A warm Goodbye.

Chapter 86: A warm Goodbye.

/These may be the last writings I ever put to paper. Times are... dire, I daresay. Aethervale is falling. The city of great minds, unmoving in the sky for as long as anyone can remember, is falling. The time has come to perhaps say our goodbyes to it, for I can hear the rumbling under my feet.

My ink has almost run dry as I have been recording the events that have recently transpired. When our fellow men turned on us, looked at the sky and said that nay, there would be no city there. Our shields have taken countless bolts from ballistae, blows from magical machines of war, and it is now that they have given out.

The very ground we place our feet upon has since been shifting and cracking, barely holding together under the strain of a thousand footsteps, and many more blows. Those with wings have flown up, and while our warriors are wielding their spears I fear us to be outmatched today. There are simply too many of them. The angels who hate any that dare challenge their supremacy of the heavens, the warmongers among any kind who simply wish for carnage, or the reptiles who have come to reclaim their sun. The beastkin joined partially, whenever entangled as per the usual.

Faced with these armies, a cooperation of many kingdoms, it seems almost impossible for us to survive. I have come to terms with my death now, and simply seek to hold these events down for the future.

My quill glides, as outside I can hear explosions. The mages among our enemies have begun setting fire to the buildings now, and anything that can burn is burning. I see the guardians we have made for ourselves broken and battered, their strong frames caved in by force. The hall of scholars has been reduced to rubble, its once proud towers now laying on the floor aimlessly, without direction. Perhaps there is blood beneath it, if there is, I cannot see it in the dust.

Ah, I see one of them on the horizon. They're coming for me now. Perhaps my exploration will come to an end before my ink does.

It seems I will die on an angel's blade. A sword, enveloped by light, claiming attention for itself like the figure it is attached to. The birdbrains have finally reclaimed the sky. It speaks, but I do not reply, I must write.

As is expected, the angel got impatient. It has inserted a sword into my guts. I feel myself growing more cynical as my blood drips onto the page.

Now, before my hand fails me. Aetherium has fallen. The sky has been reclaimed by those who are victorious. The angel has kindly reclaimed their steel and their heaven. But one day, our city will surely, surely r-/

"Fallen One" by an unknown scholar from the mythical city of Aetherium. It is one of the few reclaimed writings. The paper is stained with blood and the end is rendered illegible.

- - - - - -

"Sorry about that Mercury," Zyl said after dinner, after accompanying the cat to the garden.

"Don't sweat it too much," Mercury said. "Not your fault. But who was that?"

"Lady Pelaren," Zyl gave a long sigh. "Her sister was taken away by a true kin, and she has not forgiven them since."

"Taken away?" Mercury raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, not killed. Simply kidnapped," Zyl said. "According to the family, she simply disappeared, and later on, one of the kin showed up to apologize. She must've mistook you for one of them instead of an unfortunate traveller."

"Those kin are smart animals, right?" Mercury asked.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"And one of those took away that lady's sister?"

"She followed of her own free will," Zyl said, shaking his head. "Some of the true kin can shapeshift, those that cannot rarely leave their communities. Even when shifted, they will still carry their characteristics, such as fur on their faces, tails, and such."

"That sounds... interesting?"

"If you want to put it that way. Most true kin that associate with humans don't do so in search for a partner though, they see humans largely as unattractive. When they do have kids though, beastkin are born," Zyl explained.

"Okayyy, I've seen more beastkin than true kin though?" Mercury asked again, a little more confused now.

"That's because independently from relationships between kin and humans, beastkin have been around ever since the second book, when the possibility of evolving into them was discovered in the system."

"Fucking what now? You can really change that much with the evolutions?"

"Yeah," Zyl nodded. "They conform to your personal wishes. Allegedly, the first beastkin wasn't born in a union between kin and human, but rather when a forest hermit chose to become a squirrel-type beastkin as an evolution."

"Whacky."

"Very. Now there's also the tension of beastkin not really fitting in with kin or humans, and then those few humans that do wish to be partners with kin, because they fell in love with them when they were shapeshifted. There are some outliers that lust after the true kin just for them looking like animals, but most of the time, the kin themselves turn down those advances," Zyl said. Most relationships between kin and humans were more like equal partnerships instead of fetish based. To be fair, building an entire relationship around a single thing you find attractive would probably not hold up against the test of time.

"That seems fair..." Mercury said.

For a while the two of them were quiet, with some awkwardness between them. It was only now, after a little more than two weeks at the mansion that Mercury realized that he was a cat that had been flirting with a human.

It hadn't really dawned on him up until this point, but with what Zyl explained, he could be glad he wasn't just immediately shot down.

...

"Zyl, are you a furry?"

"I'm a dragon, Mercury."

"Ah, cool."

"You're not gonna ask anymore?!" Zyl said, shocked, locking onto the cat with great surprise.

"You're not gonna deez nuts me," Mercury replied calmly.

"Deez what? Mercury, I'm not joking," the man in white replied a little exasperatedly.

"Mhm, sure," Mercury said again.

Then, while staring off into the distance, Mercury heard some crunching next to him, and when he turned to check he saw that Zyl's hands were now much more scaled and sharper.

"Huh, that's really cool," Mercury then said, raising his eyes.

Zyl shook his head when he heard the reply before giggling. "You're such an idiot I swear. But yeah, back on topic: in most bigger cities, it's not that strange to date other intelligent beings, even if they look different. Over time, the system changes what we look like as well. Still, oftentimes true kin will only enter cities while shifted, just to avoid getting even weirder looks. That's also why many of them stick to themselves, especially those who dislike to shift."

"That honestly makes sense," Mercury said, thinking about how Yvette maybe didn't even start as a celestial human, and instead just grew wings when she evolved once. "Wait, weren't we talking about that lady who kicked me?"

"We were," Zyl replied with another slight smile. "She was here to trade. The farmland around this place is incredibly fertile, and we produce greater harvests than many other nations around us, so she has asked to buy some. We have taken to establishing a trade route, and I was able to fit in a slight bit of markup for disrespect," he said, his grin widening, as he held out a coin to Mercury, this one a stark white, with sunrays etched into the metal.

"What's that?"

"It's a glow. Worth 10 pales, if that makes more sense."

"Oh shit, thanks!" Mercury said, quickly swiping it up. He certainly would make good use of that.

"What's your plan now?" Zyl asked, shifting his tone and gazing off into the sunset himself.

"Hm?"

"You're not staying here forever. In fact, I'd wager you'll leave pretty soon, won't you?"

"I- yeah, I guess so," Mercury had to nod. There was still much he wanted to do and see. After all, he even knew that one of his familiars was still somewhere out there.

"So, when are you leaving? With Lucia? She'll probably be gone by tomorrow evening, knowing her," Zyl said.

"Would you want to come with me?" Mercury offered. "Ah, no that was silly, I mean of course-"

"I would," Zyl said quietly and nodded. "I would like to get to know you better. I also would love to see more of the world. Yet, I have a home I made for myself, and people who rely on me. This is also something I want, and not something I can let go of easily."

Mercury watched quietly for the moment, as Zyl bowed down, plucking a seed from a dandelion looking flower and blowing it into the wind. Very serene. Very wow.

"I get that," Mercury nodded. "Don't feel bad about it. We all have our own lives to live."

"You're saying goodbye right now, aren't you?"

"Looks like it," the cat shrugged. "I enjoyed the stay a lot. You're surrounded with good people. Tell me if you ever need anything, I'll be there."

"You too, Mercury," Zyl said with a smile. "We're friends now, after all. And also dating. Kind of."

"Yeah, we certainly are. Alright, I think I'll quickly say goodbye to everyone else."

"Is it fine if I hug you?" Zyl asked.

"I'd love to."

- - -

Over the next couple minutes Mercury went through the house, saying his goodbye's to everyone. He didn't quite know where to go yet. He had some attachment to Stormbraver, but quite frankly, not enough to stay there forever. And honestly, he didn't like his current place nearly as much as he had liked the inn.

Maybe getting some fresh air would help him clear his mind. For a while, he might just delve back into the wilderness on his own. Luckily, he knew how to be self-sufficient.

Iris took it well, giving him a heartfelt goodbye, while Lucia put maybe half as much effort in. At least she didn't cuss him out when he said he might disappear for a while.

Leon wished him all the best, Maclroy squeezed the life out of him, and Otto insisted on seeing him off. Then, once at the gate, when looking back, all he could see was people he now cared for a little waving at him. It felt warm.

With that feeling still lingering, Mercury turned around and headed off to his next great adventure.