₦airaland Forum

Good job obehid and happy new year. Could this imposter be Marcinus?...... Just wondering

I was earlier suspecting this uspec to be Arexon in disguise but now I suspect it has a connection with Marcinus, or is it Marcinus in disguise since it is a shun? I hope not because it won't be easy for Nebud. Whatever it is I hope it helps Nebud out.

This update is more simpler and precise than the former ones.

Thank Obehid

Mehn, this story has been going great

Gratitude ObehiD

Marcinus or Animaton?

Okay, Obehi, I await.

I'm suspecting this uspec would be Animaton... @ObeHid, I'm captivated by your writing...

Wow... I'm suspecting animaton.. He must have read nebud heat siggy... I dont think marcinus has pansophy... I think animaton is shun too... Obehid nice work btw

[quote author=fashobo post=85607076][/quote]Sorry bro Glo blocked the cheat for everyone yesterday morning e pain me sha but I don use more than 1.7 terabytes since last month when I start using it lol

ayshow6102:
Sorry bro Glo blocked the cheat for everyone yesterday morning e pain me sha but I don use more than 1.7 terabytes since last month when I start using it lol

Hmmm
welldone sir

Animaton or Marcinus...I'm not going to lie, I'm impressed by the guesses...well read and see if you were right. Although, the last time we saw Marcinus it didn't have pansophy so...

@ayshow6102 It still has the ring, but the ring only works when it touches another person with pansophy. So it has to be in contact, the ring uses pansophy so it needs contact to work. Basically, Nebud can be around people with pansophy and not know it, unless it touches them with the ring.

@popeshemoo So the eyes are actually filled with a mixture of imp and uspec eyes. The uspec eyes define the range of spectra that an uspec can have, and the imp eyes activate and fuel the spectra. So an uspec cannot use spectra until it has two imp eyes (only two) no matter how many uspec eyes it has. But, if an uspec only has two imp eyes, then it can only use the spectra of its center eye, which normally corresponds to the spectrum that it was born to.

Part 14
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The guards placed me on a lounging bed in the center of the open quarters. With the motion of my eyes, I could see through to the other areas of the room. It was unique in its design. An okun lay to my left, a sleeping area with a full-sized bed to my right, and in front of me, the curtains which the guards had brought me in through. There were no curtains that I could see within the room itself, nothing to separate the cleaning portion, the sleeping portion and the entertaining portion, which I’d been unceremoniously dumped in.

There was a clutter in the quarters, which my mind seemed to find somewhat familiar. I could say with confidence that I had never been to a room like this before, but there was something about the discarded items which littered the floor of the area, that seemed to remind me of something else. What it was I could not say. My gaze focused on what looked like a tome lying discarded between my lounging chair and an odd chilled table in the center of the room. It was the size of this tome which captured my fascination. I had never seen a smaller tome. It appeared to be so small that the only way to adequately grip it would be by pinching it between my fingers. But how could a tome that small possibly contain information which could be read? There were lots of other oddities in the room, like strangely shaped goblets, and wire frames made of odd colors. Even the colors themselves seemed to hold a fascination. The flooring of the room had a color gradient to it. There was a color which I could not place close to the bottoms of my lounging bed, and then the color brightened with a pattern that seemed logical, despite the fact that I could not decipher the logic.

My gaze caught on the island around the okun. The floor there was made of a color which I recognized. It was the color of Calam’s ring, the one that I’d seen on Fajahromo’s finger. That color was one so unique that its presence here seemed portentous.

The curtains were pulled aside.

The imposter walked in.

It appeared the same as it had been when it left me to the guards. It wore a light cloak, one which exposed bare arms. It wore nothing else, so I could clearly see the mejo horns on its head, and the hooni scales on its neck. I realized then that it was irira, just like me. Though, it had pansophy, and it was obviously quite skilled at changing its appearance, so I could not know for certain what it looked like. Appearance, I had never seen it used as this uspec did. My limited knowledge of pansophy told me that this uspec would have to be greatly skilled to be able to change its appearance the way it did. It was one thing to completely take away one’s appearance, giving the impression of invisibility, it was another to take another person’s appearance and replace it with one’s own.

This was a young uspec. All of its outer eye sockets were filled, but again, it was missing its center eye. It was shun. But it moved around openly? It had power in this port. I could tell as much from its command of the guards, but how did it come to keep its power while being shun? It did not have the bulk of the soldier it had pretended to be. The bulk in its current appearance showed one that had no skill with fighting. What need did one have for fights, when they had magic as this uspec did?

It stopped in front of me, and then bent to a squat so that I could see its face. That face studied me with awe. There was something akin to recognition in the eyes that looked on me. Those eyes bore into my face, studying each eye, each line, its gaze dropped, and I was left with no recourse but to study it in return.

It sighed. “I have waited a long time for this day.” It said. There was a mixture of sorrow and gratification in its voice. If I did not know better, I would have said it was pining. It looked on me as if I reminded it of some great loss. I reached for its pain then, desperate to see what it felt. My search proved futile. I had forgotten how easily those with pansophy could hide their emotions from me.

“There is no need for that.” The pious stated, no doubt referring to my wasted attempt at reaching its emotions. It placed its hand on me, and immediately, I felt my motion return. My hand went to my cutlass as I made to rise off the lounging bed. “You are among family, Cala.”

I froze.

My gaze rose to the uspec’s smiling face. It took a few step backs, leaving enough room for me to rise from the lounging bed. My hand remained on my cutlass, but I made no move to unsheathe it.

Cala.

It had called me Cala, a name that few knew. Not even Musa had known what my progenitor named me. How did this uspec who appeared younger than I did, know? Pansophy, of course, it could have siphoned through my thoughts. But to what purpose? Why would it call itself family?

“Who are you?” I asked.

The uspec smiled at me. “Animaon.”

Animaon’s eye.

I blinked. What was the meaning of this? This was Animaon, the uspec whose eye I’d come here to take? But the eye was already gone. What did that mean? Surely the voice in my head would have changed directives upon seeing that the eye was no longer attainable. The uspec’s words troubled me. It had called itself my family. My first thought was that Calami could have had another offspring. But that was obviously wrong. If Calami had another offspring, Musa would know. Calam then. Perhaps Calam had another offspring? Even this did not seem likely. No, I was the only one of my line.

“Who are you?” I repeated the question.

“Family.” It replied.

I shook my head. “That is not possible.” I spat out.

“You have spectra, but you have not used it against me. You trust me.”

“You have spectra too, and your spectra surpasses mine. Using spectra on you would be futile. That is if your current appearance can be trusted.”

“Come Cala.” It said, ignoring my previous remarks. The uspec began walking. I was left with no other choice but to follow.

Turning around, I found the one part of the room that had been cordoned off from the rest. The uspec walked to those curtains and pulled them aside. I stopped when I saw the sight.

It was a maker’s lab. Of that I was sure. I had not seen many labs, but I had seen pictures in the tomes that I’d read, and this lab looked more disorganized than all the others I’d seen put together. Still, I could tell what it was.

I stood on the other side of the curtains, watching as the uspec walked around. There were stacks of tall shelves, all of which were filled with items I could not describe. I saw several bottles like the ones I’d seen in the entertaining room. These bottles were filled with colored liquid. There were pots and papers, ink and instruments. A cold draft filled the room. In my confusion, the warmth of the room had gone unnoticed. Now, with the cold draft, I recalled the previous warmth, and my excess of clothing. I took the headguard off.

“I like it cold in here.” The uspec’s voice drifted to me from some corner of the room that I could not see. “Come in Cala.”

I took a wary step into the lab. “My name is Nebud.”

“Is it?” I still could not see the uspec, but I could hear sounds associated with it. I heard the chiming of a bell, a strange sound in the room. Metal clanged against metal.

“Who are you?” I yelled. “Tell me. I have no patience for your games.”

“I am Animaon, Cala. I was as a sibling to your progenitor Calami. Calam took me in when I was barely five, and it trained me. I was its apprentice, the only novice that it ever formed a bond with.”

“You are pious.”

“Yes, Cala. Calam sponsored my ceremony. It was the greatest the spectral existence had ever seen. I think I felt Chuspecip’s sacred touch on me when I recited my vows to serve it.” The uspec was suddenly behind me.

I swiveled. My mouth hung open. The uspec standing in front of me now was not the same one that had walked into the lab.

“I thought of Calam as a progenitor. It never adopted me, but, I think in its own way, it thought of me as a ward.” I felt its sadness like a force emanating from it.

The uspec standing in front of me now was older, much older. It was still in its prime, not yet old enough that its features had started falling off, but I could tell that it was in the final years of its prime. It no longer wore its sleeveless cloak, just a black apron with front pockets. Its face was as it had been before, with its outer eye sockets filled and its center one empty. It was truly shun.

What did this mean for my mission?

Thoughts of my mission reminded me of another’s mission. If this uspec was the one that apprenticed with Calam, then it was the one Arexon was looking for. “You are Animaton.” I stated.

It smiled. “Not quite. Animaton was actually your sire’s doing. It mistook my name for Animaton, the first time it saw it written on paper. The mighty Calam was so great and so powerful that I did not dare correct it until I was much older. For five years it called me Animaton. When I finally told it that my name did not have that ‘t’, it laughed. Calami and Sensu both said that it was too late to change it, that my name would have to be Animaton from then on. Calam had a better idea. It called me Animaon only within the walls of its castle. As far as the rest of the world was concerned, Animaon did not exist. To them I was Animaton. At first it was a game, then as the plenum continued to grow, and we became a target, it became an advantage. I covered my neck scales then, so none outside the castle knew that I was irira. Calam found another mejo maker and paid the uspec to take on the identity of Animaton. And thus my alter ego was born.”

“Animaton cannot undo Calam’s thought bubble?”

Animaon shook its head. “Animaton is quite adequate, but it has no great skill. Your friend Marcinus is safe, Cala. What a turn your life took, but you still found a way to befriend Maraci’s line. Neither your sire nor your progenitor could have imagined the uspec you would become. They would be proud Cala.”

It suddenly felt as if there was a lump in my throat. I tried to clear my throat, but I could not make the lump go away. I blinked, trying to shake off the feelings which the uspec’s words stirred in me.

“Where is Musa? I had been expecting to see the imp with you. You did enter this port together.”

I was shocked. “You have been watching us?”

It shrugged, but it did not say more. I could not help but wonder what that shrug meant.

“Musa was bitten by a samu.” The uspec’s eyes widened. It shook its head, muttering. As it spoke, I remembered another detail about Animaton. It was said to have been the one who created samu. “It was you who made it.”

Animaon sighed. “As if I alone could create a creature so magnificent. Calam started it. It began in its final year, and it took me over a decade to complete what the mighty one started. In Calam’s death we lost one of the greatest minds this existence has ever known.”

I shook my head. Calam was responsible for Musa’s fate. “But why? Musa was devoted to Calam! And Chike! Both imps, both dedicated their lives to Calam’s line. Why would Calam create that which could destroy them?”

“Calam had no bad intentions towards imps, especially not those ones. It would have protected the imps that served it with its own life. As devoted as you think Musa was to Calam, Calam was even more devoted to the imp. Musa was Calam’s teacher. It taught the mighty one pansophy. Calam did not make the samu for imps like that, it did it for the other imps. Imps like the ones that call themselves the ‘wrath of Sada’. They seek to take over this existence. Once Calam discovered that they’d found a way to gather enough growth to undo sapping, it had to make another means of fighting them.

Imps are our invaders Cala. They live forever. How do you think they would treat us, if we suddenly populated their umani lands? Would they welcome us and give us means and magic as we have given to so many of theirs? Umanis keep populating. They keep dying and they keep coming here as imps. What happens if they all rise against us? That is the wrath’s plan. How do we defend ourselves? Samu. It is not death, but it is the closest that the imps will come to it. Do not hate Calam for this Cala, in everything it did, it thought first about the safety of its people. It did not count only uspecs as its people, it counted some imps too. It counted Musa.”

I did not know what to say. Perhaps there was an irony to this. Calam created samus to destroy the wrath, but now the wrath was Musa’s only chance. Unless… “is there a cure? Surely you must have made one…”

Animaon shook its head. “I am sorry Cala, there is no cure. If Calam had one in mind, it carried it to its grave.”

“Musa.” The word came out pained, tinted with grief.

“Where is it now?”

“I took it to the wrath. Once, long ago, Musa told me of the power the wrath had with saving their own kind. I thought they could help it.”

“They cannot.” Animaon’s words rung with finality. “Calam made samu to confuse them. It made it so that they could never break it. I do not know the extent of the magic in it, or even how the mighty one got access to it, but samu is like no other uspec creation. It procreates, Cala, that was Calam’s genius, it created a creature which has a life and consciousness of its own. I completed the creation, but even I do not fully understand it.”

I suddenly wished that Animaon was wrong. I wished that Calam was not the great genius it was touted as. In this one instance I hoped the wrath would win against Calam, that they could find a cure. If they could not, then Musa was dead, gone. Forever. No, why? I knew so much now. Pieces of a conversation with an imp on Nefastu floated into my mind. Calam had been right. The imps did plan to take control of this existence away from us. Just like the plenum planned to take control from Chuspecip. So many different battles being fought on so many different fronts. But did Musa have to fall victim? According to Monica, the wrath was working with the other existences to steal control of this one. It was a fact that I could feel from Nefastu. There was something wrong with it, something that blocked my spectra. If the imps won, uspecs would become slaves to them. My mind darted back to the vision of uspecs serving imps in permafrost. That was what Calam created samu for, to ward off that future. I thought of the plenum’s involvement in this. Monica had also said that the other existences had only been able to get a foothold in this existence because the plenum had gone looking for ways to destroy Chuspecip.

It all came back full circle, to the founder, Chuspecip. To the last brio that the plenum needed to destroy it. To the ring that Fajahromo wore, the key to the last brio. And the last brio itself?

“Have you found the ring?” Animaon asked.

I shook my head.

“You must find it Cala. That ring is the key to your destiny.”

I almost laughed. “Fajahromo has it.”

“Only you can unlock it. Find the ring Cala.” It looked like it was about to say more, but it stopped speaking and turned to stare at the curtains which led into its quarters. My attention moved with it. I heard the clashing of swords then. These sounds followed the thuds of bodies falling onto the floor.

We did not have long to wait.

A bloodied sword parted the curtains to the quarters. I pulled out my cutlass immediately. Animaon did not seem the least bit perturbed. It stood composed, its bearing relaxed as it just watched the commotion unfold.

I saw the spikes first.

Dread filled me as four soldiers marched into Animaon’s quarters. These soldiers were all chiefs. They all had four outer eyes on their faces, a silver cross on their earrings, and a silver band on each of their arms.

“Assiduity!” one of the soldiers yelled.

Immediately, they swung their arms to their chests, saluting as Yakubo marched in. Arexon followed behind it.

Yakubo stopped as soon as its eyes met mine. We both stared at each other. Its bloodstained sword was held tightly in the grip of its hands. It had that sword raised towards me. Arexon’s sword was still in its sheath. It stared at me, and then stared past me, to Animaon. Arexon’s gaze froze on Animaon. It suddenly looked pale, as if it was seeing a ghost.

“It’s you.” Arexon’s voice was breathy.

Animaon smiled. “I am impressed high one.” Animaon stated. “No other has tracked Animaton’s identity back to me. How did you do it?”

It took Arexon a while to compose itself enough to reply. When it did, it said, “I asked the pious one a few questions. It was obvious from its answers that I knew more about its supposed creations than it did. Once I realized that, it was only a matter of…persuasion…to get the pious to confess. I did not expect you. It makes no sense.”

“Doesn’t it? Who else would Calam have sent?”

The words. “You are the one who gave Arexon pansophy?” of course! Arexon’s reaction to seeing Animaon suddenly made sense.

“Yes Cala.” It replied. “Calam wished that it could do more for you high one, but it was already spread thin. It had so many Uspecipyte ports that it had to defend from the plenum. It had not seen Sophila as a threat, and once it did, it became about deciding who was a bigger threat, one greedy Kaiser, or the plenum. Calam chose to concentrate its effort on the Uspecipyte ports fighting against the plenum. When your progenitor died, and you were left alone, pansophy was the only gift Calam could think to give. It was the only thing it thought would make a difference in your life. Of course, it tried to get you away from Sophila, but Sophila would not have given you away for all the money in the world.”

Arexon sighed. “Sheath your swords.” It ordered.

The soldiers placed their bloody swords back in their sheaths.

Arexon turned around. “Guard the room.” The four chiefs marched out, leaving only Arexon and Yakubo behind.

“Nebud.” Arexon said, by way of greeting.

I did not know what to say in return. I placed my cutlass back into my sheath and tried not to think of the words we’d exchanged the last time I’d seen it.

“Does Animaton live?” Animaon asked.

“Yes, pious one.” Arexon replied.

“What will you do now?” Animaon asked.

Arexon frowned, but it remained silent. Its eyes moved to me then. Its gaze scanned over, searching my body. “What happened to Moat?”

Moat? It took me a while to remember that that was the name of the soldier who Animaon had pretended to be. “So, you did send a soldier to lead me to Xavier?” I had thought that Animaon made that up.

“Of course I did.” Arexon replied. “Did you kill it for its troubles?” it drawled.

I shook my head. “I never saw it.” My gaze turned to Animaon.

The uspec smiled. “I told your soldier to return to its quarters. You will find it there when you return.”

A reluctant smile formed on Arexon’s face. “And then you took its place?”

Animaon nodded.

“May I ask why?”

“Cala and I had several things to discuss.” Animaon replied.

It turned to face me.

Animaon placed its hand into one of the pockets in its apron and pulled out a vial. It was a glass vial filled with okun, and…my eyes narrowed on it…an eye.

I gaped at it.

“I believe this is what you came here for.” Animaon stated, extending the bottle to me. “I have waited a long time to give it to you.”

I took it with shaky hands. It seemed too easy. Every other eye I’d needed had been taken by force. Yet this uspec gave its willingly to me. Why? “How did you know I needed this?”

“How did I know that you came here with Musa? How did I know of your friendship with the high one? Maybe one day I’ll tell you.” Its eyes twinkled as its smile widened. “Or more likely, when that day comes, you’ll tell me.”

I did not like riddles. I wanted to know how it knew, and why it was so willing to give its eye. How long had the eye been removed, sitting in a bottle waiting for me to collect it? I would have pressed the uspec more if we were alone. I could sense that I would not be getting any more secret nuggets about Calam or Calami with Arexon in the room.

“So what happens now?” Animaon turned its gaze back to Arexon. “What will you do?”

Arexon swallowed. “You are the plenum’s price for my port.”

“Am I?” Animaon inquired, lightheartedly. “And then you will kill all irira in Chiboga. And when the plenum asks you to procreate and to give them your offspring, just as they’ve asked you to give them Sophi? Will you do that too, to save your port. What will you not do?” Animaon’s voice changed, morphing into an uncanny representation of Arexon’s. “I am the tide we’ve been waiting for in Chiboga. Follow me and I will prove it.” It smiled sadly. “What will you say to those soldiers who so bravely chose to slaughter Chiboga nobles for you?”

Slaughter Chiboga nobles?

Arexon’s eyes widened, and then narrowed. “How do you know all of this? Where you there?”

“I know a lot that even I cannot explain. And I know this. Arigad should have done more for you, but it did not. In a moment of weakness, it chose to save its pride rather than ensure a good future for you. It knew that it could not defeat Sophila and it did not want to die a loser. Sophila’s anger at Arigad transferred to you. Yet you rose, despite this. You are more than you think you are Arexon, much more. Do not become less now. If you give in to the plenum without reason, you will never be able to stop. You will become someone that you are unable to live with.”

Arexon appeared dumbstruck. It cleared its throat. “What do I do?”

“In the future? That is for you to say, but in this moment, the choice is simple. The plenum asked you for Animaton, give them Animaton. It is not up to you to decide who the plenum should have asked for, or who they meant to ask for. Give them Animaton.”

“And when they find out that they were wrong, and I knew?”

“Then you start to play the game of rulers. Giving them Animaton buys you time. Time to prepare, time to decide the kind of Kaiser you want to be. And if you decide that ruling is not for you, it buys you time to run. Time is precious Arexon, save as much of it as you can.”

“And you?”

“I am shun.” Animaon stated. “I will recuse myself to the isle of shuns. That is one place the plenum will never think to look for me.”

Arexon nodded. “I will do as you’ve suggested pious one.”

Animaon nodded back. Then it turned to me. “Take care of yourself Cala.” It said.

I did not have the time to formulate my thoughts into a response, before a pool of quicksand appeared underneath the pious one, and pulled it in.

It was gone.

I stared at the eye in the vial in my hand.

Animaon’s eye.

The voice prompted.

“I should have known.” Arexon muttered to itself. “Put the eye in.” It ordered. “We will stand guard.”

I did not have to be told twice. Now that the eye was in my possession, the urge to claim it was overwhelming. I removed the eye from the bottle and placed it into one of my last two empty eye sockets. It did not take long until the world blackened and became nothing.

Wow just wow

.

Wow. Thanks for the update. Lips seal as events unfold

Obehid, you are wow.

Wow obehid thanks for the update

This is good Obehid very good. Now this is what I have been asking you for. Thank you and thank you very much.

I am pleased to find you on twitter, and more awed to find that @ITSDONJAZZYAGAIN actually follows you.

Damn, you are bigger than I thought. Quite a humble person too.

I am impressed

Aww... I feel for animaon.... Why wont it give nebud pansophy... Nebud should have pansophy

Lovely update!!! My guess was correct... Wonder what will happen when he puts the eye in

Nothing more to say... ObehiD you have just proved something to me. I greet you.

I'm wowwed by all these wows! So I left all of you speechless like this? HAHAHA

@Fazemood Lol, thank you, I'm glad you liked it. LOL, I'm actually not big at all. I just happened to follow Don Jazzy right when Mavins was just starting and Don Jazzy was following everyone who followed him.

@olite93 Yeah, wouldn't it be cool if Nebud had pansophy...

@Smooth278 Thank you, but actually...you were wrong it was Animaon not Animaton, two different people

@decoderdgenius Ahh, please tell me oh, what have I proved to you?

I'm now addicted to Wednesdays and Saturdays. Keep it flowing ObehiD

HotB:
I'm now addicted to Wednesdays and Saturdays. Keep it flowing ObehiD

Mind blown! LOL, thank you

***One thing to note about this update is that it holds one crucial arc for the story, but it's also being told from the POV of someone who has no idea what is going on, so I need you to tell me if you're able to spot the HUGE revelation here, because I want it to be clear. Thank you ***

Part 15
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I missed my sire. Where was it? My eye darted to the side where another young uspec sat on a stool beside me. The uspec looked much older than I was. A year older, if I had to guess. How old was I? I did not know. Much older than the last time that I had seen my sire, that was certain. The last time I’d been with my sire, I had been unable to form words adequately. I had not been able to tell it that I loved it. That was before my sire put me into a coffer, and remanded me into another’s care. I do not even know how long I spent in that coffer. But when I came out of it, my sire was gone. I was surrounded by strange uspecs.

The last time I spoke was to my sire. I did not know these uspecs, and I did not trust them.

The young uspec’s head rose. Its eye met mine and it held my gaze for much longer than it usually did. Then it looked away, its eye sweeping quickly towards the other end of the room where its sibling entertained the visiting pious. Assured that its sibling was not watching us, Fajahromo climbed to its knees on the stool and struck out with its hand. It grabbed my skin between its fingers and pinched.

I ignored it.

The pain built as the young uspec continued to pinch my arm.

My mind darted to more pleasurable things. Like the memory of my sire. I remembered the green room that it had taken me to, the one that it had told me not to forget. There were other things not quite clear in my mind, like the names my sire mentioned in that room, and instructions that it had given me, but I could recall the green room.

Fajahromo’s fingers left me. It frowned, annoyed that it had failed to evoke a response. It wanted me to cry out, I would not. I did during my first days here, but then I got tired. I was tired always. Tired of not understanding. Nothing made sense, I wanted my sire back.

I wanted to gaze into its face. Its face was the first that I had seen. I never saw my pater. Pater died creating me. It was a thing of sadness. Chike was sad often, but I brought it joy. I missed Chike too. Chike and sire. Where did they go? Why had they left me?

The sudden pain was so unexpected that I jumped when I felt it.

Drops of blood pooled on my arm, seeping from the wound that the tip of Fajahromo’s blade had inflicted. The uspec smiled at me, delighted at my pain. I remained standing, staring with shock at the blood on my arm.

A firm hand grabbed onto my arm. It yanked the arm up. I turned to find Takabat staring at me. It was pious. I did not like it. It never smiled. Its face was too serious, like its sibling Fajahromo. I hated Fajahromo.

The wound healed.

Pansophy. Takabat had it.

“What happened?” Takabat asked. “How did you cut yourself?”

I thought it was stupid. Why would I cut myself? My sire would not have asked a stupid question like that. My sire would have known what had happened to me. My sire was a genius. I missed my sire. I missed it so much. Why had it abandoned me? I felt tears pooling in my eyes, and fought the familiar urge to shed them. Fajahromo laughed whenever I cried. I did not like to give Fajahromo reasons to laugh.

Takabat sighed.

“What will you do with it?” A pious one asked. This pious one was like Takabat, always serious. It was in its prime, much older than Takabat was. I knew that its name was Isthum. There was one more pious one in the room. That one was older than Takabat, but not as old as Isthum. Its name was Gerangi. I knew the name of every pious one who Takabat allowed to see me. Takabat kept me hidden. That was one of the many reasons I hated it. It was Takabat’s fault that my sire could not find me. I thought of all the reasons it could have had for sending me away. It did not matter the reason, I knew that my sire regretted it now. I knew that it missed me as much as I missed it. I knew that it wanted me back, but how could it find me when Takabat hid me?

Takabat was young. Very young for a pious. It was the first thing every uspec said once they saw it. They said it was too young for a pious. They respected it for its youth. Takabat frowned at me.

“I will do what I must.”

“What an interesting answer.” The other pious one stated. It smiled as it approached me. This was Gerangi. There was something familiar about Gerangi. It looked like an uspec I had seen before, even though I could not place exactly where I had seen it.

“I still do not understand why the offspring of some Lahooni noble is worth so much of your time.” Gerangi remarked mildly.

“Not just some noble, but a noble that the mighty Calam entrusted with the last brio.” Isthum turned its gaze to Takabat. Isthum’s lips twitched as it studied me. It stared at me as if we shared a secret. I looked away. I did not like being surrounded by so many uspecs.

Gerangi seemed impatient. “I understand that you needed the leverage of the uspec’s offspring to get it to disclose the location of the last brio, but now that you have it, surely you can do away with the young one? The longer you hold onto it, the more chances there will be of Sophila finding it.”

“I told Sensu that I would take care of its offspring, in exchange for the location of the last brio. It gave me the last brio. Am I to renege on my part of the bargain?”

“The virtue of youth.” Isthum remarked.

Gerangi scoffed. “You have the ring. Kill the uspec and be done with it.”
I knew that I was the uspec they referred to. I glanced up at Takabat. Our eyes met. It had the calculating look of one examining its options. Would it kill me? If I could not be with my sire, I did not want to live. I did not want to spend the rest of my life enduring Fajahromo’s pinches. Takabat’s gaze moved over to its sibling. It walked towards Fajahromo then. Takabat leaned on the table, studying the piece of parchment Fajahromo had been scribbling on. It smiled, its pride at its younger sibling showing fully as it read over the parchment.

“What is this?” Takabat asked.

“It is an acclaim, sibling, for the mighty Checha’s birthday feast.”

Takabat laughed. It rose to its full height and placed its hand on its younger sibling’s scalp. “Not even two years old, and its already politicking.”

Gerangi’s countenance was serious as it continued to examine me. “It learns from the great Fajahr. Perhaps you should do the same.”

The smile faded from Takabat’s face. “Do not deem yourself fit to lecture me on my progenitor.”

“You are taking a great risk, not only for yourself, but for everyone who knows of this. What do you think Checha will do when it finds out about this uspec’s presence here? And the last brio? Checha is offering Lahooni to the first uspec who gives it any information on the whereabouts of Sensu or the last brio…”

“We are pious, the games we play we do to protect our own kind. On that the three of us agree.” Isthum interrupted Gerangi.

“But Checha is offering Lahooni.”

“And what will a pious one do with a port? We stick to our plan. Either the plenum will succeed, or they will not. If the plenum succeeds, then we can offer them the last brio. It will still be as significant to them then as it is now. We play the smarter game by waiting.”

Gerangi mumbled to itself.

Gemma walked into the room. I liked this imp. It reminded me in some ways of Chike. If there was anyone I would speak to, it would be Gemma. But Gemma was loyal to Takabat, as Chike had been loyal to my sire. Whatever I said to Gemma, the pious one would learn of it, and I did not want the pious one to learn anything from me.

“Your progenitor has returned, master.” It said, bowing to Takabat. It turned briefly towards me, before it continued speaking. “The duke mentioned that it wishes to speak to you. It will come to your quarters after it has eaten.”

I could tell that there was something wrong. Gemma usually smiled. It did not smile now. Its fingers pulled at the skin of its hands.

“What is it Gem?” Takabat asked.

The imp’s head rose to stare sadly at Takabat. “Your progenitor knows.” It pronounced.

“What?” Takabat snapped.

“It intends to search your quarters master. It knows that you are hiding something here.”

I could feel the weight of the stares on me. I did not even have to look to know the glum satisfaction that Fajahromo would take from this. I did look though, I looked and saw Fajahromo smirking at me.

“Gerangi, I am sure you would like to greet my progenitor. Maybe even dine with it? Take Fajahromo with you.”

It was odd the way Takabat ordered Gerangi around. It was a thing I had noticed. I knew that Gerangi was a commoner, at least it had been before it became pious. It was not like Takabat who was the offspring of a duke.

“Kill it.” Gerangi spat out. “Kill it and give the last brio to Checha. They say that Checha is the founding member of the plenum. All members of the plenum are equal, but Checha is the most equal. Find favor in the Kaiser’s eyes and you will secure a place for yourself and your line. There can be no doubt of the outcome of this war. The only chance the Uspecipytes had lay in Calam. Now that Calam and its entire line is gone, the Uspecipyte cause is finished. Would it not be better to court Checha now, while the plenum is still relatively weak, than to try to gain favor when its strength is already solidified?”

I heard the words but I refused to believe them. I could not.

Takabat sighed. “I have heard you my friend, now will you hear me?”

Gerangi was silent. Then, “Omo,” it called out. Hearing its nickname, Fajahromo rose from its stool and walked over to the pious one. They departed together.

There was silence in the room after the uspecs left. Gemma walked over to the curtains, drew it back and then stared out, its head jerking from side to side as if in search of something. Then it drew back into the room and pulled the curtains shut.

“What is the last brio?” It asked.

“The last brio is not a what.” Takabat stated. “It’s a who.”

Again, I felt the weight of eyes on me. This time I did not stir. I kept my gaze on the surface of the table, as those horrible words reverberated in my head. Gerangi’s words played on a loop, but I could not allow myself to hear them. I could not believe them. The repercussions were too great.

“Although we’ve done a good job of making the entire world think it’s a silly artifact.” Isthum laughed. “Calami would be proud of you Takabat.” The uspec sobered. “Now that your progenitor knows of the uspec’s presence, what will you do with it.”

“I need more time.” Takabat stated. “I need more time.”

“You could take it back to Katsoaru.”

“No!” Takabat snapped. “It will not be safe there. Its identity must be kept secret. No one can know who it is. No one can know what it is. No one can know.”

“But the mighty Calam trusted Maraci.”

“Maraci is a warrior, it does not have the wisdom to protect it. After all of this, all the sacrifices, we must ensure that Cala is safe.”

“I leave it to you then. I must return to Chiboga before my captors realize that I managed to escape.”

“I am sorry for the burden on you my friend.”

Isthum scoffed. “Someone needs to be there to watch over Sensu and plant the decoy in Aurelion if it ever comes to that. Who better than a common pious one? They will never suspect it. That is what makes your plan so genius. Bah! Don’t worry about me, I will be fine. They will watch over me, and protect me, for the sake of the precious last brio. It is you I am concerned for. Take care of yourself my friend.”

Takabat and Isthum walked over to each other and embraced. Then quicksand appeared underneath Isthum and it was gone.

“Is it true?” the words felt strange coming from my mouth. It had been so long since I’d spoken that I must have begun to doubt my own ability to do it. There could be no doubt now though, my mouth formed the words and the breath in my windpipes gave them sound.

Gemma gasped. Takabat stared at me with its mouth hanging open. My speech had shocked them.

Takabat was the first to shake out of it. “Is what true?”

“Is my sire gone? Or is that just another lie?” There were so many lies. I knew the lies. Gerangi believed that I was Sensu’s offspring, but I was not. I was Calami’s, the might Calam was my sire. And the last brio? So many different lies and games my head spun whenever I tried to keep up with it. But this I had to know. This I had to know the truth of. If my sire was dead, then what did that mean? Surely it could not be true. Gerangi said that my entire line was gone. But if my line was gone, I would be gone, and I was not. Maybe it meant gone as in gone from Lahooni?

Takabat knelt in front of me.

“I’m sorry Cala.” It said. “All I wanted to do was protect you.”

“No! Liar! Liar!!” I yelled.

“Quiet!” it snapped in a whisper. “No one can know you’re here. Please Cala, no one can know. You must be quiet.”

“NO!!!” I could not stop screaming. I screamed so loud my throat became hoarse. Tears ran down my face. Uncontrollable tears. Of all the lies, why did this one have to be the truth? Thoughts of my sire’s green face filled my mind. Would I truly never see it again? No. I could not bear it. There was too much pain, too much sorrow. I wanted to go back to Lahooni, back to the palace. Back to playing games with Chike and hearing sire’s stories. It told me so many stories. Why could I not remember any one at that moment? Other faces swamped my mind. Animaon and its toys. Animaon made the best toys. Its toys were magical, I’d thought that I would learn to make toys like Animaon did. And Chike would never teach me how to fight. Chike had sworn that it would teach me how to fight. It had taught my progenitor, and my progenitor had been the greatest fighter in the entire port. I had hoped to be great like my progenitor.

“What is the meaning of this?!”

The curtains were jerked aside. I heard the sound of footsteps.

Takabat’s hand wrapped around my arm and suddenly I could not speak. The yells of pain and grief were stuck in my throat. My tears continued to flow down my face, but sound no longer accompanied them. I wanted that sound back. I had to return to Lahooni. I had to return to Lahooni to mourn my sire. What did my sire’s death mean? Who was I to be now?

A strange hand clamped onto me and forced me around. An uspec about as old as Isthum stared down at me. The uspec had the tail of a kute.

“I am sorry for the disturbance pater.” Takabat said formally.

Fajahromo stood beside the tall uspec.

“What is this?”

Takabat bowed. “An uspec, pater, newly born.”

I frowned. I was not newly born. My mind fought between the urgent prodding of my grief, and the knowledge that the conversation taking place was one to be aware of.

“Why is it in my dwelling?”

“It is de trop, pater, its sires did not want it.”

The uspec frowned. “Sires? What of its progenitors?”

“Both died in giving it life.”

The uspec let go off me as if I had suddenly become foul. “It is irira?” the uspec asked.

Takabat inhaled. I could tell from that inhale that it had made a mistake. I did not know what it meant to be irira, but I knew what Takabat sounded like when it said something it wished it hadn’t.

“Please let me keep it pater, let me care for it.”

“No.”

“Pater please…”

“No! Nebu!”

‘I am sorry Cala. I will find you!’ the words drifted into my head, and I knew that they were Takabat’s. ‘I will find you and restore you to your rightful position, but until I do, it is better that you don’t remember any of this. You are newborn.’

Suddenly, I could speak.

I heard myself screaming. And then nothing. Why was I screaming? Tears filled my eyes, but I had no understanding of why I cried. Many green faces stared at me, but I knew none of them.

“Great one, you called?” An uspec walked in.

“Nebu, take this uspec to the slums. It is de trop.”

“Which slum, great one?”

“Whichever slum you please.”

My head ached.

It was not unusual for me to wake up from these dreams with a headache, but this one seemed so much more acute.

“Nebud!” The voice in my head called. I flinched. The loud volume of the voice only seemed to further exacerbate my headache. I did not bother asking what it wanted. I knew it would tell me in its own time.

“Go to Lahooni.” The voice said. “And take Checha’s eye. You must not fail me.”

A shiver passed through me. I could not recall anything from the dream that I’d had once I placed the eye into my socket, but there was something familiar about the name Checha.

“Checha.” I mused aloud.

“Nebud?”

I had forgotten that I was not alone. I jumped to my feet immediately. It took me some time to recall my location. The roiling ache in my head did not make remembering any easier. But, eventually, it came back to me. I was in Animaon’s quarters. Animaon, the uspec whose eye I had been tasked with taking last. Perhaps this Checha would be as easy as Animaon. That was a pleasant thought. At least I knew what Checha was not. It was not the Kaiser of that port. Lahooni had no Kaiser, not since my sire had been slaughtered. No, Salin was the custodian of Lahooni now.

“Did you say Checha?” Arexon’s frowning face stared into mine.

I nodded. The ache in my head did not abate. “Do you know the uspec?”

“Checha is one of the five Kaisers in the plenum. Why did you say its name?”

I laughed. I could not help it. The voice in my head wanted me to take the eye of a member of the plenum? Surely, I was not alone in seeing the hilarity of the situation. Each guffaw sent a spike of pain to my head, but I could not stop. In the face of all of this. The uncertainty of Musa’s life. Xavier’s wellbeing. Animaon’s self-sentence to the isle of shuns, and now this, the voice in my head wanted me to take the eye of a member of the plenum?

My throbbing head chose that moment to remind me of words that Arexon had said to me while it was still commander, and I an uspec soldier in a serf army.

“If the voice tells you to kill yourself, will you do that too?”

The question had seemed ludicrous then, but now, it did not seem quite so absurd. I did not need Arexon to tell me that going after a member of the plenum was a suicide mission. How far was I really willing to go in acquiescence to the voice in my head? And what would happen if I chose to disobey?

“YOU BELONG TO ME!” the voice roared, flaring to life in a way that it had never done before. I fell to my knees, my hands supporting my aching head. “YOU BELONG TO ME!” I let out a gruff cry.

My head pounded as the voice faded.

“Checha’s eye.” It said in a whisper before it was gone.

This is Nebud remembering what transpired before takabat erase his memories and sent him to the slum where is identity would not be disclosed, it potrays the transition of Cala to Nebud. Every new eye unlocks a new mystery I think will make Nebud achieve the greatness he was destined for.

***One thing to note about this update is that it holds one crucial arc for the story, but it's also being told from the POV of someone who has no idea what is going on, so I need you to tell me if you're able to spot the HUGE revelation here, because I want it to be clear. Thank you ***

It is not so clear though:
How Cala came to be a de trop, a Nebud, lost its memory.
And the identity of the last brio, a who, an It, Cala.
Good morning, I hope I'm clear too?

stevyno1:
This is Nebud remembering what transpired before takabat erase his memories and sent him to the slum where is identity would not be disclosed, it potrays the transition of Cala to Nebud. Every new eye unlocks a new mystery I think will make Nebud achieve the greatness he was destined for.

Accurately summarised...

Great revelation here Obehid. All is clear now as day. Nebud is the last brio everyone has been searching for. See me laugh when I realised that all this time the world top powers has been searching for something not knowing that it has been under their noses. Nebud himself too would laugh it's lungs out when it finally realizes that it is what everyone including itself has been looking for.

It is a funny turn of event. The next I would like to know is the wealth of lahooni, where is it? Or is it another lie just to distract everyone from seeking to find out the descendant of calam, if it is still alive? I hope it isn't because it is an inheritance worthy of an uspec such as Nebud.

Gerangi has always been against Nebud (cala)or has it? It was ignorance of the real background of the young uspec before it then.

Nebud (cala) I hope it remembers all these dreams or rather flash memories it has had to aid it in getting things straight and out.

Thanks Obehid for another sizzling update.

if nebud is d last brio, what is d ring in fajaromo hand unlocking... Probably a vault dat has 21 century tech finger print... Which nebud is d only living registered finger

Thanks for the update obehid please bring back musa we didn't get to test the whip me and nehud purchased at chiboga on him yet

God bless you obehid for this wednesday dose. Your intellectual and deep-thinking prowess is very much appreciated