-Uri’Ari-
[An Alten conjunction of the words Uri, meaning blue, and Aris, meaning to cut, or slice. Aris is in an improper noun form, commonly in names or casual conversation.]
Xeron led Kuro to a nearby restaurant. The owner showed them to a private room, a perk of Xeron’s Hunter status. It was a nice place, marble floors, dark wood tables and chairs, and plenty of windows with stunning views of the lower layer. It felt styled after a castle or fortress, with its large stone brick walls and pillars, it even had small battlements on the roof.
Their server took their order before leaving, closing the door behind them. The private room was essentially a small booth, with a bench wrapping around the wall, split in the middle where the door was. The wall across from the door was one large window, looking out over the main street of the next layer down. The bench had plush, red cushioning on the seat and backrest.
There was a tense silence for several minutes, until a knock sounded on the door. Xeron answered, stepping out before coming back in with his and Kuro’s food and drinks. He set the tray on the table as he sat down, before silently taking a few bites of his food. After the first bite, Kuro followed suit.
When he was about half way through his food, Xeron took a break to speak. “I wanted to tell you, since I saw you prowling around. We’re planning to launch our attack tomorrow, around midday.”
Kuro almost choked on his food, fumbling his swallow. He’s telling me so easily? He swallowed, and looked Xeron in the eyes, trying to discern if he was lying. Well, it’s a poor attempt to trick me if that’s his goal. I’ll still be on the lookout up here.
There was yet more silence, as Xeron picked his food back up and continued eating. He didn’t speak again until he was done, leaving the two with the silent tension. “I can relate to Yenva, to be honest,” He said after taking a sip of his dark, red-colored drink. “I understand her, and her side of this whole argument. Most of all, I can relate to her feelings towards Ensaru.
“See, Yenva’s family was well enough off to live in luxury, but Recen was raised to be the family heir, and Yenva was allowed to live a much more relaxed life. Recen was talented, incredibly so. But, she made a bad deal, and the family lost a lot of money. She wasn’t disowned entirely, but she was no longer recognized as the heir. Their parents died not long after, leaving Yenva with what little money the family had left, and no talent for work. She got a job with the Guild, and from there, clawed her way to the top. Learning as she went, making countless mistakes.
“Ensaru, on the other hand, is not only incredibly talented, he was born to inherit the J’alyr. I don’t know the exact event that caused her to begin hating him, but I can imagine Ensaru felt it wasn’t a big deal. For Yenva, however, it was world-ending.”
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“Why are you telling me all of this?” Kuro interjected, swallowing the last bit of his own food.
“Because how Yenva feels about Ensaru, I feel about Oroske.” There was a moment of quiet, but Xeron spoke again before Kuro could ask what he meant. “Years before you were born, I had a different mentor that was training me to earn my blue cloak. He was like a brother to me, as well as like a brother to Oroske.
“His name was Uri’Ari. Despite having no close ties to us, he helped my family a lot. More often than not, he was the reason we had food to eat every night, and he even took me in under his wing. After his passing, my parents decided to name Ari after him.
“Frankly, I was often jealous of Oroske. The two always seemed so close. Oroske seems to have that effect on people, he was always surrounded by people who seemed to love him. Ari was still a baby when my parents died, and since then I’ve been the main person bringing in money for our family. I’d asked Oroske for help once, shortly after earning my black cloak.” Xeron had a pained expression on his face as he recalled the story, “He wouldn’t even give me the time of day. Here was a man so loved, so strong, and trusted, and able to live in a big house with plenty of food. All because he was born under different circumstances to me and my family. And he wouldn’t even look my way.”
Kuro was dumbfounded. He had no idea what to say, or even how to feel. It was difficult to imagine Oroske as anything but the kind, if stern, mentor he’d been with every day since he woke up.
Xeron laughed solemnly to himself, “These past ten or so years, I’ve always seen him as my rival. Someone to surpass, to out do.” He leaned back, looking up to the ceiling, head resting on the back of the bench. “I know that’s silly. There’s a world of difference between us, it’s no wonder he likely would never think of me the same way.” He sighed, bringing his head back down after a moment. “Sorry to talk your ear off, Kuro. I wanted to let you know where I stand with this whole thing, even with the recent accusation that Recen is working with the Mienr.”
Xeron stood up, downed the rest of his drink quickly, and walked to the door. “Oh, one last thing,” he said before opening it, and making eye contact with Kuro, “I do hope you and Orosk won’t hold back at all. Ari and I will be going all out, and I’d hate to find out you two didn’t return the favor. Don’t forget, tomorrow at noon.” He walked out, closing the door behind him.
Kuro was left alone in the room. He picked up his drink - a glass of some sort of berry juice, he didn’t know what kind - and sipped on it as he thought to himself. I suppose I can see where he’s coming from. I’d probably side with Yenva in that case, too. Thoughts of Jarou, and their relationship came to mind as well. He’d never really thought about it, but he guessed he kind of saw Jarou as a rival. Someone he wanted to be better than, but also someone he cared about.
He finished his drink, and left the store. He tried to pay them, but they insisted that Xeron’s status as a Hunter meant he didn’t need to worry about it. He walked around for a few hours, thinking about his upcoming battle, or battles, tomorrow. He wished to see the sky, and to lay down in a patch of soft grass. He didn’t want to make the trip up to the surface just for that, though. He returned to Ensaru’s home fairly late, Oroske had already finished eating dinner when he greeted Kuro at the door. Kuro passed on Xeron’s declaration, before heading up to their quarters to get some rest. He kept the rest of the conversation to himself, however.