"Can you feel it? The strength which the beast once had," Kilon hands a spear to his sister, "is now yours to control. Use it wisely and don't lose it, nor forsake it. Do that," Manna looked at the spear, a deep sense of appreciation in her eyes, "and it shall never fail you in battle.".
The Link - Months Prior to Leave
'What was Stelorus thinking?! This is such a mess, I can barely deal with it,' Menoel was pacing inside the giant tree, 'Even for him, this is too much of a farce.'. Menoel stopped briefly, his thoughts pausing with his step, 'Unless this is no farce, and he's plotting something...hmm, no. He never cared for much else, but hunting, so it makes sense,' Menoel resumed his walk.
Outside, as the afternoon of the day Kilon returned started turning to dusk, the Lightborn were still searching for Stelorus. Eharel was heading for Menoel, who in turn was waiting for Kilon, knowing they would have to talk sooner or later. Moving between rushing siblings and spiteful words, Eharel thought he could start to understand what Stelorus' intentions were. And by what he witnessed, what Kilon had wanted.
"How are you dealing with the matters brother?" Eharel asked as he entered the giant tree, holding an odd weapon, resembling a shortsword but with a single edge and curved tip.
"How do they look to you?" Menoel almost bit with his words, sparks going out in anger from his eyes, then slowly fading with his frown. "No, sorry. I'm furious with Stelorus, it is wrong of me to lash my anger out like that.".
"Only Stelorus?" Eharel continued, his question raising an eyebrow from Menoel, but also himself, as he wasn't expecting Kilon's behaviour to escape Menoel's mind. "I guess they enacted it pretty well, if they fooled even you," as Eharel kept talking, he threw the odd sword between his hands, trying to play in various ways with it, but catching it awkwardly as he wasn't sure how to do it properly.
"By that I figure you speak of how Kilon was a bit, out of place with his words" Menoel no longer felt the need to pace around as he talked, "but I believe that to be just the signs of him finally accepting his role.". Menoel took a couple steps closer to Eharel, looking him more in the eyes.
"That, and I noticed how fast he got up after Stelorus used his ability on him. But you were too busy, so how could you notice really?" Eharel changed his tone towards more sarcasm, feeling prideful that he knew things Menoel didn't. But that worked against him, as Menoel was rather stubborn, and mocking him only furthered that stubbornness.
"Very well, so you suggest that Kilon and Stelorus work together," Menoel took a challenging tone, which Eharel didn't like, as he wanted to work with him, "then by the end of the hunt, we shall see who's right.".
"No, that's what I'm trying to avoid, and why I came to you," Eharel gestured with his hands, shortsword in his left, trying to explain himself out of it, "they're working together because of the hunt. And I believe Kilon is trying to do something against you, for what you've done so far.".
"If they're working together, you don't know that for sure, do you?" while to Eharel it was obvious something wasn't right, he could tell that even if he didn't put himself on the spot, it would've been still hard to make Menoel out of all his siblings understand. Menoel approached Eharel further, close to the entrance where he stood, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "If you can find something more concrete, I'm willing to listen, otherwise, we proceed as we discussed before you set off.".
"And if it all fails? Will you take all the blame?" Eharel looked Menoel straight in the eyes, while Menoel looked ahead as if there was nothing to worry about. "I'd say, just as a precaution, let them find one. If Kilon notices traces of my light around it, he would have reason to create doubt about what you say, and strong one at that.".
"It's too late for him to undo the belief I created so far. Even if he plants a seed, I long taken root inside their minds," Menoel removed his hand from Eharel and stepped outside, looking at his siblings busy trying to find Stelorus. "Look at them, so infatuated with my created belief, that they so desperately try to defend it.".
"Do you really think that's a good thing?" Eharel had his reservations about Menoel's belief. Even though he agreed in large part with it, so Kilon could be the leader Eharel wanted him to be, he was starting to see the other side of such blind following. "And the way I look at it, it would seem to be they're just trying to reinforce their belief, that Kilon is the all powerful, now shaken by Stelorus.". Eharel went past Menoel, a meeting with a few Lightborn awaiting him at the edge of the settlement.
"Shaking something doesn't break it, Eharel," Meneol started to head back inside, speaking over his shoulder, "most of the time it helps see the flaws, which when fixed, makes it as a whole stronger.".
'Most of the time...' Eharel thought, getting lost between the treehouses and Lightborn. Between all of them, a particular figure was making their way through, wearing a cloak to make themselves more inconspicuous, but only attracting more eyes as no one wore the same clothing.
The figure entered the tree, its glow unseen and not too tall, Menoel being a bit surprised by the visit, while also slightly annoyed due to their 'disguise'. "I wasn't expecting you here, walking in broad daylight...in that," he said as he gestured around the cloak, "but a welcoming visit.". Menoel formed himself a seat from the tree at the back, and sat himself there. Knee over knee and hand on top, he smiled at the cloaked figure. "So, do speak, is Kilon planning anything? Eharel seemed pretty sure he was, but I had to disagree. And make it quick, Kilon will visit at a later time to discuss certain matters.".
Kilon
"Where are Avunaia and Avaanel?" Stelorus asked to himself impatient, Kilon sitting down below the ancient tree on the hill he brought Mercaara to, "I hope she managed to get in touch with them without being seen. Otherwise that brother of ours is going to keep them talking and away," Stelorus said as he kicked dirt around, amusing Kilon.
"This reminds me a little of our time at the Link, you know what I'm talking about right?" Stelorus pondered a little, then let out an audible laugh. "I recall your first visit outside the Link, when you came back with a clawbear on your left shoulder, and a starstag antler sticking out of your right leg.". Stelorus scratched his head embarrassed.
"You should've told us that those were common! I would've pulled it out the next moment!" he tried to defend himself, something he would only do around Kilon and Orvus. "Besides, have you really never had such moments?".
"I'm sure I did, but then again, you and the rest never saw me as anything less than perfect, have you?" his words were touching on an issue Stelorus would rather not talk about, but he was in the midst of it all then more so than ever.
"Maybe not all of us, I'm sure Orvus was able to tell you a couple of things to make you feel less wise," before he could accentuate the thought further, Kilon gave Stelorus a sharp glance. "Does it bother you? If you're called less wise?".
"It doesn't-no, it does. But it shouldn't. So why does it bother me?" Kilon was trying to recollect his memories, then came upon it, "Yeah, I remember now. It's how our Creator called me, wise. He called me his wise son.". Stelorus listened in awe, Kilon unable to see his amazed expression, as there were only a handful of Lightborn that received compliments from their Creator. "Has the Creator never called you such, or similar?".
Stelorus hid his jealousy and disbelief the next moment Kilon looked at him, "Of course the Creator did. I was called strong and powerful.". Kilon could tell he was lying, he just couldn't tell he was lying about the inherent part itself, so he let out a small laugh. "At last I get to see you laughing a bit, you seem so sad all the time.".
"It takes a toll, Stelorus. Leading all these siblings of mine, knowing what expectations they have, and...and more," he couldn't say it, brushing his forehead with anxiety. Stelorus felt those words strucking a deeper cord within him, as he had to take care of the Groundbreakers, and to him, losing any of his siblings because of his ineptitude, was nothing less than catastrophic.
The two brothers stood in silence, a solemn kind, reflecting on their past mistakes and decisions taken along the time. Kilon more so than Stelorus, with more depth, but Stelorus felt it more intense as it was something new to him.
After a few moments, the sounds of footsteps could be heard, wood on earth tapping as well. "I told you it would be fine," Avaanel was making her way up the hill carrying a tied bag at her back, not using wind manipulation so as to not attract anyone's attention, "even if I stabbed them with a sharp flower, would they have not noticed.".
"Kilon said otherwise, besides, you're making more noise because of that stick you wear for a foot," Avunaia said as she walked behind her, Prickety scouring the sky to make notice of any Lightborn, "that's why we couldn't afford to stop.".
"I take everything went well," Stelorus met them first, a knowing smile on his face. "So where have you two been?".
"Avaanel said she had to take some stuff before we go, and I had to go get Prickety, just in case someone would follow," Avunaia kicked Avaanel's wooden leg, "but she still took her sweet time with it.".
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"I told you," Avaanel, kicked back, but at her knee, hurting her, "Kilon had to see this in order to understand.". Her voice was a bit hurtful, as she didn't like when someone made fun of her leg or poked at it, but also granted her satisfaction when she could see the painful expression on someone's face after retribution.
Avunaia let out a groan in pain, "Foolish of you to assume Kilon wouldn't get it, he's the smartest of us all.". Kilon had a fatherly look on his face, as if he witnessed his children fighting. He then stood up, back hunched over as his head would be lost between the high branches otherwise.
"Enough is enough, let us sit down and not warrant unwanted attention," Avunaia and Avaanel complied, Stelorus sitting after the two, Kilon darting his eyes around the field below the hills and the settlement. 'Menoel, he's bending the light around him,' he could see his brother from afar, his form barely visible to the eye, even as the light of day was resting, searching for someone clueless. 'But it's starting to get dark, so he'll have that disguise unveiled whether he likes it or not," Kilon thought, thinking that he won't pose a worry from that point on.
"It would seem even Menoel is personally searching for Stelorus, isn't he?" Avaanel picked up on it, as Kilon was casting light from his eyes to enhance his vision, "Don't worry brother, I laid a few traps around the bottom of the hill and up the way we came along.".
"That is good, but we shouldn't underestimate his cunning, there is a reason why I trusted him so much before he started all of this," Kilon told her, some resentfulness in his tone, "but let's proceed, if not for Menoel finding us out, then for the darkness which hides much.". They all approved with a nod, standing in a tight circle at the back of the tree, the night closing in on them.
"Then here, we can finally talk about my discoveries, just as you promised," Avaanel was excited to empty her bag in the middle, Avunaia flinching a bit at the animal parts that got out, while Stelorus was amused. Between the body parts and various plants, some of which poisonous, Avaanel pulled out a piece of smooth metal. "Look at this brother! The stone house is not ready, yet it's able to already create what I had envisioned!".
Kilon looked at the piece of metal, feeling it with his hands and letting his light touch it to bring further sense of it and offer him more information, Prickety landing on the tree looking for a chance to snatch it. "It's still rough," he said, some of Avaanel's excitement fading from her face, "but it's better, much better.". Kilon was speaking of how compared to the way he melted and shaped the blade on his spear, the metal had small cracks inside. "Master it, Avaanel, and soon enough we might have what you and I envisioned these metals to become.".
Avaanel found herself conflicted. On one hand she felt like progress had been made in her research, while on the other it was obvious it wasn't enough. "I will bring about a better greymatter for you brother, I promise," Avaanel told him, her eyes sparking with further ambition.
"I trust that to be so. And as a matter of fact, I would like you to provide our group with the tools and weapons you deem necessary for the hunt," Avaanel's face twisted in agony, realising that Kilon was putting her up to do work. "I know how you feel about doing such tedious things, which is why you'll have Stelorus and Mercaara as your helpers," Stelorus raised an eyebrow at his words, then Avunaia jumped up from her place.
"You can't give Mercaara over to her!? Have you seen Fanteem? His face looks miserable all the time, and his clothes stink of nasty things that probably are yet to even exist!" her protests were met with chuckles from Stelorus and a devious, large smile from Avaanel. "Look at her! She will destroy my precious sister!".
"Stay down if you will," Kilon demanded, "I'm lending Mercaara's aid to Avaanel so she can have the best materials the Groundbreakers bring," Kilon assured her. Avunaia still didn't like it, standing down with hesitation, "Stelorus will be there as well, which I understand you take good care of you, aren't you?".
"That is sure," Stelorus approved, hiding his feeling of jubilation at the prospect of his sisters fighting, "but why do we need Mercaara? You could just ask me to look for what's good and put it aside for Avaanel.".
"I don't want to be seen talking with either you or Avaanel, so that Menoel can't unroot our plans," Stelorus saw Kilon's intentions, letting out a knowing breath. "You figured it. Mercaara gathers information from the two of you, and then relays it to Avunaia, then back to me.".
"That is good," Stelorus approved, "now, for the reason you needed me on your side. Avunaia told me it's so I can restrict Menoel's movements in case of anything, but I had this feeling you wanted something more out of me.". Kilon smiled at his brother, a sense of pride and a bit of fear for the cunning nature he had. "It's about what I've done in the tree too, you haven't spoke a word about it, so what do you want to do that would have you embarrassed over it?".
Kilon's sense of pride heightened, feeling good about the brother he picked to have on his side. 'In a way, I feel like I'm talking with Orvus all over again,' he thought, the fact a small reminder that by being siblings, some qualities surfaced just as much in some as they did in others. "The reason is quite simple, and I think Avunaia most of all has noticed since the first day Menoel proclaimed me as a sort of Creator," Avunaia thought a little, then her eyes widened. She was hiding something, and Kilon was about to unveil a truth she didn't want the others to hear. "I hate who they all see me as, including you Avaanel.".
His words sent shivers down their spines, as Kilon's face twisted with pain, agony and an irritable anger that he couldn't rub off. He didn't hate his siblings over it, he hated the fact that it was the only way, in his mind, to escape a more treacherous fate.
"The reason you're here with us Avaanel, is because you don't partake in this belief blindly, and still follow some will of your own. Same with you Stelorus, but to an even more true extent as you and Avunaia don't seem to partake in it at all," Stelorus had an awkward smile on his face, glad that Kilon saw him that way, but also terrified of the way he spoke. Avunaia on the other hand, she felt dread and pain. She truly believed him to be a higher form of power, and for him to hate that belief to such an extent, was like a dagger that's been driven through her chest. She knew he didn't like it, just not how much he hated it.
"Then, I figure, you want to stop Menoel and this blind belief in order to regain what was lost," Stelorus said, raising up, "your brothers and sisters that were just that, your siblings.". Kilon looked down with some shame, knowing how that could sound selfish considering everything they've been through. "I won't oppose this plan, Kilon, but do know: you weren't our brother since the moment you stepped out of the Link.". Stelorus' words cut deep into Kilon, speaking something none dared to say, not even realising it to be true to begin with.
"Stelorus!" Avunaia rose up, her eyes letting out sparks, "How can you say that?! Especially after everything!?".
"I'm saying it especially because of everything that happened, sister," Stelorus responded in kind, his expression bearing jealousy and pain, Avunaia gaining a better understanding of what her brother felt like. "You weren't born yet Avunaia, but I saw him. When he first took a step outside the light, the moment he gazed upon the earth and us. There was no fear, no dread, no pain. I thought him to be like Efeehem, someone who just couldn't understand the danger around him, but that wasn't the case!". Stelorus pointed at Kilon, no longer hiding his jealousy, wonder, and fear. "He understood it all, yet he didn't flinch or try to go back, he got into the world without fear, wanting to know everything and then some!".
After his outburst, Avunaia stood frozen with her face in shock, while Avaanel tried not to drag any attention towards her. Kilon couldn't look Stelorus in the eyes, as he himself didn't realise just how different he was from his other siblings. Due to his wisdom and power, he never could grasp the concept of himself. Laid bare before him though, as Stelorus put it, Kilon had to wonder if he really was just another child of the Link, or someone, something else.
"Maybe you're all right about it," Kilon finally managed, his siblings turning their heads towards him, "I might be something more, something special made by the Creator.". Kilon started to get up, and Stelorus frowned seeing Kilon's face, "Yet my very being says you're my brother, Avaanel my sister, and so is Avunaia.". Kilon placed his hands on Stelorus' shoulders, his eyes bearing a morbid look about them. "So don't hold me in such high regard. For when me, the one you see as great, fails to save you, you won't fall into despair.". His words carried more meaning than Avunaia and Avaanel could understand, something which Stelorus knew had yet to happen to Kilon, since he never failed them. Yet, looking in his eyes, these words held the weight of someone that had to have failed in order to make sense. It was so hard to look at him, that Stelorus turned his head away.
"First show me you can actually fail at something, and then we can stand on equal ground," Stelorus told Kilon as he started walking away, letting Kilon's hands fall off his shoulders, "until then, you're nothing like us Kilon, and you better not forget it. For our sake, and those that have died.". Stelorus started descending the hill, "I'm looking forward for my punishment. I'm sure Menoel would like to have a say in it, but do try to persuade him," Stelorus said, his voice quietting with each word and a small laughter after.
"I'll have to return as well, got a lot of greymatter to melt and a stone house to build," Avaanel said as she rose up, not wanting to deal with anything else. "Do send Mercaara to me as soon as she's done with distributing the materials, I'm going to put her up to all sorts of things," Avaanel promised in a playful tone as she packed her things and started making her way down the hill, opposite from where Stelorus descended.
Avunaia and Kilon were standing all alone in the dark of the night. Kilon crashed to the ground, his mind exhausted by everything he had to deal that day and those prior. "Do rest brother. So much weight to carry, then the deaths of our siblings," Avunaia comforted him, embracing his head and stroking his growing hair. "And let's not ponder too long on things outside our control. You didn't decide to be stronger than us, nor wiser. It is a given, a gift if you will!".
"A gift you say..." Kilon thought on his vision that was becoming more vivid of late. There appeared more detail to it. From the lightless bodies lying dead on the ground, to the smell of burning flesh and the cracking of bones. "They all lie still and cold. I can't find myself inside of it, so am I the one?". Kilon wondered aloud, not realising it. Avunaia looked at him curious, knowing that the Creator sometimes spoke with him, so she wondered if that was one of those moments.
"We're all restless, not one will become cold, I assure you brother," Avunaia promised as if she knew what he was talking about. "And if we ever stop moving or we fall, you can push us forward, like you always do.".
"Like I always do..." Kilon repeated. He looked inside the vision once more, recalling the details, that maybe amongst the dead, he could make out someone's appearance, but it was all still blurry. 'Perhaps it is yet to be clear who will die, and who won't," he thought. 'Maybe, at least, I can save those that can still push us forward, even if I were to die.'. He then embraced Avunaia, feeling the warmth of his sister, something which he didn't want to forget.
As they stood there in the dark for a time, the settlement caught life through their Lightborn's lights. "How beautiful," Avunaia said, mesmerised by the gem-like beauty of the trees that seemed to reflect the stars, "if we are to live for long. Let us make more beauty akin to this.". Avunaia stretched her hand, for a moment trying to grasp all that wondrous beauty in her hand, then letting go, knowing it couldn't be withheld in just her fist.
"That we shall, for we enter this new age, where we shouldn't fear death, but rejoice in the beauty life can offer us," Kilon extended his hand forward too, matching his sister's. 'And we shall live for as long as we need. An eternity of wonder, that's what I want from this life of mine.".