Chapter 32
“What do you mean you’ve been76Please respect copyright.PENANAqySAICidPw
expecting me?” Vander asked as he climbed the stairs. Shea followed a step76Please respect copyright.PENANAbnRHd9tHZT
behind him unwilling to let him be alone with a man she didn’t know.
“It’s as I said.” Humi had a76Please respect copyright.PENANAuzl0gBfVe4
faraway look in his eyes. Humi was a strange man. He had short brown hair and76Please respect copyright.PENANA1qFjKyKisB
light blue eyes. He was a portly man, but Vander could feel a strength from him76Please respect copyright.PENANAGHY1yhPKsL
he couldn’t quite place. He wore a long blue robe, different from the one he76Please respect copyright.PENANA1PBf3xLkp2
wore at the wedding. This one was light, made from simple cloth, with a moon76Please respect copyright.PENANAd25xgxtTCs
stitched on his chest.
Despite being a76Please respect copyright.PENANA3csU7ctXRq
member of Humjir’s temple, Vander didn’t know much about him other than the76Please respect copyright.PENANAH2RauYrE1h
fact that he frequented the castle to talk to the former King, but it was76Please respect copyright.PENANAXVDLykvXJq
always behind closed doors away from prying ears. The wedding was the first76Please respect copyright.PENANAt5IhQXe4Sn
time he had seen Humi in years. There was a smell to him, like Malcolm, yet76Please respect copyright.PENANAPiiR0p2eCJ
different. However, Vander had difficulty explaining the feeling to himself.
“You can smell76Please respect copyright.PENANAzpXAOxCHnA
the shard of Humjir inside of me, young Unna’tun.” Humi smiled as if reading76Please respect copyright.PENANAqhE9r2VzPN
Vander’s thoughts.
“I thought the gods only had one76Please respect copyright.PENANAteseVHFcJR
shard at a time?” Vander asked. “I thought Cuvera inherited it when his father76Please respect copyright.PENANAtHlac288KG
died.”
“That’s what you’ve been told,76Please respect copyright.PENANALf0i2cizJk
but, like many things, it’s wrong.” Humi turned around then started to walk76Please respect copyright.PENANAB6Uha2Oodm
deeper into the temple. He didn’t speak to Vander, but Vander knew that he76Please respect copyright.PENANAo12iniYx4f
should follow. Only then would he gain the answers he sook.
“Why aren’t you afraid of me like76Please respect copyright.PENANA2jTkG4By8m
everyone else?” Vander asked him. Humi paused for a second but kept walking.
“Because I know you didn’t kill76Please respect copyright.PENANAtKThjO2zFf
Malcolm.” He explained. He didn’t share76Please respect copyright.PENANA7RSxp2pVaA
how he knew, but Vander thought that it had something to do with why he had a76Please respect copyright.PENANA3ac9AWZuGz
shard inside of him. Another mystery he wanted solved.
Humi lead them deep into the76Please respect copyright.PENANALvZuQM49aG
temple. Despite the later hour, Vander expected other acolytes to be here, not76Please respect copyright.PENANAWtXX323Ep3
just Humi. However, he couldn’t smell or hear anyone else inside. He asked the76Please respect copyright.PENANAve39FH8iC9
priest about it, but Humi kept walking, ignoring the question entirely. He76Please respect copyright.PENANAf3ncZBcg7n
instructed Shea to keep her wits about her, but to stay close in case they were76Please respect copyright.PENANAyCVeeSamn1
walking into a trap. Malcolm may have said to trust this man, but Vander76Please respect copyright.PENANAMgUS6MkqDy
trusted Peyton and had been betrayed. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
They were taken down a long76Please respect copyright.PENANAu5QY54imIG
hallway where it looked like portraits of all the past kings and queens were76Please respect copyright.PENANAeBc8RrlBPx
placed, however they looked slightly different than what he had seen in the76Please respect copyright.PENANAgiEEHI11cm
castle. These people had pupilless eyes while their hair had a blue hue to it.76Please respect copyright.PENANAyYaH92J4uL
They must have been previous shards of Humjir, but why did they resemble76Please respect copyright.PENANAgUxD99UOY8
Eluvia’s monarchy? More questions with no answers, they pushed on.
After about ten minutes of76Please respect copyright.PENANAf6DSgqnW2M
walking, they finally came to one of the paths that would lead them to Humjir’s76Please respect copyright.PENANAsNpA33hNvD
pool. Vander could smell fresh water, something rare within the city walls. The76Please respect copyright.PENANAb3qWCzwhBL
fresh water he had ever smelled was in the middle of the forest, but somehow76Please respect copyright.PENANAFhR4EOlwo5
this was fresher than that. He wondered why that was, but before he could ask,76Please respect copyright.PENANAgNTQd8zsma
Humi turned down the hall beckoning the two of them to follow.
“It is best if we talk here.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAUKkn1UQOBj
Despite being outside, Vander had the sneaking suspicion that they were in an76Please respect copyright.PENANATfKafNsLyn
enclosed space, cut off from the rest of the city. The fact that Humi’s voice76Please respect copyright.PENANAldqzVNfHR4
didn’t echo when he talked was further proof of that.
“Where is here?” Vander asked. If76Please respect copyright.PENANAboBLJgRUIL
Humi was impressed he had picked up on it he didn’t show it.
“A special area, even for Humjir.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAdJakDbH5qY
Humi explained. “When he passed down the hall we entered this sacred space.76Please respect copyright.PENANAJg7l29JMMu
Only those with a shard, or who are bonded to a shard, may enter.”
“Then what is the pool anyone can76Please respect copyright.PENANAGoNyRkBl95
enter to worship Humjir?” Vander asked.
“Just that, a pool.” Humi76Please respect copyright.PENANAmHZ2VSZFeu
explained. “A specially crafted pool which we clean daily to make it feel as76Please respect copyright.PENANAahLpls1Mnw
special as possible, but this is the true space that Humjir himself had created76Please respect copyright.PENANAhC5doYSINK
a long time ago.”
The pool itself was immaculate.76Please respect copyright.PENANAdGdkimPwiD
There were no borders to keep the water in, however, it still stayed within a76Please respect copyright.PENANAJGksitJWbN
perfect circle. There was a large rock formation that poured ice blue water76Please respect copyright.PENANA7gmKEPndtG
into the pool. The area around it had a blueish hue, like it reflected the76Please respect copyright.PENANAMjZx0sLTMA
color of the water inside. Vander took a careful step towards the edge to peer76Please respect copyright.PENANAwWBXYNXror
into the depths. He saw several large fish swimming around, but the biggest76Please respect copyright.PENANA5ACctEPjMz
surprise was the full moon shining in the depths despite it only being a76Please respect copyright.PENANAGffIYkCDzY
quarter moon in the sky. Vander felt drawn to the pool, but Humi grabbed his76Please respect copyright.PENANAr3saRace11
arm pulling him away.
“Many have lost themselves to the76Please respect copyright.PENANAZ9rxnVje4P
depth’s, Vander.” He spoke. “It’s best, especially for you, to stay away.”
“Why?” Vander asked.
“You know the story of Atza’s76Please respect copyright.PENANAPkjc4jTzhm
wrath because Humjir used his pool to spy on Unna?” Vander paled as he76Please respect copyright.PENANAMrr2rR32vl
remembered that story. He could hear Unna’s laughter in his ears when he read76Please respect copyright.PENANA3LxjefbEo8
about it. “If you peer inside, you could enter her realm and that would be very76Please respect copyright.PENANAWfAEjSwua3
bad for you.”
“I wouldn’t let that happen.” Shea76Please respect copyright.PENANA4swuuuLW2N
growled.
“There wouldn’t be much you could76Please respect copyright.PENANAtODmsPCcNz
do about it, little shadow beast.” Humi answered. “Yes, I can hear what you76Please respect copyright.PENANA4ptTStywIl
say, but that’s only because we are here where my powers are stronger. Now,76Please respect copyright.PENANAxCIVIEbAsX
let’s talk before we run out of time. You’re here because you read Malcolm’s76Please respect copyright.PENANAEtCv0Bqsqq
note inside the book.” It was a statement not a question, so Vander answered by76Please respect copyright.PENANAuBGBTDHMgA
nodding his head. “Where is the book now?” Vander pat his chest where the black76Please respect copyright.PENANAGICOtqVkHv
book was sitting in his pocket. “Good, make sure you always keep it on you.76Please respect copyright.PENANAIxgNCUP3VA
Don’t let anyone near it unless you can absolutely trust them.”
“I understand, but why all the76Please respect copyright.PENANA4G9hTF2jSX
secrecy?”
“That tells me you didn’t read the76Please respect copyright.PENANAtUp7sqhTEd
book in it’s entirety, but I supposed that’s alright,” Humi smirked. “You were76Please respect copyright.PENANAvkti6B3DQy
curious about Unna, so you likely read that first to pass the time until you76Please respect copyright.PENANA5CYxUYiC1o
came here. But to answer your question, I’ll have to ask one. Have you heard of76Please respect copyright.PENANAmEDKHQMZSr
the Black Order?”
“No?” Vander frowned. In his76Please respect copyright.PENANAcbLoMMn0wR
entire time as a Blade and holding the shard of Unna, not once had anyone76Please respect copyright.PENANApeMGJB9sBX
mentioned them. “Who are they?”
“Not surprising,” Humi sighed.76Please respect copyright.PENANAsXYXAiA0YV
“Their name has changed over the millennia, but they have been around since the76Please respect copyright.PENANAfKHpkXPRLk
Great War. They were the human who were on Darkness’s side and vowed to one day76Please respect copyright.PENANAgRJYfUDXcH
return her to this realm.”
“Now that you mention it, they76Please respect copyright.PENANAsX9oBKarZS
sound familiar.” Vander explained. “I thought they were eradicated.”
“We thought so too, but for the76Please respect copyright.PENANAKe7zGkmkh2
past century we have noticed them appearing all over once again.” Humi said.76Please respect copyright.PENANAUE0AafKSvF
“We aren’t sure who they are, we have some suspects, but until Malcolm’s76Please respect copyright.PENANAnJJpsFS2mx
assassination, no solid proof. It appears Peyton could be our link.”
“Why would they kill Malcolm?”76Please respect copyright.PENANAEI3OZHlxxC
Vander asked. “He’s the King of the most powerful country, with an equally76Please respect copyright.PENANAuQkdmLfRnp
strong successor. There would be no point on angering us.”
“Ah, but there is a point.” Humi76Please respect copyright.PENANA7KQOwYIonT
smiled. “Malcolm held Humjir’s shard inside of his body. They needed that as76Please respect copyright.PENANAK7UsOdw18x
part of their plan to awaken the Darkness.” Vander shot him a quizzical glance76Please respect copyright.PENANAxNVfYTyRTq
causing Humi to sigh. Vander could feel the man’s impatience with him, but he76Please respect copyright.PENANAvSGBBMY3vg
couldn’t see what these facts had to do with each other. “They need the shard76Please respect copyright.PENANAciIGjWH3kk
of each god to unseal her. It was their power that took her out and it will be76Please respect copyright.PENANADmRqJydoTd
their power to release her once again.”
“Wait.” Vander frowned. “If that’s76Please respect copyright.PENANAbyrrmNu7sk
the case, then why are shard holders running around amok? Why not place them76Please respect copyright.PENANAo8qmZ964Wt
under guard to protect them?”
“Would you be able to control76Please respect copyright.PENANAFUttaQGq7O
nobility and keep them confined?” Humi shook his head. “It was attempted many76Please respect copyright.PENANAEFnsyHuwJ5
centuries ago, but it went about as well as could be expected. So, they came up76Please respect copyright.PENANADfvLllAV0I
with an agreement. No one would know who the shards are, except for those in76Please respect copyright.PENANAr2ewrCAUcB
the know. Each stronghold would have two within their walls, however Atza’s76Please respect copyright.PENANA1tsDDV9YTA
shard didn’t trust that we could protect her, so she went somewhere else. They76Please respect copyright.PENANAzlVu05IPic
founded the country of Bricen, and only those in the royal family knew who it76Please respect copyright.PENANAcXE7ZVjFyl
would be.”
“But why would the order act now?”76Please respect copyright.PENANAd92FyGnk3Q
Vander frowned. He racked his brain to figure out why when the past events came76Please respect copyright.PENANA2JJgojvEAF
flooding into him. “Because all of the shards are together.”
“Correct.” Humi grimaced. “We are76Please respect copyright.PENANASdCupBZSey
all at risk, but no one knows it outside of our little group. Our little safety76Please respect copyright.PENANAWhxqmqnsGg
net ended up dooming us all.”
“Not even the shards know who each76Please respect copyright.PENANAzha7h74Di4
other are?” Vander asked. “I thought we could all sense each other.”
“No, that’s why you are special76Please respect copyright.PENANAARwdO9gQ0Q
and why Peyton likely wanted to ostracize you from everyone else.” Humi placed76Please respect copyright.PENANAbyadVmF6EC
his hand on Vander’s shoulder. “It hasn’t been much of secret when you became76Please respect copyright.PENANARZZf81Uj7o
Unna’s shard, it hasn’t happened in many, many years and most don’t survive76Please respect copyright.PENANA9L5go3bEVY
very long. The fact that you are still alive is testament to your willpower and76Please respect copyright.PENANALMzQpyjE96
Malcolm’s ability to keep it a secret, but it’s out in the open now. If they76Please respect copyright.PENANAdkjFxuj4o9
get ahold of your gifts, it will doom us all.”
“So, what should I do?” Vander76Please respect copyright.PENANAF9zxAuC39G
asked. “I can’t just abandon my friends and family to go on the run.”
“No, you can’t.” Humi sighed.76Please respect copyright.PENANAB8MsUUsxbr
“They know who you are and will go to the ends of the earth to find you. All we76Please respect copyright.PENANAqFvIPveWYu
can do is protect those here until they leave, to give us time to think of a76Please respect copyright.PENANARNsYs0UpH8
solution.”
“Can I ask you something else?”76Please respect copyright.PENANAyzrAYH6pk4
Vander asked. Humi nodded. “How do the Green Serpents fit into this? I mean,76Please respect copyright.PENANAHt4eKncF3p
they were the ones who poisoned Malcolm and tried to assassinate me. What is it76Please respect copyright.PENANANBYzwSoLdm
they want?”
“The only thing Malcolm and I76Please respect copyright.PENANAr92OlE8aTr
could come up with was that they were hired to do a job.” Humi explained. “Lure76Please respect copyright.PENANAQgPQ96qR91
you out of hiding so they can kill you and part of it worked. Now they must76Please respect copyright.PENANAUkXw6nseH8
find you, but it looks as though you found them first.”
“Three escaped, but I’m sure they76Please respect copyright.PENANArliDk04GXG
have a plan.” Vander explained. “But they have sent someone else after me. I76Please respect copyright.PENANAz581dBAnRB
found a note in the house explaining that someone called ‘Fang’, has been sent76Please respect copyright.PENANAfhrW5gkIJ3
after me. Have you heard of them?”
“No,” Humi frowned. “But they have76Please respect copyright.PENANAEVFrI55xj2
been especially sent for you, then you need to do a better job of hiding before76Please respect copyright.PENANAeBxSjA1Bhw
they find you.”
“Oh, it’s far too late for that.” Humi76Please respect copyright.PENANAVyoV00y49K
and Vander, startled by the noise, looked up to find a figure squatting on top76Please respect copyright.PENANAL8xLcCGOOj
of the fountain.
They were dressed76Please respect copyright.PENANAWuq09aSQ61
in an all-black uniform that had a greenish hue to it. Vander could tell that76Please respect copyright.PENANA2szlzSKynG
the armor was well crafted with metal plating underneath it. The leather76Please respect copyright.PENANAd9LSOJENIU
vambraces were holding numerous weapons, Vander could smell poison emanating76Please respect copyright.PENANApK0omOCFPH
from them, and they had a sword slung across their back. The hood over their76Please respect copyright.PENANArl86vjsCli
face obscured their looks, but despite that, they were still wearing a green76Please respect copyright.PENANARfd1fnxR37
mask with a serpent painted onto it.
Vander went for76Please respect copyright.PENANAFrZnWoLl7t
his sword, but Humi stood in front of him. “It’s not your time.” He whispered.76Please respect copyright.PENANA2BIPSfniRU
He opened his robe and removed a whip that had been wrapped around his waist.76Please respect copyright.PENANAasYqDIhjbH
“The fact that they got into this sanctuary means Humjir’s power is weakening.76Please respect copyright.PENANAugIgliEHLH
It will take time for the shard to take effect in someone new. You must be76Please respect copyright.PENANA6WhsuWWvNh
alive to protect them.”
“I can help you.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAAqvLS9Bedo
Vander hissed. Shea grabbed onto his pants to drag him back.
“Protect the76Please respect copyright.PENANAudQCREzn2z
book!” Humi smiled. “This is not where you die young Vander. You still have76Please respect copyright.PENANAkQdyfolqJt
plenty to do, please allow me to see my friend in the afterlife knowing I76Please respect copyright.PENANAfdMomqJR32
helped protect our home.”
“Can you take76Please respect copyright.PENANAooDVdQV3Ij
them” Vander hesitated.
“Never fear.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAPALM6afjdX
Humi smiled. He cracked the whip as he stared down the assassin. “You’ll have76Please respect copyright.PENANALlfcq3swNf
to get through me to get to him.”
“No problem.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAtMJn1HXLdS
Vander thought he could hear the assassin grinning from behind the mask.
“Take this with76Please respect copyright.PENANAkcAs0RT9ws
you as well.” Humi held out a vial of water towards Vander. “Once you are safe,76Please respect copyright.PENANAn87pq7H8ZG
drink that. Only then will you know what’s at stake.” Vander took the vial then76Please respect copyright.PENANArEnYenJUup
slipped it into his pocket. He opened his mouth to say more, but Shea once again76Please respect copyright.PENANAO38poxi0So
pulled on his jacket.
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“We must go.”76Please respect copyright.PENANAHzPMyTXaB0
Vander allowed himself to run as this was the only option available to him. He76Please respect copyright.PENANAw8HMfHa6Az
prayed that Humi would survive, but it was unlikely. Humi was right, however,76Please respect copyright.PENANAemsW1TJQHT
he had to protect the book and the secrets that lay within. If it helped save76Please respect copyright.PENANAQRoZPLS1Ay
this city, he would do whatever he could.