Just for fun: a compilation of short stories

Knights

Part 2: The Return of General Will

The next morning, Dan woke up finding himself on the floor. He got up and went to the bathroom. When he came down, he noticed that his parents were still not awake. So he made his own breakfast which was a sandwich. While he was doing the finishing touches of the sandwich, he heard the stairs make a "creak" sound. It was rather disturbing so Dan went to check it out. What he saw made him scared as he saw his door open and there was no wind at all. He felt like running away but he couldn't as his parents were still asleep and he will not let that devil spirit kill them. Some instincts told him that it was General Will's spirit and some told him that is was a strong gust of wind. Dan gathered all his courage and went up the stairs into his room. When he went into the room......, he saw a figure sitting on his chair. When that figure looked up, he saw fangs and a face that showed no mercy at all. His hands were claws and had blood dripping down from them. He said in a voice which sounded like three people talking at the same time. Dan was stunned. He couldn't move at all when he heard the figure say"Hello Dan. I'm sure you remember me very well. Your commander has succeeded in killing me." And the figure laughed an evil laugh. "You're....... you're G-General W...Will." Dan stammered. And the figure laughed again. He said"Oh Dan. You do remember me after all. And your father did very well to destroy the knights." Dan stood rooted to the ground, wide-eyed. Dan couldn't think of anyway out now. His mind was just empty. His words echoed in his mind over and over again. Dan thought"My father? What does he want with my father?" Dan asked"What do you want with my father?" "Revenge, He destroyed my souls." General Will replied. "Your souls?" asked Dan. "All the knights that protected the castle are my souls. Every time one of them dies, their soul will go right into my body, making me stronger every minute." said General Will. Dan finally understood why General Will always looked different whenever he saw him. General Will spread out his bat-looking wings and flew downwards. Dan couldn't believe it all. Then he went into his parents room, they were still sound asleep. When they woke up, Dan's mother gave Dan a necklace. Dan's mother said"This necklace has been kept from generation to generation. It will protect you from harm and will heal your wounds whenever. You mustn't let anyone take it. Keep it safe and wear it around you neck. I can tell your knighthood is not going to end here. Your journey still continues Dan." and she handed over the necklace. The necklace was a shape of a dragon. It was silver and had a curve at the tail. The eye was a shiny ruby. Dan thanked his mother and tied it around his neck. Before his mother went to the market, she said"One more thing, you can summon a dragon. But, it will start from a youngling. You must tame it well so that is will stand by you in battle without fear and will always be loyal to you. To summon it, you must say Mina Okoa Neek Le" Once Dan heard about it, he went to the backyard. Dan held the necklace and said "Mina Okoa Neek Le!" With a blinding light, a young white baby dragon appeared. It looked at Dan with large eyes. The height of the baby dragon was about Dan's knees. Dan tried to stroke it but it growled showing great white teeth. Dan was startled. Dan said a few words that calmed the dragon and he stroked it. The dragon loved it. The dragon followed Dan into the house. The baby dragon suddenly became hungry. The dragon's stomach had a low growling noise. Dan didn't really know what it ate so he gave it a raw meat. The dragon moved towards it and gobbled it up. "Wow. It eats it in one mouthful. I need to take at least four mouthfuls." thought Dan to himself. Just then, his mother came home. He asked"Mother, do we have to name the dragon and what is its ability?" Dan's mother put down her groceries and looked at the young dragon. She said"Of course you have to name it! Hmm, this one's a bit tricky. I have never seen a white dragon before in my life. Well, you have to make it cough out to see its element. I know just the thing." And she went upstairs. When she came down, she brought down a hand shaped scissors. Dan looked puzzled. His mother put the hand shaped scissors and started opening and closing it. The baby dragon started coughing. And out came an ice shard. "Well my work here is done. It is an ice dragon." his mother said. Dan thanked his mother for helping him and went upstairs. He made a small bed for the dragon with the spare basket and cloth he had. Then he told the dragon to stay. The dragon just went into the basket and lay down. Dan was impressed. After dinner, he brought the dragon out to train. When he brought it out, he saw that the white scales glimmered under the moonlight. So Dan decided to call it Moon. Moon learned fast. He knew how to sit, stay, catch and breathe ice. Dan was very tired after training Moon, but it was worth it as Moon would always stay by his side. The next morning, Dan found Moon at the window looking out. He thought"Perhaps Moon wants to go for a walk." When he came down, he said "Good morning Father and Mother. Mother, could I bring Moon out to Jonas's house?" His mother paused for a while, and let Dan bring Moon to Jonas's house. But he must hide Moon until inside Jonas's house. Dan nodded and set off to his brother's house. While Dan walked, Moon struggled to be released from the basket. But Dan still firmly held the basket. Moon felt really lonely. The basket was fully covered so it was pitch dark. When they reached the house, Dan knocked on the door. There appeared Melody's cheerful face. She said"Oh Dan. Your brother is watching television. Please come in." Dan thanked her and found his brother sitting on the couch. He said"Hey Jonas. I've got something for you to see." And Jonas switched off the television and jumped off the couch and followed his brother to the garden. Then when he felt that it was very safe, he pulled away the cloth and Moon was seen. Jonas gasped. Moon looked at him with a cute little face. When Jonas reached out his hand, Moon didn't mind. Jonas said"This is a friendly little fellow. What's her name?" Dan replied"Moon. It's only a young dragon. By the way, do you have raw meat?" Jonas ran back to the kitchen and took out a piece of meat. He said"I only got steak here." Dan said"It's fine too. She just loves meat." And he held the steak up high. When Moon saw it, she jumped up and down trying to get the steak. Then, an unexpected move was seen. Moon ran and jumped spreading her white wings and biting the meat while gliding down safely. The brothers both clapped in amazement. "Wow. I didn't know Moon could fly." said Dan. Seeing Moon fly, Dan wished Moon was an adult dragon so he could ride on his back and letting the wind fly into his face, and the clouds kiss his cheeks. Just then, Melody screamed. The brothers rushed into his living room and saw zombies. They were invading the house. Moon followed them and saw the zombies too. She plunged in her breath as much as she could and breathed ice out. The zombies who got caught were frozen. Jonas told Melody to run and she did as she was told. Dan told Moon"Fight Moon!!" Moon used her claws, her teeth as well as her tail for fighting. The wave was endless! They all fought until they could not. The zombies stopped. Then, General Will appeared. He smiled with his fangs showing. Moon growled. He glared at it. He said"So I see you have found a rare companion Dan. Jonas, always trying to protect your poor, cowardly little wife." And he laughed. Jonas got really mad and charged to pierce General Will in the heart. "Ha ha ha. I'm dead already, don't you remember? I can never die again." said General Will. But Dan didn't care. He knew there was always a way. He asked"Are those pipsqueaks your army General Will?" General Will looked insulted and enraged at the same time. He said"Pipsqueaks you say? Wait until the day of the solar eclipse then I will unleash my army. Demons of every shape and sizes will come and invade your land. Creatures of the underworld, air, land or sea will come. Be ready my Dan." And he disappeared into thin air. Dan started to worry. His mind was racing with possibilities of what might happen to the village. And yet Moon was not even average age. The underworld creatures were indestructible. But he was not going to give up. He rushed back home. Dan looked high and low for his mother but did not find her. Just then, her father and mother came home. He asked"Where did you guys go?" "We went to the cobbler and seamstress." replied Dan's parents. Dan signaled to his father that he wanted to talk to his mother privately. He asked"Mother, do you know how to defeat underworld creatures?" "Yes I do. Legend says that there is a sword made out of divine nature in the Nigaha forest. It is called the divine. The sword is able to pierce through even the hardest metal in the world. It is also able to kill underworld creatures, even demons. The Nigaha forest is located at the southern of Sun Lake village. It is known that many explorers have entered to find the sword, but never came out. If you were to venture there my dear Dan, then bring Jonas along with you." His mother replied. Dan nodded and thanked his mother for the information. He packed up a few necessary things including Moon. He called his brother after that. His brother agreed and they would set out four days from now. Dan spent all his time training Moon. Day and night, Dan never did anything but train train train. (Well sometimes he practices with his sword.) Everyday, the meat stock was going down as Moon kept eating it. Dan's mother wasn't even angry at all. She just gave a sweet smile to both of them and walked off. Moon grown to average already! Just by three days of training, Moon has developed new skills. Now she can fly and breathe out ice at the same time, breathe out ice balls and summon ice shards. Dan put Moon in the covered cage and went to his steed. Before Dan set off, his mother said"When you reach into the centre of the cave, there would be three tunnels. One is the tunnel of love, the tunnel of courage and the tunnel of strength." Dan nodded and he set off. When he went to the main road, he found Jonas there. And they went off to the Nigaha forest. The forest was dim even when it was very bright as the trees blocked most of the light. There were leaves everywhere and creatures roaming around. They walked briskly as they did not want to know what roams around them. When it was dawn, they set a camp. Dan cooked the stew while Jonas gathered berries. When Dan was done, he poured the stew into two bowls. Jonas came back and his hand was full of berries. He found cranberries, blueberries and raspberries. The dinner was delicious! The stew was nice and warm while the berries were sweet. The brothers took out their sleeping bags and off they went to sleep. In Dan's dream, he saw a young lady with the hair which was golden like the sun. Her eyes were a deep blue and she was wearing a cloak over her dress. She touched Dan's face and said"Young adventurer, I am Minaka. You seek to find the divine sword? Well, I will help you with your quest. I too am trying to find the divine to destroy all of the underworld creatures and so. Together, we will find it quicker." She handed over a strange looking pendant. She said"This pendant will help you to open the secret door. Keep it safe with you." and she disappeared from the dreams when Jonas woke him up. When Dan looked in his hands, he saw the pendant. He tied it around his neck and took out his breakfast. Once they were done, they packed up and journeyed deeper into the forest. They saw many beautiful but dangerous flowers. When Jonas tried to pluck one rainbow coloured flower, the flower snapped back. Luckily, Jonas's reflexes were quick so he didn't get snapped at. When it reached noon, a young lady appeared. She wore a white dress and over it was a cloak. Her eyes were a deep blue. Dan recognised her. She was Minaka! He said"You were in my dream. You are Minaka." And Minaka nodded. Jonas looked confusedly at both of them. "We should be on our way now. Time is an essence." Minaka said with a smooth and soothing voice. The group continued on. They reached a huge tree. Dan climbed up for a better view. He looked high and low for a stone door with carving on them. He squinted his eyes a little and he saw, in the north, there was a stone door with tree carvings on them. He shouted"Further up north!" and slid down the tree. They walked until night and still didn't find the door. They ate what Minaka brought, eggs and steak in a sandwich with salad. "Thish ish delicioush!" said Jonas with his mouth full. They fed Moon some and she gobbled the whole thing up. Moon does have an appetite! They all slept early as they would need as much energy their body can provide to find the door. The next morning, the sun was hanging high in the sky, it was scorching hot. The group set out again without any breakfast. Just then, a man-bull appeared. His nostrils puffed out smoke. The man-bull got ready and charged towards them. They all dodged but the horns got Dan's leg. Dan fell to the ground, holding his wounded leg and groaning. Jonas was enraged. He unsheathed his sword and charged towards the man-bull, at the same time shouting"You hurt my brother!!!!!" But the man-bull counter attacked Jonas and flinged him to the side. Moon and Minaka was left. Minaka moved her hands and chanted a few words. Suddenly, Moon breathed out gigantic ice shards from the ground and it pierced through the man-bull's heart. It was struck dead. It lay on the ground, unmoving. Minaka said"It's a spell for the skill to be mastered quicker. I chose the ice shards as they would be very useful for such creatures like this." and she pointed to the dead man-bull. Jonas and Dan agreed. They continued on and on until they could no more. The group was hungry and their feet were aching. They still had not found the stone door. They decided to take a short rest. Minaka took out some meat and cooked it. It tasted sweet and zingy. They asked"What is this meat?" "It's the man-bull's meat." replied Minaka simply. Jonas looked disgustedly at the meat he was holding. "Well, this is the only food I have to last for the day." Jonas thought to himself. Dan just shrugged and continued eating it. It soon reached evening. The sky was a beautiful blue blending with orange. The group agreed to rest for the night. Minaka went hunting and came back with fish. Dan went hunting for any berries. He came back with nothing. Jonas went to start the fire. Before the both were back, he told Moon that his brother likes Minaka. Moon didn't understand a single word but Moon knew in her mind, that Dan has always been with Minaka and he is starting to like her. Moon got lonelier and lonelier each passing day. Ever since Minaka came, Dan has been spending less time with Moon and more time with Minaka. Moon decided to run away, but she couldn't. She was to be Dan's most loyal companion through thick and thin together forever. Moon told herself"Just bear with it. Think of happy things." And she kept thinking and thinking and thinking until she fell asleep. The next morning, Moon found herself in Dan's arms. She nuzzled Dan's cheek with her nose as a good morning. Dan laughed. When Minaka saw that, she giggled. Moon felt good that Dan appreciated her love for him. Then while they were walking, Jonas got bored and started talking a lot. He talked and talked until he banged his head against a door. He rubbed his head with a painful look on his face. Dan looked at it and realised that is was not some wooden door but the door they've been looking for! Finally, they found it. "Dan, use the pendent I gave you to unlock the door." said Minaka. Dan held the pendent and placed it in the middle of the stone door. The stone door glided apart noisily and revealed a pathway. They all entered quietly. The pathway was narrow and it was very stuffy. The building was hollow and you could hear even your breath puffing out and in. They walked towards a centre point and there were three tunnels. Dan said"Mother said that the three tunnels are the tunnel of love, the tunnel of courage and the tunnel of strength." Minaka said "I will go to the tunnel of love, Jonas you go to the tunnel of strength and Dan the tunnel of courage." They all agreed. But, they didn't know which leads to which. Minaka went around rubbing the dust off the walls and Ta da! She found signs in angel language. She chanted a few words and the signs became English language. The first tunnel read: The tunnel of Love. The second tunnel read: The tunnel of courage the third tunnel read: The tunnel of strength. They all split up according to their tunnels. They all bid each other good luck and would come back in one piece, and walked into the dark tunnels. Minaka walked forward into the light bravely. And what she saw was pitiful children chained to walls, dangling above ground. Both young and old were there. But, beside them were a pair of spare chains. Another sign read"To free them, you must chain yourself. To show love and care." Minaka did as the sign said. She chained herself willingly and the chains of the others snapped free. They all said "Thank you so much!" and they disappeared into thin air. Minaka smiled back at them warmly and then, her chains too snapped free. Minaka found a red ruby in her palms after that. She continued forward curiously. Jonas saw in front of him, was a super high tower. Beside him was an orange neon cone. The sign said "Put the cone on the top of the tower and climb back down." Jonas said to himself "I am as strong as Hercules and am able to do it." He took the cone on his right hand and scaled the tower all by his left hand. When he reached the top, he used his right hand to put the neon cone and he dropped. His only chance of survival: To use his legs, push against the tower and back to land. Jonas did it and he survived! "Phew! I'd thought I would be a goner!" thought Jonas. And in his hand, was a blue sapphire. He lay on the ground panting profusely. Dan was walking with Moon curiously. He saw a line of people lining up. He went to see what was going on. He saw prisoners placing their head on a wooden head bench, a person holding a razor sharp axe cutting their heads off one by one. The sign said"To free these prisoners from death, you must sacrifice yourself for them." Dan gathered all his courage and pushed to the front and placed his head on the wooden head bench. The axe keeper adjusted to the neck. He raised it up, and swish! The axe keeper and the prisoners disappeared. Dan raised his head up and looked puzzled. Moon flew up and placed a white diamond on Dan's hand. She purred. Dan praised Moon and he went off. The three all met in a hall. Their footsteps all echoed around the hall. The three said in a chorus"I got a jewel!" They all looked at each other. Then Moon flew to the corner of the hall and hit it. Dan ran over and saw what Moon meant. She found a chest. Dan rubbed all the dust away and there revealed a lock. Minaka finally understood. The tunnels were testing whether you were worthy enough for the divine. She asked for all the jewels and fixed them together. The jewels when fitted together, a blinding light shone. And there instead was a key made of pure glass. Minaka held it carefully and placed it in the lock. She turned it clockwise 270 degrees and the lock clicked open. Inside was the divine sword. It was beautifully carved with runes written all over it. The scathe was made of fine leather. The sword was extra sharp and one little poke could make your hand bleed. Dan held it up gracefully. The sword was warm and when Dan held it, a powerful surge of energy raced through his body. They all gasped when Dan suddenly floated up and disappeared. Dan looked around him; he was just in the same hall. But Minaka, Jonas and Moon weren't there. "Come young warrior." said a voice. Dan wondered around and in front of him, he saw the gods. They were all seated on high royal chairs. Women and men were there. They all wore togas and grass crowns. The king sat right on the most outstanding chair. The king said"Young warrior, you have found the divine sword. You must take care of it with great care. The divine sword is not found in treasure chests or any nonsense. It is made with fine trees which were once here and now is gone. We made this sword because of war between the underworld."" What happened?" asked Dan. The king said"You see young warrior, we were peaceful at first until Roger, the underworld servant, stole one of our greatest treasures and he was beheaded. The underworld king heard about it and wasn't happy, so he declared war as Roger was one of his best warriors. Now the sword has been kept safely and you succeeded to get the key. Only one worthy enough would." Dan was amazed. He asked "Then how did my mother know about this?" "She was one of us, young warrior. She was the one who carved the sword." replied the king. Dan looked down at himself and saw shining armour with a red cape and a helmet in his right arm. "Do I get to keep this armour?" asked Dan. "Of course. This armour was also forged by your mother for warriors who were going to battle with the underworld." said the king. And then, the king disappeared. Dan floated down slowly, with the same armour and everything else. He walked towards Jonas with his metal boots clanking against the marble floor. "Dan?" asked Jonas. And Dan smiled back. Jonas was stunned. Dan looked different...... his armour changed, he had a cape and a helmet. Minaka yawned and woke up. She looked at Dan up and down from head to toe. "Not too bad looking Dan." Minaka complimented. Dan said"We gotta get back to the village now. It's almost the solar eclipse. General Will would attack and harm the villagers." They all hurried to the door and Walah! They were back at the village. "Magic!" said Minaka. "Cool!" said Jonas. "That was fast." said Dan. When they looked up, the moon was slowly moving up, covering the sun. The villagers too came out and see what was happening. Tick Tock, Tick Tock, went the clock. Ding Dong, Ding Dong, went the village bell. And finally, it was the solar eclipse. Then suddenly, a whirl of wind came out, and there appeared a portal. Mutants and freaks and abominations all came out in waves. They all charged at the helpless villagers. Moon didn't think but just charged at the abomination who was about to wack the lanky child. Moon spit out ice shards and the abomination died. Jonas too charged at the other freaks and abominations. Minaka began chanting spells as quickly as possible. Magic shield, invisible warriors, Sabertooths, Dragons, tree people and many other more creatures. Only Dan was rooted to the ground unmoving. General Will really meant what he said. Just then, Minaka screamed. Dan snapped back to realistic and said"I'm coming!" He sliced and diced through all the abominations, freaks and Mutants towards Minaka. The abomination who got Minaka tried to lumber away as quickly as it could. But Dan caught up and jumped, pierce and caught Minaka. Minaka blushed and got up in a hustle and quickly chanted. Moon was doing a wonderful job. She used her freezing breath to buy time for the villagers to get their pitchforks, shovels and other farming tools. Jonas also gave the villagers time by multi-tasking. Shouting and fighting. The villagers also made the battle easier as they fought too. Dan's mother used magic. Dan's father used the steel sword he made himself. The village was doing very well in fighting back. General Will smashed his fist on the chair. "Send the second wave!" he roared. And another portal opened. Next up was air and land creatures. Hellhounds, ghouls, zombies, bone-bird of death, acid dove, vultures..... and many other deadly creatures. This time, it was not easy anymore. Only Moon and Minaka could hit the air creatures, while the others land. Two against hundreds and thousands is a bit uneven, don't you think so too? Just then, the villagers thought of something. They could throw food. So a few villagers gathered all the crops and the others.... well have all the fun throwing food and other crops. Sadly, their aiming was very poor. Everyone was missing their shot by an inch or a meter. But not to worry, they had plenty more food to spare. But the wave kept coming and coming. One woman was carrying water until she tripped and fell. The water splashed onto the vulture and it screamed. It melted afterwards. "That's it!" said Dan. "Everyone, use water to splash at the air creatures!!" shouted Dan. The villagers all heard and began bringing buckets of water. They all splashed and it worked wonderfully. Again, the village was victorious. But today, their luck was not the best after all. A undead necromancer came and chanted a few words, moving his hands faster and faster, more purple light coming out and......... all the creatures they killed were....... alive again. Now you can count this as the third wave if you like. The villagers were all tired and weak, but they had to fight in order to save their homes. Minaka too had run out of breath. But Moon was the best; she was still full of energy. General Will laughed. He said "It's time to finish them all off." And he jumped all the way down with more creatures. General Will said"All my work was worth it. You people are just weaklings. Look at you. All torn and tired and you can't even shoot. Well then, it's my turn." And they all charged forward without fear. Suddenly, Dan's runes on the sword lighted up and he swinged his sword forward toward the army. Waited, and waited until they were no more than four inches close, the sword shot out some magical light. "BOOM" went the sound of the sword. "ARGH" went the sound of the army. "Haha!" went the sound of the villagers. It was a joyful sight for the many "spectators". But it was not joyful or gleeful for the general. He was deeply mad. He let out his rage by shouting and charging with his sword in his hand. Dan charged back. They both fought and fought. Sounds of clashing of swords could be heard clearly. "Clang! Ping!" went the swords. "Yah!!" went Dan. "Rahh!!" went General Will. They both were good fighters, but none were better than the other. They fought and fought till evening. Dan was falling out of battle. His energy was running out. Now General Will had an advantage and he took it. He used powerful blows, and Dan was struggling to keep hold. The village people were getting nervous as Dan seemed to weaken. And one last slash........., Dan fell to the ground. Silence was there. Boom,Boom,Boom went the people's heart racing faster and faster. Children were hoping he would get up. But Dan was as still as a rock. General Will smiled. "Aw, how sad, your great hero has fallen. Now who will protect you?" said General Will scornfully. The village all gave up hope. They lost the fight. General Will said"Lisaka Miso Nao!" And rains of demon came down. The ground shook with every step. General Will took over the village and it never been the same ever again. Women were required to wash and hang clothes, make food and serve food. Men were required to work in the farm day and night. No break times and to massage the General. Children also must entertain the General if not, they will be whipped painfully. While working in the laundry room, Minaka was easily distracted as she was worried about Dan. He was in the prison cell lying unconsciously. Minaka was still thinking of an escape plan. While break time, she would always eat quickly and run down to check on Dan. He would always sit on the hard ground looking out of the window. Inside Dan's mind was freedom once, but now, steel bars in front locking him up in a lonely and cold world. When the gods saw this, they felt hopeless. "Our young hero has fallen. The world will now be unstable." said the king. The others nodded in agreement. "But there is a way. The centaurians still live in the woods of Humble Will." said the queen. "Hmm, very well then." said the king. While Minaka was walking to visit Moon, she disappeared. She reappeared in front of the gods. "Young Minaka, we have called you as to help you. In Humble Will, there roams the free centaurians. Write a letter to you friends or relatives and ask them to seek help from the centaurians. The centaurians are half-man, half-horse. They are good in combat and range and they do best in destroying demons and others. Now, go and continue you walk." said the queen kindly and in a puff, she was back. Instead of visiting Moon, she ran back to her room, took out a piece of paper and started writing. She decided to write to Felix and Hinaka since they were the most trusted of Dan. On the note it said: "Dear Felix and Hinaka, we are in great peril. Sun Lake village has been taken over by General Will and the underworld and we need your help. Go to Humble Will woods and seek help from the centaurians. They are half-man, and half-horse. Our village lies in your hands now friends. From, Minaka (Dan's friend)" She hid it under her pillow so no one would find it. The next morning, Minaka woke early and tip-toed outside. Fresh heavenly air brushed against her cheeks. She ran quietly towards the post office and pushed in her letter. She prayed that her friends would receive it and help them. Jonas awoke second; he rubbed his face and yawned. "Another day of work." groaned Jonas. When he went out, he saw Minaka running back. "What's the rush?" asked Jonas. "Oh nothin', just going out for some fresh air that's all, anything wrong?" "Oh. Nothing wrong. Just wondering." replied Jonas. Minaka then returned to her room. She shut the door quietly and sighed. She then changed to her work clothes and put on her apron. The curfew started at 8.00 and ended at 17.30 pm. (5.30 pm) There were three curfews. One for starting work, break time and end work. Except for Wednesday, there were four as there was an extra job. "Ding Dong!" went the bell. She got up and walked towards the canteen. Today's breakfast was rice and carrot with a bit of pork. Minaka sat down at the laundry maid's table with her fellow friend and ate quietly. Today wasn't a very nice day as it was Wednesday. Which means everyone gets an extra job. After eating, everyone went to Oiyashu, the demon who's in charge of giving the extra job. They lined up in a neat row and waited. Few were lucky to get the delivery job, which you can get out and smell fresh air. And the others...... pipe works, polishing and scrubbing the floor. When it was Jonas's turn, he got pipe works. He mouthed a"Yes!" Dan was next. He got polishing. He just took the card and walked away unemotionally. After a few others, it finally reached Minaka. Her heart was beating fast. She hoped to get delivery so she could deliver her letter by herself. She reached into the bag......... and she opened the card....... and it was delivery! She was so overjoyed that she ran towards the laundry room like a dog chasing a cat. She had to tell Dan the good news. (Luckily Dan was released and had his own room.) While doing laundry, Minaka suddenly stopped. "What if I didn't get my letter to deliver? What if someone else got it?" thought Minaka. "Well, if I get there first then I would have the chance to find my letter." muttered Minaka to herself. "Ding Dong!" went the bell. Minaka walked out towards the canteen. Break time was sandwich with hot chocolate. She looked for Dan and finally found him. She sat beside him and asked"Are you feeling better?" "Yeah. I'm fine. I just don't understand how I lost energy so quickly." Minaka too couldn't figure out why. "Well, we can't help it now. We just need allies to help us destroy General Will. I know we can do it if we try." Minaka said reassuringly. "Oh yes, how is Moon doing?" asked Minaka. "Oh she's doing fine. They let her out to train her wings for 2 hours. She also enjoys the meat they give her." said Dan while laughing. "Boom Boom!" went the bell. "Gotta go!" and Dan rushed off. Minaka too rushed off. She rummaged through her letter bag and found her own letter. Thank her lucky stars. She cycled through Vain drain, Falling free forest, Johan's river and finally to Sun Way village. She went to house no. 10. "Ding Dong." went the door bell in a musical tone. The door opened and she saw a young looking man with brown hair. "May I help you?" asked the man. "Is there any Felix or Hinaka here?" asked Minaka kindly. "I'm Felix. You have a letter for me?" asked Felix. "Yes. Here you go." and she handed the letter to Felix. She rode of swiftly and returned in 10 minutes flat. When she reached back, the demons guarding puffed out smoke from their nose. She entered slowly as it was almost 5.30 pm. "Ding Bing!" went the bell. And she ran back to her room. She rushed to brush her teeth and as she was tired after a long day of cycling, she fumbled with her apron. After that, she fell into her comfortable, warm bed. Time passed quickly as what seemed like 10 seconds to her, her alarm clock rang. Today she was very grouchy as she did not get enough sleep. And when she is grouchy, she would be fierce. Dan woke up sleepily too but he wasn't grouchy at all. He was so used to getting up early in the morning that it seemed enough sleep even though it was sometimes only 4 hours of rest. Moon woke up with an ice shard shooting out. She shook herself and was awake already. Her job was to help the cooling machine. Sun Lake village often rained but sometimes there was a draught. So Moon will help the cooling machine and provide water and air-conditioning to the people. Everybody in the village at first started to hate doing this but now loves it. They find it a good use of their time. "Ding Dong!" went the bell. Breakfast was stew. "Ah, good old stew." said Dan and he wolfed down his stew. The others just took their time and slowly ate until the last minute, they too wolfed down the stew. There were lots of laundry clothes. They all piled up like Mount Everest. Minaka took a long time to do all of them and she even had to delay some of her break time just to finish up! Before she could walk to the canteen, the work continued. While doing, Minaka's stomach grumbled. Just then, a laundry lady heard it and took out a piece of peanut-buttered bread. She handed it over when no one was looking and said "Have it. Doing work on an empty stomach can lead to gastric and thus, it's not healthy for you." The lady had brown hair, green eyes and had thin lips. She smiled warmly at Minaka and Minaka thanked her. The lady continued with her work happily as she helped Minaka prevent gastric. General Will was really amused at the children walking blurrily and banging into each other. He roared with laughter and was suddenly thirsty. "Get me some black coffee, Hiyan." Hiyan stomped over to make some coffee. When he came back, he served it to General Will. General sipped the tea and he spat it all out. "This is white coffee you idiot! I asked for black coffee! You imbecile!" shouted General Will and he threw the cup against the wall. Then, the coffee splattered and scalded the children nearby. The children screamed in pain. Instead of helping them, General Will split his sides in laughter. The children looked sadly at their scalded skin. They all held a grudge against General Will. And they all pledged that they will destroy General Will when they are older. In the peaceful village of Sun Way, Felix has not open the letter yet. But Hinaka did luckily. He read the letter carefully and realised that Dan and his village was in trouble. And the writer was Dan's friend. But, he didn't know where Humble Will was...... so how could he find the centaurians? "Hey Felix, you know where is Humble Will?" asked Hinaka. "Huh? Humble Will?" asked Felix. "Yes. Do you know where it is?" asked Hinaka again. "No idea. Go ask someone else. I bet they'll know. Why bother anyway? There's nothin' that important to go there for." "Idiot, He didn't even bother to read the letter." muttered Hinaka. And he went out to ask for directions. "Excuse me sir, do you know where Humble Will is?" asked Hinaka. "Yes I do. It is in the north-east of Sun Way village. It's a long journey from here, about a week or so. So if you want to go ya better pack up some food in there." And the man walked off. Hinaka ran back and started packing up. "Hey, where ya goin'?" asked Felix. "I'm going to save Dan and his village from General Will's army." replied Hinaka. "General Will? I thought he was dead." gasped Felix. "So did I. But no time for talking, I have to go to Humble Will right now." And Hinaka headed for the door. "Wait! I'm coming too." And Felix rushed up to his room to pack. They set off at sunset and headed where the man directed. "Argh. I just can't get this stain off!" grumbled one of the laundry maids. Minaka walked over and said "Let me help you with that. I know how it feels when you can't get it off." And she started scrubbing and chanting a few words. After a few minutes, the stain was off. "Wow! You got magical hands. Thanks!" said the lady. "No problem." And Minaka smiled back warmly. "Shucks, these people are good at guessing...... I wonder what would happen if they found out I was a mage......" thought Minaka. "Ding Bing!" went the bell. Minaka rose up and back to the canteen. Dinner was noodles with beef and broccoli. After the meal, she scrambled back to her room. She took off her hair band and let her hair free. She took off her apron and changed into her pyjamas. The journey to Humble Will was rough. There were quicksand, traps for animals, nets and many other more. The few early days always rained so they camped and did not move on. They always woke up with damp blankets and Felix did not like it one single bit. "Jeeze, how long is this gonna take?" asked Felix. "I don't know. The man said it would take about a week or so." replied Hinaka. Then, there was a rustle of the leaves. Hinaka listened carefully. In what he concluded, that thing was fast, agile and was small. And out appeared was a baby monkey-lion. "What an odd creature. It's a monkey-lion out in the wilds of Flower Power." said Felix. "The flowers here can attract the baby and eat it alive with flesh and bone. We better bring it to safety." said Hinaka. And he lifted the monkey-lion up. The monkey-lion didn't seem to be afraid of Hinaka as if someone else did it before too. The monkey-lion always moved about in Hinaka's arms as it wanted to find a comfortable position to rest for a while. They hiked up a mountain before resting. Just when Felix wanted to start a fire, Hinaka distinguished it. "What the heck? What's that for?" grumbled Felix. "That's to save our lives. If anyone else who is an enemy and sees the smoke rising into the sky, they will track us down." said Hinaka harshly. "Oh man! Does that mean we're eating cold food again?" murmured Felix tiredly. "Yep, you bet we are." replied Hinaka. And Felix moaned. They opened a can of salted pork and finished two in one day. They were hoping for a good night's rest but unfortunately it rained heavily. They all used Felix's canvas tent to sleep. It was quite a squeeze but at least they had a dry place to sleep. The flower's water was out dropping on their heads as if saying "Wake up". They finally woke up with the monkey-lion licking their faces. Their hair was all ruffled up and they had some coffee. The best drink to start the day up. It was not long before they reached a signboard. There were little descriptions on it but in centaurian. "Eno Sihna Ohlo Na." Hinaka read. "What's that suppose to mean?" asked Felix. And Hinaka just shrugged. But somehow, the monkey-lion did. It used its body to point north. So they followed the "arrow". They ran and ran until in was twilight. "Time for sleep." yawned Hinaka. But Felix already was sleeping. The flowers dews dropped down, tip tap tip tap....... A calm and soothing voice echoed in their ears saying "Wake up....." And all of nature is that much beautiful as it can be, and that land in Humble Will. They all woke up in an instance at the smell of flowers. All the flowers bloomed and the trees producing the juiciest fruits of all. The grass right beneath your feet, swaying in the wind. "Where is this wonderful place?" gasped Felix. "This is Humble Will." said that calm and soothing voice. And when they looked up, they saw a female centaurian! Her eyes were lavender-blue, with hair that is as brown as chocolate. "What is your name?" asked Hinaka. "My name is Rain." answered the female centaurian. "Rain, I need your help urgently." said Hinaka. "What is it? Is something the matter?" Rain asked gently. "Yes, something is the matter. Sun Lake village is ruled by the underworld and we need you centaurians to help us fight them." Hinaka said slowly. "Oh yes and my name is Hinaka and he is Felix." Hinaka gestured to Felix who was sitting on a log. "Okay. I will ask my chief to speak with you." said Rain finally. And they thanked her. She galloped off to the tent with the fancy drawings. Her head popped out and she gestured for them to come in. The chief had grey hair and was surprisingly tall. He towered over them for a few minutes before talking. "I am Josef, the chief of all centaurians. And you ask of our help?" asked the chief. "Uh yes. Well currently Sun Lake village is ruled by the underworld and we heard that you centaurians are very good at slaying them." answered Felix. The chief dismissed them first, saying that he had to think in privacy. Meanwhile, Rain showed them the weapons of the centaurians. The most powerful weapon is the spear and second, the bow. They got to try out the long bows but they couldn't handle it. The food of the centaurians, surprisingly, was absolutely delicious. There was Joka Limna, the traditional food of the centaurians. It was a piece of bread sprinkled with different tasting spices, salty and sweet, sour and spicy and others, wrapped up in a leaf. And it is said that once you Joka Limna, your strength is greater than ever. After they ate the bread, they tried the long bow again. And this time, they succeeded. "So do you centaurians eat Joka Limna so you can handle the long bow?" asked Felix. "No, you got it all wrong. We centaurians train at a tender age about umm 5 or 6 years old, so even without the bread, we can still handle the long bow." answered Rain. The chief came out from his tent and said"Fine, we will help you. But on one condition, each of you must go through tests to prove you humans worthy." "When's the tests?" asked Hinaka. "Tomorrow at dawn." replied the chief. And they nodded. For the night, they slept in centaurian tents. For dinner, it was rabbit meat with wheat. (The centaurians have green fingers!) They ate it with some strange looking spice. But it tasted heavenly. They all ate and sang at the same time. Their voices trailed off into the dark sky. "Ow!" yelled Hinaka. And when he looked up, it was the chief stabbing him lightly with a spear. "It's dawn already." he said softly. The chief broke a few pieces of Joka Limna for them to eat. "Test no. 1, agility test." shouted the chief. "Each of you will have the dodge the incoming arrows until it has stopped." he said. And all the archers raised their long bows, and whished past. One arrow slipped by Felix's face, slicing his hair off. It went on for 5 minutes before they went out of arrows. They all passed. Test no.2 was strength test. They each had to hold two buckets of 8000litres of water on each side and hold it for 3 minutes. They both struggled at the weight of it. But luckily for them, the chief let them stop earlier. Their muscles were tired already but there still was one last test. Test no. 3 was accurate shots. There were long bows waiting on the floor and each of them must get five bullseyes. They were given 5 minutes to complete it. Felix was the first to get a bullseye. Rain watched intensely. She didn't want her friends to fail the test and she did want to help Sun Lake village. But 4 minutes passed already and Felix was done but not Hinaka. He still had two more shots to go. The count down was on. 10, 9, 8, 6, 5, 4, 2, 1! And Hinaka's hand released. Everyone was silenced. The arrow whizzed by fast and it hit bullseyes! The centaurian's cheered. The chief grunted. "You have passed. Now you shall lead the attack upon the underworld." announced the chief. Felix and Hinaka stood opened eye. "The attack is two days from now. We must train hard and win the battle. The village depends on us now." Hinaka finally said. And the chief nodded. The battle was now one day away. Hinaka and Felix both battled each other. When the chief was watching, he saw fighting spirit in both of them. They fought with incredible speed and strength. On and on the battle went, more and more centaurians came to watch. They were amazed by what the humans could do. Soon, it was time for battle. They all put on their armour and ate the Joka Limna. They all got their razor-sharp spears and arrows and assembled in two lines. "Today, we fight the underworld and defeat them once and for all. Today, we will end the underworld for once-and-for-all!!!" shouted Hinaka, raising his sword into the air. War cries came from the centaurians in return. And they galloped off, leaving dust behind. They rode and rode endlessly, taking breaks very often. Minaka waited eagerly for Hinaka and Felix to come and save them. Everyday and hour, she got more miserable and her hope wore thin. It has been days since she sent the letter and she even thought that they didn't make it and gave up. Jonas seemed to be more lifeless. He would drag his legs and his eyes were droopy. Dan was still the same. But Moon, very different. She has grown HUMONGOUS. Every time her wings beat down, a whole cloud of dust comes up. They had to fit her into a bigger cage. General Will, luckily, didn't know that the centaurians were attacking. So he relaxed and enjoyed the children getting hurt, which he called "entertainment" and "show". The guards had their fun time too. They would play card while drinking blood. And whenever one of them lose, he would slam the floor and it shook violently. Hinaka was nervous to see General Will as he was a ghost. It ain't nice to see a ghost, it's creepy instead. The second day, they almost reached Sun Lake village. The chief always had to run a few rounds when break time. "Why'd you need to do that?" asked Hinaka. "It's just a habit I guess." replied the chief. Later, they continued on. They crossed Rain Tane and Viper's lair. But they haven't crossed the Scorpion's dessert. They walked on with the heat beating down on them, and scorpions' around them. The dessert's area was unknown and it seemed like they walked for an eternity but still haven't reached their point. Hinaka and Felix couldn't stand the heat but the centaurians endured. They walked on until one of them fell. Scorpions' were coming quickly and using their stingers to hit the centaurians. "Run!!" yelled Rain. A huge rain of scorpions' suddenly came from all around. They all ran as quickly as they could (except for Hinaka and Felix since they were on steeds) to reach high ground. But in a dessert, it's not easy to find very high ground. They ran for their lives until a miracle happened. The Jufi clan came. The Jufi clan knew the dessert like the back of their hands. They shot the scorpions from one place, and then disappeared to another place in a flash. Soon, the huge wave of scorpions all lay on the ground dead. The smell of their rotting flesh attracted vultures. The clan leader, Anla, walked forward. "Thank you very much Anla. Has been a long time since we met." said the chief and they hugged. "A long time indeed old friend." said Anla. Anla was an average sized man, whose nose was a bit crooked. He held a cross-bow and axe with him. "What brings you here?" questioned Anla. "We have come to take back Sun Lake village from the underworld. Would you like to help us?" Hinaka said quickly. "Sun Lake village taken by the underworld, well that's just mad!" Anla trailed off. "So?" asked Felix. "We can't help although I wish I could. We are on a mission too. We've been paid a high price just to assassinate an enemy." said Anla. "Okay then. Good Luck!" and they went off towards the green patch of grass. But it was night time. Tomorrow was the day the underworld will fall. The birds flew past freely in the open air....... Minaka wondered whether Felix and Hinaka had even opened the letter. The more days passed, the harder their work would be. Minaka wished upon a star that they would come, come with allies to destroy General Will once and for all. But, there was one thing missing. The divine sword. Only that will destroy General Will. She did elimination in the places that he would hide the sword, and that left her to two places. His room or the demons' rooms. It was much easier to go into the demons' room to check cause' they were always snoring loudly, so even if you dropped a vase they wouldn't even care. But there was nothing at all. That means it was at General Will's room. The problem was, his room was guarded. But Minaka already solved that problem. She chanted a sleeping spell and it worked perfectly. She sneaked in like a mouse, and lifted every chest, pulled out every drawer and looked at every corner of his room. There was nothing. Then, she saw something shiny. She walked over and opened his walk-in wardrobe and saw a hidden chest. "He's pretty good at hiding stuff eh" thought Minaka. She took out a wire and started hacking into the chest. After a few tweaks, the chest finally clicked open. Inside lay on a silk cloth, the divine. She took the divine and wrapped it with the silk cloth and quickly closed the chest. Then, she went to his bathroom and took all the clothes in the basket. She returned back to her room before going back to the laundry area. When she was at her room, her mind became blank. She didn't know where to hide the divine. She looked around for a good hiding spot. She then decided to put it under her bed. She guessed that no one would look there. But she felt something was not right. She felt like someone was spying on her every move. But whenever she looked behind her back, nobody was there. Felix and Hinaka were nervous as they never fought with the undead before. But they rode on, and they halted. "FIRE!" shouted the chief. And catapults fired away, each stone hitting an area of the metallic gate. The sounds echoed through the building, causing the ground to rumble. Once the gate was broken, they charged in. The demons did not expect the surprise attack so they panicked. They fell one by one, guards lessening in haste. Soon, they reached the main door. Minaka looked out the window and saw centaurians and Felix and Hinaka riding in. "They came!" she exclaimed excitedly. "How can I not know? I have spies everywhere!" snarled General Will. He paced around the room, thinking of how to delay them. Then, he thought of Moon. He took Moon to the front and commanded her to freeze the incoming enemies. But she would not listen. The only person she would listen to was Dan. "She's useless, my lord." said one of the demons. General Will began chanting magical words for the transformation spell. But before he could finish, Hinaka busted in. He then was followed by Felix. They both were dumbfounded at the look of General Will. General Will growled. And he bit Felix's shoulder. "Ow!" groaned Felix. Hinaka was terrified by the sudden action of General Will. "You're are next boy!" cackled General Will in a crazy voice. "Heeya!" and the horse ran off just before General Will leaped on him too. But what Hinaka did was a mistake as General Will could now do the transformation spell. Felix couldn't help as he was stunned. After a blinding light happened, General Will looked just like Moon, except a different colour. "Keep the dragon." General Will roared in his new dragon-like voice. "Chief, I found General Will..... but he seemed much much more powerful." Hinaka said. "Well son, you can't let power or fear take over you. If you lose, well then you have to try harder." said the Chief. And Hinaka smiled. He charged back in, but before he could go in, a low rumbling sound came. "Moon!" he exclaimed. But the dragon breathed out fire instead of ice. Now he was trapped. "Poor Hinaka. Who's going to protect you now?" growled General Will. And with that he plunged his head down, ready to devourer Hinaka. But, somehow he couldn't push his head down further. Minaka and Dan came to the rescue. "Quickly Dan, get him out before the barrier breaks." said Minaka. And Dan sprinted across the wide field. Hinaka panicked. He ran in circles until Dan came. "Come on buddy. It's time to go." said Dan. And they both ran out just in time. "We need a plan ASAP. (Aka as soon as possible)" said Minaka. They all put on their thinking caps and as usual, Hinaka came up with the idea. "Minaka, can you do what you just did to me except around that dragon? Dan I need you to get all the Sun Lake villagers out of the building including Moon. Now go!" shouted Hinaka and they all ran to do their part. Dan ran in and rang the emergency bell. "Bring!!!!" All the villagers gathered at the central hall and all was murmuring about the situation. Dan went to the stage and said"All villagers please line up in two straight lines now. We are going to evacuate the building." They all lined up and waited while Dan got Moon. Moon was delighted to see Dan again. She pounced about happily. "Not now girl. We gotta get out of here quick." said Dan. And he got onto her back and rode her up. He shouted"Follow the dragon!!" And they ran after Moon. Minaka stood in a focused position and began chanting quicker and quicker, louder and louder. Soon the barrier was around General Will. She sat down and crossed her leg and closed her eyes. Soon, she was floating above the ground. She could fly. And when she opened her eyes, her iris changed from a deep blue to a violet-red. She was madx3. She started by taking a stick and drawing out runes on the ground. Then she started to dance around and chant spells and magical words. Soon, the runes started to light up. Out came a dimensional door. Angel warriors, hawks and holy warriors came out. Once the dimensional door closed, no one came in or out. "Attack the demons and the dragon. Make sure they are dead." Minaka said quietly. And they shouted their war cries and charged forward. When General Will heard it, he was surprised and was laughing at the same time. "Such tiny people, thinking that they can defeat me. Oh how scary!" General Will thought in his mind sarcastically. And inhaled a fiery breath and unleashed it. They all took out their shields and faced it at the fiery fire. Once it was gone, they continued on. Minaka lay on the floor weak, as the spell took up a lot of energy. Only a master magician can do it without being tired. When Hinaka saw the warriors, he charged along too. They slashed at the rough and scaly skin of General Will's body. It didn't hurt a single bit until a catapult firing rocks hit him in the stomach. Then, the scaly skin started to drop off. "Fire more at different parts!" Hinaka shouted to the chief. And he nodded. The warriors all hit at the vulnerable parts of his scaly body. Soon, the barrier disappeared. General Will growled and breathed fire all around him so no one could come near him. Dan led them to the secret passage he found the other day and said "Everyone stay in here until I come back." And he rode off to help. Dan saw the huge dragon and gasped. And when General Will saw him, he growled. Dan rode off to find Minaka. Minaka sat on the floor, watching people die and buildings burn. When Dan touched her shoulder, she screamed. "Relax. It's just me." said Dan. "Sorry. I just can't take seeing this. We need to end it now." Minaka said. "But how?" asked Dan. "I have the Divine sword in my room, under my bed. Take it and pierce it at the heart of that cruel man." said Minaka quietly. And Dan ran off towards her room. He looked under the bed and saw a red silk cloth wrapped. He unwrapped it and took the sword and ran off. General Will then had a plan. No one dared come beyond the fire, so why not he attack when they can't attack him ? He started by breathing out fire balls, then small but quick breaths and a wall of flame. Those who were not aware got burned and turned into dust. Hinaka couldn't last any longer and fell to the ground. Dan ran to the wall of fire and shouted"Why not you go back to your ghost self, unless you're scared of losing to me!" And he changed back to his ghost form. "You think I'm scared of you, boy? I have far greater power than you." hissed General Will. "Well then, let's settle the score. Duel battle, just you and me." said Dan. "You made a big mistake, Dan." General Will said. They got on their suit of armour and went off to the forest. There, lined up in a circle were pebbles. If anyone stepped out of the pebbles, that means the opponent wins. They all got ready their stance, and Ding! The round started. (There are 2 rounds.) They all fought with different tactics. General Will fought with slow but strong blows. Dan did the opposite. General kept pushing Dan to the side, making him fall out of battle. But before he fell, he ducked quickly, using his sword pushing General Will out of the battle instead. "The first round goes to Dan!" announced the chief. "Now it's time to end this, once and for all." Dan thought. So when General Will charged, he tried to aim for his heart. But he kept missing. So whenever General Will lays a heavy blow, Dan will aim for his heart. After a few hours, General Will froze. Dan looked up and saw that his sword has landed straight into his heart. General Will looked up at him and said"Thank You." And he turned into a statue. The people all praised Dan for saving them. But Dan just didn't feel happy at all, even thought he was finally free from the clutches of General Will. He got onto Moon and rode back into the castle. He let the people from the secret passage out. They all agreed to choose Dan as the new king since there was a castle. And Dan accepted the offer. As new king, Dan felt rather alone. His mother said"Go around the village and choose a lady." And Dan chose Minaka. Dan took the statue of General Will and buried it. On the tombstone, it read: "Will Nova Born in Sun Lake village. A man who was taken over by power" And the village had peace and the people there lived happily ever after. After a few days, a new prince was born. His name was Ferado. He grew up to be a brave, handsome and mighty king.