Zyler’s sudden appearance made everyone tense up, but seeing the easy smile on his face, the otherworlder relaxed.
While he doesn’t visit often, Zyler eventually does visit Eve Glade throughout the year. Ever since the biodome was taken, Bastion has signed on as Eve Glade’s ally and defected from the Federation. Due to that, there were loads of issues that popped up that took Zyler’s attention.
Most of which was that the Lord of Bastion had perished, so Zyler took over the mantle of taking care of Bastion.
While at a glance, one can easily notice how Zyler is the least likely to be a leader of a whole city, but apparently he did a lot of good work on handling his city’s vast changes, which included doing away Roderick’s former policies forcing extreme labor from anyone under the Expert stage.
Zyler became rather popular thanks to that, and the city actually flourished, though everyone in Eve Glade can tell he didn’t do it alone. There were plenty of other officers in the city that helped, some of them being included in visiting Eve Glade over the deal they made for the sake of their alliance.
Thanks to Eve Glade’s biodome and Attribute Tree, Bastion became even more thankful and became an ally that Eve Glade can rely on, especially on the trade of rare minerals and ores that Bastion has a good monopoly on. While most of that went over Mikella’s head, she can at least tell that Zyler is no longer an enemy to worry about.
Now, as for liking the guy, that was another thing entirely–but that's besides the point. She crossed her arms over her chest, staring at the man who clearly took a good long look at the two of them.
It wasn’t even something out of lust when Zyler took a glance at her body. She could tell–Zyler was appraising her fighting capabilities. There was that glint in his eyes that Mikella understood to be clear excitement for the next time they spar. He gave the same sort of glance to Zeke, who didn’t really notice it as much before Clara spoke up.
“Hi, Zyler!” Clara shouted, getting his attention. His face immediately shifted into a goofy grin.
“Hey there little cub. I see you’re growing up into a fine young woman. How’s the little bat?”
“Brucey’s fine,” Clara beamed at his compliment, patting the sleepy Brucey near her shoulder. “He’s growing big and fat because he sleeps so much.”
“Well, having someone like you around, it’s no wonder he looks comfortable,” Zyler grinned, reminding Mikella over and over how strangely big-brotherly he was.
“You heard about us becoming Journeymen? How?” Zeke asked, too curious to stop. “We only just broke through two days ago.”
“Well, that’s one of the reasons why I’m here, actually. Another reason is that I’m here as a messenger of sorts. I also heard that you two are headed to this magic place called Arcelot, right?”
The otherworlders stared at Zyler for a brief, panicked moment. How the hell did he figure that out? Even if Mikella can guess that Cloud or Val told Zyler about them breaking Journeymen as a kind gesture–there was no way they would spill the beans about their forced visit to Arcelot.
“How…?”
“Like I said, it’s part of that reason. It’ll only make sense once I bring you over to the lords’ house. I also brought someone along with me who gave me that info.”
Mikella wanted so very hard to drill the information she got out of this man with whatever means necessary, but Zeke had that look in his eyes as if he figured something out.
“The seer…” Zeke whispered. “I remember Cloud saying the only way you found out about the biodome is because you had a seer. And she’s…”
“Yep,” Zyler nodded. This time, there was no easy smile or feral grin. It was a serious frown that took away all humor. “My sister’s here. So come on, let’s not waste any time.”
*****
Hearing the news got the otherworlders to follow Zyler straight to the lords’ home. It wasn’t something new–they often met up there for official/casual business, where they often met up with the dignitaries of the kingdom and dealt with their policies regarding the biodome.
Going through the hubbub of the town that had risen up in its popularity thanks to the biodome, Mikella knew that it was thanks to Zyler’s aid that half of this was possible. It was unbelievable how often their ores and materials were needed to help the newcomers to get accustomed with various facilities. Though they refused to get any of their workers since the citizens still felt a bit wary thanks to their actions the past year. Still, Zyler was considered rather popular here as well as the other citizens knew of his coming and even greeted him.
That didn’t really upset Mikella as it did the first time. While Zyler was the son of the lord that had ordered the attack on Eve Glade, it was clear he wasn’t responsible. Sure, he was an ass that almost killed them if he had the chance, but he proved his loyalty by ensuring the alliance was done peacefully, putting down his own dissenters over working with Eve Glade and deserting the Federation if needed.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Still, despite a whole year of knowing the guy, this was the first time she ever heard of him having a sister. And now she is here? It was no wonder how Zyler treated Clara felt so similar to a big brother. He was one himself.
When they got inside the house, Val was the first to be seen as she turned to the door opening to find them.
“So he did pick you two up,” Val said. “I was worried and thought he was gonna start some trouble in town.”
“Hey come on, I know I look roguishly handsome, but I’m no rogue,” Zyler snapped back with such a quick retort that Mikella had to give respect. Val only rolled her eyes as she allowed them into the living room.
When the two entered, they saw Cloud meeting face to face with another person. A woman draped in fabric that covered her entire body. She looked slender, almost small as though it could’ve been a dwarf or any other small-sized race. But after turning around to face her, she was truly human.
Despite being clothed, Mikella’s sharp eyes could see the exhaustion and riddled tiredness in her eyes. They were decked in bags and her cheeks were hollow. She looked as though she spent years in a cave trying to survive with the barest of supplies. But despite her horrid state, when she saw the two appear in front of her, the woman smiled faintly, bright enough to counter her physical appearance.
“It is good… to officially see you two,” The woman spoke up, her voice sounding more tired than her appearance led to belief. “My name… is Diaga. I’m sure you have… already met my brother before…”
“Don’t talk too much,” Zyler warned, but his eyes showed clear concern. “You’ll wear yourself out faster.”
The woman, Diaga, only huffed slightly. She sounded annoyed, but Mikella couldn’t help but agree. Even the way she spoke sounded like she was running on fumes. Just what on earth happened to her to make her end up in such a way?
“You two, sit down. She has something important to discuss,” Cloud said, gesturing to Diaga. “I know this is sudden, but she’s the Seer for Bastion.”
“We heard from Zyler,” Zeke offered, but his eyes still turned to the tired woman out of concern. “But she’s…”
“That’s the result of overusing the Divination skill granted by the Seer Class,” Zyler explained, crossing his arms as he stayed standing. Even if there were available chairs, he refused to stay away from the seer. “It’s how my old man managed to find out how to get to the biodome. Also, the more specific the divination, the more intense the drawback.”
“That’s…” Mikella held up her hand to her mouth in shock. “How can he do that to his own daughter? That’s just…”
“It wasn’t just me…” Diaga shook her head, the cloth almost as flowy as her near-skeletal frame. “My mother was also… a Seer like me. The maternal side of our family is born with… an innate talent for divining the future…”
“And your mother…?” Zeke asked, though it was clear to the two siblings what had occurred.
“She took the brunt of the blows, and after she passed, dear old daddy passed the torch onto her,” Zyler answered again. Despite his words, there was no love for either of the two. Mikella decided to not peer into that. “She’s here because she wanted to… apologize, I guess.”
“You know why, brother,” Diaga scolded, furrowing at Zyler. “What we have done to them… was unforgivable. I see… no reason why I should not also… try to reconcile with them.”
“You have no reason to,” Zyler admitted, shaking his head. “But what’s done is done. Go ahead, tell them.”
Diaga looked more than exhausted just from dealing with her brother, so she turned to the otherworlders. Despite the tired look in her eyes, the way she gazed at them made Mikella’s insides shiver. It was almost like she could see right through them, even at her state.
She didn’t seem to be anywhere near Journeymen, but despite that, she still sent shivers down her bones.
“I’ve come to offer my sincere greetings and gratitudes to Eve Glade… Over the year, Eve Glade had done nothing but help us in our time of need despite our actions in the beginning… That is why I wanted to visit personally… but my health had only gotten worse. I have finally been able to move… so I wanted to take advantage as much as I can.”
The young woman kept speaking, and all Mikella could think of was how bad she felt for the town after what happened. Of course she would never blame her for what her shitty dad did, but unfortunately that’s not how it works in her mind. She kept quiet as Diaga continued.
“ I also wanted to give you what I know from my skills. I believe that… before you head into Arcelot, you should know… about the towers.”
Mikella looked back at her in awe, and Zeke leaned in closer to her.
“What do you mean?” Zeke asked. “You know about the towers?”
“I know… not of their origins, or their making, but their purpose,” Diaga explained, seemingly having no clue on what she was even talking about. Yet she spoke with more conviction than she led on. “Their presence alone… is almost otherworldly.”
The two stayed absolutely quiet, not wanting to comment on that particular wording as Diaga continued.
“They contain vast amount of power unlike… anything I have ever felt before. I have… decided to peer closer to their futures by following your… Mana signatures.”
“Mana signatures?” Mikella asked, to which Zeke promptly answered.
“It’s sort of like our unique identity. Nobody else in the world has the same Mana signature as another. There’s a lot of observational skills that have the ability to discern that… but this is the first I heard of someone using it to divine a future.”
“Her type of Seer Class allows her to follow a person’s future to an extent,” Cloud helpfully explained. “While difficult, she can also follow a person’s signature even from far away. Though… I still don’t understand why you went as far as trying to find these two’s futures.”
“I do not know myself… but when I tried to divine the future of the two who… my brother spoke of so fondly, I realized that these towers… aided me slightly in my skill. It was… too tantalizing to stop.”
“Did that… made you end up like this?” Mikella asked, sounding more afraid of the answer.
“No, this was… from divining the location of the biodome’s precise location,” Diaga said tiredly, an empty smile showing on her dried lips. “But I figured that… along with my greetings, I wish to share valuable information… about the towers. How there are… two towers in your future.”