Chapter 18: Book
It was just another day where Azra was making a trip towards the nearby town and she was dressed in a cap and clothes that covered most of her body.
Even if there had been no word of there being any searches for her, there could always be private investigators or other people that worked for those in high places that could have been still looking for her.
Her hair may have grown longer but it was not long enough so that it could not be concealed by pushing it back into her cap.
Her physical state seemed to be slightly better after her recovery under the care of the doctor and the following time that she spent using the medications that had been taken by her while she was busy recovering further and training.
Azra had just left an old antique store after asking about the most recent available books but had been left disappointed.
She had visited several other places already many times over to locate the important book that she really needed.
A run down second hand shop came into view that was familiar to her and she was about to enter when someone younger than her hit her shoulder as they rushed out of the shop. "Sorry."
He was a timid youth that looked small, weak and slightly messy in appearance.
He was in a hurry and apologised quickly before running away with a backpack on his back.
Azra entered the store rubbing her arm, she came face to face with the shopkeeper at the counter then asked. "Is there anything like what I had been asking for last time?"
Her voice sounded quite helpless and annoyed like she was reaching the end of her hope and patience.
The locations that she had visited had each seen her come in and ask the same question each time like she was expecting them to get their hands on what she was looking for.
It was a slightly strange behaviour for someone to have when visiting the store but many had overlooked it almost like she was just trying to see if by chance they had gotten something similar.
If they were able to guess well enough then they could have realised by Azra was constantly visiting them that she was looking for something important or possibly valuable.
Smarter salesmen would try to see if that item was in fact a rare or valuable piece before trying to raise the price that it would be sold for.
Almost nobody would be able to make the conclusion about how she had really came to know about that item and what importance it held.
It may not have been that important in others hands but it was very useful to her and she would be willing to pay the remainder of her own funds for it.
The shopkeeper had a slightly awkward look on his face and coughed. "Can you explain what it looked like again?"
Azra sighed. "Black book with strange markings on it. May have aged a little or may not be in that good of a condition."
The shopkeeper frowned. "Oh.. that garbage was what you were looking for. Hey kid, are you looking to join some form of cult or something? Are you connected to that kid who just left too?"
Azra showed no emotion on her face but her eyes showed a little of her impatience. "You read it? No wait.. do not tell me that you have sold it already?"
The shopkeeper lazily shrugged. "Some weirdo came by to sell it off for cheap and yes I did. That book is full of nonsense so there is no use believing in such things."
Azra realised something important and asked. "But you still sold him it right? Who is he and do you happen to know anything about where he lives?"
The shopkeeper shook his head. "Hey, no matter what I may think about the products.. I just sell them on to their next owner. The kid is a regular here so I could help you but what is it worth to you?"
Azra impatiently put the money in the form of a note on the counter and slowly added to it until there was thirty currency added together. "Now?"
The storekeeper smiled and searched through his records then showed Azra which she had made a copy of.
Once she had left the store, her teeth grit together in annoyance as she thought to herself. 'I am too late.. can I really have any effect on the events that will happen in the future? No I cannot give up yet.'
Being aware of future events and details was one thing but being able to make use of them well enough was a completely different story.
Even if she knew enough about the book and diligently tried to find it, fate still seemed to guide it into the hands of those that were destined to get it.
If she just accepted that result then Azra thought that she would have to choose an alternative method available to her or to just give up completely.
The note in her hands and the brief encounter gave her something to follow so she had journeyed around the town looking for his address. 'One thing that is puzzling is how something like this is so easily being placed in the hands of ordinary people.
It was not fully explained due to it not being completely covered by the person that the revelation was based around so not every detail about the book was found out before it had been destroyed by him.'
There was a mystery that was left unsolved or it was left to others to investigate or clean up while the person that the revelation was about had brushed his hands of it all before moving onto another task.
Whether there was a plot hidden more deeply behind the book being left where it was had been left unsolved or was not recorded within her revelation.
If there had been someone who had left it there to create a chaotic situation but it could have just been something that had passed through the hands of many others before it arrived at the second hand store.
It landed in the hands of a youth that would soon pass it onto another or would consider to use it for their own purposes.
Depending on how long it took for them to understand it and to go forward with trying out what was written within the book was the time that was left available to Azra to locate it.
The school badge on the clothing of the youth was faintly recognisable and it was the location that was mentioned to be a part of the main event of that part of the revelation so it was all the more reason for her to know that she had found the right book.
In preparation for picking up the book, Azra had been trying to work on her writing and painting a little more while practicing different hand movements or hand signs.
They were not perfect but it was enough to prepare her for doing better than an ordinary teenage boy that would use it in the future.
All of her preparations she had made since she had escaped were for the time that the boom came into her hands but she needed to work quickly to get her hands on it before the youth could make use of it themselves.
After tracking down the location written on her note, Azra had stood further away from the small apartment building that the youth had lived in and kept watch over who was entering and exiting. 'Now I just have to wait.'
Further inside where there was a messy and poorly lit room, there was a youth that sat reading the book and his eyes contained a vengeful light within them.
Unlike the other details that were not explained within the revelation, there were some mentions about the youth that used the book to do all kinds of evil deeds before it was finally destroyed.
He was a typical bullied teenager within his school and his parents were rarely home so he had wished for revenge for the suffering he had to endure.
Azra may have felt that they could be similar in the way they had suffered at the hands of others but that did not mean that he could be allowed to go ahead with what he would do in the future.
She was not interfering to save anyone due to her wanting to save him from a dark path or to save the innocents who got caught up in the revenge of him but instead it was all about how letting him continue would not benefit her.
He had what she needed and she could not allow for others to make use of it when they would be quickly discovered for their use of the book.
He was destined to become a minor role in the revelation and the hero of the revelation would move on from him very quickly after overcoming him.
The potential of the book was far greater than the youth had known and that was why it was destroyed by the hero so it was better to be in the hands of Azra who knew of how important it was.
The less people that knew about it, the less chances of its source being discovered and it possibly coming back to harm her later.