MINERVA

Incantation? I said to myself. What did she mean? How could she know?

Mara pressed her lips to a thin line and exhaled shakily.

‘’You are playing with fire.’’She said, trying to ignore his question.

‘’Do I? ''Stolas's eyes snapped with curiosity as he moved closer to the girl's side''Tell me more.’’

‘’This stone cannot be close to the mortals’’She jerked her head to the glass, showing the men working with their bare hands and naked faces. ‘’It will kill them all.’’

‘’And yet, the army asks for it’’

Mara’s eyes opened even wider. ‘’It needs…’’

‘’You seem smart.’’He walked all around her. ‘’Tell me, what is pure incantation?’’

Mara looked left and right, taking a step away from the king of Diyu.

‘’What it is, is something that can mess your mind forever’’She tried to speak. ‘’Even your workers.’’

‘’This is why I can reshape them.’’

Her shoulders relaxed. I looked at both of them confused as Ghost seemed that his attention had been drawn to Mara.

‘’Reshape…?’’

‘’When they do not bend, they break. When they break, they are so easy to reshape with just a spark.’’He now moved to her with his hand sticking to her scar.

‘’Are you broken enough to be reshaped?’’

She did not speak, she did not dare to look away from him with her flaming eyes. He snorted before walking now far from the glass, closer to one more door.

‘’Why did you bring me here?’’ Mara asked him.

Instead of answering her question, he opened another wooden door and asked her one more question.

‘’Do you like stories, Mara?’’

She stopped walking and looked at the glass.

‘’No, fairy tales or history lessons’’He corrected himself. ‘’Do you like Stories?’’

She turned to him. ‘’I pretend to live the stories rather than read them.’’

‘’Do you ?’’Stolas asked, confused. ‘’Why?’’

‘’Because stories are twisted. Twisted lies and twisted truths. But when you live them, you can see the truth be revealed in your eyes.’’

Stolas nodded amused and tilted his head to the door.

‘’It sounds like a game. Do you like those?’’

I swear that at that moment I saw Mara grinning. ‘’Just one.’’

The room was darker than the previous one with machines stuck to the wall and a table filled with gadgets and plans. Looking down I could only see darkness emerging rather than another pile of red stones.

‘’What is pure incantation?’’I asked the ghost in a whisper, trying to play dumb. Why did she call it pure incantation? I could not see him, I could understand why he was still helping but one thing was certain. That he was a warlock.

‘’What do you know about the first warlocks?’’

‘’That they stole the incantation from the Spirits.’’I said.’’They dragged it from its body and…’’

‘’Well’’He shrugged.’’ Let’s just say this part is true.’’

He is telling me that is a lie?

‘’When the Spirits fell, the blood fell to the ground, making even stones have a …different reaction. Let’s say mutation through the years.’’

‘’So the stones contain magic.’’

‘’The stones can amplify incantation. It is pure energy.’’

‘’Does that mean that these ‘’I turned back to the previous room.

‘’These people have the same chances to gain incantation just like before getting in touch with the amplifiers. It can only strengthen the ones that already have an incantation. Not much for them to have the strength of the first warlocks but enough to cause trouble.’’

‘’And the ones…’’I said slowly. ‘’They do not?’’

A long pause. ‘’Pure amplifiers that have stuck to the ground for thousands of years.’’He sighed. ‘’Their body isn’t immune to such toxicity making them.’’

‘’Lose their minds,’’ I said breathlessly. I could see Arsu had become even furious before grief. I could see the girl asking where she was, her name.

Stolas finally spoke, showing Mara a glove with silver wires.’’This was an old model that the army used to capture monsters.’’

‘’Warlocks’’She corrected him.

Stolas arched his brow.

‘’In the rest of Akhet are using the monster turn for warlocks. But they don't capture other monsters with weapons like those.’’

‘’And how do you know that?’’ There was a twitch on his lips again as he walked around her with the glove flickering. Mara did not even try to look back.

‘’Mammon taught me that.’’She regretted speaking. ‘’He taught me a lot of things.’’

I could now see Stolas’ eyes darkening as his gloved hand was now pressed against Mara’s back.

‘’Let’s see if he taught you to survive.’’

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And there it was. Electricity showered her body and made her scream echo to the room.

Her eyes rolled back as heavy saliva got out of her mouth.

‘’Is it stronger than the one they use for the collars?’’He asked the little girl, amused that she was staying still alive.

Stolas sighed amused, pulling his hand away from Mara’s back, making her fall to her knees, gasping for air.

‘’It was a nice deal I made with them.’’

‘’Them?’’ Mara painted.

‘’You would be amused by how much they are giving me for just a few stones’’

She stood up, hands on her knees. ‘’The army wants…’’She looked left and right. ‘’Why?’’

‘’I do not know as long as it still benefits me’’He flickered his electric fingers, making electricity dance all over.''Weapons, relaxation pleasure, destruction, it has nothing to do with me.'' Another laugh. Packing them into those old tin, returning them with money.

‘’You are killing your people’’She said breathlessly.

‘’They can be reshaped’’ He said once more. ‘’Reshaped over and over again until they fall to their coffins.’’

‘’And what then? What is your little business going to be.’’

Another grin and he moved to her. ‘’Assets can be bought, can be grabbed, and ‘’He cupped her chin, pulling her closer to his face. ‘’They can be born.’’

There was a twist in my stomach and held my scream from the realization.

‘’What?’’ Mara almost cried.

‘’The establishments were already built poorly’’He said dramatically. ‘’But their assets are beautiful,’’ He shrugged. ‘’Useful to make more and more. It will take a few years but…’’His mouth let out a skeptical humming tone.''Maybe in five years...''His lips curled to a smile.

‘’You ‘’Mara looked down and mumbled whispers that could mean everything and nothing.

‘’Petbe’’I whispered, feeling a panic, and turned to Ghost. ‘’I need to go back please.’’

But he did not move. Instead, he squeezed my hand even tighter.

‘’Do not worry girl.’’Stolas comforted her.’’That is not my plan for you. Unlike the rest of your friends…’’A long pause. ‘’Your part is going to be different. You will be a part of the story.’’

So that was all his plan. Free us and take us. Unlike the ones that work at establishments, we had two choices to be free. Pay our freedom or die. He kidnapped guards by using the

smoke so they could work the red pill and the women for…Spirits I couldn’t even think about it, rather imagine it.

Mara pulled far from him and stood straight.

‘’I need someone who can detect lies, someone to trust’’He explained. ‘’And someone that knows how to kill.’’

Another squeeze.

‘’You are going to cut my hand off’’I hissed.

I still couldn’t find his face but it suddenly hit me.

‘’Do you know her?’’

Ghost remained silent.

‘’Kill?’’ Mara stuttered.

‘’What did Mammon offer you girl?’’He asked once more, this time he was intrigued and started fading, showing his true bitter colors. ‘’What did he offer you to work for him?’’

Her lips parted and her fingers found a scar.

‘’He offered me a choice. ‘’She whispered with her dark eyes to him, staring deep into his soul. Or whatever was left on it.''Live or die.''

Stolas nodded amused by it. ‘’Do you regret your choice?’’

‘’Will you give me a better one?’’She asked.

There was silence before Stolas started laughing once more. ‘’For a kid, you are a smart one.’’He admitted, making Mara’s lips frown.

‘’But it seems you still have work to be reshaped so...’’He moved away from her and pressed a button from the wall, making light appear to the room and down below.

And there it was. The monster from the smoke. A machine made of piles of metal that could be an actual giant. From the ground to the bars, I could imagine how many people it had stepped on and killed. Two legs painted in gold and two hands that were sharp like knives.And eyes. No. Lights. So many red lights glowing on the machine.

‘’It’s beautiful isn’t it?’’He said, taking one more control. ‘’I made it myself.’’

‘’This is what...’’ Mara swallowed dry and turned closer to the bars. Her head began shaking, trembling like a wave of energy hit her again.

‘’To work for me, you will have to choose either’’ His gloved hand found her neck. ‘’Be reshaped by the way Mammon always punished you.’’He sighed, with a tingle of electricity getting wrapped around her skin. ‘’Or be reshaped by surviving.’’

Mara pushed Stolas far from her ending her body against the bars.’’What if I don’t?’’ She asked. ‘’I don’t want to work for you?’’

His brow arched and he took out his glasses. ‘’I am fine to have another breeding asset.’’He explained. ‘’Maybe there are some people that like your scar. I like it.’’He explained clearly and put his glasses back to his eyes.

That anger once more burnt in my skin. My eyes stared at him, ready to make that man explode. As if I had the power to do it.

Mara’s face tensed and they looked all over. The men were ready to take her to the basement or ready to kill her with the pistols. Stolas’ glove. The exit. And then, she looked at me. She looked right at me.

There was the surprising smile again that instantly faded.

‘’As you wish’’She said, phishing her body lower, making it fall completely down below.

‘’No’’ I screamed, trying to pull away from Ghost but his hand covered my mouth. The door opened with Nezha and Petbe looking at the falling girl and they could not see me, fighting to save her.