Was it just a coincidence that his ancestor, Dalia Silver, had founded a kingdom in the very region where Aglain had committed his famous betrayal? According to the history books, it was here that Saint Limnin had rallied humanity into investing everything into one final push against the Inverted forces, and according to Mr. Herst it was here that Aglain had refused to partake in history’s greatest genocide. This used to be an area mostly inhabited by the Drunaeda, with nearly all of its former inhabitants dying at that time.
What had really happened back then, and how did it relate to the man in the cave? After what Alistar had witnessed—the inexplicable immunity to death, the powerful magics that had been at play both within and around that mysterious mound of earth, the famous names that had been spoken with genuine familiarity—could he really just dismiss this unwitting discovery as inconsequential and move on with his life as if nothing had happened?
Mind buzzing with questions, Alistar attempted to get some sleep but was far too weighed down by the conspiracies that were currently filling his head. By the time that morning rolled around, his eyes were sunken, his mind sore and his stomach full of endlessly fluttering butterflies.
Washing his body with water from the usual basin, he resolved to think about such things later on, for his schedule was packed full of commitments that he wouldn’t be able to tackle if he continued to be distracted by this growing obsession.
Try as he might to go about things as usual, much of the day passed in an absentminded blur. Tramon chastised him during his lessons for constantly losing focus, eventually dismissing him outright with angry words. Mr. Herst suggested that he head home about an hour into his visit, after Alistar had dodged all of his inquiries as to the source of his distractions and had kept drifting off into silent contemplations. Mr. Albeck had assigned him written work, tactfully shifting the focus of the day’s lessons from the practical usage of spells to familiarizing himself with the theories behind them. Mrs. Dawn had simply handed him a pile of parchment and told him to study the lessons that they detailed, musing that he must have been bored having to hear about it in person when he had such a great love for reading.
I’ve had it! He eventually tossed aside his practice sword from where he stood in the estate’s central courtyard, exasperated with his own lack of discipline. This is driving me insa… He trailed off as he recalled the erratic behavior of the emaciated man, feeling a bit low after making light of the word. There’s only one way to know for sure. I have to go back.
Collecting his weapons, his cloak, a wineskin and a healthy supply of food, Alistar penned a note for his uncle and left it with Rayson at the estate’s eastern gate. As far as his family would be concerned, he planned to spend the night at his master’s place. Leaving the estate behind, his heartrate quickened at the thought of getting to the bottom of the unwitting mystery that now dominated his deliberations. Alongside the rising sense of anticipation was an undertone of unease, as if he were knowingly about to commit a crime that had a low chance of success.
Pushing aside all of his thoughts, Alistar made his way toward the southern edge of the county with restless strides. Whether or not that man had simply been insane, he would find out in the coming hours.
***
Alistar deactivated the night cat’s eyes spell as he arrived at the little clearing where he had left an energy imprint the day before. He hadn’t run into any other animals after entering the forest, the only ones he’d sensed having immediately hidden themselves upon noticing his presence in the area.
The night was windy and overcast, light layers of snow beginning to pile onto that which already covered the ground. Brushing some of the precipitation from his shoulders, Alistar wasted no time in taking an uncertain, undeterred step forward as soon as he arrived at the threshold to the illusion’s boundary. Sure enough, the cave appeared before him as he stepped over the invisible line, his ears met with nothing but quiet whimpers of self-pity and suffering.
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The cave, the darkness and the man were still here, and so too were the magics that masked them.
“Who’s there?” came an erratic voice, the whimpering coming to a stop as soon as Alistar entered the enclosure. “Wretched dogs! Come to torture me again, hmm? Or are you here to take the last of my things?”
“I’m just here to talk. You might not remember me, but I found this cave the other day and—”
“Leave here, and tell your master that I’m still alive. That I haven’t forgotten…”
“I’m not who you think! I met you the other day. You killed yourself right in front of me. Do you really not remember?”
The man fell quiet, though shortly after came a string of incoherent mumbles.
Summoning a ball of fire to light up the darkness, Alistar made another attempt at communication. “Do you feel the warmth of the fire? Yesterday, you said that nobody could use magic here. Don’t you remember?”
“You left me to starve…years and years…”
Now that he was here a second time, Alistar looked around the cave with keen eyes. It was mostly empty, with only the containers of rotten fruit, a vile-smelling, aged rug of unknown fur that had been rolled up and stuffed between a few pieces of decaying furniture, and some other miscellaneous things. Spotting an ordinary-looking book atop a three-legged night table, Alistar stepped over the naked, mumbling man and retrieved it.
It’s empty?
He deflated once he saw that every page was blank. As he was returning it to its former place, the man suddenly began to accuse him of stealing his things. Hearing this, Alistar remained in place for a few moments, during which time the stranger seemed to forget about his presence. Over the minutes that followed, all sorts of things left the man’s withered mouth.
At times, he spoke in dark tones. During others, he cried and pleaded into the darkness with a weak, whimpering voice. Mostly, however, he remained deathly still in the silence, long stretches of immobility punctuated by the occasional tears that streamed from withered ducts in tandem with abrupt groans, sputtering coughs and sudden spasms.
“You scum Tephon, you’ll suffer for what you did.”
“Limnin… Limnin!”
“Dalia, please be okay. Dalia…”
“Hahaha, ahahahaha!”
Hours passed without any change, the man either forgetting that Alistar was present or otherwise mistaking him for other people whenever he tried to initiate a conversation. Eventually realizing that speaking with him in his current state was nothing more than a waste of time, Alistar left behind the food that he had brought along and then exited the cave with a dissatisfied frown.
Had last time been a fluke? Wondering this as he made his way back through the forest, he resolved to return to the cave at a later date. That the man had shown signs of sanity the first time meant that it could happen again. For such a serious and monumental mystery as the one that currently dominated Alistar’s mind, to write things off as a coincidence and simply continue on with his life was out of the question. Importance of the matter aside, his curiosity couldn’t bear it.
***
Alistar watched with careful eyes as the reinforced needle of ice embedded itself into the tree without breaking, at least half its length having punctured through the surface of the cold bark.
“That’s amazing, Corrie. You haven’t been practicing that long, and you can already use reinforcement magic.”
“Only on something as small as this,” sighed the other boy, who manipulated the needle into flying back into his hand. “If this was any bigger, it would have shattered just now even if it had been reinforced. The trick is to aim for a tiny target, which saves energy without being any less effective.”
They were the only two of the Dozen that had shown up to The Spot this afternoon, as Helen was off practicing archery with her mentor, while Lessa and Anice were in the midst of attempting to teach the other girls some novice spells at the Silvus family’s estate. Zech and Jaden were at the frontiersmen guild taking care of some business or other, which gave Alistar some time to exchange pointers with Corrie, who had been absorbed in self-study in the week since they had ventured out into the forest south of Distan.
“How much water can you control these days?”
Corrie answered by gathering about a torso’s worth, though this quickly fell to the ground as the dark-haired boy dropped to one knee with a pale expression.
“That’s a lot more than when you started.”