The people gather around the entrance of the hamlet to welcome back Mashallah and the teacher.
The sun hangs high in the sky, blazing down on the alive and vibrant savanna. Unfortunately the atmosphere of the hamlet was the exact opposite.
Various huts and rondavels were in total desolation. Doors were broken down entirely and the ground floors were covered in large stains of blood. Some homes were even burned down in the chaos, along with the lives of a few men and beasts.
There was an aching anguish and lost that polluted the air. Women clutching their children tightly while tears poured out like rain. Young kids left scared and scarred, innocence forever lost to the wind.
There were not an abundant amount of people at the gathering, mainly women along with the young and old could be seen. The men who were present could be seen to have a distant and far away gaze in their eyes.
One man in particular who was middle aged in appearance. He had a small wild afro and wore a simple red robe with a few buffalo horns left hanging from his side and had a recent addition of a missing eye. However this wasn't what made the man have such a dull and lifeless expression, even if the pain coming from his empty eye socket would drive anyone else insane.
The moment replayed itself in his mind all over again. The last thing he ever saw in his left eye was a two faced hyena eating his defenseless infant daughter alive before he was ambushed by another one of the beasts. The child never had a chance it seemed. Her small and delicate body crushed like a watermelon, blood spewing out like a broken faucet covering the human face of the vile beast all while it's laughter ranged out from the back face.
He stood a slight distance from the crowd and an growing distance from the reality of the present.
At once the present scene around him shifted and morphed into a dark vail, like a total solar eclipse. However unlike a total solar eclipse which on earth is only visible every hundred years, the tragic fate that came to the man's infant daughter and many more people including young Amara is all too common in the world of Ala.
A young infant who had not even the chance to speak her first words. A lonely young girl who's only memory of her parents were her mother teaching her how to weave clothing out of cotton. Who's only friends were oddity enough the tribes princess and a random wandering youth who came only a short time ago.
A good soul she was, a good soul the infant could've been and now only the slowly fading memories of the fallen remain.
"It's a bad world for the helpless." He mutters quietly while holding a hand to his head, the pain seemed to grow by a mild margin.
Even with the reality presented to the man, in his inner heart he couldn't accept it for what it was and who would blame him.
So it was no true surprise that the moment he saw Malcolm walking past him along with Yara and Tanzu, something in him changed and shifted towards something darker and wicked.
"Hey... hey child, lemme speak to you for a moment." The man says coolly.
Malcolm turns to look at the middle aged man. He narrows his eyes slightly. The acute senses within Malcolm were ringing off alarms that couldn't be ignored.
At once the man who asked still as stone shot forward like an arrow. His figure became burly in Malcolm's vision.
Malcolm even with his advancement to the first realm could at best take a half step back before the man took his throat into a tight grip with only one hand.
Everyone at once were shocked at the sudden action so for a moment Malcolm was left to struggle in the man's grasp. Malcolm used both of his hands to try to pry the man's hand off of his throat but the effort turned out to be useless.
"[Mystic art: Little Hands]"
At once, Tanzu after a moment of delay acted quickly reached out both hands. A visible grey colored aura could be seen with the naked eye that enveloped his hands enlarging them to the size of a man's head.
He quickly ran in between Malcolm and the man and with his enlarged hands pushed Malcolm away so hard he skidded on the ground and at the same time caught the man's head in a tighter grip then what the man had Malcolm's throat in. He even lifted him up off the ground holding him up as easy as fruit. Tanzu's grip seemed to have slightly pierced into the man's empty eye socket causing a truly terrible pain to stream through his body like water from s broken dam.
A bestual and primal howl could be heard for nearly a couple of miles that came from the man at this moment. But only for a moment it lasted before the man suppressed the screams and brought it down to a low but pained moan.
Tanzu narrowed his eyes at the man while Yara ran to Malcolm to try and help him to his feet.
"Im fine im fine dammit!" Malcolm shrugs off Yara slightly while getting back to his feet himself. Yara could only sigh at the scene.
"Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable." She mutters quietly.
Malcolm gathers himself before looking at Tanzu with slightly furrowed brows.
"Appreciate the help back there." Malcolm said at a low tone.
"No need to mention it young man." Tanzu replies plainly while keeping the man's skull in a tight grip.
"Now back to you." As Tanzu speaks he drops the man on the ground. The man scrambles on the ground before lifting his head up to glare at Malcolm, looking past Tanzu.
"YOU it was you! Everyone!" The man shouts at the top of his lungs. He points a shaky finger at Malcolm in pure hatred and rage.
At this time Mashallah and the teacher arrived to the scene of commotion along with the class of young heirs. At once the area in the center of the hamlet became crowded even with the sparse population.
"I just received a premonition, a vision! I understand now, it's all his fault! Ever since that damn child came here, everything's been falling apart!" The man yelled with every once of energy he could spare.
The people around shifted their eyes over to where Malcolm is standing. Many eyes contained confusion, along with those that held suspicion. Malcolm took the moment to look around him.
Over to his right a slight distance there was Banji and Safari along with the rest of their class. Malcolm narrowed it down to just the two he was best familiar with, even if it was a rather shallow familiarity. Banji's eyes seemed to hold a sharp light to it, appearing to be in anticipation of the situation.
Meanwhile Safari had an impassive expression on his face. At that moment he more closely resembled stone in Malcolm's eyes for there wasn't much to read in either one by just looking.
Then Malcolm shifted his gaze straight ahead of him past Tanzu and the man to look at the approaching returning duo.
Mashallah held a concerned expression on her aged face as she approached and took control over the situation.
"Maurice! What's the matter with you?! Why did you attack young black just now?!" Mashallah yelled while a wind began to surround her.
Maurice not even taking his eyes off of Malcolm responded.
"Elder Mashallah! You don't understand what you've brought to our hamlet! This isn't a young man who's been abandoned! This is a demon, a demon who will get us all killed!" Maurice yelled at such a volume that some of those closer to the man covered their ears slightly.
Yara who had been observing quietly gave Malcolm a secret glance before looking back at Maurice.
"What kind of premonition did you receive Maurice? Mashallah asked calmly.
Maurice at this point finally turned his head slightly to look at Mashallah while keeping Malcolm in his peripheral vision. The man layed on the ground still clutching his head with one hand.
"I saw... I saw the future. In less then 5 years from now the Ashuwa tribe along with many nearby tribes will face catastrophe. An apocalyptic cataclysm will fall on every living being in this part of the region, millions will die." Maurice pauses for a moment.
Mashallah narrows her eyes at the man before giving Malcolm a gentle and apologetic look. Malcolm himself is nearly in panic mode for the situation as he saw it was uncertain and could turn to worst at any moment, he just didn't know what would set it off. Yet he knew he had to do or say something so he gathered himself and spoke.
"I don't understand so forgive me if I sound ignorant, but who gave you this premonition anyway?" Malcolm said after a moment of thought.
Maurice only clutched his head harder at Malcolm's question as he also started growling.
A dense and heavy feeling took hold of all the people gathered around as Maurice began growing as he spoke.
"I-its all.. your fault! It's all your fault! You.. should've never have come here! Now they're all dead!" Maurice grips his head with both hands now as he begins foaming at the mouth, shaking erratically and tears stream out of both eyes even if he was missing one.
Yara with a look of worry and pity takes a step forward towards the man.
"Stay away Yara. This man is a lost cause." Her mother spoke internally. Yara narrows her eyes slightly but still moves forward.
"The man needs help mother don't you see? If we stand here and do nothing then what kind of people does that make us and besides don't you smell a scheme in the making here? Someone has the probe the situation might as well be me" Yara says while moving forward.
Her mother sighs inwardly at both her daughter's bravery, insight and stubborn will being displayed in full at this moment.
Tanzu seeing this moves in front of Yara to stop her however all Yara does is give Tanzu a single impassive look and that's all that was needed to move the man aside.
"Oh Hasani she really does take after at least some part of you after all." The mother thinks to herself.
Mashallah stands still like an earthly construct. Watching the scene with an expressionless face. The teacher beside her is sweating profusely with a nervous look on his face.
Banji looks on excitedly with a wide almost crazed smile at the scene. Meanwhile next to him Safari while maintaining his impassive expression casts a glace in Malcolm's direction.
Malcolm himself being suspected to bring calamity to the people felt a crushing feeling of isolation almost drowning anyway forward. The villagers whenever they cast a place in his direction give him looks of suspicion and some, particularly younger children who lost much of their families downright gives looks of fear and hatred at Malcolm.
One child even picks up a rock to toss in Malcolm's direction. Malcolm as still as stone let's the rock strike him across the face. All while tears stream down the child's face he yells.
"Uncle Maurice is right, he has to be right!" The child points a shaky finger at Malcolm.
"Get out of here! Leave here now and never come back you bastard!"
Soon in response to the child's cries the rest of the children also begin to chant the same sentiment. Decrying Malcolm as a demon and demanding for him to be gone forever, never to return and cause more pain.
Some of the women try and calm down the children by embracing them tightly and crying along with them. In the process of this they bring them away from the gathering but mainly away from Malcolm. The few men who survived the attack cast eerie glances at Malcolm.
Secretly there were a couple who even begun to circle Malcolm holding weapons behind them out of sight.
Malcolm's face could not longer be seen clearly as he looked down so no one could see his eyes.
The students seeing the tension were secretly signed by their class teacher to back away. However Banji and Safari stayed still.
Mashallah still having barley moved from her position casted distinct look past the scene into the wide savanna. A few miles away on a small mound there was a small band of rough and hardened men who were using some of their abilities to watch the scene in the hamlet.
"Alright, both of them are in position, let's see what you see in this boy." Akeem says while on top of a leopard the size of a small car.
"I may not be whole yet but my senses have never failed me and I doubt they'll fail me now but just incase let's save our opinions until after this is all over." After the leopard speaks a gentle gust of wind blows by cooling the leopard slightly.
Yara as finally reaches Maurice her mother is harshly warning her to get away from the man but Yara ignores the warning and kneels down to look at the man face to face.
"Princess Yara has always been like this, too kind for her own good." As Tanzu finishes the thought he feels a gentle wind blow by him along with a voice.
"Little man I've got little Yara so you go take care of the two that are about to attack young black ok?"
"Yes elder Mashallah." Tanzu responds while turning around to see Malcolm standing still as the two men get closer to him. He reaches Malcolm's side quickly and stares down the two ordinary looking men.
Meanwhile Maurice lifts his face up to see Yara's caring and gentle eyes looking back at him. She places her hands on his shoulders and speaks quietly.
"Maurice listen, it's going to be ok, the pain you're going through right now is that same pain we're all feeling. But I need you to answer me when I ask you. Who gave you this premonition?"
Maurice only grips his head even tighter in response to Yara's gentle question. His grip becomes so tight he digs through his hair and into his scalp causing blood to begin dripping out slowly.
"It was... it was the.. ancestor. It was ancestor elemental grandmaster!"
Yara frowns slightly.
"You mean grandfather Essien? How would.. no. Why would he sense a catastrophic in the form of Black? He hasn't shown any signs of any ulterior motives."
"I've seen what I've seen, I tell no lies! That damn boy will be the death of all of us!" As Maurice finishes his body begun to shake erratically and instead of foam falling from his mouth, blood took its place. Maurice falling further into insanity clawed deeper into his scalp, tearing hair and flesh in the process. All the while blood poured out of his eye socket, mixing with his tears. In the one eye Maurice still has, his iris color changed to brown but in the light reflected from it made it looked red at first glance.
A wind blew by quickly lifting up Yara and moving her away from Maurice.
At the same moment Mashallah lifted her left sleeve up to reveal a juju amulet with small bones wrapped around nine red beads. The bones on this amulet were inscribed with numbers corresponding to each bead they were linked to.
"Auntie Mashallah! Wait stop it's not too late I can reach him!" Once Yara was brought close enough to Mashallah the third bead began to glow slightly and a golden yellow energy flowed out from the amulet and hovered around Yara in an almost sentient manner.
While this occurred Maurice's body shifts, morphs and contorts in an inhuman fashion.
The blood pouring from his eye socket and mouth gather into a small puddle around Maurice then large bumps begin growing along his whole body. They started from his bleeding head to his face, then his neck, chest and torso, all the way down to his legs.
It was only at this moment Maurice not only stopped screaming but he stopped moving altogether. The bumps on his body only grew larger to the size of apples.
For a moment it was as if time itself slowed down for the last calm before the torrential storm. All stood silently, waiting.
Akeem watching this from the distance gives a devious smile.
"It starts now everyone. May the road ahead be paved in blood and stone!" Akeem says excitedly while throwing his arms up as if to reach for the heavens themselves.
The rest cheer on wickedly with an evident thirst for the blood of their fellow man and the conquest of the land. All in the same moment the leopard beneath Akeem only looked on expressionlessly with eyes full of a cold savage light.
The last thing Maurice could do before his end is look at Malcolm one last time. He had the look of a victim of manslaughter and looked at Malcolm as if he were the perpetrator for his circumstances. Malcolm for his part had ashen and deathly serious look in his eye. Yara looked horrified at the brutality of the situation and inwardly a sense of guilt started collecting its toll.
Yet no matter who felt what they felt, no feelings could change the impending calamity as the large bumps on Maurice's body popped with a sputtering, gushing and sizzling sound like a leaking oil rig or the shaking and popping of a carbonated soda can. From the popped bumps spring large larvae like creatures the size of a palm. They're black in appearance and wiggle and crawl like worms all over Maurice's body.
They each fall on the ground and suck up the puddle of blood in less then 5 seconds. From there their color changes to blood red and they inflate to the size of basketballs.
Even with their increase in size, this only seemed to intensify their hunger for blood, the freshest of blood. They lift and extend themselves to scout in every direction then they spot food all around them. Some may have better blood then others but the creatures can't be too picky now can they.
They coil themselves inward like a spring and blast off faster then bullets. In all directions they fly off searching for food.
"Now!" One of the men near Malcolm shouts as they both unleash their peak second realm aura and blitz towards Malcolm's direction with a strong intent to kill.
Mashallah unleashed her aura in full capacity, generating a tempest of wind so powerful that Yara had to cover her eyes to avoid the fragments of stone and dirt.
The winds blew on for quite a distance until it covered the whole hamlet in what can appear to be a tornado in appearance.
"[Battlefield Art: Breath Of Change]"
One of Akeem's men had a shocked look on his face as they watched the entire hamlet along with some of the surroundings for a mile and a half become covered in a grey circular dome of sharp winds.
"Wh-what is that? Is that a domain art again? Its huge!" The moment he finished speaking Dakari smacked him in the back of his head, not unlike a little brother who's ignorance never ceases to amaze those of a similar level of knowledge or lack thereof.
"No you fool, this is a battlefield art. Unlike a domain or even a territory art, a battlefield combines the enclosed and isolating effect of a domain along with the ever changing malleability and shifting nature of a territory." Dakari narrows his eyes slightly.
"The only thing I can't figure out is how did she achieve such a feat? She's only at the peak fourth realm, usually with an ability like this one would need to be at the fifth realm at least to have enough spiritual energy to create a battlefield art."
"Don't worry yourself too much about it Dakari, it's bad for the nerves." Akeem chimes in cheerfully.
"Compared to our new boss, what's an old lamb like her have to still give? But then again we are trying to recruit this old lamb after all." The leopard eyes grow a darker light to them in response to Akeem's insult.
Akeem having himself near animal like instincts stops talking and gives the leopard soft pets and strokes across it's golden yellow coat.
"Damn you know what? I just realized we can't even see the action now! Damn who told the old lady to pull a battlefield art out of thin air?" Akeem genuinely frowns for the first time.
Seeing the development the leopard speaks.
"Quit your wining I can see the inside just fine I'll tell you everything once its over."
"Alright you better and not a detail left out. I'm gonna take a nap." Once Akeem finishes speaking he does as he said and got to a comforting position on the back of the leopard and started taking a good nap.
Everyone gives a collective sigh whether internally or otherwise at the audacity of their young leader. The leopard however only focuses his full attention on the battle below.