The Forsaken Hero

Fate chuckled wryly, shaking her head. ”I wish I could say it was out of goodness, that we wanted our children to have the freedom to choose, but the truth was that we were scared.”

”Scared?” I blinked, tilting my head.

”Terrified, actually. None of us would admit it, but we all knew the truth. The only thing that separated us from the emperors was a single decision, a decision that we cared for power more than the lives and happiness of our children. What was worse was the knowledge that, unless we created the shards and mortality, we could, at any time, make the emperors’ choice. Not until we created the Divine Realm and divided ourselves from the mortals forever could we say we were different.”

”But they’re not, are they?” I said, turning to look over the other three murals again. Murals that showed gods, light and dark, next to each other. ”They forgot, didn’t they?”

Fate sighed, turning to look at the Father again. ”They did. And now, some of the gods seek to walk the same path as the demons, choosing to enslave their own children for power. Creating new shards and developing worlds is no longer a sacrifice they are willing to make. To take is easier than to give, Xiviyah, and I’m afraid that even those who were there at the beginning, who knew the father’s realm, have strayed from the conviction that drove us to perform the Rending. And now, as demons circle the last few worlds of the Divine Realm, we near the end, becoming the very same evil we had once sacrificed everything to fight.”

She brushed a strand of starlit hair from her face. Never before had I felt like giving Fate a hug for her own sake, and yet, in that moment, I couldn’t stop myself. She looked so lonesome and sad.

I threw my arms around her. Fate stiffened at first, but quickly relaxed, allowing me a clumsy attempt to comfort her. I knew it was vain, that there was nothing I could do or say that could comfort someone who’d seen the literal beginning of all things, so I just held her tightly. She smiled and patted my head, rubbing between my horns.

”Thank you, child, but I didn’t bring you here so you could mourn what once was. You needed to understand the past so you can see the future.”

I looked up with wide eyes. ”Does this have to do with your...plan?”

”Something like that, but I’m afraid the details of that must remain hidden. Though there are few who remember the beginning, and even fewer who knew the Father, this knowledge will not bring you harm should someone discover it from you. The time is close, but not yet at hand. I ask for your trust and patience a little longer.”

”You have it,” I whispered, leaning my head against her chest. I was surprised to feel a heartbeat, calm and soothing in my ear.

”Thank you. The real reason I brought you here is because something has happened to you that has not happened since the creation of the Shards.”

I looked up, gazing at the mural of the Realm Wars. I found the Shard, then the brave mortals defending it against a horde of demons.

A chill crept down my tail. Demons. I knew about demons, now.

My eyes darted to the third mural, of the birth of the gods of darkness.

”Um, Fate?” I asked, voice trembling. ”Do the emperors still use that...method of connecting with the demons?”

”Ah, Xiviyah, you’ve grown clever. But I’m afraid I can’t answer the question you’re trying to ask me.”

I jumped slightly, startled, and blushed. I’d forgotten, again, that Fate could read my mind. No wonder she hadn’t asked me any questions during her story, just explained exactly what I was wondering throughout.

My blush vanished as the weight of what she had just said settled on me.

”You won’t, or...can’t?” I asked in a small voice. ”You...you don’t know?”

Fate raised her hand and said, ”Arantius, come here.”

The remnant appeared, hand on his sword. He relaxed when he saw we were alone, and as he looked around, his brow creased in confusion.

”My Lady?” He asked, turning back to Fate.

She smiled, raising her hand. ”Please, Arantius, just because we’re in the Hall of the Beginning doesn’t mean you need to be so stuffy. I would rather prefer you to call me by name, as you have been.”

He nodded slowly and glanced at me. My eyes darted to his figure in the painting of the Realm Wars, and I bit my lip. My fingers curled into my skirt. I couldn’t bring myself to return his gaze.

”You told her?” he asked, staring at Fate.

She nodded. ”Some, but not all.”

”She’s too young to understand this,” he protested. ”Even I couldn’t comprehend the glory of the Father’s realm, or the horror of the Dark Gods, until long after you lifted me from mortality.”

I looked back at the painting, then at the remnant again. He was much older than the version depicted, and he was made of translucent light instead of flesh and blood. But it was the same. The first hero. The Eldest.

”The Oracle can’t handle–”

Arantius froze as I suddenly hugged him. He was cool, not warm like the other remnants, but just as solid. He was tall, too, taller than Luke and even Gathrin. I could barely get my arms around him, and my head just reached his chest.

I looked up at his startled expression, blinking back tears. He glanced helplessly at Fate.

”What...are you doing...?” he asked hesitantly.

His hand hovered at my shoulder. I squeezed him tighter, hiding my head against his chest lest he try to pull me away.

”You must have been so lonely,” I whispered. A tear snuck out, wetting his golden chest like a drop of rain against the window.

”I’m not sure I understand.”

I shook my head, sniffling back a sob. ”You...all the remnants...fighting for so long. But in the end, the gods...”

”You’re trying to...comfort me?”

Heat rushed to my face at the disbelief in his tone. What was I thinking, trying to comfort someone akin to a god? Arantius had seen tens of thousands of worlds come and go, had memories of a million years. He had fought in the first war and on countless worlds since then. Who was I to think I could soothe whatever burden he carried? Who was I to comfort him?

But I couldn’t ignore the feeling in my chest. My heart was so full it felt like it was going to burst. I might not understand who, or even what he was, but I knew what it was like to experience something no one else could understand, and the weight it had. I knew what it was like to be alone.

”I...I thought you needed a hug,” I whispered, not meeting his gaze. ”I’m sorry.”

”Why would you...But I’m...”

Arantius took a sharp breath, and it was like something broke. He softened, and his hand touched my back, gently returning to the embrace. His fingers were massive, spreading from one side of my back to the other, trapping me against him. My heart skipped a beat, but I swallowed my instincts and hugged him tighter.

When I finally looked up, I let out a small gasp. My aura wrapped around us like a blanket, interweaving with the stars of Haven. He might not have understood my words, but the realm conveyed the feelings and intent of my heart in an unmistakable way.

”Thank you, little one,” he said, patting my back. ”I don’t think anyone’s done that before.”

With a start, I realized he’d called me ’little one.’ Only a few of the other remnants called me anything other than ’Oracle,’ but when they did, it was with that term of endearment. It made me feel childish, yet...I shivered as warmth blossomed in my heart.

After a few more breaths, my heart was beating too quickly. I scurried out from under his grip, blushing darkly, and ran behind Fate. She chuckled, resting a hand on my shoulder, not letting me hide behind her.

Arantius’s eyes were distant and unfocused, and a faint smile touched his face. He looked warmer than I’d ever seen him.

And then he coughed and gave himself a little shake. When he looked at Fate, he was as composed as always.

”What wish you of me?” he asked.

Fate sighed, her hand falling from my shoulder. ”I’m afraid I...underestimated the nature of Xiviyah’s infernal allies.”

”The demons? What of them?”

Arantius’s eyes narrowed. A shiver ran down my tail as the temperature abruptly lowered.

”At first, everything that’s happened has seemed a series of coincidences, ” Fate said softly, turning to gaze at the picture of the Father. ”She merged her soul with an infernal beast, instinctively marked a powerful evolved demon, happened to develop an aura, and has since accepted the loyalty of two demon lords.”

”It is suspicious,” Arantius said, rubbing his chin. ”But that has all happened organically. No individual event is outside the realm of plausibility.”