Ezekiel awakened within a sleeping quarter not too far from the entrance to Morncrest that he’d come through when first brought to the Temple of the Void. It wasn’t within the Forest Spirit’s body like before. Instead, it was within the city itself.
Fiana and George were waiting for him when he woke up. They were somewhat worried when the avatar had brought him to them unconscious, but calmed down after it was explained that the Remnant of the Void had transferred information directly into his mind.
After waking up, he gave Fiana and George a brief rundown of what exactly he had been told regarding the Temple of the Void. In particular, the information regarding the fact that it was possible for Mages to reach Tier four without a bond with a Spirit.
“Are you serious?! You’re telling the truth, right?!” George exclaimed when Ezekiel had told him this.
One of the primary reasons that George had been so obsessed with bonding with a Spirit was because he deeply desired to reach Tier four. He still honored and cared for the sacred bond between Spirit and Mage, but it was generally assumed by most Scholars and Hunters that the reason he couldn’t form a bond was due to this deeply rooted desire.
“Yes, I’m telling the truth! Apparently, the fact that a Mage, alone, doesn’t have enough mana to break through to Tier four can be overcome by increasing the quality of one’s mana. From what I was shown, I think I know how to do this, but it’s nothing that I’d set in stone just yet.” Ezekiel explained.
After that, George continued harping on him for several hours, in between Fiana telling him off so Ezekiel could get some rest. After George’s reaction to the information regarding Tier four, Ezekiel decided that he would wait for a while before giving the information regarding the Temple’s defenses.
It wasn’t something he was certain should be widespread, so he wanted to check with Scarlet first. She may have been the youngest Grand Scholar of Sanafalls, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t know better than he did in these kinds of situations.
She would also likely want to know about the Tier four knowledge. As it may even allow her to make progress even though her Spirit had died years ago. So long as they could figure things out. Given how much she had been through, and how important she was to Ezekiel, he hoped that it would help.
Little else happened over the course of the day. It would be a while yet before the forces from the three expeditions made it to the city. Even with the Forest Spirit making the path clearer and more straightforward, the sheer distance was something that was going to take time to travel.
As Ezekiel got himself ready for bed as the sun began setting, he looked down at the sword that held Shine’s soul. He couldn’t help but worry, as they still hadn’t woken up yet. Ezekiel knew that the information that the Remnant had given them must’ve been extensive, but this was nearing the longest time that Shine had been out for.
“Wake up soon. I really want to see what you’ve learned.” Ezekiel said as he went to bed. The sword holding Shine was sheathed and held tightly in his arms.
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Ezekiel slowly woke up to the feeling of something hard poking him in the face. He figured that it was George again, trying to get more information from him, so he blindly swung his hand to tell him off. But it wasn’t George’s hand that he hit, it was something much harder than that.
There was a loud clatter as something hit the ground next to his bed.
“Hey!” Shine’s voice echoed through his mind.
Bolting upright, Ezekiel looked around for Shine, wondering why they were calling out like that and hoping nothing was wrong. It took him a second to realize that Shine wasn’t in his hands, but when he did, he started to panic.
“Down here! Down here.” Shine’s voice called him again.
Looking down to the side of the bed, Ezekiel was shocked to see Shine slowly floating up from the ground where they had fallen to the floor. A soft glow emanated from the sheath.
“Are you flying?” Ezekiel asked out loud. He was still somewhat sleepy, having woken up so suddenly.
“Yes. Well, sort of. It’s more like floating. But I can also move side to side.” Shine said.
“Huh... I’m guessing this was part of what the Remnant gave you.” Ezekiel said.
“Yep. There’s more to it as well, but this takes a bit of concentration. I also can’t float more than a few pounds. Apparently defying gravity is more complex, since you’re not just cutting through things, or making things stay still.” Shine said. “Here.”
“Wait-” Ezekiel couldn’t stop Shine in time, and he nearly found himself knocked out again as he began processing the enlightenment that was given to Shine.
The amount of information was significantly greater than any of their other Spells. But it appeared that Shine was right. This spell was significantly more complicated, not due to the fact that it took more energy than their other spells, but because it was something that had to be under constant control.
Their other spells were somewhat like on and off switches. The channeled mana into the spell structure and an effect was brought about. So long as they continued to channel their mana, and the spell allowed it, no changes to the spell were made.
Like with the Shroud and Barrier spells. They simply made the effect of the spell occur, and then it continued to work until they ended it, or something broke it. Moving them didn’t do much to the spell itself. Their Jump and Slash spells were even simpler. More like bullets that had singular effects.
This ‘Gravity Shift’ spell was more complex, since it directly manipulated a natural force's effect on an object. Thus, it requires constant upkeep, or else it would be impossible to assert any sort of control over the effects. Hence why the light tap that Ezekiel gave Shine was enough to make them fall to the ground. Shine was trying to control both the height that they floated, as well as the speed that they moved. Something that just a single spell had difficulties doing.
Not only that, but while the cost of the spell wasn’t so low as to be maintained forever, at least at Tier two, it would still last for quite some time when used on an object the size of Shine’s sword body.
Not only that, but it seemed like the constant attention necessary for maintaining the spell was enough to stimulate the soul. Not unlike the experience of being alive. So, it might be something to look into later, as a means of training. One that could be applied to other elements, in their own ways.
After several minutes of going over the spell’s information in his head, as well as allowing the migraine he now had to die down, Ezekiel turned to Shine. He realized something as he had gone over the information.
“Couldn’t you just set your gravity to rest at a certain height, and then use Push and Pull to move around instead? At least in enclosed spaces.” Ezekiel asked.
Shine was silent for a second as they aimlessly drifted in zero gravity.
“... Maybe...” Shine sounded somewhat embarrassed, having not thought of that.
“Well, don’t go rushing into testing just yet. We don’t know how much mana you’ll need to push and pull yourself without breaking through a wall, or something.” Ezekiel said as he pushed himself up and out of bed.
“Ezekiel.” Fiana’s voice called from outside his temporary room. “Is everything alright in there?”
Sparing a glance at the door, Ezekiel continued getting dressed as he answered.
“Yes, Shine was just showing me a new spell. Is everything alright out there?” He asked.
“The Forest Spirit has told George and I that the expeditions will be here soon. Apparently, they were informed that there would be no conflicts as they approached. So, they didn’t spare any mana for fighting and just ran here as fast as possible over the course of the last day.” Fiana told him. “They should be here within an hour or so. But they’ll likely be dead tired for at least another hour or two after that.”
“Understood. I’ll take my time getting ready, if that’s alright.” Ezekiel replied as he finished dressing. Grabbing what little supplies he still had on him.
Fiana said that was fine before heading off to do her own preparations. Ezekiel couldn’t help but feel another pang of guilt. Fiana seemed to be much more subdued since the issues with the Cult had ended. While he was trying to take George’s words to heart, in a limited manner, he still felt like he was the origin of all their problems.
A sheathed sword poking him in the head brought him out of his thoughts.
“Feeling guilty won’t change anything.” Shine said. “Don’t let your worries hold you back. The only way to stop this from happening again is to die, or get stronger. But the people that want you dead don’t matter. So don’t do that. Please.”
Grabbing Shine and holding them to his chest, Ezekiel assured his partner that he wasn’t going to be dying anytime soon.
“We’ll both get stronger. That way, they’ll have two things to be worried about. Not just one.” Ezekiel said. “And we might as well get started now.”
With those final words, Ezekiel and Shine headed out. Both to get ready for the arrival of the expeditions, and to find a place where they could do some training of their own before they needed to leave.
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Ultimately, after the arrival of the other expeditions, there was little that Ezekiel actually had to do. He helped the Scholars when they needed it. With the Forest Spirit having attuned to the control key for the Temple, he wasn’t needed for opening any of the Void Locks.
The Scholars were also having a field day with their explorations. As were the Hunters. The Scholars found themselves with a veritable vault of information that was available to them. The Temple’s archive room in particular was of great interest to them.
The sheer number of formation and enchantment runes that had been lost, but were now available to them, was something that they were nearly drooling at the sight of. Though this was mostly the Scholars that weren’t from Sanafalls. The mental wounds were still somewhat fresh with them, considering the events and losses they had suffered so far.
For the Hunters, the literal mountains of untouched valuables made Ezekiel wonder if a person’s eyes could turn into gold coins with how intensely they would stare at some things. The sheer number of Relics and other useful items was immense. More than most Hunters ever saw in their lives.
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For the most part, the Forest Spirit didn’t have any concerns about the Guilds and Scholars taking the miscellaneous items found in the city. There were limitations, like how none of the books and records within the archives of the Temple could just be taken, though they could be copied.
Similarly, there were a few places that were off limits to the Hunters and Scholars. Such as the graveyard, which they could only enter to pay their respects to the fallen citizens of Morncrest. None of the personal belongings of the dead defenders could be taken either. But the Forest Spirit was able to mark off where they were allowed to go, and what they were allowed to take, well before they had arrived.
Some were less than pleased at the limitations being imposed on them, as they figured that the dead had no use for these things. But the majority understood that it was wise to respect the dead that had fallen in the war with the Cruor. So, there wasn’t any conflict breaking out over what was and wasn’t available for looting.
Given the situation with the Cult, some thought that the Sanafalls expedition should get the least out of the spoils within the city. But given they were the ones that had lost a Legendary fighting the Cult, this argument was voided. Not that it would’ve been too big a loss. The Sanafalls expedition also had all the spoils from the Trigat Ruins, after all.
While this was happening, Ezekiel had specifically requested that Kari allow him to practice his magic in private, rather than take direct part in the exploration and study. This was granted, as he explained that the Remnant had already given him information, having directly downloaded a new spell into his and Shine’s souls. Better for them to master it now, than accidentally break something later.
He was also making sure to keep meticulous records for future reference. So, it still counted as work for the Church of Ten as an official Scholar. Something that would keep him busy as he was letting his mana regenerate.
The fact that it was specifically Void Magic, and nothing else, that Ezekiel had mentioned was the only thing that stopped the others from complaining. No one else could make use of the information, after all. So, nobody saw any point in arguing. Even Ginny, who had accompanied the expeditions to Morncrest, hadn’t tried to be a pain in Ezekiel’s ass during their time in the Ruins.
Ezekiel did manage to speak with the Forest Spirit a few more times, but apparently it was told to leave Ezekiel to his own devices. The Remnant of the Void was adamant that they had already provided too much assistance. Especially considering the amount of pure mana crystals they had given him.
Thus, over the course of a week, much of the city was fully investigated, but given the restrictions put in place by the Forest Spirit, that was all the time they had. So, it was with heavy hearts that the expeditions packed up to leave. Although, the small army of Legendary Spirits and Avatars made most of the expedition more than happy to get out of there.
Besides, they had maps of the entire island. It wouldn’t be a big issue for the expeditions to find another ruined city to explore at a later date.
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Given the fact that the Forest Spirit was willing to grant them safe passage back to their base camp, the expedition once again chose to make as much haste as possible. This included carrying the Scholars, a fair minority of their members, on the backs of the more mobile Spirits.
Finding himself on the back of a large wolf-like Spirit, one with icicles forming a mane and tipping its tail, Ezekiel discovered that he did not like the smell of wet dog. Something that he was stuck with until they reached the camp. Which, luckily, they managed to get to within the day they had set off.
It seemed like the expeditions were more confident in moving as fast as possible, and not worrying about any difficulties on the way. Thus, they arrived at nightfall at the base camp, with most of the expedition receiving a hero’s welcome.
At the same time, most of the Scholars immediately headed to their temporary workstations. Hoping to continue documenting and deciphering whatever they could as fast as they could.
For his part, Ezekiel headed off to speak with Scarlet. The only other occupant within the room being Fiana. George had his own studies that he wanted to work on, while Kari, the only other one that seemed worried about him on this expedition, had to wrangle her Guild. It seemed like a few fights had broken out, and a few bets were made regarding items that the better had no rights to.
“I heard you got something special.” Scarlet said as soon as Ezekiel entered her tent to provide his report. “Apparently it kept you fairly busy during the week you had in the Ruins.”
Ezekiel was surprised to find out she already knew that much. But considering he wasn’t the first person to report to her, he realized that he really shouldn’t have been.
“Yes, Grand Scholar. The Remnant of the Void gave me and Shine a spell that we hope to further explore the uses of when we return to Sanafalls.” Ezekiel explained. “Are we secure?”
Seeing the utter seriousness on Ezekiel's face, and the confusion on Fiana’s, Scarlet flipped a small crystal on her desk. She placed it into the glass lantern next to it. Immediately, a soft buzzing could be heard by Fiana and Ezekiel.
“We are now. Though I might get questioned later. Report!” Scarlet ordered.
Ezekiel told her everything that the Remnant had told him. Regarding the defenses against the Cruor, the apparent time-dilation, as well as the warning about the Cult of Light.
“This is concerning. Why didn’t you tell Fiana this when you were at the Ruins?” Scarlet asked.
“Well, for one thing, George was there.” Ezekiel said. Scarlet and Fiana both winced in understanding. “For another, I wasn’t sure what needed to be done regarding this information. I didn’t want to bother you with it, but considering who I’d rather have gone to...”
Ezekiel trailed off. His eyes began to water as he reminded himself of Carrian. Fiana and Scarlet both looked upset at the unspoken reminder as well.
“Given that you are the highest authority that I feel like I can trust, I wanted to make sure that you were the first to know.” Ezekiel said after composing himself.
“Thank you for yer faith in me. But this isn’t really groundbreaking. The fact that so many Temples were destroyed is terrible. But hopefully, we can avoid that moving forward.” Scarlet said. “For now, don’t tell anyone, just in case. I’ll deal with it when we get to Sanafalls.”
“When will that be?” Ezekiel asked.
“About a month, given the ships we have.” Scarlet said.
Ezekiel, Shine, and Fiana were thrown for a loop. That was the average time of travel between Sanafalls and their current location. What with the various islands that they would need to stop at on the way. That would mean that they would be leaving in the morning.
“Before you ask, we aren’t being kicked out of the expedition. I’ve simply made the executive decision to cut our losses.” Scarlet said. “Kari agreed with this decision before you all set out for the Ruins with the Forest Spirit. We actually wanted to pull out as soon as possible, after what happened. But we knew we’d have mutiny on our hands if we passed on the opportunity to explore the Temple of the Void.”
Ezekiel and Fiana nodded in understanding. They could definitely see the majority of their expedition freaking out at what was, from their point of view, a free Ruin. Even Ezekiel would’ve been upset, as he could only think of it as being a waste of the sacrifices that got them this far.
“For now, go get some rest. We’ll be setting off in the morning, so get ready to say your goodbyes.” Scarlet said.
Seeing the dismissal in her words, Ezekiel and Fiana headed out. As they made their way back to their tents, however, Ezekiel saw a face that he was dreading approaching again. One he hadn’t seen since they’d set out to reunite with the Sanafalls expedition, before a flash of light sent everything to shit.
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Sitting down in his little tent, Ezekiel got a couple of cups and filled them with water. Given that he didn’t have much to serve anyone with, that was the best he could do for now.
“Sorry I don’t have tea. I lost most of my supplies, and tea is not considered a bare essential when it comes to the stuff I’ve had to go through.” Ezekiel said to his guest.
Sasha didn’t say anything, just taking the cup and accepting the gesture for what it was worth. Tuff just snorted from the ground where Ezekiel had laid out a bowl of nuts and berries for the Spirit to snack on.
“It’s alright.” Sasha said.
An awkward silence stretched on for a while. Neither one was willing to say anything. They had essentially parted ways a couple weeks ago. With Sasha basically saying that she didn’t want to go through the trouble that being friends with Ezekiel would bring.
They hadn’t even spoken once during their recoveries from the incident with Meryn. But upon seeing Ezekiel return to the camp from the Ruin with the Temple of the Void, Sasha couldn’t help but think back to the ways that he had helped her in the past.
As well as the loss he must be feeling with Carrian’s death. She knew how much Carrian meant to him. The old man was one of the few people that Ezekiel would often talk about that was still present in his life. That was something that she could relate to quite well.
Finally, Ezekiel couldn’t take it anymore.
“Why are you here, Sasha? You made it clear that you didn’t want to get drawn into my issues.” Ezekiel said in a blunt and dead tone.
“That’s a bit rude, isn’t it?” Shine asked. “Besides, don’t we want her to stay as our friend?”
Sasha flinched at Ezekiel’s words. She opened her mouth to say something but paused and remained silent. Thinking over what she wanted to say.
“I did say that. But I also said I needed to think things over.” Sasha said. “I still don’t want to get drawn into your issues. I just don’t think I could do so and stay alive. Let alone sane.”
Tuff, feeling his partner’s worries, stopped eating and climbed up onto her lap. Holding him like a teddy bear, Sasha continued talking.
“At the same time, I can’t help but remember how good a friend you are. How helpful you were, and how you did everything to get me up to speed. If it wasn’t for you, I probably would’ve been kicked out of the Island Hoppers much sooner.” Sasha said. “I wouldn’t have gotten the haul that I’ll get from this expedition, nor would I be a Church affiliate, after getting expelled by Ginny.”
Sasha looked incredibly conflicted, confused, and generally unsure of herself. Ezekiel looked on, not sure what he was feeling for himself.
“I still don’t want to get involved in your issues. But I realized that none of it is your fault. Seeing you after you lost Carrian. The guilt and sorrow I saw, even from a distance. I realized that you truly feel for everyone in your life.” Sasha was crying at this point. “I don’t want to go through your troubles, and your conflicts. They’re just too terrifying. But I still want to be your friend.”
Ezekiel found himself shocked at Sasha’s words. This was not what he was expecting. He thought she’d be here to apologize, or maybe tell him that she didn’t want to see him again when they got back to Sanafalls. Maybe she’d ask if he was alright, and that’d be it.
“I know that it’s selfish of me to not want to suffer with you. But I realized that I don’t want to just cut ties with you either.” Sasha was beginning to calm down. Her cries were petering out. “Can you forgive me for throwing our friendship away? Is... is that okay?”
Ezekiel was silent for a moment. Thinking over what she had said, and what exactly he felt about this. Shine, however, knew what they wanted, and was fairly vocal about it.
“I think you should accept her friendship. It’s not fair to require others to suffer just to be our friends.” They said.
“...Alright. I guess I can forgive you. It’s not like I expect my friends to suffer for me anyways.” Ezekiel said. Mirroring Shine’s words to him. “We’ll just have to make sure that you and I never go on any expeditions or missions together in the future.”
“Thank you.” Sasha said. “Again, I’m sorry. I just-”
“It’s fine. For now, let’s just try to move on. Okay?” Ezekiel said.
Sasha nodded her head. The two fell into a somewhat awkward conversation, with Ezekiel telling Sasha all about what had happened during their time at the Ruins. Ezekiel kept several things secret, and Sasha knew this, but they both understood that this was still a better place than they were before.
Sasha now knew that Ezekiel had several secrets that he was keeping. Secrets that she understood she had no desire to know. They continued talking, however, until there was nothing else to talk about.
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Waking up bright and early the following morning, Ezekiel wiped the sleep from his eyes. He and Sasha had talked for quite some time before she had left for her own tent.
Seeing the dim light of the morning just barely illuminating the sky, Ezekiel rolled himself into an upright position.
“Well, it looks like it’s time to say goodbye to this island. Hopefully we won’t be seeing it for quite some time.” Ezekiel said to Shine.
“Agreed. I’ve had enough of this island. I want to go home, and not have to worry about evil cults and freaky Cruor for a long time.” Shine said.
The two quickly got ready, packing their things up before rushing over to the boats that they would be leaving on. Most of them were captured ships from the Cult, but their colors had been changed to indicate their new owners.
“Are you certain that you need to be leaving right now?” Marwyl asked Scarlet as they both stood on the temporary docks that lead out to the ships. “We’ve got a literal treasure trove of Ruins to pick and choose from. Do you not want to help with that?”
Scarlet was silent as Ezekiel and the rest of the Sanafalls expedition looked on.
“I’m sorry, but right now, my main priority is getting as many of my people home as possible. As well as arranging for a funeral.” Scarlet said. Marwyl winced at the reminder.
“Besides, just because you know where those Ruins are, doesn’t mean that the various Wild Spirits on the island will just let you get to them. The deal with the Forest Spirit has ended, after all.” Scarlet’s voice was taunting as she pointed out the obvious flaw in Marwyl’s statement regarding the Ruins. He winced again at the thought of the possible conflict in his near future.
“Well, I guess that we’ll have to deal with those issues on our own. Thank you for what help you and your expedition provided.” Marwyl said, holding out his hand. Scarlet grabbed and shook it before replying.
“No... Thank you for saving us. Without you, Carrian’s sacrifice might not have been enough.” Scarlet said. “That’s why we need to leave. We’ve honored his sacrifice, and now we need to let the world know what he did.”
“Indeed. Then I can only hope that we will see each other again, in better circumstances.” Marwyl said.
“Agreed. In better circumstances.” Scarlet turned around and walked up to the ship that would now be hers. At least until she got a new one.
“Set off! We’re heading home!”
As the ship jolted from being sent into movement, as it tilted and rocked on the water, Ezekiel had never felt happier to hear such words. Home was exactly where he wanted to be.