Chapter 11: Collatio Tomi
Cupid
walked up a path to a dilapidated monastery. To any other
traveler, this was a ruin to be dismissed, but he knew better.
Entering the place he found a well organized room with charts and
maps pinned to the walls, weapons and other tools lined shelves, and
several iron boxes were locked with extremely intricate mechanisms.
Nova
studied a large map with his one good eye. Cupid approached him, “Are
you ever going to not do this all on your own?”
Nova
laughed, “Maybe. It is a hard job, but somebody has to do it.
Besides, those who do know of my operation believe I am one of many.”
“That’s
because you are all over the place. I have wings and I don’t move
around as much as you.”
“True.
But, for now, it is easier keeping secrets alone.” Nova looked at
him, “So, what has become of Jinn?”
“He
is on his own. Without his powers, he is nothing more than another
human, at least to the humans. He can make a life for himself out
there and maybe learn a little about humility.”
“What
about his powers, that bottle of his?”
Cupid
sat down on a chair, “Lady Phoenix took it back to their palace in
Nippon. There they will protect it.”
“Seems
foolish to keep it here on this world. If I were them, I would at
least plant it on the moon or something like that.”
Cupid
shook his head, “Lady Phoenix still holds onto hope that one day
her son will gain the wisdom needed to get his power back without
threatening anyone.”
“You
and I both know that is not possible.”
“Anything
is possible. But, I don’t believe it will happen anytime soon.”
Nova
spent a moment thinking, almost lost in his thoughts.
Cupid
asked, “Is there something bothering you?”
“Yes.
I was killed, I mean I felt that blade go through my body. I couldn’t
move as I watched him defeat his father and then be defeated himself.
I was on the brink of death when everything changed. I am fine and
the world is back to where it was before. Sultan Ahmed signed that
Treaty of Passarowitz and everything is fine.”
“Time
magic.” Cupid said.
“Time
magic?”
Cupid
gave a soft nod, “It is the most dangerous power we can wield. In
fact, no one of my kind can possibly hope to use it, it takes
several. And, it hardly works. It can backfire horribly. We tried it
when Legion destroyed our world, and it only bought us a little more
time before they did it again. The only reason we decided it was
necessary here was because of the impact of Jinn’s conquest. This
world was already reeling from the long war with the Ottomans before
he took over. His war cost millions of lives, the cost was so high
and the long term impact so terrible, we had to do something.”
Nova
said, “Then, it is a way to undo what tragedies that have been
done.”
“Once.”
Cupid stated, “Only once. We have warped the fabric of time around
this world, and in no small way. If we do it again, even on a smaller
scale, it could destroy everything here. There can never be a time
when we try this again.”
“What
of the Sultans? Won’t they be missing their Jinn?”
“They
don’t remember him. We took the memory of his work out of their
minds. For centuries now they have written the histories to say that
it was their brilliance and good luck that so much went their way.
That fiction has become their reality, they will only recall that
truth and not what really happened. As far as this world goes, only
we remember everything as it was.”
“Fascinating.
So, should I keep an eye on him?”
Cupid
shook his head, “He is no threat. Where he goes, if any of our kind
is near, they will keep an eye on him. Otherwise, we will leave him
alone.”
“Then,
I guess we need to get back to our lives and hope that none of the
others go crazy.”
Cupid
laughed, “I doubt that will happen.” He got up and headed for the
door, “I will be seeing you, thank you for your help.”
“I
will always be keeping a close watch.”
With
that Cupid left and Nova returned to his maps.
***
300
Years later.
Jinn,
hooded in a dark cloak, fought the harsh northern winds of the
arctic. Climbing up a huge glacier he found a deep crack split eons
ago. It becomes apparent that this was no ordinary natural fissure in
the ice, the path was too even and the walls too clear. Someone made
this for a purpose, and Jinn knew this.
He
stopped before another frozen figure, trapped inside the ice. It was
a monstrous being with horns, shaggy fur, fangs, and claws.
“Ah,
Krampus, you have no idea how long it has taken me to find your
location.” Jinn spoke as he pulled out a special laser, an alien
weapon left after one of the battles from Legion here on Earth. Using
the beam, he heated the ice, cold water gushing across the ground.
Soon half of Krampus is free and he begins to wake.
“Who...are...you?”
Krampus mumbles.
“I
don’t believe I want to let you know my name just yet. The others
do not realize where I am or that I have plans. But, I need your
help.”
Krampus
craned his head side to side, bones popping as he recovered from his
frigid state, “What...do you...need?”
“I
need you to help me trap Santa.”
Krampus
sneered with those fangs of his, “Impossible.”
“Not
if we steal his sleigh first.”
Krampus’s
sneer turns to a wicked grin.
***
Chase
gasped and looked up, she was now standing in front of a case with
the same laser pistol that she had seen in Jinn’s hands. She looked
around the room, realizing she had moved without even knowing it.
“What
happened? I was there, I watched all that happen.”
EB
hopped up and stood before her on the case holding the weapon, “I
guided you around the room as I spoke, your power connected to
objects and let you see the story unfold.”
Chase
looked at the weapon, “So, he freed Krampus to attack the world.”
“Yup.
Jinn needed a source of power to give him back what he lost. We
protect our objects of power with great care. And, without any power
of his own, he was incapable of gaining ours. But, with the help of
Krampus, another fallen member of my kind, he was able to steal
Santa’s sleigh and harvest magic out of it. How he did it, I do not
know. But, he was always extremely clever. After that he stole magic
from Cupid through the bow, and then garnered all of Leprechaun’s
magic. He not only has power back, he has even more than before.”
“I
have to tell Nova all about this.”
EB
smiled, “Good idea. I think I need to leave. Nova’s right, Jinn
isn’t after me, he has enough power as it is. But, I still need to
keep moving and avoid being caught. Here,” He pulled out a small,
crystal egg from his basket. “Take this.”
“What
is it?” She examined the small prism egg.
“When
you need me, in the most dire moment, smash that. I will come to you
and do what I can to help.”
“Wow,
this is amazing.”
“Nova
has one as well. I only give it to people I trust.” EB hopped up
and kissed her on the cheek, then dashed out of the room.
Chase
laughed, “That little flirt.”
After
that she locked up the museum and proceeded to Nova, where she would
tell him what she learned.
To be continued...
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