Fallout

"Excuse me, WHAT?" How could he still be alive?

He nodded, "Due to my affinity with Vivum, I can sense when someone dies. I can feel the very life seeping away from their bodies. In Reynolds' case, that did not happen. He just simply disappeared. The ring tried to transmit something to you, but your emotional state was too chaotic to interpret it. And that fire wasn't nearly strong enough to burn someone to nothingness."

"The ring…. tried to transmit something?" I echoed.

"Yes, likely a location."

"A location… yeah the ring was supposed to teleport him to a safe place." I muttered, realizing that he might have actually survived.

"Don't get your hopes too high, for all we know the ring might have sent him to Alacrya." And just like that, my good mood vanished.

"It won't, it's supposed to send him somewhere safe." I protested.

"Do you really think anywhere in Dicathen is safe anymore?" he retorted, rolling his eyes.

"..."

"..."

"Fuck."

"Yep, you should have been more specific when you made the ring."

I sighed, "I can hardly do anything about that now."

"Yeah, you need to accept it and go looki-" he stopped abruptly, "Who's there?"

"I come in peace," a voice called back, a very familiar voice.

"Erebus." I acknowledged, "Surprised to see you here."

"How could I not come after the stunt you pulled?" he defended himself, "Especially since you managed to keep it stable this time."

"What was that form anyways?" I decided to ask, why hadn't I been told about this before?

"A mugetsu is what that was." he muttered under his breath, and before I could question any further, he continued, "That was you using more of the Key's power, think of it as a… Phase 3."

"So, does that mean I can use it again?" I asked hopefully.

"Fuck no, I'm not sharing your backlash again."

I turned to face him, "Wait, you did what?"

"You heard me."

"To answer your question," Erebus began, "not anytime soon. Unless your friend decides to help you control it again."

"Not gonna happen, that hurt like a bitch."

"What about the… more primal phase 3?" I asked, referring to the form I took during the attack on Xyrus.

"You can try using that form, but the backlash will be much harsher than normal Shadowsoul," Erebus answered. "Personally, I wouldn't recommend it unless you have no choice."

"I see…"

"Erebus," the voic- you know what? I'm gonna nickname him Markus, better than calling him 'the voice'.

Anyways he asked Erebus, "What are you hiding from us?"

"There's a lot of things I haven't told you, you'll need to be more specific." Erebus replied, shrugging.

Markus scoffed, "Something connected to us, something we have the right to know."

"..." Erebus didn't answer for a while.

"You'll know in due time."

"..." I stared at him in deadpan, "Why do all of you Marchosias need to be so cryptic?"

"You'll know soon," he repeated, beginning to fade away. "And when you do, I only ask that you do not hate us."

________________________

I woke up with a gasp, before instantly regretting it. Even the slightest movements caused agonizing pain to flare through my body.

I can see why Markus refuses to do this again.

[Be happy we even lived through that.]

I would have sighed if I could. How many days has it been?

[Ask the mutt, I haven't exactly gotten the chance to keep track of time.]

'It's been a bit over a day.'

… I honestly expected to be out for weeks.

[I did share the backlash with you, and there was this… force that reduced the recoil.]

Force?

'Before you fell unconscious, you made the aether around you resonate. Spatium kept us from getting to you, Vivum fought back part of the recoil, Aevum… Aevum showed us what happened in the past, your fight with the Scythe and…

Ah yes… Brandon died…

I shook that thought out of my head, I can't have a breakdown now.

I need to think of something else.

[Why don't you tell your brother about Reynolds' survival?]

Yeah, that could work… even if it's only a chance.

'If you haven't noticed, you can't exactly move right now.'

…

Fuck.

________________________

After an hour of sending pulses of Tartarean Vitality through my body, I was healed enough to move.

Getting on my feet was harder than it had any right to, but I managed. I wouldn't be able to walk to him in this condition, my best option would be Void Stepping.

'Don't even think about it.'

Come on!

'No, I'll take you there. Let your body heal.'

… I feel like a vegetable.

'You'll become a vegetable if you don't allow your body to rest.'

That's a bit of an exaggeration, isn't it?

'Not for long if you keep pushing yourself like this.'

… I'll keep that in mind.

They didn't notice us when we appeared in their room.

This was a bad idea. I instantly regret coming here.

Arthur was laying down on Tessia's lap, and bawling his eyes out. That's the last thing I need now. I could feel the tears flowing down my cheeks, and my chest stiffening with pain.

Zeke didn't need to be told what to do, he silently took me away from the room and to the roof of the castle. He soon left to give me some privacy.

I gripped the railing, leaning my body on it. The metal groaned from pressure, cracks spreading into the concrete.

My grip loosened, as my body slumped forward. I maneuvered my body down, leaning my back on the wall.

Brandon's death was still fresh in my mind, I could imagine the gaping hole in his chest perfectly, whole with the bone shards sticking out of ripped flesh.

And even though I knew he could very well be alive, the memory of him getting engulfed by that fireball and sending me one last smile still haunted me.

A pair of arms wrapped around my body, with her hand holding the back of my head she pulled me close to her chest.

"It's okay, you can let it all out," she whispered down my ear, holding me tightly.

Kathyln…

My tears flowed with a newfound vengeance, as I let out a scream of agony, muffled by her chest.

She muttered soothing words to my ear, caressing her hand through my hair, her actions working wonders to calm me down.

________________________

"How long do you guys plan to eavesdrop?" I croaked out sensing multiple familiar mana signatures nearby.

"We thought it would be a good idea to give you two some space." Claire admitted as they walked out.

"I appreciate the sentiment," try as I might, I couldn't bring myself to smile.

Owen stepped forward, "Here," he handed me Brandon's gauntlets.

I stared at them for a few seconds, "Thank you. Is he…?"

Owen nodded, "He has been sent back to his family."

"I see." I sighed, getting up from the ground.

"We need some time away from the battlefield… is what I'd want to say. In our circumstances, we are needed in the war. We can't afford to rest."

Zach nodded, "No rest for the weary huh?"

"Yeah," I responded.

"You should talk to Arthur, he was pretty shaken." Claire commented.

I glanced at her, "Yeah, yeah I will." Now that I have…. let that out, I should be able to talk to him.

Zeke was instantly at my side, "I'll take you to him, don't you dare use your abilities until you heal completely."

"How bad is his condition?" Kathyln asked Zeke.

"Bad enough that he would have died if not for some unreliable variables." Zeke answered truthfully.

[I wouldn't consider myself to be unreliable.]

'I don't want to explain your existence to her at this moment.'

[Fair enough.]

Kathyln glared at me, and so did the others.

I scratched the back of my head, laughing nervously.

'Uh, Zeke, mind if you get me outta here?'

Zeke sighed, grabbing my arm and Void Stepping out.

Arthur was still laying his head on Tessia's lap, albeit calmer than before, and Tessia played with his finger. That was the sight that greeted me when I arrived.

I was not in the mood to tease, so I let this one slide, "Arthur."

He immediately jumped up, wildly looking around the room until his eyes fell on me. Blood rushed to his face, he was in a compromising position.

He must have noticed my expression, or my bloodshot eyes because that embarrassment soon turned to concern.

I waved an arm, "Hey."

He started walking towards me, increasing his speed every step. Soon enough, he was right in front of me, pulling me in a hug, "How are you doing?"

I patted his back, "I'm getting by."

Tessia soon walked over, "Fayden," she muttered, before pulling us in a threeway hug. "I'm so sorry."

I wrapped my arms around them, "It's fine, I… I'll be fine…"

Probably not.

<Arthur,>

Arthur stiffened, glancing at me through the corner of his eyes.

<We need to talk.>

He reluctantly let go, Tessia followed his example.

I took a deep breath in, "Dad might… he might still be alive."

"What?!" he did a double-take.

I nodded grimly, "Remember the ring I gave him, it has the same function as the Phoenix Wyrm necklaces."

Arthur's eyes widened as he realized what I was referring to, "So he might have been teleported somewhere in Dicathen!"

I shook my head, "Dicathen doesn't have many safe places left, for all we know he might have been sent to Alacrya or Epheotus."

His face dropped, "No, it wouldn't be considered safe anywhere in Alacrya, right?"

I shrugged, "We never know."

"What about the place where you went to train?" Tessia pointed out.

"Losvillion? I don't know if it can cross dimensions, but it is a possibility." I mused, it would have been too good to be true.

Arthur shook his head, "First, let's see if he's anywhere in Dicathen."

I nodded, "Yeah, but don't tell Mom or Ellie about this. I don't want to give them false hope if…"

Arthur placed a hand on my shoulder, "We'll find him, and when we do he can tell Mom himself."

I managed to crack a smile, "Yeah, I wouldn't want to be anywhere near them when that happens."

He reciprocated my expression, "I doubt anyone would want to."

"Why would you not want to?" Tessia asked, genuinely confused.

"You don't want to see Mom get pissed, trust me." I warned.

Arthur nodded sagely, "Yeah, she's scarier than a S-Class mana beast."

"You're kidding right?"

"Nopeee." I popped the p.

She sweatdropped, "Aunt Alice can't be that scary."

""She is!""

________________________

"My mother and sister should be arriving at the castle in the next day or so. Please take care of them in case we don't make it back," I could hear Arthur speaking to Virion through the door as I leaned on the wall beside the door.

"You know I'll treat Alice and Eleanor as if they were my own blood. They'll be given the same priority for retreat as Tessia and the Council." Virion answered after a pause, and judging from the sound, he must have hugged Arthur, or patted his back.

"Thank you." Arthur walked towards the door, pausing before opening it, "You're one of the few people in this world that made this life worth living and this continent worth fighting for."

"Ain't that the truth." I muttered under my breath.

Arthur opened the door, and I got on my feet, glancing back at Virion who seemed to struggle to stay composed, "See ya soon gramps."

It was Arthur who had proposed that we should stick together for the time, and honestly I couldn't disagree.

I cracked my knuckles, might as well vent a bit.