Mystic: The Tablets of Gilgamesh

The plane ride was not to Adam’s liking. He often disliked flying due to the people inside, but the lack of control he also had with the plane’s fate. Next to him was an elderly lady and a mother with an infant, crying at the top of its lungs. Jellal? He was at the base with all the fun. Adam’s games, the TV, computer, all there. He wasn’t free from an assignment more than a few moments before he was sent to Siberia. So, why the unfair treatment? Adam wasn’t a dog.

He always hated flying because of the absurdity. They used odd euphemistic languages and treated people like idiots. First, they told them that they were pre-boarding individuals with small children and those with military service. What the hell was “pre-boarding”? You’re either boarding or you’re not. Then came the safety lecture, because who didn’t know how to put a seatbelt on?

“Excuse me, dear,” called out the elderly lady. “May I squeeze by you? I have a bladder problem and I have to go to the restroom.” Adam looked at her and smiled, best to remain respectful. He nodded and told her “sure” as he asked the mother if she could move real quick. She did so as she held her crying baby, trying to no avail to silence the screams, using a bottle, a pacifier and even leaving to change the diaper.

For Jellal, he was cozily relaxing and drinking a glass of Jack Daniels Red Label, his favorite alcoholic beverage. As h did, he felt his missing arm, a common thing for people with missing appendages: Phantoms Pain.

Despite how cold he could be, Jellal once had a life. He had a lover and he was happier. He was not as serious as he was now, not as much as Adam, but similar in personality. But since that fateful day, he hadn’t been the same. He saw the cruel world for what it was and wanted to do his best to make Adam prepared for it. He has a lot of potentials.

Truth be told, Seekers and Keepers using their primordial powers of either shadow or light was no easy task, it was normally a highly advanced technique, yet he learned that before everything else and used it for healing purposes for the Catholic Church. Adam had a big heart, Jellal knew this.
He began to think of the battle between Ares and himself. The day was a cloudy and rainy day, winds blew at high speeds as the Hudson river water slammed powerfully against the boardwalk. Ares, possing the body of a young Keeper named Ramsaur, who had been corrupted by the God of War. In his right hand was a massive broadsword imbued with mystical energy that was channeled by the God.

“It’s over, mortal, with his body and my power, I will take over the planet and have my rightful thrown upon Mt. Olympus. You’re simply a mortal, it’s impossible for you to best me. When I’m finished with you, the nukes of the world will fire off and those that survive the nuclear winter will be ruled under my foot, and finally I will recreate humanity in my image,” the deity said in an authoritative tone.

Jellal was kneeling, panting loudly from his exhausting battle. He had one final move to beat the God, but first, he had to draw him out. “Ares, you’re just a weak God compared to your siblings and father,” Jellal mocked him.

“Easy for a mortal without the power to best me to say,” Ares retorted back to Jellal. Mako, Alura, and Sally were in the distance on a giant two-headed dragon, flying over. Mako was badly injured by the God of War, and his deadly blade that could sap the soul from those it touches. This was the same blade he used to cut down his fellow deities many years ago.

“It’s funny,” Jellalbegan before being interrupted by the God.

“And what is so funny? Your soon-to-be death?” The God asked, curious why the Keeper before him was mocking him.

“You need a vessel to beat me, so technically it’s two against one. For a God of War, you sure are weak if you need a mear mortal to finish the job. If you were as powerful as you claim, you could beat me without Ramsaur, using your true form.

The God looked upon the mortal man with vengeful eyes, his gaze burning into Jellal’s soul. “You dare mock me?” The God took a step forward, his blade glowing faintly a rose color.

“Excuse the turbulence, we’ve run into a nearby storm and attempting to fly around it,” the Captain spoke. Storm? Adam wondered as he looked out the window to see a storm over the area, heavy snow falling on the ground below. He had a bad feeling about this. He checked the weather prior, it was summer, so the notion of it snowing heavily at this time when all sources said there would going to be clear weather, bothered. From the looks of it, the clouds were massive, and any meteorologist would have seen this coming a mile away.

Luckily, the plane was starting to land and Adam grabbed his stuff. Upon landing, albeit a rough one, he took a cab and paid the man to have him be taken to the Tunguska area where the 1908 explosion occurred. Little did the world know, the events that caused it was very well known amongst Mystic historians.

As the car pulled in to the area, the man spoke, saying that this was as far as he could go. Rumor has it that it was visited by aliens, or created by monsters. “I go no further. The place is cursed. You go at your own risk,” the man told them.

“Cursed?” Inquired Adam, one eyebrow raised at the prospect.

“Don’t worry about it, “Jellal informed Adam through his earpiece.

Adam stepped out and began to venture deep into the forest. It would take him a good two hours before he neared the area.

“So, this “Tunguska event…,” Adam began, “what exactly happened?” Adam had not heard of this before, well, not much. He was vaguely familiar with it. He knew it was a mystery and the area where the suppose explosion occurred has yet to grow trees where the explosion epicenter occurred.

Jellal was using a satellite phone when he answered. “It was over one hundred years ago. It was a battle between Mystics. The resulting explosion was so bright and powerful, it was comparable to a nuclear explosion of sorts. As you might guess, it was caused by a Seeker.”

“A Seeker?” Adam asked. He guessed that would make sense if it was that bright. “How could a Seeker cause that much destruction that trees no longer even grow there?”

“Because, Adam,” Jellal began, “you and I are more powerful than you seem to realize. It was a climactic battle between a few people and caused by a man called Alexie Ivanov, who, to Russia, was known as The Red Star. He was thought to have been a product of supersoldier training but little did they know they merely unlocked and enhanced his latent powers.”

Jellal told the story of Alexie Ivanov, who worked as a soldier during the First World War. Prior, he was tracking down a Seeker from Germany called Gustav Ferdinand who had attempted to assassinate Nicholas the Second, the Emperor of all of Russia at the time. He had failed and fled, but because he was expected to leave to the west, he left to the east, instead, where a massive battle between multiple mystics took place. The end result was the Tunguska event.

Finally, they arrived, and Adam was shocked by the very size of the leviathan space.

“You’re there,” he told Adam through the earpiece, watching from a satellite. Adam stopped walking and looked into the distance where the massive space was located.

“Damn, it’s huge,” Adam exclaimed. “That was caused by a Seeker? Jesus,” he began.

“He too was a Seeker,” Jellal said trying to be humorous. Adam yelled out in shock.

“WHAT?! You’re full of crap,” Adam yelled in shock.

“Heads up,” Jellal warned Adam, “you have company.”

Company? So someone was seeking the tablet pieces, too? Talk about bad timing. The two slowly walked down, keeping an eye on the distant opening. Before them was a female and two males, one large man who looked like a strongman of sorts, the other was your average looking guy with a blonde ponytail and the girl with a sweater, red skirt, and leggings.

Crystal, a young female Mystic Keeper, was leading the cell of people she was with, using a special device to locate the archaic piece of tablet. The strongman, who stood seven feet tall, named Alfred Romanov, shrugged his shoulders, telling her there was nothing here. “Well, keep looking! The last thing we need is Lord Daniel offing us because of your incompetence,” she rebuked.
“But,” Alfred began before being interrupted.

“No buts! Now search, there’s only a few left,” Crystal ordered but noticed someone in the distance looking at here, he was a good 5,000 meters away. “Yo, Joaquin, we got visitors, take him out.”

Joaquin nodded his head. He wore a black, skin-tight, kevlar suit with a black hood and white mask shaped like a skull’s face. He was a Scorpio Seeker and was a notorious assassin. He was engulfed in a flam-esque shadow as he faded into a cloud of mist, vanishing completely.

Adam began to rush forward to stop them from taking the fragment when a shadowy cloud appeared behind him. He felt a presence behind him and spun around with his right arm raised.

In an instant, a sword appeared and clashed with a man named Joaquin, their blades connecting in a beautiful clash, sparks flying and a small force of the wind from their clash blowing out from their area as the ground below Adam slightly shattered. Adam’s determined, eyes-wide stare, the only thing on his mostly apathetic facial expression showing his drive to survive.

“You blocked my attack,” the gruff whisper of a voice coming from the masked man. Soon, the blade, a ninja’s kunai, was covered in a green aura as it begins to drip, a drop falling to the ground and burning a hole like it was a strong acid.

“Heh,” Adam slightly laughed, trying to act tougher than he truly felt, “you’re pretty good yourself.” Adam twisted his wrist to the right and then back, flipping the kunai out of Joaquin’s hand as he spun around and attempted to back-kick him in the side.

Joaquin blacked this and flipped back, kicking Adam in the jaw as they both went flying. Adam, trying to not to die, landed on his back and rose up as fast as he could. As he did, the man was in the air with his hand pulled back, suddenly the kunai flew back to his hand, tied to a string, as Joaquin grabbed it and went for a down stab at Adam’s heart. Attempting to block, Adam slashed at the blade as it came near his heart. The man using all his strength to stab Adam in the heart, but he was not about to die just yet.

Adam quickly and expertly used his feet to kick the man off of him, sending him flying through two trees before the thrid stopped him.

Jellal listened to the fight as he watched Adam’s vitals, the screen showing a headshot of Adam with his heart rate, pulse and more. “Adam, get up!” he shouted.

Adam did as he was told and stood up. He closed his eyes as he focused on his senses. His sword vanished in a shattering of light as if made of glass. He stood an Aikido ready stance as he opened his eyes, staring the man who was not standing up in the eyes. Joaquin began to walk forward as a green aura appeared in his hands. With the aura, Joaquin rushed forward, his speed going faster and faster, moving from one side to the other in flashes of raw speed. It was as if he merely vanished from the centerline where he ran to the right and then vanished to the left. Soon after-images appeared as Adam’s eyes tried to track them.

Joaquin appeared behind Adam, left arm cocked back as he then thrust it forward, Adam spun around and kicked the hand away, careful to avoid the aura as his other foot went for the head. Joaquin ducked and slid his foot under Adam, who leaped in the air and cocked his fist. Joaquin looked up as the first came towards him, Adam’s hand glowing white with the raw power of the light. As the fist was a centimeter away, Joaquin began to fade away and Adam’s punch went through him, realizing it was an after-image. Joaquin was now above with the kunai as he stabbed Adam, but soon his body did the same thing and suddenly Adam was one hundred meters away, panting.

“You’re…” he tried to say, “pretty good.”

Joaquin stood up, remaining calm and relaxed. “Yes, I have had my fair number of kills in the past. Unfortunately for you, I don’t have time to stall you any longer. We know why you’re here, Adam Phisher.”

Adam Phisher? How did he know his name? “Oh, yes, Lord Daniel knows much about you, I’ve even been ordered to take you alive if possible.” Suddenly, his body flickered to the sides as a loud booming sound was made, Adam instantaneously had his neck grabbed, the man's grip was strong as he was pushed through several trees until he came to a large tree, his body pulled back and slammed into the ground as the kunai came rushing towards him.

Adamdodged the kunai by rolling and backhanding Joaquin in the face to hard he went flying and crashing fifty meters away. He stood up and wiped sweat from his head as he looked on. “OK, you’re harder than I thought,” Adam said under his breath.

Joaquin stood up, wiping the dust from the mask when he suddenly stopped wiping, the mask, cracked, began to fall off to the ground. Under the mask and hood was a white-haired man in his early thirties. Adam clenched his fist as the man eyed him.