TWENTY YEARS AGO

The shout of the crows from above, those that were flying in circles above Rueb’s dead body, made the young Vvokkam raise his glance and watch them for a long while. Yet, because of the tears that shadowed his glance, he saw only black points appearing and disappearing in front of his eyes. The same happened to the light of the sunset - it bothered him because it was too strong for that part of the day. Because of this, Vvokkam put his hand to his eyes, covering them with the sleeve, not to be blinded. Then, when he felt that the tiredness and the dizziness had vanished somewhere, he moved the hand to the side a little, watching at the sky and those black loudly points only through his fingers.

Then… he smiled. The teenager sadly smiled, comparing those lively black points seen by him with his father’s transient life. Those moments, which Vvokkam would have liked to turn back, just as he’d have liked to turn the Wheel of Time back and change something. Thus, he hoped his father, his beloved father, would have been still alive. Yet, it was only an impossible dream at that moment. Because of this, the boy allowed himself to watch the crows, imagining things rather than facing reality.

When night fell, when the sun went to bed behind the walls of the City of Alshamal, Vvokkam closed his eyes again. He tightly closed them, just as he squeezed his fists, feeling deep pulsations in his chest, stomach, and ears. At the same time, the boy felt dizzy again and he wanted to vomit. Yet, being a strong Coal Burner, those born and hardened through fire to be able to face the hardships of life, the young Vvokkam kept his balance, winning that fight against the clock with himself eventually.

A powerful shout from above made the boy open his eyes, frightened. It was a hawk's shout, but not a hawk controlled by them. A hungry hawk as the boy understood from the bird’s shout, one that came there, following the smell of blood and fresh meat. That’s why Vvokkam suddenly jumped to his feet, right before the hawk pounced over Rueb’s body. And, covering his father’s body with his own body, the boy started to shout, „Go away! Get out of my sight! Leave! Your place it’s not here and you also have nothing to take from here! Leave!” However, the bird seemed determined to stay there and feast on her well-deserved meal. Because of this, the hawk was fiercely fighting with the boy Vvokkam, hurting him by flapping his strong wings over the boy, right into his face, or scratching his skin with his sharp beak and claws, trying to make him go away.

Despite the fierce fight and its power, the bird suddenly fell to the ground, killed by a stone that hit its right temple. Who hit the bird? Vvokkam. He, mad, when he felt that he could defend his father’s body only this way, the moment the bird forced him to move away from Rueb, seeing a stone not that far from him, a stone twice bigger than his fists gathered together, pounced on it. Then, tightly holding it with both hands, he raised to his knees first and, staring at the bird that was still flapping its wings, making strange sounds meant to alert the other hawks that there was fresh food there while touching the dead body with its sharp claws, Vvokkam hissed through his teeth, „Today, it’s time for death! Your death, hungry beast!” After that, the moment he felt an uncontrolled impulse in his chest, Vvokkam pounced on the hawk, and, with a precise movement, hit its head, knocking the bird down.

Eventually, exhausted, Vvokkam sat down. He was happily grinning at that moment because he won that battle. It was his first victory, a memorable one in his opinion. That’s why, looking at the hawk that was lying next to Rueb, the boy told his father, „Did you see, Father? I’m a real Coal Burner now. One that made justice with his hands. You can be proud of me now! Proud, no matter where you are now!” After that, lying on his back, he stared at the sky, seeing the black clouds running one after the other and the night taking the day's place.

He was alone at that moment because the army of the Coal Burners left the battlefield at Ahi’s command, who controlled their minds. Also, the Alshamals weren’t there at that moment because they, along with Ahi, entered the city to celebrate the victory, one washed by his father’s blood. Yet, as that death didn’t seem enough for them, they decided that it was better to organize a big party on the city’s streets, celebrating the defeat of the enemy, the one that left the battlefield with their tail between the legs just as Jrijuru asked Rueb to do if he won the battle. Thus, too focused on their plans and ideals, nobody paid attention to the mourning kid, that was knelt next to his father, a child that got to hate someone too earlier in his life and who, instead of dreaming about a great future, got to want death and take revenge on a single enemy - the Mago of the Black Stones.

When he followed Jrijuru toward the Gates of the City, which had been opened when the soldiers saw Rueb dead and understood that the victory was of the Alshamals, Ahi didn’t notice Vvokkam because of the soldiers that were in front of the boy. He didn’t see Vvokkam not even when the troops, at his command, one heard only in their heads, left that place. This happened because Ahi was with his back to the soldiers, whom he didn’t look at not even once, decided that there wasn’t anything worth there to be seen by him. If he had looked over there, Ahi would have seen the bravery and the hatred from young Vvokkam’s eyes, the one who got to consider him his fearsome enemy and who could have become, in time, an enemy to be afraid of.

„An enemy that will end your reign one day, you, Mago of the Black Stones! I swear!” Vvokkam hissed through his teeth, still lying on his back and watching the stars, which appeared in the sky one by one. Then, when the sky had been covered by millions of stars when he could finally see something around him, and when it was total silence all around because the crows, seeing the dead hawk, suddenly vanished, Vvokkam sat up and looked toward the Massive Gates of the City, which were closed at that moment. He watched them for a long time, for minutes in a row, hoping to see at least one soul exiting those gates and approaching him, he hoped that at least one soul would feel sorry for his father and would come to help the boy to bury him. Yet, not seeing anybody coming there, Vvokkam told himself, in his head, „They probably decided to leave my father here, food for the crows. Thus, they probably hope to teach others that this city is untouchable, and this means I’m on my own.”

The boy looked up soon after this, toward the defensive wall, when he saw a shadow there: Samit. Samit was not only standing there but also taking an attack position while tightly holding the bow and the arrow in his hands, aiming at him. And, seeing the „enemy” considering him a target, Vvokkam felt disgusted and growled, „The fallen one will always be trampled underfoot! Always, the one who fell to his knees wouldn’t ever be helped to stand up. He’ll only be left as a prey to Death and nothing more.” After that, closing his eyes, Vvokkam waited.

It’s how he heard the hissing of the arrow that pierced the air. The boy heard its stab through the thick cloth of the night while the arrow was heading at full speed toward him. And, soon after this, Vvokkam heard the arrow falling not that far from him, stabbing into the ground.

This strange turnabout made Vvokkam open his eyes and stare for a while at the arrow that was about three meters from him. It wasn’t a simple arrow but a „messenger” because, when he shot it, Samit hung a bag to it, one that was next to the arrow at that moment. And, seeing it, Vvokkam wondered, „What’s that? Poison?” Yet, even though he was afraid, the boy still crawled toward it and untied it, finding, right on the top of the bag, a thick cloth, the color of the desert sand, 2x2 meters in size. Then, right under the cloth, Vvokkam found food and a bottle of water. A „gift” that made him confused because he had never expected that someone would feel sorrow for him. Yet, he’d been wrong. That’s why he raised his glance to see Samit again and „thank” him this way, but Samit wasn’t on the wall anymore.

On that wall, not even the soldiers were seen, those who should have been on guard that night. The only thing Vvokkam saw on that wall was a big black flag - the symbol of the Alshamals in grief, something that made the boy understand that that crowded city of people was also mourning. Because of this, he bowed a little his head, closed his eyes, and stood like this for a short while, in compliance with the time he lived, showing respect for others’pain too. After that, sitting on the sand that was still hot, the sand that kept the warmth of the day in its cloth, the boy tasted the poor food sent by Samit, drank water, and started to plan what to do the next following days.

The next morning, when Samit climbed onto the wall again and looked into the distance, he saw Vvokkam leaving the field in front of the City of Alshamal and dragging his father’s body with him. Rueb’s body was on the cloth Samit sent to the boy, covered with part of the cloth, while half of it was under the body to make it easier for the boy to drag the body after him. After that, looking at the place where the boy spent the night, he saw the sand smoothed and trodden with his soles by Vvokkam. Seeing this, a plain where it seemed that Rueb of the Coal Burners never died there, Samit frowned because he didn’t understand very well what could have happened that night there.

What Samit didn’t know, Vvokkam knew. The boy, after regaining some strength, decided that it was time to return home. Before that, it was necessary not to leave traces of him there. For this, he dug two large holes into the sand and buried the hawk and the eagle there. Why did he do that? Because, according to the Coal Burners’traditions, if an important Coal Burner was dying on the battlefield, his body or of his enemy wasn’t left where he’d been killed. They considered that if they had left the enemy’s body in the same place where a Coal Burner died, their soldier wouldn’t have been ever capable of resting after Death. Thus, leaving that place as though nothing happened there, the Coal Burners considered that they gave everybody a new chance to live, especially their dead soldier.

***

Many days in a row, Vvokkam wandered along that desert. There were days when he felt powerless and that he wanted to give up. At the same time, he wished to have had at least someone by his side, someone who would have told him that everything would pass and that better times would come. Yet… there wasn’t anybody there. Nobody, except him and his father, whom he was dragging behind him, convinced to take that body home and bury him there because Rueb always loved to be among his people. Nevertheless, the great Rueb of the Coal Burners died among strangers.

Like his father, Vvokkam also loved to be among the Coal Burners. He loved their rocky kingdom and their houses hidden in the depths of the catacombs of Kaṟkaḷ Pēy. The boy simply adored the starry nights, those he loved to watch often, sitting on one of the rocks in front of their grottos, marveling at the beauty of a golden sky on which the stars were blinking.

A similar night Vvokkam remembered while he kept advancing through that hot desert even if the night fell already and, at the horizon, the boy saw a pile of stars. He remembered a calm night when he, as always, sneaked outside his bed and got to have a meeting with the night. Yet, he wasn’t alone there that night and he understood this very soon the moment he heard someone’s footsteps approaching. Thus, turning his head to his right, he saw Rueb coming toward him. Seeing his father there, Vvokkam jumped to his feet, stuttering, „I… I… father, I only wanted to watch the stars.”

Rueb smiled, „And? What's that got to do with me?”

„Huh?” Had been the boy’s next question. „What do you mean by what’s that got to do with you? Aren’t you here for the same reason as I am?”

„Is it so?!” Murmured Rueb, still smiling. Then, playing with a knife for carving stones, he headed toward his son. Once next to him, Rueb sat first, took a stone out of his pocket, and continued to carve it, stubborn to give it a form even if that stone seemed to be also stubborn and not allow Rueb to do this.

Seeing his father focused on that stone, which seemed to have the form of a bear in the end, Vvokkam sat by his father and watched Rueb’s work. Looking at his father, the boy found him skillful in using the knife for carving, a care the boy couldn't understand eventually. That’s why he asked Rueb in the end, „What’s that?”

„A stone?” Rueb answered his son with another question.

Vvokkam frowned. „I also know that’s a stone, Father. Yet… I can’t understand what form it will have eventually.”

Rueb said nothing. He only focused on his work, calmly and rhythmically breathing, right under his son’s glance, full of amazement, who definitely couldn’t understand what was wrong with his father at that moment. Then, when it was time to take a break, Rueb smoothed the carved place with his palm, whose top seemed to be the head of the bear because its left ear was already clearly seen. After that, he looked into the distance of Kaṟkaḷ Pēy, saying to his son, „You know, Vvokkam, I think that we live so few on this earth. A thought that often scares me.”

„Why?”

„Because… Think about this only: when you love life the most and you feel that you want to have the whole world at your feet and be happy, holding your wife and your child to your chest, life turns its back on you, knocking you down, for not letting you ever stand up again.”

„Do you mean Uncle Khaleb right now?”

„Yes, son, you are right! I think about him right now because… ah, my heart cries a lot, knowing him so far away from us, into a world that we’ve never seen. A world we’ll see only after death.” After that, Rueb kept silent and closed his eyes, feeling great pain in his chest.

Rueb opened his eyes right away the moment he saw the scene of his brother’s death, which happened two months ago. Then, Khaleb accepted the invitation to wrestle with a Coal Burner, in play, because that one was his best friend. Yet, inadvertently or maybe that Coal Burner did that because it was planned that way, Khaleb fell off the rock and died, killed in the deep chasm of Kaṟkaḷ Pēy. Not alone Khaleb died that day, but also that Coal Burner, who fought with him. That one died because of Rueb, who couldn’t forgive the Coal Burner’s „dare” to push Khaleb harder than it was admitted, killing him that way when it was supposed that that wrestling was only for fun. And, by pushing Khaleb’s rival into the chasm, Rueb felt revenged.

However, after that day when he remained the only son of his parents, Rueb felt deserted. At the same time, he felt hatred taking over him. Then, slowly, he started to wish the same as Khaleb - to defeat the Alshamals and be the king of that big city, a dream that took completely over him, having it, day and night, even when he was with his eyes opened. Yes, Rueb got to dream about a city that would have given them freedom, turning them into the Kings of the World. A dream that remained a dream for Khaleb, but which should have been something vital for his brother after his death.

Thus, when he finally felt that he couldn’t keep that wish only for him, Rueb told his son that night, „Vvokkam, I would like you to come with me.”

„Where exactly?” His son asked him in amazement.

„To the City of Alshamal! To open those big gates as your Uncle Khaleb wanted. And, the moment we’ll pass through it, with you by my side, I'll feel fulfilled and that I've taken revenge in my brother Khaleb’s name, the one who died too soon, before seeing his dream fulfilled.”

„But… Father, the City of Alshamal is an impossible dream.”

„What makes you think so?” Asked Rueb, staring at his son. „Because nobody ever could defeat them?”

„Yes. If I’m not mistaken, the Coal Burners have tried, and since long ago, to conquer the City of Alshamal. Even in my grandfather’s time. Yet, it remained only a dream.”

„Dreams are to be fulfilled, Vvokkam.”

„Even at the cost of your life?”

„Yes, son: even at the cost of your life. Why? Because this way, even after death, you’ll feel that you haven’t lived for nothing. You’ll feel that you’ve left something great behind you. A better future for your people. For your kids because… I want to conquer that city for you, son, and…”

„But… I don’t want it!” Murmured Vvokkam, looking into the distance.

„Why?”

„Because this is a dream that took my grandfather from you. A dream Uncle Khaleb fought for, for so many years, in vain. A dream that can take you from me. That’s why I don’t want to see that city ever.”

„Yet, you’ll have to!” Rueb told his son in a harsh voice. Then, looking into the distance just as Vvokkam did, Rueb continued his thought, „This is a Coal Burner’s destiny: to see the City of Alshamal falling! Yet, it’s our holy mission to see the gates of that big city opened and we, the winners, entering that city.”

Vvokkam looked at his father, confused. „Victory is in our hearts, don’t you think so?”

„No,” Rueb almost shouted. After that, touching his son’s face with both palms, he forced Vvokkam to look into his eyes when he said, „The victory is in our sword. We desire to conquer the world and be called heroes. That’s why, son, never forget that this world was created to be led by us and not us to be led by others. That’s why, Vvokkam, wherever you’ll be, keep this in mind: Victory is of the Coal Burners, never of others.”

After that night, many months of harsh training came because Rueb was a meticulous man, who never started a fight without being sure of his victory. Thus, the winter passed and spring came. Right at the beginning of the spring, Rueb awakened his son and told him, „It’s time, Vvokkam!” After that, followed by his elder son, on tiptoe not to awaken his younger sons that were sleeping next to his wife, Rueb left. He didn’t even look back, sure that he’d have enough time to kiss their foreheads and tell them that he loved them… the day he’d return home, gloriously.

Thus, not looking back, Rueb didn’t see his wife opening her eyes. Also, he didn’t see the tears in his wife’s eyes while she held her sons to her chest, kissing their foreheads. The reason? She was afraid. Yes, she was afraid that Rueb and her elder son wouldn’t ever return. Yet, like any other Coal Burner’s wife, she didn’t have a word to say in that war. She could only cry and ask Sky to protect those who went to war, asking Chaos and other Titans to help them to return home one day.

***

A few days after leaving the rocky area of Kaṟkaḷ Pēy and they got to a field, Vvokkam saw his father throwing, on a sly, a stone behind them, somewhere to their right. A stone that suddenly hid among the herbs, right in front of Vvokkam’s curious glance. This one, amazed, looked at his father and told him, „What’s the deal with the stone?”

„A guide!” Rueb simply responded, still looking in the distance.

„A guide? What do you mean?” His son asked, more amazed than before because he couldn’t understand what his father won by throwing those stones behind them. Only when Rueb put one stone in his hand, one that had the form of a bear, Vvokkam understood why his father worked so hard all those months, carving them. Something that made the young Vvokkam shout in the end, „Signs!”

„That’s right,” murmured Rueb, holding the reins even tighter in his hands. Then he also held his arms closer to his son’s body, who was on the same horse as he was, in front of him, „Magic stones. With a hidden message inside them.”

„A hidden message? Which one, Father?”

Rueb smiled. „A message that it's known only to me. For the moment.”

„Yet, I consider that once we’ve gotten to talk about them and I’m on the same horse as you are, heading to war, I have the right to know that message. Don’t you think so too?”

„Hmm, maybe you are right, Vvokkam. Maybe you should also know that message. Yet, I consider that it's still too early for this.

„Why exactly?” Asked Vvokkam, amazed, suddenly turning his head to his father. His sudden movement got to scare the horse, who suddenly rose on his rear legs, stopping the entire army this way. Thus, forced to also hold the reins to support his balance, Vvokkam dropped the stone in the form of a bear, which, hit by the horses’hooves, had been thrown far behind them. Then, when the horse under them calmed down, controlled by Rueb, and when the other horses calmed down too, returning to their places, Vvokkam breathed a sigh of relief, touching his chest with his open palm. Thus, he realized that he lost the stone and frowned, considering that loss a personal failure. And, how he simply hated to lose, he wanted to look back to see where the stone fell and take it with him.

He stood in place eventually when he heard his father telling him in a harsh voice, „Never look back, Vvokkam!”

„But… Father, I lost the stone! The one you gave to me! I must take it with us!”

„No, son,” Rueb said in a harsh voice again. „You won’t do that. If something is lost, leave it behind! Man or stone, never turn back to take it because if you do that, you are lost forever.”

„Then? Why did you give it to me if you didn’t mean to keep it as a holy treasure?”

„Because I wanted you to see what I had in my hand,” said Rueb drily. „Something valuable as long as I have it, but something useless once I’ve lost it. That’s why I tell you never turn back after something you’ve lost because, by doing this, by looking back, at your past, you can be blind and not see something more valuable than the one you’ve lost.” Then, tightly pulling the reins, Rueb forced his soldiers to gallop after him because they still had a long way to the City of Alshamal, a city he wanted to conquer as soon as possible because, not returning home, wasn’t something he planned.

At the same time, Rueb never planned to die. However, Fate had other plans than him. Thus, at a Crossroad, when Rueb’s army got next to the desert of Alshamals, the past and the present met: the present returning home while dragging Rueb’s lifeless body after it while the past was rushing, in the gallop of the horses, toward Death.

***

To get back to the Kingdom of the Coal Burners, Vvokkam needed about two months, a time when he hardened his body and soul, understanding that once his father was dead, he had to decide his fate alone. Yet, still being a child and being inattentive while they headed toward the City of Alshamal, he didn’t remember the road. Because of this, returning home, he had often gone astray, forced to return when he realized that he wasn’t on the correct road back home. Thus, each time he was forced to return, Vvokkam felt that Fate and the entire world were against him. He even felt that the Sun, the one he often considered his benefactor, wasn’t on his side anymore. That’s why his soul left the hatred to sneak inside, determined to defeat the World at any cost. Yet, even if he understood this, he couldn’t find the way back home and this made him feel lost.

Eventually, one evening when he stopped to have some rest, the boy remembered something Rueb told him once, „Keep this in mind, Vvokkam: your Fate is hidden in stones!” Rueb told this to his boy right before attacking the City of Alshamal.

Nevertheless, even if Rueb told this to his boy, he never told Vvokkam what message those stones kept inside, thinking that he’d have time to talk about this later. A time he didn’t have eventually because Life seemed not to be by his side in the end. Even so, those few words he told his son before the war started had been enough for Vvokkam. He got to consider them a way his father used to support him, even after his death. Because of this, he stood up eventually, determined to get home at any cost.

Once to his feet, when he tried to drag Rueb’s body after him, or at least what was left of Rueb’s body, Vvokkam had been inattentive. Thus, when he turned toward the path he wanted to take to advance, he stumbled over something, falling to his knees in the end. Hitting the soil, the boy felt a harsh pain in his right knee and wrist, which he used to support himself while falling. Because of this, the boy gnashed his teeth, squeezing the dust in his fist. Yet, not only the dust the boy got to squeeze in the end but something strange too: a small figurine.

Amazed, Vvokkam suddenly jumped to his feet. Then, putting that figurine in front of his eyes, illuminated by the weak light of the stars, he saw what he found: a small-carved stone, which had the form of a bear. Seeing it and recognizing it as being the stone, he lost when Rueb’s horse rose on his rear legs, Vvokkam happily shouted, „My father’s stone! The one with a hidden message inside!” Then, watching around, in amazement, he finally managed to understand that it was the same field, which he crossed with his father while heading to war.

„Yes, this is the place we crossed that day!” The boy shouted eventually. He was sure of this, even if he didn’t see a big deal around because the light of the stars was too weak that night. Even so, he was sure he was on the right path because of the stone bear he was squeezing in his left fist, a small figurine in which he still felt the energy of his father, something that gave him the strength to continue to advance.

Yet, when he suddenly remembered that stone, which Rueb threw that day, Vvokkam winced and said, „There must be another one here! Yes, somewhere here must be another stone, one carved by my father! One I must find!” After that, fighting with his mind, he tried to remember where exactly Rueb threw that stone.

Nevertheless, whether it passed too long already and he didn’t remember everything so well or someone else passed by there and took it with him, Vvokkam didn’t find the second stone. This made him sad. He felt miserable because he considered the second stone a personal treasure, one he inherited from his father. Because of this, he sat down eventually and cried a lot, with his head on his knees.

Eventually, end power and fatigue down, the boy fell asleep. In his dream, he saw his father, riding the same horse they rode while heading to war, not that far from him. Yet, in that dream, Vvokkam wasn’t on the horse but down while his father was still on the animal’s back. And, looking straight at his son, Rueb scolded his boy, „I told you so many times not to look back, Vvokkam! I told you not to turn ever back, looking for something you lost! Yet, you never listen to what I say to you!”

„Of course, I listen to you!” The boy responded. „I listen to what you say, but… even so… I don’t intend to leave anything behind me.”

„Why? To provoke me? To show me that you are capable of making decisions on your own? Is this a way to be rebellious?”

„Of course not!” Vvokkam said, confident. „I do this because the stones remind me about you. Those inside of which you've hidden a message, those that keep part of your energy inside them.”

„Then… gather them all!” Rueb told him, upset. „Don’t leave any of them behind because it’s the only thing you have right now. I… I won’t ever return to you! However, you, gathering those stones, will win - the way back home!” After that, spurring the horse, Rueb forced the horse to head straight to his son.

Scared, when the horse passed over him, Vvokkam awoke. Cold drops of sweat were bathing his body while his heart was madly beating in his chest. Yet, he was also happy because, at least in his dream, his father told him what message his stones had inside: a message that led his footsteps back home. How exactly will he manage to do that eventually? Vvokkam didn’t know. Even so, he was determined to find it out by gathering all the stones Rueb left behind. For this, the boy needed light. That’s why he calmly waited till dawn. And, when the first lights of the day had been seen in the sky, the boy started to look for the second stone that had been thrown by Rueb somewhere around there.

He found it after many hours of looking for it. The stone was well hidden between the herbs that wrapped around it. A stone that was well conserved, which still kept a hidden message inside that stone bear, in a small place carved in it. There, on a small piece of cloth that was rolled, Vvokkam found the first message, „Never give up, son, and always go north. There is our home and your salvation.” Then, hiding that stone in his pocket and squeezing the cloth with the message in his hand, Vvokkam headed north.

After two weeks, he finally got to the rocky area of Kaṟkaḷ Pēy. Yet, this didn’t frighten him: neither the long road nor the distance. He even felt fulfilled because, while heading home, the boy found five other hidden messages inside small stone bears. And, each of those messages had the same meaning, „To never give up and always head home!”

Once got home, loneliness met him at the door because, even if the Coal Burners were still there, none of them considered them their leader. In his absence, there had been others eager to lead the Kingdom of the Coal Burners. Also, because of this, his poor mother had been forced to hide, realizing that it wasn’t a safe place for her or for her two sons, who she considered the only ones she still had. Yes, his mother considered Vvokkam dead, just as Rueb was. And, as she didn’t know another way to hide, she headed toward the Grotto of Tetapas. After that, nobody ever found out what happened to her or her sons.

All that Vvokkam could find out was that his mother and his little brothers were gone, forever. Who told him this? An old man that still respected the boy as being the son of a brave leader. The same old man helped Vvokkam bury his father. On the sly, of course, because the Coal Burners would have never allowed this. The reason? A simple one: if they had allowed Vvokkam to bury his father there, they would have been forced to accept the boy as his father’s heir to the throne. Something unacceptable for those who were the leaders at that moment. They, to make sure Vvokkam would never claim the throne, even decided to get rid of him one night.

Something they didn’t manage to do eventually because Vvokkam, who was smart and had a keen eye, suddenly remembered the stories about Tikil, those he heard from his grandfather when he was still a small boy. And, after he remembered his grandfather, who respected Tikil a lot, considering him the only worthy Titan, Vvokkam decided to look for him. Where exactly should he have looked for Tikil? The boy didn’t know. Yet, stubborn, he decided to look for the Titan no matter how much time it wouldn't take.

And it was so because, soon after this, the boy found the path toward the grotto where Tikil was hidden. Once there, he stopped next to that weird river and looked up. He saw nobody there. Even so, he didn’t give up because he felt that everything was only a trick. And the boy wasn’t wrong in thinking so because, soon after this, he heard a noise behind him. Looking over there, Vvokkam saw the small black kitten, Morgan, slowly walking toward him. The boy even saw Morgan yawning, bored. Then, looking at him, Vvokkam saw this one heading toward the fake statue of the Titan Tī. Once next to the stone, Morgan started to climb it, at a slow step. At first, the kitten climbed on one of the statue’s legs until he got up, where, on an invisible bed, he started to purr his kitten melody.

That weirdness of the place didn’t deceive Vvokkam. It also didn’t scare the boy to see the kitten hanging in the air. Thus, when he remembered the words his grandfather used to tell him, „Nobody ever saw Tikil. Even so, the Titan exists even if he’s invisible for many of us,” Vvokkam frowned. After that, taking a few steps until he got into the river, the boy shouted, „I know you are here, Tikil! So, stop hiding and show up! I have a deal to offer to you!”

Nothing happened after that shout. Also, Tikil didn’t show up. Yet, he was there. Vvokkam felt it. The boy heard the Titan’s heavy but rhythmic breathing as though coming from deep underground. And, considering that sound as an acceptance or permission for him to talk, Vvokkam kept advancing through the water until he got to the statue. After that, climbing on it, he got up, on the stone shoulder of the antic Titan. Once there, he stopped and carefully looked at Morgan, who kept yawning and purring, at all bothered that the boy was there. And the kitten wasn't alone there. Vvokkam understood this, seeing the kitten’s fur slowly moved by something, as though an invisible hand would have caressed it. Understanding this, Vvokkam grinned and said, „You are even more cowardly than I thought, Tikil!”

„What makes you think so?” Vvokkam heard Tikil’s voice, a strange voice that made the boy wince. Yet, not losing his temper, Vvokkam said:

„Because… if you hadn’t been a coward, you would have shown up. I’m just a kid, remember? One with no magic power. Yet, you are still hiding.”

„It’s because I know why you are here.” Vvokkam winced again. Then, right in front of his eyes, he saw Tikil’s body, outlining itself. That one was laying on a hammock made from lianas, with Morgan on his stomach while his hand was continuously caressing the kitten’s fur. Then, looking into the boy’s eyes, Tikil said, „You came here looking for power, right?”

„You're observant,” Vvokkam cunningly responded. „And yes, you are right: I’m here looking for power. One that can be useful for you too.”

„Honestly, I don’t see how this can help me.”

„Simple: If I become a king, you have an army only for you.”

„Aaaa, it was this!” Responded Tikil cunningly. „The throne. Yet… I don’t really understand whose throne you are craving for.”

„Mine, of course. The throne my father left for me.”

Tikil grinned. „Nothing in this world is guaranteed, Vvokkam, Rueb’s son. Not even one’s life. Yet, you want a throne that’s not yours anymore.”

„You are wrong now. Why? Because nobody can take that throne from me. Not while my heart still beats in my chest.”

„As far as I see you are a brave boy.”

„I better say wise. Also… brave if you like it more. Yet, what I definitely love to be called is faithful: to my blood and my people. A love I have from my father and my grandfather, who loved this people and these lands.”

Sitting on that hammock, Tikil deeply looked into the boy’s eyes. Then, he said, „What I see it’s that not the love for your people made you come here, but the revenge.” Vvokkam winced. „How do I know that? I see it in your eyes. Actually, you are like an open book, boy. Because of this, I can see hatred and desire for revenge painted on the white sheets of your soul's book, one painted with blood. A book that seems to have a single ending written there: Iṟappu!”

„This is already something you shouldn’t care about, Tikil! If I die or live, it’s up to me! What you should decide is if you join me or you stay here, a captive forever.”

The boy’s words made Tikil think. Then, after minutes of waiting, he told the boy, „What do you have in mind?”

„Give me back my throne and I’ll give you back your freedom! A reciprocal help I can say.”

„I can’t see how you’ll manage that because, as far as I know, the Coal Burners don’t have magical powers.”

„And you are right. The Coal Burners have never had magical powers. Not until now. Yet, you have the power to give this to someone and teach that person how to use that magic. Thus, you assure your back, don’t you think so?”

Tikil said nothing. Not that day because he asked the boy to leave him alone that day. He asked Vvokkam to return after three days, at sunset, and find out the answer. Something Vvokkam did: he came back on the third day when the moon was half hidden in the sky during the night. That night Tikil promised to give huge magical power to the boy. Yet, afraid that Vvokkam could also dethrone him one day, he had promised the boy to give him that power gradually, a promise he didn't ever break. Thus, at the age of twenty when he was already controlling the magic power Tikil gave it to him, even if still limited, Vvokkam got his throne back and, leading the Coal Burners fiercely, he turned them into a fierce army in only ten years. An army controlled by Black Magic because Vvokkam knew what was in the mind of the rebellious Coal Burners: to get back their freedom. Something he wasn’t eager to give them back.

***

PRESENT

A terrifying roar suddenly got out of Vvokkam’s throat, which made Ahi’s throne hall resound. After that, with a precise movement, the Coal Burner threw his sword toward the stone throne, which, hit on its back, broke into pieces. Then, barely controlling his anger, Vvokkam looked through that room, looking for something else to destroy.

Yet, there wasn’t anything else to be destroyed in that room: only empty shelves, carved in the walls, shelves he couldn’t have been able to destroy. At the same time, no traces that the Mago had ever been in that room could be seen there, even if he and Tikil feverishly looked for them there, hoping to find at least a weakness of the Mago, whom they dreamt to bring to his knees. However, just as Inmar told Kkāṟṟu, Ahi wasn’t stupid. He never dreamt to see himself falling. That’s why he didn’t leave any trace of his weaknesses in that room: only fake memories, false hope, and illusions, those that often led one to ruin. Thus, by leaving such „tracks” in his old den, Ahi hoped to mislead his enemies, so they left him alone.

However, Tikil wasn’t also stupid. As soon as he entered there, the Titan understood that something was wrong with that room. Even so, he said nothing about this. He only allowed Vvokkam to convince himself of this because he decided that it was healthier for him because if Vvokkam had been able to prove that Tikil had been wrong in thinking that Ahi didn’t leave any proof in that room, would have been him the one to be blamed about this eventually. Thus, allowing Vvokkam to see the truth with his eyes, Tikil managed to enrage him more, who, even if had nothing else to destroy in that room, kept hitting left and right with his sword as though he had had visions of Ahi being there, whom he wanted to kill at any cost.

Eventually, so suddenly that even Tikil winced Vvokkam stopped his madness. After that, deeply breathing in while staring at the broken throne, Vvokkam hissed through his teeth, „Let’s go!”

„Where?” Tikil’s stupid question came after this.

„To destroy Paṉi Makkaḷ! Once and for all!” The Coal Burner said this confidently. After that, squeezing the sword in his hand, which he put back in its scabbard, he turned his back to Tikil, leaving that weird room first.

Tikil, not understanding a big deal from what Vvokkam said, looked thunderstruck behind him. He even wondered, „What does this one’s empty head invent this time?” Yet, not being able to find out that logical answer to his question, the Titan followed his „pupil,” who seemed to be stronger than Tikil… a worthy Titan of the World and not its servant.

And it was right that Vvokkam found the perfect solution to destroy Paṉi Makkaḷ, a solution that Tikil always dreamt about, but hadn’t ever been able to find it. Yet, before telling others about his plan too, the Coal Burner decided to think better about this first, to plan everything up to the end, and only after this to act because, not for nothing he remembered his father that day. Especially, he considered it not a coincidence that he remembered those bears carved in stone that day, perfect weapons as he got to consider them, sure weapons to bring the entire world to its knees and not only Paṉi Makkaḷ.