Prophet with Sword Raised [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczM9vEzxW6uGJgqQyUZmYXmj_0Z-rXift_KsdT6YmrKR5Pc_I92KKatzUc4O-qHXFZ34ul-jaoTkA_x6CmiyCHrfSckS54EJzlezD8O6aoLCCCuPhBj43rcjndKO3SuQ0kW0slwwXacgsF7ZQsYyEh6z=w661-h992-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
“Are you sure we should even listen to this prophecy?” Phoenix skeptically asked as they moved to sit around the table that Madam Malik had originally prepared for them all to sit and talk at. Jerem had retaken his seat and was looking nervous as Dazien and Uriel pointedly moved to the opposite side of it.
“Of course, we should listen to it!” Rayna retorted. “It’s an actual prophecy! Some of the coolest stories have those in them! How badass would it be if you were actually part of one?”
“You really think the idea that my future is destined no matter what I might want is cool?” she asked with a raised brow as the bard moved to sit beside Dazien.
“I don’t think that’s really how that works; like King said, even if you’re in one, that doesn’t mean you’ll fulfill it.”
Phoenix paused at the seating arrangement and contemplated the spot either beside Uriel on the other side of the long rectangle or in one of the seats beside Jerem, who was sitting alone on that side.
She realized that there was obviously history keeping the men separated from each other, and she didn’t like knowing that this man had tried to kill Uriel in the past… but she found herself feeling a bit sorry for him.
Jerem had left behind everything to come here simply because Paul had asked him to and seemed to be trying to make amends. She could only imagine how he must have felt to arrive here and discover his liege to be trapped in stasis for however long it took her to reach Ruby…
Phoenix decided to sit next to him as she asked, “How much do you know about what happened with Paul?”
The elf seemed relieved as she sat beside him and gave a tiny sad smile as he said, “Only that he was trapped in a cursed stasis. I was hoping to get more information about what kind to see if there may be some way to lift it, but—”
“I have to reach Ruby Caste,” she answered, already knowing the method. She was also pleased to see Saiya sitting on the other side of the elf, and she hoped that meant he was giving off better vibes than Dazien thought he was there for.
“If you all are goin’ to be behavin’ now,” Madam Malik interjected. “It sounds like I should be takin’ my leave and makin’ sure no pryin’ ears will be in here if that’s alright with you, Saint Wayland.”
Phoenix smiled at the older woman. “Thanks, Madam Malik. I’m sorry for the fuss. Tell Rayk that I hope he’s doing okay and want to say goodbye before we leave tomorrow!”
“Phoenix!” Dazien chastised her, and she winced.
“Right, we’re supposed to keep that secret, so don’t tell anyone else, alright?” she called after the shopkeeper, who chuckled at her but nodded as she closed the door to the back room.
She turned back to Jerem and asked, “How about you tell me more about what happened with you and Paul? Then I’ll tell you about what happened with me and Paul, and then we can discuss this prophecy bit and how I’m supposed to actually use this weird metal ball?”
“That sounds fair—”
“But first comes that apology Daze mentioned,” she said firmly, setting the sphere of silver on the table with a clunk to emphasize her words. She wouldn’t budge from that position either. Uriel didn’t deserve to die for what he had done or to be called cruel names like that. If this stranger couldn’t apologize, then there would be no discourse between them.
Jerem looked from her to Uriel, then back and asked, “You said he was your best friend, but I had heard tell that he was your brother’s best friend.”
“He can be both,” Dazien stated, still seeming on edge with the whole situation.
The elf nodded in acquiescence, then gave a sigh as he turned to face Uriel fully and said, “I’m sorry for asking the others to kill you back when we first met. I apologize for referring to you by the name they called you in the Rings. I— I’m sorry for not returning sooner to apologize and mend all the rifts I caused. Will you forgive me for my mistakes?”
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Uriel felt frozen in place as he stared at Jerem. This ghost from his past actually returning to apologize to him wasn’t something he had even contemplated ever happening. He hadn’t even believed Phoenix would have accepted him after her own repeated reassurances that she would. He hadn’t seen this man in almost eight years, and suddenly Jerem wanted forgiveness for something that he had originally agreed with him on?
He had thought Jerem’s reaction had actually been justified and correct when they had first met. Uriel had deserved death. He had done everything Jerem had accused him of. He was an Annihilator.
You destroy everything you touch, he found himself thinking yet again. You are cataclysmic.
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Dazien placed a hand over his own, bringing him out of his spiraling thoughts, and replaced his mental whispers with reassuring ones. “You don’t have to forgive him. I know simple words can’t erase the years of nightmares in an instant… but this is one piece of your past that I don’t think you need to fear anymore, Senesh.”
Uriel glanced at his partner with a raised brow. “You believe him?”
“I’m not sure I truly believe he’s fully repentant, but I do think he’s committed to not hurting you because he wants to prove his loyalty to Paul —and, by extension, Phoenix and me.”
He couldn’t argue that point. Despite having seen the two men argue over him, Jerem hadn’t gone behind Paul’s back to kill him before, and he seemed even more desperate now. Uriel hadn’t heard details about how their party dissolved, though. News about the Blade of Pure Wrath’s Fall from the Purifier’s grace had spread like wildfire throughout the city when it happened, but neither he nor Daze had heard anything about the other party members.
So, with a deep breath, he said, “Thank you for apologizing and not killing me, but I don’t believe you were in the wrong back then.”
“Hey—” Dazien began to argue, but Uriel squeezed his partner’s hand and kept speaking.
“I also thought it would have been the better thing to do at that time, but I’m glad that we were both wrong.” He glanced over at Daze. “I’ve struggled over the years to recover from that time, but I’m glad to have finally been blessed again with people who love me despite all my flaws. It may be selfish, but I’m glad I’m still alive just so I can spend one more day by their side.”
Uriel looked over to meet Phoenix’s gaze, and her smile made one tug at his own mouth as he added, “I’m glad I got the chance to meet my best friends. I’m glad that when I was feeling broken and lost, they helped me become better than I was.”
Jerem stared at him, then gave a small laugh of disbelief as the elf said, “I’m not sure if it’s funny or disturbing how you worded that.”
The rest of the group matched Uriel’s confusion as they stared at the Emerald Caster. Before they could ask, though, Jerem added, “It just reminded me again of that bloody prophecy.”
“Well, now I’m even more curious about what the prophecy says,” Rayna said, failing to contain her tails as they wagged excitedly behind her, gently tapping against Dazien’s back. “Can I hear that before you guys go over the boring recap?”
“Rayna,” Saiya’s scolding tone said from across the table.
“Come on! I was there for whatever Phoenix is gonna say, and it’s not like anything this guy tells us about Paul’s past is gonna change where he’s at now,” the bard whined as she gestured between Phoenix and Jerem.
Jerem glanced at Phoenix, who glanced at Dazien, and Uriel almost laughed at the interchange of the silent hierarchy that had seemed to form between them. His partner gave a sigh, then waved for Jerem to go ahead.
“Well, it’s a bit long, and as Dazien implied, it’s very vague and unlikely to ever come to pass, but I guess you can share in my new sense of… I’m not sure ‘wonder’ is the right term, but something along those lines,” Jerem said before taking a breath and pulling out another slip of paper from the Blood Bag he was still holding.
Then the Emerald Caster handed over the paper to Dazien as he took on the tone of recitation and spoke from memory while Uriel read over his king’s shoulder.
In the time of crimson shadows, when the stars themselves quiver and the land groans beneath the burden of sorrowful souls, a hero of light shall awaken.
From the sacred whispers of the moons and the murmurs of the deep, it is known:
This hero, a beacon amidst the darkness, shall be bestowed a divine weapon of hope, given by the heart of steel entwined by their wrath.
With this weapon, tempered by the fires of fate and sanctified by the tears of the gods, the hero shall stand against the encroaching night where villainy hides.
A war shall be waged, fierce and unyielding, where the lines between life and death blur and the very fabric of existence quakes.
The noble hero, bearing the weapon of hope, shall lead the charge, rallying the hearts of the broken and the souls of the lost. A twin to the light of the dawn, they shall free the storm and cleanse the land in a rain of tears.
When the Celestial and Abyssal reunite upon the battlefield, they shall herald a new era. Beyond the reach of gods and reality, they shall fight for the future of all worlds.
In the final, cataclysmic clash of frost and flame, amidst the ruins of ancient realms and the cries of the fallen, a divine quintessence of hope shall emerge, and death itself shall be vanquished by the wayward hero.
From the ashes of despair, a new dawn shall rise, radiant and eternal, as life, unbound and everlasting, triumphs over the darkness of the void.
When he was done, the group all shared looks with one another before Phoenix loudly complained, “Yep. Complete garbage!” Then she surprised them by pushing away from the table to angrily stomp away.
The twins scrambled after her, managing to stop her before she reached the door, and began mentally talking based on their silent body language. Jerem turned back to look at him and Dazien and said, “I didn’t mean to make the lass upset.”
“She’s been struggling with the weight of responsibilities continually placed upon her shoulders,” Dazien replied. “First, it was being transported to a completely new world without a single soul to trust, then a litany of gods shoving quests and expectations upon her, then a nation looking at her as their saintly savior while another awaits her to actually save them, and now you speak of war that threatens the very fabric of reality. I can’t really blame her at this point; she’s not even old enough to marry, and she’s expected to —what?— save the universe in yet another impossible battle?”
Jerem glanced back at Phoenix before asking them quietly, “Is there anything I can do to help her? I want to prove to you and her that I will abide by my vow to Paul. I want to help.”
“We’re leaving tomorrow,” Dazien informed him with a frown. “I’ve already booked passage and promised Patricia not to tell anyone about our route or destination to better ensure our safety. I’ll have to ask her to give you the details.”
The elf slumped in his stool. “She’ll never tell me. She hates me for what I did to Paul when our party broke up. I’m also not the best at tracking people down, so I’ll have to be at the mercy of any letters you might send. Is there anything else I can offer?”
Uriel got an idea at the mention of tracking people down and said, “Actually, there might be something you could do for her that would mean the world and would make me extremely grateful to you as well.”
Jerem seemed to perk up at that and foolishly jumped at the opportunity as he said, “Anything.”
Despite the lump in his throat and the tightness in his chest, Uriel managed to say, “You can go bring her real best friend back to her.”