then practice a breathing method your body will be able to absorb more mana, thus making you advance ranks faster.¡± He replied gently. ¡° I understand that, but won''t the limit training be very painful? He could start to resent you.¡± I said worriedly. ¡° I am willing to shoulder that burden if it can increase his chances of surviving and having a happy life. You should know as well as I do that this world is ruled by the strong and those without strength will never be able to protect anything they hold dear.¡± His voice was serious when he said this. ¡° I know that dear, but is this necessary? There has to be another way!¡± I said in desperation. ¡° If there is another way, I can''t see it.¡± He replied wearily. ¡°But dear. . ." I start one last time. ¡°tap...tap..tap..¡± A noise interrupts me before I could say more. ¡°We will finish this conversation when it is just us." He quickly said. ¡°Mama, good morning!¡± My daughter said happily as she walked into the room. ¡° I will wake up Ajax, and we will do some light exercise before breakfast.¡± My husband said as he headed off to Ajax''s room. ¡°Remember that this conversation is not finished.¡± I quickly replied before he made it out of the room. I once again returned my attention back to the stove and began to cook up some breakfast. Forty minutes later the room had the aroma of eggs and meat wafting around every corner. Putting the food on the small four-person table, I walked over to the only window in the room and saw David making Ajax run laps around the house before coming to breakfast. Heading back to the table I grabbed Delia, my daughter, and put her into my lap. I finally got myself comfortable on the wooden chair when the door opened and David walked in. He quickly joined us with our meal. ¡°How well did Ajax take the training this morning?¡± I inquired as we ate at the table. ¡°He did surprisingly well, he didn''t complain at all, but I could tell he wasn''t that happy with it either.¡± David replied with some astonishment in his voice. ¡°That is surprising. I would have thought that he would have complained some more, it has always been hard to get him to do things in the morning all he likes to do is sleep.¡± I agreed equally astonished. ¡°I don''t know why either, but it was a pleasant surprise." He proudly replied. After that comment we lapsed into a comfortable silence as we just enjoyed the food and each other''s company until the silence was broken by the creaking of the front door. ¡°You better hurry up or your breakfast will go cold.¡± I kindly told Ajax as he walked in the front door. The room again covered by a silence that was only broken by the occasional sounds of silverware clanking. ¡°Ajax when I get home from working in the forage, we are going to continue your training.¡± David said breaking the silence as he walked towards me. After giving me and Delia kisses he grabbed his forging hammer by the front door and walked out leaving only the three of us at the table. ¡°Ajax you better hurry down to the chief¡¯s house, you have school today.¡± I said as I noticed that he was almost done with his meal. As he was walking to the door Delia Struggled in my lap wanting to run to him. Picking her off my lap and setting her on to the ground she rushed and grabbed his leg from behind. Watching Ajax comfort his little sister I couldn''t stop how proud I was of him. He will turn out to be a very kind man I quickly thought to myself. He gently picked her up and handed her to me before heading out the front door. Now it was just me and Delia left in the house. Looking down I could see that Delia was still sad that Ajax left so to cheer her up I made a deal with her. ¡°If you help me clean up, I will take you over to Sara''s house to see if she can play.¡± "Yea!!! Sara''s house, Sara''s house!¡± She yelled as she ran back to the table. When we reached Sara''s house, Delia could barely contain her excitement. She dashed in front of me and knocked on the door with all her strength. The door opened shortly after the loud pounding and a little girl the same age as Delia opened the door. She had long brown hair and was a little bit taller then Delia. Standing behind her was a woman that looked like a older version of the little girl. ¡°Come on in.¡± The older lady greeted us as she led us into her house. Before I could even take two steps into the house, Delia and Sara scurried off to Sara''s room to play. ¡°Ha ha ha ha it makes me laugh every time I see how much they love playing together. Just a few seconds ago Sara was crying, but now she is laughing and playing.¡± ¡° I agree. Delia was crying that Ajax was leaving, but the moment I mentioned Shara she did a complete flip and was super excited.¡± I replied ¡° Oh, where are my manners? Come in and have a seat I will make us something to drink." She said still smiling over the antics of children. Walking farther into the room there was table and three chairs next to the stone oven. I walked over and sat myself down in one of the chairs. ¡°Did you hear what the traders were talking about yesterday when they came to sell their wares?¡± Sara''s mom said as she was pouring us something to drink. ¡°No I haven¡¯t, what did they say?¡± I inquired back. ¡°They were saying that over the past year, entire villages have all mysteriously died. So far, no one has been able to find the cause. There was no wounds on their bodies and no one could detect any poison on them. It has the whole kingdom in an uproar. Some people are saying that it could be a plot from a rival kingdom. But I think it could be a new type of mysterious beast. The only problem is that the affected villages are comply random, they are scattered all over the kingdom not in just one place. But who knows it could be a fast moving mysterious beast?¡± She said in full gossip mode. Hearing this news, I couldn''t help but feel a little fearful about what could be causing all these deaths. My body did an involuntary shudder. ¡°Let''s talk about something more cheerful.¡± I said trying to change the topic to something less worrisome. Me and Sara''s mother continued to chat while the kids played. Looking out the window, I noticed that it would soon be time for Ajax to return. ¡°Look''s like I have to go, it was nice visiting with you.¡± I said to Sara''s mother as I got up from the chair. Raising my voice so it could be heard in the adjacent room, ¡°Delia say goodbye to Sara, we have to go. Ajax will be coming home soon.¡± Delia soon emerged from where she was playing and joined me as we walked out the front door to our house. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Once we arrived at our house, Delia ran to her room to play by herself. I walked over to our old iron stove and once again put some wood in it. As I was preparing lunch for Ajax to return home, I wondered how he would do with his training. He had David''s and my blood in him so he should be very talented. How should I explain his talent? I know, I will just say he is just a one in a million chance and once he gets older we will tell him the truth about me and David I reasoned. Breaking me out of my thoughts I hear Delia calling to Ajax. It looks like Ajax just came home as I put the finished meal on the table. I quickly tell Ajax that lunch is ready. Not long after, I see him walking into the room with Delia on his shoulders. Seeing how well he gets along with Delia, I couldn¡¯t help but feel like we raised such a great child. He is the best older brother I have ever seen, he is always patient and nice to his little sister. Not long into the meal I asked the question that has been bothering ever since he left. ¡°So, how did it go?¡± Once I asked that question, I could see that something was wrong. He did not look at me when he answered. Instead he looked down and mumbled that everything went okay. Hearing his response I KNEW that something was wrong. Did he and Renyolds get into a fight again? Is someone hurting my child? I will hunt down anyone that dares to hurt my precious child! For a brief moment my eye''s shined with killing intent. Before Ajax could notice the look in my eye, I calmed myself down and asked again. ¡°What''s wrong?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± This reply made my heart tremble, what could have possible happened that could cause my happy child to be so down? ¡°Ajax, it would make your mother happy if you look at me when I talk to you. So please, look at me, I am always willing to listen to any problems you have and I will try to make them better.¡± Any person who dares to hurt my child will face my full wrath! Ajax looked up from where he was looking. I could tell right away that he was recently crying. I quickly embraced him into a tight hug. I could feel his small body shaking as he cried in my arms. Who made my child cry like this! His head will roll and his family will shortly follow after!!! When his body stopped shaking, I once again asked him what was wrong. He replied that he was unable to sense manna and that he was worried that we would no longer love him if he couldn''t cultivate. To help comfort him I told him that it doesn''t matter if he can cultivate or not he is my child and that I would always love him. I also told him that maybe he just needed more time to sense mana than other children. After this his face clearly brightened and he quickly left the house to practice sensing mana. Watching him run out the front door I couldn''t help but feel sad. I know that my words are empty. I will always love him and that is the truth, but I know that if he could not sense mana during the class than most likely he will never be able to sense mana. Reclining more in the chair I let out a deep breath. Why could Ajax not feel mana with both me and his father''s blood in him? He should be very talented with magic. Why couldn''t it be what I was thinking and someone was bothering him. If It was, I could actually do something and make things better, but how can I help him sense mana? That is impossible to change. I guess me and David will have a long discussion when he gets back home. I once again release a tired sigh. Today was supposed to be a happy day so why did it turn out like this? For this whole ordeal Delia stayed quiet, maybe she somehow knew that she shouldn¡¯t do anything. But once Ajax left she looked at me and asked ¡°Is Ajax going to be okay?¡± This simple and innocent question took me out of my thoughts. Picking her up and setting her on my lap I quietly said ¡°I don''t know, I don''t know.¡± David walked home while whistling a tune. It was a fast paced song that made one want to dance. Pushing open the door expecting to see a joyous Ajax and a similarly happy Sahara, instead when he pushed opened the door there seemed to be a weight in the air. Walking farthing into the house he saw his wife sitting near the table with puffy eyes looking off into empty space. Quickly rushing over to his wife, David grabbed her shoulders and gave her a soft shake. ¡°What''s wrong? Dear, what happened?!¡± He anxiously called. A soft whisper escaped Sahara''s lips. ¡°Ajax can''t sense mana.¡± These four words shook David to his very core. If Ajax could not sense mana, then he would never be able to cultivate. That means that for his whole life he would be looked down on and used by the strong. Not willing to accept what he heard he, shook Sahara a little bit harder. "What did you say?" He whispered horsely. ¡°Ajax can''t sense mana.¡± Sahara''s hollow voice stated again. This time David was prepared for it, but he still couldn''t help but feel the weight those four words represented. Reeling backwards, David fell into one of the other chairs, and put his face in his hands and cried silently to himself. When the tears would no longer flow, he got up and walked over to his wife, Sahara, and gave her a big hug. ¡°Everything is going to be alright.¡± He stated with as much confidence as he could. Hearing these words, Shara seemed to pull herself together and came back to her normal self. Hearing David''s comforting words and feeling secure in his embrace, I was like a ship returning to harbor from a long voyage, safe and secure. Pulling myself out of his warm embrace, I told him about what Ajax told me today. After hearing all this I could see that David did not want to believe it, but he knew that I said was true. ¡°What do you think could have caused this? We are both very talented.¡± I questioned David. ¡°I don''t know. Maybe the gods are punishing me for what I did in the past?¡± David replied saying the second part more to himself than to me. Hearing what he said I snapped back at him. ¡°You did what you had to do to survive. You can''t be blamed for any of that. Don''t blame yourself, you are not the only person who has done things they are not proud of!¡± I heatedly replied. Quickly standing up, I decided it was time to start dinner. ¡°David would you mind helping me make some dinner? I think that having a good meal would make us all more happy." I finished in a much more calm voice. In a small room sat five guys dressed in all black talking quietly amongst themselves. ¡°This is the right place, right?¡± The leader said to the other four. ¡°Yes, according to the report, he is living in a small house just a little out of town.¡± One of them answered. ¡°Good, good, it has been ten years since he left us. Who would have thought we would have found him in this small backwater place? Everyone get ready. We will head out shorty¡± It has been ten years since we have last meet, David, I hope you are prepared for what is it to come, because this is all your fault. The leader venomously thought to himself as he followed the rest of the group out of the room. Chapter Three Sitting at a table sat three people, Sahara, David, and Delia. The atmosphere was not like it was in the morning, instead of a comfortable silence it was heavy and oppressive barring down on the whole household. Looking up from the food in front of me I gazed out of the only window in the room. The sun was setting low in the sky soon to be covered by the mountains jutting out from the ground. I couldn''t help but wonder what Ajax is doing right now. Was he still trying to sense mana or has he given up? Turning my gaze away from the window I collected my thoughts and looked towards David and asked. ¡°Don''t you think that Ajax has been gone for too long? Do you think that we should go looking for him?¡± Following that comment David put down the fork that was on its jurnney to his mouth and closed his eyes and scrunched his eye brows. Seeing him doing this I could tell he was deep in thought. He stayed like that for a couple of seconds before he opened his eyes and replied. ¡°Sahara I think It is best that we let him have some time by himself. You know as well as I do that he will not be able to sense mana no matter how hard he tries. The best thing we can do for him is to let him figure out how he want''s to live the rest of his life. It will be hard on him but he must come to a decision on his own. All we can do is give him all the love and support we can.¡± The table once again elapses into silence. This silence continued for some time until it was broken by the sound of a chair scraping on the stone floor. Delia got off her chair and left to her room. Now only Sahara and David were left at the table. Seeing that Delia was gone David could no longer keep his composer, he rested his head in his hands and a deed sigh escaped though his shacking fingers. ¡°Sahara how can we protect our son?¡± David whispered with his head still in his hands. ¡° Please tell me what we should do?¡± looking across the table and seeing my once strong husband slowly falling apart, I could barley contain the tears that threatened to flow. What made it all the worse is I can''t answer his plea because I don''t know what to do. Not wanting to see David like this anymore I once again move my gaze to look out the window but this time I put all my effort into finding and answer to Davids plea. Every second felt like days but I still could not find a suitable answer. After a long period of contemplation I finally had a rough plan. ¡°David..... I think I know what we should do¡± I timidly spoke out. David slowly raised his head an looked right into my eyes, I could see a flame of hope spark to life. Quickly looking away I hurriedly explained my idea. ¡°The most important thing we need to do is to protect our son and our family. To do this we need to make sure that no one knows that Ajax can''t sense mana expessaly the Church of Lugh we can''t even let a rumor get to them.¡± Just thinking about the Church of Lugh and what they did my body starts to uncontrollably shake, my breathing got sporadic, and a feeling of fear was slowly spreading throughout my body. Before I was completely engulfed in fear I felt a small sensation of warmth start to spread from my back it shattered the fear replacing it was a calm, comfortable sensation. Leaning my head back I rested it on David¡¯s chest. ¡°Shara, we escaped they can''t find us. You are safe.¡± David whispered into my ear as he was hugging me. We sat like that for a couple minutes enjoying each others embrace. ¡°Am I interrupting something important?¡± a cold and sinister voice reverberated around the room. Before I knew what was happening David tackled me to the ground. As I was falling I could see a dagger fly past were my head was a moment ago and lodge itself into the wall. Before we even hit the ground David once again pushed me but this time he pushed me away from him. Once I hit the ground I turned to see David and to my horror I could see one dagger in his shoulder and three stuck on the ground around him. Once again the voice sounded out ¡°Good, Good, you were able to doge three out of four daggers if this is the best you can do then your end will come here. Come on you better do better or I will kill your family.¡± Quickly kicking over the table so It could function as a form of protection David grabbed and dragged me behind it. Looking back to where I used to be there was another dagger stuck into the ground. After almost dying three times, my body started to shake uncontrollably and my mind started to freeze up. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.¡°Wack¡± the feeling of the stinging pain on my cheek from where David slapped me woke me up from the shock. ¡° Sahara I need you to focus, I will distract him and when his attention in on me I want you to run towards Delia''s room and grab her. I will meet you out back when I am finished here¡± ¡°No I can fight with you I am not a weakling¡± I can''t continue being useless I need to help I thought to myself. ¡°Go Protect our Daughter!!¡± David yelled as he moved out from the relative safety of the table. Hearing what he said I once again felt useless I totally forgot about our daughter turning my attention away from David I quickly ran over to Deli''s room. Slamming open the door I could see a man cloaked in black holding Delia in his arms slowly walking towards the window. She was struggling to escape, seeing her mother''s face Delia cried out ¡°mommy Help me!!¡± Hearing her shout the man in black gave her a hard smack to the back of her neck. Her tiny body stopped moving and laid limp in his arms if it wasn''t for the slight movement of her chest I would believe that he killed her. Seeing her limp body an indescribable feeling of utter rage slowly swelled from the deepest corners of my soul. I believe that even the most kind and saintly of mothers will become the Devil incarnate if someone hurts their child. I may not be a saint but I try my best to be one. but at this moment in time I no longer cared. I will not stand by a watch my daughter be kidnapped. I will end him!!! Letting my emotions take control. I quickly started to chant a spell. Hearing me chanting the man dressed in black turned just in time so see a lance of pure darkness embed into his skull. His body fell to the ground like a puppet cut from it''s strings. His face was frozen with his eye''s wide open not understanding what just happened. Only to be consumed by the darkness spreading from the lance in his skull until there was noting left of his body. In the man''s embrace Delia fell to the ground along with the man with a resounding thump hitting her head on the ground. Hearing Delia hit the ground I ran forwards. Please be okay, please be okay, were my only thoughts. Once I reached her I bent down to pick her up and hugged her into my embrace. I quickly checked to see if she was still breathing and luckily she was. Thank the gods she is okay. I quickly left the room carrying the unconscious Delia in my arms. Running out the back door; sounds of an intense fight could be heard from within the house. Before I could even make it twenty steps outside, a loud boom drowned out the sounds of the fighting, blowing the whole house to smithereens. The force of the blast sent me flying forwards. Turning myself around so I would fall on my back to avoiding any more damage to Delia I landed heavily on my back knocking the wind out of me. Before I had a chance to catch my breath I could see the house I called home for the last nine years reduced to a pile of flaming rubble. ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH¡± Who is that screaming. Wait is that me? ¡°Daaaaaviiiiid NOOOOOOOOOO¡± I just kept on screaming David over and over again. After what felt like forever but in all reality was only a couple of seconds I was able to get myself under control. Is that pile of wood moving? Instantly all my attention was focused on that single pile of wood blocking out all other things. Am I seeing things? Was that all in my mind? These thoughts flashed through my mind until I saw the wood move once again. No it wasn''t my imagination but who is it, is it David, or is it the other guy. The wood was slowly pushed to the side reveling a figure of a man covered in wounds and bleeding all over the place. Sticking out of his shoulder was a large piece of wood, Slowing moving his good hand the figure grabbed the wood in his shoulder and gave it a sharp pull. A loud suction noise sounded over the sound of the cracking of the wood followed by a yell of pain by the figure. The figure slowly turned around so I could see his face illuminated by the flicking light of the fire. It Was...... Announcement In putting this story on hiatus and gonna start working on another story I''m calling it God''s amongst men maybe latter I will continue this story.