The Forsaken Hero

”Xiviyah, they’re here!”

I looked up from my book as Elise burst into the tent. She was breathing lightly, a feat for someone with a sixth-level body.

”Leaving? Who?” I asked.

”Evla and the others. Luke said they’re leaving.”

My book closed with a soft snap. ”Now?”

She grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet. ”Come on, their horde is already on the move. Don’t you want to see them off?”

”Yeah, but...so soon?”

It was the afternoon now, the day after my vision with Jessia. I’d ended up staying awake most of the night talking with R’lissea after, and had only gotten up an hour or two ago. I hadn’t even had a chance to brush my hair yet.

”You didn’t think he’d be lazing around all day, did you?” Elise asked, grinning as she tugged me out of the tent.

”No, but...”

I trailed off as she twirled me around, and I came face to face with Luke. He smiled, taking me in with a sweeping glance.

”Good morning?” he guessed with a teasing grin.

”L-Luke? You’re here!”

I hastily smoothed an errant lock of hair behind my ear. My tail flicked back and forth, catching his eye. He smiled warmly.

”You look beautiful, messy hair and all. I see you’ve gone back to your old dresses.”

I blushed, fidgeting with my skirt. It was one of my Heartland dresses, a pale white with a ruffled skirt and red ribbon sash.

”I didn’t get rid of them, you know. I told you before, the other one was a gift.”

Jessia laughed, elbowing Luke. ”Just proves some flowers never wilt, eh?”

”Indeed.” He nodded sagely. ”But I’ll let you know, Xiviyah would look beautiful in anything. The first time I saw her, she was wearing a simple slave dress, yet I’d never laid eyes on someone so pure.”

My blush darkened. ”T-That’s not fair. I was...disoriented from the Shard.”

”Oh? What’s this?” Elise asked. ”I don’t think I’ve heard about that.”

Evla nodded. ”True. I only heard whispers of Xiviyah from Jessia before I received a report saying the Fate Hero had somehow appeared in Heartland. How long did you two know each other before that?”

Luke coughed gently. ”I’m afraid if you were that curious, you ought to have asked during our little bonfire. Perhaps another time, when times aren’t as serious.”

I nodded gratefully, clasping my hands together. ”So you’re really leaving now?”

He nodded. ”I’ve received word the church hasn’t entirely forsaken this continent, and will be reinforcing the other kingdoms. It seems they plan on us going after the elves first, and are using that extra time to stall us further.”

Edrin cleared his throat. ”I did say those were only rumors. Morvah didn’t catch much beyond that, they needed more time to strengthen the World Barrier.”

”Morvah?” I asked.

”Ah, I haven’t told you yet,” Luke said. ”We established contact with the Apostles of the southern continent. The sun hero wiped their army off the map, and none of the gates arriving as part of the descent have managed to gain any traction. Every kingdom has mobilized its full army, and the remaining heroes are concentrating all their attention there.”

”Oh. I’m glad they’re alright...?” I said, looking at him questioningly.

He chuckled. ”Don’t worry, it’s a good thing. But it does mean we’re on a time limit. If they need time to reinforce the southern continent against our invasion, then the one thing we can’t do is give it to them. I’m already worried about the undead hero and the forces he’s been amassing. The fact that demons can become Risen is especially troublesome.”

”You said Morvah was the earth apostle, right?” Elise asked Evla.

The demonkin nodded. ”Yeah, but I haven’t spent a lot of time with him. He’s a Bearkin, if I remember right.”

”Boarkin,” Constance corrected.

She rolled her eyes. ”Same thing.”

”Regardless, the other apostle is Kislee, who is a human,” Luke said. ”She’s the apostle of insects, but I don’t recommend getting too close to her.”

”How come? Insects are neat,” R’lissea said.

Edrin shivered. ”I’m with Luke on this one. Let’s just say there’s a reason the Insect Emperor called her.”

R’lissea pursed her lips, but didn’t push it. No one else had anything else to add, so I turned to Jessia, holding out the scroll she’d left me. My hand shook slightly. She raised an eyebrow, making no move to take it.

”You left it. Don’t you need it?” I asked tentatively.

She shrugged. ”I got what I needed from you. What do I care for crumpled parchment?”

”Oh.” My hand fell to my side, clutching the paper tightly. ”Did you...was it enough?”

She puffed her cheeks in an exaggerated pout, but it failed to hide her smirk. ”And here I was hoping you’d forget. The answer is ’yes.’”

”Yes?” I repeated.

She nodded. ”Yep. The Gods have lost all but their core worlds and aren’t investing in creating more. Meanwhile, the demons are running out of worlds to invade, and are growing increasingly desperate, forced into invading realms as entrenched in the Divine as this one. It certainly seems like a problem for both of them, if not the Cycle itself.”

”What are you talking about?” Luke asked, turning to her. ”Surely, you’re not saying--”

Jessia winked at me. ”Who knows? I’m just a regular mortal, like the rest of you. Leave immortal problems for those who care.”

Luke gave her a steely look. ”We’ll discuss this later.”

”Sure, just as soon as you can give me something valuable enough for that kind of secret,” she said. ”Like, for instance, the secret behind how you and Xiviyah met. I’ve always wondered what that first interaction must have been like.”

Warmth crept up my neck, turning my face pink. I gripped my skirt, avoiding Luke’s gaze. He rolled his eyes, but I noticed a small twitch in his tail. So he remembered, too.

”That’s enough for a farewell,” he said, voice a little tighter than normal. ”Let’s get going, or the horde’s going to leave us behind.”

The other apostles shared a laugh and turned to go. Elise caught Evla’s hand, pulling the startled demonkin in and giving her a quick hug. Evla went stiff as a board, her eyes wide, reminding me of Fyren the first few times I’d hugged him. Elise whispered something in her ear, and her tail started to flick back and forth.

R’lissea and I exchanged a glance, and she nodded. yet another thing we’d talked about under the stars.

”Um, Luke?” I tentatively said as he turned to go.

He paused, looking over his shoulder. I shifted my weight on my feet, tail flicking back and forth. A small sigh escaped his lips, and he fully turned toward me.

”I wanted to make this easy,” he said softly.

I nodded, staring at the ground. ”I-I’m sorry. It’s just...here.”

I withdrew a small broach from my spatial ring and pressed it into his hand. It was my gift from Tana, bearing the symbol of the Glory Chasers.

A small spark jumped into my fingers as they brushed his palm, and I squeaked, jerking my hand back.

Luke blinked, holding the broach up. His eyes widened in surprise, and he stared at me.

”You wear this every day. Why are you giving it to me?”

”You noticed?” I bit my lower lip, playing with a strand of hair. ”I, um...the rune on it stands for good fortune, or walking on the right path. It was a gift from a dear friend.”

”And now you’re giving it to me, a symbol of the path we share. The one we promised to walk together.”

I blushed, heart skipping a beat. Was I really so transparent? He’d seen right through me with barely a moment’s thought.

His hand closed around the broach. ”Then I’ll treasure it as such. Wait for me, and I’ll bring it back to you.”

”B-but not too soon,” I said.

He frowned. ”No?”

”I have to find something to trade for the shards, remember? Two weeks is already really short.”

”Ah, that. Right.”

He hesitated, glancing sidelong at Jessia. She rolled her eyes in response. Luke took a deep breath and opened his other hand, the one not clasping the broach. A faint, glittering ring sat on his palm, a small band of silver set with a glittering blue jewel. The jewel was wrapped in a sixth-circle enchantment, but the spell was far too complex for me to guess at its nature with a glance.

”A ring?” I asked, tilting my head.

He nodded, taking my hand and pressing it into my palm. The band pressed a cold circle on my skin, but quickly warmed with my body heat. He folded my fingers over it, his hand lingering on mine. I stared into his eyes, my heart racing. They really were beautiful.

Luke coughed lightly, and I snapped back, blushing pink. A small tinge of regret gripped my chest as he relinquished my hand.

”You don’t have to do anything with it. Just keep it safe,” he said quietly. ”It’s very important.”

He retreated a step, fixing the broach to his cloak. The gleaming gold rune stood out on his black drab like the first star in the evening sky. He gave me another smile and turned, following after the others.

Jessia hesitated a moment longer, giving me a wink. My blush darkened.

”I have a feeling his two weeks are going to go by a lot slower than ours,” R’lissea said.

Elise nodded, giving Luke’s retreating back a knowing smile. ”Yeah. They’re absolutely going to drag by. I might even feel bad for him, if he hadn’t put us in this position in the first place.”

”What do you mean?” I asked, turning to them with a bewildered look. ”Not about the shards, but the other thing.”

She shook her head, letting out an exaggerated sigh. ”And she doesn’t even realize it. His road is long indeed.”

Luke and the others disappeared behind the hill, joining the ocean of infernal souls of their horde in leaving southward. I looked longingly after him, only turning once the last one faded away.

”What now? To the elves?” R’lissea asked.

”Almost.” I summoned my staff. ”But first: Haven.”