The Curious Tale of Matt Birsen And The Prophecy of Lemon Eyeo
Long long time ago, in a Kingdom that stretched out as far as the eye could and could not see, there lived a boy named Matt.
Matt Birsen was an ordinary boy from a very poor family, just like the rest of the families that lived in the Kingdom. They’ve struggled to have enough food on the table, and Matt was no stranger to the cabbage soup with nearly nothing but the cabbage in it.
But, just like the rest of the boys, Matt cared little about what was for dinner. Who would when there’s so many exciting things to do and places to be when you’re a boy? So, naturally, his entire days revolved around games and pranks he and his friends pulled on the old merchants and horse masters.
And so went this boy’s life, a poor one, but a happy one too. That was until one day he came home after a long day of careless fun and fooling around to tell his parents, who loved him dearly and whom he loved back just as much, about the things he did and people he saw.
But as soon as he opened the door to their old wooden hut where they all lived, he knew something’s happened. He heard his father sobbing and saw his mother lying on the bed, pale and weak, and the only dim candle that was lit made his parents’ shadows dance on the wooden walls in a mysterious and sad way.
— Mother? — said Matt.
She didn’t move or answer, not even opened her eyes. His father, holding her hand, turned a little and told Matt to come closer and sit with him. In the pale light of the only candle lit, Matt still could see that his father’s face was also pale and tired, and his voice was quiet and trembling.
— What’s wrong with mother? Is she dying?
— No, son. She won’t die, we won’t let her.
— But what’s going on? — Matt was almost crying.
— Son, things are not going well. Your mother and I, we both work very hard. We work for the Dutchess, and we work in the field trying to grow a little of our own crops, but last week our entire field was destroyed when the Royal Cavalry passed through our lands to the city, and the Dutchess hasn’t been paying her men for months, still demanding us to work from dawn till dusk. Your mother hasn’t eaten in days, and she’s very weak. She can’t work, but if we both don’t show up tomorrow, she will be taken and put to work in the sewers…
Matt knew what happened to people who were put to work in the sewers. Or, to be entirely honest, he didn’t. But he did know, they never came back.
— But what are we to do, Father? — asked Matt.
His father sighed, and Matt could see he was almost crying. Then, he slowly stood up, and barely dragging his feet on the floor, went across the hut to the chimney. He got down on his knees, pulled the rug Matt’s mother made five Christmasses ago, and pushed one of the wooden tiles. The tile popped out, and the father started digging the dirt on which their hut stood. He dug and dug and dug, and there was a pile of dirt the size of a dog on the floor of their hut, and then finally he stopped digging and held his up in above his head.
— Here it is, Matt! This is our chance.
Matt came closer and saw that in his father’s hand there was a small sackcloth pouch.
— What is that father?
— I’ve found this thing years ago. Your mother was still pregnant with you then, and I was working the Dutchess’ fields just north of the castle. It was a hot summer day, and there was a big old tree under which I sat to have my lunch. The water I had on me, got very hot, and so I decided to dig a small pit in the shadow of the tree so it would cool down faster.
But when I started digging, I almost immediately cut my arm on something sharp, and then I saw something shining in the dirt, something gold, son! I dug that thing out, put in my mouth, and hid behind my cheek until the end of the day, not saying a word to anyone. I ran home as fast as I could and hid it under the house. I’ve never told anyone about it, except your mother. We decided to save it until the time you were old enough to leave this damned place and get yourself the education and good life. And now, you’re old enough, and it’s yours by right, and only you can decide what to do with the money you get for it. But I’m begging you, son,…do not let your mother die in the sewers.
Matt was speechless.
“Woah”, — he thought, “Kinda a lot to take in, father, don’t you think? Mom hasn’t eaten for days? So, we’re that kind of family? What’s with all this sacrifice shit? I’m a grown man, I could’ve been helping out. And NOW you’re begging me to save mom instead of taking off to get “the proper education”? Who do you think I am, dad? You really thought I’d pack my shit and leave for good? Like “have fun dying, mom! Got places to be now”? Good to know, dad, good to know”.
Matt silently took the pouch out of his father’s hand and looked inside. There was some kind of a golden necklace on a chainlet. It was quite big and heavy. It looked like a triangle with an eye inside of it.
— What should I do with it, father?
— Take it to the merchant. The old one, the one that sells old books and potions. He’ll know the true price of this thing. But hurry.
And so Matt ran to the Brainolds’ Apothecary & Bookstore. He got there just as the old Mr. Brainolds was closing up the shop and sneaked in past the man who seemed not to be surprised or even curious about this shameless interruption. He closed the door and looked at Matt who was trying to catch his breath.
— So…, — finally said the old man. — Might be something important, I sense.
— This, — said Matt and put the neckless on the counter still trying to grasp some air.
The old man took the necklace, gave it a close look under the candle and said:
— I see. And you want to sell it?
— Yes. My mother is sick and, apparently, we have nothing to eat and our crops have been destroyed by the Royal Cavalry passing through to get to the Dutchess’s castle.
— Okay, I can give you 50 pounds for this.
Astonished by the mere fact that this man had 50 pounds and was ready to offer that kind of money for a simple golden necklace which wasn’t even that pretty (50 pounds was enough to buy all the Kingdom’s horses), Matt burst out:
— I’ll take it!
The man gave him a long stare.
— So you really have no idea what this thing you’re selling is?
Matt didn’t.
— Of course, I do! — he shouted resentfully.
— And you’re ready to give up the chance of becoming the Lord of the entire Kingdom for 50 pounds? Maaan, you’re a wimp.
— What do you mean “become the Lord of the entire Kingdom”? The only way you can become the new Lord is to fight the Lord’s knights. All of them! Ever seen the guys? Of course, you haven’t! They’d never come into your store, know why? They wouldn’t fit those tiny 5 by 10 feet doors of yours.
— Thought so! — the man laughed, — Shut down the curtains and follow me, young man.
Mr. Brainolds took the candlestick and disappeared somewhere between the endless rows of bookshelves in the far back of the store. Before Matt was down shutting all the curtains, the man had reappeared behind the counter holding an ancient book that was almost falling apart in his hands:
— Nevermind, found it!
Matt looked at him suspiciously. At this point, he thought maybe the old guy has lost his mind or is just plain wicked and wants to do some shady stuff to a youngster behind the closed doors.
— You’ll want to read this, boy.
Mr. Brainolds passed him the book. It had a worn-out leather cover and an engraving that looked exactly like the necklace his father gave him. Matt opened the book on the first page, looked at it, and closed the book.
There was an awkward silence. Mr. Brainolds kept staring at the boy waiting for him to say something but nothing came out of Matt’s mouth.
— I’ll take the money, please. — said Matt quietly hiding his eyes and pushed the book towards the old man.
Not a single muscle moved on the merchant’s face. He continued to stare at the boy, frozen like a sculpture. Then, after a long pause he smirked:
— You don’t know how to read, do you?
— I’m a peasant’s son, for Christ’s sake! Have you really been getting that much peasant clientele around here lately?
But before Matt could finish his defensive ranting, the old Brainolds had already taken off and started running around his store picking things up and gathering them into a grey cotton rucksack. He packed the rucksack full of beans and rice, and flour, and a cured pork loin, and sugar, and salt.
— Come, boy, hold this, — he passed the rucksack to Matt who at this point did not understand what was going on at all. — You’ll take this home to feed your family, and here’s some tonics that will help your mother feel better soon, oh, and some seeds for your father to plant. Maybe, tell him to pick another spot, some, where the horses can’t pass.
— But I don’t have any money to pay for all this stuff.
— Consider this an investment! A seed round, if you wish.
Matt hesitated.
— There’s one condition, though. — finally said the shopkeeper. — You can’t tell anyone you still have the necklace. And you’ll come work here at my store, and you’ll have to learn how to read.
— That’s three conditions, — said Matt dubiously, but Mr. Brainolds just waited for the answer staring at the boy. — Okay, I guess. Thanks.
— Don’t forget the necklace on your way out, you can start your new job tomorrow at 8.
Matt left the Apothecary which also sold books and food, and candles, and some clothes too, and should have been called a general store, but wasn’t for some curious reason, and rushed home crushed down by the weight of all the food and tonics, and seeds he carried in the rucksack.
When he came home, his mother was still in bed, too weak to get up, with Matt’s father by her side. That night, they celebrated and ate a glorious dinner they haven’t had in years, and his mother felt better by tomorrow morning.
Matt told his parents he’s found the job and would now be a better son to his parents, and would help his father to plant the seeds, and promised his mother to take good care of his family and make sure they always have dinner at their table and that someday they will be so rich and free, they won’t have to work another day.
The next day, Matt started working at Mr. Brainolds’ store. He helped out with the customers and cleaning by day, and at nights, after the store closed, he stayed for another hour and learned how to read. It took him a while but the boy was hardworking, and his teacher was patient, so eventually, the day came when the old man finally decided it was time to give Matt that old book with the engravement that looked like the necklace Matt’s father found under the ancient tree.
Matt opened the book and read the title out loud:
“The Ancient Prophecy of Demon Eyeo”
— Wait, what? — Brainolds snapped out the book out of Matt’s hands and gently scratched the page with his nail, — Ah..just some dirt there...here.
He passed the book back to the boy. The title now read:
“The Ancient Prophecy of Lemon Eyeo”
Before Matt has a chance to turn the page, Mr. Brainolds shut the book, looked Matt in the eye and said:
— Okay, boy. You can read this at home. Hush now, I’m tired and my job is done. See you on Monday, take a day off tomorrow, read the book. Just make sure no one sees it. There’s only few people in the world who know about its existence. We don’t want to make that count any higher.
Matt went home, hiding the book under his shirt. He was so curious about what was written in the book he got almost no sleep that night, and when the morning came, he left and told the parent he was going to work. But instead, he went to the woods, found a meadow, and read all day long.
It was getting dark by the time Matt finished reading the book Mr. Brainolds gave him. He shut the folio, got up and raced down to the apothecary that sold books and food, and other things that are usually not sold in apothecaries.
He knocked on the door and shouted, and when the old man had finally opened the door he sneaked into the store before the door was even half-opened.
— I see you’ve finally read the book!
— Is everything in there true?
— I’m afraid so, young man.
— And if I find that Eyeo thing, I could fight the King’s men and become the new Lord?
— Simply put, yes.
— And I could change the things work, and my friends and family, and thousands of peasants wouldn’t have to starve and suffer anymore?
— If you’d be wise, I suppose you could, yes.
— And those twelve knights that guard the King are actually immortal?
— Well, to the common folk they are indeed.
— That’s insane!
— Funny that’s the only thing you find unbelievable.
— Okay-okay, just want to make sure I got everything straight: the one who wants to win over the throne and become the new King, has to fight the twelve Knights of the King’s Order, and for each Knight can only be killed by one single person in the entire world, and all those people are scattered across the whole Kingdom and don’t even know about the power they hold.
— Correct.
— And the only way to defeat the Order is to find all of them is to find and gather the twelve people and lead them into the battle?
— Yep, and only the Lemon Eyeo, the ancient all-seeing eye, will show you the way to those people.
— But why me?
Mr. Brainolds looked at Matt with sympathy, smiled and said:
— You hold the key, it chose you.
Matt looked at the book he was still holding and his hands and asked:
— What if I don’t want to do this? What if I don’t want to fight the Order?
— Well then, — Brainolds sighed, — I guess then those seeds I gave you better sprout.
The old man took the book from the boy’s hands, and disappeared somewhere behind the endless rows of bookshelves.
Matt didn’t move, nor could he decide what to do. There was one question he never came to think about before:
— Why do you even care if I do it or not?
There was a silence, Matt could hear the old man freeze for a moment. When Mr. Brainolds finally came into the light, he was holding a portrait. It was the one of a young attractive woman, though the portrait itself looked quite aged.
— Who is this?
— My wife.
— I didn’t know you had a wife.
— No wonder, it was so long ago, I barely remember her face.
— What happened to her?
— The sewers happened, boy, the sewers happened.
They looked at each other and the only sound you could hear is the one of the burning candles and the night falling down on the Kingdom that reached as far as the eye could and could not see.
— Suppose I decide to do that. How do I find the chamber? And what is this “lemon” thing anyway?
— It’s a fruit, you dumb dumb, and there’s a map.
— A fruit? Like an apple? And where’s the map?
— First of all, it’s a silly thing to compare apples to lemons, and as for the map, I believe that you’ve been carrying it around in your secret pocket.
Matt touched the necklace he had sewn into the little pouch inside of his trousers.
— If you look closely, there are numbers on the back of the key, they are the coordinates. For the one who knows them, any map will do. Take one on your way out.
And so, Matt said his goodbyes to Mr. Brainolds, took one of the maps from the geography books section, and went off.
After the boy left the apothecary, he went home, had a lovely dinner with his parents, and went to bed as soon as they were done with dishes, so tomorrow he could get up as early as possible. He was hoping to go off to search for the artifact without his parents noticing him missing.
The next morning, he woke up before dawn, cut his little pocket, took the necklace and the map, and went out to wait for the first sun beams. As soon as the sun rose, he was able to see the small numbers on the back of the triangle.
He opened up the map, studied the coordinates closely and...couldn’t believe what he saw! This couldn’t be true! He double-checked the numbers, the coordinates, the map, but everything was right. The place he was looking for was under the duchess's castle. This could only mean one thing: he had to go to the sewers. The chamber was in the sewers.
Matt knew what it meant. Angry, he shoved the map, and the necklace into his pocket, and went back in their hut. His parents have just woken up. They could see Matt was upset. He sat down behind the table and leaned on it holding his head down.
He felt his father’s hand on his shoulder. But the father kept silent. Finally, he said:
— Don’t worry, son. We’ll figure something out. Those seeds you brought are already sprouting, we’ll get by somehow. Just make sure to grab something to eat today if you get a chance. We may have to skip dinner tonight.
And then he left.
The weight on Matt’s shoulders doubled, and the multiplied by 100 times. He knew he couldn’t stay aside. And he knew they wouldn't get by. Because ever since he started noticing, he saw families slowly lose their loved ones to poverty, famine and injustice.
He kissed his parents goodbye, and as soon as they left for the fields, Matt sneaked out and went straight to the castle.
The entrance to the sewers wasn’t hidden. It was guarded, but not because the guards wanted to keep someone from entering. Honestly, that was never a problem.
But Matt had a plan not only to enter the sewers, but to escape them also. So he decided to avoid the unnecessary attention and went straight to the bushes on the west side of the castle. There was a small window with the iron bars there that led to the sewers. An adult wouldn’t be able to slip through them, but Matt was a boy, and skinny one too, so it wasn’t a difficult task for him whatsoever.
Once he slipped down to the catacomb, he realized that he made a huge mistake not to bring a lantern. It was dark and smelled of piss and shit. On the other hand, without the lantern, Matt couldn’t see the slime he was walking ankle-deep in, which made it a tiny bit less gross.
Once he got used to the darkness, he started to make out the dim lights somewhere in the tunnels, and once he got used to the smell, he also started hearing things. He realized he wasn’t alone there. All around him, in the tunnels someone was doing something.
And after he got used to the sounds, Matt heard his own voice in his head. It was saying, “Great, mate. What now? Ever thought through how you’re going to find that chamber? You probably know these tunnels pretty well, and the directions were quite specific too, right? You’re gonna find it in no time.”
Matt got distracted from his self-blame session by the grunting he heard in the tunnel on right from him, and decided to go check it out. He turned right, and saw a man with a small lantern beside him. The man was grunting and was straining the brown slime through the sieve.
— Excuse me, sir — said Matt.
— What now? — the man said without looking at the boy.
— I was wondering, if by any chance you might have seen any signs around here that would look like a triangle with an eye in it?
— No, boy, I doubt it. Can’t you see that I’m busy?
— Sorry... — Matt somehow felt bad for the man. — What are you looking for? Maybe, I could help?
The man stopped there for a second, and said:
— My eyes, boy, I’m looking for my eyes.
He turned his head to Matt, and the boy saw the empty dry eye sockets the man had instead of the eye. He was startled, he fell into the slime, he now had no doubt was nothing but shit, and then slipping and screaming he ran away.
He ran fast, without looking where he ran, he made sudden turns, as if the man with no eyes was chasing him, he ran through the tunnels, and the deeper into the sewers he got, the scarier things he saw: deformed men and women, people without faces and faces without people, he kept running because he couldn’t stop, although he already knew: the more he struggled the worse things were getting.
At last, when he couldn’t breathe anymore and was completely exhausted, he stopped. He was lucky to find a dark silent tunnel with no ugly creatures creeping in it. It was almost serene. Matt counted to ten, decided to skip on the breathing exercises, and when he finally calmed down a bit, he felt something moving in his pocket. It was the necklace!
Matt took it out of the pocket, and saw that it was glowing. He put the necklace on the palm of his hand, turned around, and saw the necklace move on his hand. It was showing him the way!
Matt went where the triangle turned, he passed the tunnels, and he wasn’t afraid anymore. Somehow he realized, the only person who was there on their own will was him, and none of these struggling souls had the intention of hurting him. And like him, they wanted this nightmare to end.
Soon, Matt reached the dead end. There was a brick wall and nowhere to go, but the necklace was glowing brighter than before, and it was telling him to go straight ahead. He noticed a small engraving on of the bricks, the exact silhouette of the necklace. He put the necklace to the brick, and like a magnet, it stuck to the wall, which was now moving. It wasn’t a wall, of course, it was a door! To the chamber.
He went in. The first thing he noticed was that this was a shit-free room. The only things in the room were the altar, the dark red curtains, and the candles that lightened the room. No deformed people so far. Suddenly, the curtains opened.
— At last, — said the young woman that sat behind the curtains unenthusiastically.
— What do you mean? — not entirely surprised at this moment Matt asked.
— Well, I’ve been sitting here waiting for a good old revolution for ages!
— Sorry, who are you exactly?
— Well, obviously, I’m the person who’s going to tell you how the Lemon Eyeo works, teach you to use it and then hide before the curtains while you go disrupt the world!
— That simple? No like tests or something, what if I’m not fit?
— Well, you’re small, eager, seems like you could use a hand, and most importantly — you’re here. Seems to me you’re good to start the initiation any moment!
— What’s the initiation?
— Oh, you just need to sign a contract, just a formality, here, and here. Yep, right, that’s it. So, what do you need the people for?
— I want to fight the King's order, take the throne and end the injustice for my family and the rest of the kingdom.
— Good goal, boy! Okay, let’s see who the all-seeing eye finds for you.
— How exactly does it work?
— Oh, that’s the mystery part you know, no one knows. It’s like why you can’t use a phone on the plane, right? Who knows!
— What?
— Just sit back and relax, the Eyeo’s already working on the list.
Matt heard something chime.
— Ah! Here it is!
Matt now saw how the papers were sliding from the altar that also had the Lemon Eyeo sign on it.
— Yep, here’s your list. Sooo, the academy award nominees these year aaaareee.., — she paused, — ah, who am I trying for, you’re not going to get this reference anyways. So, here’s the list:
- Mrs. Ruby O’nails
- Mr. Jenkins
- Ms. Laravel Chomski
- Django Cybil
- Perl Clarion
- The Mighty Python (he’s Native American, doesn’t react well to pilgrims)
- Sisi Whiley
- Vue Jackman
- Ember Lisp
- Mr. Node Junior
- Aurelia Mortran
- Peter Hutchinson Pepperjack (everyone really calls him PHP for shorts).
Matt was stunned. He knew none of these people, he didn’t know where and how to find them, and how long would that even take him. Does he have to put his entire life into this now?
— Wait, and what next, I now have to go find all of them to fight the Order? - he asked.
The woman laughed, “No, no, of course not, that would make the story intimidatingly long and tiresome”, and there’s no need really. It’s not like these people have to follow you into the battle, you know”.
— What do you mean? Why did I even bother looking for them or coming here? I read I needed a team to fight the king and his men, and that those people are special, and the only ones in the world who can help me.
— Well, you don’t really need them, just their hands.
— And how is that gonna work?
— You are going to literally get their hands, with all their powers and special abilities, and go into the battle and the hands will fight for you, and help you win the battle.
— Do I need, like, bring anything with me? Weapons?
—Nah, don’t worry, they’ll take care of it.
— That’s it?
— Yep. Oh, wait, nooo. Completely forgot. You’ll have to take the amulet, bury it under the tree, and then pick the lemons that will grow on it. Don’t worry, that will be super-quick. Like 30 minutes. Then squeeze the lemon juice on your shoulders, and the hands will grow on you, you’ll be ready to go.
— So many extra steps, couldn’t you just give me lemons?
— Who do you think I am, life? — she chuckled.
— Urghh..but wait, will those hands stay on me forever? I’ll have to live with them?
— Ah, silly, of course not. They’ll fall off as soon as you don’t need them anymore.
— Well, okay I guess.
The woman saw Matt looked disappointed, so she asked him what it was.
— Well, — he said quietly and somewhat embarrassed. — I kinda hoped I would see the all-seeing eye.
— Don’t be stupid. There’s a reason it’s called “The All-seeing Eye” and not “The All-seen Eye”. No one saw, and no one ever will. Be grateful, you get to use the power it holds.
Matt threw one last disappointed look at the room as the woman was hidden again behind the curtains, and went back to the sewers. He found the tiny window he entered through with the help of the necklace, and got out of the catacombs.
The sun was setting for the day, and he realized he completely lost the track of time, and that he also was covered in layers of filth. He rushed to the lake, washed his clothes, took a fast swim, and went home, still stinking of course.
Matt was home by dinner, though, that night there was no dinner, and the family decided to go to bed early. The boy fell asleep pretty fast, and again, was up with the sunrise. He hugged his parents and ran off to find a tree to grow lemons on.
He did exactly what the woman told: buried the necklace, waited half an hour, picked the lemons, squeezed the juice, and the hands grew!
They were all different, some harsh, others tender, male and female, big and small. And he felt he was ready, ready to go and make the revolution, take down the King, fight the Order.
But...there was a minor problem he hadn't thought of before. The King’s Castle was thousands miles away from their lands, it would take weeks for Matt to get there, maybe months! The boy was devastated. He sat down with all his newly-grown hands and started crying. But suddenly, he felt the hands moving. He couldn’t resist all those 12 pairs, so he decided to just let them do their thing. And so they started running.
They ran so fast, those 12 pairs of hands, carrying the boy to the King’s Castle and doing all the hard work, and the boy was just enjoying the views, and at some point even fell asleep. He was dreaming of his home and parents, and everyone in his dream were lemons, he already missed his mama-lemon and papa-lemon, and his best friend — lemon Mr. Brainolds.
He woke up because the hands stopped running. Matt opened his eyes, and saw that has almost set and that he now was just a mile away from the King’s castle.
“That was unexpectedly fast”, — thought Matt and felt that if the hands could smile, they would now.
Matt decided to go the last mile on his own feet. He walked up to the castle and started yelling:
— King! Hey, King! Wake up, you evil bastard, I’m here to kill you.
The lights on the King’s balcony came on and Matt saw the tiny old man appear. It was the King.
He looked down on Matt, laughed with his squeaky old person’s voice and said:
— Good luck, loser. Boys, go get him!
And then Matt saw the King’s Order, they were coming out of the King’s room and jumping off the balcony. They were huge and scary, and all covered in metal and gold. All 12 ran towards him and the closer they were getting the scarrier they were.
But then Matt remembered that he wasn’t alone and he didn’t need to be afraid, and so he ran on his new hands right into the battle.
One pair of hands disarmed the first knight, they now held a spear, another pair took a shield away from the second knight and protected Matt, the third pair of arms was beating a knight to death, the forth took the spear and shoved it in one of the knight’s heart. There was blood and other bodily fluids everywhere, the battle went on for hours, and the hands were winning.
The knights were demoralized and nearly broken, only five of them were left now. But then suddenly, they surrounded Matt, and cut off one of the arms. Matt didn’t expect the pain, and hurt a lot. He looked at the arm that fell off, it wasn’t one of his original ones, and just lay there on the ground still clenching a fist.
But then, something even more unexpected happened: where that arm was, the new one grew, and Matt went off to the battle again.
He fought for two more hours, until the last knight of the King’s Order was finally defeated.
As soon as the battle was over, Matt heard a thumping noise. He turned to the castle and saw the old king on the ground. The hands retrieved. Matt knew that moment he has become the new King.
The Epilogue
And thus, Matt Birsen has become the new King. He got rid of eager and cruel lords, made sure every family had enough to eat, and, of course, closed down all the sewers.
He went all across the Kingdom travelling by hands, and squeezed the lemon juice on all those who were short handed.
He even met the blind man he saw in the sewers, and gave him a pair of hands instead of his missing eyes, the man liked that very much, and everyone lived happily ever after.
The Happy Ever After
Matt closed the book, kissed his son on the forehead and told Alexa to dim the lights. He was about to leave, when his son, also Matt, asked:
— Daddy, can you grow hands like grand grandpa did?
— Everyone who needs a hand can. You just have to know where to look.
— Do you think he could have defeated the king without those people’s hands?
— I don’t think so, kiddo, — said Matt to Matt, — you see, no one in the world is smart and powerful enough to do the most daring things on their own. You can always use a spare pair of hands. Just make sure they fit right.
Matt wished his son goodbye and closed the door.
The boy laying in his bed, watching the night sky and thought about the secret knowledge his family has been keeping for ages. Dozing off, his last thought before he fell asleep was that someday, the Lemon Eyeo will help him find the right hands and he once again, like his father, and many Matts before him, will change the world for better.