Zackory - a fateful touch (Vol. 2) ✅

Chapter 19

"Our destination is Hawaii. More precisely, the volcano Kilauea."

Zack called up the pictures he had collected on his laptop. Then he began to explain. "The goddess who is native to the crater Halema'uma'u of Kilauea Volcano is the Hawaiian volcano goddess, Pele. She is the Hawaiian-Polynesian goddess of dance, fire and lightning, but most importantly, the volcanic goddess of the Polynesian people of Hawaii. She is the daughter of the Mother of the Earth, Hawumea, and the Father of Heaven. She came straight out of her mother's mouth. In the myths, she has the figure of an old woman accompanied by a white dog. Near the crater, she takes the form of a young girl. She is considered both a creator and a destroyer."

Lucan continued to listen carefully.

"Bodies are turned to ashes, reborn in the fire. Old becomes young, red becomes black. What remains are tears that show you the way."

"Then by ash, the ashes of the volcano and the blossoming of nature, after the lava has burned everything to ash, do you mean the rebirth from the fire? Creator and destroyer in one."

Zack nodded. That made sense so far. Also, the part with old becomes young and red becomes black. When the red lava cooled, it turned black.

"But how do you know it's the volcano in Hawaii?" Lucan asked. Assuming Zack was right in his assumption that it was a volcano, there were hundreds, if not thousands, on Earth.

"It's the last line. This also confirmed my assumption that it must be a volcano. First of all, I believe that fire is meant literally here. So far, the two places we've visited have had one thing in common – they've been dedicated to one element. In Angel Falls it was the element of water, in Chichén Iztá it was the element of earth, hence the colors of the jewels."

"So, the third is the element of fire and what place could embody it better than a volcano?" Lucan completed Zack's sentence.

Zack moved to the next image. The crater of a volcano could be seen, on which all the golden threads and black small stones could be seen. "Exactly. Now to the place. When lava droplets are ejected from a lava well and cool down, they harden and form black axillates. These black stones are called Pele's tears on the Kilauea volcano."

Lucan understood immediately.

"These are meant as tears staying behind in the part, now the whole thing makes sense. I'm really impressed that you figured it all out in such a short time."

Zack grinned and was happy about the compliment. They were now one step closer to the key and the next destination was now clear: the volcano Kilauea in Hawaii. But before that, they had to adjust their equipment. Zack was not equipped for a trip to a volcano. "We need a protective spell against fire and heat," he said. To do this, they had to find a dealer who sold them. "Do you know anyone?" Zack asked. Lucan knew much better about the merchants of hell because of his age.

Lucan nodded. "I know someone capable. He is a blacksmith from Esmie, the trading town in Astaroth's realm."

Motivated, Zack got up and packed up. "Well, then let's pay him a visit. But before that, we have to buy a few capes here. I'm clearly dressed too conspicuously and standing out is what we have to avoid at all costs." Memories of the two demons that had almost attacked them came to his mind. We need to be more careful.

Zack checked out of the motel and paid the bill. Then they went to a crypt shop in Los Angeles and bought two capes that were suspiciously similar to those in hell. With the help of a portal, they then traveled to Esmie.

The door opened and two strangers with capes entered Omi's shop. He looked up and went to the salesroom to greet his customers. In front of him stood two giants. They were more than one head taller than him. He recognized the bigger one. It was Lucan, one of Astaroth's commanders. What is he doing in my shop?

"Hi Omi, I want to use your services," Lucan said.

Omi bowed. "Of course, how can I be at your service?"

The other with brown eyes was silent, only Lucan was talking. "We need two protective spells against fire and heat. It should protect the whole body, but also last a long time," Lucan said.

A protective spell against fire? That wasn't so unusual now, but one that lasted a long time was another matter. "How long?" asked Omi. Depending on the answer, he would have to resort to a different spell.

Omi himself was an Akuma demon. Akuma demons were demons originally born from the fire in hell. They are resistant to fire and heat and can also create it. As they age, they can seal some of their magic in items, making them fire-resistant as well. Omi had only recently completed his seventh century and earned his living with his blacksmithing. In recent years, he had earned a good reputation through his excellent work, so there was no shortage of commissions.

One of his specialties were items with fire resistance. But what these two needed was an item that could extend this resistance to the owner. This was a lot more challenging, though not impossible for him. Accordingly, this also had a high price. But his customer was a demon of high rank, with whom he didn't want to miss out. Lucan possesses Astaroth's trust, so this customer's dissatisfaction would automatically affect all his orders from this realm. Since he had been living in Esmie for several centuries now, he didn't want to leave here. That meant he had to do master work here.

"It should last at least two weeks, better a month. Is that feasible for you?" Omi looked thoughtful.

"If you are successful, I will tell Astaroth about your masterpiece," Lucan added.

The demon's attitude changed abruptly. Of course. A positive word about his own performance with the hell prince was worth more than thousands of carts of gold. "I think I have an idea. I have the right equipment, the only thing missing is the magic. It takes about an hour," Omi said.

Lucan nodded. "We are waiting. What do you want for your work?" he asked, as he would of course pay for it.

Omi pressed something around, and he ran into a room behind him. After two minutes, he came back with a piece of jewelry. It was an elaborately designed dagger with numerous decorations. "Would you give this dagger to Prince Astaroth as payment?" the Akuma demon asked.

Zack looked surprised, and Lucan seemed to understand that. As a result, if Astaroth was satisfied with his blacksmithing, he might even request from him directly. That was something invaluable.

"I will. We'll wait here until you're done." Lucan took the dagger into his care. Omi nodded happily and got to work.

Zack and Lucan heard a hammering from the back and felt magic rise. After an hour and a half, the demon was finished. He came back with four silver armlets. The pattern of flames was burned into it. They were beautiful.

"Put these armlets around your upper arms. As soon as they fit, they connect and stretch a skin-like veil over you that keeps out fire and heat. However, it doesn't protect against when you reach directly into glowing coals or lava. Of course, they also don't protect against cuts and blows," Omi said with a proud expression. "The effect should last about four weeks. But I have to warn against it, the duration depends on how intensively they are used."

Lucan nodded and gratefully accepted them.

"Are you planning to go swimming in a volcano?" Omi asked with a laugh. The two looked at each other. Had he hit the mark?

"You have a flourishing imagination. Thank you for your work. We have to go now," Lucan said. Then he nodded to his companion and they left the store.

What remained was a somewhat astonished demon. But he didn't have much time to ponder, he still had some orders that he had to be finished by today. Eventually, he got back to work.

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A short visit to the workshop of a master blacksmith.

Did they arouse suspicion?

Your Mouse Goddess