The Return of Twelve (A Lorien Legacies Fanfic)

13. Lesson Learned: Never Relax

(Sean's POV)

I found a Loric dagger inside my Chest, which I guess is the most reliable weapon for us. There are other weapons inside, but I think I'll be a better fighter with this. All my life, I've been waiting to develop a Legacy that can control lightning or electricity. I liked that, but it hasn't come yet. I really foresee myself as a Garde who uses more of power than weapons, that's why I always think of developing that.

Anyway, I saw a lot of weird stones and bunch of inheritances inside my Chest. Most aren't really that helpful, but just for survival. I remember in my Memory, when it was still showing up in my dreams, the five of us aren't suppose to have this one. But somebody, probably those who kidnapped us, made us these Chests for our own survival purposes and fighting equipment.

For a moment, after opening my Chest, I felt a sudden excitement and a mixture of fear. You see, I really plan to open this when I know I'm already in danger. I'm not blind with what's happening, especially the blood-thirsty enemy who seeks to hunts us and put our race into extinction.

Despite of less hope and fear, no, I will never become blind of everything.

The Memory convinced me so.

I clutch my pillows and gather as many cloths as I can. I even have to go to garbage bins to find some usable cloths or any soft textiles or fabric. As long as they would make a good punching bag or Mog dummy.

Once I'm done, I pack them up and produce six Mog dummies. I bring them downstairs at the basement and hang them at the ceiling. This room will be my training ground. Nobody will see me, and nobody will hear.

I remove my shirt and snatch my dagger. It glows blue along its almost transparent handle, like diamond. Its blade is sharp and keen.

I'm not thirsty for blood, though, but I wanted to kill a Mogadorian at least one. Or whatever. Who knows what much I can do?

Thinking about training, I wonder if the ten Garde are still alive. I know it's ten, because that's what the memory told me. But maybe some of them had died already. I must be over thinking again. But how about the five of us? The escaped Garde. Eleven? I do remember her. The girl I used to play with when we were young. But I don't know where she is by now. I hope she's still alive, because once I went out from this country, I'm going to have to find her. I have a promise and I remembered that.

I slice the first Mog dummy in front of me. That was for the pain in the ass they have given me. I swing my dagger and lunge at it, swiftly moving and dodging with an agility. I trip for a moment and hit the floor face first. But I get up and try to throw punches against it with the dagger readied at my grip.

I do it with a sequence: left punch, right punch, duck, punch on ribs and slice.

And again, and again.

I turn around to do the same with the other dummies. My telekinesis working on all six dummies to sway towards me, and then I plan to attack them.

I do the pattern again and attack each one by one. Once I'm done, I see the dummies all damaged and weary. I pant heavily and sit down on the floor. My sweat trickling down from my bare torso. That's when I hear a knock from upstairs.

"Sean!" an alto voice called for me. "Are you home?"

Suddenly, my eyes feel heavy. I try to stand up but my vision blurs. I shake my head, and once I open my eyes, I can see darkness turning into dark blue and some blurry figures. When I look up from where the porch is supposed to be upstairs, I can see a red figure surrounded by yellow and green outlines of his body. I'm seeing weird. This is like having a vision of an animal instead of mine.

The red figure above move inside and came in. The moment I close my eyes and open it again, my vision is back to normal. No red figure. No blue background. No weird robotic vision. I stand up and took my shirt.

"Sean it's me!" The voice call again, so I go up. It was Marco, my neighbor friend

"What?"

"What happened to you?" He crunch his old fat face. "You look a mess!"

I laugh. "I just did a work out."

"Well," he said finally and ignore it. "Just wanna inform you about the new dean in school. He sure changed the school regulations and one of that... Is your hair cut."

I touch my long and fully grown hair. "It's not allowed?"

Marco the old schoolbus driver nodded. "Of course. Being a worker in your school, I know a lot of stuff. Good thing you just live next door, easy for me to inform you about it "

"Well, thanks then. I'm going out later and look for a barber shop."

"Good," he said. "And hey, my daughter told me about you..." He sit down on the sofa.

I narrow my eyes. "Lucy?"

Marco snorted and laugh. "Who else? Well, I don't know what's up with that girl, you know."

Suddenly his phone dings to life.

"Oh, well, anyway, I guess it's time for me to go. The school called," he says, standing up and going towards the door. "We'll see each other again, young lad. Ciao!"

He slam the door. That old dude. I just laugh. But I can't believe his daughter was girl in our school. The one who cheered at me. Well, not really. I just smiled, I haven't think about her yet. I don't know how will I know I like someone I just met.

So as soon as he got out, I went to get my jacket and take a walk outside the Via Giorgio La Pira. The Italian sky turning into dusk, the street houses and buildings starts to turn lights on. Soon I found a barber shop. There are red and white spiral sign outside. So I enter the building.

The barber sees me and smiles. "Ciao! Come in! Come in!"

In Italy, ciao means both hello and good bye. That's why Marco used that word when he went out, and the barber when he greet me.

I sit down on the service area as the barber prepares his tools. "What haircut do you like?"

"Just a trim, a little bit shorter until my ears are shown," I say.

The barber smile and nod. "Just a minute then, I'm gonna get the tools. You can relax."

He goes to the door with restricted area. So I close my eyes and relax myself for a second. A little minute later, the shop's background music became louder. I thought it was nothing or weird. But I ignore it. While my eyes are close, I can feel my vision changes again from that when I was in the basement. Blue background with red, yellow and green aspects for the figure. Even with closed eyes, I can see beyond my eyelids. The mirror in front of me reflects a figure behind me. My adrenaline wakes up uneasy, until the barber behind me raises a long blade before me.

I open my eyes and dodge. My vision is back. When I look at barber, it isn't him. It's a taller man with black beady eyes and pale skin.

I know who he is.

"Mog!" I scream.

He swing his sword in front of me and I stagger backwards to avoid it. The swing makes a small cut on my arm. I stumble on my feet, realizing I step on a dead man's body. The barber.

Much horror fill my eyes. So I use my telekinesis and grab a razor blade. I throw it on him but he deflect it with his sword. He swing it again towards me but I roll and ran towards the door. Before I can get out, I grab my Loric dagger hidden under my shoe and threaten him with it.

The Mog laugh in sinister. "You think that can hurt me easily?"

He advance as I force my telekinesis to still his swordhand in air as I use my training technique with a few modifications. I kick his ribcage with my right foot and jab with my left foot. The Mog swing his leg towards me but I duck and slice my dagger into his chest.

The Mog drop dead on the floor, slowly disintegrating into ashes.

I pant again. This is my first Mog. There might be others coming for me. I am in danger.

So I shoot through the ceiling with my flight and went straight home.

This is the beginning, I tell myself.