Curse of The Seventh Sword: The Gauntlet of Feona by Kelechi Agu Page B

silently near the door with his walking stick.  His face was serious but his eyes showed his concern.  He nodded his agreement as well.  However, Ovar was adamant to finish.
    “Don’t worry about… me.”  He said amidst heavy breathing.
    “I’ll be fine.”
    He motioned for Davydd to sit back down next to his bed.  When Davydd had done so, Ovar continued.
    “You are probably wondering how wiping out humanity would aid the dragol’s cause for revenge against the great gods.  And I tell you now; it wasn’t just because our deaths would aggrieve the gods.  The gods need us for their very survival.”
    “How is this so ?”   Davydd was visibly perplexed.
    “After the seven greats were born from Chaos, they fought an endless war amongst each other for control of all that is.  But each of the seven is evenly matched against any of the other.  No one can defeat or destroy the other without being killed themselves.  Also, their struggle was beginning to destroy all that is, itself.  They had to find a way to stop the fighting.  To do this, the goddess of life created the stars and the worlds.  She created everything we can see in the night sky and then she created life… us.  Everything in all that is, is sustained by the power of the gods, and nothing needs more sustenance than living beings… like you and me.”
    “So… we draw power from the gods… ” Davydd said as if in an epiphany.
    “Yes and in turn, it leaves them too weak to fight and squabble amongst each other, but powerful enough to reign supreme over us and everything else.”
    “Everything else… except the dragol.”
    “Exactly.  The dragol are the only other beings apart from the gods themselves that are capable of killing a god.  Being born from Chaos, they are remnants of a once powerful force and as such the seven great gods have no sovereignty over them.  But to kill a god is a monumental task even for a dragol of immense power.  To kill a human on the other hand is not so difficult.”  Ovar turned to Davydd.
    “It is in your eyes.  Now you see their plan.”
    “Yes… wipe out humanity, and power returns to the gods.  Power returns to the gods, and they will recover the urge to fight.  Watch them destroy each other and take control of all of that is for themselves.”
    “That was the plan.  However, plans seldom work out the way we intend them to.  Humanity proved to be a very worthy adversary for the dragol and the sev en great kingdoms, stopped warring amongst each other, uniting against a common enemy.  But we were not alone in our quest to defeat the dragol.  While we all worship all the gods, each kingdom as you know, has a patron god.  Ours is Feona, the goddess of death.  Each god lent its power to its kingdom in the form of powerful swords.  These swords contained a part of the very essence of their godly makers and with their power; we turned the tide on the dragol.  Of course, your father received a sword from Feona as well.  However, Feona is the goddess of death for a reason.  Her duty is to transport the souls of the dead to the afterlife and she rules in her dominion.  She also craves the strongest of souls, the purest of hearts.  Warriors and heroes alike sparkle to her eyes like diamonds among stones and my boy; your father was a cave filled with diamonds.  So while she gave him her sword, she did so with a condition.”
    “What condition?”
    “He had to defeat the dragol and permanently seal them in their realm in seven years.  He could only use the sword of Feona for seven years and any day after the seventh year, he could lose his life, if he kept the sword.”
    Davydd stood in stunned silence as he tried to digest all Ovar had been saying.  He looked around the room towards the others and then back at Ovar.
    “I was born half way through the seventh year… It is what you said.”
    “Yes you were… And the world was in turmoil.  The battles raged on endlessly, but with the