Ascension - (Alarian Warriors)
Drowning

Kirra had everyone gathered in the center of town. The main meeting hall wasn’t a large building, it held a large round table for all attendees to sit, and basically nothing else. It was used for business purposes only.

Aveyon and Vincent were not the last to arrive, they took their places and waited for the rest of the clan leaders to take theirs. In total Kirra had convinced nine clans to join the fight. Not all were elves either, the leader of the dwarfs had also agreed to help. Erisena and Damon were the last to enter. Whispers erupted at the entrance of a demon, many confused as to why such a creature would be joining a meeting such as this.

Kirra quickly quietened them down as she began the meeting now that everyone had arrived.

“Thank you everyone for coming, I have been asked to seek approval from the elders to proceed further with the proposed plan, as this was requested by many of our warriors. If this proposed plan meets all your approvals, we seek to move forward with the preparations as soon as tomorrow.”

“So many hoops.” Erisena commented silently concluding with a sigh.

Many around the table glance at her with a displeased look, she clearly didn’t get along with the council even though she was an elder herself.

“I know for many of the clans, it is not necessary to abide by the elders ruling, but for some it is. I wish to be inclusive of all those that offer aid to this fight.” Kirra glanced sideways at the veiled elf. “It is also why Damon here, our newly acquired local demon...” Many of the leaders looked at each other wide eyed. “...Is here with us today. I’ll hand over to Princess Aveyon now.” Kirra gestured for her to start.

Aveyon nodded and stood, she had been dreading this day since the moment Kirra had told her she was bringing them back here to see her, for her to speak to them.

Walking to the head of the table she began as she had rehearsed. “As many of you know, our realm is in great peril, this is due, no doubt to Ashera. Damon has informed us that Ashera is indeed the one that has stopped the cycle of rebirth. Though we do not know how, we do know it was from his orders that the King of Alarious stopped the flow of the river of souls.” It was unnerving, the silence that filled the room as she spoke put her on edge.

“The only way to restart the cycle is to get myself to Alarious, I can then find a way to restart the cycle. There are beings of Lady Vexous’s making waiting to be set free, I may not have any know how, but they will. In the meantime, we have been gathering shards of a destroyed aura in the hopes of using them to reach Alarious. Sadly, that has been for naught.” Gasps erupted, and a few mutters began.

“Damon, if you will.” The demon nodded and joined Aveyon’s side.

He appeared more nervous than she when he spoke. “The shards are only connected to Ashera, they will only ever lead to Terramore, they cannot be used to reach Alarious. If they could, Ashera would already sent us there.” He began, looking to Aveyon for guidance, he clearly looked uncomfortable.

“And why would he want to get to Alarious?” She questioned the others already knowing the answer.

“His ultimate goal is to merge the three realms; he wants to rule over them all but cannot leave Terramore for long periods of time. The body he currently possesses is fractured, cursed if you will. He wants to gather all the celestial beings and consume them.” He informed.

The room erupted in noise and sound as everyone began to speak and ask questions at an alarming rate.

“How will he merge the realms?” One asked

“By celestial beings, do you mean gods?!” Another piped in.

“If he is trapped, why must we fear him?” A third questioned.

“Why does he want the Princess dead?” the dwarf asked.

Aveyon sighed, these people didn’t understand a damn thing and she was trying to convince them to let their clans die for her. This didn’t feel right.

“I do not have all the answers you seek, maybe we will find them on this mission, maybe we will not. But if we do not try, where does that leave us?” She questioned.

“It leaves us alive and not a target.” One woman replied.

“Alive in this dying world, you call that living?” Kirra stood up, taking a spot beside Aveyon showing her support.

Aveyon sighed. “Look, I will be blatantly honest with all of you. Regardless of if you all approve of this mission, I will be going.” She placed her hands on the table before leaning forward as she sternly looked at the faces staring back at her.

“There are those that will follow and those that will not, and that is perfectly fine.” She continued. “Everyone can make their own minds up about how they wish to die.” She received some shocked expressions.

“But I will not die doing nothing, I will fight for the future that these people want, for what they deserve. I will fight so that others do not have too.” She caught the twinge of sadness Vincent felt as the mention of a future, one she didn’t want for herself.

When she had first arrived here, she would never had thought that her words could one day ring true. She was still very conflicted inside. She wished that she didn’t have to fight, but she would and oddly not for herself but for others. Others like, Emerald and her son, like Kirra, Damon, Erisena and Vincent. They all deserved a life outside of this darkness.

As silence fell at her words, she threw a handful of blackened shards over the table. Each one writhing and wriggling on the stone countertop. People gasped and flung their seats backwards as if her action was an attack.

“So far, this is all the shards we have been able to gather. All that we have been able to cure of the corruption. Even if we find more, they can only be used to enter the third realm. My proposed plan is to use Damon to get into Terramore. The lady Vexous is our last hope of getting to Alarious at this point, we need to find her in the third realm and rescue her.”

“What if the goddess is dead, as we fear?” One of the leaders asked.

A pained expression crossed her features, wishing it were not true. “Erisena has trained me well, all I need is her body to shift through her memories, I will be able to find a way regardless.” She responded truthfully. They had prepared for that outcome already.

“And if we achieve this, making it to Alarious that is. What then, what will you do?” Another asked the dreaded question she was trying to avoid.

What will she do? Her hands clenched into a fist as she looked to the people.

“I will dethrone the king, and restart the cycle as promised.” She hadn’t told a single soul that her father was already dead, and she wasn’t sure why. Maybe saying it out loud maybe somehow made it more frightening to her.

“What of Ashera?” They continued.

She pondered this for a time. “I honestly do not know if we can face a god and live to tell the tale. But if we do not try, we are condemning millions to death. Earth realm will be overrun by deranged beasts, and we will all fall victim to them at some point or another.”

Kirra had made it a point to keep her true lineage a secret from the clan leaders, she was forever grateful to the Priestess for the endless kindness the elf had shown her. If people knew of her blood line, they would be calling her the next goddess in no time at all. They would be demanding far more than she could give.

The meeting ended with the leaders agreeing to the plan, but it was proposed that a small reconnaissance mission was to be done first, before the full-on assault was held.

Kirra and Aveyon agreed on the condition that they would choose the team to undertake the mission.

Aveyon and Vincent left the room together after the discussion of the plan of attack had been laid out and the team chosen. Her mood had darkened after the question of what she intended to do when this was over, and he could tell that she was in a bad place. She didn’t enjoy speaking of the future, be it others and especially of her own, so many were expecting so much from her. The doubt was setting in, what if she couldn’t do this, what if it was all in vain, what if it was all pointless.

He glanced over at her. “You still don’t intend on returning with us once we have reached Alarious, do you?” He softly questioned, breaking the silence.

“You have known that from the start.” Her answer evoked no emotion, her tone was neither high nor low, almost...dull.

“You seemed quiet intent on protecting the world in there, I thought your mind might have changed, but nevertheless I understand.” He seemed to sadden.

“If everyone knew of my intent, why would they help? Why would they lay their lives down for a fight that I don’t even want to be a part of?” She replied with a heavy sigh.

“Perhaps a few would understand, many of us wish to avoid fighting but still want the best for the world and the people. Pretending like this is surely taking a toll on you. Simply being yourself would be the better option.” He offered.

She could hear the emotions in his voice. “It is easier this way, fake smiles and lies, telling people what they want to hear. In the end I will get to where I want to be, and they benefit from it regardless.”

She finally stopped walking to turn to look up at him. “Out of everyone I have ever known, Emerald included. You... You, Vincent, are the only one that shows me a true understanding. I appreciate you more than you will ever know. I just want you to know that.”

“And I you Princess, I just wish there was more that I could do for you.”

“You do more than enough, others have no idea what it is like...” She paused, thinking how to explain it. “It is plain as day; most people just think my past it is a simple thing that I can just get over.” She emphasized the last two words.

He was careful with his next words. “I don’t expect you to get over it, I think we should learn to get through it and live on, if at all possible.”

She laughed coldly. “You are not wrong, but I feel like I am stuck in the middle of a lake already drowning, and everyone is standing there at the edge, only two feet away, simply telling me to learn to swim. Like it is a simple task that anyone can do. But I just want to stop trying and sink to the bottom, letting the darkness engulf me and allowing a stillness to come.”

“I would try to help you, I would never let you drown, I would hold you up and bring you to shore.” He looked at her with concern in his eyes.

She smiled sadly. “I have grown to find that I care a great deal about you, so... I do believe you. However, I do not wish to drag you down with me. Even with you in my life, my thoughts still turn to dark places.” Her heart clenched at the thought of his drowning alongside her.

“I cannot overcome this darkness; or perhaps it is that I do not want to. Living in this body is too... painful. The more I long to be here the more miserable I seem to become; I cannot be a part of this world.” She confessed her feelings of inner tutorial to him.

“Me being in your life?” He asked mildly confused by the statement.

She took a deep breath and wondered if she should reveal what she was thinking. “Though in the beginning, it was nothing more than a comfortable feeling, I see you differently now. I am quite fond of you.” She confessed, though she didn’t truly know what it meant.

He listened as she continued, a slightly more shocked look emerging on his features at her words.

Slowly she added. “I do not want this life, or this responsibility. I am no savior; I am broken and unable to be fixed. Something broken can never again be whole. The emptiness that is left behind it is...” She paused. Clenching her shirt to her chest she frowned. “It is consuming... suffocating. Even if I wanted a life with you...” Her voice broke. “I cannot put that burden on another, least of all you.”

He was trying to process the information. But honestly, he didn’t understand. She was fragile yes, she was wounded yes, but things had gotten better for her. He wanted her to stay with him and by the sounds of it she wanted the same. That unexpected realization made him feel selfish, he couldn’t see his own life without her. Without thinking he acted. Taking her chin in his hand, she looked up at him with a curious expression.

“I could try fill it, that empty space, if only you’d let me.” He whispered. He was only inches away from her. She could feel his body heat, it was inviting. She almost believed him, she wanted to. The feelings that filled her in that moment surprised her. She had butterflies in the pit of her stomach. How did he do this to her?

He lent in, her breath caught. He was going to kiss her. She panicked and shoved her hands into his face pushing him away. Embarrassed, she darted away around the corner and out of sight. She pinned her back to the wall. Placing her hand over her heart as she tried to calm down. She could feel the heat in her face, was she blushing? That couldn’t be true. Feelings flooded and confused her, hers and his. She couldn’t control them, worst of all she knew he was feeling what she was, she couldn’t hide it, so why did she run in that moment?

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