Please Don't Cry; Third Book in the Sky Army's Defeat Series

Chapter Nine

Sky reached the Minecraftia's Finest Kingdom later the next day, which acted as a pit stop for him to get his belongings together as well as trade for a few new items for his kingdom. One of the three kings there, Max, greeted him and took his belongings up to the room he'd be staying in.

Once there Sky immediately got to business, getting a few ores and supplies for the trip home, and renewing the treaty they had that ensured peace between them. After all the business was done, he plopped down on his bed and fell asleep.

Back at his home, there was a small strife going on between the recruits and a few generals.

"How could you let Sky leave during a time like this General?" Shouted a recruit.

"Yeah! Don't you think the king should stay here? His greatest enemy has just risen and now he's running away!" Agreed another.

"Everyone shut up!" Jason yelled over the protesting, "Sky has our best intentions, and we need to keep that in mind while he's away protecting us!"

"How can he protect us from the squids after what happened last time? He's running and you're hiding it!"

Quentin grumbled under his breath at that. "I know Sky would never do this, but even I'm starting to feel like he's abandoning us," he muttered to Jason, who sighed and nodded. "I agree, but we need to have faith in Sky. He's our friend. He wouldn't just leave us."

Seto ran up from behind the two, his breathing rushed as his shaky hands grabbed a wrist from either male. "Mitch and Jerome are missing," he breathed, "and there was magic left in the room they were last in."

Jason and Quentin exchanged looks before Jason decided to go with Seto while the mudkip hybrid remained with the ever growing angry mob of recruits.

Seto's magic caused his soft brown eyes to glow a harsh purple as he muttered a spell, his hands swirling around a sphere of magic in front of him. This continued for a few moments before his hands closed on the sphere, and then he threw his hands out, which sent magical particles flying all around the room.

The aftermath was mesmerizing. The whole room seemed to be coated in a soft purple glow, with waves of magic floating around near the farthest wall from the door, the middle of the room, and the corner next to Seto. "Those strings," the sorcerer pointed out, "are the kidnapper's. The one on the wall over there is where they first appeared, and the one in the middle of the room is where they got Mitch. The one in that corner is bigger because there's two people being teleported at once, which was Jerome and the kidnapper."

Jason's eyes widened in slight disbelief as he looked around at the scene. His friends were kidnapped under their noses. How could this be? Suddenly Seto gave a curse and ran out of the room. Oh how could he have been so blind?! That magic was all over the crowd of recruits, and how did he not see it before?!

The silence that the sorcerer heard rang loudly in his ears, and it scared him. When he burst through the door, he was surprised to be met with a familiar face.

"S-Simba?"

The much older sorcerer gave a low chuckle. "Hello Seto. It's been a while hasn't it?"

Seto glared at his godfather, standing defensively in front of Jason. "You took my friends." Hunter smirked.

"All of them belong to my king, now. And soon so will you. I know you feel it, Seto. The dark magic runs through our family."

"I will never, ever, succumb to the darkness like you have, Hunter. I'm not like my family. That's the whole reason I left!"

Hunter's amused smile unnerved Seto to the point his skin crawled, and the way the sorcerer slowly made his way over to him didn't help his uneasiness. "You see, Seto, the whole reason you left will be the whole reason why you return and fulfill your destiny."

Seto's eyes widened when he realized what his godfather was getting at and quickly attempted a defensive spell, but it was too late. The older sorcerer had already started his hypnotizing of the poor boy, and pretty soon the admired sorcerer's eyes were half lidded under the gaze of Hunter.

"That's it, my Seto, just relax. Your thoughts are free as a bird, and your body, light as a feather."

As the royal sorcerer dragged his family member deeper under his trance, it didn't go unnoticed by Jason that one of his close friends was there, but what did was the pale boy's deep blue eyes.

"Ty?" Jason asked, his voice a high octave from disbelief that his friend would betray him.

"It's General Deadlox to you," the turned general scowled, grabbing Jason's arms and restraining them. "I no longer side with you fools."

~