Chapter 109 - Khalid's Future

In the middle of the rainforest of Brazil, the sun was slowly setting. The screeching sound of animals was widely audible. Other than the warbling birds, more of the Amazon's insignificant creatures have buzzed around the forest. 

Amanda and Christoper reappeared before the cave's entrance, allowing them to appreciate nature's harmonies. 

"Wow," Christopher said. "It's giving me goosebumps."

"Yeah," said Amanda. She rolled her eyes before adding, "They like to howl in the night."

It was the first time for Christopher to walk into the cave versus immediately reappearing in the middle of it. He saw the dense vines draping over a large boulder of rock. It was clearly the passage to their secret cavern.

"Brody, open our magnificent door, please," said Amanda in her head. 

The earth beneath their feet trembled, and they saw the huge rock slowly move to the side, opening up a passage, just enough for them to pass through. 

They both walked in with crumbs of the dirt falling against their heads.

Amanda showed the way with her luminous eyes, waling into the dark and slippery limestone cavern until reaching its core. 

The rest of the masters were already there, convening. 

"What's this serious look on your face, Abasi? What did you fin - "

"Shhhhhh," said Abasi. "Everyone come closer."

Taara shrugged at Amanda, and so did Brody. After standing nearer to each other, Abasi said, "Everyone, let's make a shield five inches apart from each other. Brody, use a magnetic field at the last... Let it expand from where I stand."

Without any further explanation, Abasi started with creating a shield of his own. Emitting from his body was a green, thin layer of defense, slowly expanding to cover each of the masters, taking the shape of a semi-globe.

Trisha did it next and everyone else followed. Brody created a magnetic field at the very last.

"What's going on? Why all the isolation?" Brody asked curiously, his eyes glowing in brown. 

With a heavy sigh, Abasi revealed, "My investigation suggests that the future master of time and space may be the villain we have been looking for, increasing the lost creatures here on earth - playing with time and space."

"For - for what purpose?!" Asked Amanda.

"For one, to seek power from different worlds and time. Plus, to the Venusian sword is already in our possession," told Abasi. 

"Are you sure about this, Abasi?" Trisha asked with her eyes wide open. 

"I could be wrong, but here is what I have found out so far." Abasi narrated about his trip to Venus, sharing how he had found out that Khalid had already sought for sword long before. He also revealed how Amanda would turn out to be their last resort in fighting the mysterious enemy.

Amanda was in deep thought and then she said, "What now? I fought with the sword using the monster a few days back! I'm busted!"

They looked at each other with a frown before Abasi said, "We don't know for sure, but there is a high probability that our enemy already knows you have the sword."

"But I don't get it," said Christopher. "Why do we need the Venusian sword to fight against this future master?"

Abasi began to tell the tale of how the two future masters reappeared before them. He said, "They said that the others masters died fighting against horrors... but - but..."

"You see, its possible to achieve immortality if one master holds all the crystal and seeks powers from other worlds - "

With eyes wide open, Amanda asked, "Are you saying he had taken the future crystals? - "

Before Amanda could finish her words, Abasi cut her off and said, "That is a possibility... Khalid may now have all six crystals in his body. Remember, he said that in the future, the masters could exchange powers in the full length of their term. But I am not sure yet. I can only hope that I am wrong."

Currently, the masters could only exchange crystals for a minimum of fifteen to twenty minutes, but the future masters had revealed it was made possible, and it was all because of Abasi, breaking through their limits in the years to come.

"For the sake of everyone, let's hope that you are wrong," said Trisha with her brows furrowed. 

"But - but I thought the spirits choose base on selflessness and good heart?" Questioned Christopher. He could not fathom how a future master could turn evil. 

Seeing through Christopher's thoughts, Trisha said, "It has happened before. No matter how good a person can be, sometimes greed for power and eternal youth can consume the goodness of the heart."

They all had many questions in their heads, including the possibility that Cassandra, the future master of the heart, was aware or in all of it. Right now, they could only wait, for Abasi was not yet strong enough to travel to the future and investigate. 

From behind the layers of protective shield, a non-visible being had been lurking from inside the cave. He was hissing inside his head, unable to penetrate all six defensive shields.

It was Khalid. He turned himself into the form of the wind. He was trying to listen in but he could not grasp what they were discussing. 

'Why are they talking in secret? Do they already know?' Khalid thought while keeping a safe distance. He did not want the current masters to feel his presence.

However, one thing Khalid already knew was the sword was with Amanda. He saw this after observing the fight against the metallic creature, one that he had brought from the planet of Saturn. 

Back then, he was awed by the powers of the sword that he missed seeing how and where Amanda fled to. Khalid was back to know more about Amanda.

Fixing his eyes on Christopher, he could not also understand how the master of water had wings. This was not in memory of the blue crystal.

In the future, it was said that the master of water was never found in this generation. The master of fire did not find her fate, but strangely, after recently coming back, Khalid was surprised that they found the master of water... but... he has wings.

Silently, Khalid wondered, 'What change? Why and how did they find the master of water?'

Khalid understood his plans had to be revised altogether. He sighed and said to himself, 'Many things have changed.'

Regardless of his own questions, Khalid was determined to get his hands on the sword. He needed to. Otherwise, all his sacrifices would all go to waste.

Before ending the master's gathering, Abasi instructed, "For now, make sure to direct your thoughts to the specific master you wish to speak to. Do not openly let anyone read your mind."

Everyone nodded while slowly fading out all layers of shields. 

After the meeting of the masters, Abasi felt chills down his spine. He turned around and thought he heard wind blowing, creating whispering sounds, but he found no one. 

He turned to the masters and said, "I'll return you to your respective homes."

Amanda and Christopher held their hands together as Abasi sent them into a void. However, instead of directly landing in Pelagy, the two masters were taken for a ride, jumping from one country to another, reappearing in hidden corners of the earth. 

Abasi did a good job, shifting them from one place to another that Khalid failed to catch up. He last saw Amanda and Christopher being brought into a vast cave in Vietnam only to disappear again to another swirling light. 

Khalid, in his invisible state, tried to run after the gate, but he was too late. It closed right before he could jump with them. He took heavy breaths and said, "They must know... There is no other explanation for Abasi to be this cautious."

From the cave in Vietnam, Khalid created his own gate to the future. Each time was tasking and draining his accumulated powers, but he needed to, for the future was his home. 

He returned to his home in Qatar, where he lived a life as a king. He appeared from a secret underground prison of his mansion and was facing the love of his life. 

Cassandra was now locked up in bars without powers. It was sometime last month that she had surrendered her crystal to Khalid, thinking it was for the greater good. Little did she know that her own fated was the enemy itself. 

She was heartbroken to find out Khalid had all six crystals within him and he was seeking for immortality. 

"What? Did you return empty-handed again?" Cassandra held on to the bars that prevented her to leave and said, "You should just give up. Don't you remember the fate of the last master who tried to live as an immortal? Hades! That's right! The very first master who held all six crystals! He died! Soon the spirits will leave your body and you will rot just like him!"

With his eyes blazing in anger, he walked closer to Cassandra and held on to her face. He said, "That! That will not happen! I have already planned everything. Soon, I can even grant you the same immortality... I just need to make sure that I will not die in the future."

Before seeking for the Venusian sword, Khalid, in the past, went to see his future.

He became a powerful master, holding all six crystals in his body. Aside from this, he acquired many other powers from different worlds and time, but in that not so distant future, he also saw his death. He died with one thrust into his chest, by a young boy with a golden blade.

It was because of what he foresaw, that he journeyed up to the past, pursuing the Venusian sword.