The Sign

“This place did not change. So as the leaders, I see.” The old man says while looking at them sitting across the large round table.

They moved to a more private place where they can discuss things more openly without worrying about the other members overhearing their conversation.

Their leader, the oldest of them all speaks out first, “Master, will you not change your mind?” the old man just looks at him in response.

“Is there need for my mind to change? It doesn’t matter anymore.” His brief reply makes all of them worry considering that it has many meanings.

“What do you mean, master?”

He turns to look at all of them, and not even one has a different expression compared to the others. “They are all the same.” He says to himself.

“You all know what I mean, and that is exactly what you are all thinking.”

Their eyes widen in shock, none of them could utter a single word after what he said. The room is filled with silence as they try to process what just happened.

But as soon as what their master has done settles in, their expressions change. There are angry and infuriated for what he has done.

“Master, we know that you know the worth of that artifact, its best that you tell us where it is now.” The oldest of them says without letting his anger out.

The old man smiles at their dilemma and just comfortably sits in front of them.

“Like I just told you, it's too late.” He repeated. Making the rest of them no longer respect him but their oldest gestures them to stand down.

“You are playing us with your words, master. As long as the artifact doesn’t acknowledge anyone as its owner, it's still available for retrieval.”

Their master looks at him and holds back his laughter. “Boy, sometime the truth is just simple as you think.”

The oldest’s expression turns grim the moment he realized what their master had been up to the moment he left their organization.

“You didn’t-“

His face begins to blush as the anger within him proceeds to erupt.

BAM!

The table shook after he slams his fists, surprising the rest of the while their master continues to act carefree.

“Scary~” the old man taunts. “Whether you are worthy to hold the artifact matters not, none of you have the right to own that as if it belongs to you.” He adds in.

“The real owner of the artifact is finally found, there is no way all of you can change that. It will just be a matter of time before-“

ZOOOOOOM!

In that exact same moment when the tension between the two parties escalates, an invisible energy passed by them as if it was meant to inform them of something.

The energy reached to the very ends of the world and all of them are aware that a drastic change will tilt the standing of power from there on.

“Looks like it just happened.” The old man states the obvious to his previous apprentices as they make their way to punish him.

“Alas, I may not be able to see you grow.”

_________________________________________

“What the hell just happened?” Ibis thinks to himself in surprise after a strange energy pass through him when he touched the gem on his bracelet.

Even without going downstairs to check on his parents, he can hear their going in a panic after they felt the energy as well.

Ibis runs to the window and sees that everyone outside are behaving the same as his parents.

“What in the world is going on?” He turns to look at the bracelet, but it doesn’t seem to do anything anymore.

A few moments later, Ibis finds himself standing in the middle of the gathering of every family in the town to discuss the strange phenomenon earlier, and most of them shares their idea.

It is utter chaos as they continue to share their ideas to one another.

“What am I even doing here?” Ibis ask himself and a few moments later Fernan arrives.

“Look at them. Crazy, right?” Fernan said while resting his arm on Ibis’s shoulder.

“Tell me about it, I have to listen to all their ramblings from the very beginning.” Ibis complains and Fernan quickly calms him down.

“What are you talking about, do you not like what you see?” he sound like he is trying to convince me while pointing at all the young ladies that every family had brought.

They all turn away from Ibis that made him reluctant to stay in the gathering.

“Yeah. You’re right, lets just go.”

Never wanting to harm his friend in any way, Fernan decides to leave with Ibis and get some fresh air.

“How are you holding up?” Fernan asks after they settle down on a bench.

“Fine. I’m still feeling it, but I’m trying to forget.”

Fernan looks to his friend and apologize for not being able to do anything for him. Ibis shakes off the idea and brings up that he allowed him to touch the artifact and the two laugh.

They continue to talk more about the past as it makes them forget about all the troubles but as time went on, the noise of all the parents are reaching to them.

“This is getting really out of hand.” The two decided to come and watch, the gathering venue is full packed of people that all they can do is stand and watch outside the windows.

MUMMBLE! MUMMBLE! MUMMBLE!

“PLEASE SETTLE DOWN EVERYONE! I WOULD LIKE TO GET YOUR ATTENTION!”

The mayor yells and all of them quieted down after hearing the mayor yell for the first time.

“That’s better. Thank you very for listening to me, I have a guest here who claims to know the truth of that strange phenomenon earlier. I think what he will share makes a lot of sense. So I advise everyone to listen.”

The mayor then turns back and reveals and old man holding a crane. His demeanor gives off a solemn feeling around him that even Fernan and Ibis felt it outside.

“The phenomenon that we felt earlier is the sign. A sign that everything will change, a new and powerful individual has appeared.” The old man says as he turns to Ibis and smiles.