Chapter Forty
Saif Quest
Adrian
"Power down!" Troy and I said together.
"What just happened? How did we get here?" Troy asked.
"We brought you guys back" said Vida. "You're not ready to fight Evren."
"Look, we've beaten who knows how many of his kind" I said. "Or my brother and our friends have at least."
"Evren is not like any villain you've ever faced before" said Udonna. "He's invulnerable to your powers. They may injure him or stop him briefly. But ultimately it would be futile."
"So you're saying that he's invincible?" I asked, hoping that was not the case here.
"No, he's not...but there is a power that can stop him" said Nick. "But there is a power than can stop him."
"Which power?" asked Gia.
I looked at everyone, from the mystic force rangers, to the rest of my brother's friends. Finally, Orion stepped up. "There is a power that is hidden deep in the Altai Mountains...the power of the Saif sword."
This revelation was beginning to scare me. I was the only one here with a direct connection to the Saif sword. I was the Saif ranger, in my time at least I was. Here, I was the White Mystic Nazar Ranger. Something told me that I was the key to all of this, but if I was the key to defeating Evren, then how was I supposed to do it if I didn't have access to my Saif Ranger powers? And also, from what my mom told me, the Saif Saber was once in possession of a cousin of hers from Lebanon, so how did it end up in the Altai Mountains?
"Then we'll get this sword and defeat Evren once and for all" said Troy.
"It's not that easy" said Emma. "We know that the sword is in the Altai Mountains, but its exact location is unknown, as it was hidden away the last person who previously wielded it" she clarified, which answered my question. "But there is a manuscript in Lebanon with its exact location. It's being kept hidden in a Museum in Beirut."
"Nothing is ever easy, is it?" I sighed.
"Sadly, no" said Leanbow. "But you're rangers...you can overcome any obstacle."
"So when do we go?" I asked.
"Actually" Emma began. "You guys have to go on your own."
"What?" I asked, surprised.
"Yes" Udonna said. "Evren is after your family. I've left enchantments at your house, and have also temporarily enchanted your parents, including you here in the present. That way they'll be undetectable to him."
"But why do we have to go alone? Chances are we're going to be cornered by some form of evil out there" I said, feeling uneasy about doing this without the rest of the team.
"Here" Udonna handed Troy and I Nazar necklaces. "These are enchanted, so evil will not track you."
"So we'll be shielded?" Troy asked.
"Yes" Xander said. "We've combined all of our powers to keep you out of Evren's sight."
"So we just break into the museum and take the manuscript?" I asked, unsure if I sounded sarcastic or not.
"It's called: Makhtotah El-Saif!" said Nick.
"Manuscript of the Saif" I said.
"Yes...sadly, it's gonna be up to you guys how to get it. I would just simply advice that you don't get caught. You don't want to get into trouble with the law in a foreign country" advised Noah.
"So how do we get there?" I asked. "Do we hop on a plane and head over there?"
Everyone laughed.
"No, we will open a portal for the both of you" Udonna conjured up a portal. We were able to see the majestic Cedar trees. At least it was day time over there. "Once you have the scroll, you'll be able to locate the Saif Saber. But time is of the essence. But you need to hurry. The enchantments won't last long."
"Right" said Troy. "Ready?" he extended his hand out for me.
I reluctantly took it, and the two of us walked into the portal, the entire time feeling my heart beating a hundred beats a minute. I felt a rush of air as we stepped in, then suddenly the two of us were in the midst of the Lebanese Cedars. They were grand and majestic trees. In fact, the Lebanese Cedar was the emblem in the center of the Lebanese flag. It was a fitting symbol of strength and might. The Cedars were firmly rooted to the ground, and even in the harshest of weather, it remained intact and rooted to its ground.
It was a fitting symbol to represent the country, because Lebanon has had its share of wars and hardships, and yet the country and its people have always stood their ground and remained rooted to their land. They've remained rooted to who they are as a people.
"Ok, so where do we go from here?" I questioned.
"We go look for this manuscript" said Troy.
"Troy, I'm tired. I seriously need to rest or something."
"What do you suggest?"
"I don't know, can we hijack a hotel room or something? I swear if I don't get some sleep any time soon, I'm gonna go nuts."
"Good idea" he agreed, which surprised me.
"For reals?"
"Yes, I know you're tired and all of this has been a long journey" he said, and me just staring at him with surprise. "What?" he chuckled.
"Nothing...I just half expected you to say no."
"Of course not, I can never turn away my little brother and his needs."
"Well come to think of it, I'm not sure I even deserve your generosity."
"Why do you say that?" he frowned.
"Nothing" I shook my head.
"Come on, just tell me."
"I can't!" I said harshly. "I'm sorry...I didn't meant to be so harsh." I leaned against one of the Cedars, its scent refreshing to my senses.
"Ok, you've been acting weird, is there something I should know?"
Actually, there was a lot for him to know. There was a lot that I wanted to tell him. I wanted to prevent him being kidnapped by Darkonda. I wanted to prevent him from turning into Diakos. I wanted to prevent the same thing that happened to Karone as a child, to happen to him. Still, as much as I wanted to change that part of the future, I knew that if I did, that something bad could perhaps happen that would change everything. I wanted to tell him so badly, it was burning me from the inside out.
The both of us headed into the central district of Beirut. I was wondering where we were going to room, given that we had no money. Sure, we had family here, but the last thing we wanted was to involve them in any of this at all. It was too risky.
"Ok, so how are we going to survive here? I aint got money" I said.
"That's a good question" his expression was somewhat worried now.
Suddenly, something fell from out of nowhere between the two of us. We both looked at the ground, a yellow envelope with a sticky note attached.
Thought you might need this!
-Udonna
Opening the envelope, we noticed some money. It was enough for us to survive as far as food, clothing, and shelter were concerned. "Ok, so I guess we'll be ok in these regards then."
"Of course we'll be" he chuckled.
"Then let's go get something to eat. I beg you."
"Sure, let's go to that little café there" Troy pointed to a restaurant.
"Sounds good...some kababs and falafels sound good right about now."
I had to do the ordering, since I was the only one here who spoke either French or Arabic. Troy understood them both, but could not speak them. He was good at speaking Spanish, as I too was, since our parents spoke it fluently. But I was the one who managed to pick the rest, while Troy for the most part only understood.
"Well it's a good thing you speak Arabic...I can only understand, not speak it."
"Why didn't you ever really make the effort to speak it?"
"I don't know...I guess being raised here in the states, and here in California, Spanish and English are more predominant I guess" he laughed.
"Yeah, that's true."
"But hey, you're smarter, it's why you're able to communicate in different languages."
"Come on, you're smart too. Don't say that I have it all, cause I don't."
"Come one, the way your powers have advanced, the way you're able to fight, it's amazing if you ask me."
"Look, there's so much I wish I could tell you, but as you know I can't."
"But something tells me that there's something you're dying to tell me, isn't there?"
"Yes, there is" I looked into his eyes. "Look, it's pointless to deny it, because you know me like the palm of your hand."
"Well yeah, you're my little brother."
"I know, and I guess in this situation it's a bit frustrating."
"Why?"
I looked up at him again. "Because in this situation that we're in, me being from the future, there are things that I wish I could tell you."
"You mean things that you wish you could keep from happening?" he grinned.
"I'm not going to answer that."
"Look, I don't know what it is that you're afraid of, but I also won't force you to tell me."
"Thanks for understanding. To be honest, it's not easy being in this situation. I guess I never in my life ever imagined that I would one day be a power ranger."
"But you were obviously brave enough to become one."
I stifled a laugh. "Right."
"Why do I detect sarcasm?"
"Because you really don't know...and again it's something I wish I could tell you."
"Look" he scooted over and sat down next to me. "I don't want you to feel like you have to tell me anything...because I know how risky it is, and I know you're scared...and don't try and deny it. I can see it just looking into your eyes."
My guts and instincts were telling me to just tell him, to perhaps tell him who Darkonda was and what he does to him. But a more rational part of my mind told me to not say anything. It was something I was warring against, the temptation to change the future to save my brother, to keep him from ever becoming Diakos.
After talking for a while and finally finishing dinner, we both went to a hotel and decided to chill until night time. We were going to break into a museum and steal a priceless artifact in order to save the world from Evren. I literally couldn't wait to go back home, to go back to my time. But at the same time I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to leave Troy. I liked the fact that we were both together, and that we were both talking and again having that brother-brother relationship that we've always had growing up. Of course there was still an invisible wall between us, because I couldn't be one hundred percent open with him, but at the same time that was ok with him, because he knew why I was keeping quiet. So it was all good.
Troy went over the schematics of the museum, and decided that we would go at three in the morning when the streets weren't busy. We knew there were going to be seriously complications here, and then there was the risk of possibly getting caught, but again when it came to saving the world, those were never excuses for us.
"So how much do you know about the Saif Saber?" I asked.
"Not a whole lot, just that it's one of the most powerful swords in the world."
"Ok" I said, my heart beating hard against my ribs. I turned around, again feeling like maybe I should reveal some things to him. What if I told him I was the wielder of the Saif? Would that clarify things? Would it even help?
"Ok, you're doing it again" Troy said seriously.
"What do you mean?"
"You're acting like you're holding back some piece of valuable information."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Adrian!" he got up, and walked toward me. "I know you very well, your tells, when you're lying, when you're holding back something that's obviously important."
"I can't reveal much."
"I know...I'm sorry. I'm just nervous about this mission."
Ok, what if it was essential that I told him? I had my Saif inside my backpack. Its power was frozen, being that its powers were my powers, and I had no access to them.
"Troy, I'm scared of telling you anything remotely about the future. But if there's a way that we can get this artifact without causing us to potentially get caught, I think it's a risk worth taking."
"What are you talking about?" he frowned.
My legs felt weak and jelly like. I was getting ready to faint because of how nervous I was. I was about to reveal to my brother that I was the wielder of the Saif, and that maybe I was the key to all of this. I went and opened my backpack. I looked at the Saif, its powers locked, and with no access to them. I took it out, and showed it to my brother.
"Wait..." he pointed at it, looking more closely at it. "Is that what I think it is?"