Chapter Three
Their feet traveled the endless hills as Thebes led them in the direction in which the map was written out.
" How much longer?" Keena grunted as Oblivion helped her up the steep hills of the Shurkana mountain range.
" Just over that next hill." Thebes told her.
" Over the next one, over the next one! That's what you said about this one." Malachi hollered as they reached the hilltop.
" I didn't make this map. I don't even know where we are. I'm just following the directions on this map." Thebes reported.
Malachi flopped down on the ground; " I refuse to walk any further. I'm tired." The young boy exclaimed.
" Suit yourself." Oblivion told him, " but don't be surprise if you're caught by bandits."
Oblivion smiled as he and the others walked down the hill leaving Malachi alone on the hilltop.
" B-bandits...Are you serious."
" Dead serious. Well it was nice meeting you." Oblivion told him.
" Wait! Wait for me. I'm coming." Malachi yelled, as he jumped to his feet and chased after them.
It had been another hour of climbing endless hills, before the city came into view.
" There's the town." Keena cheered, as she was the first one to make it to the top of the hill.
The others quickly joined her.
Silence fell upon the group.
" Is that what I think it is." Thebes asked in shock.
" I've been gone for a while, but that sure looks like Shurkana to me." Oblivion answered.
Thebes let out a blood-curling scream, that could have woke the dead.
" I will kill Tristan when I see him. Does he realize what he has done?" Thebes hollered in rage.
" What's wrong with this place?" Keena asked looking at the group of men.
" What's wrong? You what to know what's wrong? Well this just so happens to be the Shurkana Empire. Our enemy. The one who has released the Eden Dragon God." Thebes explained.
" Oh...Well maybe I can go there and look around. None knows me there. When I am done I'll come back." Keena suggested.
" You can not go alone it is too dangerous." Oblivion told her.
" He's right. We must go with you." Thebes replied, pulling his hood on from the cloak he wore.
" Do you know any spells?" Oblivion asked each boy.
" Well...no we don't but we know how to fight." Thebes assured him.
" We must not fight. Magical spells will be best. I think we might need a little more help."
" And how do you suggest we do that, without traveling back to Kusauki?" Thebes asked the tall Lavender headman.
" Watch, and you will learn why my name is Oblivion." He stated. His red eyes closed as he began to chant in a strange language. The same one that the Lady of the Lake spoke. Everyone stared at Oblivion in awe as he began to glow and float in the air.
" What is happening to him?" Malachi asked, huddling close to Keena.
" I don't know!" Keena cried out. A loud boom made them all scream and close their eyes, turning away as Oblivion's screams filled the air. Suddenly everything was quiet. Keena cautiously opened her eyes and looked over at her friend. Oblivion laid on the ground, face down.
" Oblivion?" Keena whispered as she stood up. Oblivion's body was raised from the ground by an unseen force and floated in mid-air for only a short while before he jerked and a body emerged from his own.
" What the..." Thebes said as he stood up along side of Malachi.
" Guardians of Darkness...Grant me your powers." Oblivion hollered and the two men fell to the ground.
" What is going on?" Malachi asked Thebes, who stared in shock.
Finally the two men picked themselves up off the ground.
" Oblivion, are you okay?" Keena asked as she slowly walked toward him.
" Yes...I am fine. This is my dark side..."
" My name is Eternity." The black headman spoke, as his violet eyes glowed with power.
" Let us be off. We have a lot of work to do." Oblivion told them. The group of now five started into the city.
" So...How do we know a warrior when we see one?" Keena asked, pulling back her radiant blonde hair.
" We all have the symbol of the Saviors on us. A colorful marking in the shape of a circle." Oblivion told her. " Like yours is clearly visible on your chest, and mine is on my hip."
" Oh...Okay." Keena replied and they continued onward.
****
The two men finally arrived in the small town of Kiku, a forest filled with magical and powerful elves and such. Loki was the Oracle of Time. He would be able to tell them if anyone has traveled to or from Esco Glen. They rode the Uniasus into the town and tied them up at the front of Loki's tree house.
Tristan knocks on the door to here a calm sensual voice call out to them.
" Who is it?"
" It is I, Emperor Ephraim. I need to speak with you. It is very important."
The door quickly opened to reveal the blue head elf with black lips and pink eyes with dark rings of maroon.
" Come in. Come in. what can I help you with?" He asked as he closed the door behind the two men as they entered the room.
" We need you to look to see if there is a time lap, and see if you can locate its whereabouts." Ephraim told him.
" A time lap, huh. Well I will see what I can do. Please take a seat, and I will get started right away." Loki told them as he went to his scrolls and magical balls. The two sat down and watched as Loki tried to find the lap. For a few moments every- thing was silent until Loki began talking.
" Yes, you are quite right. There is a time lap. The Eye of the Dragon has been broke and yet none collected the pieces as of yet."
" Did anyone else use the portal, besides a young girl and a knight?" Ephraim asked.
" Yes...an elf used the portal as well." Loki stated, "An elf who already lives in this time too."
" You mean there are two of them now?"
" Yes, a very deadly case for the world of Esco Glen. With two of them being around, they could totally destroy the future."
" Can you locate where the portal is in this world so we can recover the Eye of the Dragon?" Tristan asked.
" I shall try." Loki stated. He continued to shift his mind through information, " Yes. The portal is at the Kingdom of the Gods."
" Kingdom of the Gods. We can go there after we visit the Temple of Souls." Tristan reported. Ephraim nodded.
" Can you tell us where this elf went?" Ephraim asked.
Loki nodded and closed his eyes to further concentrate.
" He traveled to the Valley of the Lost Souls. But he is no longer there. He is in the Shurkana Empire."
" Are you sure?" Ephraim asked.
" Yes. He was looking for a paper of some sort. I am not sure what it was."
" He was after the scroll of the Dead." Tristan exclaimed.
" Thank you Loki. We must be off now. We have important things to attend to."
" Yes. So do my students and I. We must locate this elf and send him back into the future." Loki announced.
****
" So this is Shurkana, huh." Malachi asked, looking around the busy dirty streets.
"No! Please. I don't have the money to pay yet. I will pay you after I make the money." The cries of an elderly man made the five turn around.
" Emperor Sankar wants your thirty gold pieces now! Not later." Yelled the blonde head knight on the back of a royalty dressed, black Uniasus, with flaming red eyes and hair.
" I will pay him when I get the money."
" Eternity, use a Ofuda Scroll on him." Keena whispered. Eternity nodded and pulled out the card.
" No. Not here. We do not need to start a fight without even looking for the other warriors." Thebes hissed, keeping his head covered.
" He is right. We must wait." Oblivion told his dark side. Eternity cautiously put the scroll back in his pouch. Keena walked over to the elderly man.
" Excuse me, but did you grow all this yourself?" She asked about his fruits and vegetables.
" Yes. Can I interest you in some?"
" Can I get thirty gold pieces worth?" She asked and flashed an evil glance at the knight, then smiled at the old man.
" Thirty gold pieces worth! Yes, right away." As he gathered the things, Keena looked at the knight.
" May I ask who you are?"
" Why?" Keena asked.
" So I can tell Sankar who saved this old fools life."
" Well I don't think that is important." Keena told him.
" Tell me your name, now!" He growled.
" It is Oasha." Keena lied, " And you?"
" I am the lead Royal Knight, Jovan Sahir...And those men? Are they your body guards?"
" No. They are my cousins, and he is my brother." She said as she pointed to Malachi.
" And where did you travel from?"
" From far away. The Kingdom of Enchantment. Perhaps you have heard of it." Oblivion spoke sternly.
" Of course, I have heard of it. But that place has been decaying for three years. No one has lived there since then. Now...Tell me another lie." Jovan said, with an evil look spread across his face.
" Here you go, young lady. Thirty gold pieces worth." The old man said as he handed her the bag of food.
" Thank you." She said, handing him the gold pieces.
" I'll take those." Jovan said and snatched the gold, " I will be sure to tell Emperor Sankar about your visit."
He turned the Uniasus around and rode in the direction of the palace.
" What an asshole." Malachi stated.
" You're telling me." The old man stated. Keena looked at his tear filled eyes and dug into her small pouch.
" Here you take this. You need it more than I do." She said placing gold pieces into his hand.
" No. I can not accept this." He told her.
" Please take it."
The old man smiled gratefully.
" Thank you..." He waited for her name.
" Keena." She told him.
" Thank you Keena."
" While we are here do you know of anyone with a colorful circular symbol on them?"
" A colorful symbol?" He thought, his eyes then lit up, " As a matter of fact I do. My granddaughter does. I will go inside and get her for you." He then disappeared into the small home.
" Where did you get that gold?" Oblivion hissed under his breath.
" I took it off the stand in the room I slept in at the palace."
" You stole it!" Malachi asked with a hand on his chest.
" Oh shut-up. It is not like you have never did anything wrong." Keena said, " And plus I'm only borrowing it. It's not like I'm spending it on just myself. I am buying everyone food."
Suddenly the old man reappeared with a young girl with long silver hair and big olive colored eyes. She looked a little younger than Keena, who was sixteen years old.
" This is my granddaughter Kusa."
****
Jovan walked into the Emperor's chambers and slightly bowed to the presence of Emperor Sankar.
" Emperor Sankar."
" Yes? What is it, Jovan?" Sankar asked, as he stood up letting his long silver locks of hair fall to his knees. His flowing red cape dragged the ground. His deep blue eyes stared at the knight.
" I wanted to report a strange group that arrived into town today."
Sankar walked to the window, focusing on the rolling hills outside town.
" Yes, go on."
" There were two priest, two knights and a young girl."
" Did you get her name?"
" She introduced herself as Oasha."
" She is lying. Bring her to me. I must speak with her."
" And her friends?" Jovan asked.
" Try and bring them. But all I want is the girl."
" Yes your highness."