Her Light - Chapter 5
Added 2025-01-13 00:23:22 +0000 UTC------------------
The rhythmic clatter of hooves against the flawless road filled the air, steady and unwavering as the caravan moved forward. Gideon exhaled slowly, his fingers flexing against the worn leather of his mace’s grip before he forced himself to rest it against his knee.
The golden rain had long since ceased, leaving only the dry, crisp air of the Borderlands in its wake, but the weight in his chest remained. He could help a small smile upon spotting Isolde’s worry glances, blue eyes shining like gems while attempting to support Kaela.
Altheria, you are never wrong. She’s such a binding force…steady as the tide. Keeping his head toward the endless grasslands, he stole occasional glances toward the teen and blonde. It had been the right call to have a woman soothe Kaela. Isolde, don’t give me that look… I know you want to help but this is my burden to carry.
He should be meditating. Should be offering up a silent prayer. Instead, his thoughts drifted back to Her. Bound. Shackled. Sustained.
I don’t have the luxury to be trapped by my fears…my guilt. Reflect on Her words. She provided me guidance… Use it.
He closed his eyes, feeling the light of Altheria resonate within him:
“The hearts of many close themselves to fear, and in that closing, they lose the will to choose. Fear gives way to doubt, doubt leads to despair, and despair…to corruption. But you, my radiant brother, must keep your heart open—to the light and the shadow. Only then can you walk with purpose, without succumbing to either.”
Succumbing to either… Neither light nor shadow? What a harrowing test this is, Sister.
Eyes opening, he glanced to the rear of the wagon. Kaela’s world had totally shattered. She’d been silent the last several minutes, held in Isolde’s arms as the teen cried her fear out. He remembered that feeling, even if it had been more subdued at four when brought to this corrupted realm…when losing his father.
Mother, Father, you’re on my mind… He focused on the blinding weapon in his lap—his father’s, then his mothers…and now his. Did both of you know this truth? The Reaper’s words are designed to plant seeds of doubt… It’s their nature to corrode my soul with its whispers. But this isn’t deception… I feel the silent sorrow in your eyes, Sister…the gentle, enduring smile.
He clenched his jaw, the ache in his shoulders deepening. I don’t doubt. I can’t doubt you. But…I do have questions. You are everything, Sister… I swear. I want nothing more than to give everything to you…yet all I have to give has been given by you…freely. No. Agency is the one thing we have… We always have. And…you’ve given yours away to us…
The image of a divine woman bloomed before him, bleeding, shackled, holding their threads of faith…their offered agency, tenderly projecting her power into them.
Is it wrong that…I don’t want you to let go? That I am angry that you are in pain because of us? That we are…so weak? I don’t…know what I feel…but it hurts. The Reaper marred me in a way…I can’t understand. You’re all I see, Sister… I’m sorry.
A burst of laughter jolted him from his thoughts.
Kaela sat cross-legged in the back of the wagon now, animatedly gesturing as she spoke to Isolde, her hands moving in erratic motions. He only caught the last few words—something about pyramids and engineered marvels, concepts that meant nothing to him.
Trapped in his own mind, he hadn’t noticed when the girl had shifted from her initial panic to something else entirely. Excitement. Curiosity. A bit too much energy for someone who had been hyperventilating, crying, clinging onto a stranger in existential terror only an hour ago.
Coping… It will return tonight, or whenever she’s alone again. I need to be there when that happens…
He breathed a heavy sigh while turning his sight to the north, the gates they’d fought at barely in view now as they approached the 2nd Circle Gates. Beyond it, the veil of darkness swayed, the Shadowlands laughing at them.
I thought I knew it all…but now, I know there is more to learn. For now, push the questions down. There are more important things to do…people to comfort.
Fingers tightening on his mace, he moved it to lay across the seat across from him. Scars will heal…but are meant to bleed. Whatever this is…it’s better than despair.
“You’re enjoying yourself.” He stated, breaking the silence between them as he turned slightly to glance back. “How are you feeling, Kaela? Like you want to scream?”
Kaela blinked at him and relief crossed Isolda’s face. “Uh. Yeah? I guess?” she offered, tilting her head. “I mean, what am I supposed to do? Cry the whole way? This place is pretty cool… Crazy how all of you guys were pulled to this world like I was.”
“Not exactly,” he chuckled, shifting to face the pair. “We didn’t steal Eldritch artifacts from our parents. And you were crying an hour ago.”
Her mouth opened. Shut. Opened again. “Okay, wow, called out. Didn’t expect that.” She grumbled, leaning back against the wagon railing and crossing her arms; the teen glanced down at the dress which had been thrown over her otherworldly clothes for decency. “I thought you were supposed to be a nice guy? Whatever. I just figured, since I can’t wake up from this nightmare, I might as well start speedrunning the trauma, you know?”
Isolde frowned slightly at the term. “Speed…running? Huh. Another new word but easy enough to grasp. And Templar Gideon is a very nice man. He’s just matching your cultures…eh, sarcasm?”
“She’s coping,” Gideon clarified before Kaela could answer, his tone even and adapting to her attitude she’d shown the Purifier. “She’s the chosen one to conquer the darkness and free the trapped souls within the depths of the abyss, right?”
The girl’s nose twisted slightly, cheeks going pink and looking away. “Damn. You really don’t sugarcoat things, huh? I guess I have been kind of…like that. Sorry. Maybe I am coping. Bite me. Eh—not really,” she immediately reiterated, scooting away from Isolde and making the blonde giggle. “See? I’m not a total brat.”
He shook his head with a wry smile, reading between the lines. “Truth serves better than empty reassurances. You have nothing to be worried about.” Gideon pointed at her covered chest, the silver light of the pattern bleeding through. “You were marked with the Lantern’s Flame by our goddess. No one will judge you for not understanding our customs. We’re here to support, not to harm or demand anything.”
Kaela exhaled through her nose and gave a half-hearted shrug while holding a fist against her breast. “Well, I appreciate that, I guess. I’m…kind of scared to talk back, if you want me to be honest.” She showed a strained smile and pointed at Radiance. “But seriously, this place is insane. You’re all armed, which…yeah, isn’t normal where I’m from. I mean—look at that!”
She gestured wildly toward the looming fortress just ahead, its welcoming walls of white stone rising like a mountain of sanctity, Altheria’s runes glowing faintly along its base. The Northern Great City—recently completed, standing as the first line of true protection against the encroaching darkness from this direction. The Borderlands was their next anchor point.
Kaela whistled, long and low. “Pyramids got nothing on this. Holy crap, that is some next-level fantasy stuff. What even is that material? Magic concrete? No way this is just stone. That has to be reinforced with, like, alien tech or something, right? Did you purify it? Like, it was already corrupted here, or whatever?”
Isolde gave Gideon a look—one that clearly said, ‘Do you understand a single word she just said?’
Gideon exhaled slowly. He did not. But he did get the implication.
She doesn’t believe Altheria is a goddess…or at least she projects that to cope with something internally. For now, let it go. I don’t know what it is like to be her.
“I…do not know what ‘pyramids’ are or this ‘alien tech’ is,” he admitted, shifting in his posture and gesturing to the scowling knights who joined them on their ride back to their families. “But perhaps it would do well for you to better grasp our culture, as well… Understand that the word ‘alien’ to us is in reference to the Shadowlands.”
Kaela’s cheeks went from pink to white. “You mean… Oh, no, I’m not trying to offend you all or…or call your goddess something from—shit… I should just keep my mouth shut,” she mumbled, biting her bottom lip and shrinking under the glares of the soldiers.
“You’re perfectly fine, Kaela,” Isolde soothed, scooting closer to pull her in and act as an anchor to protect her from their searing stares. “Gideon is just letting you know that to us… Without our Holy Sister, we would have fallen like every other civilization that we have seen in the corruption… Their people lost to time.”
“So…there are others trapped here?” she asked, perking up a little and looking at him.
Gideon was quiet for a second as he turned to stare at the giant city fortress they were approaching. “Such landmarks typically crumble once purified… Everything you see is provided to us by Altheria… Given to us by faith. This is the Northern Great City. It was built as a bastion to solidify the Second Ring.”
Kaela’s brows furrowed. “Second Ring?”
Isolde took over, pointing back the way they’d come. “The Dominion is structured in three major rings. The First Ring is the oldest—Sanctaria, the capital, where Altheria’s Cathedral stands… Where I was born. It is where the original settlers, like Gideon and his parents, first took root after being pulled into this realm from our original world.”
Kaela stiffened slightly, staring at him. “Wait, so…so has Altheria told you how to get back to your original world? Why can’t she just snap her heels together and kick you back home? I just…I don’t get it. If she’s a goddess, then…can’t she destroy the Shadowlands or…smite them or something?”
A silence followed that question, even many of the soldiers looking toward him for a response, silently listening from beside the wagon. Gideon threw his arms over the sides and glanced to the side, catching Kalen and Drystan’s eye; his two other team members were guiding Isolde and his horses, giving them time with the teen.
He smiled and turned his sight to the bright sky, showing a mix of gold and light blue. “That is an excellent question, Kaela… The truth is, we don’t have a proper answer to it yet. We know we are weak…and if I were to guess, it is that the Shadowlands are just that powerful…having faced them myself many times. Still, despite that, we thrive and expand in Altheria’s light…”
Gideon didn’t say it, but his heart quivered at that simple question. Altheria…is only holding onto us due to our faith…desperately holding onto us at a cost we can never understand. It is true She is imprisoned…but the reason for that was cleverly left out, Reaper, left to interpretation.
Straightening, he spoke with transparency. “What I believe is that should we fall, this corruption will spread to our original world… We are the bastion, walking alongside our Eldest Sister in defense of Her work and glory… Her beloved brothers and sisters.”
Kaela’s eyes widened, a lump dropping down her throat as she cleared it and settled back. “That’s…cool, I guess. You don’t know, though, right? It’s just a belief. So… Yeah, I don’t know. It just feels a little…convenient.”
“You are not wrong. I told you what I believe. You are free to ask the High Sister when you meet her,” Gideon chuckled, moving on and pointing to the giant walls, standing over 300 meters tall that they approached. “The northern Second Ring we are about to enter has been converted almost entirely to animal husbandry and leather production—our mounts, our meat, our materials come from these lands. The First Ring beyond that guards the agricultural heartlands. Then…”
“Sanctaria,” Kaela stated, voice softer now but showing she’d been listening. “And the Third Ring? It, umm…looked like a full-on grassland. Wouldn’t that be best for animals and stuff?”
Gideon’s gaze turned back toward the horizon. “Eventually. This is the newest conquered territory,” he explained. “Some parts of it are still being purified. Land that was once corrupted but has been reclaimed through divine purification. We call the current outer ring the Borderlands. It is a land still at war.”
Kaela swallowed. “So it’s not…safe?”
Isolde’s expression darkened slightly. “The Third Ring is constantly under threat. The land resists. The corruption seeks to return. But faith holds the walls. Due to our population, we must expand by sections, purifying the land and relying on Altheria to fortify our hard-won territory with her protective aegis.”
Kaela stared at them, her fingers tightening slightly on the wagon’s edge. “…And you guys just live like that? Like…all the time? No weekends. No breaks. Just…wake up, fight the devils or whatever, and go to bed?”
Gideon turned his golden eyes on her with a curious smile. “Weekends? I don’t know what that is. But we do have one day in the week where all our forces return to Sanctaria, leaving the walls to be guarded by faith as we give thanks to our Holy Sister… It is the only life we have ever known, Kaela. Before and after we arrived in this world. Faith in Altheria has sustained us.”
A silence settled. Kaela looked back toward the fortress, her fingers drumming absently against the wood. When she spoke again, her voice was quieter.
“I guess…this is my life now too, huh? I…don’t know how to feel about that. I don’t know if…I can live like you guys do”
Gideon removed his gauntlet and moved closer to hold out a hand. The teen looked at his rough, large palm for a moment, then tentatively took it.
“What?”
He looked her directly in her scared eyes, trying to hide the terror in them and look strong. “You are learning to survive, Kaela.”
“Mhm…” was all she could manage, eyes glistening and no doubt crying out for her parents internally.
Her fingers flinched as Isolde showed a warm smile and placed her own over Kaela’s. “This shouldn’t be easy for you. You aren’t alone, Kaela. We are here for you. Faith in Altheria or not…she has given your care to us, and, to us, that is a binding force that is unbreakable.”
Kaela looked at her sandwiched hand, heat rising in her cheeks, tears welling up in her eyes. A few seconds passed, she sniffled, and stood to wrap her small arms around them, applying pressure to bring them closer.
“Thank you…”
A full minute passed as they held the trembling teen from another world in their arms. Her sharp edges began to ease for new, more sarcastic barbs to take their place. Gideon knew there was another breakdown that would come that night, but, for the time being, she had found her feet. Time passed in a blur of questions and half-understood explanations as they went through the city, stopping for food and water.
Kaela was ravenous for knowledge, throwing out question after question, half of which Gideon barely understood, which only made her giggle upon seeing his bewildered expression.
“Wait, wait, wait,” she said between bites of soup and bread, “you’re telling me the land itself resists being purified? So, it’s always been corrupted and you’re like…counter conquering it? Damn. That is kind of badass. It’s all, I’m going to eat you! Then, you’re goddess is all, yeah reverse uno! That’s a thing?”
“Okay, but how do your mounts get that big? Huh?! What do you mean they are born and grow up to adults overnight? That’s like some fantasy RPG nonsense!”
“What do you mean no one goes to the bathroom here? Where does it go? I haven’t had to go… This is like, creepy! Oh, not that I’m complaining! Just saying, go alien technology! Eh—faith-thingy? Sure.”
“Can I touch the fortress walls? Oh my god, do NOT look at me like that, I’m just curious! Wait, Isolde can you two like…not kiss? Yikes! That’s the first time you’ve given me that look! Wow. Some strict chastity stuff in this world, huh? Interesting…”
Her energy was exhausting, yet strangely refreshing.
Despite everything—despite the terror, the unknown, the sheer impossibility of her circumstances—she was adapting. Even if it was a mask, even if it was a distraction from the sheer magnitude of what had happened to her, it was still impressive.
And in some ways, Gideon envied it. Because while Kaela was finding ways to distract herself, he had only questions he could not ignore.
As they moved through the colossal gates of the First Ring, the sheer scale of civilization within the Dominion unfolded before them, nightfall beginning to take hold. Fields stretched for many miles, livestock moving in perfect harmony behind them under the watchful eyes of handlers. Towns bustled with life, artisans and traders moving in practiced efficiency.
It was peaceful. It was prosperous. It was flourishing under Altheria’s light. And yet…her wrists, bound in golden thread. The chains carved into her flesh. The smile, so kind, so patient—so enduring.
Gideon forced himself to breathe. Faith is a choice. Faith is an action. I do not doubt. I do not falter… I would die for you, Altheria…but how can I fix anything…fix that pain on your face, when I’m part of the problem?
The Reaper’s words lingered like a shadow, curling at the edges of his mind.
Who do we truly serve?
His fingers tightened around Radiance as Kaela spoke again, oblivious to the war inside him. “Gideon.”
He blinked, glancing down. “What?”
Kaela tilted her head. “You’ve been really quiet again. Are you okay? I think Isolde’s right. Maybe you have alien eggs in your brain. She should do an examination. Full body search, in my expert opinion,” she stated with a sly smirk that didn’t get past him. “No, seriously! Don’t go blushing on me, Isolde! Your precious leader could be in danger! Can’t we find a nice secluded place for you to check his temperature?” she asked with a grin.
For a moment, he considered deflecting. On the one hand, Isolde was floundering under the unusually deviant mind the teen had, totally unlike anyone they’d interacted with. On the other hand, he didn’t want to open up about this, so…why not lean a little into the girl’s teasing remarks to help her take her mind off things… It could help him.
He forced himself to nod, offering the first true smile he had mustered since the battle. “…Why not?”
“Yes, Kaela,” Isolde huffed, arms crossed and cheeks rosy. “Our culture is—wait, what did you say, G-Gideon? Why not w-what?! Did you hit your head?!”
Kaela’s whole body tensed as if she’d been electrified. “Please say you did! Isolde gets to do an, ahem, wellness check?!” she asked, hazel eyes twinkling.
He rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled. “Obviously, you’re worried about me, Isolde, and Kaela’s talk about alien worms invading our ears and slugs crawling down our mouths in the darkness invokes…certainly something in me. If you’d like to talk to me in private, then of course I’ll accommodate you, Isolde.”
“Oh…” Isolde brushed her golden bangs behind her ear, cheeks still flushed, but a small smile touched her perfect face. “A simple purifying prayer would be more than enough to dissuade any feelings of concern I have regarding anything physical…”
The teen was practically going blue in the face by holding her breath, nudging the woman with a sharp elbow, hissing, “Don’t waste the opportunity I gave you—think about the worms! Creepy, right? You gotta be extra sure! They can hide on his back or legs—digging into the skin…”
“Will you stop putting images in my head!” Isolde cried, bumping shoulders back and making Gideon chuckle.
She may be from a very…very different culture than ours. But…she has a good heart. At least she provides a good contrast that helps me see the shadows within the light… Thank you, Altheria. Though my heart aches for what I saw… I know I must endure it…for now.
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