The loss was incredible that day for the Hameln Army. Not only had most of the mazoku been destroyed, but two of the general were dead, one deserted. Bass himself wasn't in any shape to do any major fighting. He floated above the battlefield, glaring balefully down at the few victorious humans who had survived the battle with Kestra-sama. He would have loved to personally slay every one of them, but he could not do that in his current state. Hell, he had barely escaped being burned to death by the Prince, and was little more than a ghost. Let the fools think they have won, for vengeance would be soon in coming.
Casting one last glare over his shoulder, Bass floated away. He was searching for a safe place to perform a final magic spell that would perhaps save him and the entire mazoku race from oblivion. Since he was in spirit form, Bass was able to travel swiftly until he came upon a secluded clearing in a dense forest. Nearby, he could hear the sound of children playing. Perfect.
His time was short, and he could feel his strength quickly ebbing away. With the last of his magic, he whispered the spell. It was a small spell, one that he had learned a long time ago but never thought he would use. It was similar to the spell that he had cast to seal Pandora away in a crystal. He too would be placed within a crystal where he would wait, gathering his strength until some unsuspecting human would release him from his crystalline sleep. Then, once he had obtained a host he would revenge himself upon the fools who thought he was dead, and release Kestra-sama from the box.
At last, the final words of the spell were uttered. With a blinding flash of light, his spirit gathered itself into a small black crystal. Then, the crystal fell harmlessly to the ground, waiting for someone to pick it up.
*****
"What was that light?" Phi Colo asked. She narrowed her eyes, trying to see into the dense forest.
"I don't know. Let's go see!" Tym Pani said with a grin. Before Phi could stop him, he raced to the edge of the forest. Once there, he stopped and turned to look at her. "C'mon! Are you chicken?"
Phi Colo sighed deeply, her decision torn between the idea that danger might be lurking in the forest, and her pride. "All right, let's go! No one calls me a chicken!" the seven year old shouted, and ran to catch up with her friend.
Running quickly, the two children raced through the forest until they came upon the clearing that they thought the flash of light had come from.
"Whatever it was, it's gone," Phi said, gazing around the clearing.
Tym, however, wanted to see for himself. With an impatient toss of his brown hair, he stalked into the clearing. Surely there was something here! Maybe some mazoku... or Hell King Bass himself! "I'm not afraid of him," Tym said sullenly, as if someone had challenged his honor. "I'd give him a left! And a right! And-"
At that point, he tripped over a loose stone, and landed gracelessly on the ground. Phi stared at him for a moment, before breaking into gales of laughter.
Tym ignored her, trying to salvage his seven year old pride. He got up and dusted himself off. Then, his eyes landed upon something glittering in the grass. Quickly, he reach forward and picked it up.
"What is it? What do you have?" Phi asked.
Tym, however, did not answer. He narrowed his eyes as he examined the rock that he held in his hand. It was some sort of black crystal, that glittered in the sunlight. Carved into the smooth surface of the crystal were several runes, that shone blood red on the crystal's black surface. There was obviously something special about the rock.
"Hey, look at this!" Tym said excitedly, turning to show Phi. Phi ran up and stared down at it.
"It's a rock," she said flatly "A black rock."
"Nah uh! It's a crystal. And I'm keeping it!" Tym said.
"Okay..." Phi said with a shrug, "But I think that one's much prettier," she added, pointing at an ordinary sandstone rock.
However, Tym knew that his rock was special. There seemed to be some warmth, some power about it, like it was alive. If only he knew the truth.