Tale of Eldramir

The more he looked at the thing that was supposed to be his mother, the more he realized that there were secrets regarding the Ancients and the Broods that he was unaware of. Secrets that obviously had a connection to the Cult of Light. Yet he forced himself to ignore those thoughts. Getting distracted right now was the last thing he could afford to do.

Fully stepping into the room he carefully handed Wendy over to Riley. His mother’s eyes watched him like a Hunter stalking its prey. He could tell that any sudden movements would result in him being attacked.

The fact that his mother’s eyes didn’t go back to him after passing Wendy over gave him a good feeling though. It meant that Evelyn’s mind was still able to recognize certain things. Her daughter being one of them.

“Stay here, and don’t make any sudden moves. So long as you’re holding my sister, I don’t think that you’ll be attacked.” He received a nod in reply, and the flame being held in Riley’s hand floated to settle above her head.

During this exchange, Ezekiel didn’t once look away from the figure that was now staring at Wendy. But he knew that her focus would be on him quite soon.

“... Mom...” Stepping forward, he interposed himself between his mother and the girls behind him. “Do you recognize me? Can you understand what I’m saying?”

Now that he was the center of attention, he felt a chilling feeling settle on his shoulders.

‘I think we need to leave. Let her settle down on her own.’ Shine sounded worried. Their voice was barely a whisper, and Ezekiel nearly backed down, but he knew that leaving his mom to settle on her own might mean something worse would happen.

‘Reinforce a [Barrier Shroud]. Get ready to defend.’ Ezekiel felt bad about ignoring Shine’s opinion, but he also knew that he needed to do this.

Shine seemed to understand and accept this, since they merely sighed before doing as they were told. Then, Ezekiel moved forward once more.

Just as he was within arm’s reach, the thing that was his mother lunged at him. He flinched in shock, but the difference in their power was too much. Other than letting out a small grunt from the impact, nothing bad happened. His barrier was too strong for the exhausted figure to do anything to him.

She hissed and scratched. Bit and clawed. But nothing she did seemed to effect Ezekiel.

The shadows rose up to help, all while avoiding Riley and Wendy, but they still did nothing. Twisting whips, sharpened thorns, and countless tendrils attempted to bring whatever harm they could unto Ezekiel, but while his mana was draining at an accelerated pace, she was losing mana even faster.

After a minute of this, Evelyn and Reya’s mutated fusion instinctively realized that they were outmatched. Which is When Ezekiel struck.

Wrapping his hands around his mother’s altered form, Ezekiel held tight as she struggled to escape. He finally allowed his [Nothingness] to flow into the area. It didn’t extend past a few feet. Ensuring that Riley was undefeated, but there was an immediate change in the environment.

The building that was previously enshrouded in total darkness regained its color as the shadows retracted. His magic couldn't Void his mother’s transformation, but it could undo the effects of her strange spell. So, now there was just a struggling shadowed figure held within his grasp.

Eventually, Evelyn's struggles ceased, her energy fully depleted. All the while, Ezekiel made sure that his senses were utterly focused on her physical and spiritual state.

‘I don’t think she’s going to try and blow us up, like that Lightning Hunter did earlier.’ Shine observed as Ezekiel tweaked his mana just enough to get a better sense of her soul.

He had to agree with his Spirit’s assessment. ‘I think that’s because she instinctively wants to live. Beings only go for suicide runs when they think they’ll be able to achieve something from it.’

‘Well, hopefully she calms down soon. Because our mana’s running out fast!’

This was a concern that he was keeping an eye on, but for the most part he wasn’t allowing it to distract him. He could vaguely sense that he only needed to hold on for a few more seconds.

Keeping calm, he nearly let go when he felt the body he was holding go limp. But he didn’t, and just a few moments later, the struggle began again.

This sudden burst of energy nearly threw Ezekiel off, but since he had expected it, he was able to hold on. His [Nothingness] also prevented her from escaping into a shadow and fleeing.

A part of him wondered why she hadn’t fled before, but he realized that a part of her must’ve been waiting for him and Wendy. She just couldn’t understand what was happening due to her current state messing with her mind, and likely her senses as well.

Finally, she went limp for real, and the figure he was holding split into two. One was his mother, and the other was a small black cat that looked like a panther cub.

Both were utterly drained of mana, and Ezekiel could tell that some of the soul damage from before had been repaired. But there seemed to be something lacking. He couldn’t tell what was missing, but there was a change in both their souls that he knew wasn’t going to return to how it was before.

Carefully placing her and Reya on the bed once more, Ezekiel made sure they were both comfortable before turning around.

His eyes first went to Riley, who was still holding a sleeping Wendy in her arms. Both were safe, and nothing seemed to have happened to them since he had begun.

“Ezekiel.”

Turning his head, ever so slightly, he gave the stern looking Mythic Hunter a glance, but he didn’t say a word otherwise. He was honestly surprised that it had taken the man this long to get here.

“I decided to wait and see how you were going to solve this,” Ezekiel sighed, figuring that that was the case, “But even so, I need to know what happened, and what that was.”

Wolken gestured to Evelyn’s sleeping form when he said this.

‘I told you we should’ve just let this run its course. Now we need to deal with an angry Tier five Hunter. One we already owe debts to.’ Shine wasn’t actually angry, and Ezekiel could tell that they were quite happy that no further damage had happened to his mother.

That didn’t mean that he was going to enjoy this talk with Wolken. Especially since he could now hear several people, Grand Scholars, if his senses were correct, now rushing back into the building.

The last thing he did before leaving with Wolken was put Wendy in a cot next to his mother and asked Riley to stay. Just in case.

----------

Several things occurred over the next few days. First, Wolken explained that, on top of his curiosity, he didn’t intervene because he was still working with the Church to settle things with the deceased and injured Hunters that had gone into battle.

Second, word about support from the other islands was finalized, and a surprising missive was brought to them from Morathi. One that eluded some incredibly mixed news. It wasn’t something he had to worry about right at this moment, however, so he focused on more immediate matters.

Third, it was decided that, even if she was given a clean bill of health, Evelyn wouldn’t be allowed to leave a much more secure room that was arranged by the Church to keep her contained.

Visitors would be allowed to go, of course, but it wasn’t going to be very often. Ezekiel tried to argue against this, since he knew that leaving his mother here after what had just occurred wouldn’t be a good thing for her, or for Wendy.

He had little choice but to accept it, however, since not even Wolken was willing to support him on this. The man had seen the changes that had happened and was able to recognize the same things that Ezekiel had. Which had led to an awkward situation where he was interrogated for information that the Church and Wolken desperately needed.

The silence when Ezekiel revealed his guess regarding the similar origins of both the Ancients, the Broods, and the Cult of Light’s Radiant Lord as deafening. The outrage afterwards was the same.

It was ultimately decided that the information would be sealed away, and not even Wolken was against that decision. The possibility of it being misinterpreted as proof that the Cult of Light was supported by an Actual Ancient was far too likely. Which would lead to them getting more supporters.

The idea that the Ancients and the Brood were one and the same was ignored. But so was the likelihood of them sharing similar origins. Their opposed forces were just too much for the Church to ignore. Regardless of the arguments that Ezekiel had to support this theory.

‘I truly despise those damned truth readers.’ Ezekiel was now walking down toward the sealed area where his mother was now being kept.

Several guards employed by the Church, Hunter and Mage alike, watched him with wary eyes. They were aware of Ezekiel’s relation to their sickly ward, and knew full well that, if Ezekiel wanted to, he could take her away from this place at any time.

No one could stop him. Not if he actually bothered to go all out.

‘The ability to tell lies from truth has gotten us out of trouble more times than its gotten us into trouble. So, maybe this won’t be that bad?’ Shine’s words were ignored, something that they weren’t upset about, since they didn’t really believe it themself. ‘At least the preparations have been finished, and the boat will be heading out tomorrow. That’s a good thing, isn’t it?’

‘Hn...’ Ezekiel just mentally grunted, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

While he was glad to finally be heading out, he also knew that he would be leaving quite a bit behind. Wendy had yet to break through to Tier three, after all. Even though Riley had told him that she had been training non-stop during the past few days that Ezekiel had been stuck arguing with the Church.

‘At least she’s been able to keep your mom calm. That’s a plus.’ Shine tried to take a different route with Ezekiel’s mood. Something he realized, but appreciated, since he could feel the sincere desire to help Ezekiel feel better.

‘... True enough. I just wish that I could’ve been there more than I have been.’ Ezekiel had only been able to check in on his family a few times, and both times had been incredibly late at night. So, both his sister and mother had been asleep, and he was unwilling to wake them.

Coming to a stop in front of a large stone door covered in glowing Runes, Ezekiel held up a small stone tablet, also covered in Runes. Sliding it into a slot in the door, the Runes flickered for a moment before the locks on the door turned.

It took several seconds for the reinforced stonework to retract from the wall, and a series of vault doors were visible through the now open gate.

‘I still can’t believe that they decided to keep my mother in a damned vault room.’ Ezekiel hadn’t been happy when he heard about where his mother had been placed. But there was nothing he could do about it. Given how hard the Church was pushing for it, he knew that it wasn't a fight that he could win.

Crossing the threshold, Ezekiel waited for the gate to close behind him. Idly reaching out with his senses, he could feel the comfortable warmth emanating from Riley, who was watching over both Evelyn and Wendy.

The former of whom seemed to be holding Wendy in her arms, while Reya was curled up behind her neck as a pillow. Both Spirit and Hunter had originally been separated, but it was decided that they would be allowed to be reunited, so long as both of them wore collars that prevented the active use of Mana. This prevented them from merging together once more.

They wouldn't be able to don their Spirit Armor, but neither would they be able to turn into that strange creature that they had accidentally become.

‘At least nothing is happening. That’s a good thing.’ Seeing that everything was okay, Shine inadvertently tempted fate, as a pulse of mana was released from Wendy’s form, just a moment after Ezekiel had started to head down the corridor to where his mother was being kept.

Stonework cracked as he launched himself forward. Panic was written on his face as the door frame to the vault room his family resided in crunched under his grip as he used it to stop his momentum.

He looked into the room, expecting something to have happened. A panic attack, or an outburst from somebody. Perhaps another event like what had happened several days ago.

Yet, instead, he saw that they were all quite calm, as well as awake. Something he hadn’t seen in a while. In fact, he thought that they looked rather happy. Even Riley, who was standing off to the side in a corner of the room.

“Ezekiel! I did it! I did it! I broke through! Now I get to come with you, right?” Wendy’s excitement at meeting Ezekiel’s expectations made a pit form in his stomach.

While he was happy that he didn’t have to leave his sister behind again, he was also upset that he now had to bring her into a war zone.

“Ezekiel!?” Evelyn looked at her son in what he assumed was confusion.

He couldn’t blame her. He knew that his aura and overall demeanor had changed somewhat. The fact that he was disheveled from several days of arguing with the Grand Scholars and Exalt Wolken also would’ve contributed to her confusion.

Running his hand through his hair, Ezekiel stopped himself from crying at the sight of his mother being awake once more. He also chose to ignore his sister for now. Knowing that he would have to deal with that later as well.

“Hi, mom.” He could see the tears in her eyes. Both pride and worry clashed as she seemed conflicted as to how she should be reacting. “It’s good to see you awake...”

Behind her, Riley moved to step into the hall. Something that Ezekiel was thankful for. This was a moment for him and his sister and mother.

“... You’ve grown...” Ezekiel could tell that she wasn’t talking about his body. “You’re stronger than I am. Much stronger...”

He could hear the forced pride in her voice, while at the same time he could see the pain in her eyes at the fact that he had grown up so fast. She had never wanted him to live a life like the one he had. His mother had always wanted to be there for him, for as long as possible, and the fact that he was a pinnacle Legendary Hunter at less than twenty-five years old was something he could only imagine she was horrified of.

“Yeah... It was hard, but I don’t think I would’ve changed a thing...” That was a lie. He knew he would’ve changed a lot of things, but Obscure Mage's had a harder time telling the truth from lies, so he was confident he made it sound real. “Except for the bits that kept me away from you and my sisters.”

By this point, Wendy knew better than to interrupt what was going on, but her head did swivel back and forth between himself and their mother.

“Come, sit. Tell me all about what happened while you’ve been gone.” Evelyn gestured toward the other side of the bed, away from Wendy and Kare. Reya raised an eyebrow when Ezekiel got close but didn’t do anything else.

Stepping forward, Ezekiel sat down on one of the guest chairs that had been left in the room. ‘I guess that your sister’s presence has helped to calm her down more than we expected.’

Ezekiel found himself wholeheartedly agreeing with the Void Spirit, even as he began recounting the tale of himself traveling to the northmost point on the world. Entering the Ancient Legacy, leaving it, and then making their way to Sanafalls from where they had first ended up.

The journey had been a long and harrowing one. Something he’d gained much from, but also lost much during. At a time and place where he wasn’t even present.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be here to have helped you.” Ezekiel’s head hung low as he finished wrapping up what he had known about the attack. “If I had just stayed here then it’s highly unlikely that this would’ve happened.”

He finally expressed his guilt at having failed to stop the Kindled family. Failed to have saved his father and prevented Ellen from being taken. It was a failure that had been weighing on him from the moment he had first learned of it.

His mother was apparently having none of it, and the hard ‘thwap’ to the back of his head from his mother’s slap was enough to jostle him, ever so slightly. Wendy gasped, while Ezekiel kept his head down.

“It was not your fault! So, stop acting like it was! Her words were harsh, and Ezekiel felt like he was being scolded like a child. Something that hadn’t happened in years.

“The Kindled family prepared for months for their attack, sending in Hounds and other agents to weaken up the city to do a quick offense to get in and get out.” Evelyn leaned in to give her son a hug. “The decision you made, to go with Wolken, was the right one. It allowed you to make so much necessary progress. You can’t forget what your true goal is.”

They stayed like that for a few seconds, and Ezekiel thought about it for a second, and still couldn't believe his mother’s words. He pulled away from her, and a frown on her face told him that he hadn’t hidden his doubts.

“You are not an Ancient, Ezekiel, and even they weren’t perfect. They were great, mighty, and powerful, but not perfect. The world is too big of a place for you to be everywhere. To stop every peril that comes your, or others, way.” Letting her hands drop, Evelyn sighed. “It was not your fault that the Kindled family and the Cult took the actions that they did. You have done everything you could to get strong enough to stop them, and I have no doubt that you will continue to do so.”

Ezekiel had no doubt about that either, and neither did Shine, who he could feel was nodding along in the back of his head.

“So, with that in mind. Focus on getting stronger, and make sure that there is nothing that can stand in your way. Don’t just stop at the Mythic Tier. Reach the level of the Ancients, and then surpass that as well. Just like I know you can.” Evelyn smiled, and this time he smiled with her. “Don’t you worry about your father and sister. Those bastards will pay for what they’ve done. Of that, I have no doubt. We’ll just have to squeeze a few resources here and there, and we’ll get them back. You have my promise. Once I’m back on my feet, the Kindled family will pay for what they’ve done.”

At this point, Ezekiel could tell that his mother was putting up a strong front. There was no way that she could’ve been speaking about her family like this without being in incredible emotional pain.

Seeing Wendy holding onto their mother’s arm also showed him that Wendy was aware of this as well. The siblings locked eyes for a moment, both filled with concern. At that moment, Ezekiel could tell that Wendy had been doing everything she could to keep Evelyn calm. Including not telling her about everything that had happened. Possibly not even how long she had been asleep for.

Now that he thought about it, the fact that Wendy had explained to her what had happened to their father and Ellen had likely only occurred because there was no way to avoid the topic without panicking their mother even further.

“What?”

Ezekiel could hear the confusion in his mother’s voice.

He remained silent as he looked away from his mother. Who, he assumed, likely thought he was doing the best he could to restrain himself from the guilt once more. But as he felt Wendy do the same, he could sense that his mother’s worry was growing.

“What happened? What haven’t you told me? Is this to do with wherever you’re planning to take Wendy?”

Sighing, Ezekiel did something that he knew was going to come back to bite him later.

Reaching out with one arm, Wendy and Kare flew out of the room with a surprised yelp, where Riley moved to check on them before swiveling her head around to look at him.

“Ezekiel! Don’t you dare--”

SLAM!

The vault door was pulled shut, and Ezekiel used his magic to lock it tightly. The only source of light inside was a now flickering sconce on the wall.

Turning back to his mom and Reya, he could see the former tightly gripping her blanket and looking at him with fear, while Reya’s hackles had risen, and she was growling. Both their collars were flashing as the enchantments prevented them from coming together as one.

‘It looks like not even her Spirit has told her the full story just yet.’

Ezekiel could tell that Shine was right in their assumption.

‘All Spirits seek to protect their partners. Can you honestly tell me that you wouldn’t at least think about keeping something from me if you knew, with everything you were, that telling me would make me suffer?’ Shine’s silence was all the answer Ezekiel needed to know what the Spirit would do. ‘That’s what I thought.’

Looking at his mother with caution, and seeing the shadows starting to move, Ezekiel carefully and slowly donned his Spirit Armor. “I’m only doing this because I know that what I’m about to tell you is going to upset you greatly.”

“... What’s going on?”

Ezekiel hated how scared his mother sounded. But he told her all the same.

The room was bathed in darkness as the walls cracked, and the light shattered.

----------

Battered, bruised, covered in scrapes once more, Ezekiel exited the vault to the angry and worried stares of his lover and sister. Both had panicked when the vault door had closed, but it seemed to him that Riley managed to keep things under control.

The fact that there weren’t any additional Hunters or Scholars flooding the area supported this.

He was greatly surprised when his sister rushed up to him first, rather than past him to check on their mother. But he felt a warmth in his chest at the obvious concern, and apparent trust, that she had for him.

“I’m alright, and so is mom.” He answered her unasked question. “She’s sleeping again. No strain, just stress. It might be good for you to stay with her for a while.”

“Are you sure?” He could tell that she wasn’t worried about their mother, but him, and the fact that he had gotten into a fight partially due to her words.

“It’s fine. I’m not even really injured. Just stressed.” He put on a smile, but he could tell that she wasn’t falling for it. “We set out tomorrow. It'd be best if you got as much time with her as possible.”

This time, Wendy just nodded and made her way into the vault. She climbed onto the bed. It was somewhat cramped, but Ezekiel could see that she needed this.

The fact that his mother wrapped his sister into a hug as she slept was heartwarming. It tore him up inside that he’d be leaving in less than a day.

“Do we really have to leave that soon?” Riley’s voice pulled Ezekiel’s attention away. She looked worried, and upset, for Ezekiel’s well-being. “I don’t think that your final goodbyes should be right after a fight.”

Ezekiel just shrugged. “I don’t plan on leaving before talking to her again. And we didn’t just fight. We did talk, for a little bit. Things just didn’t get resolved.”

‘That’s something of an understatement, isn’t it?’ Shine’s snark was ignored as Ezekiel continued.

“Unfortunately, part of my talks regarding the logistics of transporting the different supporters we’ll have to the Morathi Alliance. Given the Rot’s sudden presence in the Archipelago, they can’t give up much. We’ll still get what was promised to us from Sanafalls, and the surrounding cities on the primary, and satellite, islands.”

Riley sighed. He could tell that his words weren’t comforting her in the slightest.

“I hope you know what you’re doing.”

He could feel the exasperation in her tone. It was like a breeze that ruffled his hair.

“I do too. But at least I got some good news today.” Ezekiel thought back to the talks he had with the Grand Scholars and Wolken. “It seems like we’ll have some support once we reach Morathi. Apparently, they expect our presence to turn the tides against the Kindled family’s expansion.”

Hearing the good news, Riley finally cracked a smile. One that Ezekiel mirrored, even as Shine brought him back down to reality.

‘So long as you can actually get there.’ The Void Spirit’s voice didn’t wipe the smile from his face, but it did remind him that he needed to get back to planning a few things.

It wasn’t like he’d be able to get past the Willowbrush Empire’s blockade around the western regions of the Continent without any issues, after all.

Especially since their new treaty with the Kindled family included support from one of their Exalts.