“What was that?” Kidd asked, as Ewan put the two down on the dock, frowning at the distant figure of the shackled child tottering away between the tensed men.
“Sir, you should stay as far away as possible if you happen to meet any child like that,” the stubbled man said, picking up the clipboard again, patting off the dirt. “Unless you want to experience a painful death.”
“That small and weak kid can kill us?” Kidd asked.
“He can't, but the pathogens he carries can easily put us all down,” the man said. “And our citadel’s not the only one, some people spotted these children on other islands too. Ashevagord has already issued a warning, the news should spread soon enough.”
“Pathogen?” Ewan walked over and asked. “Do we know what kind?”
“Don’t know, Sir, but it must be deadly. The rumor has it that it can even kill high level Ashevas,” the man said.
“Have you seen anyone die?” Ewan asked.
“No, but others have, and I heard its gruesome. You bleed from your eyes, ears, nose, then you puke out all your organs.” The man gesticulated. “I heard someone also retched out live worms, still squirming in the bloody vomit.” The man shivered and rubbed his forearms, gulping.
“Boss?” Kidd passed on his voice to Ewan with Ryvia. “Should we keep away?”
“It’s most likely exaggerated gossip, but let’s be careful. Don’t take any risk, keep your distance at all costs if you spot a kid like that,” Ewan whispered back, dispersing his voice to Nana, Lance, and to Stefan on the deck too. “And keep an eye out on any related information, even the hearsay.”
Another alarm blared off in the distance as they talked, and its smothered crests rang near their station too. Eighty-four! A man’s cracking yell came from the communicator, and the red from the flashing siren bloodied the frothy waters.
“To all personnel of D-3 and D-4, to all personnel of D-3 and D-4.” An announcement reverberated across the port soon after the alarm. “For security reasons, the passage to the citadel has been closed temporarily. Please maintain order, please do not leave your posts, and stand by until further notice.”
“What does this mean? We can't go in?” Kidd frowned and asked the stubbled man.
“I apologize, Sir,” the man said. “As you heard, the passage is closed, we can't go in either.”
“It’s fine, we’ll wait,” Ewan said, pulling Kidd back. “Rigen should still be accessible, right?”
“It is,” the man said, fiddling with the board that marked the Rigen level. “How much do you want, Sir?”
“A tankful,” Ewan said. The windfall on Bexthon Haven that piled them a mound of Anima Crystals, and his habitual creation of the same with his
…..
‘Once upon a time, a mountain opened his eyes at the bottom of the ocean.’ The faded writings and pictorial depictions on the stele at every turn of the winding stairs fabled an olden tale. ‘Absolute blackness and utter silence were his childhood, and the fleeting lives of the fish were his only friends.’
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The citadel prohibited flying under normal circumstances, so the four strolled down the port’s exit once the passages opened, leisurely enjoying the story that deepened with each flight of stairs. ‘With the ages gone by, the mountain yearned for the light at the surface of the ocean, the light he always gazed at. He longed for it, and thus, he reached for it, growing towards his goal with years.’
The thriving bottom of the crater inched towards Ewan and the others as they headed down, strong salty gusts welcoming them at each step. ‘When the mountain reached the surface and peeked out, what stood before him was the vast sky. The crashing waves caressing his stony skin, the grazing winds whispering their gossips, and the clouds drifting by were signs of freedom, and the years he spent in the black drove him towards the new desire. And so, he rose again.’
“This should be the story of Fallsard, right?” Lance asked, walking down.
“Yeah, probably,” Kidd said, glancing back at the top of the stairs, where they came from.
‘The crawling rise of the mountain blurred his ambitions and dreams—the indelible chasm that seemed unfazed no matter how much he grew nigh buried his grail. He experienced the stages of life and the inevitability of death of the travelers along the way, and he gained the wisdom of stability. Yet, his undying obsession with the freedom still fueled his growth towards the open sky. And he kept soaring high.’
When they reached the end of the stairs and stood on the well-paved and freshly swept street, the forested rim of the crater towered behind them, its shadow dimming the grayish dawn. And the last stele, still soaked from the wet scrub, depicted the finale of the mountain.
‘He fulfilled his dreams when he touched Airadia’s summit. He saw the vastness beyond, the freedom he yearned for was before him. But what greeted him was still the eternal darkness and the absolute quiet he had escaped in his childhood, and his wings went up in flames. The despairing mountain could not stand the weight of his own ambitions anymore, for what he longed for was what he had left behind, and so, he crumbled upon himself and came crashing down. And thus was born the citadel in the crater, Fallsard Enclave.’
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Status: Healthy
Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
Subtype: Step-0 Elementalist
Name: Ewan Ayres
Species: Human
Vitality: 7.0
Spirit: 25.6
Anima: [Fire – 25.6 | Ice – 25.6 | Blood – 25.6 | Mystic: 25.6 | Dark: 25.6]
Astylinds: 5 [Potential: 0]
Rolling Cat [Toast]: Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
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Fire Monkey [Orange]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
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Imp [Frost]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
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Bloodthorn-Lotus [Iris]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-D]
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Necros-Crow [Ghost]: Step-0 [Level-6] [Grade-D]
Equipment: Common Clothes; Yurn [Neck Gaiter]; Moonkeeper [Crystal-Ball]; Rainwarden [Staff]; Blackfeather [Overcoat].
Storage: Journal; Elementalist—The Path of Anima [Subtype-Book]; Spellbook; Bloodlust [Spell]; Transmute [Spell]; Unknown Book [Radon’s Legacy]; Anima-Crystals [Novas Coins]; Hub-Connector; Ingredients.
Novas: 24,285
Anima Crystals: 7,160 grams