Please check out SueViriro's Mission #1: Exhibition. Maraming salamat din po sa dedic!
Sorry pala kung lately ang dami kong extra notes sa stories ko. Iniipon ko na kasi bago matapos ang 2nd arc. Ayoko kasing ma-interrupt masyado ang pagbabasa ninyo sa finale. Malapit na po talaga kasi ang ending, swear. Haha.
theashtone
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"I think they have a point, Ike," RB said, speaking for the first time in a while. "Serafina isn't what she used to be. She killed Jack. She killed Professor Evanesca. She took away my heart. She took me away and tried to use me to fulfill her plans. She only looked at me as a weapon. She tried to use me against you. She may have cared for me a bit, but that's only because of the power I have."
"Of course there's a part of me hesitating to kill her," he added. "No matter how I reject her, she will always be my mother and I will always be her son. I can never change that fact. Still, I've seen and experienced firsthand how cruel and power-hungry she is. In fact, we've all experienced those things. The very fact that she hurt our friends and made them suffer are more than enough reasons for me to hate her. She is evil, Ike. You can't treat her for what she used to be."
"If I kill her, how different am I from the people who killed your father? How different am I from Iveroff?" I asked him.
"Serafina is now just like those people," Professor Elena said calmly. "She's no longer the same. She's after your power, your life. She's going to kill you without a second thought. Think about this: would you rather let Serafina live and allow her to enslave people and conquer the entire world or end her to save millions of lives?"
I didn't say a word.
Delphina headed back to her table. "Clearly, you are still conflicted. You have to think things through. Ponder with your thoughts for now. Also, those memories actually showed you how to defeat Serafina."
All the people inside the hut looked at the old Seer in surprise.
"What do you mean?" Ezekiel asked.
"When Serafina took Rubio's heart, she needed to find a place to hide it. Somewhere safe. Somewhere hidden. Somewhere important to her. Your heart is in place where no one would even think of searching. It's in a place that no one would even be able to reach through conventional means," Delphina said.
RB frowned. "The island?"
Delphina didn't say a word.
"But I thought the island was destroyed?" asked RB.
"No, it wasn't exactly destroyed. It sank. The whole island is perfectly preserved under the sea," Delphina replied.
"So that means RB's heart is somewhere on the island?" asked Ezekiel. "It's still like searching for a needle in a haystack!"
The old Seer smiled. "No. It's somewhere important to Serafina. The heart is in a place where she had a home, a family. It's in the place where her dreams began and ended."
"The house in their farm," RB said.
Delphina nodded. "Finding the island isn't going to be easy. It's somewhere down south. It's been two decades since the incident, so all traces of the tragedy had been erased. Still, the island exists somewhere. You just have to find it. Also, the heart isn't really something that you could easily get. It's sensible to think that Serafina put up powerful defenses around the house in order to protect the heart. After all, you two are both drawing magic from that same source. She might even get notified right away if you took the heart from its place. As always, you have to be quick and systematic in your mission."
"Then let's form a hunting team right away. We need to find the heart before Serafina realizes that we're after it," Ezekiel said.
"There's also another thing that you should know," Delphina added. "Just because you have the heart doesn't mean that RB's body will immediately accept it. The heart has been separated from him for a very long time. There is a chance that his own body might reject it. Rubio might even die. Even if you succeed in acquiring the heart, it doesn't mean that you're going to succeed in returning it to its owner. You have to be very careful."
I stepped forward. "Then it's a good thing that I'll be coming. I have the power of Life. I'm sure I'd be able to find a way to return RB's heart safely back to him."
"Ah. . . I'm touched, hubby!" RB said before rubbing his face on my arm.
"Wow. You finally have a use," Ezekiel added.
"Quit it," I snapped at them.
"You have a point," the old Seer agreed. "Also, I can confidently say that bringing RB's heart back to him will solve the contamination problem of you two. The Death Core has been contaminated badly by Dark Magic due to Serafina. You need someone who can cleanse the heart before putting it back inside RB."
"Faye and Jelal," I said.
"How exactly can we defeat Serafina by bringing Rubio's heart back to him?" Professor Elena asked.
"Well, it's the first step to defeating Serafina. If you succeed, you will not only severe her connection to her son. You'd be able to prevent her from controlling Ike as well. However, let me remind you that Rubio will still have a blood connection with Serafina, and with her having Ike's blood, I could only imagine what she might do."
"Still, despite her immortality and apparent invincibility, there is a way to undo the Petrification Curse. The very same strength of Serafina could well be her single, greatest weakness," Delphina added.
"What do you mean?" Ezekiel asked.
"Her heart. Her Emerald Heart."
"What?"
"The Petrification Curse petrifies the body and heart of the victim. The heart turns into stone. However, when I delved into Serafina's consciousness, I detected that her heart had been turned into emerald. I have a feeling that she herself changed the composition of her stone heart as a way of thumbing her nose at Esmerelda and the school that she believes took her friend away from her. Once the victim had been set free, the petrified heart remains, giving the victim absolute immortality and invincibility to damage, sickness, and harm."
"There is a way, however, to kill an immortal being like Serafina. You have to make her petrified heart beat again," Delphina added.
Ezekiel looked incredulous. "Excuse me? How can we make her heart beat again if that crazy woman can't feel a single thing in the first place?"
"It's the only way," the old Seer replied. "Once her heart beats again, it will shatter along with her body, thus effectively killing her. The moment she regains her humanity is also the moment where she dies."
None of us spoke after hearing Delphina's declaration. The prospect of making Serafina's heart beat again seemed crazy, if not utterly impossible. Even Ezekiel looked clueless as to what to do.
"Obviously, we can't send RB back to Serafina and hope that he'd be able to make his mother's heart beat again," Ezekiel said.
"Nuh-uh. No way. Not gonna happen," RB said right away.
"What you should do now is find Rubio's heart while you still have the time, while Serafina still wants her son to be a part of her success. There is no time to waste. Once Serafina finds out that you're after her son's heart, she will do what is necessary to keep her control over the Death Core. That includes the possibility of her taking back the Core and killing Rubio once and for all," Delphina said.
"She's right," Ezekiel said. "We need to focus first on getting RB's heart back. We can deal with our problem with Serafina later. RB's issue is a lot more urgent. Time is not on our side. Serafina could just decide any moment that she no longer needs her son. That would be extremely dangerous not just for RB but for us as well."
Professor Elena nodded. "It's been decided, then. Delphina, do you have any idea about the location of the island?"
"I can give you a rough estimate of the island's whereabouts, but you have to conduct a more thorough research to really pinpoint its exact location. Do you have any Water Weirdos on your group? The island is underwater. We need someone who can locate a place submerged under the sea," the old Seer said.
RB and I looked at each other. "We did have a Water Weirdo friend, but he's no longer with us. As for my Water Weirdness, I haven't actually developed underwater consciousness so you really can't rely on me that much," I said.
Professor Elena paused for several moments. "Maia might be able to help us with that. She spends most of her time in the water after all."
The guy in black nodded. "Okay. I'll talk right away to the other seniors to formulate our plan for this mission. It's time to hunt down some hearts."
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Miles away from their current location, a young man with brown hair streaked with white is currently walking in the halls of the Emerald School of Magic. He was quite short, easily disappearing in the middle of throngs of taller students. Morning classes are about to end, and he's heading towards one of the cafeterias to eat his lunch.
A commotion suddenly broke out somewhere ahead of him. A few seconds later, a bleeding student being carried by his friends appeared on the other end of the hallway. The young man stepped aside to let the group pass.
"That'll teach you for insulting me!" a man in black shouted at the student. He immediately recognized the man to be one of the villains guarding the school. "Your agents are nothing but swine!"
The young man stared long and hard at the villain who was already walking away.
It's been like this here in Emerald since the beginning of the school year. Villains have taken over everything, including the teaching posts. Additional subjects were added to the curriculum, most of which teach the students about the superiority of weirdos over the communis and how the latter are like vermins. Their Combat Education classes, once loved by many, are now being dreaded by students due to the brutality of their new teachers. The old professors tried to help the students, but with the school administration against them, they could only do so much.
Moreover, anyone who openly showed their support for the rebellion gets punished heavily. Nurse Juliana did her best to keep the students from danger. The opposition was eventually silenced, but there are still several people who dare to show their displease with the administration every now and then. Apparently, the newest victim that the young man had just seen was among them.
His thoughts were interrupted when a familiar voice suddenly called him.
"Devon!"
The young man turned around and saw a girl wearing an Emerald uniform smiling widely at him.
"What do you want from me, sis?" Devon replied wearily as his sister, Iris, approached him.
"Well, I want to eat lunch with my little brother. It's been a while since we last spent some time together," Iris said.
"You always eat your meals in the Emerald Building. Why bother to go with me? I can eat my lunch alone. I don't need your help," Devon replied before walking away.
"Looks like someone's sour today," Iris said. "What happened? Did someone quarrel you? Give me a name."
Devon rolled his eyes. "No one would quarrel me because my former friends are avoiding me now. Also, why are you wearing that? You're not a student here, for your information."
"I just like this uniform so much," Iris replied, twirling her skirt. "I look so cute wearing this. I stole this from that pretty 3rd-year who annoys me so much."
"Yeah. Great."
Devon wasn't like this to his sister especially when they were still young. Orphaned at a young age, the only person who took care of them was their only relative. His sister also helped with their expenses and studies by finding a job. They had to work hard if they wanted to have something. It was a difficult life, but somehow, Devon was happy and contented with it.
Everything went smoothly for Devon and his sister until she met Tyler. For the first few months of their relationship, everything seemed perfect and happy with the two. Devon was genuinely happy for his sister. She's been doing everything she can to take care of him and to provide him with everything he needed, that's why he thought that it's just right that someone should also make his sister happy.
Unfortunately, Tyler was killed accidentally by an agent in an anti-villain operation, and their lives were never the same again.
Iris mourned for months after Tyler's death. Devon felt that his sister was devastated too much because Tyler had given her a kind of happiness that only a lover could give. They no longer have parents, that's why Iris tried to draw love and acceptance from other people. Devon felt sorry for his sister and he tried to comfort her in every way he can. Unfortunately, as people would say, the damage has been done.
The changes with his sister were subtle at first. Eventually, she decided to quit school. Despite of that, she would still wear her old school uniform at times. Iris would also go missing for days and show up in their house all of a sudden. Perhaps the biggest change with her was her behavior. She even showed up late at night covered in blood. Several days after that, a high schooler was found dead not far from them. But Devon kept silent. He didn't even complain when his sister told him that they would be moving to a new place together with a group of complete strangers.
Having no absolute connection with any villain, Jaeron used their situation for the benefit of the Legion. He even gave them a new house. In exchange for that, he went to the Emerald School of Magic to gather much needed information about the school and the Primes. His surveillance eventually gave way to their discovery that Serafina has been petrified as a statue right inside Emerald, which further led to the biggest success of the Legio of Death.
Devon wanted to tell his sister that he only wanted to go to school like a normal kid. He wanted to tell her that he only wants a normal, happy life where they are contented even with simple things. Unfortunately, he would never be able to say those things to Iris. She's been looking after him since he was a kid. He doesn't want his sister to think that he's against her. After all, they only have each other, and he doesn't want to leave his sister alone.
"Hey. Are you even listening to me?"
Devon blinked several times. They were already eating their lunch in the cafeteria. Thanks to his sister's reputation in this school, no other student dared to sit near them.
"What?"
"Do you have classes this afternoon? I might go home late today again, so don't wait for me. Jaeron tasked some of us to go to the PWRI tonight. We need more Freak Shots for our weapons," Iris said.
Devon frowned. "I have to go later to the library to study for an exam tomorrow. Also, you've been doing that thing for weeks already. Why aren't you guys stopping?"
Iris smiled widely. "Well, we're preparing a big surprise for Ike and his friends. We have to be fully equipped if we want to defeat them. Serafina is planning a massive attack on their hideout. She wants everything to be perfect before we drive out those tiny little mice from their hiding place. Sooner or later I'm going to see Ike and RB again. If I'm lucky, I might be able to kill Crimson once and for all. Shouldn't you get excited about that?"
Devon frowned. "No, thanks. I'll pass."
"What's the matter with you? You've been acting weird lately. Anyway, I have to go now! Jaeron might need me. See you later, little bro! Take care!" Iris said before skipping away.
Devon watched his sister as she turned in a corner. For the next several minutes, the young man just stared at the empty space in front of him. The students around him eventually lessened, but Devon just sat motionless on his seat. Then, finally making up his mind, he stood up before heading towards the Emerald Building.
It's not unusual for students to enter the administration building of the Emerald School of Magic. Still, Devon cast a wary glance around the surroundings upon reaching the place. After making sure that no one is watching him, he immediately took the stairs leading to the head's office in the topmost floor of the building.
Fortunately, the circular office was deserted. Devon carefully looked around the room, checking drawers and scanning papers. His eyes suddenly caught a stack of folders on the head's desk. He immediately scanned the contents of the folders, abruptly stopping on the topmost one.
Upon scanning the contents of the folder he's holding, Devon set it carefully on the table before flourishing his hands over the folder.
"Replicus. . ."
An exact copy of the folder suddenly appeared over itself. After returning the original folder back to its place and putting the duplicate folder inside his bag, Devon immediately ran towards the area underneath the miniature solar system before closing his eyes and materializing a second later in the empty circular room under the head's office.
Upon exiting the Emerald Building, Devon immediately dashed towards the nearest classroom building. Thankfully, he came across Professor Ferrea who was heading towards the building where he came from.
"Sir, please, I need your help," Devon said, breathless from running. "I know that you don't trust me. You just really need to know about this. It's really important."
The program adviser of the Mind Weirdo Course is usually lively and jovial with students, but he threw Devon a cold look. "What do you need from me, young man?"
Devon looked around the surroundings before pulling out the folder from his bag and giving it to the professor.
"Please send this to the rebellion," Devon said as Professor Ferrea scanned the contents of the folder. "Serafina is planning to launch a massive attack on the Terresena Mountains. Ike and his friends are in great danger."