Chapter Twenty

"A leader separates want from need. This choice, where the risk to take must be chosen, shapes the destiny of all." - E.B.

James

James watched as the others departed from the camp, leaving only himself and Emy behind. "You are welcome to join me in visiting Elric," he offered.

"As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll pass. You've probably noticed too, but it seems like Fire types aren't very popular around here," Emy replied, letting tiny sparks dance around her as she shrugged, trying to hide her discomfort.

"Yeah, it's odd. I've been thinking about it ever since Frank was giving orders. Remember what Coach said before we arrived? Infinite possibilities, and yet the System chose us to be here. Why?" James wondered aloud, not really expecting an answer.

"SQUAWK!" Rose chirped from the trees, trying to join the conversation.

Emy looked up at Rose and then back to James. "Thanks, both of you, but I'm not worried about it. If anything, the System is giving us time. Maybe it just wants me to learn how to use that Quantum Gateway. Something I'm nowhere near understanding." Emy glanced at James, who seemed to be searching for words of encouragement, so she decided to give him an easy out. "Enough about me. I'm fine. Sheesh. It'll work out. Besides, we need to find out more about this place. You need to go play Mr. Diplomat."

James half-smiled, realizing that Emy was giving him an out and accepting it. He would help find a way for her. They had to stay together. The last thing they needed was for someone to feel left out. He hugged her and headed toward the Guardian's Hold, glancing back and feeling a bit relieved to see that Emy had also left.

Like Frank's route to the Armory, James was surprised when the gate opened automatically but quickly understood when the Zar'Keth man appeared.

"I am looking for Elric'Ryn. He wanted to speak with someone from my, uh, company," James said confidently but faltered at not knowing what to call his team. The thought made him wonder if it would be stranger to call themselves Cohort 13 or the Mighty Eagles.

"He has been expecting you. Come this way," the man said and moved towards a doorway near the western side of the inner gate. James followed but paused to look at Rose, now perched on a rock formation near the gate.

"She is welcome to join, but know this is a safe area to explore. It is not uncommon for visitors to have companions. Though yours is a bit larger than the ones we see near the village." Hearing this, Rose puffed her chest out as James noted her back straightening. She gave a slight shift of her head in disinterest.

"We'll take your word for it. Rose is going to explore a bit." James smiled at Rose as she then took off towards the sky. As she left, he attempted to give a mental nudge of safety, unsure if it would work, only to get a quick flash of disgust in return. It seemed Rose was already rebelling.

James caught up with the man as he entered the doorway. "I didn’t realize this area existed on the initial pass through the town."

The tribesman stayed silent momentarily, as if deciding whether to respond, but eventually relented. "You'd be amazed at what our builders can accomplish."

"My name is Grace," James said, picking up on the slight note of kindness and hoping to expand on it. "We have been amazed more than once today, that's for sure. Are you part of the leadership here?"

"Gill, and no. I open gates," Gill answered, but James couldn’t help but notice a slight smirk on the man's lips as he turned back and headed up a staircase or stone ramp that protruded from the wall. If you faced the wall directly, you wouldn’t notice the stones shifting inward.

James followed up the stone staircase and observed the stone shift, turning into an overhead column for the hallways below, but now a bridge and a second floor upstairs. The pathway circled back towards the gateway as an open door led into a rectangular room, surprising James with the sheer size of an area he hadn't noticed.

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"This is the Command Room," Gill said and returned to the stairs.

"Thank you, Gill," a familiar voice spoke from inside the room. "Come on in, Grace."

James entered the room and saw Elric with his back to the door, looking at what resembled a chalkboard fixed into the stone wall. The room had a large table in the center with 12 stone chairs surrounding it, all fixed into the ground. Each side had a window, one facing the village and one looking over Guardian's Hold and past the mountain. James also noticed another stone staircase fixed into the wall closest to the tribe, leading to an upper door that must be a lookout above. Everything flowed seamlessly as if it had grown organically from the earth.

“We are simple people,” Elric noted, observing James's awe of the room. “We live in harmony with the earth; in return, it takes care of us.”

James hesitated, searching for the right words, but stuttered. Elric turned to face him and continued, “My son may do some foolish things, but he is no fool. Trusting your group after a single act of kindness shows his lack of real-world experience.” Elric sighed, “So I must ask, who are you, and why are you in my village?”

James, not the wisest of men, understood the gravity of trust. He knew this question was inevitable, though Elric was known for his stubbornness. Nonetheless, he needed to speak the truth, or at least enough of it, to build a foundation of trust.

“If it helps, I’d argue the boy has some of the best instincts in the tribe,” James said, smirking and watching for a reaction from the stoic man. “If there's one thing you take from what I say, know that we are not your enemy. We had the choice to be your enemy before we met your son, and he didn't give us much choice.”

Elric tilted his head, considering James’s words, but allowed him to continue. “You see, we are not from this world, as we are actually fighting to save our own. Just as you battle the Taint, our world faces its own… challenges,” James said, shaking his head at the absurdity, but Elric’s gaze didn’t falter. “We chose to fight for our world and, as a result, received help from something called the System. I won’t go into detail unless requested, but it brought us here to get stronger. I imagine your tribe has much to teach us, and in turn, we can help protect your tribe.”

Elric’s expression softened into a slight chuckle. “Should we need your help, huh?” James inwardly cringed at his poor choice of words but maintained a composed outward demeanor.

Silence hung in the air as Elric placed his hands on the large table in the middle of the room. James noticed the markings and stone cutouts that depicted a map of the area, with a river cutting through the lands and clusters of rock icons below the larger mountain.

“Do not take my laughter as humor. Should you support our people in any way, our people will support you, but know it may be more of a challenge than your company is accustomed to.” Elric rubbed his cheek in contemplation. “Regarding your comments about other worlds, we do not believe we are all that exists in this great beyond. Only an ignorant man would discard all we have found scattered across the lands and kept in that junkyard.” Elric laughed again, still deep in thought. “Well, my son may tell you differently.”

“No,” said the Chieftain, composing himself again. “I am not ignorant, but I am stubborn. Stubborn in protecting our people's way of life. Grace… my father died a happy man. He lived his life keeping peace and allowing this village to prosper. Prosper with riches? No, but with a community that protected each other and maintained our peaceful way of life.”

“Do we train to fight? Yes. Do we master our crafts? Yes. But do we challenge that which has led to our peace? No.”

James seized the moment to gather more information. “Kael held his tongue about the mountain, but it was noted something was threatening your people.”

“It is not new. The mountain craves, and the mountain takes. Our families have allowed it for generations. I will entrust you with some truth, but if you abuse this knowledge, even with my son, you will know what it means to go against the village,” Elric said, his eyes betraying a flicker of unrest as he realized time was not on his side. James, sensing the gravity of the situation, nodded in agreement.

“You hear of it as the Taint, and it grows stronger. It preys on some more than others but changes you if you let it. Stray too far to the North, and the air will take hold. It will push your body to strengths and powers, stretching your very existence…” Elric paused. “But it will also plant a seed inside your body. Call it a curse to listen to the mountain, to abide by its will and toxins…”

James looked back at the map on the table, glancing at the carved shapes below the mountain. “Do those represent those that have…” James began, but Elric finished for him, “Those that have fallen to the Taint. Some from our tribe, most from smaller surrounding villages. Earth, wind, water, and… fire. All types have built their communities within the Taint. Lawlessness, evils, and yet powers that cannot be matched.”

“Every two cycles, we supply an offering to the mountain, and in turn, we keep peace with their lands. I ask that you do not interfere despite what you may think of this. The price for peace is far higher than the price for mere offerings.”

Elric turned to James, his voice hardening to stone. “Should you or your people ever break this truce, know this: you will unleash our people's full fury and unyielding might. Cross this line, and it will be the end of you.”