B6 Chapter 8: One Moment

I didn’t recognize the robe, but the material glowed in my senses with enough runic enchantments to rival the Lightcrest’s gate. The sigils I once thought of as decorated leaves were merely a distraction from the underlying stitch made from some type of metal.

The owner of the voice lowered his hood and stood tall. It reminded me of an oak, large and unbending.

My hands relaxed and I slowly reached for the hand clutching onto my collar. I managed to separate it with surprising ease, which threw the older man off balance. Walter, despite his earlier ire and threat, kept the man stable and prevented him from kissing dirt.

I frowned at the sight. This wasn’t the Dawnborn I remember.

“Cyrus,” Brelten greeted. The guildmaster looked relatively the same, except there were new lines etched across his face. He looked tired, exhausted in a way that breached lack of sleep. His eyes, though, managed to glow the same verdant green I recognized, and held strong even as his brows furrowed. “It is good to see you alive, boy. I’m sorry to interrupt your plans, though. We have some things to discuss.”

A wet cough filled the air before I could reply. Isaac’s father lunged for my collar once more. I leaned away, but a swirl of light extended out and grabbed at my jacket, allowing him to wrap his wiry fingers around the leather.

“I don’t care… What you need, Brelten.” Isaac coughed again and gold-tinted blood started to spill from the corner of his mouth. “I have business with him first.”

“I am here through official authority. Are you really going to impede the crown?” Brelten asked with narrowed eyes.

“I don’t give a shit about the crown,” he snarled. After clearing his throat after a sudden coughing fit, he dragged himself closer. “My idiot, foolish child… He… He..”

Walter started to pull the man back, but that only caused the Dawnborn elder to grab onto my clothes like a desperate animal.

Sereza and Khrem watched Brelten, their postures calm, but I could feel their mana simmering underneath the surface.

With a sigh, I raised my tail and slammed it into the man’s fourth rib. All the deranged madness fled as his eyes turned bloodshot. Mana running through the cane that supported him flickered as golden bubbles of light started to manifest around him.

“Aaacck! Yoooouuu!”

“Soul damage, right? It’s like electricity underneath your skin and bones,” I said as the man started clawing at his chest and dropped to the ground.. “You took a hit from the shadow user puppet. I guess I figured someone with a light-based legacy and your pride would have been able to purge the mana before it corrupted you. What tier are you now? It can’t be third. I’m guessing a good portion of your skills have been twisted and pushed out of place in your soul.”

Brelten’s eyes widened, but his expression pressed thin as he observed Isaac’s father. Walter looked conflicted. Obviously, there was no love to be had for the infamous brother of his mistress, but he still chose to bend down and activate a skill. 

A blue mist extended from his palm and stretched across Isaac’s father’s body. Within seconds, he stopped squirming and lay there on his back. His eyes never left mine, but there was something new within. 

A healthy ounce of fear as my tail snaked around.

Brelten extended his arm. “I have no love for this fool, but I cannot let you kill him. Not only would that sadden my nephew, but he is still a citizen of the kingdom. As well as an unfortunate asset that we cannot afford to waste.”

It looked like Brelten was swallowing his distaste, but his face was stern and he was channeling mana into his arm in preparation.

My frown deepened as I fought the urge to turn around and leave.

“I’m not so changed that I’d attack a crippled man because he messed up my clothes,” I sighed. My tail lowered and I turned to Walter. “Has Isaac checked in? Teddy’s parents?”

Walter stood up and bowed perfunctorily. “I’m sorry, sir. Sir Isaac has not come around. We did, however, receive a letter.”

“A letter?”

“Yes.” Walter held out his hand and a stained envelope appeared. “It arrived a month ago.”

I flipped the seal and quickly read through the contents. It was written in a cold, almost robotic script that reminded me of text produced through a printer, and not someone’s handwriting. 

There wasn’t much to read, only a few lines describing a supposed lead he was following and not to look for him. The concerning part was that he was heading further inland, toward the golden plains.

I folded the letter back together and handed it back. “Thank you, Walter. News from Teddy’s parents? I can see they did something, but no idea why.”

Walter cracked a smile before glancing at Brelten with a mixed expression. “They returned about a month ago as well. Unfortunately, they were beset by… other nobles and the crown. The illusions in the sky are their response. Regarding Sir Teddy and Sir Arturous, they are still resting inside the crystal. No changes have been observed, but they are hopeful. I’ve been instructed to inform you that the manor is yours to use as you see fit. They will be heading north for the time being.”

“North? How come?”

“I’m sorry, sir. I was instructed to tell you and I quote: “Do not worry about it.”

“I see…” I turned to Isaac’s father and shook my head. “Listen, whatever you think I did, you are wrong. So fuck off and leave. It’s the least I can do for Isaac.”

The man stood up, shakily but he stilled a met my eyes with steel hidden behind twitching muscles.

“Find him. Find him and save him from himself.” He coughed but maintained his gaze. “I don’t know much about you, Mordred. What I do know is that he listens and calls you a friend. A real friend. If he’s lost the others, then you are all that’s left. Save him, and the treasures in the Dawnborn vaults are yours to take.”

I nearly laughed. An instinctual reaction to the idea of Isaac listening to someone who wasn’t himself, Teddy or Celenae. The eyes though, the stare, it held the reaction back. There was desperation in the gaze and… Sadness. Regret.

“I can’t promise anything,” I said eventually.

Isaac’s father slowly nodded. “Good enough.”

He pulled free from Walter’s grasp and shambled toward the gate. Before he reached touching distance, a figure appeared dressed in white. He bowed low and held out his arm. Isaac’s father took it and the two disappeared in a streak of wind that carried them into the sky. 

“Does everyone have cool movement skills?” I mumbled.

“The attendant who ferried him away is the peak of tier two, whose passives are solely focused on that movement skill. Do not be jealous of those you will soon lord over,” Brelten lectured.

“Still the teacher. You haven’t changed that much, old man,” I said while holding out my hand. 

Brelten clasped my wrist and shook after a brief pause. “It’s been barely more than a year. You’ll find it takes much more time for an aged tree to shift its roots than a sapling with moldable branches.”

“You weren’t this metaphorical,” I laughed. “So why are you here? Aren’t you supposed to be running the guild in Edolus? How is that by the way? How’s Bera and Talys?”

“Talys is back at Edolus. The village has gotten far larger than you remember. In another year or so, it might just be large enough to rival some of the bigger, more established villages. Nothing like a settlement on the fringe. As for that woman, she is good too. Business has never been better. She did send over something for me to give you.”

“Oh?” 

He waved his hand and a large crate appeared, longer than I was tall. I used my tail to flick it open and revealed rows upon rows of bottles along with a mountain of wrapped sandwiches.

“Oh, she really likes you. I think the amount you have is enough to start wars between some of the noble houses. Please refrain from showing this off,” he said with a shake of his head once he saw the crate’s contents.

“Is that Viper’s Kiss? I thought it was crazy when you casually pulled them out, you’re telling me you knew the brewer? Damn,” Sereza muttered.

I waved her off and summoned Chomperz. The dragonling appeared and paused before Brelten. The guildmaster looked caught off guard as he met the spirit’s eyes, but Chomperz snapped his jaw once and sucked in the goods. He slipped back into my soulrealm as quickly as he appeared.

Brelten shook himself and nodded to Khrem and Sereza. “It’s nice to meet you. I am Brelten Giltolo. Ex-guildmaster of the Eoduls branch adventuring guild, and former trainer of Broken Tower. I’m also their adopted uncle.”

Ex-guildmaster, huh? So he’s part of the kingdom officials now…

“So you’re Brelten. Heard a few stories about you,” Sereza said, shaking Brelten’s wrist.

“And I you. Your records painted a hard-working and determined woman. Same with you, Khremmlebher. Your work as an alchemist, along with Sereza, is highly appreciated. Thank you for helping this city during a time of crisis. It’s rare to see a crafter throw themselves in the thick of battle.”

“Wait, wait. Khremmlebher? How come he knows your full name and we didn’t?” Sereza interrupted.

“Only my parents have ever called me that. They are dead, so I go by my name. Khrem,” the sharkman replied with a shrug.

“That’s dragonshit.”

“Ehem,” Brelten cut in. He smiled politely at my friends but returned to staring at me. “I’m sorry for disrupting your plans, Cyrus. We do need to talk, and sooner rather than later. I know you three have experienced… issues regarding some of the clergy of Solunaria’s pantheon. It’s best you follow me now, so we can get this out of the way.”

I shifted the expression on my mask and crossed my arms. “And what business is that exactly?”

He sobered and spoke in a robotic tone. “To discuss how this kingdom will regard you due to your nature. Whether you are to be determined a threat to our kingdom and hunted down, or praised and potentially recruited.”

A pregnant pause filled the silence. Wind blew, ruffling Brelten’s clothes, but he weathered it without flinching, even as grey spots started to stretch from around my body and still the grass.

“I see,” I said slowly. Breathing in and then out, I cracked my neck and sighed. “So that’s how it’s going to be.”

“Do not mistake me, Cyrus. I do not–”

“Just lead the way already. Sorry, Walter. We’ll be back soon.”

“Of course, sir,” the man replied.

With itching running up my left side I grimaced through the discomfort and motioned at the former guild master. 

He nodded and pulled out a crystal bell. With a single ring, the world flashed around us as mana stretched and pulled us into a tear in space.