Chapter 1
“I CAN’T DO THIS ANYMORE!” I slam my fists on the table as I stand up, frustration showing through my eyes. “HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU, I HATE ANIMALS?!” I glare straight through the eyes of the orange-haired person, or rather, a deity? Sitting in front of me.
The said deity with the name Duccel, looked me in the eye, lifting one brow, “well... are you now?” The deity stopped inspecting his unusual looking sword. “And am I supposed to do something about your current predicament?” He carefully sheaths the sword, waiting for my answer.
I stared at him for a second, waiting to see if this was a trap or something, but nothing occurred. “Uh... yes, remove my powers from me, for I don’t want to continue this anymore.” I stand, maintaining my posture.
“Hmm... That’s a no.” He puts his sword down at the side of his table, “you know you’re the only one with the gifted powers of such–we may not, 'simply', remove them.” he emphasize the word simply. “Because you were born with that power.” he stands, giving this heavy aura that reminds me, I’m in front of a real deity—except — the aura stops. For it... didn’t even reach my head... He was just too small for me. I have to glare more intensely and clench my teeth to stop a laugh that’s coming.
“Little Clover, you don’t have to be too mad.” He pats my head, requiring a tiptoe to reach me... little huh?... He goes on and walks in front of a bookshelf. “We already talked about this before and you already know the answer.” He’s searching for something, while I wonder my eyes at the tree house we’re in, contemplating that no, the answer will always be no.
I can magically cure animals and mystical beasts. I don’t know how it happens, but the world we lived in had a lot more creatures that could be half beast or just animal-like. These creatures could shapeshift and blend among humans. Living harmoniously, getting things they wanted and somehow that’s normal. There are less and fewer creatures that are pure animals, while mystical beasts are so rare to find nowadays. They’re being neglected and being overlook upon, they could live their own lives in the wilderness but they can be slaves among human and human-beast creatures. There are also good sides sometimes, they can be pets or friends and live happily with their loved ones... But they all walk through the same end and that’s why I don’t like them.
Squinting my eyes and clenching my teeth, I just hope to disappear into this world.
SMACK! A hard thump rang out beside my ears, and I realized I just got hit by a book. “What was that for?” It must be because I was in deep thoughts that it didn’t hurt at first, but now it does... “Ow...?”
“Sorry I saw a fly. They’re kind of annoying.” He casually says that as if I wouldn’t notice that he did that intentionally.
Now that I’m back to my senses, I observe the deity that is still rummaging through the bookshelves. Somehow, even though he’s a deity, I could still feel like he’s a human. He doesn’t feel like a powerful person; he feels like a normal annoying human. I don’t really like to show my emotions and talk very much, but here I am screaming and showing my demands to him.
He’s wearing a black robe that fully covers his upper body. Looking up, his eyes are orange and his hair as well...“I’ve been meaning to ask, why did you change your hair color to orange? That’s not what it was when I met you.” I still vividly remember how his hair suddenly went from brown into orange.
“To match yours.” He casually answers, short answer as usual, no explanation until I ask so, still don’t even know what he’s doing.
“Okay, but why?” Knowing the answer already, I stood up to look around to observe another thing to be observed which is his tree house. “Why not?” Yes, I saw that one coming. The tree house is very huge and cozy. It looks like more people could live here, but no, he’s just alone and isolated. I sigh. This man can magically change places, but somehow he just lives here.That’s understandable, I guess.
From the corner of my eyes I saw a pond, a pond inside of a tree house...wow... I slowly make my way, inspecting the pond. My reflection shows that I’m still wearing the black cloak that he gave me when I was young. It covers half my torso now. He wanted to give me a new one, but I refused. I don’t wanna let go of it; it brings me comfort. Underneath the cloak I wear a simple brown comfortable shirt, black pants, and belts that hang pockets full of useful things for caring for mystical beasts... I sigh, closing my eyes.I really don’t like animals at all.
Once I opened my eyes, I saw it glowing from the reflection in the pond. “Do my eyes always glow like that?” I whisper to myself, my eyes are glowing orange but it doesn’t really hurt or making me blind... it’s just very... enchanting. I close my eyes and open it again to see if I’m just imagining it.
“Not always.” The deity answered, magically appearing beside me. He’s holding a tattered scroll. “This pond shows the true nature of somebody’s eyes.” he flicks the water and let his head gets closer so we can see his face at the reflection, his eyes glow orange as well, using his right fingers and swooshing it to the side, the pond emits lights, changing the whole atmosphere of the pond. “They glow.” He opens the scroll revealing its blank canvas, he lets it float on the pond, the scroll didn’t get wet but it emits a light, the light turning into a glowing ink saying, “The path to enlightenment”, reading it out loud and looking at the deity confusion showing from my face.
He smiles at me, “What?” That’s all he has to say. “What do you mean what?” Looks like my frustrations are coming back haha.
“Look at that. My eyes glow orange, the same as yours. That means my eyes are truly orange. I suppose that will answer your question about my eyes as well.” He giggles, clearly changing the subject, “speaking of questions about myself, why not a question about yourself? Why is your name so long? Ben... benes... Ben-scrub-well, right?” He gives me a big teasing smile and curiosity in his eyes.
“It’s Benescrupelle.” I rolled my eyes. “It’s the name that my parents gave me. I didn’t have it by choice.” I pinch the bridge of my nose, “Wait... Stop changing the subject.” Sighing to myself, he’s always like this, it’s like talking to a child. Wait a minute, is he a child deity? Because he looks too young to be a deity.
“I’m not a child, little Clover.” He looks at me with a smirk on his face. Oh, now he reads minds, not sure if he can do that, but he is a deity, so it’s possible, maybe. “I can’t...” he flicks my forehead with his right hand, “read minds.” that probably hurts more than the book. “I’m the deity of emotions...” He swooshes the pond’s water again, but this time using his left hand. The water emits light, but the sensation changes into an eerie feeling. “I used the atmosphere to alter the mood of your surroundings, thus making your mood shift as well.”
He stops the sensation by flicking his right fingers on the water, and just like that, the cozy environment goes back to normal. “In short, I don’t read minds, I feel them...” He makes this weird gesture from his hand, pointing to my head “tingling.” He smiles.
“Why are you telling me this?” My frustrations may just be my impatience. “No, rather, why are you changing the subject? Why aren’t you answering me? You’ve been ignoring my questions!” I want to slam my fist into somewhere but I can only see is the pond so I slam my fist to the pond but somehow I stopped myself before it hits the water, instead I let my hands feel the water and that magically stops my raging emotions.
“I already did.” the deity interrupting the serene feeling, he grabs the scroll to roll it up again, “here’s your answer.” giving it to me.
Confusion must be showing on my face as I was hesitating to accept it. “Path to enlightenment?” I know what enlightenment is, but that’s not the answer I was expecting. That proves nothing!
“Yes, you, little Clover. You just need to follow the path and you’ll have your answer before you even know it.” My eyes follow his movements as he goes back to his table. “I already answered your questions many times before and you never understood me.” he points to the scroll “Enlightenment might help you more than I can.”
He picks up the book that he threw earlier, “The eyes of Chromo.” he nods as he reads the title. “Perhaps, I should explain the world as you go on your journey.” he opens the book to feel the delicate papers.
Journey???“What do you mean by journey??” Walking to the table and immediately sitting down, we came back to our original position earlier, sigh.
“Have you ever explored outside the village?” He turns the next page.
“No? I haven’t thought about it.” Caring for magical beasts was the only thing I had in mind.
“That’s understandable, you’re really committed.” he nods, “There are lot more wonders outside the village, for instance...” he points at his eyes using his two fingers, “The eyes.” as soon as he says that his eyes glow without even needing the pond to see it. “In the world that we lived in, you could basically know about a person just by looking at their eyes.” He lifts his left hand and creates something like water that is changing shape, but inside that water looks like a different place, a field of dandelions.
“The eyes glow whenever you use your powers.” he looks me in the eye, “You and me are not the only one with glowing eyes.” he stands up and turn around, he lift his hand like he’s touching wall-like water and swooshing it to the side like how he did on the pond’s water but this time the water is big almost taller than him. Inside, the water is a different place this time, and I soon realized this is how he can change places.
“The Sacred Flower.” he moves to let me see it fully, the place inside the water is a place where you can see a giant flower that I haven’t seen before, “It is the one responsible for giving humans or creatures their powers.” the flower is huge that it could even battle against the tallest tree in the world, I imagine.
“There are ceremonies for such, as people like to be organized and representable.” he smirks, “and I agree to that, it is, after all, a sacred being.”
I stare at the flower more observing the beauty of it and more and more questions gathering in my mind and before I can ask; he speaks again.
“Toddlerhood, each year toddlers all around the world will gather around the sacred flower.” he makes a circling motion with his finger, “Because toddlerhood is when the mind and the heart is still pure and sacred...” I feel his eyes look at me to see if I’m still listening, and I nod as an answer. “There are ones that is gifted, there are ones that are not, there are also the ones that already altered their original color.”
He taps the water and it slowly shrinks to nothingness, “Because the color of the eyes changes depending on the influence of your surroundings.” he face me again, “That’s why we go to the sacred flower to ask for guidance.” He comes close to me, “And its answers’ depends on the color of the eyes, will you glow? or will you fall?” He rubs the bridge of his nose, “That’s too poetic and probably too dramatic.” he sighs and goes back to his seat, “You don’t have to worry about that though I’m sure the sacred flower is a happy flower and only wants the good for us.” he show his big smile.
“Okay?...” I smile as well, confusedly. He suddenly comes closer to me from the table “You little clover.” he move so closely now, making me nervous, “You didn’t get your powers from the sacred flower.” he stared thoroughly to my eyes “I don’t know how and why.” he goes back to his sit and I fix my position as well “But I’m not about to question the one who give it to you, it probably chose you for a reason.” He picks up his sword from the table.
“What could be the reason? And how can you say that the sacred flower didn’t give me the powers?” My confusion mixing up with my emotions. I came here for an answer not to have more questions?
“Well, because I saw you crying and lonely in the woods, picked you up, get you back to your village-“, “-to another village,” I interrupted, he practically carry me like a bag and take me to another village, assuming that’s where I lived and why does he’s saying it like he’s ordering me to pick up some herbs? “To another village. Somehow you keep coming back to my house as if you’re the one who lives here.” He tilts his head up while raising an eyebrow. “So basically I can say that I’m the one who raised you, or probably half raise you.” He pauses, crossing his arms, irritation showing on his face, “No... I’m just like a teacher... I didn’t raise you and am not really responsible to you.” He said smugly off me.
“Wow, aren’t you supposed to be a deity?” I immediately respond to his unkind manner? Can a deity be mean to that?
“As for the other question.” He goes to his original demeanor, and it feels like the mood of the surrounding shift as his irritation goes away. “That’s for you to know and for you to answer. You will be on your journey.” he stands up again, showing his unusual sword to me.
“I’ll be taking care of the animals in your village, so you won’t have to worry about them.” He moves around the table to get closer to me. “Take care now. You will help a lot more people or creatures, I’m sure of it. Please be take care of yourself.” He pats my shoulders.
“Wait! Does that mean I’ll still be curing animals?” Before I know it, I’m on the stairs outside of his tree house. All my raging emotions are bubbling up now. It seems like my frustrations alter when he’s near and as soon as I’m outside, all my feelings come to show.
“As for your very first question.” His giggles echoing around me but he’s not physically here. “You don’t really hate animals, now, now, my dear little Clover. Don’t lie to yourself.” His laugh echoes and soon completely disappears.
And that was it. I was just being frustrated and impatient and now I’m feeling angry and possibly hatred. I badly want to punch something or someone... on the skull...hmp. Stomping on my way down the tree house, “Don’t hate animals, huh? How can you possibly know that?” I madly said to myself.
As I was stomping my way down, I saw a furry like creature on top of the log. I immediately ran to it. It’s a curled up sleeping ginger cat. “Aren’t you a cute little fur ball, aren’t you? Aren’t you?” petting the head of the cat, it slowly opens its eyes and my heart immediately melt, “Aww cute little fella.” I pet it with both my hands now, petting the chin and the neck. The pupils of the cat dilated, making me immediately keep my hands to myself and shutting my eyes close. All the terrible memories come barging into my mind and the most recent one, I still vividly remember as the animal that I was curing slowly dilates his eyes and stopped its breathing. I clench my jaw hard enough to break a tooth. Please not now, I can’t. This is the reason I hate animals.
I calm myself down and give the cat something to eat as gratitude for letting me pet it. “Told you, you don’t hate them.” The deity speaks again, shocking me to jump a little. I wanted to scream at him but maintain my anger. Just feeling tired. I want to rest. “Sorry little clover, you can rest for now and tomorrow is your choice.” He said one last time before I felt the atmosphere surrounding me shift. It feels empty now, crossing my arms to suppress a shiver as I walk home for the night. I hope tomorrow will be better than yesterday.
