White led them across the street. Eryk followed her. Now there was an odd silence as they left the busy city center. Even the air felt different, cleaner, and fresher.There were no streetlights to illuminate as Eryk, and the two birds flew along the winding road up the hill. It didn't take long for the sidewalks to disappear, either. Then the two birds flew away until they were barely visible. They passed between the pine branches.Eryk looked at the trees but could see no further than a few yards before the darkness engulfed the trunk. Occasionally they passed the driveways of houses and the sketchy form of settlements far away from the road.Eryk's nerves tingled. He often looked back. He felt as if something or someone was watching him. Going to a new place always makes him nervous. The farther away he was from the familiar place, the more worried he was."Are you sure the way through here?" Eryk asked. His voice sounded thin and hollow.Under normal circumstances, no one can hear
"You're visiting the wrong people's house, Young Man!" said the man in the clown costume, pushing the door as hard as he could.If only Eryk had thought carefully about this meeting before. Everything depended on what he would say next.Joker tries to close the door again. At that moment, Eryk realized something was wrong. Without much effort, Eryk pushed open the door quickly. It was as if Joker didn't have the energy to close his door before Eryk.Eryk immediately grabbed the man's hand, wrapped in white gloves. And at that time, Eryk was increasingly convinced that the figure behind the clown costume was a different person from what Eryk had imagined about the Joker figure."Tell me where your father is?" Eryk asked."What? Father?" Black and White, who were also paying attention, wondered.'Is that figure in the clown costume the son of the Joker? Is the real Joker really in Rockwool prison?'Only Eryk and the costumed clown figure can answer that."My name is Eryk Wayland. I'm a
Eryk pressed his palm against the wall and pushed hard. Part of the wall sunk inward. The hidden narrow door swung inward silently."How did you know the door was there?" asked White uneasily."I don't know," replied Eryk as he walked through the door. Or maybe, somehow, he actually knew.The room inside was somber. There is only dim light."This must be one of the towers because it is perfectly circular with a single-window high above. It looks more like a cell."Eryk saw a wooden chair, an old wardrobe, and a dirty sink. However, all those details went unnoticed. When Eryk's eyes were fixated on the object in the middle of the room.He saw a glass case containing a red velvet pillow. On the pillow lay a meter-long sword. The blade is black and slightly curved in the middle.It looked like an ancient artifact dug out of the ground and polished to a shiny surface. The hilt was protected by curved metal claws and covered in a thin, black leather layer. There is writing stamped along th
Black Widow stood in the doorway, looking around the ground floor of the Mowark House. When she realized it was too quiet, she fired bullets from her rifle, targeting every part and item on the ground floor.Eryk flinched and immediately ducked when the bullet hit the edge of the second-floor balcony."It's Black Widow!" whispered Eryk.The Joker's demeanor immediately changed. Like she went from an eccentric recluse to a mysterious figure. Joker moves close to the wall. She glanced at the stairs and made a clucking sound. Instantly her cats got up and gathered at her side. They released White and Black.Black is in pain when he escapes from the attacks of the cats. Unknowingly they heard the hissing sound of a large number of spiders."You seem to be getting lazy in your old age, Joker!" said Black Widow. "You don't want to let people like me enter your hiding place. Now get out, Old Cat. I know you are here. My beautiful spiders can sense the vibrations of your presence.""Old age?"
"You won't be able to find that girl!" blurted Joker.Black Widow encourages Joker to get out of her way. The gothic woman stepped towards the door, then stopped and said, without turning around."People say cat summoners have nine lives. Let's prove it.""What?" said Joker while starting to walk backward. There was a crackling sound as she stepped on her own glasses.Black Widow snapped her fingers. While doing that, the spiders' bodies straightened up again. Their gazes seemed to glow bright red."Finish her!" said Black Widow to her spiders, then left the room."No!" screamed Joker.Hundreds, maybe even thousands, of spiders start to enter and scatter. Eryk saw Joker grab a chair and swing it forward. The hitting of the chair only made the spiders hiss even more fiercely."What?" shouted Joker, fanning the chair. "Alpha. Beta. Omega! Get your claws out!"A most enormous spider landed from the roof with its thin thread. The spider jumps on Joker's face. Nimbly, Joker stepped aside.
"Does that mean you want to know how old I am?" Joker hissed. "You were never taught manners by your parents, huh? Asking someone's age is very impolite. Especially a woman."Eryk was surprised. He didn't mean it that way. He didn't even realize that his question had offended Joker."Excuse me, Miss?" Eryk is worried about being wrong again. "For being rude to you. You are right. My parents never taught me manners. Because they died when I was little."Joker really looks very tired. At such a moment, Eryk realized the lines of maturity were etching on Joker's face. Not bars of wrinkles, but a mature attitude acquired through years of life experience. The look in Joker's eyes says it all."If you've ever met Evan Harris, you should know what happened to him and to me that Black Summer.""So you guys are the great summoners still around today? Evan Harris... his physical appearance cannot age due to his spirit summon ability. I understand now. Because that's what happened to you too?""
"Owl Souls may look like weapons, but it's more of a tool. Or a key. One that was passed down the lineage of bird summoners since ancient times. At that time, the lands were still plains and rivers. Precisely since the time of the majestic bird summoner–the Bird Commander. That sword can cut through the veil that separates this world from other worlds.""Another World?" Eryk asked.White cawed low over the edge of the sink. And Black by his side glanced around worriedly.Joker's cup shook against her rim as she put it on the table. The woman stared fixedly, and the cats in the fireplace turned to their master. Their ears are erect and alert."The land of the dead," said Joker.Eryk felt like his stomach was twisting.The cat summoner continued and glanced at White and Black."Night birds have always been special animals," said Joker. "They are beings who can cross two worlds. Why do you think crows and owls keep following you? Aren't there other types of birds, like doves, eagles, or
"Duri? Are you better now?" Eryk sat beside the plant summon spirit when Duri just woke up. He is knocked unconscious and injured by being attacked by Venom troops."Alyssa!" screamed Duri while sitting up straight. The plant summon spirit tried to run to find Alyssa but fell again because his body was so weak."Don't push yourself," said Eryk. "You are away from Alyssa. Your condition is not good. Forgive me-""I can't protect her," said Duri. "Venom's minions are coming to surround us. Even though I fought them, I couldn't do much without help from Alyssa. She is still unconscious."Eryk nodded in understanding. Because, in truth, all summoned spirits and the summoner complement each other's strengths. If only one party works, they only have half of the power."Where are we now? This is not the old church where Barbro lived." Duri confusion.Eryk shook his head. "It's not."An hour before sunrise, Rockwool stretches to life like a sleepy creature. Old buses rumbled through the stree