Chapter 12: Blood And Music
1202 Words
Yayis screamed, and fire burst from his entire body as his eyes went entirely red. Fire covered his sword. Blood burst from his joints. Shams screamed, his hand reaching out for him. “Don’t do this! STOP HURTING YOURSELF!”
Yayis ran towards the titan then jumped skywards. He lifted his sword and slashed it in two. Shams smiled faintly. “Did he…”
His eyes flashed wide as the titan slapped Yayis, sending him crashing into the grass. The impact of his fall caused a deep hole into the ground. Shams ran towards the hole. He slid down and grabbed the jinn by the shoulders. He gasped, seeing the blood on his face and body. He gazed up at the titan with round watery eyes. “We will die,” he whispered, “We will… die!”
“Not… yet…” Yayis stood up with shaking legs. “Not… yet. I will not fall…”
He walked ahead. “I will not… NEVER!”
He dug his sword into the ground and gazed at the titan with round eyes. “I will surpass my father and kill him. YOU WILL NOT STOP ME!”
His skin turned red, and he moved like a bullet, piercing the titan’s head and cutting the upper half. He jumped back next to Shams, his skin covered with the titan’s blood. He spit out a chunk of its brain.
Shams smiled happily and hugged him. “You’re the best! You’re so strong! I knew you could win!”
Yayis smiled weakly and hugged him back. “Liar.”
Shams laughed and wiped his tears. “Come on, let’s go back to Ihdaachar? We already finished the–”
He raised his eyebrows, feeling a sword piercing his torso. He looked up to Yayis with round eyes.
Yayis seemed in pain as he struggled to stand straight. He coughed blood as the titan pulled its sword out.
“Puppet art.” The yellow-haired stood at the top of the hole. “Gives the ability to control corpses as well.”
He grinned. “You did pretty well for noobs. Good job.” His smile faded into a large malicious smirk. “But it’s over! YOU WILL NOW DIE!”
Shams’s tears dropped, and he shook his head. “No… I don’t… want to… die…”
He gasped and fell to his knees as Yayis was taken away from him.
“Did you know, little boy?” The yellow-haired folded his arms. “Jinns have veeeery tough bodies.”
Yayis’s eyes widened as a blade pierced his neck. Tears rolled down his cheeks. Shams screamed his name and held his head in his hands.
He saw a hail of arrows above their heads. The green-haired woman stood beside him and adjusted her glasses without saying anything. The arrows then fell, and they all stabbed Yayis.
Shams then cried out in horror, and a brown light burst from his body. The light sent the yellow-haired and the green-haired back and disintegrated their titan. A large burst then occurred, and everything fell silent.
The yellow-haired stood up. “I… I must get that kid. He has too much power.” He smirked, staring at his arms that were blown away. “I must make him my pet. I will become the strongest!”
“Unfortunately for you, Dahab…”
His eyes widened as a black circle appeared under his feet and pulled him down along with his jinn. Ihdaachar stood in front of him. “You have no chance against that child now. Do you want to know why?”
He smiled, folding his arms. “Because he’s human. A fully-awakened one.”
Dahab laughed. “Ah, you traitor. I always knew you were going to betray Sirkus. I could never catch you red-handed. You sly black fox.”
The green-haired winced in pain. “Please, do not provoke him. He’s the strongest creature to ever exist. Don’t be foolish, Dahab! He can kill us!”
“He can’t. He’s a wimp!” Dahab gritted his teeth as the circle pulled him harder. “I have never seen him use an offense spell. All he does is defend, even in battle. A goddamn wimp.”
He spit on Ihdaachar’s shoe. “I expect noting of a dirty human.”
“This is a problem.” Ihdaachar shook his head in disdain. “I just bought those shoes. They’re very good quality, see? Since I have pretty hideous feet, I always want to cover them with boots.”
He stared at the spit. “You will have to wipe it now.”
Dahab spit on it again. “It’s not just your feet that are hideous, Moussa. Your very existence is.”
The green-haired’s eyes widened. “Fool… Don’t say his real name!”
“You’re wise, very, Flora,” Ihdaachar held her hand and pulled her out of the circle. “I will spare you today. As a gift for knowing your place, I will also give you a gift.”
She glanced at him, confused. “Gift?” she adjusted her glasses with a shaking hand, “What gift?”
“I will help you get a new master.”
Her eyes widened as he swiped his hand above Dahab and lifted it. Shadows rose from the ground and entered his body. He cried out in pain.
Ihdaachar smiled. “The less you struggle, the less painful it will be, my little Dahab.”
She stared in fear, shaking.
Dahab’s hair started growing black. Ihdaachar folded his arms again and walked around him in circles. “You see, when you called me by my real name, a thousand ways to kill you came up to me.” He narrowed his slightly-parted eyelids. “But then… I thought of something even better.”
He grinned.
Flora smiled faintly and lowered her gaze to the floor. “We will not bother you again. W-We’re sorry.”
“I’m sure you won’t.”
He placed an unconscious Dahab in her arms and started walking away. “You know your way out.”
She nodded and disappeared in a green flash. He placed his pin back in his shirt and stood at the edge of the hole. There, he saw both Shams and Yayis sleeping, safe and sound. All of their wounds disappeared. Ihdaachar gazed at them in silence. “Truly interesting.”
He smiled. “Will someone finally surpass me?”
He shut his eyelids, his smile growing sly.
“How thrilling.”
Shams opened his eyes and rested a hand on his face, feeling a strong headache. He frowned, hearing a piano. He stood from his bed and rested a hand on the red pyjamas he was wearing. He raised his eyebrows, realizing how expensive the clothes he was wearing were. He followed the sound of the piano and blinked, hearing the humming of a man. The voice made his tears drop. He followed the song until he stepped into a large hall that had windows on all sides. The sunlight penetrated the windows and reflected on the white floor.
Shams stepped onto a tile that had light on it. He looked down, feeling warmth on his feet for the first time in his life. She sat down and watched Ihdaachar play the piano while dressed in white. His black hair seemed like drops of ink falling on his broad back. The black-haired didn’t stop playing and humming until the song ended. He then carried on playing.
Shams closed his eyes, listening to him while enjoying the warmth of the sun. Without finding out, he drifted back to sleep, feeling too comfortable. Ihdaachar turned to him, his gaze softening. He stopped playing and stood up. “I’m glad that my music is of your liking.”
He kept his eyes shut as he sat down next to Shams and caressed his hair. “You have a beautiful name.”
He leaned down and kissed the boy’s forehead.
“Like that of a child I lost.”
- Writer
