Ascenders: Rising To Hero

13. A Heart to Heart Convo

“We DON'T KNOW THAT!” Hana growled as she stomped her foot into the ground, a burst of aura exploding violently from her body. “We don't! I’ll go check around the town and to the boat as well.” She said, turning around and sprinting off. 

“Hey, Bring the lady inside.” Macabu roared out from the entrance of the bungalow. He waved his hand, trying to smile. “This is the love garden, if you do love someone, it would reveal it all out.  So, don't get worried over her actions, Hadjan boy!” Macabu added.

Shin muttered some inaudible words to himself as he began to think about what Hana had said. They did not know that. No, that was not third to know but then, how could they just willingly give it up like that? They had to still try, after all, right? 

Once he made it tot where Macabu was standing, the Dual Elemental giant proceeded to take Ronke out of his hands, patting him a bit on his head before moving in. Which was pretty much easy being that the size of the Macabu was way larger than what Shin was, due to his racial type as a Hadjan.  

Macabu grunted slightly as he bwed his head to walk into the room. The insides of the room is a sharp contrast front eh outside which is all airy and has a lot of greenery. The inside of this place is more like a monastery and while it is not entirely choked and jam packed, the air and the scents of incense within make it feel a little too stuffed. 

Shin squinted his eyes, from behind his eye shades which he had on. He folded his hands behind his back as he watched Maacbu so caringly lower his form even more as he moved to the place where Iyabo sat, cross legged. The staff which she often carried was placed in such a way that it was horizontal over her thighs with her hands on both sides of it. 

The walls of the rooms were made of boards, that typ0e of seemingly transparent boards which Shin used to see whenever he did watch eastern movies. Except that this one seemed to radiate light, either that or it was the only source of light in the whole room. There was a central door which was just before SHin who still remembered standing at the door from which he entered. The way it was structured, there was the door rightly mirroring the main entrance door from where he had gotten in. 

To the left side of Shin, that was where Iaybo had remained. A chest of black and some gold enamelling on it behind her. There was a black rug as well, neatly designed with some intricate line markings on it that resembled several inscribed circles. To her left hand side, was where Bayo lay, his body nearly beginning phantom-like, such that it did give Shin teh start the moment he jammed his eyes there. 

Phantom like? Shin swallowed. That was the first step that happened whenever a person was about to die. The body would begin to fade, glow in some sort of ethereal feels. And then, the body would disintegrate, transforming  back again into Agbara, the ambient energy of the universe from which everything was created.

“It would be alright.” Iyabo’s voice cut sharply into his thoughts. 

Shin looked her way only to jam her penetrative eyes peering right back at him. She moved her right hand and then touched some incense lamp which was burning some fragrance he really could not recognise. To the further left of her, there were some layers of folded materials of different fabrics. And a bowl of silver, containing a mixture of sorts. Beside those things, the rooms as otherly empty. 

Despite how chilign and calming her voice was, Shin could not bring it within himself to still believe what she said. There was Hana who had told him that there was no way that they would know if Bayo was going t o be fine. And so far so good, there was even proof to that attestation. His heart sank as he came to terms with it. Bayo was certainly not going to…

“I need you to leave this room.” Iyabo’s voice cut in once more. “You are beginning to become resigned. It would hamper whatever measure  I am going to take. And like I said from before, I would not have you ruin my reputation in this town with every bit of your own distrust.” Iyabo forced a smile at him now. “If you would not trust in me, then at least trust in the friend who has refused to die despite all the time you wasted in bringing him here.” She added. 

“Macabu see him out.” Iyabo ordered now, nodding at the stone giant who after putting down Ronke before Iyabo, now moved towards the Hadjan. 

“Come on. Lets go!” He said in his baritone voice as he used one hand to nudge the Hadjan. 

Shin did not complain or try to do otherwise because he was busy thinking. The words that Iyabo had said to him, it had just  clicked with his head. 

She had mentioned that they trusted in the friend who had refused to die despite the time delay. That was true, he reasoned, the death of spirit beings certainly did not take as long as the time it was taking for Bayo to die. In  most cases, it was only because of how powerful the person was that the death took a longer period to actualise. 

Was Bayo that powerful now that he was resisting his own death? 

Shin exhaled at this realization. That had to be it, the truth of the whole matter. After all, he could just as much remember how long it had been since Bayo had been their casualty? And even though he had sped them onwards here, there was still the little time delay thing that happened when Macabu had surfaced. 

Yet, despite that Bayo had not faded off into Agbara. There had to be hope about this. There definitely had to be hope about this, Shin gasped out, excitedly. 

And as if to confirm his thoughts, Macabu spoke out now. 

“If there is anyone who can help you out, then it is Iyabo. Also, your friend, that guy seems rather strong, you know. I can't believe he has resisted his fade off since, even though he is practically dead.”

“Yes, I know.” Shin replied, absentmindedly, thinking now about the whereabouts of Hana.

They were standing in front of the house where Iyabo was, even as the door shut out to them. Macabu sighed, after some lone minutes of standing there, stretching his hands as he moved to the fountain. 

Seeing this , Shin followed suit, watching from a little distance as Macbbu plucked one of the stray flowers and put it in his mouth to chew. His form bordering over the fountain form the sights of the Hadjan who was tailing him. 

“Seems like you have a lot on your mind, mister. I wonder what that is.” Macabu said with his grim voice as if he was not talking to anyone at all. 

If Shin had nto been attentive to him, he would have just passed it as a case where Macabu was just thinking out loud or speaking to someone else who he could not see. Which would have been suspicious to him, if that was the case. After all, so far so good, his nerves had been frayed. He was just doing all that he could to maintain his sanity in this town where they had landed. 

It was no biggie, for him. For the sake of his friends, he would keep his own thoughts and observations until they could get all the help here and then be once more able to get on their own journey again. It was that simple and he was willing to endure whatever it was to make sure that this goal of his, the collective goal that they all shared was a reality. 

Shin sucked in air through the little gap between his teeth. He raised his left hand up and used it to clamp  on the rim of the glasses. Doing that, he sucked in air again, as he lifts the glasses one little inch such that he could just take a peek at the form of Macabu with his one bae ye.s The sides of a head aches him, after all they had been wrestled with the rim of the glasses for so long a time. 

“‘That is true. But then what can I say? It is my burden to carry, is it not?” He said, picking his words now as he plucked off the glasses from his eyes. That is, after he had pulled the edges of his hoodie deep down to shield his eyes from plain sight. He reached for the end of the hoodie which was towards his waist and then pulled it back to rub at the lens of the shades now. 

“I can tell that. But you don't have to keep it all within yourself. You seem like there…”

“It seems like you don't have to tell me what to do. I don't recall you having that right to determine what and who could and could not be doen as regards the people I travel with.” Shin chided sharply as soon as he put on his glasses. 

Macabu gave a short laugh, spitting out the thoroughly masticated piece of what was once a flower stalk out of his mouth. His shoulder shuddered with mockery as he peered slowly over his shoulders, onto the Hadjan behind him. 

“Don't worry, I was once like you too. But you see, you would come to realise that in this place, your truest affections would come to light. For you, you have the desire to live up to someone's expectations. It is like that is all you are wired to do, that is what you see yourself as some sort of portector who must not fail… I used to be like you, until Iyabo taught me the secrets of this place. The secrets of what makes the love garden what it is today.” Macabu snorted and then turned around.

‘You want to know, don't you? You want to… I can smell the curiosity seeping out of your skin. He laughed.