Chapter 16: The Second Destined Child

“Impossible! Could he be…” Grunt exclaimed.

Lillin nodded. “Probably.”

The two rushed towards the young Gremlin and checked if he’s alright. The villagers, on the other hand, were all confused but started to return to the village.

“Leo!” a beautiful female Gremlin ran towards Leo. It was his mother.

“He seems to be completely exhausted but he should be fine,” assured Grunt.

The female Gremlin hugged her child and carried him slowly to their house. Lillin and Grunt followed. The rest of the villagers went to mourn for their loved ones who have fallen to the hands of the raiders.

“Good afternoon, Madam, can we stay here as well?” asked Grunt. “We would like to ask a few things from your son once he has recovered.”

“I am Loreen. What are you going to ask? Maybe I can answer them for him,” the mother replied.

Lillin and Grunt looked at each other, then Grunt spoke, “I’m sure you’ve seen what your child did to save your village. We believe that your son is one of the destined children who can control one of the four elements.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Loreen said. “The story of the destined children is just a legend. Nobody believes it.”

“Please believe us! One of our companions is a destined child. He can control the element of ice, an ability that has been long forgotten,” explained Lillin.

Loreen looked at her son. Finally she said, “Who are you? Why should I believe your stories?”

Grunt answered, “I am Grunt, one of the generals of the Cyclops. I am travelling with Lillin and a fellow named Chris who is one of the destined children. I was asked by our village chief to protect Chris and find the other destined children who are prophesied to save Uld…”

“Please I don’t want to hear any more!” the woman interrupted. “I just lost my husband and my son is trying his best to recover. I don’t want to hear any make-believe lore of the past.”

“I just lost my village, my friends, my comrades, and the village chief…” Grunt sadly recounted.

“What happened?” asked the female Gremlin.

Lillin responded, “Just like Steeltop, his village was also raided by the Discordians. However, unlike your village which was saved by your son, Ishrock was completely destroyed. The village chief used a spell that killed all the raiders, but also burned the village and its residents in the process.”

“I… I can’t believe it!” the mother gasped.

“It is true,” Grunt said. “The prophecy is happening and we need your son to help us protect everyone from the attack of the Discordians. Our village has already fallen and yours barely managed to carry on. We need the aid of the destined children to protect the other villages!”

“I don’t know what kind of destiny awaits my son, but I don’t want to lose him, not after losing my husband…” Loreen started to cry.

Lillin hugged Loreen. “We will do our best to protect him. Grunt and I are not one of the destined children but we have a firm resolve to protect what has been entrusted to us. Please believe in us, and more importantly, believe in your son. He is destined to protect Uld.”

Chapter 15: Electricity's Current

“Leo, run with the others and find a safe place,” said a grim-looking Gremlin. “Promise me that you’ll protect your mother.”

The teenage Gremlin shook his head. “No! I’ve been working so hard on my toys. I should be able to help! I’ll protect the village!”

“This is not a game, my son. You are still quite young to experience a grueling battle such as this,” the Gremlin’s father said. “My comrades will protect this village. You do your part to protect your mother and the other women and children. I have high hopes for you.”

Packs of wolves and giant bears are relentlessly raiding the village. Grunt and Lillin hurried towards Steeltop to protect the civilians. The battle near the front gate is so fierce, an untrained warrior would shiver just by looking at the battlefield.

“We have to hold our ground until all the villagers have safely evacuated! Fire at will!” shouted the Gremlin commander.

“Sir, there are still a lot of them! Our bullet supply won’t be enough!” said one Gremlin private.

The Gremlin commander gave a sad smile. “We won’t be able to kill all of them. All we can do is keep them from chasing our beloved families. Are you willing to do that, private?”

“Yes, sir!”

Lillin and Grunt approached the evacuating villagers at the rear gate, until they noticed that the Gremlin soldiers are slowly being overwhelmed. At a short distance came a shout.

“Father!!!!!”

It was Leo. His father was mercilessly killed by the wolves, and the other Gremlin soldiers suffered the same fate. It is only a matter of minutes before the raiders could catch up with the escaping villagers. In a desperate act, Leo ran towards the front gate.

“Wait, child, no!” Lillin shouted.

The boy did not hear Lillin, and instead continued running. When he was near the group of raiders, he threw several metal pieces which started to float.

“Are those… tiny widgets?” Lillin asked.

Almost immediately, the tiny pieces of metal started to conduct electricity.

“Father, I will avenge you!” was the tearful shout of the little Gremlin.

The electrical charges of the metal shards started to become larger and brighter. After a split second, the pieces gave a large discharge of electricity covering a huge area. All the wolves and bears were electrocuted and died. Leo fell down to the ground as the tiny pieces of metal started to fall one by one.