Chapter -78: Pay it Forward
Later one day, Sarajin found himself back in Pulsa Minoria, coordinating ideas with Valic in his lab thanks to one of his recent ventures off-world.
Valic was slowly nodding along, putting pieces into place and letting his smile grow outside his concentration.
"Interesting, so a generator powered by water IS possible." He commented.
"Yeah! I couldn't get a look inside the machine but it seemed to operate by water pushing down on flaps to make it work." Sarajin added.
"Hmm, I think I can manage to figure out the rest on my own, but this is a good start." Valic nodded and then strutted over to his work table with a notable spring to his step.
"First we'll need to rebuild the generators. Then we'll need a way to keep the water flowing in a perpetual cycle, the problem is how to the water back up once it goes down."
The two put aside their conversation for the moment to think and Sarajin's mind immediately started to wander back home, where he recalled how easily stuff could get sucked up into the whirlwind below the city.
"I got it!" Sarajin chimed out, "What if you made a spinning device that sucked the water upward?"
Valic waved his hand out from the side and blurted out with enthusiasm, "You mean like a fan?"
"Yeah!"
"That's a brilliant idea actually," Valic smiled and rubbed his chin, before flicking the fingers out and facing the table once more, already gathering bits and pieces of metal to manufacture the framework of his idea, "It'll take some extra metal and copper but if we succeed, this will greatly increase electricity production in the city."
"Copper?" Sarajin inquired.
"Huh?" Valic stopped mid-work and then turned around with a blank look on his face, "Oh, you weren't around for that. A few months back, Rai managed to get a hold of that rare metal and discovered it's a greater conductor of electricity than most other metals we've used."
Valic closed his eyes and briefly fiddled around with his fingers like he was annoyed, "That should have been MY discovery but fine...!"
He then gestured his hand out and declared, "I'll be the one to make great change for our people with this new information!"
Sarajin was being quiet and unattentive for a bit, thinking about the timing of Rai's discovery, but then put his suspicions off to support Valic's determination, "If you need any help, I'll do what I can."
He then approached him cautiously with a nudging gesture of, "But I bet you'd get this done faster if you just-"
"Sarajin, please, I don't need to sully my hands trying to make friends with the stoneheads when I got a reliable assistant in you."
Sarajin smiled briefly with a blush, "I-I'm flattered, but really-"
Valic turned around and with a readjustment of his monocle remarked, "Actually, do you even know how to produce copper?"
Sarajin blinked a couple times and then realized, "Actually, I don't. It and Silver are too rare for me to get to see. And Zeke told me there's been no Gold in Oreore for-"
"I don't care about extraneous details," Valic brushed the back of his fingers out towards him, "If you want to use your mouth for something, go bother Rai for a sample of copper so you can help boost our supply."
Sarajin's smile flopped and with his hand dropping limp by his side he sighed and then reluctantly said, "Aaaalright."
So he then took off from the lab to Rai's place of residence at the back end of the city.
At the top he found the man in question spinning around in his chair and fortunately enough, Adderbolt, the other person Sarajin was hoping to see, was spinning in another chair.
The two were jousting with their feet, trying to push each other away. It seemed like fun, but Sarajin wasn't really in the mood for goofing off.
"Hey, Rai." Sarajin approached with a calm head, not wanting to immediately levy accusations at a friend.
Rai stamped his feet down and came to an immediate stop, but Adderbolt kept going, hitting his heels against the side of his friend's chair.
Rai then sat up more properly and asked, "What's up?"
Sarajin gestured out and asked, "Valic said you got hold of some copper recently. Do you mind sharing some so I can learn how to duplicate it?"
"Oh, did Valic come up with an idea for it?" Rai said, his tone a mix of happiness and confusion as he switched to mumbling momentarily, "Wish he would've told me directly..."
Rai then kicked at the floor to get to his control panel, where a finger-sized lode of copper rested on top of. He then spun his chair and kicked himself over to Sarajin, handing it over his shoulder.
"Here you go. Adder picked some of this up for me a while back."
As Sarajin held the copper in his head he squeezed his eyes shut and grunted, "I knew it."
After Rai kicked back beside his friend, and the two were going at it without a care in the world, Sarajin wondered if he should bother...
"..." He was squeezing his fist tight, building up his reluctance to the point he almost damaged the material he came to collect.
"Adderbolt," He let out willingly, then walked up to the two when they stopped horsing around, laying the stolen metal directly in front of the thief's face, "Did you tell Rai where you got this from?"
"Uhhh, I hadn't gotten around to it." He said with sincerity, just not enough to stave off Sarajin.
Sarajin slanted his brows and then glared at Rai, "He got this copper from Oreore's ravine. It and probably a few other metals you've been fiddling around with."
"What?" Rai turned to his friend and said, "Why didn't you say so? You know you're not supposed to steal..."
"I know it's a bad thing, I didn't want you to know because, well...I thought it'd be ok if I was helping a friend out." Adderbolt said, a little squirmish for the most part but it all came from the truth of how he felt.
Sarajin didn't see it that way though, and bluntly told him, "Oreore's having enough trouble without you coming in and stealing their supplies."
"I-I know, I know, you don't need to lecture me like I'm a child," Adderbolt said, his voice cracking with guilt, "But Nimus told me, that Lady Lilith told him, that Lord Borealis told her that the people of Oreore were hoarding precious metals that could help the other Tribes out so like, I thought it was ok to take them..."
"Why would you believe any of that?" Sarajin said.
"Well, I just assumed because, you know...You've been giving metal to Rai and Valic behind Oreore's back."
Sarajin's eyes slowly widened with the intensity remaining behind. His arms trembled, until he let go and tightened his fist around the copper, proceeding to shove it in his pocket.
"Don't believe everything that comes out of that liar's mouth..." He mumbled with disdain. He then quietly made his exit, and returned to Valic.
In the short time he's been gone the scientist has already constructed a very detailed miniature of his generator design, complete with pipes for the water flow and microscopic fans that will go inside later.
"Ah, good, he didn't put up any resistance." Valic said cheerfully.
"Yeah..." Sarajin replied, feeling a little drained of energy, "I'll...work on the copper later."
"It'll take some time to get there. No rush," Valic then gestured his hand out and wondered, "So this world you went to, what other technology was there?"
Sarajin perked up a little with a smile, "Well...I went to a few planets actually. There was a lot of weird technology everywhere."
He then laughed up dryly and said, "This one lizard-looking guy even tried to sell me a weapon that shot a beam that turned stuff into sheep."
Valic curled his lips and raised a brow, "Well...that's just absurd."
"Tell that to the poor warty frog who has wool now." Sarajin said, his chuckle letting him ease away from earlier stress.
They had a brief but fruitful conversation. Valic heard only what he needed to. And then, Sarajin felt like he had wrapped up enough business around the Tribes for one day.
Sunlight was beginning to burn out and, just like he had been every day for a while now, he wanted to make a trip over to Sancturia's library.
There, with Justek's help, he's been scouring the books for any detail he can find relating to the foundation of the human body...All in the hopes that this knowledge will help him give Auris a child.
There was a lot to unpack regarding the human body. How it breathed, how it thought, how it digested food, what composed the bones and teeth.
It was incredible how much work goes into a body making just one step.
Sarajin was absorbing a lot of knowledge and Justek was there to answer questions, guide him towards relevant topics, and even provide his cape as a blanket for colder nights.
Sarajin was becoming more of an expert on the human body than he was the elements, but the moment that would shift the balance the other way would come tonight...
Sarajin plucked a few books from the higher shelves and then grabbed some books he read already. He then floated down to the table his friend was at, him being in the middle of a story about a woman with a two-faced personality.
"Still grinding away are we?" Justek said with a brief gaze cast away from his book.
Sarajin dug his face halfway towards his book and muttered, "Uh huh..."
Justek marked his page with his thumb and then laid the book on his lap, "Have you been getting enough rest lately, Sarajin? You look a little tired."
"I'm fine," He hastily replied, ignorant to the subtle bags under his eyes, "What about you?"
Justek closed his eyes and sighed, "Oh, the kids have taken to jumping on their beds to rebel against the concept of sleep."
"Every time though that shrill she-devil Vermilion yells at them to knock it off." He said, mumbling with a prickled tone.
He was quick to shake his head and then glance back in his friend's general direction, "So, today you're reading up on the nervous system."
"Yeah," Sarajin nodded even beyond the point the gesture was necessary, "I just...feel like I'm so close to a solution!"
There was an elevated sense of joy to his voice that was clawing towards the finish line, wanting and anticipating.
Justek hummed, keeping his thoughts sealed behind pursed lips for the time being, and mustering the will to keep reading his book.
Sarajin combed a page every five seconds, the strokes of ink flying through the tunnels of his pupils and parking deep into his brain.
"All these functions in our body are controlled by the nervous system. Our ability to feel pain, knowing what food tastes like, and definitely our ability to think all comes from it."
"This is the most important thing I need to have in a child besides a heart, I just haven't figured out how the nervous system transfers all this information...!"
Then, at the cusp of his anticipation, his eyes palpated and he snatched the book up in his hands to hold it out before his face.
"That's it...!" His shout echoed throughout the library.
"Electricity is required for the nervous system to send signals throughout the body..." Was the line that punctuated everything Sarajin's tireless nights of reading was building up to.
He then planted the book upside-down while standing, both palms applied to the table as he leaned out towards his friend with both eyes half-shut.
"I-I think I can do it...! Make a child, using my elemental powers...!" Sarajin then let the wisdom he built up come flooding out, "Minerals in the bones, Earth...Electricity for the nervous system...Flower-based acids for the stomach...Water for hydration...Fire and Ice to regulate body temperature...Wind for breathing...If I combine everything together, I could do it! I really, really think I could do it...!"
Sarajin was so wrapped up in the moment, all content with his certainty, that he failed to notice how Justek was glancing at him with a solemn, rejectful look in his eyes.
There are points in life where you only have one second to make a decision. And you have no way of knowing whether you'll create happiness...or invite catastrophe.
Sarajin was quivering all over as he paced around, overflowing with joy. This was the happiest he had ever been in a long while...
And Justek could break it.
With just a few paragraphs too.
Why did it have to be him who was burdened with this choice, that separated happiness and catastrophe.
He knew why.
Because he has bore witness to where his friend's enthusiasm could lead him.
He was too eager to please, and the prolonged length he had been working towards this moment was leaving him blind to the innate flaws of his plan.
He just wanted to satisfy the woman he loves. There was no criminal mentality behind his ecstasy. This was the most selfless act he could have done...
So it made it quite ironic that it was the blind man who saw the bigger picture.
Justek silently closed his eyes, and put his book down to rest on the table. A quiet gesture, but one that braced Sarajin for what was to come.
Justek sat there still as a statue and nudged his glasses up on one finger, whispering in a strained, melancholic tone, "I don't think you'll find what you seek at the end of this road, my friend."
Sarajin slowly lowered his fists and muttered, "What do you mean?"
"There's one crucial element that remains outside of yours or even my understanding..." Justek's gaze peered open as he whispered, "The soul."
"Of all the books I've read there have been many scholars who have written about the nature of the soul without any definitive conclusion. Per their research, the most common and agreed upon sentiment is that a soul governs truth."
"'A human can lie, a soul cannot', written by novelist Meladine Theerbark, stating that in essence, our individuality comes from the soul."
"Another scholar, Ymir Yournson, built upon this theory, believing that the reason two parents are required to produce a child is because being a product of two unique individuals influences the nature of the new soul to become its own thing, either out of the rejection of or embracing the traits inherited by its predecessors."
Sarajin tried to speak up, "Then-"
"I know what you're thinking..." Justek interrupted, "What if I put part of my soul into my creation?"
"'My'...that is the word that unravels your whole plan. Think about your wife. What she wants. It's not just a child. It's a child WITH you. You give her a creation that is built entirely out of your will, and by instinct she'll be horrified by it."
"Sure, you may consider stripping away parts of the soul, mold it into something vaguely resembling you. But it will always have a part of you inside."
Sarajin grit his teeth down and then gasped with a prolonged, blunt tone, "Then what AM I supposed to do?"
It was here that Justek briefly took his glasses off, stared into the distance, and let his voice break, "I wish I knew..."
But in his eyes, he knew that this was the right choice. Because had he not spoken up, a monstrosity born of good intentions would have graced this world, and wedged a divide between two who needed each other more than anything...
...And it could have been his chance to fill that divide.
"Haaa..." He sighed, put his glasses back on, and picked up his book while Sarajin dragged himself back to the chair and fell into a slump.
A few minutes separated the noise that entered the room.
In the meantime, Justek watched his friend make subtle changes in expression. Frustration, guilt, helplessness, all coming to the forefront.
He buried his face in his hands, seemingly to wipe this all away...
Ultimately, braving the thick silence, Justek refused to leave his friend in shambles and said this, "...I believe everything will work out for you in the end."
To which Sarajin pulled his hands off, craned his head back and let out a bitter cry of, "Oh yeah? What makes you so sure?"
"...Nothing," Justek said with humility, before gracing his friend with a weak, easily broken smile as he said, "I just want good things to happen to you."
His voice was the cleansing breath that blew away some of the fatigue off Sarajin's face.
And for a moment, Sarajin smiled, extended his reach across the table, and patted his friend on the arm, "Thanks, buddy..."
Justek then put his book on his lap and said, "Get some rest. Be by Auris' side tonight."
Sarajin nodded twice, patted his friend again, then stood up with a smile and said "Good night" on his way out.
"Good night." Justek whispered back, returning to his book in the welcoming silence of a moonlit building.
Sarajin spent the night with his wife, the two having to lay on separate beds, but feeling bonded together all the same.
It was nice to have this feeling of togetherness again, as these past few weeks have been tough, with both of them using the state of the world as excuses to distract themselves from what they wanted and each other...
Justek gave the perspective he had been missing.
He would do...anything to give Auris a child...but what would be special about a child that wasn't the sum of their parts?
The two laid on their sides, her eyes gently closed and the only thing visible above the bed sheets besides her lovely hair.
Sarajin smiled as he looked at her, adrift in her dreams.
"I'll figure something else out. Somehow..." He let this vow be the hope that made his slumber easy.
The next day after a quick breakfast and their brand of hug, Sarajin ventured off to do his runs around the other Tribes.
His first stop of the day was going to be Canofloe. Since the soldiers have swapped armors out, he figured he could salvage the old ones to look for extra copper so he can better understand it.
Thus he entered Valflame's castle, with the guard's permission of course, and climbed the stairs to greet the man in his chambers.
And when he arrived he was shocked to find the man and five other slenderly clothed women gathered around his mattress with another woman laying down.
"Sir Valflame?" Sarajin said with marked concern.
Valflame turned on the spot and with a couple sputters of "S-Sarajin..." he wandered over and gently shoved Sarajin away, closing the shutters behind them.
He immediately eyed the concern on the young lad's face and made it imperative to tell him, "Don't worry. Everything's fine in there."
Then he propped himself up with notable sweat surrounding his face and said, "W-What can I do for you today?"
Sarajin brushed the worry off with surprising ease and then gestured out, "Do you still have the old armors lying around? I could use some of the material off them for a project I'm working on with another Tribe."
"Lucky for you we haven't had an opportunity to smelt them yet," Valflame remarked, "They should be in a heap outside the Atelier. Take whatever you need."
"Thanks."
And quick as a whip Sarajin was both ready to leave, and then receptive to Valflame's haste to keep him around, "Ahem...actually, one more thing."
The man tucked his hands behind his back in a presentable manner and muttered, "There's...something I wish to give you. But it's not ready. Can you promise to come back here in two weeks?"
"Yeah, I'll be back by then." Sarajin said, leaving off with a smile.
He didn't have any luck scavenging much copper off the old armor, but progress was progress.
Thus he spent the next two weeks taking care of various odds and ends around the world, such as continuing to investigate Tanglefae alongside Carmine for any signs of Glade.
Fortunately he wasn't dragged off-world at the last second and returned to Valflame's palace feeling anticipation riding up his arms.
This time, Sarajin knocked on the door before entering. There was no response until the third knock.
"Yes, come in..." Valflame said, his voice having a notable vulnerability to it.
Sarajin gently slid the door open and went inside. There, he found Valflame by himself, not a single muse in sight.
He was cradling a blanketed lump in his arms and staring downward into the hole at the front.
A shiver went down Sarajin's spine and a lump formed in his throat. A part of him started to piece together what was going on, the rest guided him closer to the man.
Valflame's eyes were crested with sadness as he looked into Sarajin's eyes and gently rolled the blanketed object out for him to get a better look.
This was no object. It was a child. Only a couple weeks old, with little, tiny strands of red hair with a shade resembling that of his father. And they were sweating with a feverish red in their skin.
"T-This is your baby..." Sarajin muttered, his throat feeling tight, closing off any further comment.
Valflame took another look at the baby's face, a single tear rolling down to his chin and then onto the baby's nose. With a deep gasp, the leader of fire felt the embers of his heart flicker out, and his skin grew pale as a result.
"..." He then closed his eyes for one last moment of hesitation, before extending his hands, and thus the baby, to Sarajin, "Actually...this is yours."
Sarajin's heart rang out in pain, and he pulled away, waving his hand up weakly, "N-Now wait a second. Hold on...!"
Valflame furrowed his brows and Sarajin, becoming pale himself, gulped hard and then murmured, "Y-You're giving us a child...? No. No. You can't do that, this is yours...I-I can't...!"
"I insist you must," Valflame replied with stern resolve, "Only then can I start to repay the debt I owe you."
"...W-What?"
Valflame closed his eyes and his voice cracked at the beginning of his sentence, "I was willing to lay down my sword and let illness take me."
"But you refused."
"You came to me without pity or disdain, but honesty and kindness, and reminded me that there is still something out there worth fighting for."
"And perhaps...I can only do so much to help. But it's better to try and fail, than to do nothing at all."
"So when your wife told me about the troubles you were having bearing a child, I knew exactly what I had to do."
"At the time, one of my wives was pregnant. We had already talked countless times about how we didn't want to bring a child into this world. Yet somehow...No, rather, for good reason, we have given birth to this baby boy."
"I...understand this isn't yours. It can never truly be yours. But when I see what you have done, and with how much heart your wife yearned to be a mother...I couldn't think of any two people better suited to raise this child."
"So please..." Valflame extended the baby out to him once more, "Take him. Raise him right. Give him the chance to be happy that I lack the ability for."
Sarajin's body was crumbling at the feet of this man's generosity. He was on the verge of tears and barely standing when he reached out and took the baby into his arms.
"I-I don't know what to say..."
Valflame pulled his hands off slowly, leaving one out to hover over the baby's face, and give it one last touch on the cheek.
He then took a deep sigh and muttered, "Say nothing. Go. Take the child to his mother."
Sarajin cracked a smile and then left the palace, taking flight from Canofloe and going straight to where Auris was.
He took it easy for the baby's sake, and held him close to his chest. The baby stirred with a giggle, like he was enjoying it, and it left Sarajin's heart fluttering in joy.
Once he was at the doorway of the house he took it all in and whispered with glee, "I'm...I'm going to be a father. Oh my lord..."
He waltzed through the front door with a smile beaming across his face and right as he was about to announce his presence, Auris shot up from her couch and turned around her heart racing out of her chest.
The two widened their eyes, stared at one another, then she looked down at the baby and planted her hand atop her chest.
Her expression melted and with a mite bit of embarrassment present in her cheeks she muttered, "I'm so sorry...Y-You wanted this to be a huge surprise but I couldn't help it. I was looking into the future and I saw this moment and I, and..."
Auris took a deep breath and ran around the couch to take a closer look at the baby boy. The lucky parents shared him in their arms and looked down at his face as he was sleeping with a smile.
"I-I'm looking. But I can't believe this is real..." Auris had to put her hand upon the baby's cheek but in doing so, sent a chill throughout her entire body.
"Red hair..." She murmured, before shifting right into an audible gasp of, "This child isn't...!"
Sarajin nodded, and Auris peeled away, spreading her fingers before her mouth, "O-Oh my lord..."
She then picked up the child into her arms and couldn't stop trembling. She cradled it with assurance in herself, and stared lovingly in it's eyes while rocking it back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...
The child got to learn how beautiful his mother was through the melody she hummed, which filled this household with a relaxing atmosphere.
She laid the child on the couch and then pulled away, wanting oh so much to keep holding on just a little longer.
But first, she brought her warm embrace around Sarajin's waist and looked at him with her wet, sparkling gaze.
"Thank you...thank you THANK YOU...!" She gasped, her voice cracking.
He let her let it all out for as long as she needed to.
The awkward silence was fading. Now, they could advance their relationship from being lovers, to parents...
And they both knew there'd be some struggles with a child that wasn't theirs, especially when it came to feeding it milk.
Sarajin figured he could ask his mom or dad for advice, and just wanted to see them to let them know about their new grandson.
Thus he headed off on his own while Auris stayed behind to help carry the baby through his new home.
Sarajin's spirits were higher than ever and he felt like he could take on the world.
But before that, he would have to deal with a presence breathing down his back.
"Congratulations on the new child, Elemental Overlord."
The hairs on Sarajin's neck rose cold and he spun around with his hand reaching for his blade. Standing before him was a limber man in a tight robe and webbed mask with no mouth moving.
His eyes perked with interest as he confirmed who he was, "You're...Atrax, the Sage of Darkness."
The man raised one of his many lithe fingers and chuckled, "I prefer to think of myself as a man of shadows, actually."
Sarajin faced a cold sweat trickling down the back of his neck as he murmured, "What do you want...?"
"Isn't it normal to give the parents of a newborn child a gift?" Atrax tucked his insect-like appendages into his body and then bowed with the arm resting at the center of them all, "But I appear to have misplaced mine. So how about this? I...shall lend my services to your cause."
"W-What?" Sarajin flinched and his desire to draw his blade lessened for a brief moment, only for him to hold on tighter as he slung accusations, "Yeah, right. Who set you up for this? Borealis? Nimus?"
"I'm here of my own volition," Atrax remarked, then immediately gestured his hand out in an exasperated fashion, "You don't believe me."
It felt like the man was smiling out of some manner of pleasant boasting, "And to think, I put so much effort into those armors for the men of Canofloe as a token of goodwill."
"...That was you?" Sarajin said, keep his surprise in check.
"Of course?" Atrax briefly rubbed his chin and then wagged his finger out, "Ah, you thought Stonestein or Borealis were responsible."
"I'm a builder. Making random knick-knacks is a hobby of mine. Mmm, or rather, it's an addiction I need to feed every now and then."
"...Why?" Sarajin was baffled, and this man was clearly trying to lower his guard.
"I know...it may seem I'm trying to lower your guard," The minute timing of his comment left a chill throughout Sarajin's body, "But I am the one person you should trust. No...you NEED to trust."
He stretched all his limbs out as though offering his whole body for kinship, "Because you and I, we are after the same goal."
"Peace...?" Sarajin said unamused.
"Yes!" Atrax announced.
"Like I haven't heard that before." Sarajin said, his eyes narrowing.
"..." Atrax put his arms down and the whole mood of their conversation shifted, "There is one major difference separating me from the likes of the other Sages."
"Many of them have lost sight of what they were. They see themselves as the one who will enforce their will on the world."
"But the duty of the Ten Sages has always been to work together and with others to guide civilizations to a better tomorrow."
"Difficult, and sometimes cruel his methods may appear, I once believed Borealis Aurora was the one who would guide this world to a brighter future."
"But the day he lost his daughter to you was the day he lost me..." Atrax flicked his finger up before his chest, "I'm sure you've noticed it too how...inactive, his presence in the world has been as of late."
"Yeah, but the other Sages are still mobilizing against the Tribes." Sarajin pointed out.
"That speaks to the utter failure of the current generation," Atrax followed up on that blunt remark with something a little more...relaxed, "Make no mistake though, what Borealis lacks is motivation, not so much belief."
"But you...both strong of mind and strong of heart," Atrax slowly raised that finger to point at his chin and give it a couple light taps, "Have managed to enforce your will on the world in ways the other Sages could only dream of."
As Sarajin's face lay blanketed with confusion Atrax threw up a jolly chuckle as he waved his hand out, "Do you NOT understand what a herculean feat it is to have created your 'Genesis Samurais'...Or how miraculous it is to have a leader so indebted to you, a man from another land, that he would willingly give up his own child?"
The hand sharpened all his will into one fingertip pointed right up at Sarajin's face, "YOU...Sarajin Stratos, are the person WE have waited for all this time. A hero of hope...that can guide this world back to its original shape, paradise..."
This masked man could sing his praises all he wanted...Heck, part of him felt a little sugary hearing someone so earnest about what he was doing.
But behind that mask was a Sage.
And so Sarajin drew his blade on him and remarked, "I will NOT trust you."
"I'm glad you won't," Atrax said, a smile growing fondly behind the mask, "Because it would be a PROBLEM if your beliefs wavered."
"And problems...well, are dealt with before they even know what's happening," When next the man spoke, Sarajin briefly felt as though he was being suffocated by darkness that stretched the man's mask with distortion and static, "UNDERSTAND?"
Sarajin shivered and quickly put his sword back in the sheath, the whites of his eyes pale.
Atrax then put his hand upon his chin and rubbed it, "For now, here's my offer. The other Sages believe I have their best interests in heart, so I cannot freely operate in the open. But in the shadows, I have no peers. I can leave and emerge wherever they are cast."
"Use me as a messenger, a spy, an assassin even. I am multifaceted in talents."
"...I can't afford to let my guard down around him. But if he's offering to help, it can't hurt to use him for now."
"...Ok," Sarajin released his grip on his sword and suggested, "You can help me and Auris deliver messages to the other Genesis Samurais."
"That's all?"
"If you're serious about helping, then you'll earn our trust like anyone else."
"Ok. Then I shall strive to surpass all expectations," Atrax took another bow and remarked, "Sorry for taking up your time."
He then sunk into his shadow, leaving Sarajin with a weird sense of...ease?
He shook it off and decided he'll discuss this more with Auris and his friends later. For now, he focused on what really mattered and regained his smile, leaving Sancturia behind to tell his mom and dad about the new member of the family.
Next Time: The Mystery of the Black Goo