The Essence of Balencia

The Era of Zulumat

Their bodies were sickly and most of them looked underweight with their skin sagging and bones protruding, offering knobbiness and sharp angles that made them appear frail and weak. Their hair was thinned and lackluster, completion pale and waxy, with almost a greasy look to it.

"What have these souls done?" Lalzari sighed as they reminded her of the Boblas and she already knew that kind of darkness only led to even more. Their eyes were like blackout curtains cutting out every inch of light that could ever have the possibility to penetrate. The leader of The Makhulqat stepped forward standing right in front of Lalzari. Ahmali had slowly started disappearing behind her snow guardian gripping onto her shawl tightly.

"We meet again... Come and join our ritual" the leader said in a dark gloomy tone dragging his body away to sit down with the others in a circle.

"Meet again?" Lalzari muttered under her breath as she grabbed Ahmali by the hand and Mareeb followed as they all gathered and joined the circle. The smell surrounding The Makhulqat was as if bodies and dead animals had rotten and moulded. Ahmali had used Lalzari's shawl as a barrier between her nose and the air holding it closely to her face.

"I'm not joining any ritual!" Lalzari exclaimed sternly showing her strength as power by not wanting to submit to their wishes as she normally would have done. Before the leader had a chance to speak Lalzari injected once again "first you will answer all my questions!"

"Humph... And what is it you want to know?" The leader rumbled.

"Who are you?"

"The Makhulqat? We are the greatest of creations! Our lord's the Boblas and the spirits of these graves tell us how to achieve our greatness! We live our lives by our rituals and doing as the Boblas and spirits say!" The leader said, the moon's light dimmed over the graveyard and made it seem like even the moon didn't want to be in a place with such darkness.

"What kind of rituals?" Lalzari questioned alerting herself of the other Makhluqat's reactions and body language as the atmosphere was already preparing Lalzari for a battle.

"They tell us to swim in our filth and feces and we do so! They tell us to chants the names of the deceased so we do so! And lo and behold we gain more and more!" The leader snickered raising his hands to both sides as if he himself thought he had gained eternal power and wealth from their doings.

The old Lalzari would've stayed quiet like Melaniee said but... I cannot... Lalzari encouraged herself.

"You think these evil entities are going to keep giving you wordly pleasures but little do you know all of this is just humiliation and in the end these entities will desert you!" The brave warrior boasted wanting to strip away the darkness that had invaded this tribe.

"I would rather give them what they please and have great treasures in this worldly life! Wouldn't you be happier if you had all this wealth and power, we are... Untouchable" the leader said as he pulled out heavy chains of gold gloating as if the hanging metals would be what would save him from his sins.

"NO! I would rather live a life of goodness and know my lord will put me in gardens of flowing streams!" Lalzari bespoke aggressively slowly getting fired up by the insanity she was hearing. The leaders eyes were strange they had a pinpoint look to them, glass bright and wet and at other times pinched and dull. For such light to be sucked out of the eyes only means... His soul is lost for good, Lalzari disappointingly bespoke in her mind.

"Hah! This lord of yours couldn't even save you from going into a life of misery" the leader said reminding Lalzari that no matter what kind of dresses the king gave her she would always be one of the unknown in the eyes of everyone else. He speaks ill of my lord? Lalzari's mind seethed as rage nearly consumed her.