Luines - Book 1

Chapter 10: It's A Small World After All

Reality, no matter how hard you push it back, really bites back. For the weeks that passed, Hal Cruz tried to live a normal life. Reeg and Lizard were still bedridden, but their vital signs were improving. Her nightmares had gotten worse ever since she held that wand. Night after night, she has been getting snippets of Neon's and Reeg's lives from that scene in the atrium to the First Street fight. Hal sighed in deep thought. She couldn't bear the thought of losing another one again. What had the Luines done to deserve that kind of fate?

She hid herself in the library, burying her head on every reading material she could find regarding the Luines. The first known appearance of the Luines were before the Roman Empire, where the first battle between the Dark Elves and Light Elves broke.

The Luines of that time were a colorful bunch. Lirea Quast came from Atlantis while Azir Al-Alab was an ifrit from the Egyptian deserts. Jarl Gambas was a Celt gnome while Drazu Greant was a sun elf, the youngest of the Realm Council during his time. They fought valiantly for peace but they faced Bakunawa's lion form that killed them in the second Elven Wars.

The second set of Luines appeared during the Crusades. She read their names: Carlota Phrey, Ishtar Lune, Talon Swift and Banawa. She paused for a while as she read the name again, Banawa. That's Nara's great great grandmother. Nara was never born yet. Banawa was the first to be killed amongst them when she shielded them against Bakunawa by creating a humongous tree. The rest of their party escaped but Bakunawa got to them in an ambush in a church during a solar eclipse. Though, a footer indicated that there was the appearance of a man named the Immortal to aid them. The Immortal was as strong as the Luines and was able to restrain Bakunawa, but he can't withstand Bakunawa's full strength.

Then, the most famous of the Luines came during the era of the enlightenment, the Renaissance. They were the four founders of GEOS Academy, who drew inspiration from the legacy that Banawa left, the Balete Tree. Before Azraff Gamil was killed, he created a moonstone infused with Bakunawa's scales that could have been used by the Luines to find their fellow Luines.

The next sets of Luines came in a few numbers despite having the moonstone. No one got to the campus to retrieve it. Pasha Eletrev fought during the Boxer Rebellion, because his fellow Luines were killed the moment they were discovered. He fought the Bakunawa courageously even if he was alone. Another was Vitorrio Vivendi, the first to have double outbreaks, fire and water. But, he was killed during the Cold War. According to the accounts, Bakunawa inhibited a Russian spy and charmed Vitorrio. The spy had the same description as Reeg: purple smoke and dark eyes that spoke of a thousand years of torment.

The next appearance that the Luines had was during World War 2. Although Earthen History never mentioned anything about them, their presence was felt. Professor Omar Hebab worked in GEOS Academy while Aukai and Nikolai Horvath were his students. Their battle took place in Pearl Harbor where Bakunawa commanded a plane and later on took their lives.

The last name she read about was the famous Naiara D'Aigua. She was a nurse at GEOS Academy, and was pretty known for the first to ever surrender her powers as a Luine to Bakunawa. It was later uncovered that she bore a child, but her cowardice prevailed for years.

She shut the book tight, and uttered, "So, thanks to Naiara we got a wand and its tip was infused with Azraff's moonstone. But, no one seemed to know how to kill him."

Her throat had gone dry and her stomach rumbled. She shook her head, got up, took her bag, "Pucha, I'm hungry."

Her hunger brought her to El Mundo Cafe, GEOS Academy's worldly themed cafe. Despite the lunch pandemonium, Hal always looked for the sounds of the chirping birds and the rustling trees; focusing on them gave her that sense of peace she always dreamed of. Besides, a huge living Narra tree stood within the school cafeteria, its trunk supporting the posts, and its branches sprawling over the establishment's ceiling.