The room was silent as the king stood from his throne. Hundreds of people were kneeling, but not for the king but for greatest wizard this world has ever known, Merlin. Why were they kneeling to a stranger? Alexander thought to himself, failing to understand Merlin’s influence.
"Presenting the king of the Sol Kingdom, one chosen by the dragons and the ancient ones, King Osiris the Third," a guard announced.
Their footsteps echoed through the huge silent room. Alexander was a bit anxious being around so many people, who he only assumed were nobles. But Merlin walked with so much grace that the people in the audience could tell the power he possessed.
The moment Merlin got closer to King Osiris, he felt immense power, not from the king but from a young boy standing next to him. He had the brightest golden eyes and his curly black hair made him look like an angel.
"It’s a pleasure to meet you, King Osiris. I’m Merlin, and these are my friends Laila, Alexander, Damon, and the young one is Dante," Merlin said as he gave a small bow to the king.
"I know who you are, great wizard. We all know who you are. We’ve heard stories of your journey with the great hero, Ademus, and how you once brought the gods to their knees," the king said with a loud laugh.
His demeanor wasn’t one of any king Merlin had encountered. He seemed more relaxed and less prideful. He wore no shirt and so his beautiful physique could be seen.
"Join me for dinner. I need to hear stories of your journey," he said to Merlin.
"It would be a pleasure, King Osiris," Merlin replied.
"And oh, this is my son, Xolo. He is my heir and my guard," the king said as he pushed his son forward to greet Merlin. The boy bowed to Merlin and greeted him, but the strange power he felt inside the boy made Merlin feel uneasy.
What kind of power does this boy possess? Why do I feel threatened by his presence? Those were the thoughts in Merlin’s mind. He had only met a few people with such frightening presence, and they were not mortals.
"It’s nice to meet you, Xolo," Merlin said.
The crew was escorted out of the throne room and into the dining hall where servants were waiting to serve them. They sat down and the servants started bringing in the food.
This was a feast meant for gods. The food seemed endless on the huge table, and Alexander’s mouth couldn’t stop watering. This was the most food he had ever seen, as all he knew during his life as a peasant was vegetable stew.
He ate and ate, but it felt like the food was endless. He ate until his stomach finally gave up.
"So, Lord Merlin. When the great hero fell, where were you?" the king’s son, Xolo, asked. "The stories never mention you after the year 1 ATF."
The king gave his son an angry glare. "Excuse my stupid son, Lord Merlin, he does not know when to shut up."
"It’s okay, King Osiris. I understand how he feels. The gods did kill one of your people after all," Merlin replied and turned to look at Xolo. "It’s a long and complicated story. But I will tell you what I can."
Merlin didn’t like talking about his past life because it only reminded him of all the people he had lost.
"The year 1 ATF was when the final war against the gods was fought. I, together with the great hero, Ademus, led an army to face off against the 3 high gods, but there was a problem," Merlin paused for a second to wipe some tears. "It was an ambush. The ones waiting for us there weren’t just the gods, but one of the primordials, an Annunaki. They gave me an option, to either stay there and fight alongside Ademus or abandon the fight and spare the lives of every mortal in this world."
Xolo seemed to get angrier by Merlin’s answer. "So you chose to leave him there to die?" He got up from his chair and slammed his fist on the table.
"I chose to save this world, and so did Ademus! My biggest failure is not being able to protect someone I called a brother," Merlin said.
The room was awkwardly silent. The next words Xolo said made everyone in the room gasp out in shock.
"No, you are just a coward. I challenge you to a duel," the boy said.
The king stood up in anger and grabbed Xolo by the collar. "How dare you embarrass me in front of our guests?" the king said. Xolo just smiled and released his magical energy, and the king and everyone else fell to the ground, unable to stand against the magical strength this boy possessed.
But when Xolo looked back at the others, he saw two people unaffected by his presence, Merlin and Damon, and it shook the boy.
"Fine, I will fight you," Merlin replied.
THE GREAT WIZARD
The cheers of the people echoed through the arena. Merlin walked out with only a pair of shorts and a sword in his hand. He was a sorcerer, but he chose to carry a sword rather than his staff.
"Why aren’t you using your staff?" Alexander asked him.
"I don’t want to hurt the kid that much," he replied.
"You know the power the boy possesses, so aren’t you underestimating him?" Alexander said. Merlin knew he was underestimating Xolo, but he still chose not to fight all out against a child.
"I just want to teach him some manners, not kill him," he said.
Xolo stepped into the ring and gave a loud roar, and the crowd cheered. He carried a spear and a shield, and for a kid who was only 16 years old, he had the build of a well-trained soldier.
Merlin and Xolo stood face to face. Merlin was about 1 foot taller than Xolo, but the boy still wasn’t showing any sign of fear, and as soon as the fight started, he proceeded to swing his spear at Merlin. Merlin was a lot faster than the boy, so he was confused as to why the boy was eager to fight him.
Merlin punched through the shield and it broke, and a kick to the head sent Xolo slamming into the hard ground. The fight seemed one-sided, and every punch Merlin threw landed on the boy.
"Just yield, boy. This isn’t a fight you can win," Merlin said to Xolo.
Xolo tried to push back, but he couldn’t match Merlin’s strength. He looked over to the crowd and saw Dante, and the moment he laid his eyes on Dante, something started changing.
His eyes slowly shifted from gold to brown and his hair turned sky blue. His body’s physique began to change, he became bigger and two huge horns appeared on his head.
Merlin stepped back in disbelief. He witnessed a scrawny boy turn into a 30-year-old Nergal. The face he bore reminded Merlin of someone.
"Dante?" he said. Xolo had taken a new form that resembled Dante but in a much older form.