User blog:Pollux83/Beyond Light and Darkness, Chapter 17

The last preparation chapter. Next week starts the adventure.

Chapter Overview

17 Rays of hope



 The creation of pure holy energy. I had reached a goal, but now the next challenge was ahead. My work developed into a never-ending story.



We already had the light magicians. Angels, valkyrie, heroes, elves and unicorns remained as possible sources. We could forget the fairies, all of them were already under the influence of the Demon Lord.



 Holy places were also very promising. I had a machine in my old laboratory that could collect the energy. Transporting it should not be a problem.



 One of my personal concerns was the visit of Zipangu. Since my childhood I had dreamed of what it looked like. A whole island kingdom in which monsters and people peacefully lived together. For quite some time I wondered how this could be possible. Every other monster-friendly state had become a demon realm sooner or later. My request, however, was rejected, for the time being.



 I would have preferred to have the energy of the main goddess. That would certainly be enough. "The main goddess would certainly be a good source for holy energy. Does one of you coincidentally know her address?", I said in jest. But none of my "superiors" found this funny.

So it was time to wait once again.





 We were planning our next steps, as the news came that a hero and a valkyrie was already on their way to Tegras. This was faster than I expected. They must have been in the vicinity and were sent to me now.



 A good start, but the rest on the list were bigger problems. Even within the Order, angels were a rare sight. Provided the angel was ready to cooperate at all. As far as I knew they were often seen only in Lescatie, then. How the situation was today I did not know. But I did not need to know. This was the task of the Order.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> With elves and unicorns, the situation was similarly complicated. Unicorns were very rare ,and enter an elf village and leave it alive was not an easy task. Elves had developed the unpleasant habit to shoot first and then ask questions.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> Finally the hero and his Valkyrie arrived. A cute couple and they were not very enthusiastic about my work. This was the first time I had seen a valkyrie. She had long blond hair and wore a full body armor. To these white wings and the proud appearance. Absolutely impressive. I preferred to not provoke her. Nevertheless, she kept looking at me with her angry eyes.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The hero wore white armor. Undoubtedly blessed and magically enhanced. A fascinating work. Such an armor provided sufficient protection to stay for days in the darkest demon realm. Unfortunately each one was an unique piece.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> We needed some time to persuade both to cooperate. They reluctantly let themselves extract some of their energy. The light of the hero was similar to that of the light magicians. I was a bit disappointed. I had expected more from a blessed hero of the Order.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The valkyrie, on the other hand, had a much larger light, which did not alter the fact that it was small. Was that the reason why the Order had not yet overrun the monsters with angels? An interesting question, which will probably never be answered.

The work was done. The two were allowed to leave again, while we were preparing the energy transfer.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The light of the hero was first. To our surprise, the light increased significantly more than expected. This was a completely unexpected result. The unification of the energies of the light magicians had barely increased the light.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The light of the Valkyrie was next. As with the hero, the whole thing was bigger than the sum of its parts. A really interesting result. As if you would combine the flames of two burning candles. The light only grew when the energies came from different sources. So the energy actually became purer each time and grew correspondingly. So we had only to find enough energy from different sources and we would reach the goal.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> Along with the light, the crystal also grew a little. In a direct comparison with the empty crystals, the difference was especially good to see. There was only one problem. The crystal grew irregularly. The bottom was now a bit thicker than the top.

After that day I did not know if I should be happy or not. In any case I waited with the celebration.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> We continued with the planning of our further actions. Since the Order was still searching for suitable targets for some time, we focused first on the surrounding locations. Before the winter break we could locate several interesting places. But the journey had to wait. Only those who were crazy or desperate started such an expedition in the winter.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> So we spent the winter with our families rather than in the laboratory. For me this meant spending a lot of time with the children. Building snowmen, going tobogganing and snowballing. Kai and his family also had to join in. Eleana and Norik wanted to play with "uncle" Kai.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> Lara also enjoyed the time with me. We finally had some time just for us. Lara could feel that I was feeling better, but the stress of the last few years had left its mark on me. And I'm not talking about my tense back. A little tip for all: Do not be massaged by a blacksmith. Not even if she is your wife. Well, my back was better after that, even if I could hardly move for a day.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The marks were deeper. Almost 5 years had already passed. 5 years in which I had seen my family only every few months. I was exhausted. Only the time with Lara and the children helped me endure it. And the same was true for Lara. None of us had imagined our life that way, but we kept going. Separated, but together.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> Even for the children the time was not easy, but "uncle" Kai was often there to play. And meanwhile our children had become good friends.

So I spent the winter in the snow with my family.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> When the spring came and the snow melted I had planned something very special: A family holiday. Only we 5, no Manono, no Order, no bureaucracy.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> I had planned a trip to a small village in the neighboring country known for its blooming fruit trees. Lara was immediately enthusiastic and the children of course also. We packed our things in the wagon and then Lara, Eleana, Norik, Levi and I drove off.

The big eyes of my children. They had never left our city before and everything on our way was interesting. If they were bored, then papa always had an interesting story to read aloud. The 3 were really droll.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> After several stops, it was finally time, we were there. The streets in front of the village were a single sea of blossoms. Everywhere the insects buzzed in the trees and hundreds of butterflies flew across the meadows. It was wonderful. In the village the festival was being prepared. Everywhere people were busy decorating the houses.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> We first went to our inn. Finally again soft beds. Eleana and Norik were also my opinion, albeit for other reasons. This excess energy they had definitely from their mother.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> After my non-existent nap we went to explore the village. On the market there were all sorts of interesting things to buy and children can be very persistent if they want something. Several hours and some souvenirs later we went to eat in one of the restaurants. The specialty of the house was wild boar with a sweet apple sauce and dumplings, garnished with a half pear. Absolutely delicious.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> On the third day the festival began. There was a parade and music was played everywhere. There was laughter, dancing and kissing. In short, it was a wonderful day. The children had the most fun. Eleana and Norik proudly wore their floral wreaths on their heads all the time.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> The rest of the week we visited the many orchards and fruit tree fields in the area. Everywhere it bloomed and there were various fruit products and honey to taste and buy. My children could not get enough of it. Here they were able let off steam and play with the other children. With the result that they slept peacefully in the evening. Only Levi disturbed the silence from time to time.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%"> As beautiful as it was, like any holiday, this one was over someday. We packed our things and went back home. Before, however, we had bought a lot. In the back of the wagon we had various fruit juices and a yearly stock of honey and jam, very much to the joy of the children.

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