It hurts when I deliver the final blow. I know it's the second time, but he is still my father. Still, it was easier than the first go-round. I pull the sword out from where I had plunged it in his shoulder.
"Father," I begin, searching for the appropriate words, but just then, Mazher burst into the room. She shouted something to which I wasn't paying attention and went to Braev's side. "He'll live if he's treated quickly, Mother." She nodded and started tending to his wounds. "He may never wield a sword again, though," I added with more than a pinch of regret.
"Edea," Braev whispered. He pushed his hand into the floor and sat up a bit. "I… I don't blame you for this." I nodded, because I knew he was telling the truth. I wiped the tears and blood from my face and started to leave. "But," he began. "I beg that you at least consider what you are doing. There's more going on here than you know." He turned toward Agnés and winced at the sudden movement. "Vestal, I trust you to make the wise decision." At that, he lay back down and let Mahzer look after his wounds.
Agnés bowed and said, "I endeavor to, sir." I turned and started off, unable to face him any longer.
"Edea," Father croaked. "Trust me." I turned around. Tears welled up in my eyes again. "Don't go to the holy pillar." I choked and ran out of the room.
"Edea!" Ringabel called after me. He would be the one to try to stop me. I kept running through the corridors and tripped on something; I couldn't begin to care what it was. I sat against the wall and attempted to let out the scream inside me without making a noise. The others caught up to me before long, and Ringabel sat down beside me.
"I'm okay. There's no need to comfort me." I snapped at him.
"Naturally."
Later that evening, Agnés and I were alone in Grandship. She said, "Edea, I've been thinking about what your father said today. Do you think he may be right? That there's some reason we don't know about?"
"I don't know if he's right, but I do know this. There's more going on here than meets the eye. Alternis said it, too. The sage was hiding something, and Lord DeRosso was being awful cryptic, too. That's all of the Council of Six except Victor and Victoria. There has to be something going on. I just don't know what it could be."
"I'm just afraid it's something," Agnés began, and then swallowed. "Something that the Orthodoxy was keeping secret to protect its reputation. Something that would make our entire quest in vain."
"I refuse to believe that. The duchy was abusing the Earth Crystal, the Swordbearers killed the fire vestal, fixing those things is were worth something, isn't it?"
She looked down as she spoke. "Maybe. Or maybe everything isn't so black and white after all."
Ringabel shouts from outside, "Everybody come to the bridge! We're about to enter the Holy Pillar!"
I stand up and look to Agnés. "You ready?"
"I just hope we're making the right decision."
Right or wrong, we're about to leap into it, so there's no reason to back down now, I thought to myself. My mind instinctively flickers to my father, and how he was always ready to jump into something if he believed in it. Right or wrong, I'll handle this like my father, Braev Lee.