LOOWA'S KINGDOM

Chapter 2: Dark Master Mind

I hurriedly opened my room and searched for the old book. Earlier I was anxious to go home to find out what was going on with me. I was shocked not to find the book on my study table. Where was it? I knew it was here because I had seen it this morning.

I hurried down and looked for Nanny Guring. She was the only one that I allowed to enter my room because I didn't want anyone to know about my belongings.

"Oh son, why are you in a hurry? Are you hungry already?" she asked when she saw me pacing frantically.

"Nanny, where did you take my book?" My question was direct.

"What book? Is it your old book? I threw it away. Obviously, you don't read it anymore," she said smiling.

"What? Didn't I tell you not to throw away anything that belongs to me? Where did you throw it? I need it!" I almost screamed at the old woman.

"I'm sorry. I thought..."

"Find it! I need it now!" I said, irritated, as I went up to my room.

I sat on my bed, resisting the urge to punch at something. When I needed it, the book disappeared. Wait, why was I feel irritated? Why did I care about the old book? And why did I pay attention to the guard earlier? Obviously, he was just bluffing.

After a few minutes, I went down again to eat dinner. As always, I ate alone. I only had helpers with me because my parents were abroad.

"Hijo..." Yaya Guring said.

"Let it go. I don't need that old book anymore!" I said with no emotion on my face as I continued to eat.

"But Hijo..."

"Nanny, can't you see I'm eating? Please, just leave me alone and do whatever you want. I want to finish my meal first," I said, still annoyed. I never liked it when anyone talked to me while I was eating. I never want to be disturbed and that's what I hate the most. After I ate, I went upstairs and cleaned up. I also spent some time playing the PlayStation until I felt drowsy and fell asleep.

The next day I walked to school early as usual. I first hung out on a bench not far from our classroom. Here I often waited for my two stupid friends.

While I was waiting, an unfamiliar woman stood beside me. She was so beautiful and fascinating.

"Look for it!" she said sternly. I was suddenly horrified to hear her voice. Her face was innocent but her voice had a command. That you should follow her.

"Excuse me? Find what?" Even though I was nervous, I still forced myself to ask her.

"Find what you're missing. You don't want anyone else to get it." She suddenly stood up and turned her back on me.

"Wait," I said nervously. I was suddenly electrified when I touched her arm. I let go of it suddenly because of the energy I felt enveloping my body.

She turned to me with a smile. Instead of rejoicing in her beautiful smile, I was overwhelmed with fear. She approached me and our faces were almost touching. I thought she was going to kiss me when she suddenly spoke.

"You're going to die if you're caught. They're already around. You need to find the most important thing you've been given."

My hair stood on end when I heard what she said. "You'll die if you're caught" I blinked and in a moment the woman disappeared in front of me.

What did she say I will die if I get caught? Why would I be caught? What and who should I look out for?

"Hey!"

I was even more terrified to hear Limwell's voice. This stupid friend of mine is really annoying. His tendency to surprise is superb.

I was bored to see him laugh out loud. It was really silly. I looked at him and I heard what his mind was saying.

"Ezekiel can easily be startled. Poor boy!"

"Who's weak? Maybe you want to get hit now?" I said seriously. It was too late when I found out that I was holding his collar.

"What the heck Bro, just relax. You're not joking right? How did you know what I was thinking? What's going on with you?" he asked, as he adjusted his uniform after I released it.

"I don't know either." I sat down on the bench holding my head.

"There's something on my mind. I can read everyone's thoughts," I said, making him laugh.

He laughed even more than before. It felt foolish.

"What's funny?" I questioned.

"Who else can read everyone's thoughts? I just fooled you before, you rode me. Are you drunk or lacking in sleep?" He was still laughing.

"I'm serious," I pressed.

"Then let's try it again. The fireflies are coming, so read what they're thinking," Limwell commanded me. I saw Alvin and the other student council walking towards me.

I stared at them one by one and read everything the student council was thinking, except Alvin. Why couldn't I read what was on his mind? Why was he the only one I couldn't read?

"Oh, what are they thinking, Brother?" Limwell asked.

"There seems to be an announcement later in the gymnasium, at 1 pm," I said, still wondering why my power resisted Alvin. Power? I did not know what it was. Maybe it was power. Is reading the human mind makes you immortal?

"Bro, have any news for us?" Limwell asked the student councils.

"News? Flood. There's a flood coming later!" A man replied and they all laughed at the same time.

Limwell was about to stand up when I stopped him. I knew this friend of mine, he would kick suddenly when insulted.

The fireflies walked away from us when Limwell looked at me.

"See, what has your power done? I hope you can read your mind. I can still kill your ingenuity," Limwell said laughing. "Come on. The class is about to start."

We got up and walked to the classroom. I tried to read the thoughts of those I met and I was able to listen to what their minds said.

Something was wrong with me. I wasn't dreaming. This was no longer right. I needed to see the three people who knew something I didn't again.

The hermit in the forest.

The guard in the CR.

And the woman on the bench earlier.

The morning class ended and I couldn't understand anything anymore. I wanted to concentrate but I couldn't focus because my mind was bothering me.

"Let's eat first? I'm hungry," Jerome said, hand stroking his stomach. I just nodded in response to him.

We were about to get up when I heard a loud voice.

"Where are you, woman? I'm going to kill you!"

I turned around to look for the source of the voice. But everyone was eating quietly until I saw a woman enter the canteen holding a large rock. I looked at where she was looking and noticed a woman eating alone.

"You're dead to me now, Lyka!" said the woman holding the stone.

"Lyka, look out!" I screamed to get everyone's attention.

The woman angrily threw the rock she was holding at Lyka. Fortunately, she ducked and wasn't hit by the rock.

The woman who had thrown it looked at me. Her eyes glazed over me and she slowly approached me.

"Who are you? What right do you have to interfere?" She screamed at me.

"Do you think you did the right thing? What if the woman was hit? She could've died from what you did!" I said stiffly.

"So what? She deserves it! She has to pay for what she did!"

"What did she do that made you so mad?" I asked.

"See. You don't know anything and you have no right to know. We're not done yet. Because of what you did, I'll put you on my list too," she said and turned her back on me.

As she walked away, I tried to read her mind but I could no longer read it. I was surprised when suddenly someone grabbed me.

It was the woman who was almost killed. The woman would've been stoned if I hadn't warned her in time.

"Thank you, Ezekiel," she said, smiling at me.

"You know me?" I was shocked.

"Let's just say, I'm your future best friend," she said, her smile was constant.

"Future best friend? Excuse me, Miss. Zeke already has a best friend. Me and Jerome. We're his past, present, and future best friend!" Limwell groaned as Jerome laughed.

"In this world, you're his best friend, but in another world, it's me!" Lyka replied, raising an eyebrow at me.

Another world? Was she referring to Heaven?

"See you again soon, future best friend. Thanks again." She said, winking, and then turned and walked away.

I tried to read her mind but like the woman earlier, I failed. I couldn't read what she was thinking at a distance.

"That woman must be crazy. She was talking about a future best friend." Jerome laughed. "But you were so sweet earlier. You were jealous of the woman there. You were afraid of losing Zeke," he added, laughing even louder.

Limwell smacked Jerome on the shoulder and that made me smile. It was different when you had crazy friends. Nothing else could make me laugh in no time.

"Come on. You're pure nonsense," I sighed. I momentarily lost my thoughts while I was with the two. What nonsense we are doing.

The hot weather suddenly darkened with thunder and lightning. The three of us stopped having fun.

"It's raining hard," Jerome said.

"Let's take shelter in the classroom," Limwell said. We couldn't wait to answer because he was already running to our classroom. Jerome and I followed and started running.

I stopped running when I saw an average, fat male student standing and staring at the dark sky.

"Hey, aren't you coming along? It looks like a strong storm. You could be struck by lightning. Let's go!" I shouted in his direction. He ignored me and continued staring at the sky. He was whispering something I could not understand. I also couldn't read what he was thinking.

I was about to give up and run when he spoke.

"You can't escape the coming war. You have to prepare if you don't want to be deprived of this life," he said and then looked at me. He smiled at me foolishly.

Suddenly a thunder boomed in the sky. I just let the man go. I thought he was a mad man.

After I was inside the classroom, it suddenly lit up. Gone was the dark sky that looked as if a lot of rain would fall and leave a flood all over the place.

"Climate change is severe. The weather is chaotic. It was so hot before and then suddenly the sky darkened with lightning and thunder and now it's warming up again," said the president of our class.

I looked out the classroom window where I had seen the student I had met earlier staring at the dark sky. He stared at me and gave me a goofy look.

I tried again to read what was on his mind but couldn't find a word. I turned around to the students in the class and tried to read what they were thinking. I could read them all. I looked out the window and the man was gone.

I sat in my chair wondering. What was happening? I could read people's minds but not everyone's. First was Alvin, second the woman holding the rock, third the woman named Lyka, and last the man under the dark sky.

What did that mean? Was my power limited? And if it was true that I possessed power, where did I get it? And why did I have it?

I tried to piece everything together. And suddenly the hair on my neck rose.

"Right!" I shouted at my classmates. My voice was loud enough to grab everyone's attention.

"What's right, Bro?" Limwell asked.

"That he's right!" Jerome laughed. "You can see that our friend was thinking deeply for two days. It started when we went home after camping," he added.

"Couldn't you have been enchanted before? Didn't you urinate that night? I stopped you, but you didn't stop. That's right! Maybe you urinated on the ancestors in the mound. Hahaha," Limwell said laughing.

"Fools. I was thinking about the exam tomorrow," I lied. It was true that we had an exam tomorrow but that's not what I was thinking. I was thinking about what was happening and how strange it was.

Limwell was right. It started when I went out to pee and talked to the old man. I used to have no one around me. I was tough. Great and badass, according to my friends. But I seemed to be slowly becoming concerned about the strange things I was encountering.

I was again attacked by an intense thought. I started to relive what had happened to me. The old man who gave me the book. The book with the medallion I was wearing suddenly disappeared. The guard had said I should look for the twelve who own the other medallions. The woman next to me on the bench was looking for the important thing in me. Alvin was the first person whose mind I couldn't read. It was by rescuing Lyka that I had found out her name I had heard mentioned by a mind. And how she said that I was her best friend in the other world. The woman holding the rock had threatened me that I was already on her list. And the man whispered under the dark sky.

The old man, the guard, and the woman before had only referred to one thing. The old book.

Were the four people I couldn't read the minds of just some of the other medallion owners?

If I was thinking right, was I crazy?

"Mr. Montemayor! Are you with us?" I heard Professor Maniquiz's voice pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Yes, Sir!" I stuttered in response.

"Our Professor called you earlier. You don't seem to be in the right mind because you're constantly whispering. I'm scared of you Bro," Jerome said seriously. I knew Jerome, he was a joker and loved to have fun, but only now did I see him being serious. Was I so lost in my thoughts that I didn't even notice what was going on around me?

"Then stand up and solve the problem on the board!" Professor Maniquiz shouted.

I stood up and looked at the board. I was not afraid because I knew the answer. I looked at my classmates who were staring at me. I read what they were thinking. I smiled at something one of my classmates was thinking about.

"Ezekiel Montemayor is different. Math is very easy for him. I know he'll get it right."

I sat on my seat and greeted the happy face of Limwell while Jerome showed a sign of astonishment.

"You weren't listening but you could still answer. How to be you, Mr. Montemayor?" Limwell asked. I slapped his hand and just focused on the Professor's teaching.

After the afternoon class, the three of us split up. The two of them wanted to play but I just wanted to go home. As I walked I noticed someone is looking at me, it's Lyka.

She was leaning against a pole opposite the main gate of the campus. She waved at me as I approached her.

"Let's go to the cafeteria," she said. What? Why? It was too late when I realized that I was already following her.

We were sitting inside a famous cafeteria in front of our campus as

I felt the heavy aura of the place. There were only a few people inside and that somehow made me happy.

I realized that Lyka was smiling and staring at me as if she was crazy.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"I know there's something wrong with you," she replied.

"Huh?" I said, dumbfounded.

"I know you. You're one of the thirteen given a strange power. I know that because my power doesn't work on you. Maybe you're one of the ones my Medallion Master says I should look for," she said, pulling out an old book from her bag.

I was suddenly horrified to see the book she was holding. Sweat beaded on my forehead.

"Why do you have that?"

"This? My master gave it to me," she replied, smiling.

"Your master? That book is mine. That's the missing book that the old man gave me," I said, trying to grab at the book.

Lyka suddenly laughed for no apparent reason.

"All right, if that's yours, try reading what's in it." She challenged me.

I hurriedly opened the book and cringed as I couldn't understand what was written. It looked a little like Korean, Japanese, Spanish or even Chinese, something I didn't understand.

"How can I understand it if it's written like that?" I said, exasperated.

She picked up the book and faced me.

"Because this book is not yours. Whoever owns the book, only they can understand what is written in it. The cover of the book is the same for everyone, but its content will be different because we have different powers," she said seriously.

"Huh? I don't understand you. What are you saying about power?"

"Don't hide your power from me. I'll know that when we're in Loowa's Kingdom." She sounded so sure of herself.

"Loowa's Kingdom?" I questioned.

"What are you? Do I have to explain everything to you? Haven't you read your book?" she asked, clearly annoyed.

"No. It's missing," I said meekly.

"What?" She stood up when I said that. People in the cafeteria were looking at us. Lyka sat again and apologized to the people who were shocked by her scream.

"Your book can't be lost. You don't want it to go to the Director. You need to find it right away," she whispered sharply.

"Who is the Director?" I asked just as urgently.

"He is one of the most powerful creatures in Loowa's Kingdom today. According to this book, he is a Black Spirit looking for medallions. When he gets the thirteen medallions, he will be able to carry out his evil plan. To rule the world of Loowa," she said and my mind buzzed. Another information that could blow my mind.

"So what the Great One did was he entrusted the thirteen medallions to his disciples. And they are the Medallion Masters who are now looking for the transfer of their powers. They are the ones who gave us the book and the medallions," she added. I just kept listening to Lyka's stories.

"If there is indeed a strange world called Loowa's Kingdom, why did they give power to ordinary people? To us? What can we do for their world?" I asked.

"Because the Loowa is incapable of having power. They will die if they wear the medallion," she answered.

"Okay. If they will die, why is the Director still hoping for the medallions? Wouldn't he die too if he got it?"

"That's where you're wrong. The medallions will work on him because the Director used to be human," she replied to my surprise.

"Human? I thought he was Black Spirit? This is so confusing," I said, clutching at my head. I was already confused by her stories.

"I thought you were good at thinking!" she said with a sigh.

"The Director is dead. But his spirit remained inside Loowa's Kingdom. The Loowa could die if his spirit remained inside their world."

"So you mean, we can help the Loowa to lose the spirit of the Director?" I asked.

"Exactly! You got it now. We need to enter their world and bring out the spirit of the Director. Humans are only meant for this world of people as well as its spirit. We need to bring the spirit of the Director back into our world."

"Isn't he looking for medallions? So when we enter their world, the Director will know that it is with us because we are human. We are not Loowa," I said.

"That's why we have to find the other medallion keepers so we can plan together. We can't face the Director if we're just the two of us."

"I understand it now. Wait, what's your power? Because I..."

She grabbed my hand and the words died in my throat. She hurriedly hid the book in her bag.

"I've got it! I'm sure I'll pass the exam tomorrow," Lyka said happily raising an eyebrow at me.

What was she saying? Why did she suddenly change the topic?

"What..."

"Let's get out of here. There's someone here who I don't want eavesdropping on our conversation," she whispered urgently. Suddenly a tall man passed by and went straight to the cashier to order. He was wearing glasses and his hair didn't seem to have been combed. In short, he looked like a smart nerd.

"He looks like an ordinary person," I promised Lyka.

"Behind the innocent face is the hidden monster. You have to be observant. You shouldn't trust anyone," she said softly but enough for me to understand it.

I looked at the man talking to the cashier. I tried to read his mind but I couldn't.

"Your power won't work on people with medallion," Lyka said laughing.

"How did you find out?" I wondered. Did she know I could read minds?

"I studied the book carefully. I put all the information in my occiput. I don't want to look like a fool when the day comes that we are in Loowa's Kingdom."

"So you mean I'm stupid?"

"I'm not the one who called you stupid, you did," she said while laughing. I suddenly felt the wind blow. How could that happen if we were inside the cafeteria? We were far from the aircon.

From the corner of my eye, I saw the man leaving the cafeteria. Before he left, he looked at Lyka and then smiled at me.

"Boom!" I was shocked when Lyka startled me.

"What?" I said, not even trying to hide my frustration.

"You're right. He's just like us."

"How do you know everything? It's like you know everything that's going on around you. You know the people. Who's the protagonist and who's not. Who's like us. What power do you have?" I asked.

"Vision. I can see what will happen in the future. But I can only do so much because until now I don't know how to use it fully," she said and I was amazed.

"Wow. The intensity of your power. That was sick! So, you already know how the circumstances we've entered in will end," I said

"We didn't enter it. We were chosen. But I also don't know how it will end. I can't afford to see everything. As I said, it's limited. I can find out about ordinary people. What will happen to them today, later, and tomorrow? Even their deaths and how they will die, I know. But with someone like you who holds a medallion, I only know a little," she said to my surprise. Did she know me because of her vision?

"All I know is, you have power. That's all. I can see who has power over nothing. Who are the ally and the opponent? But to know what they can do, that I can't. The power of one will not work. It's a collective effort of one medallion keeper to another in the world of humans. But within the Loowa's Kingdom, we can use it on anyone," she finished.

"Medallion Keeper?"

"Yes. We are called Medallion Keepers. And the one who gave us is the Medallion Master," she said smiling.

"By the way, what power do you have?" she added.

"I can read minds," I said without emotion.

"What? You're the Dark Master Mind?" she asked, obviously shocked. Why did she react like that?

"Why do you look so shocked?" I asked.

"Because you are the most powerful of the thirteen medallions. You are the key to open the Loowa's Kingdom. You will be the answer to end the coming war," she said, her jaw dropped right after.