by Aditya Kumar
"Well, this is really a funny thing you said. But if you are so confident, then I guess I have a warrior named Osna. If you defeat him, then I can believe some of your words," Acra decided at last.
"But this is not fair. He will easily kill this kid," one of their members told pointing out weakness of Mark.
Mark replied, "I guess, you really don't know me, kid."
"What ... Wait… I am kid …" His expression was not explainable.
It is time to decide whose way, they will proceed. It's time to fight. Osna and Mark both came inside a ring. However, that was a ring… just to say. Otherwise, who will say that a ring, whose other end cannot be seen clearly from one end, even with Mark's far vision. He doesn't know, if that was illusion or what but size of ring seemed infinite… And fight started.
It seemed that at first Osna under estimated Mark and got defeated in a huge way. Lying on ground Osna realized that Mark is not an easy one. Mark could see a glory in the eye of Acra for a tiny moment. But it was not that. Osna understood that he made a terrible mistake by under estimating Mark and this time he stood against Mark having fire in eye. For a moment, Mark felt coming punches from all the direction, and that was even when he was at his peak speed. 'How someone can run with that much speed,' Mark thought.
Mark went on to attack him again, but before he could even reach to him, he felt like someone else caught him and then threw him away. Mark felt completely helpless. How can he fight with such a speedster. He is even unable to reach Osna. He tried again and again, and result was same. Every time, Osna pulled him on the ground. And it went like this for his many attempts. Mark couldn't able to understand and so he ran away opposite to Osna and surprisingly, Osna couldn't catch Mark.
This proof was sufficient for Mark to understand that he is faster than Osna. He just had to figure out, what actually Osna was doing. When Osna couldn't able to catch him during running away, he concluded that Osna can attack him only on that place where Osna was at any time in near past. This thing was sufficient to make him ordinary. Mark started attacking from different direction where Osna wasn't in near past and then after some time, Osna was lying there on the ground accepting his defeat. Osna wasn't a match for Mark in terms of their speed. He left Osna alive to live with defeat.
"That was awesome fight," everybody cheered to Mark. No one could able to believe this easily, but it was real.
"Who is he," Mark asked Acra.
"To be honest, I don't know," Acra replied.
Mark asked again, "What kind of power does he hold? How he was able to attack from the place where he isn't currently?"
Acra replied, "I don't have much idea, but he has power to fight in time. His past-self was attacking on you from the place where he was in near past."
"So, how did he got this power and why he is with you," Mark asked.
Acra replied, "I don't know about his power source, but he is not actually with me."
"Then, how do you know him," Mark asked.
Acra started telling, "This is a long story happened around 5000 years ago when I was a child. My father was obsessed to find a way to save the people living in threat of Quaiak. He wanted to do anything to help those people. One day, he was travelling in the space. I was with him. We went a little away from our home. Then, suddenly something awkward happened. We saw a mysterious passage which seemed to be made by tearing the space-time continuum. It was like a wormhole put there by some advanced beings. Only me and my father went through it… keeping rest of our man aside. When we came out of that passage… it disappeared like it was made just for us and we found our self in a completely different place. It felt like this is a new reality. There wasn’t sign of anything… no planet… no rocks, dust clouds… nothing was there. That was complete emptiness. We had no clue, where we just came. I was scared but my father told me everything will be okay."
He continued, "Then we saw a large cave came there out of nowhere. That cave was floating around there in empty space. We went on the mouth of a cave. We found that someone is calling us. We followed the signal. There was a person there, wearing a different kind of armour even he had covered his head. At first, he seemed like a robot, but during conversation we found that he is some advanced being. We asked him who he was, but he refused to tell. He told that we are not supposed to know about him. He didn't even invite us inside. He looked mysterious and was making everything, a suspense.”
He added, “He had put wormhole there to send a message of hope to the world. He gave us Osna and told that send the one to him, who will defeat Osna. He told that we will be able to reach them again only if I will go with that person who defeated Osna… only then Osna will able to open that wormhole again. However, he was quite powerful but seemed terrified of something. We requested him to help us against Quaiak, but he told us that one person will come and he will save all of us from Quaiak. I asked how he can be so sure. He just told everything about prophecy. My father had heard the rumour about prophecy and this person increased his hope."
"What prophecy," Mark asked.
Acra told, "When the night will be cold and dark. People will live in terror, then a hero will come having great strength and unbelievable ability, and he will provide redemption to everyone."
"So, you think that it's is me who will destroy Quaiak," Mark asked with curiosity.
Acra replied, "I don't know. Maybe that mysterious person will be able to tell more. I guess, we should be going to him now."
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CHAPTER 11
Canyon Cav
e
Mystery started getting added in itself... to be fair... strength of mystery was getting multiplied by variable and the value of variable of was increasing rapidly with time. No one knows, when complete mystery will come out… unravelled. With everything happening, Mark had to do something… something more. With having these thoughts, they were going to his cave to meet with that mysterious person to see… what he knows that would be useful in coming war.
Mark reached there with Acra and Osna where they had found wormhole earlier. Osna made a blistering sound, and wormhole suddenly appeared there. However, it was less like a wormhole, and more like a secret short passage with Osna’s specific blistering sound as a key. They entered and exited from other side, but there wasn't anything on the other side. But, then only they heard some mysterious sound coming from nowhere and then Osna spoke something in some unknown language and funny accent. Then, suddenly the whole cave appeared there. That mysterious sound was like proof that Osna was on the door. Mark found himself on the mouth of his cave. That mysterious person allowed only Mark to come inside. As Mark entered in the cave, he saw Osna, dissolving in empty space and he disappeared forever. Perhaps, he has fulfilled his goal.
That mysterious person told Acra and rest of others to go back, where they belong, but by sign only and he didn't speak a single word. That mysterious passage appeared again. Acra and all other went back through that passage. Then, that mysterious person signaled Mark to come inside. Scene inside the cave, was frightening like it was not cleaned and maintained for millions of years.
Mark asked him many questions, but he was completely silent. He didn't even told Mark his name. Then, he took Mark to a closed place and then he spoke his first word saying that his name is Xena. Until now, he was talking in sign language. Mark sensed the presence of someone else too. Mark asked him about this, but he simply refused to talk about any other thing.
"My name is Xena and you are in Canyon cave. In your words, I was waiting for you like millions of years," Xena told.
Mark asked in surprised way, "What do you mean by 'your words'?"
"It is because, I live beyond time and I can move backward and forward in time similarly as you move in your three-dimensional space," Xena told.
"So, if you can go backward in time, then you can correct everything by destroying Quaiak before they rise into power," Mark asked with curiosity.
"No, I can't. Actually, I don'
t want to… and even if I would want to, there is many restrictions on time travel, and its consequences can be terrible. So, no one of us prefers to travel backward in time to change anything," Xena told.
"What terrible consequences can occur, due to time travel," Mark asked.
"It creates a whole bunch of new reality and terrible consequences most of the time. It usually makes the situation worse than the situation earlier, for which you would do time travel to avoid for. You will be able to know everything, just keep patience and do what you need to," Xena continued, "You will also get ability to travel through time. Just remember, when you will realize this, promise me that you will travel through time only if you will have no other way around, because then you will also have to be ready to face the terrible consequences of time-travel."
"Then, why you travel through time," Mark asked. He now knows that how Xena appeared at that position from nowhere. Xena must have to be at same place then, but in some other time.
"Because, I am running away from something much more dangerous than the creatures, you are currently facing. I don’t have choice, but I don't change anything throughout time travelling," Xena replied in mysterious way.
"Do you know others too that is like you," Mark asked.
"Yeah... There are some others, but we are scattered throughout the universe and lives hidden, like I live in this cave," Xena replied.
"I can feel a sense of fear inside you. You are so much powerful, then why you always live here," Mark asked.
"Listen, I can and will help you in your current scenario. But I can't come to fight," Xena is afraid of something.
"Why? What are you afraid of," Mark is not getting his answers.
"Listen, there are something here which you are not ready to know, yet. This also include your past and purpose and even your…," Xena told.
"Wait .... Do you know me," Mark was completely getting shocked by this sentence of Xena and interrupted in middle.
"Not exactly. I knew you a very little. You are the most mysterious person. Only you can know yourself, but you are not ready yet," Xena told.
"So, you think that there is no danger to me from enemy of my past," Mark asked.
"Not yet," Xena replied in confident voice, "Right now, you should concentrate on your current enemy. Slowly, you will know everything."
"And, what about prophecy against Quaiak," Mark was curious to know everything.
"We spread this to maintain hope. Actually, it was you this entire time. You learnt something that we never could. And, I believe that you will fight bravely when the final battle will begin and also beyond that. You are given responsibility to achieve something bigger, but right now you should focus on your present," Xena continued, "This is time to make people feel goodness. Make them feel, what hope indicates. Make others, who is trying to take away those hope, feel that their reign is over. You will learn many things during your journey. I can only wish you good luck for humanity. Go, your own planet and many others are counting on you. Just never come back to me until you win your current war, in any condition. Otherwise, this place will not remain safe anymore." Xena told everything, that he wanted to tell.
"Okay, one more thing. How I killed Quaiaks in empty space… I mean, they can create death shield around the planet, but why they don't shield themselves at every place from death?" Mark asked.
After smiling for a moment, "Maybe, Quaiak are the most powerful species of this universe but they don't have any technology to guard them from death, actually they can't have. This machine is given to them by someone else and their number must be limited. That's why, they can't use this to save them. I think this is some sort of mission for them," Xena told.
"You think," Mark couldn't believe that Xena is also not sure about some-thing.
"Yeah... I can't know everything. Many things are much beyond the understanding of even me. I have only a part of 'Knowledge'," Xena told adding one more mystery.
"What is this 'Knowledge'," This question from Mark was obvious.
"'Knowledge' is a book hidden somewhere in the universe, which contains all the information about this universe and also some information about our creator. But, don't try to think about that book because you are not yet eligible to read that book, even I don't," Everything Xena was telling, was going out of Mark's head. He can't believe everything directly.
"But, what can I do against such a powerful enemy, Quaiak?" Mark finally asked that he really needed to know.
“Do you remember the device Erask,” Xena asked.
“How do you know that I went through that,” Mark asked and also, he recalled that device which he found, when he was with Gleberians and which he couldn’t able to figure out.
“Because, I have read your mind,” Xena continued, “Now, there is something, you should know. Quaiak is not your real enemy. Your real enemy is someone else."
"What.... What are you... try...ing to sa...y?" Mark was trying to ask, but they suddenly felt that whole cave was shaking. He realized the terror on the face of Xena.
Xena told, "Just remember this. Now… go away… I can’t save myself… you… go away."
Then Xena throw Mark out of cave and cave disappeared in time.
Suddenly Mark saw Xena outside the cave, but he was in pain and fading. Xena told Mark, “You can come to this cave, after completing you mission. You will know the mystery of secret passage.”
“Are you dying,” Mark asked.
Xena said, “No… worse. I am getting captured by those from which I was running away…”
“And this is happening because of me?” Mark felt guilty.
“No… No, it had to happen. But you would still be welcomed in this cave,” Xena told.
“Why I would ever come in empty cave,” Mark asked.
“Because that cave is not empty… you sensed right. There was one more person in the cave. He may be useful in your afterward mission… You can also help me… You… Ahh…,” Xena was disappearing very fast.
Mark asked, “Okay… tell me, who is my real enemy?”
But till then Xena had been disappeared.
Xena disappeared, but his word couldn't. Mark felt like he still can listen his sentence, can still see his face when he said that Quaiak is not their real enemy. Mark felt something different. He had thought that all the mysteries are unravelling. But today he is unable to understand, what he really feels. He got a sense of fear that who was he in his previous life. If he was that much powerful then what happened to him? Also, if Quaiak is not the real enemy, then who is? And more importantly, who is Quaiak and what is their purpose? What they want? Mark has a lot of questions in his mind and perhaps only time will give answer to everything. He came back again to Acra, to plan new strategy.
In previous few months, Mark came to know about a lot of mystery. Every time when he learnt any, first it used to scare him, but he ultimately always used to get the solution. But this time, it is different. Every time, he used to learn the mystery by fighting and putting his own life at risk. But this time, perhaps Xena knew about him but didn't tell. 'What are those things from whom, Xena was terrified of. From whom, he was hiding, and who captured him. It is the huge mystery for me and I suppose I can't resolve these mysteries in near future,' Mark thought.
'Maybe he was right. Maybe I am not ready yet. And it is definitely true that people of my own planet are counting on me and for me, life of my own people are more important than knowing my real purpose. I guess, time of hiding and living in terror is over. Now, it's time to show Quaiak or whoever there is, the result of their unforgivable action. Now, it's time to find them and kill every single of them,' Mark thought.
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CHAPTER 12
Quest to Xanse
r
The thing, that Mark heard in Canyon cave from the mouth of Xena, he never expected in his whole life. All the thing, that he came to know in past few months, felt useless to him for a moment. But, how can he trust on Xena… just after
one meeting. So, for coming time, he refused to believe on anything, that Xena had told him. For time-being, he kept considering Quaiak as his real enemy. Xena didn't say clearly the real purpose of Quaiak in this war. May be, Quaiak is working for some other super intelligent creature. But, he had only one clue in the form of Quaiak. So, he kept considering Quaiak as the real threat to everyone.
But now Mark is confident enough. He may has got the purpose of his life. He knows that there is a lot of mystery exist behind his past but got his way to fight with the current evil. He may not believe Xena about Quaiak, but he found his idol in the form of Xena. He understood that many other mysteries are yet to come, and he knows that his purpose is not only solving the mysteries. But, he need to use those things for the benefits of all the mankind.
After coming back from Canyon cave, Mark still was in Xena’s words. Suddenly, he remembers that Xena mentioned about Erask. So, he went to Gleberians again. He met with Emily and went to find that device. He tried some other configuration, and then he got able to figure out the way to use that machine… He used to that machine… and that machine produced a long paper, and something was printed on that… and Mark shouted, “I found the way… This is the location and time through which their ship will pass… We will attack on them and we will take their ship… they will open the wormhole and we all will pass through that… I have located their coordinate. Their ship is about to come… we will have to reach there.”
He continued pointing towards Glouco and showing him their ship log, “Can you see, from this planet, from where they take prisoners, to reach to their own they use two wormholes… and at entrance and exit of each wormhole, they check about any unusual activity or about danger to the ship. In case of any danger, ship cannot reach to their planet… because Quaiak in that ship will not allow this. So, they always come at one intermediate point between that planet and their home.”