Chapter 7 The training continues
As Joey woke up the next day, he noticed that Nagisa was awake before him yet again.
“I wonder what she does all day… She goes to training and when she comes back, she’s all cheery and even worse, without a scratch on her” Joey said to himself. “I mean, Krad said that she used to be the second strongest Angel.. but I don’t see any progress on her” He said as he sat up straight. Joey got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom for a shower, making sure that he locked the door this time.
In the meanwhile, Nagisa was already in her training. She was in some kind of laboratory. The entire room was filled with funny-looking ingredients and vials filled with strange-coloured liquids. Rose seemed to be in the room as well.
“So, what are we making today, Rose?” Nagisa asked. “Anything fun this time?” She asked as she giggled.
“You don’t think making Potions which heal you are fun? It’s what’s keeping Joey alive I hear~” Rose chimed. “Anyway, today we’re making a Love Potion!”.
“A Love Potion? You think I need something like that?” Nagisa asked as she struck some kind of silly pose.
“I don’t think you need it” Rose said as she giggled. “The other effect of this Love Potion is that the one who drinks it, has to do everything you say!” She continued.
“Right! So, what’re the ingredients?” Nagisa asked.
“I need a Chimera’s tail tip from the shelve there. And while you’re at it, we need some rose water from there too. We have the rest here” Rose said as she looked through her book. Nagisa did as asked and brought the ingredients to Rose. The two of them seemed to be really working on it. Grinding up strange leaves and adding some questionable things to the potions. But in the end, when the potion was brewing, it started to become a pink colour.
”How come I knew it was going to be pink?” She asked herself as she sweat dropped.
“Women’s intuition huh? Anyway, you take this Potion, have some fun with it~” Rose said as she winked.
“W-well, even though I don’t need it! I’ll take it anyway! Thank you~” Nagisa replied. Rose dismissed Nagisa from her training so she could go take a little break.
In the meanwhile, Joey prepared himself to get lessons from Jin. From what he understood, Jin was a master in using all kinds of weapons. Joey quickly changed into the uniform which Marcus gave him. Like he said before. The armor had become like any other clothing. The weight didn’t slow him down anymore. Joey made his way down towards the training room, where Jin was already waiting for Joey. All kinds of weapons were now displayed in the room. From small swords to massive axes. It was all there.
“Ah, you’re here” Jin said as he smiled. “I’m looking forward to training you” He continued.
“I’m looking forward to your lessons as well!” Joey said as he gave a bow. Joey never really took a good look at Jin, but now that he was here, he could see that Jin was also pretty muscular, not as muscular as Marcus though. Jin wasn’t wearing any kind of armour. Just some kind of kimono. Or a variation to that. It at least didn’t look like it would take a hit.
“At any rate! All these weapons look great! I’m sure to be liking this room pretty much! All these weapons.. it makes me feel powerful by just standing here!” Joey said with a wide smile
“You’ll be disliking it soon” Jin replied.
“W-why? Wouldn’t anyone like training with all these weapons?” Joey asked.
“Anyone would dislike being hit by all of them” Jin replied with a straight face.
“Oh shit..” Joey replied. Jin chuckled at his reaction . “Before we start though, what the Hell is Nagisa doing all day? She isn’t tired when she comes back from training. Is she having her training at a spa or something?”.
“No, she visits it every day though.” Jin replied.
“We have a spa?” Joey asked.
“We do, but for now, let’s get to training!” Jin ordered. “Most Angels pick a weapon and stick to it for the rest of their lives. For you and me however, this is not the case. As the Elemental Lord of Light, we want you to be able to fight with every kind of weapon known to mankind. So even if your favourite weapon is missing, you won’t be limited to just using your Magic and your fists.” Jin instructed.
“What’s wrong with Magic? I thought that was the most powerful thing there is in Ereana” Joey asked.
“very true. But Magic is a last resort for someone like you. Weapons and Magic are powerful but you will be using your weapons the most. You wouldn’t want to accidentally blow someone up. Working with something as delicate as a rapier will teach you restraint, control. Magic control is something which comes over the years while I can teach you the restraint of a rapier in weeks” Jin explained. While Jin kept on going with his explanation and ranting about how weapons are more important to master before Magic, Joey took his time to look around the room. A lot of weapons seemed to be ‘normal’. In a way. Others however, they looked special. Some were even glowing in a strange colour.
“Are you paying attention?!” Jin yelled.
“Y-yes sir!” Joey said as he stood on attention.
“As I said, you will be learning to work with axes, swords, spears, daggers and shields first. Those are the most standard ones. You’ll learn more advanced weapons later.” Jin continued.
“So, which am I going to use first?” Joey asked with a smile.
“Well, I suppose you can pick the first one. Go pick one from over on the shelf over there” Jin said as he nodded. Joey’s mind was already made up. He made his way over towards a sword which was looking very shiny.
“Excellent choice! The sword is like an extra part of the body in the hands of a Master” Jin said. “This sword.. It’ll be the weapon which you will handle for the next two weeks. The weapon you will be cut up with, the first weapon style which you will master!” Jin said as he nodded. The weight of the sword remembered Joey of the sword which he used in the cafeteria against those Demons back on Earth. It was a lot lighter, but still, it felt good in his hands.
“Alright, Joey. I want you to slice through that dummy over there” Jin said as he pointed over to a steel dummy.
“Right! Here I go!” Joey called out. He made a step towards the dummy and made a horizontal slash with his sword, putting in a lot of force behind the strike. But all that happened, was that Joey’s sword got stuck in the dummy. Joey sweat dropped and pulled his sword out. “I don’t understand.. I’m stronger than I used to, why didn’t it work? It the weapon sharp?” he asked Jin.
“The weapon is razor sharp. But brute force will definitely not work while handling a sword. An axe works better for that. If you handle a sword like an axe, it will break. And you don’t want your weapon to break in a battle, right?” Jin asked.
“No, that’d be a serious problem..” Joey said as he nodded.
“let me show you how it’s done” Jin said as he took the sword from Joey. Jin got into a position and made a quick and graceful slash, which at the same time looked powerful. And that was all it took to slash the steel dummy in half. Joey stood in awe to see how Jin would be able to do such a thing in a single slash of the sword. There was still so much to learn, like Jin said. Handling a weapon requires delicacy, restraint and most importantly, skill.
“I want you to take this sword and carry it around for the next two weeks, even outside of training. Use it for as many things as you can. “ Jin said. Joey nodded and was then dismissed from training. He needed to get familiar with his weapon now.
“So, Jin said there was a spa.. I wonder where it is. I walked around the castle twice now” he said. He got curious to where it might be. It might not be a bad idea to go to a spa and just relax and mingle with the other male Angels in here. He walked around for a good hour until he found two doors right next to each other which he had never seen before. “Could these be it..?” He asked. He looked at the left door and then at the right. “Left” he said as he walked over towards the left door. He turned the handle and opened the door, finding dozens of half-naked women being in a large bath, or getting massaged. Everything went silent and Joey just stared inside, his head becoming red.
“Shit…” he said to himself as suddenly the entire room full of women started screeching and throwing things at him. Joey quickly slammed the door shut, covering his eyes. “Why does this keep happening to me?!” He called out. “Maybe I should just poke my eyes out with this sword” he said as he sighed. “At this rate, my people will think I’m some kind of pervert or something”.
Joey made his way over to his room again, where he quickly fell asleep, completely forgetting about going to the spa or Nagisa. A few hours passed as he suddenly opened his eyes. He looked around the room. It seemed to be in the middle of the night. Nagisa was still asleep as well. Something in Joey’s mind told him that he had to go outside. Something was going on. He threw the sheets off his body and walked outside of his room, heading for the gates of the castle. Joey was still in his armour, seeing how he didn’t have a chance to change his outfit. He walked through the marketplace, which usually was filled with Angels in the daytime but now, nothing. He kept on walking and walking until he saw three figures in the distance. Joey squinted his eyes to see Krad, Marcus and Jin standing there. He made his way over there.
“What’s going on?” Joey asked. Krad and Marcus looked up, with a bit of a shocked expression. They didn’t expect to run into Joey here.
“Y-you should be asleep. Maybe it’s better if you go back to the castle, sir” Krad said.
“I don’t know.. I feel like I need to be here. The atmosphere feels dark.. There’s something out there, am I right?” Joey asked Krad.
“Demons are coming” Jin said out of the blue.
“Jin!” Marcus and Krad called out. Obviously, they didn’t want Joey to hear about this.
“Joey is Avo. And he is the Elemental Lord of Light. I agreed to keeping the topic silent but I won’t lie in his face.” Jin said. “Demons are attacking the Light Kingdom. We sensed a large power gathering here. We’ve been defending the Kingdom at night. Nothing serious happened so far but this force we feel is larger than any attack.” Jin said.
“So while I was training, you kept the Kingdom safe? I’m lucky to have people like you guys around me.. Is there anything I can do?” Joey asked. Krad looked a bit hesitant about the situation and looked over to Jin, who nodded.
“You have your sword with you, I see. You can help us fight. But don’t get reckless” Krad said in a serious tone. Joey nodded but couldn’t help but get excited by the thought of him going into battle with a Demon! He could show how much he had learned. But it was serious now! A screw-up and he would be a goner. Jin drew his own sword and stood in battle position.
“It’s coming!” He called out. At that moment, a loud roaring sound, as if it was thunder, came from below them. The earth shook with it. At that moment, the ground burst open, flamed coming from them as suddenly a large Dragon-like monster came out of it. But something seemed wrong, it was like a zombie. The flesh and the skin was rotten, a brown colour. And some parts were completely skeletal. It still looked very intimidating though.
“I am Bahzaal! Greater Demon of the Dark Kingdom! I am here to take the life of the boy! The Elemental Lord demands it!” the Dragon called out towards the party.
“I think he means me.” Joey said as he drew his own sword, looking up at Bahzaal.
“This might be more than we bargained for. I didn’t expect them to send a Greater Demon for an undeveloped Angel, right Krad?” Marcus asked.
“Plaguedmind wants him dead. No, he wants him. He can’t afford to have a fully powered Elemental Lord of Light in this time. We better take this one down as soon as we can!” Krad called out. “Let’s go!”. Charging towards the Demon who called himself Bahzaal, the party of four did the best they could. Marcus made a big leap on Bahzaal’s back, trying to rip it’s rotten wings off, while Jin was engaging in combat with his head and claws, deflecting the blows coming from Bahzaal. Krad was using his Magic to aid Jin and Marcus in battle, shielding them from any blows they could not deflect themselves. Joey stood in awe of his Master’s great power, fighting this Demon. But he didn’t let that get over him right now. He needed to help them! He stood read and charged for one of Bahzaal’s legs, making a cut in it. Bahzaal let out a roar, louder than anything which Joey ever heard.
“You pathetic creatures! Stay off me!” Bahzaal called out. He took a swipe towards Joey. He couldn’t react soon enough and got smashed into a wall. Jin, Marcus and Krad had to avert their attention to look at Joey being smashed away, which was a moment which Bahzaal used. He made one swift movement to trap Jin in one of his paws and Krad in the other. Marcus was being thrown off Bahzaal’s back and into the air. Bahzaal opened his mouth wide and chomped for Marcus, who managed to press his feet on his lower jaw and his hands in between the large teeth oh Bahzaal, keeping them open so he wouldn’t get to be Dragon lunch! All of them seemed to be in a pinch.
“Hey kid! No time to sleep! Fight damnit!” Marcus called out.
“You can do it! Get up!” Krad called out as well.
“Believe! Your sword will help!” Jin called out as last. Joey opened his eyes and got up, having heard the words from his Masters. Suddenly, it was like a strange power came over Joey. New words came into his own mind, as if someone was talking to him.
“I’ll take over.. lend me your body..” it spoke. It felt familiar and warm at the same time. He let his body weaken down before he could suddenly feel his muscles tense up, all on their own. He was watching himself become all alert. It was like watching a movie, but still doing it on your own. Joey didn’t notice his own eyes starting to glow a bright white colour. He did hear how he started talking, but in a different voice. Lower, wiser, older.
“Fear the Wrath of the Gods” he called out. He gripped his sword and suddenly made a dash towards Bahzaal, making a leap which was even higher than the one Marcus made before. He prepared his sword to strike down on Bahzaal’s head. Bahzaal could not do much, he was busy pinning the other three down. Joey’s sword made contact with his skull, piercing right through it. Joey started muttering some words in the strange voice from before. Marcus could feel how the jaws were losing power. He could get out now. He quickly jumped out of the jaw as Bahzaal started to lose balance, which freed Jin and Krad. The three of them watched as Joey was now standing on Bahzaal’s head, his sword being pierced into his skull, muttering words.
“Is he..?” Marcus asked.
“I think he is” Krad replied. After a few more words, Joey’s sword began to glow, causing Magical effects to be send straight into Bahzaal’s skull and then into its body, him starting to become burned from the inside, getting infused with Light Magic. In a matter of seconds, Bahzaal’s body seemed to explode into a dozen bloody pieces. Joey landed on his feet, sheeting his weapon. His eyes became a normal colour again, the voice in his head speaking one last time.
“Your strength is improving. All of this was possible with your own abilities. I merely gave you the confidence and knowledge to use them” it spoke in Joey’s head. Joey smiled warmly and nodded to himself, not vocally replying to what the voice said. Marcus, Jin and Krad walked up to Joey, smiling widely but at the same time wondering what happened there.
“Kid, I don’t know how you did it, but you did it!” Marcus said as he slammed his hand on Joey’s shoulder.
“Curious indeed. To think that you couldn’t even cut down a piece of iron this morning. And now you defeated a Greater Demon” Jin complimented.
“Not only that but it looks like you used Magic too. Looks like someone has been studying up on Magic too” Krad said with a smiled. Joey remained quiet for a second. It looked like they didn’t hear the voice. So maybe they didn’t know he heard it. But for now, it was time to celebrate, the Light Kingdom was safe once more.
“Yeah.. Maybe we should head back, I’m tired and kinda’ hungry” Joey said with a smile.
“Right, let’s go!” Marcus said. After a good meal in the castle, Joey went to bed. But the others stayed awake. Rose and Tomoko had joined Krad, Jin and Marcus.
“So, what did you want to tell us, Krad?” Rose asked.
“Outside, just now. I think I heard it right, but Joey spoke the words” Krad said.
“You mean..?” Tomoko asked.
“Yes. ‘fear the wrath of the Gods’ is what he said. It was something I never expected him to do so soon into his training.” Krad continued on.
“What was it again?” Rose asked.
“It’s a phrase which Avo used to say when his emotions reached a fever point. A phrase which would infuse him with nearly unlimited power so he could fell any opponent . A state of mind which was hard to achieve, even for Avo” Jin explained.
“I see… So he’s way ahead of where he should be” Rose said.
“That’s right. Which is what concerns me. If Joey is already able to enter such a state of mind… I don’t want to know how strong he would be able to get. You know what power does to people. He isn’t a pure breed Angel like us, he’s part Human. You know what power does to Humans” Krad said. He was right. For all time, Humans who gained too much power went mad and only wanted more and more, leading to destructive endings.
“We need to make sure that he is reminded of his duties as Elemental Lord of Light. That the power he wields is not something to be meddled with.” Krad said.
“What do you think, Tomoko? You’ve been quiet girl” Marcus said.
“I don’t know what to think… He’s still so young” Tomoko said as she looked away.
“Tomoko’s right. Joey is still really young, he’s… Well, just a young man! Rather than forcing his duty on him, let’s try making him feel comfortable with his surroundings and powers. So he won’t feel obliged to do the things we expect of him. We need him to feel like it’s what he wants, not what he needs to do for others.” Rose spoke.
“Wise words…” Krad said. “We’ll continue training like usual. I’ll start thinking of some new things to do what Rose said. Let’s all head to bed now.” Krad said as he smiled.
The next day, Joey woke up a little late. It seemed like Jin didn’t mind, looking back at what happened the night before.
“Right, I want you to cut down 200 dummies” Jin said calmly.
“200?! But I couldn’t even do one yesterday!” Joey called out.
“Just do it, I know you can” Jin said. Joey sighed and then unsheathed his sword. He held it in one hand, since it was so light. He concentrated on the weapon and suddenly made the same slash as he did the day before. But only it looked more controlled, a single slash, in a straight line. It went through the dummy like a knife in butter.
“I did it! But how?” Joey asked Jin.
“It’s as I expected. The battle from yesterday did you good. Experience with your blade and in battle left you with more control over your blade. It’s like some memory from being Avo came back to you. And you handle your sword better as a result” Jin said as he smiled.
“That’s great news! I’m better just because of one battle! That’s good. Things will go easier now, right?” Joey asked.
“Right. But for now, you still need to cut down 199 dummies.” Jin replied. Joey sighed but then smiled. He was happy that he had a chance to do all this, that he was able to be with Jin and everyone else. For the next few weeks, Joey would be training under Jin’s hawk-like eyes.
“I wonder what she does all day… She goes to training and when she comes back, she’s all cheery and even worse, without a scratch on her” Joey said to himself. “I mean, Krad said that she used to be the second strongest Angel.. but I don’t see any progress on her” He said as he sat up straight. Joey got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom for a shower, making sure that he locked the door this time.
In the meanwhile, Nagisa was already in her training. She was in some kind of laboratory. The entire room was filled with funny-looking ingredients and vials filled with strange-coloured liquids. Rose seemed to be in the room as well.
“So, what are we making today, Rose?” Nagisa asked. “Anything fun this time?” She asked as she giggled.
“You don’t think making Potions which heal you are fun? It’s what’s keeping Joey alive I hear~” Rose chimed. “Anyway, today we’re making a Love Potion!”.
“A Love Potion? You think I need something like that?” Nagisa asked as she struck some kind of silly pose.
“I don’t think you need it” Rose said as she giggled. “The other effect of this Love Potion is that the one who drinks it, has to do everything you say!” She continued.
“Right! So, what’re the ingredients?” Nagisa asked.
“I need a Chimera’s tail tip from the shelve there. And while you’re at it, we need some rose water from there too. We have the rest here” Rose said as she looked through her book. Nagisa did as asked and brought the ingredients to Rose. The two of them seemed to be really working on it. Grinding up strange leaves and adding some questionable things to the potions. But in the end, when the potion was brewing, it started to become a pink colour.
”How come I knew it was going to be pink?” She asked herself as she sweat dropped.
“Women’s intuition huh? Anyway, you take this Potion, have some fun with it~” Rose said as she winked.
“W-well, even though I don’t need it! I’ll take it anyway! Thank you~” Nagisa replied. Rose dismissed Nagisa from her training so she could go take a little break.
In the meanwhile, Joey prepared himself to get lessons from Jin. From what he understood, Jin was a master in using all kinds of weapons. Joey quickly changed into the uniform which Marcus gave him. Like he said before. The armor had become like any other clothing. The weight didn’t slow him down anymore. Joey made his way down towards the training room, where Jin was already waiting for Joey. All kinds of weapons were now displayed in the room. From small swords to massive axes. It was all there.
“Ah, you’re here” Jin said as he smiled. “I’m looking forward to training you” He continued.
“I’m looking forward to your lessons as well!” Joey said as he gave a bow. Joey never really took a good look at Jin, but now that he was here, he could see that Jin was also pretty muscular, not as muscular as Marcus though. Jin wasn’t wearing any kind of armour. Just some kind of kimono. Or a variation to that. It at least didn’t look like it would take a hit.
“At any rate! All these weapons look great! I’m sure to be liking this room pretty much! All these weapons.. it makes me feel powerful by just standing here!” Joey said with a wide smile
“You’ll be disliking it soon” Jin replied.
“W-why? Wouldn’t anyone like training with all these weapons?” Joey asked.
“Anyone would dislike being hit by all of them” Jin replied with a straight face.
“Oh shit..” Joey replied. Jin chuckled at his reaction . “Before we start though, what the Hell is Nagisa doing all day? She isn’t tired when she comes back from training. Is she having her training at a spa or something?”.
“No, she visits it every day though.” Jin replied.
“We have a spa?” Joey asked.
“We do, but for now, let’s get to training!” Jin ordered. “Most Angels pick a weapon and stick to it for the rest of their lives. For you and me however, this is not the case. As the Elemental Lord of Light, we want you to be able to fight with every kind of weapon known to mankind. So even if your favourite weapon is missing, you won’t be limited to just using your Magic and your fists.” Jin instructed.
“What’s wrong with Magic? I thought that was the most powerful thing there is in Ereana” Joey asked.
“very true. But Magic is a last resort for someone like you. Weapons and Magic are powerful but you will be using your weapons the most. You wouldn’t want to accidentally blow someone up. Working with something as delicate as a rapier will teach you restraint, control. Magic control is something which comes over the years while I can teach you the restraint of a rapier in weeks” Jin explained. While Jin kept on going with his explanation and ranting about how weapons are more important to master before Magic, Joey took his time to look around the room. A lot of weapons seemed to be ‘normal’. In a way. Others however, they looked special. Some were even glowing in a strange colour.
“Are you paying attention?!” Jin yelled.
“Y-yes sir!” Joey said as he stood on attention.
“As I said, you will be learning to work with axes, swords, spears, daggers and shields first. Those are the most standard ones. You’ll learn more advanced weapons later.” Jin continued.
“So, which am I going to use first?” Joey asked with a smile.
“Well, I suppose you can pick the first one. Go pick one from over on the shelf over there” Jin said as he nodded. Joey’s mind was already made up. He made his way over towards a sword which was looking very shiny.
“Excellent choice! The sword is like an extra part of the body in the hands of a Master” Jin said. “This sword.. It’ll be the weapon which you will handle for the next two weeks. The weapon you will be cut up with, the first weapon style which you will master!” Jin said as he nodded. The weight of the sword remembered Joey of the sword which he used in the cafeteria against those Demons back on Earth. It was a lot lighter, but still, it felt good in his hands.
“Alright, Joey. I want you to slice through that dummy over there” Jin said as he pointed over to a steel dummy.
“Right! Here I go!” Joey called out. He made a step towards the dummy and made a horizontal slash with his sword, putting in a lot of force behind the strike. But all that happened, was that Joey’s sword got stuck in the dummy. Joey sweat dropped and pulled his sword out. “I don’t understand.. I’m stronger than I used to, why didn’t it work? It the weapon sharp?” he asked Jin.
“The weapon is razor sharp. But brute force will definitely not work while handling a sword. An axe works better for that. If you handle a sword like an axe, it will break. And you don’t want your weapon to break in a battle, right?” Jin asked.
“No, that’d be a serious problem..” Joey said as he nodded.
“let me show you how it’s done” Jin said as he took the sword from Joey. Jin got into a position and made a quick and graceful slash, which at the same time looked powerful. And that was all it took to slash the steel dummy in half. Joey stood in awe to see how Jin would be able to do such a thing in a single slash of the sword. There was still so much to learn, like Jin said. Handling a weapon requires delicacy, restraint and most importantly, skill.
“I want you to take this sword and carry it around for the next two weeks, even outside of training. Use it for as many things as you can. “ Jin said. Joey nodded and was then dismissed from training. He needed to get familiar with his weapon now.
“So, Jin said there was a spa.. I wonder where it is. I walked around the castle twice now” he said. He got curious to where it might be. It might not be a bad idea to go to a spa and just relax and mingle with the other male Angels in here. He walked around for a good hour until he found two doors right next to each other which he had never seen before. “Could these be it..?” He asked. He looked at the left door and then at the right. “Left” he said as he walked over towards the left door. He turned the handle and opened the door, finding dozens of half-naked women being in a large bath, or getting massaged. Everything went silent and Joey just stared inside, his head becoming red.
“Shit…” he said to himself as suddenly the entire room full of women started screeching and throwing things at him. Joey quickly slammed the door shut, covering his eyes. “Why does this keep happening to me?!” He called out. “Maybe I should just poke my eyes out with this sword” he said as he sighed. “At this rate, my people will think I’m some kind of pervert or something”.
Joey made his way over to his room again, where he quickly fell asleep, completely forgetting about going to the spa or Nagisa. A few hours passed as he suddenly opened his eyes. He looked around the room. It seemed to be in the middle of the night. Nagisa was still asleep as well. Something in Joey’s mind told him that he had to go outside. Something was going on. He threw the sheets off his body and walked outside of his room, heading for the gates of the castle. Joey was still in his armour, seeing how he didn’t have a chance to change his outfit. He walked through the marketplace, which usually was filled with Angels in the daytime but now, nothing. He kept on walking and walking until he saw three figures in the distance. Joey squinted his eyes to see Krad, Marcus and Jin standing there. He made his way over there.
“What’s going on?” Joey asked. Krad and Marcus looked up, with a bit of a shocked expression. They didn’t expect to run into Joey here.
“Y-you should be asleep. Maybe it’s better if you go back to the castle, sir” Krad said.
“I don’t know.. I feel like I need to be here. The atmosphere feels dark.. There’s something out there, am I right?” Joey asked Krad.
“Demons are coming” Jin said out of the blue.
“Jin!” Marcus and Krad called out. Obviously, they didn’t want Joey to hear about this.
“Joey is Avo. And he is the Elemental Lord of Light. I agreed to keeping the topic silent but I won’t lie in his face.” Jin said. “Demons are attacking the Light Kingdom. We sensed a large power gathering here. We’ve been defending the Kingdom at night. Nothing serious happened so far but this force we feel is larger than any attack.” Jin said.
“So while I was training, you kept the Kingdom safe? I’m lucky to have people like you guys around me.. Is there anything I can do?” Joey asked. Krad looked a bit hesitant about the situation and looked over to Jin, who nodded.
“You have your sword with you, I see. You can help us fight. But don’t get reckless” Krad said in a serious tone. Joey nodded but couldn’t help but get excited by the thought of him going into battle with a Demon! He could show how much he had learned. But it was serious now! A screw-up and he would be a goner. Jin drew his own sword and stood in battle position.
“It’s coming!” He called out. At that moment, a loud roaring sound, as if it was thunder, came from below them. The earth shook with it. At that moment, the ground burst open, flamed coming from them as suddenly a large Dragon-like monster came out of it. But something seemed wrong, it was like a zombie. The flesh and the skin was rotten, a brown colour. And some parts were completely skeletal. It still looked very intimidating though.
“I am Bahzaal! Greater Demon of the Dark Kingdom! I am here to take the life of the boy! The Elemental Lord demands it!” the Dragon called out towards the party.
“I think he means me.” Joey said as he drew his own sword, looking up at Bahzaal.
“This might be more than we bargained for. I didn’t expect them to send a Greater Demon for an undeveloped Angel, right Krad?” Marcus asked.
“Plaguedmind wants him dead. No, he wants him. He can’t afford to have a fully powered Elemental Lord of Light in this time. We better take this one down as soon as we can!” Krad called out. “Let’s go!”. Charging towards the Demon who called himself Bahzaal, the party of four did the best they could. Marcus made a big leap on Bahzaal’s back, trying to rip it’s rotten wings off, while Jin was engaging in combat with his head and claws, deflecting the blows coming from Bahzaal. Krad was using his Magic to aid Jin and Marcus in battle, shielding them from any blows they could not deflect themselves. Joey stood in awe of his Master’s great power, fighting this Demon. But he didn’t let that get over him right now. He needed to help them! He stood read and charged for one of Bahzaal’s legs, making a cut in it. Bahzaal let out a roar, louder than anything which Joey ever heard.
“You pathetic creatures! Stay off me!” Bahzaal called out. He took a swipe towards Joey. He couldn’t react soon enough and got smashed into a wall. Jin, Marcus and Krad had to avert their attention to look at Joey being smashed away, which was a moment which Bahzaal used. He made one swift movement to trap Jin in one of his paws and Krad in the other. Marcus was being thrown off Bahzaal’s back and into the air. Bahzaal opened his mouth wide and chomped for Marcus, who managed to press his feet on his lower jaw and his hands in between the large teeth oh Bahzaal, keeping them open so he wouldn’t get to be Dragon lunch! All of them seemed to be in a pinch.
“Hey kid! No time to sleep! Fight damnit!” Marcus called out.
“You can do it! Get up!” Krad called out as well.
“Believe! Your sword will help!” Jin called out as last. Joey opened his eyes and got up, having heard the words from his Masters. Suddenly, it was like a strange power came over Joey. New words came into his own mind, as if someone was talking to him.
“I’ll take over.. lend me your body..” it spoke. It felt familiar and warm at the same time. He let his body weaken down before he could suddenly feel his muscles tense up, all on their own. He was watching himself become all alert. It was like watching a movie, but still doing it on your own. Joey didn’t notice his own eyes starting to glow a bright white colour. He did hear how he started talking, but in a different voice. Lower, wiser, older.
“Fear the Wrath of the Gods” he called out. He gripped his sword and suddenly made a dash towards Bahzaal, making a leap which was even higher than the one Marcus made before. He prepared his sword to strike down on Bahzaal’s head. Bahzaal could not do much, he was busy pinning the other three down. Joey’s sword made contact with his skull, piercing right through it. Joey started muttering some words in the strange voice from before. Marcus could feel how the jaws were losing power. He could get out now. He quickly jumped out of the jaw as Bahzaal started to lose balance, which freed Jin and Krad. The three of them watched as Joey was now standing on Bahzaal’s head, his sword being pierced into his skull, muttering words.
“Is he..?” Marcus asked.
“I think he is” Krad replied. After a few more words, Joey’s sword began to glow, causing Magical effects to be send straight into Bahzaal’s skull and then into its body, him starting to become burned from the inside, getting infused with Light Magic. In a matter of seconds, Bahzaal’s body seemed to explode into a dozen bloody pieces. Joey landed on his feet, sheeting his weapon. His eyes became a normal colour again, the voice in his head speaking one last time.
“Your strength is improving. All of this was possible with your own abilities. I merely gave you the confidence and knowledge to use them” it spoke in Joey’s head. Joey smiled warmly and nodded to himself, not vocally replying to what the voice said. Marcus, Jin and Krad walked up to Joey, smiling widely but at the same time wondering what happened there.
“Kid, I don’t know how you did it, but you did it!” Marcus said as he slammed his hand on Joey’s shoulder.
“Curious indeed. To think that you couldn’t even cut down a piece of iron this morning. And now you defeated a Greater Demon” Jin complimented.
“Not only that but it looks like you used Magic too. Looks like someone has been studying up on Magic too” Krad said with a smiled. Joey remained quiet for a second. It looked like they didn’t hear the voice. So maybe they didn’t know he heard it. But for now, it was time to celebrate, the Light Kingdom was safe once more.
“Yeah.. Maybe we should head back, I’m tired and kinda’ hungry” Joey said with a smile.
“Right, let’s go!” Marcus said. After a good meal in the castle, Joey went to bed. But the others stayed awake. Rose and Tomoko had joined Krad, Jin and Marcus.
“So, what did you want to tell us, Krad?” Rose asked.
“Outside, just now. I think I heard it right, but Joey spoke the words” Krad said.
“You mean..?” Tomoko asked.
“Yes. ‘fear the wrath of the Gods’ is what he said. It was something I never expected him to do so soon into his training.” Krad continued on.
“What was it again?” Rose asked.
“It’s a phrase which Avo used to say when his emotions reached a fever point. A phrase which would infuse him with nearly unlimited power so he could fell any opponent . A state of mind which was hard to achieve, even for Avo” Jin explained.
“I see… So he’s way ahead of where he should be” Rose said.
“That’s right. Which is what concerns me. If Joey is already able to enter such a state of mind… I don’t want to know how strong he would be able to get. You know what power does to people. He isn’t a pure breed Angel like us, he’s part Human. You know what power does to Humans” Krad said. He was right. For all time, Humans who gained too much power went mad and only wanted more and more, leading to destructive endings.
“We need to make sure that he is reminded of his duties as Elemental Lord of Light. That the power he wields is not something to be meddled with.” Krad said.
“What do you think, Tomoko? You’ve been quiet girl” Marcus said.
“I don’t know what to think… He’s still so young” Tomoko said as she looked away.
“Tomoko’s right. Joey is still really young, he’s… Well, just a young man! Rather than forcing his duty on him, let’s try making him feel comfortable with his surroundings and powers. So he won’t feel obliged to do the things we expect of him. We need him to feel like it’s what he wants, not what he needs to do for others.” Rose spoke.
“Wise words…” Krad said. “We’ll continue training like usual. I’ll start thinking of some new things to do what Rose said. Let’s all head to bed now.” Krad said as he smiled.
The next day, Joey woke up a little late. It seemed like Jin didn’t mind, looking back at what happened the night before.
“Right, I want you to cut down 200 dummies” Jin said calmly.
“200?! But I couldn’t even do one yesterday!” Joey called out.
“Just do it, I know you can” Jin said. Joey sighed and then unsheathed his sword. He held it in one hand, since it was so light. He concentrated on the weapon and suddenly made the same slash as he did the day before. But only it looked more controlled, a single slash, in a straight line. It went through the dummy like a knife in butter.
“I did it! But how?” Joey asked Jin.
“It’s as I expected. The battle from yesterday did you good. Experience with your blade and in battle left you with more control over your blade. It’s like some memory from being Avo came back to you. And you handle your sword better as a result” Jin said as he smiled.
“That’s great news! I’m better just because of one battle! That’s good. Things will go easier now, right?” Joey asked.
“Right. But for now, you still need to cut down 199 dummies.” Jin replied. Joey sighed but then smiled. He was happy that he had a chance to do all this, that he was able to be with Jin and everyone else. For the next few weeks, Joey would be training under Jin’s hawk-like eyes.