So far, all avenues had been explored and led to inclusive results. As if he was in a hallway with a hundred doors and all of them led right back to the hallway. He was frustrated and worried. Noctis knew death was imminent, for his foes and especially his allies, and all he wanted to do was keep the ladder to a minimum.

Currently he sat on his bed in the "Pub". Crossed legs, blade in lap, eyes closed with his back to the window. With Dion laying on the foot of the bed. The door opened, by the smell, Kenan knew his uncle had entered. "Nephew." Doco closed the door behind him. Took a chair from the simple desk of the room and sat across from Kenan. "I hear you are having trouble." Noctis simply grunted an affirmation.

Doco nodded and then stared off into a wall. Neither spoke for a time. “It hasn’t been long since your parents have died. Since my brother has passed.” Doco swallowed hard. “When you were born, Tyris named me godfather. As if being the best uncle wasn’t enough.” He offered a fake smile. “When I should have stepped in as a father-figure, I played drill sergeant. I forced you to grow up faster than you should’ve. What I needed to do was take the sword from you, taken out Roshu for myself, and forced you to stay with Lucy. While I take care of this Orc problem. For all of that, for what I should’ve done. I’m truly sorry."

"Uncle.."

"No. I'm not done yet. I could've easily saved Rufus, and stopped you from almost dying. I also regret not doing that." Doco stopped. Kenan was about to pipe up when he thought the better of it. "If I wanted to, I could easily break the siege, and kill the orc captain. I should. I really should. I won't and I don't know entirely why. I think it's because the Fates have placed this challenge for you. To kill you, get rid of you, to get you stronger, whatever. It's your mountain to climb, not mine.

"However. I don't want you grabbing for power as you are doing now. I want you to work for it, find it on death's edge as you have done. When things get dirty, when everything has been stripped away. Power is nothing. A lesson I learned from the previous wielder of your sword. What's important, what brings a man to unbelievable heights, is the strength of your will. A lot of that is knowing who, or what you are. So I believe finding whatever truth Jorun is talking about is good for you, but I don’t want you to do it for the wrong reasons. if you don’t find it now, it's fine. I know, with the fire behind your eyes, that you can overcome what is next for you.”

Kenan kept silent. Unknowing of exactly what to say or how to respond. Doco followed suit for a time. Each delving into their thoughts. Some time passed.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"I don't know if you know. It really never came up, and it didn't matter. When me and your father were boys, when we got our magic. Tyris had a natural affinity for earth. He got a tome, merely for guidance. Well, whenever asked about his magic, how it worked. He would always talk about how he was merely part of the earth, and he simply used that connection." Doco shrugged and stood. "Some food for thought. I don't know." Kenan's uncle left the room, shutting the door behind him.

Noctis looked at the door for a while. Searching for fleeting thoughts. The action of doing so only left his mind empty. He looked to Dion, the sleeping dirus roused for a brief second. Then through the connection, sent a message. For the first time, since meeting the used-to-be-fox, Noctis couldn't quite discern what it meant. Eventually, Kenan disregarded everything, and fell asleep.

***

Thunder erupted in silence. Breaking Kenan from his sleep. Hard rain beat against the window. Flashes of light briefly lit the entire room. Dion was unbothered and snored away peacefully. Noctis tried his best to sleep, but was hindered by not only the noise, but a strange restlessness.

Thoughts came to him, types that he was trying to grasp before he fell asleep. But they were muddled, through a haze of dizziness. The more he tried to discern them, the more they became vague. Eventually to the point it was almost as if he was filled with nothing.

Noctis was met with a notion. He forgot, too concerned with gaining power that he ignored everything else. Doco was right. Whenever he had a problem, there were two things that he needed. His will, and his sword. Yet, he threw both of them aside.

He got up, trying to let the dirus be. Kenan then grabbed a simple shirt, pants, a pair of sandals and his sword. Noctis didn’t bother putting his hair up. Then he made his way out of the room. He tried his best to be stealthy. It seemed as though he no longer had the capacity or the talent to do so. The guiding force he had before, in the dungeon, was long gone.

It didn't matter too much. Under the rolling thunder, he doubted he would be the cause for anyone to wake. Soon, he was met with cold rain. The drops slowly covered him in till his entire body was soaked and shivered in a cold, familiar chill.

After a few minutes of traveling, he found himself in the empty space of the town guards training grounds. Thunder sounded, reverberating off all of the walls of Banburn. Lighting struck, landing no more than a few feet from Kenan himself. Noctis drew his sword and held it out in front of him. The chill in his body deepened as he involuntarily entered Vatr.

Little did he know. The Fates agony was voiced in the storms wails, and their intentions forced through its bolts. They were raging.