Chapter Five

Brendon, the Brilliant

Success comes through skill, hard work, and determination

Vasilias

Earth/Bliss (Mount Bloom) EarthYear 989

Vasilias and his friends stood from their chairs, bent their knees, and bowed their heads.

"There is no need for that. You and I are the same. The ones chosen by the Supremes. You spread their message on Earth and guide people to the road to Bliss. We take care of them once they reach this Garden of Eternity and ensure they smoothly ascend to the Hereafter."

"Can you visit Earth whenever you want?" Vasilias asked.

"The Portal from Bliss to the Earth opens only once a decade. And Malaks from Bliss are not allowed to cross this bridge and go to the other side. Their bodies might not survive the harsh climates of the Earth."

"His voice, his charm, his aura, his personality is of a man who may have lived for ages, but his physical features are of a man who might have just crossed his teens," Vasilias said to himself. "Holy scriptures say that people don't age in Bliss. Lord Antionne is an example of an eternally young and radiant person."

"You are right Vasilias, When people leap into the Abyss of Bliss they turn into their younger selves. There are no old people on the other side. These majestic streams of Mount Bloom feed the enchanted waters of Eternal Bliss to the whirlpool. I took a dip in the holy waters just before you arrived, that is why I am looking extra young. And radiant."

Vasilias's jaw dropped. He was sure not a single word had escaped his lips.

Antionne smiled. "Don't be so shocked. The Supremes have blessed me with certain powers. I will explain that to you later. For now, I want you all to understand that I have invited you here for a purpose."

He can read minds. Vasilias was still shaken but he continued the conversation. "What purpose?"

"The Reckoning is upon us and a storm is brewing. Many Soulments in Inferna have rebelled. Can you imagine, a rebellion against the Almighty, against the Supremes? Those demons have completely lost the way."

"But how does a rebellion in Inferna affects Bliss or Earth?"

"Our worlds are connected. The demons plan to breach Mount Tenebra and take over the Valley of Reckoning. If they spill on Earth, that will be the end of the Symphony of Souls. It will forever change these worlds' balance. They must be stopped."

"Where do we fit in the picture?" Theoreous Sunborne, the brightest among the five friends, asked the all-important question.

"I will be honest with you. I made a blunder. I miscalculated the scale of this problem. I should have sent the Scions of Pietious to the Earth and blessed them with the Holy Powers of Five, made them the Pente Potens. But I thought we didn't need to go to that extreme and now it is too late for me to correct my mistake."

Theoreous always thought way ahead of others. He quickly deduced where this chat was leading. "You want the five of us to take care of the situation."

Antionne nodded. "Yes, I do. And for doing that, you will have to return to Earth and stay there for another decade."

Baelor Hardhomme generally trusted Vasilias to make the tough decisions but here he had to speak his mind. "We've honorably walked down the path laid by the Pietious for our entire lives on Earth. Now's the time for us to leave that world behind and peacefully ascend to the Bliss. Why'd we choose to go back?"

Antionne paused for a moment. When he spoke, his subtle whisper rang louder than bells. "Because if you accept my offer you will take our places and become the next Pietious, the Holy Five, the most powerful people in the three worlds."

***

Brendon

Earth (Australia) EarthYear 1997

"Another huge six. Fifth six in the over. Brendon has been brilliant today. What an unbelievable display of batting this is. He is only a hit away from getting the fastest T20 International century. He has three more balls to achieve the feat." The commentator was screaming over the top of his voice.

Brendon was mauling the helpless English bowlers in a jam-packed Sydney Cricket Ground. 94 runs from 26 balls. The noise levels were ear-shattering.

"Holy Angels, superpowers or not, this guy is super talented!" Ryan exclaimed applauding Brendon's superhero efforts on the field

"Well, I can't even see that small ball from here. What's the charm in seeing that tiny thing getting smashed again and again? It is like seeing the same movie scene on a loop."

Max took a deep breath. "Someone will never understand the charm of sports. Do you know how much I have paid to secure these box seats? Okay Mysha, why don't you watch some silly romantic movie on your mobile and let us boys enjoy the game." Max quickly returned his attention to the cricket field.

The clueless English spinner tossed up another delivery. Brendon charged out of his crease and thumped the ball. The crowd and the commentators went into a frenzy. "Another hit down the ground. It might go for another six. Oh no, wait. It seems Brendon hasn't timed it. The ball is hanging in the air. The fielder at long-on is under it and Brendon is gone. Stop the press. This is unbelievable. Brendon has mistimed a shot. When was the last time we saw that?"

Brendon paused at the center of the pitch and looked around the stadium. He then slowly dragged himself off the field. That last hit would have fetched him another world record, but that wasn't to be.

Although Brendon missed the century he had already inflicted the damage. Australia won the match by 38 runs. Their eleventh successive win against England across formats.

"Thank God the torture is finally over. Now, Mister I-love-to-waste-time-watching-useless-sports, I hope you have some kind of a plan to meet this cheater superstar."

"For someone's information, it will not be easy to fix an appointment. People stand for hours outside his hotel to get a glimpse of him."

"For God's sake, don't tell me you have brought us this far to see these worthless matches."

"Okis okies, calm down, take a deep breath, We will think of something."

They were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice that a security guard was standing beside them.

"Madam, Sirs, Mr. Brendon Larson wants to see you."

"See us?" They asked in unison.

"Yes. He can't meet you here so he has asked you to visit him in his hotel. Hilton, room number 1520. He will be seeing you two hours from now. Give me your Id cards so that I can instruct hotel staff to take you directly to Mr. Brendon's room."

Max showed him their identity cards and he noted down the details.

At 1:00 am the trio was escorted by a security guard to the royal suite of one of the most expensive hotels in Sydney.

"Holy Angels! Sports has a lot of money."

Brendon was waiting for them in the sitting room. "Thank ya, Paul. Close the door n make sure no one disturbs us."

Paul nodded and quietly went out of the room.

"Who's the moron who messed up my timin'?" Brendon shouted the moment the door closed.

"Us? No! Someone is mistaken here," Max blurted.

"Well, I did that." Mysha's whisper was barely audible.

Max and Ryan turned to Mysha and gasped in unison. "What?"

"I was bored seeing Mister I-am-the-God-of-Timing maul those poor bowlers. So I paused the time just before the bat hit the ball to screw his shot."

Brendon slammed the table in front of him. "Ya bugger, that shot would've given me the world record."

"For God's sake, what you do there is called cheating. You can't use superpowers in sports."

"Having power's cheatin', whether ya use them in sports or battles. Any unfair advantage's immoral. N sweetie, ya've got superpowers too, why don't ya try them in sports? Ya'll know it's no piece of cake. Success comes through skill, hard work n determination, there aren't any shortcuts. My powers r just an add-on, nothin' more. What I've achieved is through my toil."

"You know I too once thought of trying my luck in racing. But a racer starting his race and then directly appearing at the finish line would have appeared creepy. Right?" Brendon's cold stare was enough to tell Max that his joke had fallen flat on its face.

"Well, Mister I-am-not-a-cheater-but-a-hardworker, sorry to mess up your innings but I am a little confused here. No one can stop time. All you can do is freeze the moving things around you without them realizing it. But these matches are broadcasted live. How do you fool the high-tech cameras or the millions who are watching these matches on screens?"

Brendon grabbed a soda can from his table and took a big gulp. Mysha silently breathed a sigh of relief watching him cool down a little. "Sweetie, I apply my Bren-Freeze just for a fraction of a second after the bowler has released the ball, to gauge its speed n trajectory. I've perfected this skill through a lot of practice. The cameras can't discern any irregularities n people attribute these little inconsistencies to my lightnin' footwork n unbelievable bat speed. But ya've made a massive blunder tonight. Ya paused time for much longer n that's gonna raise some eyebrows."

"Well, I am not the Timer, that is you, so I can't obviously be perfect at this time-freezing gimmick."

"Someone is using his powers for fun. Doesn't this Bren-Freeze have any adverse effect?" Max asked.

"Movement keeps life flowin' through the livin' things. When ya freeze'em they start to wither. Their cells begin to die n the longer ya hold'em, the greater the impact on their health. N ya health as well. I'm already sufferin' from some blood clottin' issues. But this process only begins when ya hold time for a considerable duration. A few seconds here n there doesn't make a difference. No one realizes they've skipped a beat."

"Well, just like you have done this mini time freeze at least a dozen times since we have arrived, but I don't think anyone else caught that." Mysha had caught Brendon playing his little trick.

Brendon winked. "Gnarly! Bloody impressive. Ya're more than just beautiful."

"Someone has expertly manipulated this small loophole to his advantage. Let me tell you I am impressed as well."

"Thanks, mate. Yous have a seat. We've got a lot to discuss. First, I wanna know ya names n ya powers."

"I am Max, the Mover or the one who can control space."

"Ryan, the Elemental."

"Mysha, a little bit of everything."

"The Chosen One, the Bond, or the Hook," Ryan elaborated.

Brendon gave a lecherous smile. "Yeah, she's defo the One I'm hooked to. I can already feel the eternal bond."

Mysha's spotlight flared at Brendon. "Well, Mister-determined-harworking-superstar is showing his real self now. But let me warn you those cheesy one-liners won't get you too far. You can ask Max what kind of happens when someone pisses me off."

"Is someone referring to the honeybees she let loose on me, or about locking me in a metal freezer from where I couldn't teleport or..."

"Yeah, yeah. I think I've got the overall idea. But I'm always up for a yakka. I love a challenge."

Once the group got comfortable with each other Max, as usual, opened his Pandora's box of questions.

"Will someone tell me how did he know we were here?"

"Aren't ya a RightHeart who's supposed to be the borin' nerd of our group? Then why r ya askin' me such silly questions? Strewth, we're screwed."

"I am not a nerd. And for someone's information, I am one of the most popular students in my college, head of the Lion's Club, and captain of the cricket team." Max tried to outspin Brendon but gave it all away when he ended up looking at Mysha.

"Crikey, she's bloody impressed. Captain of a college cricket team versus an international battin' superstar. Such tight competition." Brendon charged out of his crease and deposited Max's innocuous full-toss into the stands.

"For God's sake, when did I become a trophy? Gosh, first Mad-Dash-Max then a Touch-me-not-or-I-will-turn-into-a-giant-turnip, and now a Loose-panted-hungry-eyed-sleazy-self-proclaimed-superstar. I am tired of these pea-brained boys. Why can't I have normal people around me? Where is gender equality? Why am I the only girl here?"

"Loose panted? Sleazy? Ya've barely known me for a few minutes?" Brendon tried an attacking shot off the front foot.

"Well, they were more than enough to see through your character. And I talk with my mouth, not through my chest so keep your eyes off it and come back to the topic of how you found us." Just like the real match, here too Mysha had Brendon caught at the boundary.

After losing his wicket Brendon quietly returned to the topic. "This wasn't that difficult. I knew my feats will sooner or later catch ya attention so I dropped hints about my powers in my interviews. N the moment ya messed my timin' on that shot I knew ya're here."

"Okies, but tell me, how did someone precisely locate us in a stadium filled with thousands of spectators?"

"I've got serious doubts about this nerd's intellectual ability." Max was about to retort but Brendon didn't give him a chance. "Paranormal activity ya dumbo. Do ya know how much disturbance ya armies of unseen were causin' in the realms? Once my soulments tracked down these disturbances to ya stands, findin' three people with green eyes wasn't that difficult."

"For someone's information, generating so much attention means enemies could have also found out about you."

"I'm in Straya n there's no chance ya would've found me unless I sent ya a loud n clear message. N messages of a celebrity have a longer reach. That's a despo move."

"Okies, but tell me, why cricketer? You could have become something else."

"It's in my genes. My father loved cricket. Played domestic but his passion to grow our family business neva let him unlock his true potential. Those genes combined with some special powers give you Brendon the Brilliant."

"You know, not long ago someone was giving us a lecture about hard work, skill, and what was the other?"

"Determination." Ryan filled in for Max.

"Yes, determination."

"Yeah, ya require those too."

Mysha had other issues with Brendon the Brilliant. "Mister I-love-to-brag-about-hardwork-skill-and-determination, how a world-famous cricketer is supposed to discreetly move around with us. We can't have the press or your fans following us everywhere around during our missions."

"Hadn't given it a thought..." Brendon stopped mid-sentence as the lights went out in the hotel and the whole neighborhood. Everything was submerged in pitch darkness.

"Strewth! That's creepy. Lights neva go out here."

Max's watch turned into golden smoke and Wavey hovered near Ryan. A loud explosion in the neighboring room shook the hotel. Brendon and others were knocked off their feet.

"That's my room," Brendon shouted.

"Then whose room is this?" Mysha asked.

"My captain's room. I borrowed it for tonight to impress ya guys."

The wall separating the two rooms had been blown away. There was a ball of fire in the next room which was growing by the second, feasting on everything in that room. And then suddenly that fireball turned to face them. Yes, the fire had a distinct face. It glared at them, paused for a second, and then dashed in their direction.

Brendon slammed his foot on the floor and everything froze. He began emanating a red hue as a red smoky avatar appeared behind him. The fireball stopped inches from Max and Mysha. Max grabbed Mysha and teleported away from the fire. Everything stood still but the fireball kept trying to break away from Brendon's grip.

"Mate, do somethin'. I can't hold'em for long. There r too many of them in this fire."

Mysha violently snapped her fingers. Harbux popped up in front of her.

"Any trouble, my lady?" He asked in a chilled-out tone as if taking an order in a posh restaurant.

Mysha pointed to the monstrous fire. "Well, do you see that?"

Harbux was taken aback. "Harbux thought you were chilling out with your friends. Poor Harbux can't even take a day off."

"Stop talking and think of something to stop this," Mysha said through clenched teeth.

Harbux folded his smoky hands in front of his chest. "Thinking is your part. Harbux only takes orders."

Mysha glared at her djinn. He had this annoying habit of throwing tantrums at critical moments.

"I command you to take care of this fire, now."

Harbux sighed, or rather let out a puff of smoke. "Where is that Elemental guy." He turned to Ryan. "Don't you know what puts out a fire?"

"Water. But Demon's Curse, how am I supposed to bring rain inside a hotel? The fire sprinklers are already on but they are not enough."

"Why don't you kids use your brains? This room is beachfront and there is a large sea right out of your window. I hope a whole ocean will be enough to douse this fire. Now Mr. Rotten Tomato, does Harbux still need to tell you what to do?"

Max's had a resigned look on his face. "I might end up getting some serious burns, you know."

"A fire frozen by time won't burn the dumbest RightHeart."

At that moment, the fire monster somehow broke free from Brendon's grip and charged at Mysha.

"Harbux, save us," Mysha screamed.

Harbux turned into a wall of smoke and the fireball collided with it.

"You shall not pass." Harbux the Gandalf's voice echoed around the room.

Mysha grabbed Brendon's hand. When he again stomped his right foot, his red smoke merged into Harbux's black. Their collective effort froze everything again. Max, with a sparkling golden Stokes behind him, held on to the fireball and whistled with all his might. After a whoosh, he and the fireball were in the middle of the sea.

Mysha's brain was now running like a train. "Ryan, When Max drops the fireball into the sea, these soulments will get stuck in their fiery form underwater. That will be the best time to finish them off."

"Water will cut through the fire and badly injure them. Harbux doesn't think they will bother you ever again. You don't need to annihilate them."

"For God's sake Harbux, this is no time to sympathize with our enemies. We can't allow them to recover. We have to take out as many of them as we can before the final battle."

Ryan nodded. "Bless the Souls, I will do the job if you take me there."

Mysha grabbed Ryan around his waist and then turned to Brendon, who was staring at them with longing eyes. "Max leaves a vacuum behind him when he teleports. Kind of a tunnel. I am following that trail but just make sure nobody gets near this balcony. The last thing we want is someone getting quashed in this vacuum." There was another whoosh as Mysha disappeared with Ryan.

Brendon looked at the flower pots on the balcony. All the plants had wilted. The time freeze had consumed them, and God knows how many other things. Brendon suffered a severe bout of cough. He brought his hand to his mouth and saw blood on them. It was time for another visit to his doctor.

The door of the room swung open and the hotel's security chief rushed in. "Mister Brendon, are you all right? Come with us we must take you to a safe place."

***

Mysha and Ryan splashed into the sea. The large fireball had disintegrated into a dozen distinct flames, vaguely resembling human forms. They were still burning underwater, however, they were trembling or rather twitching in agony, with their light getting dull with every passing moment.

Max and Mysha rose to the surface to get some air but Ryan glided underwater like a fish. He took out a pocket knife and drove it into a flame. With a soul-piercing shriek that echoed even under the water, that burning form blew up into small dark fragments.

Max dived back underwater and saw Ryan stabbing the flames with his knife. It was a pitiful sight. The Soulments in their fiery forms were getting crushed by water and had no chance to fight back. They were like prisoners who were tied down, while a merciless executioner was putting a sword through their hearts. Max felt like throwing up after watching this brutal massacre.

Ryan stopped in front of the last flame. This one was burning brighter than the others and was very stable. No shaking or squealing. Ryan had a good long look at it before he drove his pointed knife into its heart.

The flame flickered and then blew up in a thousand pieces. There was no screeching, just the silence of Death.