"I... used to be a normal person, too. Before I reached the 3rd stage, I lived with my younger sister near the butterfly lake of Altona and kept my head above water with odd jobs. My parents were no longer alive at that point and I... Eevie and I struggled from one day to the next. Looking back, however, I would argue that we had a nice life. Until the day Neonar of Fiet came to our village. I was 19 at the time and Eevie was... she was just 16 years old. I didn't witness the drama from the beginning, but he kept an eye on Eevie and demanded her to sleep with him, which of course Eevie didn't want", Aaron began to tell his life story in detail. "He didn't accept her answer and when she tried to escape, Neonar of Fiet had ordered his soldiers to find Eevie and bring her back. Sometime during this time, I returned to the village and saw Eevie being thrown to the ground by a soldier, right at Neonar's feet. When Neonar ordered her to sleep with her again, Eevie spat on his shoes..."

Aaron fell silent and turned pale in the face, though Cale could well understand why. He had heard the story before from the Eldest, so he knew exactly how it ended.

"... shortly after that, Neonar gave the order to his soldiers to execute Eevie. In broad daylight and in front of all the inhabitants, the soldier cut off Eevie's head."

At the statement, Aaron finally looked up again and stared Cale squarely in the eye. Presumably he was hoping for a reaction from Cale, but Cale didn't budge a bit. He himself knew exactly how bad it was to lose someone so important to him. After all, that's what happened to him for centuries with William, Ben, Philippa and Aletta.

"If the residents hadn't held me back, I would have attacked Neonar immediately, which probably would have ended in my death. Instead, I had to watch that man leaving as if nothing had happened. He grabbed the next random girl and disappeared into a tavern without giving Eevie another glance", Aaron explained in a stern voice. "And everything that happened after that can be found in the history books. It took me a few months to realize what exactly happened before I made up my mind to hunt down and kill Neonar. Admitted, my desire for revenge had eaten me up from the inside at that time. I couldn't think of anything else but Neonar of Fiet and when I learned about his children and children's children, I got such a rage that I couldn't control. I started to hunt down and kill all his descendants, only Neonar himself I have never seen since that day. It felt like two years later, he just disappeared from the scene, which fueled my desire for blood all the more."

"And that's how you became Aaron the Seeker", Cale replied with a sigh. Everything that had happened after that he knew too well. He had had a long talk with the Eldest about that time. Eevie Thopas was killed by Neonar of Fiet, two years before the Eldest, Damian of Fiet, was appointed an Apostle. Damian had told him then that he had his first vision some time later and how he had killed his son Neonar that night and set fire to his estate. While Cale did not know exactly when Aaron also became an Apostle, the Eldest and he had first met after about 10 years.

"Yes", Aaron confirmed, humbled. "For the next few decades, I was concerned with nothing but my revenge... I can't... sugarcoat it. But that was a lifetime ago. I realized myself that I destroyed my own future with my actions and I involved innocent people in it. All the rebellion that arose and led to the inner conflict of Altona... I never intended for it to happen. People appointed me some kind of leader without understanding why exactly I had such hatred for Fiet's family."

"And then when did you... when did you become an apostle?"

"When I was 35", Aaron explained. "I had met the Eldest a few years earlier, and at some point, as I became more involved with magic and less involved with my vengeance, I... my life returned to normal."

It was strange for Cale to see the whole events he already knew about from a different perspective. While the Eldest assumed that Aaron was the leader of the rebellion, Aaron told him that the people had taken advantage of his situation. Aaron tells him about the ups and downs he experienced and the reason why he hated the Fiet's family so much. But what amazed Cale the most was how he told it. It was something Cale hadn't thought about before.

Time heals wounds.

"Admitted, I've done a lot of wrongs in the past. If I could, I would undo it all, but I can't anymore. Because of me, hundreds of innocent people have died, and with this guilt... I've been living with this guilt all my life."

"That's why the people of Altona are so important to you. You want to pay that debt", Cale interjected as he realized the meaning of the words.

"You can look at it that way, yes", Aaron confirmed sheepishly. "I'm trying to make up for my mistakes, but I'm having a pretty hard time... explaining why I am the way I am. I don't feel that hatred for nobles anymore, and certainly not for a couple of children from Sylve who weren't even alive at the time. What I really want to tell you is that I... that my words at that time were wrongly chosen and I would never have willingly put the three of them in danger. I was just worried about Grischa and didn't think about what I was saying."

After this comment, neither High-Magician said anything. Silently, they stared at each other until Aaron avoided Cale's serious gaze and looked at the little cat. Fengari sat quietly next to Cale the whole time, listening intently to the story, when she ventured a quick glance at Cale.

<"Aaron the Seeker is known even by us, did you know that? The goddess Parousia considered him as a danger to humanity, but could not kill an Apostle like him without permission from the other gods. It was quite an issue back then">, she interjected, turning back to Aaron, who didn't notice the icy chill running down Cale's spine. The goddess of the present had her eye on Aaron back then? If he had not become an Apostle, would she have killed him? Were his deeds so grave that his death would have been a blessing for mankind? If that was true, how do you think Parousia would react to learning about Cale?

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"I have one question for you", Cale stated matter-of-factly, looking challengingly at Aaron, who merely nodded. "What if I tell them I'm a member of Fiet's family? Wouldn't you want to kill me right here and now?"

Surprised, Aaron turned to Cale. You could clearly see the discord in Aaron's eyes, but he held back. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Admitted, it's not easy to be confronted. It would make me a little uncomfortable, but I wouldn't kill you even if you were... Neonar... if you confessed to me that you are Neonar of Fiet."

<"Did you lie about your name?">, Fengari interjected.

<"No. Aaron's half-knowledge is twisting the facts right now.">

Cale toppled his head with his hand and waited some time until Aaron opened his eyes again and looked at Cale. He did not correct the mage immediately, but knowingly let him believe for some time that his archenemy was sitting straight in front of him. However, Aaron was not fazed. It was obvious that he did not like the thought of it, but he did not seem to hate it.

"I'm not Neonar. My name is really Caleb", Cale finally explained, watching Aaron's posture abruptly loosen. "Neonar is dead, I can assure you of that."

"How... how do you know that?"

"I know the person who killed him. Let's put it this way", Cale explained, gesturing with his hand as if making Aaron an irresistible offer.

"Tell me, please. How did he die?"

"He came to the wrong person with bad intentions and was killed. It should have been a few years after your sister Eevie was killed", Cale clarified wryly. "I can't give you names, sorry. I swore that to the person."

Speechless, Aaron sat before him as he processed the statement. That was all Cale could tell him without dragging the Eldest into it, and that was something he would not allow himself to do. Let the Eldest himself decide when and if to tell Aaron. Given the circumstances, it would be worth considering that misunderstanding. If Aaron was telling the truth, which Cale was currently assuming, then he would probably even be grateful to the Eldest, even though he will feel lied to.

"I had my doubts, but you really are one of us, aren't you? You're older than the rest."

<"Are we back to that topic again">, Cale spoke up, slightly annoyed.

<"What do you mean?">

<"People tend to get caught up on the time travel thing. It's not the first time that this happenes. My problem is just that I don't want to tell them.">

<"Why?">

<"They'll either think I'm crazy or they despair that they're just a copy of themselves.">

<"How can you be so sure that's the case if you've never tried it?">, Fengari spoke up, causing Cale to rub her head and look at Aaron.

He always went around in circles on this topic. It was as if everyone was telling him that it was better to let the others share. On the one hand, it might be true, because the Eldest also knew about it and had been able to help Cale tremendously, but on the other hand, he was afraid of how they would react.

Nevertheless, there was one important reason that made Cale doubt his behavior more and more: he was caught in a time loop. His actions didn't matter at all if he couldn't find a way out of this situation.

<"It's not that simple, Fengari.">

<"It's easier than you think. What are you going to do? Stay trapped for eternity or seek out for help? You came to us too, after all, why not start with the humans who are right under your nose.">

The black cat straightened up and jumped down from Cale, so the two High-Magicians followed the small figure in wonder. Fengari walked to the opposite side and stared up at Aaron, who returned her gaze wordlessly. As Fengari leapt up to his feet, Aaron jerked in surprise and distanced himself from the cat with your upper body, while Fengari sweetly drew a few circles around herself and took a seat facing Cale.

<"It's quite clear, isn't it? You're stuck here, and unless you change your plan, nothing will change. From what I've heard and seen, the Apostles are more useful than you give yourself credit for. So why...">

"What's wrong with that cat?", Aaron unknowingly interrupted Fengari, pointing his finger skeptically at the small creature, which turned its head back and looked at him with its bright eyes.

"Ignore her. As long as you don't hurt her, she won't attack you", Cale stated matter-of-factly, but the statement made Aaron tense up even more. Fengari seemed amused by the reaction, because she straightened up and rubbed her coordinated against Aaron's stomach, who clearly didn't like the whole thing.

Cale cleared his throat in amusement, which caused Aaron and Fengari to turn around at the same time. He held his hand in front of his face while he took Fengari's statement to heart. She was right somehow and the Eldest had already pointed it out to Cale as well. He couldn't get anywhere on his own and besides, even William had realized that he had lied about his age.

"Yeah, you're right. I am old", Cale finally raised and took a chance. "I'm older than you, and I'm even older than the Eldest himself."

"You're older than Raphael himself?", Aaron admitted in wonder, seeming to have completely forgotten about the cat in his lap.

"Yes, although in my case it is considerably more complicated than in yours."

"Is your special case the reason you're still aging?", Aaron gave word, causing Cale to flinch briefly in surprise. He had completely disregarded the fact that the council members were considerably older than the rest, and thus were well aware of their longevity.

"You could say that, yes. I will age for another three years or so and then become like you."

"I see", Aaron replied, dropping his gaze to the black cat. "You're probably not going to tell me exactly what happened, are you?"

"No", Cale merely replied, extending his hand forward. Fengari recognized the signal and deftly jumped from Aaron to Cale's table and climbed onto his shoulder, which Aaron watched in fascination.

"I understand. Allow me to ask just one question", Aaron explained, rubbing his clothes as if to brush away cat hair. But since Fengari's body was only an illiberal one, she simply did not shed any hair, which the High-Magician realized on his own after some time. "Ziyad's vision... the little girl that was chased through the city by a stranger that time. That was you, wasn't it?"

Cale remembered again the day in which they had talked about each other's visions and how the 7th seat had told about the little girl who was approached by a man in the alley.

"Yes, that was me. That was the first time in my life that I used magic", Cale confirmed calmly and straightened up. He had been with Aaron for far too long and had done nothing yet for his upcoming class. Inevitably, he had to remind himself that Aaron also knew about the Chronicles, but did not ask about it. Presumably he figured that was related to Cale's special case and therefore simply accepted it. "Do you have any other questions or can I go."

"No. Thank you for... listening."

"We owe each other that much, don't we?"

With that statement, he stepped toward the exit, followed by Aaron.

<"Aren't you going to tell him? The whole story?">, Fengari spoke up.

<"No. I'm a little cautious about the subject.">

Cale opened the door and said goodbye to Aaron with a short bow, while Fengari gracefully remained standing on his shoulder. As Cale walked out into the hallway, Aaron paused in the doorway for a moment, watching him, before calling out to him one last time.

"Caleb!"

Surprised, the High-Magician turned backward and stopped.

"Your cat...", Aaron raised, causing Caleb's gaze to fall on Fengari. "... is cute."