Chapter 7: Journeying to Kibombo and New Friends

I followed the party that attacked Madra as they crossed the land bridge to a brand new continent. At least, brand new to anyone who's never been in the world outside of Lemuria before. I eventually learned that this was the continent of Gondowan. It was sweltering hot in this part of the world, but I kept going, battling monsters along the way.

There was this one monster in particular, a Flash Ant, which was very powerful, but, thankfully, my Water Psynergy kept it at bay. I cannot wait till I reach Kibombo, so I can get my orb back! I thought angrily as I fought off another Flash Ant. I eventually reached a village. My only hope was that I had finally reached Kibombo. I nearly collapsed at the entrance from exhaustion, but thankfully, I remained standing, long enough for a young boy to notice me. He walked up to me. "Are you okay, mister?" he asked politely.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you." I said to him. "Is this Kibombo, perchance?"

"No, mister." the young boy said, eyeing me suspiciously. "This is Naribwe. Kibombo is further north. Are you headed there?"

"Yes, I am." I said. "A group of them attacked the town where I was staying. In the process of their attack, they had stolen... something precious from me. I need to reclaim it."

"I see." the young boy said. "Well, why don't you rest before head out again? You look exhausted."

There's an understatement for you! I thought. But, I said aloud, "I would love to. Where is the inn?"

The young boy guided me to the inn. "Thanks, again." I said, starting to hand him a couple of gold coins.

"Oh, you don't have to pay me, mister." He said. "Your thanks are reward enough." And he walked off.

What a generous young man! I thought. I wonder if he treats all travelers with the same courtesy? I opened the inn door and walked in. The person who I assumed was the innkeeper turned around, saying, "Ah! Another traveler!"

"Er... I need a place to stay..." I said, feeling very awkward.

"Of course you do!" the innkeeper said. "Now, how long are you willing to stay?"

"One night." I said.

"One night?" the innkeeper asked. "That's all? You look like you haven't rested well in at least a week!"

"I'll be fine." I insisted. "One night."

The innkeeper sighed. "Very well." he said. "That'll be 24 gold coins, please."

I took out my moneybag, counted out the correct amount and handed to the innkeeper. "Thank you," he said.

He took me to my room and said, "This is the best room I have." he said. "Have a nice rest."

"Thank you." I said politely. "Good night."

Then, without removing my sword from my belt, I walked to the hammock, collapsed in exhaustion on top of it and fell into a deep, troubled sleep. Disturbing thoughts filled my head as I slept. What if I never make it back to Lemuria? What if something happens to Mother while I'm gone? What if the senate for sending me out of Lemuria punishes King Hydros? So many more thoughts plagued my sleep. But, when I woke up the next morning, the troubling thoughts were gone, and were replaced with feelings of determination to get my orb back. As I exited my room, the innkeeper's wife came up to me and gave me a tray of food. "Here you go, dear," she said. "You look very hungry."

"Thank you." I said, taking the tray from her.

"You're welcome, dear." she said, walking off.

I looked down at the tray and gasped. It was filled with tons of food; grilled steak, fried eggs, sliced fruit, and so much more. I am surprised even now that I managed to eat it all. I guess I needed my strength for the journey ahead. When I had finished, I handed the tray back to innkeeper's wife. I could tell that she was surprised I had eaten all that food, too. "Do you think I could have some extra food for the road?" I asked the innkeeper.

"Sure," the innkeeper said. "But it'll cost a few extra coins."

It was going to set me back a little bit, but it would not hurt to have some food on the road, in case I get hungry. So, I shelled out a few more coins for some food, and the innkeeper's wife filled a satchel to the brim with food. "Here you go, dear," she said, handing me the satchel.

"Thank you." I said, taking the satchel and strapping it to my back.

"Have a safe journey, young man." the innkeeper said. "And if you're headed towards Kibombo, be careful trekking through the mountains. There are lots of Kibombo warriors guarding the pass."

I winced at being called "young man" again, but I let it go. "Thanks." I said, heading out the door like a shot. I stopped at the weapon shop to see if I could reequip myself with a better weapon than the mere Lemurian blade I had been using since Lunpa started giving me swordplay lessons. We looked around the store, but nothing caught my fancy until the shopkeeper walked me over to this very odd-looking sword. "This sword here is called a Claymore," the shopkeeper told me. "It may not look like much, but trust me, you'll be happy when you're surrounded by powerful monsters!"

"It looks remarkable!" I said. "How much is it if I trade in this sword?" I was holding the sword that was strapped to my belt.

He took a look at the sword I was holding and gasped. "I haven't seen a sword like this in ages!" He exclaimed. "I'm surprised it's still in very good condition!"

"Well, I clean and polish it very often." I said matter-of-factly.

"Not only that," the shopkeeper said. "This sword is more than 200 years old, and it's still intact!"

"Well, it was my great-grandfather's." I lied quickly. I didn't want him to get any ideas.

"Why do want to sell it?" the shopkeeper said suspicion in his eyes.

"My family is very poor." I lied. "My mother told me we had no choice but to sell the family heirlooms for some money. She also told me I needed a better sword for my swordplay classes."

"Well, let's see..." the shopkeeper said. "That sword is worth about 1,375 coins, and the Claymore is 4,000 coins."

"That's still 2,625 coins!" I said. "I'm afraid I don't have that kind of money."

There seemed to a long pause following what I had just said. The shopkeeper seemed to be thinking. "You know what?" he finally said with a smile. "Because I like you, we'll just trade swords."

"What?" I asked, hardly daring to believe it. "You're going to let me trade this old thing for a sword of that power... for free!"

"Shhhhh!" the shopkeeper said. "Not so loud!"

"Sorry." I whispered. "But, still..."

"Yep." the shopkeeper said. "Here you go." He handed me the Claymore.

"Thanks." I said, handing him my old sword.

"Pleasure doing business with you, sir." the shopkeeper said.

As soon as I left the shop, I tied the Claymore to my belt. I left Naribwe and made the hard trek north, towards Kibombo. Many more monsters attacked me, but my new Claymore made short work of them. I soon reached a huge mountain pass. I was certain this was the same mountain pass the innkeeper had told me about. Sure enough, when I entered the pass, there were some warriors guarding every corner of the mountain. I was heading towards the main entrance when one of the warriors stopped me saying, "Halt! Who are you?"

"Just a friendly stranger." I replied. "I wish to enter Kibombo, so that I can trade my wares."

"I'm sorry, sir," the warrior said, not sounding very sorry at all. "But, we cannot allow you to pass."

"Why is that?" I asked, keeping things friendly.

"There is an important ceremony going on in Kibombo," the warrior explained. "If Akafubu does not complete it, he will hold us responsible."

"That's a little harsh, isn't it?" I asked.

"I agree with you, but still, we cannot allow to pass." the warrior said. "Again, accept my apologies."

"I'm sorry, too." I said, with mock sadness.

"For what?" the warrior asked.

"For having to do this." I replied. "COOL!"

I cast my Cool Psynergy on the Kibombo warriors who were surrounding me. They were instantly knocked unconscious. Then, I ran for my life. The other Kibombo warriors saw me, but they didn't bother chasing me because they had seen what I had done to their comrades, and apparently, they did not want the same thing to happen to them.

I kept running and running until, I saw a village in the distance, and towering over the village was a huge, strange-looking statue. I entered the village to discover all the villagers were huddled around the area leading up to the statue. How am I going to get through so I can get my orb back? I thought.

Then, I noticed some vines on one of walls the throng was around. I snuck through the crowd, and climbed the vines. I saw there was a long row of pillars leading from one side to the other. I hopped from pillar to pillar, making sure no one saw me. Soon, I reached the other side. I went up, and there it was, that huge statue. I stood there, gazing in awe. Then I saw a crowd of Kibombo warriors and one Kibombo who was dressed in robes of some kind. They were surrounding the base of the statue. I could only assume the one in the robes was Akafubu. "Prepare yourselves!" he said. "For the ceremony is about to begin!"

I don't think so! I thought. But, just as I was about to strike, I heard a rustling in the forest around me, and a girl's voice saying, "Ouch, Felix, that was my foot!"

"Sorry, Jenna." A young man's voice said.

"I ought to flambé you for that, you know!" the girl's voice said.

"This is no time to fight, guys," another girl's voice said.

"Quite right." an older man's voice said. "We have to find Piers."

They're looking for me! I thought. But who are these people? I drew my sword just in case. I soon discovered who they were, as all four of them came tumbling out of the forest, and lay sprawled out on the ground. As I looked them, they looked vaguely familar. "Who are you?" I demanded. "And, what are your intentions?"

All four of them got up and brushed themselves off. "It seems Piers has forgotten all about us, huh?" the auburn-haired girl asked the brown-haired man.

"Yeah, it would seem so, Jenna." the brown-haired man said to the girl known as Jenna.

"I think I know why, Felix," the blond-haired girl said to the man called Felix.

"Why?" Felix asked.

"We met Piers when he was in jail!" The blond-haired girl said. "And, it's not like he had many visitors either!"

"I agree, Sheba," the old man said to the girl named Sheba. "Especially after that little display of Psynergy."

"Wait a second..." I said, examining the people standing before me more carefully. "I know you... you're the travelers that came seeking me while I was jailed in Madra."

"So you do remember!" the old man exclaimed.

"Yes." I said, sheathing my sword. "But what brings you to this dangerous place?"

"What do you mean?" Jenna asked.

"We were worried about you, Piers." Sheba added.

"We thought we might want to lend a hand." Felix chimed in.

"Tell me something..." I said.

"What?" Felix asked.

"Exactly when did I ask for your help?" I asked.

Felix was about to respond, but, as if on cue, Akafubu cried out, "Silence!" and all of us fell silent.

We looked on as Akafubu cried out, "Now is the time to present our jewel to the Great Gabomba!"

He walked up to a pedestal, upon which sat... my orb! Felix and the others must have noticed it, too because they started holding me back, as if I were going dive down there grab it. "Let me go!" I whispered to them. "I'm not that rash."

"Sorry." Jenna whispered, releasing me. "One of my childhood friends was and still is a little bit rash every now and again. I thought you'd be the same way."

"Ahhh." I said, not really listening.

The five of us continued to watch as Akafubu used the Psynergy known as Lift to raise my orb high above the pedestal towards the head of the statue known as the Great Gabomba. "Great Gabomba, please accept this! Our humble gift!" Akafabu said, casting some kind of Psynergy spell I never seen before.

Humble gift, my foot! I thought angrily. Suddenly, the statues eyes opened and the Kibombo warriors gasped. "Look!" Akafubu exclaimed. "The Great Gabomba has noticed the light of our jewel!"

Not long after he said this, however, the statue's eyes closed. "Why, Great Gabomba?" I heard Akafubu murmur sadly, as my orb floated back down to the pedestal.

He then turned towards the Kibombo warriors, with the utmost anger in his eyes. "Your prayers were weak!" He screamed at them. "Open your hearts to the Great Gabomba!" And at once, the warriors began singing praises at the top of their voices to the Great Gabomba.

"Akafubu is no witch doctor!" I said angrily, forgetting that Felix and the others were standing there. "He's an Adept! I may have to confront him to get my orb back."

"Now, Piers, let's not be rash..." Jenna said, trying to calm me down.

But, I wasn't listening to her. I was wildly running around, looking around for some kind of shortcut. When I stopped to catch my breath, I saw Felix calmly walk over to a stump that was blocking the very shortcut I was looking for. "Move." he said aloud, pointing his hand towards the stump.

Suddenly, I saw a ghostly force moving the stump into a nearby pit and it fell with a light banging sound. I gaped in awe, trying to comprehend what I had just seen. Felix, however, just simply turned to me and just shrugged his shoulders. When I finally found my voice, "Was that Psynergy?" was I the first thing I said.

When Felix nodded, I was even more shocked. Then, it hit me. "I should've spotted it at once!" I said, laughing to myself for being so blind. "You're Adepts!"

"Does this mean you're...?" Jenna asked.

"Yes, Jenna." I said. "I too am an Adept."

There was a slight pause before I went on. "To be honest with you," I continued. "Everyone in Lemuria is an Adept to some degree."

"What's Lemuria?" Sheba asked.

"It's the city of an ancient people that lies on an island in the Sea of Time, the misty area in the heart of the Eastern Sea." I explained.

"Wait a moment..." the old man interrupted. "You said 'Lemuria'!"

Encouraged by my prompt nod, he continued, "I've heard that name before!" He seemed to be excited with the very thought.

After another pause, it came to him. "Of course!" he exclaimed. "It was Lord Babi! He had spoken of Lemuria quite frequently. He told me that life in Lemuria is so advanced, we can only scarcely imagine what life is like!"

"You're friend is correct." I replied. "Whoever told you this must know much about Lemuria. Hang on... Babi... I've heard that name before..."

"Yeah, everyone knows about Lord Babi!" Sheba said, with contempt in her voice. "He's the ruler of Tolbi!"

"I've never heard of Tolbi." I said. "And until recently, I have never left Lemuria."

"Piers, are you playing games with us?" Jenna asked disbelievingly.

"Please, what would I gain from lying to you?" I responded. "I am being quite serious."

"Piers is not playing games, Jenna," the old man agreed. "You can trust him."

I suddenly became very warmer towards the old man. "Thank you for believing me, master sage!" I said to him happily.

"Please, I am called Kraden, Piers of Lemuria," the old man named Kraden said just as happily. "To be honest, Ishould be the one thanking you!"

Felix and the others stared at him, with a mixture of confusion and wonder on their faces. "All of you look a little confused" he said. "You're probably wondering what I'm talking about..."

"Uh, yeah." Felix said.

"A little clarification would be nice, Kraden!" Jenna said.

"I shouId have guessed as much..." Kraden murmured.

"Wait a moment!" I said, realizing something. "I remember now! Babi was the name of a man who came to Lemuria several decades ago. He stole one of our ships fled the isle."

"Indeed?" Kraden asked. "Then, that must be the same Babi who leads the people of Tolbi, because he had told me he had a magnificent Lemurian ship. Although, I have never seen it for myself."

"Now, I'm getting more confused." Jenna said, . "It's almost making my head hurt."

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"If Babi stole a ship from Lemuria, why would he want to find it again?" she asked.

"I don't expect you to comprehend it, my dear." Kraden said. "You see, Babi's reasons for finding Lemuria are... complex."

"What do you mean, 'complex'?" Sheba asked.

"You see, Babi believed in Lemuria, the power of Alchemy remains unbound." Kraden explained. "And, Babi had need of Lemuria's Alchemy, but we could not find Lemuria, which is why I was sent to Vale to find the Elemental Stars."

Elemental Stars... I thought. Could these be the Adepts King Hydros told me about? The ones who are trying to unleash the power of Alchemy upon Weyard again?

"I want to help Piers so we can go to Lemuria!" Kraden continued. "What do you say, Felix?"

"Yeah, I'll do it!" Felix said.

"Us, too!" Jenna and Sheba chorused.

"Splendid!" Kraden said. "What do you say, Piers?"

"I appreciate the offer, but..." I said.

"But, what?" Kraden asked.

"If it is something you must do for Babi, then I cannot permit it." I said.

"Why is that?" Kraden asked.

"Babi is a thief." I explained. "He is not well loved in Lemuria."

"I just want to see the full power of Alchemy, that's all," he said, giving me the weirdest look.

At first, I was a little confused, but then, I got the message. "Oh! Well then, that's different!" I said, with a smile.

"Please, can we talk about this later?" Jenna asked impatiently.

"Yeah, can we?" Sheba asked in the same manner.

"I'm sorry." Kraden said. "Let's focus on getting Piers' orb for now."

And, that was how I joined Felix and the others. We crept quietly around to the backside of the statue, making sure Akafubu and his men didn't see us. Suddenly, I noticed a strange patch of dirt. "Kraden, look at this!" I whispered.

Kraden examined the patch of dirt. "Hmmm..." He murmured to himself.

After long while, Kraden said, "Listen up, Felix..."

"What do you want?" Felix asked.

"Dig there!" Kraden said, pointing to the patch of dirt.

Felix put his hand over the patch of dirt. "Scoop!" he muttered.

Without warning, a big clump of dirt was removed from the patch, revealing a ladder! "It appears we're going to have to enter the Great Gabomba." Kraden said.

"Oh, great!" Jenna said, not too happy about the situation.

I smiled. "Ladies first." I said to Jenna and Sheba.

Jenna sighed. "All right, all right..."

Jenna and Sheba climbed down the ladder. A few seconds later, Jenna's voice said, "Hurry up, you guys!"

"Yeah, you've gotta see this!" Sheba's voice said.

"Be right down." Felix said, climbing down the ladder.

Then, Kraden climbed down, and then I did. What I saw afterwards surprised me. It was not going to be an easy trek through the Great Gabomba after all.