"So...how did they take it then?" Misses Greene sat in a rocking chair, sipping from a cup of tea while looking out a window.
"Well..." George sat in a chair opposite of her, looking out the same window. "Rael was reasonably upset...she seems like she dropped it, but I know her. It's probably eating away at 'er."
Outside of the orphanage where the two were talking, many of those living within it had come out to see Avures and Rael. The teens their age caught up for a short while, though, they weren't that interested. However, the kids swarmed the two of them. Avures sat by and sort of watched on, trying to ignore the kids. Rael, on the other hand, was playing a game of...something. It was hard to tell, but there was lots of screaming, running and laughing.
"Well, it was as bad as you say it was...I won't prod for the details, but it really seems all unfair to her..." Misses Greene took a sip of her tea.
"Life has really never been fair to her...but that's why I want to be. It's just...if I let it go on...if I become responsible for letting something that bad happen, without even warning anyone..." George shook his head. "I couldn't live with myself."
"But because of that...she might never look at herself the same way...she might become cold and jaded over time."
"Damned if I do, damned if I don't..." George looked at the ground and rested his head in his hands. "She's always been like the daughter I've never had...I love that little girl so much...it breaks my heart to know that I might have ruined her life by telling her. But if I didn't...then it could only end in disaster. I could have kept her from going to the Academy...but that mighta' broken her heart too...Miss, I just tell ya...I don't know what to do."
"George...there's nothing to do...you just keep being the best father figure you can be to her...If you don't understand that much, then you've only gotten older on the outside." Misses Greene took another sip and focused in on Rael, and then on Avures. "Besides, she has someone to lean on when you're not around."
"Avures...ya know, I woulda' disagreed with that statement some time ago, but the boy is a lot more...mature than what meets the eye." George picked his head up and eyed the boy. "I'm glad it's him...as strange as it sounds."
"Mm...you mentioned you stopped by Belva for him. How did that go?"
"It's hard to tell. The lad didn't really say much. He looked around, ducked into a building, left, and found a gravestone in the woods nearby. But...besides the obvious change on the outside, he seems more...I don't know. It's hard to put to words." George shrugged. "Say, ya said you found Avures yourself, right? What's with the gravestone?"
"Yes, I found him all those years ago...the grave was just something I put together real quick. I found a young girl holding him when he was but a wee baby. She was already gone when I got there...such a shame. She looked only about fourteen, maybe a year older...and her left arm was missing too. But still, she held onto that little Avures, I almost cried at the sight of it..." Misses Greene sat her tea cup on a little stand next to her chair. "I still remember how during his baby years, Avures never once cried, or really made loud noises."
"Really? Must have made taking care of him easy."
"I thought there was something wrong with him at first. Like he had some sort of brain issue...but it wasn't the case. That's just how he was...and how he still is as far as I know."
"Yep...I probably won't tell him...but I am proud of him." George smiled, as he watched Avures. "He's really growing into something..."
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"Wait wait, you're saying that there's eight branches of your family?" Olicia was laying on the grass, looking at the orange hue in the sky start to fade.
"Yep. As far as I know, it had something to do with one of our progenitors way back. My father used to tell me this as a story to be real proud of our lineage." Ventrix sat on the ground a foot away from Olicia, gazing over the landscape.
"A story?...tell me it." Olicia looked over at Ventrix.
"Sure. Basically, a long time ago, during the early years of the Academy. One of our ancestors had met this person called The Architect. From what father has told me, he can grant you knowledge of any kind, as long as it's within the realm of possibility."
"That sounds incredibly vague."
"I said that too, but...this happens, and he asks for the knowledge on bloodlines as a whole. Apparently, he used all this knowledge to have a huge family...he had something like, twenty kids. And all of his offspring had different elements which is considered impossible."
"That poor woman...or women..." Olicia shook her head.
"What?"
"What?"
"Anyways, after some time, and considering the nature of those times, only eight of them made it to adulthood. Then they became the main Felsta houses. One for each element, which, still stands today."
"It's kinda crazy to think there's a mythos to your family." Olicia sat up.
"I'm sure someone knows exactly what happened...or it's written somewhere." Ventrix shrugged. "Have anything to say about your family?"
"Nope..." Olicia immediately fell onto her back once more. "They're kinda boring. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I love my mom and dad. They might be idiots...and maybe a little too paranoid, but they're good people. I send letters once a month to them, and they write back. Simple."
"Huh?...That's nice."
"Yeah...I-..." Olicia looked over to Ventrix. He stared out into the fields, seemingly at nothing. Olicia slowly sat up again and turned herself towards him. "Something wrong?"
"I won't lie to you. I'm a little...envious." Ventrix clenched a few blades of grass in his hand.
"You're envious?...of me?..." Olicia tilted her head and grinned. "You've got loads of money, and a big family name. What are you envious of?"
"I don't really care about the pedigree if I'm being honest. I don't care about the money either." Ventrix ripped the blades of grass out of the ground in his fist. "I know it might sound silly coming from me...but I'd rather have a mother and father who write to me than some family legend."
"You know...I am really sorry about your mom. Sorry if talking about my parents made you think of it..."
"No, you're fine. I always have these thoughts when I'm here. My mother was everything to me...and she was taken too soon. She's influenced me so much, and even father to some degree, but..." Ventrix slowly unclenched his fist, letting the blades of grass fall in between his fingers and back onto the ground.
"But not enough?..."
"He's always been distant to me...and it only got worse when mother died. I understand that he's out there purging evils, or doing business...or whatever...but could you believe...couldn't you...believe, that the first time I had heard from him since coming to the Academy...was yesterday?" Ventrix's vision started to get shaky as his eyes welled up with tears.
"So this entire time...your dad never-..."
"Yes...and the worst part is that I don't even know why. If he had some reason...anything that I could hear about and agree with...I wouldn't mind so much. But it's always business and formality with him in person. And it's like this so much that he's even told me to keep watch over you like I'm some sort of caretaker...and you're some sort of animal!..." Ventrix wiped the tears from his eyes and face.
"Well..." Olicia scratched the back of her head. "Have you tried talking to him about it?"
"It's impossible..." Ventrix slowly shook his head. "I think he knows how I feel, but he won't acknowledge it if I bring it up...but I'm at least glad you were willing to listen to me."
"We're friends, that's what friends do...like I would know anyways." Olicia blew a lip bubble before giggling.
"Ha...I guess that is what friends do..." Ventrix smiled before turning himself to face Olicia. "You know...my mother said something to me before she died. And it's really inspired me to try and be sociable and a good friend where I can be."
"Oh?...do tell."
""Make as many friends as you can, and cherish them. Never let them go."" Ventrix repeated the words of his late mother.
"Kinda cheesy...but I think she has the right idea. Though we're sort of sworn to a death-pact now...as long as you're my friend, I'll never let you go." Olicia raised her fist up to Ventrix. "We'll fight together, and you can vent to me about how distant your dad is."
"We'll fight together...and you can show me your bug index..." Ventrix raised his fist as well, bumping it against hers.
"Hey now! It's not just bugs..."
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"I can trust you two to this room, can't I?" Misses Greene stood in the doorway. In the orphanage, there were a few massive rooms for all of the kids, and then two separate bedrooms. Misses Greene had offered out one of them to Avures and Rael.
"Don't be weird about it." Avures sat his stuff against a wall with a window on it.
"It'll be fine, Misses Greene." Rael gave a thumbs up as she sat herself on the bed.
"Okay okay...goodnight you two." Misses Greene slowly backed away from the door and shut it behind her.
Avures didn't think to bring a second set of clothes, much less any nightwear. So, he just kept his outfit on as he sat on the bed next to Rael. Rael herself was in the same boat. She hadn't brought any change of clothes either. Though, the only place the two of them had gone were some dusty old ruins and an old burned down town they spent around twenty minutes in. Otherwise, they had been sitting in a wagon for most of the day. It's not like the clothes they currently wore were dirty.
The bed sat against a corner in the room. It was much larger than the ones both of them had in the Academy. As the two of them sat there for a few more moments, Rael backed herself against the wall. She sat upright, her back supported. She held her legs in close to her.
"Hey...Avures..." Rael's eyes were the only feature of her face that could be seen as her arms wrapped around her knees also covered most of her face.
"Hmm?" Avures put his back against the wall at the head of the bed. He looked over at her. Her eyes were dead set on the ground beyond the bed, but she focused in on nothing particular.
"Can you sit next to me?" Rael's eyes shifted to stare straight at Avures.
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
"Oh. Sure." Avures scooted himself to the side of Rael.
"Thank you." Rael let go of her legs, extending them out. She then leaned on Avures, giving way to sitting up and using him to rest on.
"Is something wrong?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, the last time you did something similar like this...something was very wrong."
"Oh...right...I'm sorry, Avures. But I want to ask you something..." Rael's eyes peaked up, she tilted her head up as well to stare him in the eyes.
"Go ahead. I'm listening." Avures stared back at her.
"Do you think...I'm...a monster?"
"A monster?...no?...I mean, you're obviously a human." Avures raised an eyebrow.
"That's not what I meant. I mean...after hearing about all of that stuff about me...from George...do you think it makes me...like a hazard I guess?" Rael let her gaze slowly fall to Avures's legs.
"If we're talking logically...I guess, but, I don't think I could ever see you in that way." Avures shrugged, Rael brought her arms up and wrapped them around Avures. She buried her head in the left side of his chest as the two of them sat there.
"Avures...I'm scared." Rael started trembling as she squeezed Avures harder. "I don't want to stop being me...I don't want to lose sight of myself...what if I hurt someone?...what if I hurt you?"
"I don't know, Rael...but..."
"Everyone deserves a chance to enjoy life...no matter what."
"Live for the people around you."
"I'll make sure that doesn't happen. I swear it." Avures wrapped his arms around Rael as well, lightly embracing her. Avures wanted to fulfill this promise to her. Not because he felt he owed her, but because he wanted to...
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Quiet footsteps could be heard through the sprawling of trees. Two boys both stepping around as silently as they could. Both of whom knew they were trespassing at this point. Lylas and Bif knew the woods around the Academy grounds, having gone out several times in the night to settle their differences with a late night brawl.
"Do we even know how far out this is gonna be?" Bif rounded a tree, and carefully stepped around some fallen branches.
"I thought ya knew?" Lylas came around the same way, staying close behind Bif.
"Damn...I really should have thought to get more info..." Bif snapped his fingers.
"What are you two doing out here?" A very familiar voice sounded like it was right behind them. Bif and Lylas swiftly spun around to greet it. Zen...
"M-Mister Zen..." Lylas was completely caught off-guard. "Bif and me were just...going for a stroll?..."
"Ah-huh..." Zen stared at the two. Bif slapped himself in the face. "Casually out and about during the one night we've told everyone not to be here, huh..."
"Okay look! Can you blame us? We want to see some action." Bif punched the air, showing his excitement.
"Ha...yeah...we were sorta thinkin...we've never seen ya or Miss Grula really like, "fight fight", ya know?" Lylas scratched the back of his head as he walked up to his teacher. "And asides from the sparring stuff, I think it'd be a good learning experience to see an actual battle."
"Hm...you make a good point, Lylas. However, you said "we" as in you and Bif...I don't believe for a second Bif thought that..." Zen grinned as he pointed to the light-blue haired boy.
"Hey now! C'mon!..." Bif felt the heat rise in him, but it quickly dissipated. "You're right...but that still hurts a little."
"Look...I have no problem with you kids watching...but you shouldn't be out here." Zen walked past the two of them and stopped. "This whole battle is actually taking place on the other side of the tree line, out in the open in between the hills at the side of the capital. So if someone were watching from the trees, there's a good chance no one would notice them as it all went down..."
"Ah-..."
"Well...see you boys around." Zen waved as he continued to walk forward. The boys stood there and watched until they couldn't see him anymore.
"Oh damn...he's game." Lylas chuckled and elbowed Bif. "Whaddya say we get atop the trees and go watch?"
"Bro I am ready to watch the real deal!" Bif looked around and jumped onto the side of the nearest, biggest tree. He swiftly climbed up, with Lylas following in turn.
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"All clear?..." The voice of Grula greeted Zen as he walked forth out of the trees.
"Yep. Should be no issues." Zen stretched his arms out to the side as he greeted her. "So, how did Meius and Xilvas want to do this?"
"Xilvas is really wanting to show our force to them. He's separated us all into groups of two. Meius is going to draw them out, and lead them straight to us. He's then going to either take Xilvas's side, or he's going to run around the field of battle and occasionally support us." Grula sighed as she stretched out as well.
"Did we ever get a clean answer as to why both cults were here?" Zen finished his stretching and put his hands in his pockets.
"Nope. But, Meius has come to the conclusion that there's no hostility between them. And, according to him, they're going to work together...using those eye-thingies of his, he was able to discern their words as "Let us cooperate and strive to fulfill our temptations..."...that's some pretty creepy stuff." Grula watched over the fields.
"That's just cult speak. They do it all the time." Zen shrugged. "The Ozix cultists don't tend to talk in rhymes or riddles, but instead, show extremely violent tendencies. Woe Cultists, on the other hand, love their poems and fancy words."
"And you would know...huh?"
"Hey now, you know I dealt with a lot of the tribulations they brought at the monastery. Don't accuse me like that." Zen frowned, but Grula laughed.
"I'm just teasing you, big baby..."
"Speaking of accusations...we were left with Godan or the son of Tobias...what do you think?" Zen walked up to the side of Grula.
"I think there's definitely something more to this." Grula's eyes fixated on a blur of movement ahead. "Godan doesn't seem to be the type who would betray us...and the son of the hero who helped Mathias fight the cult in the first place turning to their side? Especially with the goal of getting rid of Flow, weighed against something like the revival of Ozix?...I don't buy it."
"I was thinking the same...there's a lot of inconsistencies with all of this..." Zen watched on as the blur of movement picked up pace. "It's time..."
"Meius mentioned that there's a few high-ranking cultists here. Grand Priests among both sides. Should make things fun, eh?" Grula smirked as the ground seemed to shake beneath her feet. A small crescent opened up in the earth below as several shiny rocks came together and glowed as they shaped themselves into a ball and chain. Or more particularly, two balls and a chain. One large, spiked ball on each end, and a long chain in the middle.
"And you wonder why I call you a psycho..." Zen pulled his hands out of his pockets. It appeared now as if he had attached a set of rings to each of his fingers. These rings each held what looked to be a small spool of wire.
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"Oh shit...look at all of em..." Lylas sat on top of a thick branch at the edge of the forest. He pointed out at the open field.
"There has to be hundreds of them...oh my god." Bif was on a similar branch a few feet away. The two of them watched as the once orange sky was filled with darkness. The only thing that illuminated the scene ahead of them was the sparse light of the glowing moon, and several blimps of fire in the field ahead from the torches held.
"Take a look at that...Mister Deputy-Headmaster himself attracted quite a crowd." Lylas pointed down to the front of the horde. Meius could be seen running as quickly as his legs and feet would carry him.
"Oh I get it...explain it for me..." Bif nodded his head a few times before shaking it, he himself not really getting it.
"He's bait. Mister Valkir is leading them right towards all the other staff."
From the sight of the trees, the two boys watched the battle come into full swing. Several pairs of staff, alumni, and fourth-year students started a full-on assault of the cultists that came onto their grounds. The mixture of gray and black robed cultists quickly fell into disarray, and instead of working together, they mostly split into their own groups to fight the pairs of Lancers.
However, there was an observation that just about anyone could make watching over this battle...despite being spotted multiple times on grounds doing apparent scouting missions...the way they reacted to the battle was not that of a group who was prepared to fight against them. With how fast the fighting became a flooding field of chaos, soon then separating into several instances of battles all throughout, it was very clear none of them were prepared properly. This was something that especially all the teachers noted.
Causalities so far were completely one-sided as well with the Academy's side suffering no losses. Early on within the battle, Meius and Xilvas had taken complete control of the field. Standing side by side in the back-center, the two of them controlled the battle using their wide variety of magics. By using a very simplistic version of Perfect Dark, Meius spread out a light shadow several miles out ahead of him, covering most of the ground. Using this, he could simply enhance, heal, and lightly protect all of the Academy members. Xilvas, on the other hand, utilized his wind magics to either block attacks from behind, or attack unseen enemies.
As the two boys continued to watch the on-going battle, they happened to see a group of the robed cultists approaching Xilvas and Meius. Curiously, they watched on...
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"This-this is all wrong..." A cultist at the forefront of his group stopped some meters away from Xilvas and Meius. His hood was lifted off his head, revealing a white body-paint completely covering him with purple strokes of paint coming down as straight lines over his eyes. "But I'll end this..."
"Now now, you didn't seriously expect to attack our institution and win, did you?" Meius held his arms behind his back as he mocked the man.
"I expected a frail old man guarding the secret of our god, not several powerful warriors. It's all wrong. Damn that Usime! His reports were all wrong! Grand Priest my-!..." The painted cultist stopped in the middle of his sentence, having a revelation made to him. "No way...that voice of yours...You're-"
"What are you going on about?" Meius tilted his head to the side, taking a slightly mocking tone. The cultist's face twisted as he found himself thoroughly stunned. What was he talking about?...
"I'm not even going to entertain a single thought that just ran through your head. I won't entertain your idea of a fight either. Vile worm!" Xilvas took a few steps forward towards the cultists. "If you truly love your twisted god that much...I hope you enjoy the entropy awaiting you."
The group of cultists looked on stunned. But before another moment passed, Xilvas raised his right arm, his right hand clenched into a fist. Xilvas lightly scoffed, and unclenched his hand. The moment this occurred, a great storm of winds sprang forth. This tornado of sharp, razor like wind tore everything within it's path asunder. To the body parts that composed them, to the veins and organs beneath, to the blood and other liquids within, and then to the lowest degree of particles that comprised their entire beings...the cultists were completely destroyed.
"Huh...life is cruel sometimes with how instant death can be." Meius remarked, stepping back to Xilvas's side.
"Meius. That filth seemed to recognize your voice. Pair that with how this is all going down...Is there some information about this you're withholding from me?" Xilvas looked over to his subordinate.
"Huh? Nope. Don't get me wrong. Subterfuge and sabotage are my hidden weapons so to speak, but I can't take credit for this." Meius shook his head and smiled. Xilvas observed him for a few moments before sighing.
"Sorry for the accusation then. Something is afoot and I don't like it."
"Aw, no need to be sorry sir. Your shade can instantly clear out any lie, so I have no problem with you questioning me if it means easily maintaining my innocence." Meius frowned. "However, there's no denying it. Something isn't right."
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"Wow! Did you see that bro?" Bif put his hands on the side of his head in shock.
"Yeah...damn...to think he just-...killed all of em so easily. I had no idea our Headmaster was so strong." Lylas shook his head, almost disgusted by the sheer magnitude of wind magic he just witnessed.
"Wait! Oh damn it!" Bif slapped himself in the head. "I missed Mister Zen and Miss Grula tearing that guy apart!"
"Oh what?! We looked away for one second!" Lylas threw his hands up in shock.
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"Yuck. I got blood and guts on my wires..." Zen poked at one of the thin lines of wire extending out from his ring. A small droplet of blood, and a small solid chunk of red bounced off the wire and cascaded to the ground.
"When they split up like that...it kinda disappointed me." Grula sighed and reeled her balls and chain in. "I was bowling through them for a second there. Ran outta pins though."
"Please, either stop getting mad when I refer to you as a psycho, or stop saying stuff like that." Zen started wrapping and collecting the wires all strung about.
"Aw. Is someone upset?" Grula smirked as she finished and looked over the rest of the battlefield. "Damn. Not a single loss on our end. They're wrapping things up now it seems. We're no tacticians, and this wasn't really a real army on army battle...but doesn't it feel strange how easy that was?"
"It only really adds to the suspicion for me. Those cultists surely were not prepared to face us. They only tend to attack with overwhelming numbers, and or overwhelming strength." Zen walked over to Grula's side once more.
"Right. And they might have had the numbers...but they couldn't have not foreseen us having the strength advantage." Grula shook her head.
"Alongside that, when put into a battle, both the cults of Woe and Ozix tend to never retreat. It being a sign of weak faith and all. So, all these cultists and their superiors who participated died." Zen put his hand on his chin.
"When you put it together like that, Zen...it almost sounds like..."
"Someone planned this. Top to bottom. And with how every piece of this puzzle comes together...it can't be a mere coincidence. Though, it's most likely safe to say we won't be hearing from either of these cults for a long while now...my concern with this goes deeper. With my experience in dealing with both cults at the monastery, and the knowledge I picked up from Mottis's books, the Woe cult likes to follow trends and randomly picks leadership from the most devout of worshipers who have insanely good theological skills."
"We definitely hurt their leadership here. I get that. But-"
"Hold on. This was a different sect. At least, that's my theory. But as for the Ozix cult...they handle leadership through a tribunal system. Several different grand priests, and one above them all. If I'm not mistaken...that "one" might have been here."
"Hang on Zen! Are you saying that-that!...We were used to clean house so someone else could get a promotion?!" Grula dropped her weapon and grabbed Zen's shoulders.
"That's what it seems like...we already talked about the one guy's son, and Godan...I theorize, that one of the inner staff...is the one who planned all of this." Zen shoved Grula's arms off of him.
"But...we were all there. Xilvas's shade..."
"What has to have happened...is someone must have had a way to bypass his shade's ability to detect lies..." Zen sighed, squinting his eyes and watching the rest of the staff finish the battle. "Grula...you know I trust you, and I'm sure you trust me. We might be the only ones able to piece it altogether."
"Right...let's keep this all between each other for now until we figure some more things out." Grula turned back towards the rest of the battlefield. The conspiracy...lay ahead...