Jiji no. 8

The Origin of Sanktas

“So . . .” Holder never yet felt too much awkwardness in his life, except to what he was having right now. “You’re the hidden son of the most remarkable son of the general,” said Bennie flick. He said it in a way he is sure declaring that indeed, he is.

Bennie Flick stared at him as he bat his eyelashes, while staring at him. No way, was that Sankt Vessel user flirting at him? To avoid the awkward stare, Holder looked down the ground, and said, “I am his son. But, seriously, I have no idea that I was hidden by Pa. At first I thought it was no big deal, but right now, why does it seem it is?”

“It is a big deal, Holder, it is,” said Duthor Brags.

“Then can you—”

“We can’t young man.” It was then when Baba Karma started to interfere.

“But I am his son! Why am I not allowed to hear anything from what had happened? Why am I not allowed to hear the truth! It was just . . . I am I just asking why I am being called his hidden son, and . . . how come he died without seeing us again for one last time?”

The Sankt Vessel users who were talking to him grew silent. Except the kid, Channie Dulorf.

“I—I am sorry for what happened to your Papa, Holder,” she said in a cute yet shy manner, “but the things is . . . the king had ordered not to discuss what happened in the past. The king told the people not to narrate what catastrophe does the general have brought in the kingdom. Even mentioning General’s name, it was once banned. And then a lot of people were sadden by that rule that they keep on mentioning the general’s name as a way of rebellion. So the absolute law of the king about mentioning of the general’s name was lifted. But, for those people who have deliberately told the real thing happened to the General, once reported, is killed. Public execution, Holder.”

Holder shook when he heard Channie. “Public execution?”

Duthor pursed his lips, bent his knees, and tapped Channie’s shoulder. Channie hugged him with an undeniable look of sadness in her face.

“Yes, Holder. Public Execution. Channie here is a victim of that kind of catastrophe. Her father was an avid fan of your Papa. He’s also your Papa’s friend. And when ‘that’ happened to general Viscus, he was enraged with the decisions of the kingdom. So he rebelled. A good Soldier rebelling to the kingdom, it surely was a big commotion. He travelled every region of Agnosbadtt which is not part of the wall protection of this Central Kingdom. And he deliberately told everything. Until he was captured. And there, in front of her mother who is still, in pregnant of Channie, he was executed.”

“I—I am sorry.”

“You don’t have to say sorry, Holder. It wasn’t your fault. It was my Papa’s fault.”

“How did you knew all of those things then, Channie, if you’re still at your Ma’s womb when that happened?” and then Holder realized it was an insensitive question. “I—I’m sorry about that.”

“It’s okay. I just heard it from other people. Eavesdrop. Then stitched everything I have heard,” she smiled, hugging her teddy bear, “and you know what, Holder, the king’s order was actually a blessing in disguise to you. You won’t be able to hear from other people what happened to your beloved. Because if you do, I think, it was more devastating. More painful. With what the King did, he unconsciously protected you from potential pain.”

“I—I’m sorry,” again, Holder told.

“Sorries won’t do anything Holder,” said Benny Flick. “What is important is that you are here, you are finally moving and following the step of your Papa. And perhaps, even taking greater steps than him. Isn’t it great?”

Holder did not answer back.

“It’s okay, Holder. Let’s just forget for a while about your Papa. You are here because you’re now a Sankt Vessel user, right?” asked Duthor.

Thing is, never did Holder dared to forget his father. Never. He loves him so much. But then, he tried his best to move forward and face what is happening to him right now.

“Uh, yeah. I didn’t even know why I am here. Or why am I called . . . Sankt Vessel user.”

“Tsk tsk! Young generations these days. Answers are simple, but they’re making it hard.”

Holder felt embarrassed soon when he heard Baba Karma speaking.

“That is because Jiji chose you,” Benny said.

“Ahh, the very complex slime I had ever seen,” said Baba Karma, eyeing the slime. When Jiji felt the stare of the old woman, he looked at her, and scowled. He then growled as if a Dog seeing a dangerous creature.

“And hot-headed.” Baba Karma turned her back, just to make Jiji stop growling.

“Hey, Jiji, stop that,” Holder commanded which the slime had willingly obliged.

Duthor then laughed from what he saw. “Seriously, Jiji really likes you.”

Holder looked at him. “He just listens to my commands. Yet, I didn’t do anything peculiar to him to make him listen to me.”

Duthor nodded. For a while, he spaced out, thinking about something.

Then, he asked, “is it okay if you join me for a walk?” Duthor’s red armor then disintegrated. It changed then to just an ordinary cloth, just like what General Balfor and Balel has. “I’ll tell you some basics.”

“About what?”

“About why Jiji choosing you, and about . . . the origin of the Sankts.”

Holder stood up, excited from what he heard. “I’m in.”

And then they started to head outside of that room. The bluish aura and the crystal clear formation he first felt fascinated by, had welcomed him again. And just like what he did earlier, he sighed and wowed, staring at the magical pieces of crystals and light dancing around.

“Fascinating, isn’t it?” Duthor said.

“It was.”

“Fascinating it may be, but, don’t be fooled by its beauty. Those crystal and lights are one of the Agnosbadtt’s secret weapon made by the young professor Zen, ten years ago. Project Neptune. That weapon had made her to the position she is enjoying now.”

“Some beauty were made to destroy and be destructive.”

“Indeed,” he agreed. “This way,” Duthor said. He pointed one door among the many doors standing at the left corner of the beautiful room.

“Woah, there are too many doors,” Holder said, still fascinated.

“All of those doors would lead you to different places, long as it was part of the Central Kingdom.”

“Are there doors to enter the Central Palace? I mean, I have been dreaming to enter the Central Palace and see its beauty. Papa said the palace will make me freeze from its beauty.”

Duthor chuckled. “You’re technically inside the palace,” he spilled.

Then Holder stopped, and blinked. Jiji gasped, and he too froze and blinked as he sat above Holder’s head. It was too cute not to see. “P—Palace? I am?”

Duthor laughed. He then tapped Holder’s shoulder. “You are, Holder.”

“B—But my papa said the palace has this—has this beautiful throne. Iron made. Uh, with sculpture of beasts and other mythical creatures for the king, and flower and butterflies and other elegant carvings for the queen. I—I haven’t seen it yet so how come we’re inside the palace?”

Duthor now cannot stop laughing.

“You must be talking about the throne room. The great hall where the King and Queen would sit on their thrones and would listen to the meetings of the royal officials. That is just one part of the palace. The one that is mostly seen by a lot of people, especially those higher ranked wishing to meet the royalties. But I tell you, there are a lot of things inside the Central Palace you didn’t know yet.”

Duthor then opened one of the doors. He smiled at Holder, and signaled him to enter. Holder then, willingly obliged it. Outside, he can see that the room is bright in yellow. And when he entered, he have to close his eyes for a while, for the bright yellow light from the walls and sculptures had blinded him for a while.

“What is this place?” Holder asked. When he finally adjusted his eyesight from the brightness the room had offered, there he saw peculiarly carved sculptures both standing at the room and on the wall.

He saw eight peculiar kind of sculpture art. All those were exquisitely carved in details, and in precise, believable humanistic size. Yet, it was not as similar as how other sculpture artists do their works. In a normal, usual sculpture art, the main subjects are humans or animals in its daily held life. But for this sculpture, it seems that the artists ran a wild imagination, to the point that he had made those peculiar sculpture. In fact, its unusualness had made an eerie effect for Holder. Though the whole place was covered in bright yellow color, Holder cannot deny the fact that the place is somewhat eerie. Somewhat . . . dark. He observed one of the sculptures. It was, just like everyone else, an utterly creepy art. A sculpture of a demon. That perhaps is. He can see the long horn erupting from its forehead. Long, more than a bull’s horn. Long, enough to barbeque five human bodies when pierced in stomach. Its eyes were wide. Circular. As if it can see everything within its sight. A meter of tongue was dangling out of its mouth. Snakes serves as its hair. He looked at the neck part of the creature: near the collar bone of that creature, there he saw another pair of eyes looking at the same direction its main eyes were looking at. Its fingernails were sharp-long. What bothered him more, however, was the look of the creature below its torso. For instead just a single pair of legs, the creature were standing with the use of eight human-like hands all acting as if they were real legs. A shiver ran down on Holder’s spine.

“That is Jiji.” Holder jumped when Duthor spoke again.

“What do you mean?”

“That sculpture you’re looking at, that is the look of the real Jiji.”

Jiji then jumped, and went near Holder’s chest. Its face were buried at his chest. He too was shaking—afraid with the thing he just saw.

“That’s the real Jiji? Then who’s this slime I hold?”

“The reincarnation of Jiji. A creature born back into life with the use of Majicules that was inside the Sen tube.”

“I—I can’t understand it, Duthor.”

Duthor patiently sighed. “Professor Zen Maxxes did another project, after series of projects she had accomplished for the kingdom. And, I must say, this is her biggest project. Second is the Project Neptune.”

“I assume the project you’re talking involves Jiji and the Sankts you’re talking about.”

“It is. Professor Zen calls it The Project Sankta.” He looked at Holder, “and Jiji was the eighth and the last Sankt that Professor Zen managed to reincarnate. The sculpture you’re looking at is the real Jiji who was once alive a hundred of five years ago.”

“And then professor managed to revive its life in the form of this slime?”

Duthor nodded. “But in technical sense, as what professor told us, Jiji and the others that she made alive, was not the real one. They are not the real Sankts. Their power and their abilities were just tapped, and transferred with the complicated use of Majicules and Sen. And then transferred to a new creature which seemed less harmless than the original one. That is why they are called Sankt Vessel, and we, the Sank Vessel user. That is also why, even Jiji saw his real, old self, he won’t remember it. Look, he was even scared.”

“Who did these sculptures?”

“Benedict Mariolis, the one covered with scarf earlier. He was the one who did all of those precise sculptures. Talented, isn’t he? He did that after he was able to read and see the pictures of Sankts at the Book of Sanktas. The problem though, is that he’s in love with bright yellow that is why, uh . . . the whole place is covered with bright yellow.” Duthor scratched his head. “I don’t know, they all are weird, especially that Benny Flick. He’s been trying to flirt me though I always deliberately say he should stop.”

He sighed, then looked at the wall on their front. Holder followed him. He saw something standing at the wall. A book. It was being held by two yellow sculptures of hand, as if nourishing the book.

“That is the Book of Sanktas. The one originally written by the great dark monk who summoned these creatures in the world of humans.

“You mean, Jiji and . . . the others?”

Duthor nodded. “The dark monk. He is the one who made the legend about demons real.”

“Legends of demons . . .” Holder was fascinated and thrilled from the thought, but at the same time, felt fear. “what do those legend of demons tell?”

“That demons were real. That demons are just in the pit of hell, waiting to be summoned by someone powerful and knowledgeable. At that time, it was the Monk who discovered the secret on how to summon those demons. And he had summoned eight of those, whom he called ‘Sankts’. All of his journey, and all of the things he did for the Sankts, all was recorded in that Book. But the problem was, the language he used to write the book, is unfamiliar to us. It was a language far from north which believed he learned in his journeys. An extinct language, by now.”

“Are the demons that monk called really powerful?”

Duthor nodded. “Real powerful that if by any chance a demon was summoned from hell, and we Sankt Vessel users fought it, we will be highly defeated.”

“But, isn’t Jiji demon too?”

“Once demon. But they were now dead. What we have right now is just the reflection of their ancient power. But don’t worry, their power was enough, really, to sweep one kingdom in just a snap.”

“They were dead?”

“That is why they reincarnated, isn’t it?”

“Ah.” Holder slapped his forehead. He starts to sound stupid.

Duthor then faced the yellow wall. From there, he looked at the carved ancient-like carvings found at the surface. Those images, Holder believes that it was similar to the carved images made by ancient humans in old walls of caves.

“Five hundred years ago, there came a huge crisis for humans. Because then the existence of humanity were at the brink of being extinct. The monk had successfully summoned eight demons. And those demons . . . no man had ever defeated even only one of them. Vasmand, Seres, Proxima, Malala, Shiki, Tatarus, Spot, Jiji. Those were the demon’s names. The hope to maintain the life of humanity were coming to an end. Not when the humans realize that the only way to kill those demons is to kill the heart. The summoner. The monk.”

“Monk who fell to the trap of evilness. That is an interesting legend.”

“Sometimes, the more we mostly seek for truth and the good, the more the chance we can fall to the trap of evilness.”

“And the monk fell.”

“Certainly.”

“Shall we be afraid of demons?” Holder asked.

“Even most of us are evil, the humanity shall fear demons still,” Duthor answered.

They were now both staring at the wall. Both of them, their eyes were focused at the stick image of a creature—with horn—and, smaller stick figures—like humans—surrounding the creature.

“Then why do professor Zen reincarnated the Sankts?”

Duthor was silent for first minutes. Then finally, he said, “people may not have any idea, but, we are in the state of crisis.”

“Crisis?”

Duthor looked at him. Jiji, hugged by Holder’s arms, also started to move.

“We are at the brink of extinction. No, not the humanity, but our kingdom.”

“Why is it?”

“Three of the most powerful kingdom had an alliance to each other. They joint power to make us fall on to their knees. And sooner, those kingdoms would attack us. Would attempt to ruin this beautiful kingdom. That is why, we need to have a counter measure. And the Sankt Vessel users is the answer. But, there is a problem. I may not be the one to say this, but . . .” Duthor clenched his fist. “There is a possibility that someone . . . someone had managed to summon a creature of hell. Someone discovered the secret art of summoning, same as the monk. Someone from those kingdoms . . . holds a demon in their arsenal.”