A/N: First of all: I'm a horrible, horrible person for not updating! I know and I'm sorry. I've had this chapter nearly finished for months! My life is a mess right now; I am a mess right now, and therefore updates may be even fewer... but I will finish this story! As always thanks for sticking with the story so far. I love you all!
Summary: John and Philippa have acquired new flames through diving. John now possesses The Blue Flame of Truth, whereas Philippa has The Green Flame of Knowledge. After their encounter with Dybbuk and Rudyard at Mesci Island, our heroes are healing their injuries and waiting for Groanin to get better before continuing their journey.
Questions
Somewhere in Europe
"Dybbuk. Get your sorry ass down here." An irritated voice belonging to Rudyard Teer sounded from the ground floor of the manor. Said sorry ass sighed, before getting out of the armchair he had been occupying. His dear brother had always been annoying, but these past few days had made him utterly despicable. The young Djinn trod downstairs with a cool demeanor. He entered the drawing room and glanced over at the ifrit, who lay splayed across one of the many Victorian styled couches.
"Entertain me. I'm bored." He emphasized the last word and lazily draped an arm over his stomach.
"Go find something to torture." Dybbuk said with little to no emotion present on his face.
"Been there, done that, still bored." He replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. Dybbuk felt a sudden urge to punch his brother, and an idea formed in his mind.
"Why don't we spar a little, then?" Dybbuk suggested nonchalantly, when in truth, he simply wanted to pound his face in. Rudyard seemed to perk up at this, and stood upright no longer than two seconds later.
"Why, dear brother, I didn't think you'd have it in you to openly challenge me?" His voice dripped with sarcasm, but to no avail. Dybbuk wasn't even slightly fazed by his taunting, instead he quirked a brow and smirked.
"Afraid I'll mop the floor with you Ruddy?" He mocked the older ifrit.
"Oh, hell no!" He growled and lunged after his brother only to hit nothing. Dybbuk was gone.
"What the-" He was cut off by Dybbuk smashing into his back, maneuvering himself on top of Rudyard and effortlessly restricting his movements. The younger Djinn dug his knee painfully into Rudyard's ribs, earning a yelp from him.
"Now boys, behave. We can't have you hurting each other." An amused voice sounded from behind them. Dybbuk tore his gaze from his brother to the door where Iblis stood with a hooded figure behind him.
"Dad!" Rudyard had squirmed himself out of Dybbuk's grip, at the younger boy's distraction and had gotten to his feet instantly. He straightened his back and waited patiently for his father to enter. Dybbuk tensed a bit, when he noticed the hooded figure follow his father, but not enough for anyone to notice. He picked himself off the floor and eyed the newcomers warily.
"Why Dybbuk, you sure had him there." Iblis laughed a cold, short laughter and turned his gaze to his youngest son. In the past, Dybbuk would either have lit up at the slight recognition or flinched under his father's eyes. The present Dybbuk, on the other hand, merely shrugged at the comment. Rudyard had been lucky this time, being saved by their father and escaping Dybbuk's clutches.
'But you won't get away next time, Rudyard.' He promised himself with a smirk worthy of the devil himself.
The hooded figure started wheezing loudly, catching the attention of the three djinn. A wrinkled hand pulled the hood slightly back, revealing the face of the old man. He grasped his cane again and humped into the next room. Iblis gestured for his sons to follow him, and they obliged soundlessly. There was no saying, what Iblis was capable of doing when defied. Once they were inside the bigger room, Iblis once again locked eyes with his sons, one at a time. Rudyard looked away after a few seconds under the piercing stare; while Dybbuk's dark eyes bore into those of his father's.
"The young one is getting stronger, day by day. I wouldn't upset him, if I were you." The wheezing figure choked out followed by a coughing fit.
"You shouldn't push yourself, Master." Iblis suggested, still not looking away from Dybbuk. The young djinn almost laughed at the venom in Iblis' voice and the way his father gritted his teeth at the last word made Dybbuk smirk. Iblis was usually the one in command, but having an old geezer order him around, drove him nuts, and he didn't like it one bit.
"It's not like, he'll do anything to harm us," Iblis finally broke eye contact and started pacing back and forth, "he did go to such lengths to free us, after all." Dybbuk nearly gagged. It was obvious how agitated Iblis was with Dybbuk's achievement, but he couldn't do anything about it in this situation. Instead he chose to play his cards wisely and listened to the wheezing, old man.
"Come along boys, we have a lot to prepare." The old man grinned maliciously, before taking a seat at the head off the table and gazing into a crystal ball.
'Great. Now I'm stuck here for hours.' Dybbuk thought bitterly and cursed under his breath.
Meanwhile at Mesci Island
"So let me get this straight, Dybbuk outmatched you, knocked Groanin out and nullified your flame?" John frowned and shook his head in disbelief.
"Yes, John," Philippa rolled her eyes before sighing, "no need to rub it in." She muttered, slightly annoyed.
"Sorry. It's just… Rudyard got away too…" The dark-haired boy hung his head in defeat. His statement sent a pang of guilt through Philippa, and she immediately regretted her words.
"It doesn't matter." She cooed softly at John's dejected tone, "I'm sure Nimrod knows what to do." She offered him a friendly smile. She hated seeing John looking so miserable and tried to cheer him up straight away.
"John?" She suddenly remembered that she had wanted to discuss some things with her brother. Philippa missed being able to tell him everything, and reminded herself to do something about it, but right now, she would rather discuss the matters at hand.
"Yeah?" He turned his gaze to Philippa, who still lay in the hospital bed Nimrod had conjured up.
"I was wondering… Do you think we can use our flames for offense?" The idea had struck her earlier, but she had forgotten to ask Nimrod.
"You mean like firebenders?" John suggested with a wide grin.
"That's one way to put it." Philippa chuckled, "I mean, Mom did make us take up martial arts and if we could somehow combine the two, we'd practically be invincible." She elaborated, making small gestures with her hands while explaining.
"We could always give it a try." John smiled mischievously. Philippa nodded and swung her legs out of bed. She was bored beyond belief and felt like moving around. Nurse Nimrod had advised her to take it easy earlier, but had otherwise allowed her out of bed, which she was grateful for. The mental image of Nimrod in a nurse outfit made her want to gag, and she swiftly found something else to think about.
"Let's go explore!" Philippa nearly bounced up and down at the idea. The thought of exploring a new place was always welcomed; now more than ever. Mesci Island had proved that there was more to it than meets the eye, and she couldn't keep the excitement from filling her every pore. John shook his head with a fond smile.
"Let's start with asking Nimrod about our flames." He took her arm and led her outside. Their uncle was sitting in front of the bon fire and looked deep in thought. Worried creases graced his features and his eyes were unfocused. John and Philippa shared a look and proceeded cautiously.
"Nimrod?" The twins called out tentatively, half-expecting Nimrod to ignore them completely. They were surprised however, when his eyes snapped up and he smiled at them and gestured for them to take a seat. The twins took this as a good sign and joined him on either side of the log he was occupying.
"Solved any mysteries yet?" Philippa teased with twinkling eyes. She felt a lot better already.
"I'm afraid not. Shouldn't you be in bed, young lady?" He arched a brow and Philippa couldn't help but giggle. "I needed some air." She explained with a mischievous smile.
"So, Nimrod," John began, catching Nimrod's attention, "we wanted to know some more about our flames." There were many questions left unanswered, and John was itching to find out more. Phil must really be rubbing off on him, he mused for himself.
"Did you have something specific in mind?" The older djinn scratched his beard, before rolling his shoulders eliciting a few small pops.
"Say, if we were to use our powers for offense, would that in any way harm us?" Philippa tilted her head sideways in wonder. John caught Philippa's eyes and quirked a brow at her choice of words. His sister merely shrugged, feigning nonchalance. Nimrod was silent for a moment, clearly contemplating his answer.
"No, I wouldn't say so. Why do you ask?" He gave the twins a questioning look. They sounded like they were up to no good, and that was never a good sign.
"The thing is, we don't really know what to make of our flames. I mean, sure our djinn powers are a lot stronger than before, but we must be able to use them in another way. Like… in combat?" She looked up at Nimrod innocently. Her uncle, however, seemed to be in deep thought again. Philippa glanced at John, who was busy experimenting with his flame. He had conjured two small dragons, who were circling around each other. He glanced up and grinned at his achievement, but the second he looked away, the dragons dissolved, and John took to pouting.
"You have the concentration level of a chipmunk." Philippa laughed at his childish antics.
"Concentration is the key." Nimrod suddenly snapped his fingers and brought the twins' attention to him. "I believe that you will be able to manipulate your flames with a certain level of concentration. If you can imagine the state you want your powers to be in, it shouldn't be too hard, whether you want to make a shield or bow and arrow." He told them with a nod. He got up from the log and started pacing back and forth in front of the twins.
"How much do you actually know about all of this?" John piped up. Lately Nimrod hadn't been very good at sharing what he knew, and it was driving the twins insane. Especially Philippa, since she hated not knowing what was going on.
"About as much as you do," he shrugged and smiled apologetically, "I think it's high time we visit a friend of mine. I'm certain he will be able to answer your questions and maybe help us with figuring out what Dybbuk was doing here." Nimrod had finally stopped his pacing and was now positioned in front of the twins with his arms crossed and lips pressed into a thin line.
"Who is this friend of yours?" The twins asked simultaneously with peaking interest.
"You could call him my mentor, seeing as he helped me out a lot last year. His name is Rahul Malhotra and he resides in Italy." Philippa smiled at the Indian-sounding name; she generally liked Indians. They were nice and open minded when it came to the existence of Djinn. She found it a little unusual for an Indian to live in Italy, but didn't dwell on it as something clicked in place.
"Was it by any chance him you wanted us to meet earlier? Before we decided to head for Germany together?" Philippa tilted her head to the side, something she did whenever she was reflecting.
"Yes, as a matter of fact. I'm impressed you figured it out so quickly." He praised and let his arms fall down his sides.
"You did mention going to Italy before, and again with Rudyard." John added quietly. Nimrod had clearly not expected John to be so perceptive, and was genuinely surprised at how much the twins were picking up traits from one another. Philippa was becoming more straightforward and bold, while John had become more patient and reflective.
"Right you are, John. Let's see how Groanin is doing and otherwise get ready to leave, hmm?" He suggested before turning around and heading for the medical tent. John and Philippa got up to follow him after a few seconds, but stopped dead in their tracks when they heard a splashing noise. It resounded near them and they shared a look, sensing danger. John signaled for Philippa to be quiet and crouch. The splashing sound continued as they peeked over the log to find a puddle of water not too far away. There was no one in sight. They looked at each other again and got up to move closer. Once they were a few meters away, they instantly spotted the cause of the mysterious noises.
A little, pink creature was peeking out from under the water surface. John frowned as he neared it, determining whether or not it posed a threat. Deciding against it, he kneeled down and after a quietly muttered "Careful" from Phil, he tentatively reached his hand forward, close enough for the animal to bite him. Instead, it nuzzled its head against his open palm and jumped out of the puddle and onto his hand.
"Wicked." John whistled. The animal was like nothing he'd ever seen before. It was a shade of pink resembling coral, and looked like a crossover of a fish and salamander. Its button-like eyes observed the twins curiously, and its tail was waving smoothly through the air.
"That's an axolotl!" Philippa gleefully clasped her hands together.
"A what?" John tried stroking its head and it cooed blissfully. It didn't appear to be harmful at all.
"An axolotl. It is also known as the Water Dragon. Honestly John, do you even pay attention in school?" Philippa scolded him while carefully touching the little creature's head with a finger.
"It's an amphibian; a salamander. It has the ability to regenerate limbs and is actually a carnivore. This one looks rather small for an adult, but it has already grown the front and hind legs… Strange… From what I can see, it seems to be a male." She continued and tapped a finger on her chin.
"How do you even know all that?" John muttered, much to Philippa's amusement. "Remember when we did that biology project last year? My group made charts of unusual pets and their conditions of life in captivity." The small axolotl curled up in John's open hand and gave a yawn revealing small, pointy teeth. He curled up in John's hand and closed his eyes.
"I think he likes you." Philippa giggled and turned to head back to the campsite.
"He is kinda cute." John followed Philippa, who had stopped dead in her tracks.
"Did you just call him cute?" The redhead was cracking up, and tried hard to suppress her laughter, but failed miserably.
"No…" John's face flushed and he felt heat rise to his cheeks. Leave it to Philippa to make fun of him, when he was being honest. The little amphibian was awfully cute, and John had no problem admitting it whatsoever… maybe. She had finally stopped laughing and wiped away a few tears, before she groaned.
"My ribs hurt." She complained and rubbed her side tenderly.
"Are you okay?" His twin seemed to be feeling strong discomfort, so John placed his hand on her shoulder and gaze it a light squeeze.
"Yeah, just another bruise. Let's go inside." She gave him a weak smile and together they entered the hospital-tent and made their way into Groanin's room. From the outside, Nimrod's tent looked like any other tent, but on the inside, much like their lamps, it was reasonably bigger.
"How are you feeling, Groanin?" Philippa immediately asked once she reached his bedside. Across from her, Nimrod was sitting in the chair, smoking. He seemed rather relaxed, so Groanin must have been better than expected.
"Better now, missy." He replied. To prove himself, he sat up against the pillows behind him and offered her a smile.
"I believe Groanin will be able to travel later this evening. So until then, you are free to do as you please." Nimrod told them and blew small figurines of smoke through the air. That was a clear indicator, that everything was fine.
"What's that you've got there, John?" He suddenly caught sight of something in his nephew's hand and he rose from his chair to inspect it.
"It's an axolotl. Phil and I found him outside." John showed him the little creature.
"That's odd. They normally reside around Mexico or Australia. What is it doing around Italy?" Nimrod scratched his chin thoughtfully, but no answer came.
"Oh, Nimrod! Can we keep him?" Philippa asked eagerly.
"I don't kno-" Nimrod's eyes fell on John who was giving him the puppy-eyes and he made the mistake of glancing over at Philippa, who mirrored John's actions. "Oh, alright!" He gave in and went back to his chair. John and Philippa high-fived each other with identical grins on their faces, and bid Groanin goodbye before dashing back outside. Once there, they looked at the little axolotl, still fast asleep.
"What should we call him?" Philippa asked and resisted the urge to snatch the sleeping animal away from John.
"He reminds me of a dragon, so how about… Draconis?" John suggested and eyed the axolotl.
"No, too Latin. He is pink, tiny and makes these funny noises when he moves around. We could call him Squishy?" Philippa suggested. When she saw John's look of disgust, she huffed and placed her hands on her hips. "Well, I think it's cute."
"Oh, alright!" John sighed, knowing it was a lost cause. His sister could be very stubborn when she wanted to be. To his delight Squishy woke up and stretched, making noises while looking around. He grinned at Philippa and turned his gaze towards John. John stroked his head and looked around for his twin.
"Wanna test out our flames?" Philippa said from somewhere to his left. They had walked towards the trees and were now in a small clearing.
"Sure." John replied, gingerly placing Squishy down on a log. The little amphibian made no move to run away. It seemed he had decided to stay with the twins. John couldn't help but feel that Squishy had approached them on purpose; it felt like he knew something and was waiting to tell them.
Philippa, who stood a few feet away from her brother, had green flames blazing around her and seemed to be concentrating deeply. John stood by and watched her, as she took a deep breath and reached her hand out. The flames flowed from her hand and took the shape of a long staff, but dissolved the moment Philippa opened her eyes.
"Damn." She muttered. John raised a brow at her profanity.
"What's wrong Phil?"
"I was sure something as simple as a staff would be manageable. I guess it wasn't." She rubbed her temples wearily. She was feeling a little wobbly, but didn't want to tell John. He would make a fuss and demand she go back to bed.
John tried next and managed to forge a sword. It looked so pure and dazzling that Philippa almost forgot how to breathe. It didn't take long before the sword vanished, however pretty it was. John looked a little sad when it disappeared, but didn't say anything.
"Maybe we're doing something wrong." Philippa mused out loud. "What did Nimrod tell us?"
Her brother recalled their uncle's words. "Concentration is the key." After having said it, he groaned loudly. "Does that mean we'll have to meditate again?"
"Probably."
"Will we have to do it every time we want to use our flames too?" His eyes widened in horror, "I hate meditating…" he muttered.
"Maybe we just need to get accustomed to our flames?" The thought intrigued Philippa. She had always felt some sort of connection to her Neshamah, and after they dove, it seemed to have intensified. That was what led her to think that meybe they just needed to get to know their new Neshamah.
"I guess it's worth a try." John shrugged and sat down on the ground. Philippa followed suit and they started breathing deeper. After a few seconds of breathing, the twins felt their chests tighten slightly and warmth started spreading out throughout their bodies. Philippa inhaled deeply and felt her power rise with every breath. Dust and small pebbles around them started moving around in a circle.
Blue radiated from John and green from Philippa, flowing around them and shooting upwards. Nimrod, who had appeared moments before, had been watching the twins after he found the clearing and gaped at the sight. One thing was for sure. The prophecy was slowly coming true.
Who is the old man? Where did Squishy come from? Why all the meditating? What prophecy? What does Nimrod know?
I would love to hear what your answer to the questions is. But before that I would like to tell you that in the next chapter, our heroes will be meeting with Nimrod's friend and therefore getting some questions answered. SO, if you have something you want to know, or something that just confuses you i.e. the concept of using flames for offense, you can have them answered in the next update. Bye for now!