Chapter 71: Secrets
Was there a person who didn't have any secrets?
Some people kept secrets to protect their loved ones or themselves, while some kept them to harm others. Some kept secrets because of fear and shame brought to them by the truth, while some kept them just to experience the thrill of keeping one.
None could argue that it was human nature to have Secrets. And if revealed out of place and time, these secrets might have serious consequences.
*
Aldrich saw the grave look on the faces of the two Bosses. The redness of lust and heat overpowered their faces no more, and no more there were the expressions of looking down on someone. If they couldn't understand the boundless power flowing within the Masked Dreamer by now, they wouldn't be the Demigods who had become a part of a myth.
Boom!
The two beauties landed opposite each other with Aldrich and Boomie in the center. Aldrich felt Boomie turning around to face the Blue Bellerophon, and both of their backs touched each other. Aldrich narrowed his eyes as the Pegasus in the air vanished in the depths of the Dungeon. Whatever would happen now had nothing to do with the flying beast anymore.
"You are a strong man, masked one. But being strong isn't enough."
Aldrich heard the Red Bellerophon's words as he saw her coming towards him with heavy steps. The rock-bed and the lava fumes around her shook as an ethereal golden-red Divine aura came out of her. The marching Boss looked as being lit with a huge fire, and the red armor cracked under this fire's intensity. With the Bone Spear in her hand, it eyed Aldrich with unmatched arrogance as it had once eyed Mount Olympus.
MARCH OF ARROGANCE!
"I remember many like you. Most of them had choked themselves to death hearing the cracks of lightning."
Aldrich sensed a similar golden-blue Divine aura rising from the Blue Bellerophon. But the words that they had spoken had become a focal point of Aldrich's focus. He had found little details by looking at this Skill and there was one more Skill that didn't have any description for it. He could only try to guess the results by analyzing their words and the two Heroes had yet to halt their voice.
"Being too Strong is nothing but an act of HUBRIS."
BANG!
Aldrich heard the Crawlers saying the same words at the same time. And with a bang, their knees impacted on the ground, leaving web-like cracks under them. Aldrich's eyes became wide as he saw the kneeled mythological heroes and his heart thumped, guessing the possible outcome.
The two heroes bowed their heads and put their Spears on the ground. It seemed like they didn't dare to hold on to the weapons any longer. The aura emanating out of them kept growing until it reached the Sky. Aldrich didn't want to keep waiting for them to finish what they were doing. The thing that kept him rooted in his place was the hunch of something extremely bad happening to Boomie if he were to leave his place.
The Crawlers closed their eyes, and in a gesture of prayer, brought their heads to the ground. They outstretched their hands in Aldrich's and Boomie's direction. The pillars of golden-red and golden-blue aura flickered as their prayers echoed in the empty volcanic plain.
"Athena, bless us with thine wisdom…
Athena, bless us with thine protection…
Athena, bless us with thine sight…
We bow under Mt. Olympus's might."
Ringggg!!!
Hoooooottt!!!
The world ringed with the chimes of thousands of bells and the hooting sound of owls deafened the ears of the Dreamers. Aldrich looked up towards the Sky and Boomie's legs were already shaking. The entire Sky had vanished and a vast Shield with no ends had taken its place. The pillars of aura separated themselves from the kneeled beauties and gathered at a single point in the air.
Aldrich took in the incredible scene as the ethereal mass of the auras churned and took the shape of two golden-red and golden-blue Owls. The owls came swooping down to their respective masters and landed on their shoulders. Both the Bosses and the owls had their eyes closed, but it didn't remain so for long.
"Boomie! Close your eyes!"
Aldrich shouted instantly, but even he couldn't close his eyes. An illusory image of the same shield as that in the Sky had kept their eyes from being closed. Their legs refused to move and their heads refused to turn away. If Aldrich were to paint the unchanged scene of the beauty and the owl, money wouldn't be enough to buy it.
Hooott!
Another hooting sound shuddered the Bosses, and the Owls snapped their eyes open. Aldrich didn't see any pupils within them, but only a globe of golden light. The two Heroes followed the owls and opened their eyes too. The emerald of their eyes had also turned completely golden, and they looked straight into Aldrich's and Boomie's eyes.
Hooooottt!!!
Aldrich felt the image of an owl had taken over everything in his life. A golden-red owl flapped its wings and traced Aldrich's past. The owl flapped its wings and saw Aldrich getting the cursed mark, and with another flap, it saw him sitting in the lab making Rumok.
The owl kept going and saw Aldrich's struggle to tame Liath Macha. It swooped down as it saw Aldrich taking the Darkness Seed out of Cu Chulainn's forehead. But it didn't hover there for long and with another flap, it arrived in front of a Veil.
"This… "
The golden-red owl had never flapped its wings ever since.
Thump!!!
Aldrich's mind came out of the visions as his knees struck on the ground.
"Huff… Huff!"
Aldrich breathed heavily as he saw the beauty in front of him twitching maniacally and with foam coming out of her mouth. Aldrich snapped his head towards Boomie and found him staring blankly at the Sky. The Blue Bellerophon had a twisted smile on its face as the golden-blue owl turned into a portal and two heads came rolling out of it.
Athena had blessed the Hero with gifts to tame Boomie.
The Blue Bellerophon lifted the heads by their hair and the two bodiless heads opened their eyes and looked at Boomie. The female head had a gentle expression in her eyes as she said.
"Son… you've grown up."