by The Ranger
He tilted his head for a moment, observing the Sentinel carefully, yet he found nothing but sincerity in his eyes. The man looked at the flail tenderly for a moment before thrusting his hand forward towards Eren, who looked nothing less than ecstatic. He pulled the Viper into his hands gingerly and nodded to Andros before bringing his attention to his new weapon.
"Thank… you," he labored, eyeing the flail. "This… is the greatest… gift… I've ever… received."
Andros smiled as he looked him over.
"You're a simple creature, aren't you?" he murmured.
Eren's eyes darted back up at him, a glimmer of surprise on his face as he thought of what to say.
"I… won't answer… that," he coughed. "I feel… I shouldn't… lie… to you."
Khora brought her hand to her face while Richard and Edmund chuckled at his response. It wasn't until Eilon cleared his throat that they were quieted.
"While we're on the subject of Richard's previous efforts," the mage started. "I had a thought regarding the rest of your journey. I… I thought it might be prudent if I joined this mission of yours."
"Wait, what?" Roland cut in. "Eilon, you look like a dragon spit you out after a few hours of you rolling around its stomach; do you know what you're saying?"
"I have to agree with the archer," Andros chimed in. "Beyond your… poor state, you're very much needed here."
The wizard shook his head as they aired their dissent.
"You don't understand— what Richard did was nothing short of… mythical, I feel compelled to say. He bears no Blessing, yet was able to harness the Divine Light I carried and amplify its power by using his own. Regardless of my curiosity with this ability, there is no doubt in my mind of its effectiveness. If I go with them and allow him to take hold of my magic again, their victory against this Lucan would be guaranteed."
Andros nodded grimly as he glared at the mage.
"Fine," he muttered. "If you can produce, in this instant, any amount of Divine Light, I will not hold you back."
"Well, I need time to recuperate before I can channel arcane power again," he reached, seemingly offended by the Sentinel's proposal.
"While I'd appreciate your help, I'm afraid we don't have any time to spare," Richard joined. "And, even if time wasn't a problem, I'm not sure channeling your magic again would be wise. It nearly tore through mine when I held it; I'd be able to destroy his Seekers, but I'm not sure I could stand against Lucan himself after doing that again."
"At least spare an hour or two," Eilon requested. "I can brew you a few doses of Aquaskin to counteract his fire magic or perhaps prepare a cup or two of Stone Cloak."
"As helpful as that might be, I'm afraid Richard is right," Khora agreed. "Our enemy has taken advantage of the chaos he has sown to delay us. I do not want to imagine the state of our home once he arrives, or what will happen if he continues to go unchallenged."
As much as Eren thought a little bit of magic might give them another advantage over Lucan, he knew his friends were right. He had seen firsthand the terrors inflicted upon the Ashlands— and there had been an army standing against him then. He feared what would happen to Azra if whoever remained had to stand against him alone. Especially with Brandon, who had not even earned a captain's title, standing at the gates to lead the defense. It was a harrowing thought.
"Your words carry reason," the sorcerer sighed, dropping his head for a moment. "But, if all of you are to go on without me, then there is something I should tell you… something else you should know about this dark magic."
"And that is?" Richard prodded, a curious look in his eyes as he leaned forward.
He was met with a drawn-out silence as the wizard narrowed his eyes and took a moment to find his words.
"It… I had thought it too insignificant to mention when we spoke before. Yet, as the Soul Seekers' assault dragged on— I came to realize something regarding our devious sorcerer," he started. "What you must first understand is that of those who wield dark magic, there are two kinds: those capable of overwhelming the treacherous urges presented by their corrupted Blessing; and those whose resolve rots beneath its deceptive embrace."
"And which of those is Lucan?" Edmund interjected.
"The latter, I'm afraid. The work I saw… was not done by a mage in full command of their power. It was sloppy and crude and the abuse of an elegant art, but that is what leads me to believe that our foe has succumbed to the wicked call that emanates from within."
The mage's words returned Eren to the battle in Marinia and the ruthlessness Lucan had deployed against Danis' men, as well as his own Soul Seekers.
"He… destroyed his own… forces," he struggled to reveal. "Trying to kill… one man…"
"Yes, I doubt that he meant to do it, but such is the work of a wizard with no authority over himself," Eilon surmised.
"Are you suggesting that he's not in control of his actions? That he… that he is not responsible for this devastation?" Khora questioned, bearing a tinge of anger in her voice.
"I— there are… there are some who might suggest that such a notion would be correct. However, I will not do so," the sorcerer rejected. "He is, after all, the only person who could taint his Blessing. I mean to say that this distinction does not make him innocent— it makes him more dangerous. This inclination to lash out erratically and without provocation can make even the most unskilled wizard a threat, and, without meaning to commend him, this man is no novice of the mystic arts— he is powerful."
A chill crawled across Eren's skin as Eilon explained the arcane workings surrounding Lucan, but he was not the only one who seemed intimidated by his words. Both Khora and Edmund seemed to shrink at the revelation, but Richard displayed no such change. He looked grim, as he had when the mage first began speaking, and appeared to take his warning quite seriously.
"I hope that this… helps, in some way," Eilon muttered. "I know it's impossible to predict the unpredictable, but there is no insurmountable enemy. As much as mages may enjoy parading their power, not a single one of them is a god."
There was hope in the man's voice, and it was a quality Eren appreciated, at least now when their work was coming to a head.
"I… I should get back to the healing house, but I wish you all the best of luck. Please, return here victorious."
"Thank you, Eilon," Khora replied. "For all you've done for us and the knowledge you've shared."
The wizard bowed his head slightly, and Eren returned the gesture, along with his friends. The wizard looked up at them and allowed a final smile before he trudged away.
"I'll be going with him," Andros declared. "As much as I… cherish the thought of confronting this dastardly sorcerer myself, I must remain vigilant until this threat has passed. Know that I hold a great appreciation for what your people have done for mine, and should the time come that you need something of me— I will come at your call. And please, Richard, remember my words from before. I hope they grant you insight."
He stretched his hand towards him, and the latter grasped it for a moment— an obvious respect established between the two.
"Thanks… for the… flail," Eren muttered, forcing himself to smile through the pain.
"Hah," the Sentinel laughed. "Just be sure to defeat your enemies; that is all the gratitude I require."
With that, he turned away from them and marched back towards the center of the village to his grieving people.
"What will be done for those who were lost?" Khora inquired, her eyes finding Roland.
"Uh… I suppose they'll be burned," the archer admitted. "It's not exactly what our usual funeral rites entail, but it's what we can do. We hadn't actually had a death here until now, so there's no example to follow. Normally, our beloved dead are carried up the mountains of Summerstone — the higher they're taken, the more honor they held — then we would set fire to their remains. Unfortunately, no one here, except maybe Andros, knows the proper ritual, and even with that, we aren't in a position to just
stroll up the mountains."
"I'm sorry that our problems found their way here," Richard lamented. "When I first came to Solton, I had hoped your people would not be dragged into this."
"Eh, things happen," the man replied, scratching his temple. "I can't speak for everyone here, but I know that you seem like good enough people, people that didn't foresee any of this happening."
"That's sadly completely true," Edmund joined. "It's been more luck than anything that's gotten us here, and I'm pretty sure that all of us were almost killed at least three times each. So, we definitely did not anticipate any of this."
"Well, life's a mystery half of the time," the archer murmured. "And a downright bastard the other half. Anyway, to jump in on Eilon and Andros' farewell— I, too, wish you the best of luck. I would like to say I'd go with you, but, with all these monsters around, I'll be lingering as close to our Sentinel as he'll allow."
"A… logical choice," Eren joked, flinching with each word.
"The only one I can make, really," he continued. "But, genuinely, I hope to see all of you again. Perhaps when this is over, I'll even come to visit. Until then, it's been swell."
Roland clapped his hand on Edmund's shoulder and smiled as he made his way to the Andros, who had begun to direct the other villagers towards their assigned work.
"So… time to get… a move on?" Eren croaked.
"Think so," Richard sighed, waving towards the horses.
The trio broke off from Ranger and trotted over, looking at them expectantly.
"You can ride with me, Ed," Khora offered, climbing up on the nearest horse.
Eren checked the saddle that adorned his horse and sifted through its bags. He found a few bits of torn fabric, an empty jug, and a pair of ripped gloves; besides that, it was empty. He raised the Viper, aiming to store it in the saddlebag when he thought of the damage it might do to the leather. A second later, he remembered he did not care and tossed it in before clambering onto the horse.
"Are you ready, Eren?" Edmund called out.
He nodded as he steadied himself on the horse; it had been some time since he last rode one, and he was not eager for the ache he would soon feel in his thighs.
"Then let's head off," Richard declared, spurring his mount forward.
Eren grabbed the reins and glanced towards the skies; they had kept their gray hue, but the rain had finally stopped. It made him hope that the last leg of their journey would be a peaceful one, but it was a desire he immediately pushed aside. He assumed such luck was beyond them.
Chapter Twenty
Khora
It was an awkward ride back to Azra, as Khora had to constantly battle the instinct to grip her horse's reins. Minutes after leaving Solton, Richard took hold of their mounts and began directing them, as well as Ranger, towards their objective. He had claimed it was meant to keep the horses docile, but she did not think his words were sincere; she believed it was done in an effort to push the animals past their limits. Even Ranger, who had loyally kept pace with the larger creatures' quick gait, was beginning to show signs of exhaustion.
A finger poked into her arm.
"He looks annoyed, doesn't he?" Edmund murmured.
His voice drew Khora's gaze over her shoulder, onto the young boy sitting behind her, tightly holding onto her sides. Then, she glanced further behind them, towards Eren, who had been, mostly, silent while they rode. He appeared to be a bit more miserable than he had been when they left, but there was no apparent reason for it— at least not one she could see.
"He does seem low-spirited," she replied.
"I'd be too if I were him: alone with my thoughts on a long ride home. Well, that's if he's got any thoughts to be alone with right now."
"Funny, but you should leave him be," she chuckled. "He was injured quite badly before, and I'm sure he just wants all of this to be done. As a matter of fact, so do I— and you, too, I assume."
"Well, you're not wrong," he sighed. "But… at the same time… I'm not ready to go back. Even a week or a month from now — when this is all over — life won't be the same without Luce… or Aven. I kept his secret all this time, and I thought I'd be doing it for the rest of my life. I thought I'd be with all of my friends for the rest of our lives."
"I'm sorry, Ed," Khora whispered, meeting his eyes. "Aven was a good man, and from the little I knew Lucian, he was too. But — and please, I do not mean to sound callous — but we have to steel ourselves. Tragedies occur, and as much as I wish the world would stop its torment long enough for us to grieve— it won't. We must stand firm, and we will honor them when our work is done."
Her sentiment was met with quiet, and she turned back to assure herself that he had heard her. He was staring ahead blankly, a calm sadness in his eyes.
"I don't want us to die, Khora," he murmured, barely loud enough for her to hear.
"And we won't," she reassured him. "When we are together, we are strong. We will succeed, and the future will be bright."
Edmund had been peering into her eyes as she spoke, but he turned away for a moment and looked ahead.
"So, how far do you think we are from Azra, anyway?" he inquired, redirecting their conversation.
"Maybe a half-hour. Not much farther at all, I think."
"What makes you say that?"
"The area is beginning to seem familiar to me," she said, gesturing to the forest around them.
Edmund squinted his eyes as he glanced around their surroundings.
"Khora," he started, his voice hushed as he pronounced her name. "What do you mean this looks familiar? It's just trees and snow and a few rocks— the same things we've seen since we left the Ashlands."
"You merely need a keen eye, Ed," she laughed. "Eren had to have come through here; why don't you ask him if anything seems familiar? He has been trained and tested by Azra's own guard, after all."
He giggled as he turned his attention to their friend.
"So, Eren, how close do you think we are, just by looking at our surroundings?" he called out, his mouth twisting into a smile as he stared at his confused friend.
"Hell if… I know," Eren groaned. "Bunch of trees… and slush… and crap."
He held his throat as he sputtered his words, a visible discomfort in his eyes.
"Looks like it's just you, then," Edmund surmised, turning back to her. "Are you sure you're not imagining it?"
"She's not," Richard announced from the front. "A half-hour might be a generous assumption, but we're close— it should be in view soon. I can actually… almost sense Azra and our people, but I can also feel darkness gnawing on the land. It's even more potent here than it was in Marinia. It's… overwhelming."
"That sounds bleak," Edmund whistled. "Nothing new, really, but it still sounds bleak."
"What… sounds bleak?" Eren half-yelled from the rear.
"The road ahead," Khora answered, glancing back at him.
"Oh, well, I… could have told… you that," he coughed, suddenly regretting his involvement.
She laughed for a moment before turning her eyes back to the front and then to her horse when it snorted.
"You seem comfortable on horseback," Richard pointed out, looking back at her. "Did you have much experience riding back in the Norva?"
She smiled as the memory returned to her— the image of a hardy beast, strong and sturdy in a chestnut coat. Taller than she had been then, but ever gentle and calm.
"I would often ride my mother's horse, Mara, when I was young. There weren't many woodlands near my home — not as many as here — but there were grasslands and mountains and savannahs. All of these I would explore with Mara at my side. My mother, too, of course, but there were times when it was just the mare and I."
"That sounds nice," Edmund added. "I used to always get excited when I'd see the guards on their horses pass by our house. I'd try to go talk to them, and sometimes they'd even stop and talk back. It didn't occur to me for a long time that they were just doing their job."
A quiet cough brought Khora's attention to Eren as he opened his mouth.
"My battlemaster… used to say… Stern Lacerne is… hysterical," he volunteered. "So, if you… have the horses… why not use them?"
"That's actually something I thought of when we left Solton," she murmured. "Why did we walk east instead of riding? Surely our journey would have been simpler on horseback."
"Well, I suppose because King Lacerne took all of the Crown's horses with him when they went north," Richard replied, turning back at them.
"But, Lucian had a few horses, all his own, didn't he, Rich?" Edmund recounted, a knowing smile growing across his face.
Khora tilted her head to the side as their friend seemed to wince.
"Then why didn't we make use of them?" she inquired.
Richard closed his eyes, sighing as he began to smile.
"To put it respectfully, the Prince was not very fond of horses. He never learned to ride one, to begin with, because he had seen a young guard get thrown off a horse a few days before he was meant to start his lessons. That guard was, coincidentally, Eren, but that doesn't really matter to the story. Lucian decided he didn't need to ride horses to be a good king, and the Queen humored this… thought."
"I remember," Eren murmured. "That hurt."
"It looked like it did," Richard agreed. "And yet, here we are — all this time later — riding horses."
Khora felt content as she watched her friend, seeing his expression fall away from the dreariness she had been so accustomed to since leaving Tala's cave.
"Do you think we'll get to Azra before Lucan attacks?" Edmund asked.
"Definitely, even at our current pace," Richard replied, relief clear in his tone. "For a reason beyond me, Lucan has slowed his march. Whether he's reluctant to attack his own home or something else has gnawed at him… I don't know. But he's hesitating. I… I don't know if my senses are sharper now than before or if it's something else, but I know I'm right."