Alton learned what he could and asked for permission to have the following day off. He needed time to decompress. Fate was idling in the back of his mind, whispering troubles in his ear. Should he continue Emogene’s work? Or should he walk away from it? They chose to send him away so he could have a fresh start. Perhaps, he should be grateful and take it.

He let out a sigh and opened the door to Woven Silk. Another sigh escaped his lips when he saw Felix standing behind the counter. The god of healing had bobbins of thread hanging from his antlers. His fingers were working quickly to finish the embroidery on a scarf.

“Why aren’t you in school?” Alton asked.

“Why aren’t you minding your own business?” Felix retorted without looking up.

Alton approached the counter. “Because you’re living with my father-in-law and I don’t want you causing trouble for him.”

Felix quickly gave up living at the dorms at Starsons. He attempted to socialize once or twice before realizing that he wasn’t going to fit in. After a bit of pleading, he managed to weasel his way into living with Stallis Twist, who stayed at an apartment above his clock shop. The location was close enough for Felix to walk to school, and directly next door to his apprenticeship.

Stallis was a kind man who didn’t care what Felix did, only that he was home for dinner. Felix had no worries other than learning how to be a fashion designer. School got in the way of that. Then again, Alton would likely give Stallis trouble about Felix skipping classes, and that was the last thing he wanted to happen.

“The clerk’s sister is in the hospital,” muttered Felix. “I’ll head to class when she gets back from her visit.”

Alton leaned forward on the display case. He looked around. The place seemed to be doing well. “Have you been listening to Fairy?”

“She doesn’t talk to boys during school hours,” replied Felix. Fairy liked to pretend that she was the perfect noble girl, thus she never associated with men in public. “Sometimes she comes here to check on me.”

“Okay… That’s good. I guess keep at it?” Alton shrugged. “Life isn’t easy. Study what you can and take it one step at a time.” Felix frowned at him. “I’m here to pick up a package. Is it done?”

Felix ducked below the counter for a minute and popped back up with a parcel wrapped in butcher paper. “This is it.” He flipped open a ledger and pointed to an empty space. “Sign here.”

Alton produced a pen from his vest pocket and scribbled his signature. “Anything you need from me?”

“A trip back to Lyrhea,” whispered Felix disdainfully.

“Denied,” replied Alton. He picked up the parcel. “I’ll stop by for dinner tonight. Let me know if you need any help with schoolwork then.”

Alton waved goodbye and made his way to the core entrance. There wasn’t anywhere safe to place Bibi, so he had chosen to walk today. Occasionally, he’d check his letter. No messages complaining that he was late or that the location had changed. Everything should be fine.

He found Hayden waiting for him by a water supply station. Tankards of water were kept inside golems. Free drinks were handed out to anyone who needed it. She was in the middle of nursing a cup of cold water when Alton held out the parcel for her to take. This was quickly squirreled away inside her bag.

“Transaction complete,” she said. “Are you ready to go?”

“Is Millie not coming?” Alton looked around.

“She’s helping her dad with a hunt today.” Hayden began to mess with her letter. “We’re taking golem seventeen. It’ll meet us at the roof.”

Without Sybil, Alton had to find a different way to get into the core. Hayden agreed on the condition that Alton get her a dress uniform from Woven Silk. The barracks did provide free dress uniforms, but she wanted one that was distinctly Carapace in design. An oversized black and rust colored skirt with a cropped gold jacket and Braytons’ sigil embroidered on the back.

They entered the golem and began the long descent to the bottom of the core. Alton had gotten in contact with a mage named Trilsie who worked in water purification. He knew where the siren temple was and was going to let them inside for a brief time.

The temple was usually off limits, but they made an exception for someone with siren blood. An underwater tunnel had been built to the entrance, so the water reserve wouldn’t be contaminated by anyone swimming. It was kept behind a door with a runic lock.

“I only have two hours,” said Trilsie as he put his hand to the door. His bracelet glowed briefly and gears on the door began to twist about until the entire door rolled off to the side. “I’d like to give you more time to explore, but I have a lot of deliveries to make.”

“Thank you. Do you know where the altar is?” Alton asked.

“To the left and a five minute walk straight ahead,” replied Trilsie.

The temple was part of the old siren colony. Much of it had collapsed or had been damaged by flooding, but a good portion of it had survived. It was being preserved for the sake of Carapace’s drinking water. A minor detail that Alton wasn’t going to complain about, because it meant that he could walk about inside of here.

Alton thanked Trilsie and entered. The mage was going to wait by the entrance, that was being used for storage. There were items that he needed to grab. Hayden debated staying to help with the boring chore or risk going into a collapsing temple. After a minute to debate, she hastened her steps to catch up with Alton. Her eyes kept drifting about this way and that. She half expected a ghost to jump out at any moment.

The corridor widened into a large room with a pool at the center. It rippled slightly from the channels underneath that allowed water to flow through. Hayden stopped at the edge, but Alton walked around. He was heading towards the stone altar that had a massive sword sitting on top of it.

He stopped in front of it, staring at it for what seemed like the longest time. “... Bellia,” he whispered under his breath.

If Alton hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn’t have believed it. He reached forward and placed his fingers delicately on side of the blade. It didn’t have that dull warmth, nor did any mist puff up from it.

“Is that what you’re here for?” Hayden walked up and tapped the side of the sword. She tilted her head as she carefully listened to the sound. “That’s golem grade alloy. It doesn't look easy to use, but it’s easily worth a fortune.”

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“It’s a forgery,” replied Alton.

That’s the reason why his mother had come here twenty years ago. Between what he had learned from Lydia, Sybil, and Enzo, he had started to get a good idea of the timeline for this sword. It started when the Fogblooms were massacred. Aeneas Alcea and Erskine Fogbloom fled the palace, taking Bellia with them.

Twenty years later, Ribnjak Grulick would be the one to return it. No one knew it at the time, but that wasn’t the real Bellia. Aeneas had given her a remarkable forgery that had been accepted as the real deal up until twenty years ago, when Emogene sought to become Bellia’s priestess.

That had always been the purpose of her song. It’s why she left Lyrhea and why she played with the hearts of two men. Emogene’s only goal was to become this sword’s caretaker. Her song led her to Carapace, where the real Bellia was hidden. As they worked to find a way into the temple, they met Zoe Krogastein, who introduced them to the guild of mages that worked with water preservation. Then it was simply a matter of switching out the forgery they had for the real thing.

“I think they’ll notice if you try to take it,” muttered Hayden.

Alton bent down and began to feel around the altar. “The sword isn’t worth anything to me.”

His fingers wiggled something loose from one of the decorations. It was a smooth, metallic stone that was about the size of a half dollar. He twisted it about in his hands. There were faint runes on it, but they were nearly worn to nothing.

Hayden looked over his shoulder. “Blood iron?” Alton nodded. “Is it from an old high priest or someone important?”

“It’s Tria,” he muttered.

Felix had had no luck contacting her. Alton knew that she had lost her flesh body, but her blood iron had been hidden away in the core. At least, it had been until the would-be attacked. After Sybil defeated the would-be, Tria needed someplace where she could heal. There was nowhere safer than the siren temple. Alton felt fortunate that she was at the altar and not someplace dumb.

But this stone… It was smaller than the amount of blood iron that had been harvested from Martyr. Bellia was a massive sword. Tyrtain’s blood iron coin was as wide as a building. Alton didn’t know what to make of Tria’s condition, but he knew it couldn’t be good.

Hayden took a step away from him. “That’s Tria?” After a moment of hesitation, she leaned in again to get a good look. “Won’t she get mad if you kidnap her?”

“She’s sick. I’m going to take her to someone that can fix her.”

Hayden nodded a few times. “Mister Tuton, right? He’s going to use his necromancy to heal her?”

Alton shook his head. “He can’t. Paladins don’t have that type of magic.”

“Yes. Because the handsome fellow that summons undead tainted beasts is absolutely a paladin.” She nodded slowly at him like he was the crazy one. Hayden may have spent her life isolated core, but she wasn’t stupid.

Alton glared at her. “... I bet you don’t even know what a badger is,” he muttered under his breath.

“It’s a stubby legged omnivore known for its burrowing habits and ornery attitude.”

He was caught off guard by her response. “... How about a salamander?”

“A lizard shaped amphibian,” replied Hayden. “... Both of those are native to the area. We have them around the core.”

Alton stuffed Tria into his pocket. “And a jellyfish?”

“A gelatinous sea creature known for its umbrella-like shape.”

“What?” Alton stammered for a second. “... How?”

“I read a lot,” replied Hayden. “... Was that all you needed or was there something else?”

Alton shook his head. He felt like something had shaken him down to his very center. “No, uh… Th-that was it.”

“Then we should loiter around for another hour or so. It’ll seem less like we were only here to steal something.”

She had a point but Alton was dismayed by the idea of hanging around. There wasn’t much of anything for him here. He was never taught much about siren traditions, other than the few songs his mother gave him.

The only thing he had accomplished was fetching Tria for Felix, and he was fairly certain that Felix could’ve managed that on his own if he wasn’t so lazy… How Alton wished that he had gone on Sybil’s mission rather than return to Carapace. He’d be so less aggravated right now.

“What’s this?” Hayden pointed at a wall.

Alton’s eyes followed from her finger to where she was pointing. It was letters that flowed around painted images of fish and birds. At a glance, it seemed like a random art installation, but this was once a city of harpies and sirens. This temple may have been used as a meeting place for the two species.

“That’s the siren written language.” He walked over for a closer look. It wasn’t a spell, meaning that this was likely song meant to give a siren its purpose. “Each letter is made of smaller symbols to indicate the sound of the syllable and what note it should be sung at. I can sound it out, but I never learned enough of the language to translate it.”

“Do you need something to write it down?” Hayden began to look through her bag.

“No, I have something.” Alton pulled out a notebook from his vest pocket.

Even if he wanted to leave, Hayden wasn’t wrong about copying down a song or two. This melody had been important at some point. Alton was reminded of his own song, and how he had put it on a plaque outside the core shops. There was something about their personal songs that made sirens want to share them with the world. Each one was illustrated with such pride and artistry.

Yet his mother had always talked about her own song with such sadness. Why would Bellia gift it to her if it only made her suffer? At the end of her life, she destroyed herself and Wulfric. Why? Was her song responsible for that as well?

And then there was the melody that had been branded onto Alton’s heart. What was the point of it? He had accepted it because he firmly believed that if he and Sybil were together, then both of them were happy. No matter what he had to do or if it made Sybil cry, his song couldn’t be wrong. Because in the end, it was all going to work out… But now? Alton didn’t know anymore.

He had set out to Carapace to find a piece of himself. What he discovered was that none of the gods played fair. They didn’t care if their playthings were happy or not. They only had their own agenda.

Alton wasted time writing down a few songs and left the temple. He didn’t say much. Hayden made for good company because she didn’t ask much. His eyes followed the other transport golems as they traveled about webs. So this was the core, huh? It was difficult to believe that such a different world had been underneath his feet this entire time.

And what would Sybil do if she were here? She’d likely be pointing out everything to Alton and grinning widely, then he’d make a joke about dancing on the webs together… And she’ll get mad for some weird reason. His lips parted slightly as he smiled, then he frowned. A sigh was let out, then the faint trinkling of a tune, so quiet that it was nearly a whisper.

I never get many chances to say...

I’m sorry for what happened, on that sunny day…

I laid eyes upon you, fell deeply in bliss…

I thought I was charming, but I was amiss…

It’s unfair how jaded the both of us became.

Perhaps love and pain are one and the same.

And even though I know that one day we’ll part…

Now and forever, you’ll carry my heart...

Hayden stared at him as he muttered the melody to himself. She pulled her knees up to her chest and looked out the window. “... This is,” she whispered. “... This world is my home,” she whispered. “It’s small though. The core is a very small place.

I think though… I don’t think I’m ever going to see this place again once I leave here today. I’m torn between what I’m giving up and what I stand to gain, but I’m also afraid that the world out isn’t going to be fair either. So, what I’m trying to say is, if you have any happier songs you can whisper to yourself, it would make me feel better about my life choices.”

“... Sorry.” Alton undid the harp from his belt. “You want something super happy or just a calm, not so depressing song?”

“The second,” replied Hayden.

Alton nodded and quietly played the harp until the golem reached the top. The two then parted ways. He let out a long, drawn out sigh. Playing always did make him feel better. Maybe he was just depressed because he was by himself when he learned of everything. Once he was back at the barracks, and once Sybil was by his side again, he’d feel better.

As long as Sybil stayed by his side, he would always know that life could get better.