Justin proudly walked into the throne room, this time flanked by not just Eli and
Matt, but John and an anonymous soldier as well. "We've returned, your majesty." John
said, kneeling before the king and Sheen, "and they have also defeated the evil that was
in the ruins."
At this statement Justin fidgeted nervously. He had the glove stuffed in his
pocket again, but that wasn't the problem. He wasn't sure if they HAD defeated the
twisted being they had found; from all appearances, it had only vanished for a small time,
and it HAD promised to come back after them.
"Really..." Sheen said, staring at Justin intently. "Your aura didn't lie. Stephen,
I wish to see this child alone. If his companions wish to join, let them."
Eli gasped. "You, the king's servant, have the audacity to call him by his first
name?" she said, starring open eyed at Sheen.
"Hold on, hold on." King Stephen II said. "Officer Jonathon, what did you see at
the ruins?"
"I'm...not exactly sure, sir." John said, "Immediately after we had all entered, we
blacked out. We all received the same vision, though, sir; we saw a dark cloud, growing
from Mandala, cover the world. Then we woke up starring at this lad." He gestured
towards Matt."
"Very interesting." Said the king. "Child, Sheen is not my subject. Like you, he
is a traveler. However, he pledged his service to me, saying the Goddess had guided him
here for something. It appears he found what he was looking for in your friend, lass."
The whole time, Sheen was simply starring at Justin. A slow trickle of fear began
to fill his eyes. "Stephen, I must ask that there are no more delays. This is of the highest
urgency! I must speak with him at ONCE inside your private chambers.
The king glanced at Sheen, confusion and a bit of offense in his eyes, then sighed.
"Your advice has never led me astray in all the time you've been with me, Sheen." He
said. "However, I DO asks that you show me the slightest respect. We will talk when
you're finished. The three of you, I will reward you later, make sure of that. John, go
home to your wife and inn. I'm going to sit down and enjoy every minute of it." Saying
that, he sighed and sat down in his throne, waving his hand to show that they should be
off.
"You are to come with me." Sheen hissed. "Let's be going, now!"
Justin only nodded and followed mutely, Eli and Matt behind him.

When Justin entered the private chambers, Sheen was already sitting on the king's
bed, starring down at the floor. "Sit down, all of you. I wish to speak to your friend
Justin, but it involves you two as well.
The three of them sat down. "What's going on here?" Eli asked.
Sheen sighed. "I'll ask questions here. You three are in a lot of trouble. Lad, I
know you hold one of the Mana Weapons; don't ask how I know, simply acknowledge
that I do know. It's the glove, too, no doubt. This means nothing good."
Justin only gaped at him. "How did you-I mean, erm, what does this mean?
Look, I don't even know HOW I got it, I just woke up with it!"
"He's got amnesia," Eli said, looking with concern at Justin. "It appears he fell
from the log bridges spanning Angel Falls near Potos. When he reached our town, he
fought off a Mantis Ant by using some power nobody's ever seen before. We're bringing
him to the Water Temple, and-"
"That's enough, girl." Sheen said, holding up a hand. He stared at Justin some
more. "So familiar...but it's impossible. He's dead. Been dead for so very long...tell
me, what did you find in the ruins?"
"Well," started Matt, "The door closed behind us and melted into the wall when
we walked in. Then this twisted figure appeared, summoned some monsters, and then
told us he'd see us again. We went into the ruins, found the soldiers bound by some
magical ropes, and left."
Matt then took a quick second to describe the figure to Sheen. If anything, Sheen
looked even more distressed. "That was one of the Dark Ring. He goes by the name
Twisted, and it's said even the Ring fears him to a degree." Sheen sighed. "It's all
happening all over again...only this time there's no sword or hero to help us." He looked
over at Justin. "Only more and more villains and evil..."
"Hold on, what ARE you going on about?!" Eli demanded.
"Your friend here-Justin, I believe?-has two auras to him. One is purely that of
the elements; filled with justice, compassion, kindness, honor...you get the idea. The
other is something from the Underworld. It's filled with murder, hate, and dark power
incarnate. I'm not sure how he got these auras, but both of them are ever so familiar…"
"Wait, how do you know all this? How do we know you're not just making it all
up. I mean, this is all a bit..odd." said Matt. Justin just looked at Sheen and shivered.
"Hold on Matt. So your saying all those times I've used that strange power...I've
been possessed by some kind of evil spirit?"
"Not just any evil spirit," Sheen said, "But a very, very powerful one. Now, you
say you're heading for the Water Temple. If you don't mind, may I journey there with
you? I, too, need to see Luca for something. Don't worry," he added, "I can defend
myself with more then ease." He stood up. "I'm just about as confused as all of you
right now...but let's go see the king one more time so he can give you your reward."
The walked back into the throne room. "Stephen, I apologize for my early
rudeness. I'm going to accompany these three to the Water Temple."
King Stephen II gasped. "The-the Water Temple? Impossible, even for you
Sheen! We both know it's been totally blocked off by Undine, to protect her and Luca
from the Dark Ring."
"Yes, well, there's another way." Sheen said, beginning to look worried again.
"If we go through the Haunted Forest and grab the Mana Whip from Eileen, we can use it
to go through the side entrance. Then we can see Luca. Speaking of Mana Weapons,
friend, I have a request to make. While I've been here, I've never steered you wrong.
King Stephen II, I honorably request that you loan-maybe even give-these three
Pandora's other remaining Mana Weapon.
The king only stared at Sheen. "You ask much of an old man..." he started, then
stopped and stared at him again. "They have the glove, don't they? Don't answer, I can
already tell they do. I don't want to know how they got it. I don't think it really matters.
To have a Mana Weapon and weld it, they must be aligned with Mana. Sheen...I'll grant
this request. The Mana Lance is in the treasure room. There's also some old armor from
way back. It's old, but it's light and supple, and should be perfect for all of
you."
Sheen bowed. "Thank you, your majesty. You shall not regret this decision!"

The four of them walked into the treasury. Inside, they immediately found the
armor promised to them. "Wow!" Eli said, examining it, "Authentic, old-style Tasnican
leather! This stuff goes beyond just rare; it's impossible to make now a days!"
Sheen only smiled and walked into a corner. "You three get your new equipment
on," he called, "I'm off to grab my own things."
After getting on their new armor, Justin saw Sheen walk out wearing a mix of
silver plate mail and blackish/purplish pants and tunic. Around his wild hair that
matched his tunic and pants, he now had a single bandana. Lastly, he had two long
swords at both side; one silvery, one black.
Justin began holding his head. "Ouch, headache all of a sudden..." he also stared
at Sheen. "You look...familiar, in a very strange way."
Sheen only looked more disturbed then he had before. "Justin, you scare me. A
lot. Let's go grab that spear now."
The four of them walked to the end of the "treasury," now noting how little
treasure was actually around. "I don't get it," Matt said, "I thought Pandora was a huge,
wealthy city. I mean, it is the trading center."
Sheen only shook his head. "the small villages deal with goblin raids, cities like
this deal with mass attacks. Both are kept quiet, poor, and most importantly, hopeless."
When they reached the end of the room, they found a single alter built to hold a
pole arm. Resting on the two arches that came from the alter was a shining blue spear.
Power seemed to radiate from it, and the entire section of that room was bathed in a blue
light. Matt gasped and ran forward, touching its haft.
"It's...beautiful..." he murmured.
"That it is," Sheen said, staring at it. "Like all the Mana Weapons, it has
enchantments that not only make the user an expert with the weapon, but it slowly
strengthens the user and makes him more proficient in a much shorter time. With these
weapons, three people were able to defeat the entire army of evil. And now it's yours."
"M-mine?" Matt gasped.
"Yeah, yours. Your boomerang is a rather poor weapon, no offense. You need
something that can actually harm your enemy, and this Spear is the best thing there."
Matt only continued starring at the spear for a little bit before finally picking it up.
He gasped again once he held it. "I can feel the energies pulsing through it..." he said,
starring at it again. "T-this is truly a weapon...!"
Sheen only chuckled. "Like a small boy with a new toy..." he murmured to
himself. "Well, let's get going." He said louder, "I want to reach Eileen's mansion
before nightfall...that's when all the truly evil things come out in the Haunted Forrest.
He walked out of the treasure room, the three following him.