Charette bounced down the roadway nearing the distant city of Mashalum. Apparently, there was a fair being held there all week, or so she said. The town itself was located in what the Recundian’s referred to as “the Midwest” though considering the state was located to the easternmost edge of Yusanik, Reial didn’t quite understand how the name made any sense.

Much like the northern reaches of the state, there were countless solemn monuments erected in the countryside. These in particular, however, appeared to predate the Unification Wars. Their craftsmanship spoke for themselves. Grander than polished walls of stone, these were cobbled pieces of dawn stone that were fashioned tall to form Vaes’s uniform symbol. An incomplete pentagon with two lines parallel of its top, reaching for a hanging diamond. Yes, these were the remnants of Vaes’s Crusades.

Reial vaguely recalled Eston explaining the significance of its shape. The incomplete pentagon represented cooperation and unity, as they boosted the parallel lines to an otherwise unreachable goal. Vaes’s uniform symbol lacked complexity, but Reial had always thought it more visually pleasing than his personal one.

The monuments hummed with Essence, spewing clouds of rainbow miasma that twisted and coiled around the shapes as if to desperately prevent the energy from escaping. A common occurrence associated with makeshift dawn stone structures. To him, it was like watching a colorful heatwave.

“Wonder what’ll happen if we touch those?” Charette inquired.

“Probably nothing if its anything like ordinary dawn stone,” Reial said.

Charette looked down at Scorch, who was practically bouncing around. Was he excited to visit the fair too? “What do you think Scorch?” She asked.

The drog stopped, getting onto his hindlegs, and rivaling Reial’s height. He peered at the monuments, then said something in his garbled drog speech before shaking his head.

“Nothing too, huh?” She sighed. “I don’t understand why we have all of these amazing things that we don’t even know what to do with most of the time. You’d think the ancients would leave a guidebook or something.”

Reial arched a questioning brow. “You’re asking for a lot from a long-dead people.”

“Come on, you can’t tell me that you’re not curious either!”

“I am.”

“Then shouldn’t you be a little vexed that we don’t have the answers?”

“No, I think the mystery is sometimes more intriguing than the answers you might find along the way.”

Charette groaned. “Mysteries, mysteries, mysteries. That’s all we have these days.”

Reial grinned. It was a partial truth. After all, who didn’t enjoy a bit of wonder every now and again? The times a mystery deeply troubled him was when he didn’t know what to make of his life. What path would lead him where, would he be the same tortured being as he always was, or would he change? Now those were questions he wanted answers to, and desperately so.

Charette perked right back up, and—almost as if forgetting—tapped two fingers against her forehead in respect to the fallen Striders, as well as Vaes. He had once walked these fields before, after all. Were they not holy grounds?

Reial listened to the whistling wind as it grazed the fields, a sound he was becoming more and more fond of the longer he stayed in Recunda. It was significantly more soothing than the rustling and scrapes of branches, more tranquil. The rain had stopped pouring as well, giving way to open blue skies that were impossible to truly appreciate back in Aunesfern. It was a simple beauty, but beautiful, nonetheless.

The radiance burning in the sky pulsed with jubilation, infecting Reial with its mood. Today was a day to rejoice and take in the splendors of the land, not to mop. Strange that a thing like the weather could have such an impact on one’s mood. Even the ancients believed that, and they were wise beyond them.

His negative thoughts shied away from the light as if they would instantly melt upon contact, retreating to the recesses of his mind. In fact, he’s never been in a better mood since Macoula. That same, intoxicating joy pervaded his mind, filling his thoughts with warm, loving memories and ideas. It was so subtle that he could’ve sworn something alien was forcing them upon him.

Today was a day where the light touched and nurtured all, like the ancient fables of Solvaylius. Whose golden light is like the finest silk upon one’s skin. Reial smiled in surprise. It’s been years since he last read Yushiloc’s Trine, and he still remembered the final passage vividly.

The story claimed that the radiance in the sky was the physical manifestation of Solvaylius. A being capable of soothing the moods of the destressed, no matter how overwhelming. A power that—to Reial—appeared more godlike than what he himself could do. It was easy to break and move things, even without the power to do so, but to change how one felt and thought no matter what mood they were in? That was truly unique.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Still, he wondered if there was a glimmer of truth to that story. After all, the radiance pulsating in the sky was able to ward off his foul thoughts. Could it perhaps be Solvaylius that was the cause of this? Did It care enough to try and quell his worries?

Theirs was not the only planet in the universe. Veil Seers with greater capacities were able to see hundreds of worlds and stars beyond theirs. Despite there never being activity or civilizations present. Did Solvaylius only care to grant them It’s radiance? And what of the Almagest? Why couldn’t they see Them?

Reial had always thought of Veil Sight as an incredibly versatile, albeit ordinary ability. From bird watching to being able to inspect buildings and their faults, he acknowledged it more as a tool for a hobbyist or even construction worker. He always wondered why they weren’t able to see the one they claimed be their God.

Priests and preachers spoke of the Almagest as one being inhabiting different aspects, which only made Reial question if it truly was one entity when They could change who they are at will. They also added to this by saying the reason they couldn’t see Them with Veil Sight was that They appeared as everything yet nothing at the same time. Being beyond and limited in scope.

Those all felt like excuses to him at the end of the day, but he tried not dwelling on them. His thoughts were better spent elsewhere. Not on metaphysical nonsense.

“On the contrary, I do believe you enjoy pondering about subjects that make you uncomfortable.” The voice chimed. “Or am I wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Reial said, trying to avoid the matter.

“The more you understand something, the more familiar you become with it. That’s what you’re trying to do, right? So that it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

He stilled. It wasn’t trying to mock him, that much was evident by its tone. Instead, it sounded concerned. Like it was afraid something would happen to him.

“This isn’t the answer, Reial. I know what you want to do. What you’ve wanted to do for years now. Don’t do it. It’ll only serve to hurt you and those you care about beyond recognition.”

An ember of annoyance stirred in Reial’s heart. “Why should I listen to you? I don’t even know who or what you are. For all I know, you could be a Nether Dweller.”

The brilliant presence in his mind didn’t recoil at his words, if anything, it dimmed as if disappointed. “I am not one of those tortured vessels of madness. I only want the best for you. The best They would give you.”

“Why should I care about what you want?”

“That’s the issue. You don’t care, and if you don’t care about yourself, then you might as well care about what I want.”

“And what would that be?” Reial asked hesitantly.

“Wanting the best for you.” It repeated.

The request stunned him into silence. Why would It care if he was doing well or not? They didn’t even know each other personally, if anything the voice was more of a stalker reading into his thoughts and memories without his permission. Reial didn’t even know its name if it had one! He groaned inwardly. Empyreans, why me.

What could he do? Ask it to leave him alone? Would it even comply then? It seemed content to bother him. “What do you want from me?” He finally asked it.

The voice breathed a sigh, or at least something akin to that. “I know you don’t believe me but trust me when I say that this is for the better. Both for you and me.”

“Why does it need to be better for you?”

Now it was the voice’s turn to fall silent. There was some ulterior motive here, something Reial didn’t know. This thing wasn’t just being nice out of the kindness of its heart. It wanted something from him.

“I could never be like Them,” It said softly. “My entire purpose, the reason I was created was so I could become that beacon of radiance. To comfort your kind as they had years ago. I have done nothing but fail at my duty, but here I can try to right my wrongs. I can finally be who I was meant to be.”

Reial knit his brow. Was it being honest, or was it lying? Why should he give it a chance. And just who were ’they’? The Almagest? Reial could sense the discontent emanating from the voice, almost as if it was nervous he would reject its aid.

No, he shouldn’t be moved by what could possibly be a lie. He was here to give his sister and Scorch better lives. Not to bend to the whims of some voice that had only come to him recently. For all he knew it could be a Nether Dweller trying to trick him into performing some heinous crime.

“No,” Reial said firmly. “I don’t need your help.”

“Yes, you do.”

“I’m not going to trust some Nether Dwellers spawn. I may not be able to be rid of you, but I can still ignore your temptations.”

“I’m not trying to tempt you!” It exclaimed.

“And I have no reason to believe you’re being truthful.”

The voice groaned in frustration. “What will it take for you to trust me?”

Reial shut his eyes and tried to imagine its voice on a body. It didn’t sound deep, if anything it sounded somewhat childish, though it did betray a hint of wisdom. Not entirely human, more like something artificially replicated to sound human. What was It?

Was it being honest? What if this was his only opportunity to extinguish the doubt from his mind and heart? To be rid of the thoughts that plagued his mind like a lethal poison.

Reial shook his head. No, he couldn’t trust it. If he did, it would take the reins from his life and drive him to the goal It wanted to pursue, not his. Just like what his parents and teachers had done. This was his life; he should be allowed to live it as he pleased.

So, he chose not to respond to it. He had no obligation to engage in conversation with it, so why bother? That would be wasted energy on his part. All that mattered was the fair and Charette’s and Scorch’s wellbeing.

“Fine,” It said, sounding defeated. “Be that way. I won’t hold a grudge against you, not after the life you’ve lived. But know this: we are inexorably linked, and I would have you refer to me by name. I am not something to be handled. I am as much a free-thinking being as you are.”

Reial half-heartedly listened as he watched Charette feed Scorch a snack from her bag. They were all he had left in the world. He didn’t care about anything else, so why let this thing prevent him from giving them what they deserved?

“My name is Linithesis, last of the pure born pneumas. Counselor of the Thirteenth.” It proclaimed. “I bore witness to the Almanesian Diaspora.”