Chapter 554: Family Part 2
“I am Lady Una of the Great House of Noir and the wife of your nephew. A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
“You’re a Noir?” asked Stryg, surprised.
“I carry that honor, yes.”
“…Una, why does that sound familiar?”
She smiled sadly. “Elzri was my older brother. Though I believe you have also met our daughter,” she wrapped her arm around Atlas’ waist. “Unalla.”
The memory of the short drow rushing Stryg with a giant sword and an angry warcry on her lips flashed through his mind. His face went blank. “Pardon?”
“Unalla, our daughter. I believe you two met during the Magic Tourney of Undergrowth?” said Una.
Met was an understatement. Stryg had come a hair’s breadth from killing her. She had hated his association with Elzri. He had hated Unalla for bearing the name of Noir. And now he was being told he shared blood ties with House Noir?
How…? How? HOW!?
Stryg wanted to scream in frustration. He had pushed down his feelings about Loh for weeks. She had been his mentor, his friend, his family… And she had lied to him. He knew it had been by Elzri’s design, but she had still let him believe that Clypeus’ death had been his fault.
Some part of him knew that Loh would have done anything to make things right, even stand alone against the army of Undergrowth as he fled the city. But it did little to numb the pain that stabbed his chest whenever he thought about her.
Where did Loh and him stand? Stryg didn’t know anymore.
And now? Now the drow who had shattered Nameless, Clypeus’ legacy, was his… His family? How in bloody Bellum’s name was that tiny, little, petite drow the descendant of titans? Atlas was as tall as a dire and he seemed small compared to Holo and Melantha’s true forms, Stryg could only guess his father was even taller. So how did she—?
Stryg looked down at himself. W-Well, he supposed he wasn’t much different. Compared to his sisters he was a pup. Lunae had told him he would grow in time. Perhaps in a few centuries, he would be as big as her. Until then, he was hardly as tall as Feli.
The more he thought about it, the more it started to make sense. Unalla’s skin was a bluish-grey, not too dissimilar to his own blue complexion. She had hauled around a giant’s sword, or, he realized, a titan’s. An orichalcum weapon, like the spear that now sat in his chambers back at the Gale manor.
Svartna.
Even now, he could faintly sense the spear’s presence across the villa district; a small tug at his mind, like the tug at the edge of one’s cloak. It was an odd sensation. He had never seen the strange spear before that night but he felt like he had known it for ten lifetimes.
Svartna… Somehow he knew its name. The spear had whispered the name to him when he needed it most.
“Um, are you alright, my lord?” asked Una hesitantly.
Stryg blinked back to reality and looked around the curious faces staring at him. “Oh, um,” he cleared his throat, “I’m fine. Just a little surprised.”
Una smiled reassuringly. “I witnessed your duel back at Undergrowth. My daughter does not hold a grudge against you, and neither do we.”
“Indeed.” Atlas nodded.
“Unalla knows who I am?” asked Stryg.
“That you’re her grand-uncle? No, I do not believe so,” replied Una.
Stryg glanced at Holo, “Even though we look alike?”
Una looked Holo up and down. Her human form, warm brown skin, and a long mane of black ringlets did nothing to instill a sense of familiarity between the two.
Stryg quickly realized the same thing and held his hands up, “I mean, her true form.”
“Unalla’s never seen my true form,” said Holo.
“What? Why?” asked Stryg.
Holo looked away. “She doesn’t exactly know about our father…”
Stryg stared at her flatly. “Wait, are you telling me Unalla doesn’t know that you’re the daughter of Stjerne? That you’re a literal scion of Death?”
“We haven’t really gotten around to that conversation yet,” said Holo with a wry grin.
“It’s my fault,” admitted Una. “I did not wish to burden Unalla with that truth until she was prepared to handle it.”
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“You see, when our daughter found out my father was Atreus, she did not take it very well, not well at all actually,” explained Atlas. “We did not think it best to share with her the true heritage of my mother yet.”
“Did you just say Atreus? As in Atreus Thorn, the Last Ebon Lord?” asked Stryg, wide-eyed.
“Indeed.”
Stryg thought Stjerne was the only one who selectively had children with particularly powerful mageborns, but it seemed the practice ran through the family. Leave it to the gods to meddle with the noble Houses of the realm. He turned on Holo, “So you and the Atreus Thorn…?”
She cocked her eyebrow, “And? What of it?”
“Nothing, it’s just, he’s a Thorn.” Stryg glanced at Atlas, “No offense.”
Atlas chuckled. “None taken, I left behind my father’s House long ago.”
“The Great House of Thorn is not the same as it once was,” said Holo with a trace of disappointment.
“Wait, a sec,” Stryg wrinkled his brow. “If you’re the son of Atreus, the first and last King of Hollow Shade, would that not make you a prince?”
Atlas shook his head. “As I said, I left behind my father’s House long ago. The bloodline of House Thorn is carried on through my brother’s descendants. Besides,” he smiled, “It’d be a bit strange if I cared about such things as the Thorn’s ‘royal’ heritage while being married to a woman whose House helped depose the Thorn family.”
“Ah… I see…” Stryg muttered.
“In any case, after everything that has happened these last few days, I think we can no longer afford to keep Unalla in the dark,” said Una.
“Which is one of the reasons I brought Stryg here,” Holo patted his shoulder. “I think having another person going through the same revelations as him will help both of them.”
“If that’s the case, then Elohonoir should be here as well,” noted Melantha. “She is the leader of House Noir, is she not?”
“You’re right,” nodded Una. “I’ll go fetch a servant to wake her.”
“Oh, that won’t be necessary, I’m sure Loh and Una must be tired,” said Stryg hastily.
“Not to worry, my daughter has spent most of her life traveling through the Realms. She is no stranger to waking up at odd times. And I have an inkling that neither is Elohnoir,” said Una.
“Actually,” Stryg feigned a yawn, “It’s gotten pretty late. I should probably head home.”
Holo smiled wryly, “Since when do children of the stars care about the late hour of the night?”
“I don’t,” he said and realized it was true. “But the Gale family will be wondering where I am.”
“I can have a servant bring them a message, explaining your whereabouts,” offered Atlas.
Stryg politely shook his head. “My wife is waiting for me. I haven’t really spoken with her since I left Undergrowth.”
Una nodded in understanding and placed her hand on her husband’s forearm. “You two deserve some time alone. Please, do not let us keep you. I’m certain we’ll have a chance to speak again.”
Atlas took her cue and inclined his head, “I hope we can meet again soon. Farewell, Uncle.”
Una bowed deeply. “It was an honor meeting you, my lord.”
“The honor is mine, may the light of the moon watch over you,” Stryg said respectfully, then turned on his heel and headed to the door.
Holo went after him, “Hey, where are you going?”
Melantha grabbed her sister’s arm and held her back. “Let him go.”
“What? But he just got here.”
Melantha sighed. “Sometimes I forget how old you are.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’ve forgotten how it feels to be a mortal.”
“I was never a mortal.”
“Yes, but you weren’t always old either. Stryg is young. Give him some time. This is all pretty new to him. He needs time to acclimate.”
“And what about his powers? He can’t keep running from who he is.”
“He just needs some time. You grew up knowing exactly who you were, he did not. Stryg will come around.”
“By running away?”
“Our brother is strong. He will overcome this. He will come to us when he is ready.”
Holo glanced at her son and daughter-in-law, whom both nodded in agreement. She sighed. “Very well, but you and I are going to keep an eye on him.”
~~~
The path to the Gale Manor was short. The Villa District had remained relatively unscathed from the siege. Undead sentinels patrolled the streets but none of them bothered the district’s residents. The manor’s guards opened the gates to Stryg and welcomed their lord home.
Stellan Gale rushed to his side and asked him half-a-dozen questions in a single breath. Stryg lied and assured him everything was fine and that he would tell him and his sister Willow all about it tomorrow. All Stryg wanted right now was to sleep. Stellan respected his words without a fight and escorted him to his rooms before leaving with a silent bow.
A simple note hung from a ribbon tied around his doorknob. Stryg grabbed the note and glimpsed over it.
The paper had only three lines.
‘I enjoyed dinner.
Hope to speak soon.
~Your cousin, Elise.’
“Well, at least she’s alive,” thought Stryg.
The Katag dinner had been a complete disaster. He hoped Elise and Lynette got out safely. Despite whatever mixed feelings he had for Elise, she was still a Veres. It was his job as lord to keep her alive, or at least that’s how it would be if he was a chieftain. He still wasn’t sure how much noble Houses and Sylvan tribes differed.
Sighing to himself, Stryg opened the door and stepped inside his chambers. The magestone lanterns were dark, without a flicker of blue light. He walked through the room without hesitation, the darkness was as clear as day to his lilac eyes. A trait from the god of stars he guessed.
Making his way to the bedroom, he found Feli asleep. Her arm was stretched over her head and her silky purple hair was sprawled across the bed. The blanket haphazardly covered her waist. Her bare chest rose with each quiet breath.
Stryg watched her in silence and smiled softly. He had missed her. They had barely spoken since his return, but just being close to her brought him comfort.
He took off his clothes and slipped into the blankets. The bed creaked at his weight and he winced as she stirred.
Feli opened her eyes blearily and met his gaze. “…Stryg…?’
“Y-Yeah?”
She snuggled towards him and rested her arm in the crook of his shoulder.
“Feli?”
She mumbled something unintelligible and went back to sleep.
Stryg gently wrapped his arm around her and closed his eyes.