Ancient Neopia: Part Eleven

The group was fighting their way through the forest, following the path of dirt. It looked like a lot of people had walked these roads. There were small cracks in the ground and tree roots came up.

     "You know, Rio," Jarod started. "I hope everything will change once we beat Jahbal."

     "Me too…" Rio said sadly. "My parents died in the battle with the wizards… in Kal Panning."

     "We are going to him," Jarod said. "To save the world…"

     "Yeah." Rio sighed. "But… also for ourselves, right?"

     "Kind of like… revenge?" Jarod asked uncertainly.

     "Yeah, I guess so," Rio said, as he looked at the sky.

     "Maybe…" Jarod started, remembering the spirits of his parents. "Maybe they are within you. They must be within you."

     "I know, Jarod," Rio said. "I carry them around and they are the source of the power I have to fix weapons and armor."

     "Helping spirits…" Jarod said, as he grinned. He could practically imagine his mother, swinging a giant hammer against a sword just to fix one small hole. He chuckled.

     "Wait."

     Hero's ears twitched. Bushes around them began to shake wildly.

     "Seems like we have been expected," Rio said, as he took his hammer. "I'm gonna whack you good!"

     Then, two Praetus Rock Scorchios jumped out from behind the bushes and then someone jumped down from a tree. Her purple cloak covered her voice.

     "You plan on stopping Jahbal?" The figure took her cloak's hood off and revealed her face. A green Aisha. Masila.

     "Masila…" Jarod muttered, as he watched the Praetus Rock Scorchios walk towards Masila.

     "Let us fight," Hero said, as he pulled out his sword. Jarod and Rio followed by pulling out their weapons. Masila revealed a long golden staff. A red diamond on the top. There were strange markings on the staff.

     "Let us begin then!" Masila shouted, as she ran backwards. She was going to use a spell. The Praetus Rock Scorchios ran towards the group. Rio powered up. His hammer was now shining. He ran towards one of the Scorchios and whacked it with all his power. A small crack appeared on the Rock Scorchio's head.

     It then glared at the small Korbat and he fired a fireball at Rio, who got knocked to the ground.

     Hero and Jarod were slashing and smashing the other Rock Scorchio.

     Rio then jumped into the air while his hammer was still shining brightly. He then floated in the air. He then dived for the ground and crashed into the ground. The ground cracked and went under the Rock Scorchio's feet.

     Explosions then came out of the crack and magically the ground closed again. The Rock Scorchios changed into a pile of rubble.

     "Oh, so these weren't strong enough to stop you." Masila then cackled, as she fired an electric beam at Jarod, who was unable to dodge it. Then a green ball of goo shot out of Masila's staff and splatted on the ground, sending green goo everywhere.

     Jarod felt himself getting dizzy and Hero felt the goo burn on his body.

     "Grr… poison." He growled and slashed Masila before she could get another spell.

     Masila fell on the ground, but quickly shot a few fireballs at Jarod, who could dodge them. She quickly stood up and prepared another spell, not knowing that Rio was behind her. Rio then came from behind Masila and hit her with his hammer, making Masila fly through the air.

     Masila used her magic and was floating in the air.

     A dark cloud came and it rumbled. Then bolts of electric shot down and crashed onto the ground, making big explosions. A hole was left on the place where the bolts had come down.

     Masila then came floating down again and the three pets jumped in the air. Masila cackled as she hit Rio with her staff, but he blocked it with his hammer. She turned around and her staff hit Jarod in his face, sending him down to the ground. Hero then strook her again, before dropping to the ground too.

     Rio was flying in the air. He then used a special power. The power that his parents had given him. He saw a faint image of his parents in his head.

     His hammer turned to iron and grew bigger, yet it seemed that it was getting lighter. Five colored rings appeared. They were red, blue, green, yellow and a black one but mixed with some other colors. Then a ball of energy came out of the hammer and the circles started glowing brighter and brighter, until everyone was almost blinded.

     Rio then flew towards Masila as fast as he could and hit Masila with his hammer, knocking her down to the ground again. Some flames erupted from the hammer and also a few bubbles were flying through the air.

     Masila was lying on the ground and was wounded badly.

     She looked at the pets.

     "You won't beat…" Masila sighed. Her staff then shined and a portal appeared. Masila jumped through it and the portal disappeared.

     "Great!" Hero said sarcastically. "Just great."

     "She escaped…" Rio said and he sighed heavily. "Now we still have her as a problem."

     "We should continue to the Two Rings Cave," Hero said and he walked over the path.

     "Right," Jarod said.

     "Why?" Rio asked, as he walked next to Jarod.

     "It is the right thing to do," Hero said. They climbed up a hill and then went through the forest until they came to a mountain.

     "We climb here?" Jarod asked.

     "Yes," Hero said. "If we climb it, we can see the Two Rings area." And they started the climb. It took very long and the monsters there were tough. There were magic elements, rock Scorchios and also the guardians of the palace.

     "Jahbal is putting his best defenders here," Hero muttered. "He doesn't like us…"

     "Would you like it if someone would ruin your plans for world domination?" Rio asked. Jarod chuckled and Hero just grunted as they continued climbing the mountain.

     The sun was starting to go down; still they walked until almost midnight. The stars laughed at the pets as they sat down on the peak of the mountain. Their legs were almost numb of the walking and they had various scrapes on their skin. A little bit of dirt was not missing.

     "We sleep here!" Hero said, as he laid down. "I keep the watch first, and then Jarod then Rio, then we repeat."

     "Right." Jarod laid down next to Rio, who had folded his wings over him and went to sleep.

     ***

     "Mother?" Jarod once again watched. He saw his young version with his mother. A beautiful yellow Cybunny with her hair tied in a ponytail and there was a ribbon on her neck. Her neck fur was very shiny and well kept.

     "Why didn't daddy come back?" he heard himself ask.

     His mother sighed and stared at the ground.

     "I don't know, Jarod."

     "Mommy…" Jarod asked, now tears forming in his little eyes. "Is he gone?"

     "I don't know," his mother said. Jarod then remembered her name. Michelle.

     Everything went white as he opened his eyes.

     "Your turn," someone said. Jarod sighed.

     "Fine, fine…" he said groggily, as he stood up and looked around him. It was still dark and it was dangerously quiet. Jarod had the urge to scream out. That was when a ghostly figure appeared before him.

     "Hi," it said.

     "Uhhh…" Jarod stared at the ghost. "Hiya?"

     "It's me, Michelle," Michelle said. "But you can't see me very clearly now. It has to be day, but I need to warn you. Now."

     "For what?"

     "Jahbal has found a new power. It comes from an artifact that creates some magical portals, but he has not used it yet." His mother sighed. "He has not yet figured out how to use it though, so you still have time. But… please… get there before he uses it."

     "Alright." Jarod clenched his fists. He could become so angry from that evil Jahbal. He just wanted revenge… for his parents. It then was quiet and the rest of the night remained uneventful, apart from the fact that Jarod had trouble waking Rio up and ended up knocking him with Rio's hammer.

     Rio walked behind the group with an extremely grumpy face then. Until they arrived at a dark cave that sent chills over the group's spines.

     "Is… everyone ready?" Hero asked, with a tone of sadness. "This is the so-called Cave of No Return. People have gone through… but have never come back."

     Rio then used his special power and fixed everyone their weapons. The dirt, cracks and maybe even bits of stone disappeared and turned shiny and sharp again.

     They then walked through the cave and now encountered palace servants even more. They fought them off as they made their way through the cave until they came on a plain. A path made out of dirt led all the way to the Two Rings castle. The castle was in sight, but it was behind a few hills and a forest. Before all that a gate.

     A Red Techo, dressed in a blue uniform, looked at them as they came closer.

     "Who are ye and what do ye want?!" he shouted at them.

     "Where does this door go?" Hero asked, sounding rather annoyed.

     "Och, ye canna be wantin' tae go in there! That door leads tae the Two Rings, a mountain valley filled wit' the most 'orrible monsters ya ever did lay eyes on! That's why they locked that there door, tae keep foolish adventurers like you from gettin' yer dirte paws singed!" the Techo threatened and spit on the ground in front of Hero.

     Hero glared at the Techo. "Who?" he growled.

     "What?" the Techo asked, annoyed.

     "WHO locked THAT door!?" Hero growled and jumped a little bit forward, threatening the guard.

     "Eh…Well, I dunno that... but it's been locked my whole life, an' when I was a lad, me dad told me that the door's been locked since, oh, ages past. His father watched it, and his father's father watched it, and now I'm watchin' it! So don't think I'll be lettin' ya pass any time soon! You'd better watch it, or I might have tae get combattin' wit' ya!" the Techo threatened, as he glared back at Hero.

     "WE have the key to this door, wheatflake!" Hero growled at the gatekeeper.

     "Ther' not bloody like'!" Hero showed the key, but the gatekeeper snatched it from him and inspected it. Horror then appeared on his face. "Where in the two blazes did ye get this?! No, don't tell me, I don't wanna know... just go through the door, and I'll just pretend I never saw ye. Get movin'!"

     Jarod and Rio took a last glance at the Gatekeeper, who shuddered in fear as they walked through the gate to their last chapter of their story. The Two Rings castle was not far away.

To be continued...