Gia was right. Sel could be annoyingly stubborn at times. Though she and Riz were still fighting, Thea could sense that they were both holding back. Calix was nowhere to be seen and so was General Kali.
"Sel, please, stop this," Thea trapped her friend with powerful wind gusts.
"Stop what?!" Sel struggled against the wind gusts. "Killing our enemies?! Have you been blinded by that fairy? You've just met him! You know me longer than him! Why are you taking his side?"
"Asuren is not our enemy," Thea calmly explained all over again.
"Are you sure about that?!" Sel angrily bellowed and shattered the wind gust binding her but she did not attack. She only kept on screaming. "He killed Greyleaf without any hesitation!!! Now he is trying to save that evil seal bearer!!! He doesn't want the seal to be destroyed! He wants their power!"
"If Asuren did not kill Greyleaf, one of us would have been forced to do it," Thea explained all over again. "Gia said it herself. At that moment, we cannot save Greyleaf. Henry had to examine a lot of cursed areas and patients to acquire enough knowledge about the flesh eater curse. Even after finding solutions, he told us that it cannot save patients that don't want to be saved. Greyleaf made his choice. We cannot save him even if we waited. Sel, please, let go of your rage before it consumes you. Give Asuren a chance. He is not an evil fairy."
"I can forgive Asuren but not that boar seal!" Sel was still furious but, fortunately, she refrained from attacking.
"The boar seal did a lot of bad things," Riz agreed. "But death is not the only way to punish him. Isn't it better if he pays for his crimes alive rather than dead?"
"I hate him!!!" Sel cried out loud but she finally dropped her weapon. "I want him dead!!!" she slumped on the ground and cried harder.
Thea and Riz did not say anything. They just knelt in front of their grieving friend and wrapped their arms tightly around her.
^###############^
Close encounter with death was nothing new to Asuren. It was always filled with pain and flashes of terrible memories. Most of them were blurred but, at that time, everything was vivid and not from him.When the flickering images had stopped, he was covered with darkness and the boar seal was sitting in front of him.
"Asuren! Forgive me!" the boar seal sobbed like a child.
"Why are you asking for my forgiveness?" Asuren was surprised and then seriously advised. "Say that to the families of the fairies that you turned into flesh eaters and died."
"How did you endure that kind of life and stay sane?"
"What are you saying?" Asuren was confused.
"It was not only you who had a glimpse on my memories. I've seen yours too. Those that are not sealed," the boar seal was gazing intently at him. "I understand that you don't want to talk about it. I also want to forget my miserable past," he wiped the tears in his eyes. "Even my responsibilities… but I think… after seeing some of your memories… I can finally give you my seal… Do you really want it destroyed? Why don't you collect all twelve seals and use their powers to kill the Evil Witch."
"I can't do that," Asuren furrowed his brows. "The Evil Witch can control me anytime and take the seals from me."
"We can make it dormant until you collect all the seals. Just like the dragon seal inside of you," the boar seal simply suggested.
Asuren, on the other hand, was dumbfounded. "What did you say?"
"You are also a seal bearer," the boar seal grinned. "You can't freely use its power since it is in a dormant state but it can protect you in times of grave danger. I can also do it. I will be one with the seal and reside within you. I will protect you and this seal until you are ready to use it."
"Reside within me?" Asuren was confused.
"I will offer my life to you. That is one of the choices given to me. When I accepted the seal, I was ready to offer my life to someone that can save the Fairy Realm," the boar seal beamed wider. "Camus is right. You can save all of us."
"No…" Asuren shook his head. "I don't need your offering. We will destroy the boar seal. I can't give the Evil Witch a chance to get her hands on the rest of the seals."
"She tried for thousands of years. The dragon seal is still within you. I can do the same. I promise."
"Are you sure about the dragon seal?"
"I can't see the memories where you acquired the seal. It is probably in one of those locked chambers at the depths of your mind. But I can assure you that the dragon seal is inside your body, protecting you."
"Can you unlock those memories?"
"The Evil Witch is the only who can do it. You can also try. But your body is still weak. If you try to unlock those memories, you might fall into a deeper slumber and your friends will worry even more. Try it when you are at your best condition."
"I will," Asuren sighed and then asked, "Who did you make a deal with regarding the seal?"
"I can't see his face. He was wearing a golden cape with a hood that covers most of his face. Plus, I was dying back then. All I can remember was his deep voice. He asked me if I want to help in saving the Fairy Realm. My heroic young self instantly agreed on it. I accepted the seal, took care of it, and waited for you to come of age. But then there were rumors about you and the Evil Witch. I tried ignoring them but villages were burning and fairies are dying. I eventually believed the rumors and lost all hope. I'm really sorry. I should have investigated."
"You don't have to apologize," Asuren let out another sigh. "I did a lot of bad things and almost end up like that Evil Witch."
"But you didn't," the boar seal gave him a light tap on the shoulder. "We should head back. Your condition will worsen if I stay here longer. Let's decide about the seal after you recover. You should also talk to your friends first."
Asuren finally understood why the Evil Witch wanted to kill him that badly. He had a seal inside of him. He only had to remember how he became a seal bearer.
"You need to prepare yourself," the boar seal said as he began to fade away. "This is just the beginning. The other seal bearers might be harder to deal with."
^############^