by TurtleMe
“That’s what Alduin believed, yes,” she said. “As for your family, it’s easy to surmise that they wanted your mother and sister as hostages.”
Rubbing my temples, I thought about what she said. “What do you mean that Alduin ‘believed’ it? What really happened?”
“We’re venturing into the area where I can’t give you an answer. All I can tell you is that if we want to keep any chance of taking back our country, we have to keep Tessia safe and far away from Agrona and the Alacryans.”
“So…” I trailed off, my throat suddenly tight. “So you think we have a chance at taking back Dicathen?”
She nodded. “It’s slim, but it does exist.”
After another pause, I spoke again. “If you knew about the attack on the castle, did you also know that Buhnd was going to die?”
The fire in front of us popped, spraying a small shower of glowing red ashes over the ground.
“Yes,” she finally said. “But had I tried to divert the entire attack, there was a much higher chance that Tessia would’ve been captured.”
I opened my mouth to say something, but I couldn’t quite get the right words.
“I know what you’re thinking, but I couldn’t risk Dicathen losing everything—losing the entire war—on the slim chance that I could save the people at the castle.”
“But, if you knew everything beforehand, you could’ve made countermeasures. You could’ve told Virion, or told me!” I argued.
“Time doesn’t work that way. Changing things like that alters the course of the future… and creates a future that I wouldn’t be able to see,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
There was nothing to be done about it now. I knew I was being selfish… If it wasn’t for Elder Rinia, Tessia and my family would’ve been in Agrona’s hands by now. She had looked at the options in front of her and made the decision she thought was best. I understood that well enough.
“How were you able to save Tessia and my family though?” I asked.
“I was able to intercept them while they were on their way back to Elenoir,” she said nonchalantly.
Outwardly, I nodded at her answer, but my mind spun trying to imagine a scenario where Rinia succeeded in doing this. How did she manage to pry Tessia and my family away from Alduin and Merial? Was it just Alduin and Merial there? Rinia had hinted that, although Alduin believed that they were safe, they really weren’t. Most likely, after Alduin, Merial, Tessia, and my family stepped through the portal they would’ve been met with a trap.
Did Elder Rinia know everything that was going to happen? Were her diviner abilities able to influence time that well?
Time!
Without any warning, I directed a surge of killing intent at Elder Rinia, and just as she reacted with surprise, I ignited Realmheart and immediately used Static Void.
The world around me turned monochrome, except for the motes of purple trembling in place. But my eyes weren’t focused on the particles of aether around me; they were focused on Elder Rinia.
She regarded me watchfully, taking in my movements, my own expression as my eyes narrowed in realization. She glanced around her before her eyes fell back on me.
“Clever,” she said breathily, making the word a sigh.
“So you can utilize aether,” I muttered, seeing the specks of purple hovering around her, as if protecting her. “You’re not an asura, I know that for sure. Are you… one of the ancient mages?”
Despite the apparent strain that Elder Rinia endured as she tried to keep her aether arts active, she let out a chuckle. “No, I can tell you with absolute confidence that I am not an ‘ancient mage.’”
“Then who—what are you? Even I can’t control aether without relying on the dragon’s will inside me.” As I had this thought, I realized that controlling Static Void was somehow easier there. Under normal circumstances, I never could have held it long enough to have a lengthy discussion. Was it because I was surrounded by aether?
“While I’m not entirely sure, I believe that my diviner abilities stem partly from aether. As for how I learned—I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that.”
“I don’t think that’s a good enough answer anymore,” I challenged, staring intently at the elf. She had always been shrouded in mystery, but this… this was different.
“I can tell you—I can tell you everything, Arthur. But Tessia and your family might die because of it,” she answered, her face turning ghastly. “Please, have a little patience and I can assure you that you’ll find out for yourself.”
She wasn’t threatening me with my loved ones—no, she truly believed that revealing everything could lead to their deaths. Gnashing my teeth in frustration, I released Static Void, allowing Elder Rinia to release the aether arts she had used to keep herself from being frozen in time.
She let out a ragged breath. “Thank you… for believing in me.”
“You saved Tessia and my family,” I said, glancing over to where my mother and Ellie were sleeping. “The least I can do is trust you—at least until you give me a reason not to.”
We continued talking, albeit a bit more calmly this time. I asked all of my questions. Some she answered and some she didn’t, but I didn’t press her for details.
What I did find out was that the underground town contained several teleportation gates that could only be controlled by utilizing aether. That’s how Elder Rinia was able to get there so quickly and without having to physically make a cross-continental journey with Tessia, my mother, and my sister in tow.
“You learned aether arts, and I was more or less given the ability to borrow it at times. Tell me, is it something that I can learn as well?” I asked, trying to hold onto the sensation I experienced when I had gathered aether to Dawn’s Ballad in order to injure the Scythe.
“Yes, and no. Your ability to experience a taste of aether arts through your dragon will with a simple thought, as well as the fact that you can see aether, gives you a great advantage. However, my advantage, compared to yours, is much greater. I discovered a location to train in aether arts—with aether much more abundant than here, and I had eighty years to learn,” she explained.
I thought about spending eighty years, perhaps more, trying to grasp aether arts. Eighty years was a long time, and while my white core extended my lifetime, I couldn’t hope for the same thing for my mother or my sister. “I see.”
“It’s too early to lose hope. We’ll continue to gather forces slowly, and with you and Lady Sylvie here, we’ll have three people able to access the teleportation—” Elder Rinia stopped abruptly at the erratic sound of footsteps drawing quickly closer.
The jolt of fear and focus that I felt caused Sylvie to stir awake.
‘What’s going on?’ she asked, lifting her head off of my lap.
Virion is coming and… something’s wrong, I replied, standing up.
I sent out a pulse of wind mana, trying to sense whether anyone was chasing after Virion, but it was just him. It only took a few seconds for him to appear from the small hallway leading to the room we were in. The old commander was disheveled, tired, and had a look of panic.
“Tessia—ran away,” he huffed, catching his breath.
“What?” I blurted. “How? Where did she go?”
Elder Rinia cursed under her breath and grabbed my arm. “Tessia can’t leave this place, Arthur. There’s something wrong with her core, and if she leaves the protection this place provides, the Alacryans can track her.”
My eyes widened in horror. I turned to Virion. “What direction did she go?”
As soon as Virion lifted his finger, I shot off in that direction, immediately activating Static Void and igniting Realmheart once more. The color drained from the world as I bolted out the window. I felt the ache of activating the aether art again so soon deep within my mana core. I knew I couldn’t push myself much further without rest, or backlash could become a serious danger.
My mana usage was limited while in Static Void becau
se I couldn’t manipulate ambient mana, but seeing as there wasn’t much ambient mana in this underground town anyway, I figured Tessia couldn’t have gotten too far.
With the spell slowly draining my core, I endured until I eventually found traces of mana that had been used.
I was right. Tess had used magic to forcefully run away from Virion, who was still injured and unable to utilize most of his mana.
Following the trail into one of the tunnels leading away from the cavern, I found Tess. She was frozen in place, her eyes determined, her hair billowing… and teardrops suspended in the air behind her.
I rushed past her a few feet to give her time to stop before withdrawing Static Void and Realmheart. The motes of purple and green faded as my vision returned to normal.
Tessia resumed running until she spotted me, then skidded to a stop and froze again, eyes and mouth both open wide.
“How did you…” she started, but she didn’t finish the thought. “I have to go, Art. I have to save my parents.”
I hadn't thought about what to say to reason with Tess once I caught up. I didn’t know what her argument for running away would be, but I hadn’t expected this. “Tess… your parents betrayed us.”
“Don’t say that—Don’t you dare say that!” she snapped, eyes glaring. “You don’t know anything!”
“What I know is that your parents colluded with Agrona, let a Scythe into the castle, and got almost everyone killed,” I said calmly.
“It’s not that simple,” she argued, hurriedly wiping away a tear. “They had no choice…”
“Tess, your father and mother all but sacrificed Virion—your own grandpa—for the hope that Agrona would leave Elenoir alone. Now please, come back with us. Let’s talk about our next steps and—”
“Stop. I know that you haven’t always agreed with my parents, but don’t make them out to be so selfish like that. They had no choice!”
“You keep saying that, Tess, but they had plenty of choices,” I said softly. “They could’ve ignored Agrona’s offer and trusted in Virion to win this war.”
“Then I would be dead, Art!” she screamed. “Is that what you wanted?”
Caught off guard, I looked at her in confusion. “Dead? What are you talking about?”
Tess marched forward until she was just inches away from me. “I would be dead. My parents had no choice but to accept the deal with Agrona because of the beast will that you gave me, Arthur.”
My thoughts veered back to the elderwood guardian I had defeated. “No, that’s impossible. You only had problems assimilating with it. Once you managed to control it—”
“The beast will you gave me was from a corrupted beast,” Tessia interrupted, shedding tears. “A beast corrupted by Agrona. With that thing inside me, I was basically a living bomb that Agrona could detonate on a whim.”
I didn’t want to believe it. Surely it was a lie, fabricated to turn Alduin and Merial. Agrona couldn’t be trusted. I tried to talk, to argue this point, but Tessia kept going.
“So don’t you dare say that my parents betrayed us,” Tessia seethed. “They did it to save me, and even if no one else here will give them a chance, I will.”
‘Art! What happened, are you okay? I’m coming to you now.’
No, it’s okay. Stay there while I try to convince Tess, I replied.
“Tess… I had no idea that this happened because of the beast will I gave you,” I said. “If I had known…”
Setting her jaw, Tessia looked past me, down the tunnel. “I know it’s not your fault, but I have to do something, Art.”
“I understand, Tess, but once you step out from this shelter, the Alacryans will be able to trace you. You’ll die.”
Tess gripped my shirt fiercely, searching my eyes, imploring me to understand. “They’re my parents, Art. They did everything they could to save me.”
A tumult of emotions stirred inside me as I looked down at Tess: frustration, sadness, fear… and guilt. It was easy to feel responsible for what had happened. I had known that something was wrong with the elderwood guardian, but, in my excitement, I fed it to one of the people I cared most about in an attempt to keep her safe. If only I had been more cautious…
I gently pried Tess’s hands free. “Is there nothing I can do to convince you to stay?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Then I’m coming with you.”
246
Two Loves
Tess’s eyes lit up. “Really? You’re coming with me?”
“But… I think you should reconcile with Virion first,” I said, and her face fell. “Whatever you argued about with him, remember that he didn’t just lose you back at the castle; he lost his son.”
“I—I know. What they did was wrong, but they only did it—”
“To save you. Yeah, I know,” I finished. “Which is why, if we’re going to save them and bring them back here, you’re going to need to be the bridge that’ll mend things between your grandfather and parents. You won’t be able to do that if you just leave like this.”
Tess opened her mouth as if to argue but simply let out a sigh. “You know, most girls don’t like guys who are always right.”
A smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “Do you want most girls to like me?”
Narrowing her eyes, Tess punched me in the arm before turning back towards our camp. “Come on. Let’s go back.”
“I’m sorry—I really am—but we can’t risk it,” Elder Rinia said resolutely. “Your mana core has been corrupted by the beast will inside you. If you leave—”
“But the potion cured me! That’s why my parents did all of that—so they could give it to me!” Tess argued.
“Do not forget that it was Agrona who gave you the potion, Tessia. You may be fine now, but we don’t know if that was a permanent solution or if it’ll only give you a period of respite. It’s too soon to tell, and if something does happen to you on that journey and you’re taken by the Alacryans—”
“Then I’d be one more lost soul in a sea of the dead! What is the point of staying safe when the fate of our entire continent seems to rest on a knife’s edge?” Tess demanded.
“Tessia!” Virion snapped. “Don’t talk like that!”
“It’s true though,” she continued. “I’m not anywhere near as strong as the Lances, nor am I influential enough to rally people together like either of you. But should I not be willing to risk my life to fight the Alacryans?”
I took a step forward but Sylvie put her hand in front of me.
‘Don’t, Arthur. It’s not our place to interfere. Not now.’ There was a solemn severity to Sylvie’s mood, and I thought that, perhaps, she was indeed the mature one between us.
No one else interrupted. Bairon was leaning against the far wall of the room by the door with his arms crossed. My sister had left the room some time ago with Boo while Mother quietly listened.
“So are you refusing me the chance to go find my own mother and father?” Tess asked quietly, her eyes brimming with tears.
Virion’s expression softened as he gently took hold of his granddaughter’s hand. “We’ll bring them back. Just give me and Bairon some time to recover.”
After a long silence, Tess finally nodded in acceptance. “I’m sorry, Grandpa.”
Virion pulled his granddaughter into his arms. “It’s okay, little one. It’s okay.”
My mother walked over to us, gently patting Sylvie on her shoulder. My bond and my mother exchanged a warm smile before my mother’s gaze shifted to me. “Your sister is outside. You should go talk to her.”
After taking a quick glance at Tess, I turned back to my mother. Her eyes were red and glistening. “Mom? Is something wrong?”
She smiled at me and shook her head. “It’s nothing. I’m just glad you’re staying,” she said quietly, just barely loud enough for me to hear.
My mother let go of my wrist and waved me away with a sad smile. I hesitated, but Sylvie gave me a mental nudge.
&
nbsp; ‘Go. I’ll watch over your mother,’ Sylvie assured me.
I passed by Bairon, who only nodded as I walked by, then headed down the stairs to the ground floor.
I berated myself as I walked out of the building. It made sense in my head to go with Tess since my mother and sister were safe here, but I didn’t think about how they’d feel about me leaving.
Spotting my sister and her giant bond by the stream, I walked over. Boo was curled up into a furry ball, sleeping, while Ellie was throwing rocks into the stream.
“Mind if I join you?” I asked.
“Why? Aren’t you going to leave soon, anyway?” she asked bitterly.
I picked up a flat rock. “We decided not to go until Bairon and Virion are both fully healed.”
Ellie chucked another rock, making it splash into the calm water. “I’m sorry, Arthur. I’m sure you’d rather be out there being a hero than staying in this dusty old tomb with your stupid little sister.”
“You know it’s not like that,” I said calmly, sidearm tossing the rock down the stream. We watched as the smooth stone skipped four, seven, ten times before it finally sank. “Bringing back Tess’s parents is something that has to be done.”
“Why?” my sister retorted. “Because your girlfriend wants you to?”
“Ellie,” I replied.
“Don’t ‘Ellie’ me!” my sister snapped, throwing the rock in her hand before turning to me. “I overheard Commander Virion talking to Tessia earlier. I know that the four of you almost died fighting that one Scythe! And now you’re telling me that you’re going to go back there to bring back the elves who sold us all out?”
“It’s not that simple, you know that.”
“It sounds pretty simple to me,” she said sharply, looking down to search for another rock. “Our family—what’s left of it—barely got back together, but you’re already eager to leave us.”
