chapter twelve: Trial's End(2)

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Chapter twelve: Trial End.

We had moved in the dimly lit tunnel for about an hour and a half when we saw the end. Stopping just at the exit, we went through all that we needed to do.

"Is everyone ready?" I asked.

"Yes."

"I still don't like this, but I'm ready."

"Well, okay. Let the plan begin."

Kevin left the tunnel first, moving to the right, followed by Mandy, who moved to the left, and then me, who went straight ahead.

Back at the armory, an elf was busy giving orders to the four elves who were using a battering ram to hit the doors of the armory. The rest of the team was looking for an entrance other than the front door, but they all came back with no luck. There were about fourteen elves, with about ten of them wearing armor while the remaining four wore robes. The remaining four were two male elves holding staffs and two female elves holding little sticks.

After a few minutes of banging, the doors finally gave in and opened. However, as the doors opened, a rain of arrows flew out of the building, hitting the elves with the battering rams, piercing their eyes and throats, killing those four.

The rest of the arrows that missed the four at the front went to meet the rest behind them. The leader of the elves looked at the arrow flying towards him with indifference. The arrow fell to the ground, cut cleanly in half but the Elf's sword remained in its sheath.

"Seems like they were prepared," one of the elves wearing robes came over and said. "Yes, it seems so," the leader said, then asked,

"Do you know where they are?"

"Let's see," the elf said as he hit his staff on the floor.

"I can't find them. Hmmm, wait, they are in the forest."

"Okay, everyone, we are going to the forest. Move now," the leader said to the remaining team members that were alive. The four people wearing robes came together, and one of the women asked the man that had found Nicholas and co., "What happened?"

"It's just I couldn't feel their presence for a second, and then I felt it. It was like something was blocking my detection. It was really strange," the man replied with a thoughtful expression. "Well, it doesn't matter now, does it? We've found them; we just need to go and catch them," the other man said.

I was moving through the forest with the baby strapped to my back while communicating with the others.

"It seems like they have found me; I can hear movement behind me," Mandy said. I could hear the fear in her voice. "Mandy, you need to remain calm and run, make it look like you're really escaping," I replied.

"I can also hear movement behind me. See you at the meeting point," Kevin joined in the conversation. "Well then, you all should focus on the task. We can't fumble, okay? Your lives are on the line."

" What?!" Mandy shouted.

" Never mind that, just do what you have to do." I continued to go deeper into the forest. Moving in the forest gave me time to think of what Kevin and I had talked about the previous night.

Kevin had told me that he was among the people that had first disappeared on Earth and those people were transported here. When they got here, they discovered that they had powers of different kinds, and this power was divided into two: one were the people who gained the ability to control the element, and the other were those who had normal abilities like super strength, super speed, and the likes. He said that he fell under the former and that his ability was the wind element. He also said something about beast armaments; he told me that they were weapons, armor, and sometimes tools that just needed to be thought about, and they would appear, and I could gain one by killing beasts or people. He said that whenever a beast is killed, I will receive a notification just like the one I heard when I entered this trial. When I asked him to show me his ability, he said that he couldn't, that this trial didn't allow it, and that he didn't even hear the notification when he killed those elves. My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Mandy's frantic voice that sounded in my head. "Nicholas... help me."

"Huh?"

"Mandy, are you okay? What happened?" "They caught me, and they..."

"Mandy? Mandy? Mandy!" For some reason, I felt worried. I continued to call her name until I felt the mind link we had terminate. I paused, my body shook, I felt cold, water fell from my eyes, something that hadn't happened in years. So many emotions swirled in my heart, and then anger settled in. I could feel my chest burning. I blamed myself for this, the baby at my back that was sleeping woke up and began to cry, even the little wolf began to whine while moving away from me. I took the baby from my back into my arms and began rocking it back and forth to make him stop crying.

While I was doing this, hot tears were rolling from my eyes, but I wiped them. I couldn't let the anger stop me or disrupt the plan; I had to make those elves pay.

Meanwhile, in a different part of the forest, a group of four elves was looking at a body lying on the ground. The figure had pink hair, a pale face, and her eyes were closed.

One of the elves was holding a blue crystal ball. "The girl has been located and taken care of, but she isn't with the child," he said into the ball, and from the ball, another voice said, "Okay, we have located the tall man. Did the girl give you any useful info?"

"Yes, she said that the child was with one of the other men, the short one, and she gave us the location of that person."

"Are you sure that info is accurate?"

"Yes, I'm sure. We used the lie detector stone Mage Hugh gave us." "Okay then, you and your team should go after him. Remember, we need the baby alive."

"Of course," the elf said and put the ball in a bag. He turned and said to the other members, "Alright, let's move out."

"Kevin, are you there?" "Yes, I am, but I'm busy." I knew what he was busy with. "Okay, good. I want you to lead them to my location."

"Why?"

"I have a plan." I stopped and stayed in one place under an oak tree. I bottled up the anger in me so that I could think clearly. "Now, how do I open the gateway?" I took the baby out of the sheets covering it and began patting it all over; the child was just giggling.

I looked at the baby's smiling face, a smile that could melt hearts, but I wasn't feeling anything. The death of Mandy was still weighing down on me. I moved my hand and touched the baby's forehead, and... *Whuuum.*

The air around us distorted as a strange energy rushed from the baby'shead into my hand, and then it spread throughout my whole body.

*****

Kevin was running in a forest, closely followed by a group of six elves. He ducked his head as a ball of white energy flew over him. "Fuck, this would have been easier if I had my spirit ability," he cursed while jumping over a tree root. Kevin continued to run when he almost fell as a massive shockwave came from a place not too far from him. 'Is this a trap too?' Kevin hesitated but didn't stop running; it was better for him to go forward. Maybe he could somehow dodge the trap. He reached the portion of the forest where the shockwave originated, and the first thing that entered his eyes was the back of a not-so-tall person with short, curly black hair. 'Nicholas?'

****

The energy continued to enter my body; it felt like I would burst from it. After a few seconds, the energy rush stopped, and the baby in my arms fell asleep.

At the same time, I heard footsteps from behind me, at my left side to be precise, and turned to meet the person. It was Kevin, and behind him was a group of six people: two men holding weapons, and four wearing robes, two men, and two women.

On seeing us, this group immediately surrounded us. From the right direction, another group of four came and did the same. When I saw the direction they came from, I suddenly felt angry again; this was the direction Mandy was supposed to come from.

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