Derek came out of Bastet's room and went to the training room. On getting there, he discovered that Aesir and Tiny had already gone back to training but Madeline did not. She sat at one edge of the room and just watched.
This particular room was different from the one Derek and Walter used. It was oval in shape, with stairs leading to the centre. Much like how a stadium looked like. except it was not that huge.
Derek came and sat beside her.
"So you didn't die?" she teased.
"Naa! I didn't die." he laughed while scratching the back of his head. He looked at the two people cutting and slashing at the ant creatures and back at Madeline.
"You done with training?"
"Naa!" She replied and bowed her head on her legs. After some time, she started crying. Derek was at a loss for what to do. He did not remember hurting her or saying an
Derek sighed. He was at a loss for what to do. He paced the room back and forth but could not think of anything. Then a question popped into his head. "How can a Writer annul the contract?""It is easy really. According to my research, you just need to leave a soul rune imprint on the symbol of the contract." On hearing this, Derek's eyes brightened. If It was just leaving a soul imprint then that was easy. All he needed to do was find a way to get in contact with Kareem. All the while he had been studying on runes. He had been interested in soul imprints when Walter told him about his father's soul imprint on the family plane and made a few research here and there to be sure he was still alive.Soul imprints were very easy to give. It was like leaving a bloodstain behind. It really did not affect the Writer much and was far easier than resonating with runes. The only downside was that he needed to physically leave the imprint
Derek dragged his body back to his room and fell on his bed. He woke up in the morning feeling shittier than he had ever felt in his entire life. He could barely sleep. The pain in his chest in collaboration with what happened last night kept him awake. Every time he closed his eyes, he could see those two red glaring orbs mocking him.By some miracle, he had made it to morning. He had thought of asking for some medicine, but Lydia was mad at him and asking Bastet would just reveal what happened, and that would not be good for either him or Lydia.He dragged his weak body to the training room. But meditation training did not help to settle his mind. And for some reason, the pain in his chest kept acting up whenever he tried resonating with runes.Since Walter was not around, he was essentially his own teacher. Meaning that training was over whenever he willed. Since his training was not working, he went to
As Derek fell straight into the waters below, the only thing on his mind was his newfound hatred for firstly, Bastet and secondly gravity. The moment his body came in contact with the water, he passed out."Where am I?" This place felt both familiar and yet unfamiliar. Yes, he remembered now. He had been here before. This place; was empty, with no land yet his feet felt solid beneath them. There were tiny dots like stars. "Was he dead?" He thought.And then the scene changed. He heard laughter behind him and turned around. It was some kids around the ages of 13 and 14. They were laughing at a boy around their age. Even though he appeared tall, he was skinny and looking sickly.Derek suddenly remembered this scene. No, this day. It was around two years ago, Aesir was sick with chickenpox then. He wanted to cheer his friend up and decided to buy him the latest issue of his favourite comic. He met the bullies on the bridge
Bastet led lazily on a couch. It had been nearly a week now since she dropped Derek in the centre of the Red sea. If not for the ever reducing sea level and the strong aura that came out of it, she would have thought he was dead. Now, that would be a real disaster.After waiting tirelessly the first day, she erected a small cosy hut for herself and a big dome to cup the aura of the origin rune.Inside the simple looking and unattractive mud house was a sight that gave meaning to the phrase, "Don't judge a book by its cover." It was a far distance from what it looked like outside in both size and status.The interior decoration was done by Lydia with extra brackets on the word "comfort", It had silver glowing runes littered on the walls for regulation of temperature but it was evident that it was more for beauty. There was a simple but artistically looking luxurious bed in the centre and a comfortable
Derek went back to the temple alongside Bastet and Lydia. They went through the zodiac gate and popped up in the training ground. Tiny and Aesir were training with spears while Madeline was sleeping by the side with her new book covering her face.Tiny and Aesir stopped training and approached when they saw them come out the Zodiac gate. They were already worried after not seeing him for some days. Especially Aesir, he was starting to feel maybe the advice he gave Derek most have made him go do something he probably shouldn't.But when they came close enough to see them properly, both Tiny and Aesir froze in their steps. Their eyes were widened in shock. Tiny immediately turned to Bastet, "What did you do to him." She asked."Me!? I didn't do anything." Bastet smiled shyly, "Except maybe dropping him in a very large pool of water.""What!?" Tiny instinctively raised the spear in her han
According to what Lydia had said, he was supposed to just put the imprint of his soul rune on the contract. But Derek was not sure how long his imprint could even suppress the contract, and he did not know if it would only free Kareem but still make the lives of the Bahitis a living hell. That was not what he wanted. He desired for them to be totally freed, and so he located the contract and attempted to destroy it.He was a bit surprised when he saw the creature that represented the contract, but that only increased his desire to destroy it more. The last time Derek had made an attempt on Kareem, the evil spirit had appeared and Kareem had not even been the contract holder.Of course, it was expected that since he actually destroyed the contract, the evil spirit would appear again. Although Derek expected his arrival, what to do next was beyond him. Knowing a problem and solving it were entirely two different things.Th
Derek entered the Temple with giant strides, proud shoulders and an elegant smile to top it up. He gave his friends the treats from Mrs Bahiti and then he rushed to his room before anybody could even ask what the occasion was.Derek sat in a lotus position just as Walter had taught him. But it was not to resonate with runes. It was an assignment he was working on. One that would benefit not him but his friends.For other Writers, all they had in them was one soul rune that regardless of its quality and strength, was still inanimate. It was like a soldier having a knife while another soldier had a machine gun. Obviously, both weapons cannot be compared. But what Derek had as compared to the others was an AI system with access to all the facilities of a military base.Yes! what was supposed to be his natural soul rune that he was tracked before had already been fortified by Hayaa. Even if a wavelength lantern
The others: Aesir, Madeline and Lydia also watched with surprise. The shock was more on his friends that had been at the orphanage with him for years than it was on Bastet. That was because these guys knew that Derek had never lifted a finger in his entire life. Although he did not attack, his method of defence was in fact an attacking skill in its own right.Bastet suddenly had a silly idea as she looked at Derek's audience. She clapped her hands and the creatures attacking Derek stopped and shy away in fear. "Aesir! why don't you go a round with your friend.""Huh!" Everybody exclaimed."Yes, both of you pick a weapon each." After a few seconds of contemplating, they were both on the sparing platform with dummy weapons. Derek held a dummy spear while Aesir held a dummy short sword.Derek and Aesir looked at each other and both smiled. From the look they gave each other, Aesir knew tha