Compass Rose

Chapter 1

~Chapter 1~

LAZARUS

It was dark room, only lit by the small light of the candles nearby. I had been training for hours. I sat on a straw mat, wearing only a pair of jogging pants and the head band I received from my master a few years back. I sat alone, only my spirit and the warmth of the tiny flames accompanied me in the room.

My eyes were closed. I focused my magic onto my shoulder blades and a pair of shadow-like arms sprouted out of them. They had claw fingers and were mostly flat. If I had to describe it into the simplest way, I’d say they were paper thin arms made out of magic.

I reached out with my shadow arms and drove them through the candles, blowing out the candles with a little silent whisper. The room was in complete darkness, but I could still see everything in the room.

I muttered ‘pang-unawa’, and I could see the world in negative colours, even if my eyes were closed. Wooden brown walls were the walls keeping me from all distractions of the outside world, a small table in the corner of the room with a small lamp kept the room a little interesting. Other than the straw mat beneath me and the seven candles in front of me, there was nothing else in the room. I couldn’t blame it either; its sole purpose is to be a training room for me and my master.

I reached out for the switch next to the door with a shadow arm and flicked it down. Instantly, the room was dimly lit by a small and broken light bulb in the middle of the ceiling. I sighed and slowly opened my eyes. I squinted a little. My eyes were closed for hours. What more could you expect?

I stood up, picked up my white sweat shirt on the table and exited the room. I walked up the wooden steps that creaked with every step. As I reached the top, I saw my master sitting on the table in the dining room, which was directly linked to the training room.

He looked up from his newspaper and sipped his tea. “Done for the day?”

“Yeah,” I replied, taking off my headband.

“So,” he said, taking another sip “You’re going to head off soon.”

“Yes I am. I thank you for taking care of me all these years. I’m very grateful for all you have done, master.”

He put down the cup of tea in his hand onto a small plate and looked at me straight in the eye solemnly. He carefully folded his newspaper and placed it on the table. “I know how much you want to stop them, but you can’t do it alone.”

I looked back at him with a more determined eyes. My brows furrowed as I said, “I know.”

I’ve been training with my master for years to achieve one goal: to stop the Marvinian Empire. They are a vile group that are in the northern continent, Ayemira. They go around the planet, terrorising the other continents. They have destroyed countless cites, broken thousands of homes, and have taken the lives of millions of people. Their leader is a heartless man who calls himself ‘Emperor Marvin’, a title that neither suits him nor his name.

Why hasn’t the government take care of them? Well, Emperor Marvin had bought them all out. He was the richest man in the world and had the most influence, higher than the president of Ayemira. He’s even killed his family. I can’t stand that man. Everybody is afraid of him. Anyone who opposes him gets a malakidlat from the sky – a large lightning bolt. If you’re on his hit list, he will kill you no matter what the cost.

That’s why I want to stop him. His evil ambitions should come to a halt for good.

“That’s why,” I continued, “I ask that I may have your boat. I plan to search the other continent for willing comrades.”