THE ANCIENT HUNT

THE HUNT

King Alex took Maeil his brother to the temple one afternoon when he visited since he was on his way, they met with Argan's elder brother who was the chief priest of that time.

The king and Argan's brother were talking in the temple about the scroll which was suspended in the temple of Maga , the scroll was rolling on the altar as if it was bounded there by some magic which was beyond reasoning, the brother saw his confusion and came closer to explain to him

"That is the ancient scroll, in it are all answers are found" King Alex explained to him with a smile

"The ancient scroll?" Maeil muttered back and Argan's brother nodded

"The unique thing about the scroll is it bears or carries new chants for every new time it is opened so that means it is needed for any occasion that is to take place in the land" Argan's brother explained further

"This is so fascinating" Maeil muttered with his eyes lit up in interest

"What if the scroll disappear or go missing?" he asked further

"Unless something inappropriate happens, it's not meant to go missing and the only situation that can make it go missing is itself disappearing from its position because of any inappropriate happening, it will go back to the place it was first handed down and ony the searching stone can point that out" Argan's brother explained innocently

"The searching stone?" he asked looking for whatever the stone looked like

"That is it on the altar" Argan's brother replied helping him out and his eyes shined in wonders as the stone was sitting like every other stone and he wondered how something like that is a guide to the ancient scroll

"The stone can only be used by an assigned person who sees beyond the ordinary if not it will be like every other stone to them" Argan's brother enlightened him and he was nodding all through to signify that he was enjoying all the lectures till Argan also showed up and they did their introductions. Argan and Maeil went out to catch up with each other since they were men of the same ae leaving their brothers to converse whatever they wanted to

Argan and Maeil got close and bonded over time, they became comfortable with each other and had the opportunity to express their separate greed which fortunately worked hand in hand

"I want to be the King of this nation, I want to know what it feels like to be on the throne" Maeil expressed himself to Argan one day

"Just like I want to be the Chief Priest of this nation, my brother keeps pushing me in the dark about the affairs and that is getting to annoy me because I feel belittled" Argan opened up too over their drinks

"Do you have anyone on your side who can help you make the dream come true?" Maeil asked

"I do have few officials whom I'm close with and can help me with whatever mission I have in mind and thankfully, the minister of war is part of them so I don't have a reason to be afraid" Argan told him and silence fell between them for a while before Maeil coughed to speak up

"You want to be the chief priest and I want to be the King, why don't we try fighting for our ambitions?" Maeil remarked and Argan paused for a while to think about the offer

They brooded and planned over their individual greed for days before they decided to act upon it, they began to bribe officials and gathered men till they were strong enough to invade the palace thanks to the minister of war showing his support which made the war less bloodier but it was still bloody because the King and his family was killed while Argan killed his own brother himself and got married to Maeil's junior sister

They noticed that the scroll was gone after the forceful taking over and Maeil who already knew the impact began to pressure Argan for the scroll. Argan had made many offerings and prayers so he could know the exact location but he didn't get any revelation so he knew the searching stone was the next thing to use which was why Great Maeil called for that recruitment and luckily for them Ahiga passed the test as a leader because he was the only one that saw the hidden message on the map which was said to only be seen by the one with the searching stone

*****

They set out for the search early in the morning with Ahiga leading the hunt, they passed through high mountains and rivers which made the journey challenging as they all had to fight for their lives. It got to a point where they were not sure if they were heading to the right direction as Ahiga just kept going without carrying them along

"Hey Mr. Leader, don't you think you are doing too much? at least let us know where we are going not just walking us through the bushes like small kids" one of them yelled at Ahiga who didn't wait for them while others decided to rest for a bit

"And do you think you resting every minute will get us to our destination in time? if you all won't go then I will, I don't have the time for all these" he yelled back and earned a punch from the man who spoke up which led to a fight

They fought and rolled themselves on the ground till they were separated and others criticized Ahiga for trying to act alone just because he has the searching stone at hand

"Don't you know the meaning of a team? you should understand now that this has turn to a team work because we all have to support each other and protect one another, we have to protect you with the stone and you have to fill us in with whatever was going on" one of the men explained

"They are right Ahiga, we have to work hand in hand, we can only achieve something great if we fight together" Aditsan also persuaded him, they were still trying to settle the fight when they were invaded by bears who came out of nowhere

They all fought with their lives while also protecting one another and by the time they were done fighting the bears, they became tired, rest for the night and bonded over the fire that was made, everyone said their stories about why they were joining the hunt and they all promised themselves to make it alive even if they do not receive the reward, they all realized the importance of living life at free will

The next morning, Ahiga woke up to see the paths clearly marked on the map which was not there the previous night and they all followed the marked path till they got to a pagoda in the deep forest, there they saw the scroll suspended on the small altar which was built in front of it

"Finally" they all chorused as they jubilated, he went closer and casted the spell Argan told them to cast whenever they see the scroll and immediately the scroll slowly descended on the altar, he picked it up although with fear but after seeing that nothing happened to him, they all headed home.

They didn't notice that they were not complete as they all chatted home in joy about their successful mission, Ahiga has concluded that his wish will be granting every member that went on the hunt their individual wish which made sense when he told them and they all saluted him for being smart.

The missing member which was planted by Argan had gone ahead to inform them that the scroll has been found by sending the pigeon Argan gave him secretly before they left, the message was attached to the toe and when the bird delivered it at night, it was the night of Argan's wife funeral. Argan who was ready for action anytime called the officials together and told them that it was time to launch their secret attack and led the rebel to the palace where he killed the King, Maeil thanks to Lebby who already served him a spiked drink

He moved to the queen's chamber to also kill her when he got there and found out that the queen had run away leaving a replacement but he was met with a servant lady who bowed at his feet pledging her life to him if he can spare her friend whom the queen used as replacement in return for telling him where the queen is

"I can tell you the location of the queen in exchange for my life" Morgan stated trying not to cower in fear

"You are bold for something that doesn't have an extra life" Argan remarked and Morgan bowed to his feet

"If the queen is left alive, she will come seek revenge with the help of her people, this humble servant of yours is just trying to help you prevent future trouble that may arise" she replied smoothly and Argan smiled

"I found myself another gem" he muttered before asking for the location and she stood up to lead the way

They got to the fermentation room and Morgan opened the door to show the queen who squatted at a corner waiting for the opportunity to escape

"Here she is My Lord" Morgan declared with a smirk as the queen watched her in horror, she was trembling and sweating hard as she saw him at Morgan's back

Argan had her dragged out and placed in front of the room as she begged for her life to be spared but he just pulled out his already soaked sword

"If I save you then you will surely gather your people for revenge since you came from an influential family" he replied moving closer

"I promise to live in silence, I will not take such step, I didn't even get married to the King at my own will so I can do nothing so please just spare my life" she begged rubbing her two hands together

"I will only spare your life based on one condition and the condition is this lady here, she has become my person and I will act based on her word" he replied turning to Morgan who stood there watching the drama unfold

"Should I spare her life?" he asked and Morgan folded her hand while staring into the queen's eyes

"I would have loved to be your savior but the fear of you whipping me hard over just a stain and also using my friend as your replacement is so much that I can't beg on your behalf unfortunately, I don't think I can live in the same space as you" she replied and Argan smirked

"It seems you were a thorn in the flesh that would be best pulled out" he remarked and immediately lifted his sword, within seconds, blood splattered everywhere and the lifeless queen was seen on the floor.

Although Morgan felt bad, she understands that the moment she changes her mind and plead for the queen's life, they will be both be killed on spot and she was not ready to die with her oppressor, she is waiting for Ahiga who promised her freedom and she has to do her best to stay alive till he's back from his mission.

The war was finally over with the two targeted people killed while Shael tried her best to hide till she could escape in the morning when everything was calm, it was like a new dawn indeed, the corpse littered everywhere were removed and everywhere were cleaned, Argan matched to the throne in the morning and stood in front of it with greed in his eyes

"Finally, I got to where I wanted" he cackled hard as he released a long and loud evil laughter which was cut through by his fellow officials who came to pay homage

"Long live the new King" they all chorused and bowed before him, he turned to look at them with a smile before resuming his laughter and Lebby came into the hall with her clothes changed, she was putting on an expensive silk robe, her hair packed well and her face radiant with makeup

"Come stand beside me where you belong, My Queen" he called out as he extended his hand to her and she gently walked in with smile all over her face, her dream came true at last.