Giln seemed to drop the informative behavior he'd shown the boy earlier. Now, he's gone back to guiding young Heksis down the smoothened hallways with a short glare bearing down on him occasionally. All Heksis could do was lean his head toward his left shoulder, watching the captain when he wasn't paying attention. And there were plenty of moments where he was not...navigating his way through the busy lines of patrolling guards. Much like Giln's armor...the armor they wore was sleek and elegant. Heksis couldn't help but stare at the line of adults as they marched past him and Giln with unwavering focus on their task. Whatever it was...they ignored the child's staring like he wasn't even there. But the boy couldn't observe any longer...the line of guards had already passed...in their place just the strange unorganized flow of janitors and dirty, paint soaked adults with small metal tanks strapped to their backs. Hek wanted to mumble a question, but the look on Giln's face said it all.
After taking him down what felt like dozens of hallways...Hek's wrapped leg started to feel numbed from the walking. Luckily...as he was guided around another corner...it appeared his small walk had come to an end.
In a small corridor on the side of this final hallway stood a single widened corridor, a wide metal gate covered in beautiful golden leaves that had all been melted onto the iron's brittle exterior. At the gates side, two captains, same as Giln, stood watch. Both had a thick oily fur scarf wrapped around their necks, with the plain and slim bodies that only an Eliksni of the opposite sex could possess. His objective near-complete he still marched forward toward the heavy gate with a determined look on his face. As they approached, the two captains slammed their poles together, the jagged, polished blades crashing loudly as they blocked the gate. However, Giln was unfazed and simply stared at them, challenging them to do anything else. Heksis was not so lucky, his sensitive ears taking the full brunt of the screech, causing him to yelp in surprise. When the two captains began to speak, it was like they were talking to some kind of delivery service.
"This is the survivor from the village in the House of Wind's lands?" The captain on the left asked with a gentle bark from their throat. Giln gave a quick nod before speaking himself.
"Yes he is." Giln grumbled as he brought a hand out to one of the glaives on the right and lifted it up.
The taller captain on the right gave a short growl upon this action however, but a when the male captain gave her a short glare of his own she went quiet. Giln's fellow captains knew him well...so she gave a short shrug as she realized her mistake.
"The Council wishes to speak with the boy. Alone. I shall take him to the House of Rain's Councilor." Heksis imagined her reading those words off some well kept book.
The left captain lifted her weapon and tapped it's dull bottom into the floor with a short donk, taking a step forward. Giln sneered as if she were about to steal some opportunity away from him, Heksis simply tightened his grip on Giln's hand, as if he was some kind of family friend. To think he'd come to view one so violent for his own protector, he felt shame for such moral flexibility.
"I wish to make this boy one of consequence. Do not pollute his ideals with your jargon Javyr."
He snarled defensively, the bare mane of gray, aged fur puffing up weakly. Its message was clear; back off or get bit...but the bluff went unheard, its message was only filtered and diluted by the captain's fierce loyalty. Their vigor and eagerness to make any sacrifice in the name of their council.
The council ruled all Eliksni...serving them meant serving the Eliksni as a whole. Serving your species was a motive that everyone could get behind...no matter the temperature of their hearts. Javyr backed away as if thinking of her next move, but it was clear that her mind had been concluded. It was clear the three captains already had a relationship of sorts...but it was even more obvious that it was not one of service or compassion, and certainly not comradery. Each one seemed to care only for their own interests...that was their primary objective. Power hungry? Ambition swirling underneath their shells like the ominous, soupy mists of the doom yet to come? The short time the boy had been with Giln had shown much...this world was a scary place...a part of him wished to be like Giln. Strong in body and spirit, with unwavering morals. He disagreed with much of his decisions...his heart compelled him to. If only the small boy...only alive on this planet for three short years...could be as strong as they were. But he couldn't become that...not with the morals and beliefs Captain Giln carried. Was no adult's heart pure in this world? He had seen none with such conviction...but surely in this big chaotic existence...there were some? There had to be.
"You are in luck. The Councilor of the Winter banner, your superior, has put the boy under your guardianship. He is to be taken to Kasvis's ship to begin his recovery after he has spoken with the Council." The taller captain said, doing the same as Javyr had.
"Aboard the ketch? I cannot teach him the glories of our world aboard a cold metal habitat Eklis." Giln snarled, making Heksis twitch nervously at the adult's side.
Javyr and Eklis...the names stuck in Hek's mind like drying glue. Their appearance weren't burned into his memory...that didn't matter. The faces would come and go...all that mattered was remembering Giln's appearance...he was the only constant standing unchanged despite the swirling confusion.
"He will stay there until the leg has healed. Then he is yours to teach as you please." Javyr added, giving a short nod
.
"Understood."
Giln exhaled, an informed tone replacing his voice as he turned. The adult turned to look down at Heksis as the breath escaped him, the dim glow of his weathered eyes glaring down at Heksis with an expressionless look on his face. The boy only recoiled his mandibles back closer to his throat, a nervous rapid blink on his right set of eyes.
"Good. Now...I shall take the boy to Sahlin." Jav said with a gentle cough...stepping forward and holding a hand out to grab the boy's shoulder.
The child looked up at his former bodyguard with a confused but unafraid expression. No he was not frightened by this...even as the smaller captain grabbed his shoulder and made him turn toward the
Giln said nothing as he rotated his gaze over toward the metal gate. Eklis...the larger captain who was the same height as Giln but just thinner...reached to their side and pulled a small leaf shaped dagger of sorts...whose handle had a small ornate cluster of gilded metal. Several beautiful carvings of plants and flying animals were textured over the ornate hilt...but that wasn't what attracted his attention. Rather...it was the small brown leather pouch that loosely hung at the end of the metal grip. The captain brought one of her lower arms up to the hanging pouch and unfastened the hairy twine knot.
Once it was opened, Eklis reached in and pulled out a small key. After that they jabbed their hand out to the lock fastened onto the metal gate. It slid into the keyhole with a faint scrape... then the door was easily pushed open like it was a baby gate of some kind. The pouch was meant to be thrown between the bars during an attack, only allowing the Councilors themselves to open the gate. Course the Councilors had guards of their own...and they'd no doubt spring into action fast enough to protect against any attacker. Only numbers could turn the tide in the attacker's favor...but the short turns and strange layout of the hallways inside the building's interior were meant to diminish such an advantage. Soon as he was walked through the gate, his stiff leg caste had gotten numb a little bit. Not wanting to disappoint and provoke a negative response, he only gave out a couple chirps. He'd now began to drag his caste along the stone floor like some dumb livestock. Heksis grunted a little bit, and soon after he was quickly lifted up off the ground by his upper left shoulder like some freshly slain animal. But Javyr handled him with care, and in one quick motion she was cradling him in her lower arms like some newborn pup. But it wasn't out of concern, just meant to secure him and ensure no possible injury or fatigue whenever he was brought before the Council. It looked somewhat comical, an old toddler being held in such a fashion. Hek didn't know to feel any shame in that, and it wasn't meant to mock him in any way.
The boy leaned his head to the side to look in front of him, but all he was greeted by was another gate with two wooden doors, the wood coarse and aged grey. Ceremonial, a ornate suggestion to the eyes that was meant to please. Javyr ignored it as if it weren't even there as she pressed her free upper hand against one of the two gates. It creaked with a loud, bitter groan as it was pushed open. They carried him through it like she some cheap bag of groceries, and after that, a beam of bright, penetrating sunlight blared into his eyes. Heksis shrieked, his upper arms instinctively reaching up to his face and covering his eyes. At his age the skill and experience required to operate the two arms separate from one another was lacking. This made his lower pair do the same as his upper one, reaching up to his chest and covering it as if his eyes were there, mirroring the actions of the top set. Their upper hands covered his eyes over like a shroud, protecting them from the light. During that brief moment of exposure in the light he'd been engulfed in a nasty, uncomfortable squirming that pulsing behind his eyes. But it wasn't him.
Bioluminescence. A wonderful adaptation it was...using chemical reactions produced by one's body or another's body to create light. Many animals did this on Eliksnios, glowing beautiful hues of red, blue, green, and much much more. But Eliksni? Their process was quite different. Rather than producing any of the light emitting compounds themselves using their own metabolisms...they chose a far more unique method. Symbiosis. During the explosive burst of knowledge that had followed near the end of The Great War that ravaged their planet before the Great Machine arrived...the source of the glow had been discovered. The war that had occurred between houses had produced plenty of corpses. And through this...the source was found. Bacteria, encased inside a thick, gelatinous layer that surrounded the eye. These microorganisms were fed a mixture of sugars and amino acids secreted by glands positioned next to the small, neuron wrapped cord that penetrated through the contained blob of bacteria. How much the glands secreted was in correspondence to the light level of one's environment. But...the symbiotic partner encased within the slimy yolk of an eliksni's eye did not favor being exposed to sunlight, and soon as it had been exposed to it, the glowing liquid would wriggle or squirm out of sight as their cloudy white pupil shrank. But a pup could not do this as easily, they were more at home in the caves...in the dark. A subtle reminder bestowed upon them by nature...warning them that the world was an open, dangerous place...and that it would be safer to simply stay in the den to avoid becoming some animal's kiddie meal. Either way, Heksis had little say in the matter, and soon he was brought right into the middle of the large circular space, with large booths surrounding him, the banners of each Councilor's house hanging off of the small, fragile railing as if to mock safety itself. Inside the booths, barely visible above the railing...the heads of the Councilors came into view, like luminous suns gleaming on the stark, rugged horizon. The sun had been beaming it's alpha radiation soaked light in through the large glass circle above them, at an angle. As if sensing the change, he felt the uncomfortable sensation that had paced about around his eyes fade, and as he pulled his hands away from over his lights, the loud, thunderous boom of an adult's voice crackled in front of him, coming from above just as thunder would as it was cast down from dark, stormy clouds.
"Council Guard. Is this the survivor from the village in the House of Wind's land?" The voice said, it's owner directly in front of Hek as he was held casually in Javyr's arms. |
She stood tall and firm as a reply was croaked out of her throat. Subtle, hushed whispers were muttered from inside the Scar and Devil's booths.
"Yes King Councilor it is." She rasped with a gentle huff of confirmation,
quickly dropping down onto her knees. The boy in her arms grumbled quietly as she did, not bothering to slowly lower her lower arms down along with her knees in a rhythm and instead just letting them fall limp onto her crouched knees. He grunted as the top of his back and waist hit the guard's heavy robes, clearly uncomfortable.
"Thank you Council Guard. The boy is to be given to Sahlin of House Rain." Talish replied, giving Javyr a short, gentle bow of his head to add to his thank you.
Heksis could see now, as he moved his head toward his left side and looked over toward the voice in front of Javyr...he could that these booths had several large, tall staircases beneath them. And in front of these stairs multiple heavy, armor clad guards stood watch, ready to throw themselves at whatever threat to their masters appeared. He could only barely feel the gentle vibrations of feet as more adults approached him from the right side of the King Councilor's booth. Hek looked over toward them, seeing a gleaming, glossy purple banner hanging from a firm, stone booth. White and grey markings had been dripped onto the banner like raindrops, forming an opaque blob of grey with dozens of small drops that had been dropped over a banner held at an angle, making them streak down like flowing water as they were absorbed into the fabric. He couldn't see the Councilor standing inside, and he wanted to move to see them, perhaps have Javyr lift him up. He made the connection from analyzing the purple banner, leaning his head to the side as he did. That was the banner of the House of Rain, and he was to be given to someone named Sahlin who was apart of it. Heksis was lead to the booth with the purple banner, and slowly up the steps.
He heard the guard mumble a short "Walk strong." down at him from his side, but by the time he'd hobbled his way over toward the stairs they'd grown impatient, or perhaps sad for him. One guard picked him up, and carried him all the way up the staircase, before gently placing him down within one of the aged, chairs within the room. The wooden material that made up the chair was deformed and winding, and a green colored cushion had been placed on the seat and backrest. Heksis was greeted by a small, yet still spacious area, with small chairs in the back, placed behind a much larger chair that would swivel and rotate over a rusted yet sturdy metal ring. Just as Heksis was placed down in the chair, the larger chair in front of him close to the banner, with another banner draped over the back, turned around to reveal a tall, regal looking adult with the look and clothing of a female.
She was richly dressed in a flowing purple dress that was bordered by gold, and had golden patterns swirling across it. Her navel and shoulders were bare, but her arms were draped with transparent, purple tinted cloth, like silk. A purple veil, matching her dress, hung from her face, covering her mouth, but left her brightly shining blue eyes visible. Her long black hair was loose, hanging down to her shoulders and topped by a golden headband, a blue gem resting atop her forehead. Unlike Heksis or the others, her fur had a faint bluish tint to it, and seemed to shimmer as if it had a hint of water resting upon its surface. While the fur wasn't as plush and expanded as most, it still gave her a lovely form. This was Sahlin, Counselor to the House of Rain.
The adult smiled as she looked at the small child, tilting her head slightly as all four of her hands rested atop of her crossed legs. Heksis could make out that she had her nails, both finger and toe, painted a indigo color, and a golden anklet dangled from her leg. She then spoke, her voice soft and kind, flowing like a gentle stream.
"Hey. I'm Sahlin." Her neck's thin cyan mane seemed to shrink a little bit, hoping to make sure that she didn't look scary or intimidating to the young pup.
"It's okay…" She'd expected the child that was being brought before her would be a shivering, crying little boy. But they didn't seem even a little bit depressed about the horrible situation he'd experienced. But perhaps one of the captain's had told him to toughen up, no doubt worried that they would make a scene and possibly sully their rep. But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was this boy...she needed to learn all she could from him.
"What is your name?" Her voice was weak and tender, like a parent making a regretful confession to their children. The boy had been slouching over in his chair, but he seemed to eagerly lift his head up, albeit at a sluggish pace.
"Heksis. T-That is my name." He seemed to think that soon Sahlin would somehow turn off the kind, gentle tone and switch to something worse, just as Giln had done. He couldn't help but shake uncontrollably for a moment, lifting his unbroken leg up off the ground and onto the chair, wrapping all of his arms around it nervously. Sahlin slowed her tone down, hoping to help relax him.
"Names are important Heksis. Do...Do you know why you're here?" Her head leaned to the side a bit, looking down at him as the whelp stopped shivering. It was best; mandatory for him to comply. He would not be a Dasia. He would not end up that way. Should he tell her? Course he should...why couldn't he? Why shouldn't he? He had no reason not to.
"Because my momma died…" He croaked, a shamed aura flabbered out of their tender, saddened voice.
"The Council wants to know what happened to your home. To help prevent other attacks. Can you help us?"
Councilor Salin sighed, rubbing her temple with clawed fingers as she watched the last of the councilors take their seats. The meeting with the young child had been… enlightening, yet difficult. Such a young and skewed mind struggled to comprehend what had happened. Plus it didn't help that he was so roughly treated after his encounter. He trusted the Kings and their judgment, but at times, they could be almost as zealous as the Devils. At any rate, the information she was required to give to the council was difficult to be sure, and would no doubt lead to arguments. How unsettling.
Speaking of the Devils, the last councilor, Devils councilor Viksis, finally took his seat. They now could finally begin. Sahlin stood slowly, brushing off her gown as she did, before placing her hands on the edge of her booth. She eyed her fellow councilors carefully, soft blue eyes gazing out from over her vail. She then spoke, her voice soft yet still loud enough to be heard throughout the chamber.
"My fellow councilors, thank you for coming. Recently, as you are aware, our villages have been coming under from a mysterious force, all of which leaves them in ruins, with no survivors. However, this last attack was different. There was a survivor, a small child named Heksis. At your decree, I have spoken with this child and…"
"Well! What did he say!"
All the councilors looked over at Stone Councilor Brevik, who had leapt from his chair to interrupt Sahlin, his excitement getting the better of him. However, now with the eyes of all the other councilors on him, he quickly slid back into his chair with an embarrassed look on his face. Sahil took a deep breath, then spoke again.
"As i was saying, I spoke with the child. And, while he did provide a story, his age, the situation he was in, and the mental trauma of the experience of what he went through, has resulted in a fractured and broken story."
Kings councilor Talish lifted a hand and rubbed his forehead, releasing a shuddering sigh.
"Well, unfortunately that's all we have. Please continue Sister Sahlin."
She nodded slowly, took a deep breath, then continued.
"Well. It appears that him and his mother had been outside, his first time outside if I heard him correctly. He was playing when he spotted something. He called it, big purple ball, moving quickly towards him and his mother. I… I believe that he saw a servitor, from how he described it but I can't be sure. Whatever it was, his mother didn't like it, so she hid him within a small crevice in the rocks. After that…. He said the ground shook and he fell deeper, the rocks covering him up. From there, it gets fuzzy. He said he heard; screams. Rumbles, hisses, and a howling sound that frightened him greatly."
She dips her head, clearly affected by the story. Some of the other councilors leaned forward, concerned.
"Sister Sahlin? Are you…"
"I'm ok. Forgive me. He broke down into tears after that. I couldn't bring myself to press him farther."
The reactions of the councilors was split. Most dipped their heads, their eyes downcast as they processed what was said. However, Vikis and Brevik had different expressions. The Devil's kell had his eyes narrowed in thought, a rare sign of emotion from this Kell, while Brevik frowned, clearly surprised and put off by the short story and lack of info. The young Kell blinked, shaking his head some before glancing around, shocked.
"That's it? That's all we got! How does that help! That doesn't explain anything!"
"Brother Brevik! Calm yourself. Such an outburst is not necessary nor is it appropriate for…"
"How can you tell me to calm down!? Our villages burn, are people are vanishing, and an unknown enemy is slaughtering everything in its sight and the best lead we have is a fragmented and useless story from pup barely able to walk!"
Winter Councilor Kasvis' eyes widened, surprised by the young councilor's outburst.
"Brevik! It is hardly fair to blame the child. As you said yourself, he is too young to give a fair story."
"So! You still haven't answered my question! What does this "oh so important tale" tell us, and what do we plan on doing about it!?"
Silence overtook the council. No one could truly answer that. Though ideas and theories abound, no one dared to speak them, the ideas either being too terrible or too outlandish to say aloud. Vikis glared at the ground, eyes narrow as his mind churned. Kaltriz chewed silently, her mind also in turmoil. The fact that a servitor may have been spotted didn't help her House very much. If anything, it may fuel the hatred and accusations to her House. She decides now to make sure these accusations don't take root.
"Well, while not much to go off of, the servitor is a clear sign. One so far from any large village or city can only mean one of two things. A roaming party, or a rogue servitor, and we all know which House is well known for both."
"How dare you accuse the Devils so blatantly, especially when it is your House who is being accused of these attacks! You saw an opportunity to shove off the blame, and you tried to take it. Didn't you?"
Kaltriz glanced over at the Scar Councilor, Sevis,and her face went red from embarrassment. While she should be offended for being called out in such a rude manner, her shy demeanor renders this anger deflated. She shifts her weight, eyes down cast. Worse still, its appears that her action to defuse the anger only backfired.
"Of course you would support the Devils Sevis. You have always secretly agreed with their ways, even though you won't admit it aloud."
Sevis growled at the young Brevik, flashing his teeth as his eyes flashed. Brevik meanwhile returned the Scar Councilors gestures, grinding his own teeth in a show of aggression. However, before things could get out of hand, Talish intervened, raising from his chair to make his voice heard.
"Peace my brothers! Calm your voices. We are not here to create enemies. On the contrary, we are here to discover what our true enemy is, and what we are to do about it."
He sat down, and the two arguing Councilors cast one final glare at each other before returning their gaze to Talish.
"Now. While sister Kaltriz's claim may have been for her own gain, she does bring up a valid point. This is the first time that something definitive has been spotted before or during one of these attacks. The presence of a Servitor proves that the attacks could not have been done by some, rouge band."
This causes the councilor's to nod slowly in agreement, and Sahlin then speaks as well.
"Also, if this attack is like the others, which we can assume, then it stands to believe that such attacks could not have been carried out by a House that possesses few Servitors, such as House Wind."
The comment caused Kaltriz to sigh in relief, however, her hopes were quickly shattered when the last person expected spoke up.
"So, what you're insisting is that not only did my House have the gal to attack other Houses and their territories, but that we attacked ourselves to cover it up? Do I understand that correctly?"
The entire council starred in stunned silence at the Devils councilor. The silent man hadn't spoken at a meeting in some time. So long in fact, that many had forgotten what his voice sounded like. But it was unmistakable now. Sahlin shakes her head.
"No brother Viksis. That is not what I am saying at all. I'm merely saying that..."
"HA! Caught red handed you Devil! I always knew you guys were shifty!"
"Brevik. Please sit back down and refrain from further interruptions. They're starting to get even on my nerves. So please, act the part of your position."
The young councilor frowned, blushing slightly, but nodded, sitting back down. Sahlin returned her gaze to Viksis.
"I wasn't accusing you or your House. I was merely stating how a House with few Servitors would be unable to carry out such an attack. My hopes were to hopefully remove any anger towards House Wind."
A murmur of agreement spreads throughout the councilors, only to be interrupted by Winter Councilor Kasvis.
"Forgive me for asking sister Sahlin, but if a Servitor is responsible for these attacks, how could we deal with such a problem. Not like we can recall or bane that use of all Servitors. And, perhaps a more important question. If this purple orb the boy spotted was indeed a Servitor, then why was his mother frightened to the point of sticking her young child into a rock crevice to protect him."
"Perhaps his mother was one of the villages who opposes to Servitor use. They are several living high in the mountains. Or perhaps she recognized it as a faulty machine and wished to protect her son."
"If it was faulty, wouldn't she be able to outrun it? Why hid the kid. Surely their home would have been better."
"What are you trying to say brother Bravik?"
"I'm saying. Perhaps Sahlin is wrong about the boy. Perhaps he himself was wrong. Maybe this wasn't a Servitor at all, but a void orb or blast."
That shut the council up. While Void energy was known, it was something exclusive to the Servitors, and a rarely seen power at that. Sahlin paled at the realization, stroking her chin through her vail.
"Goddess. If that was the case, it would certainly explain the mothers fear, and why the boy wouldn't recognize it."
"And it would explain why ash piles and charred husks are all that remains of victims. Void energy is rather volatile. Tests in the past have resulted in disintegration."
"Right you are Kasvis. And if this is true, the Sahlin's prediction of these attacks being the work of rough Servitors has much more ground. But how to deal with such a problem."
"Brother Talish. I recommend a full investigation and search team. I'd be willing to volunteer my House for such an undertaking."
The entire council turned and glanced at Sevis in slight surprise. He almost never made decisions on his own, especially when it came to volunteering for tasks.
"If you're trying to clear Devils name, you will fail."
Despite being under his breath, Brevik's comment was still heard by most, but it was ignored. Decisions were finally being made.
"Very well then. House Scar will commence a search for these supposed rouge servitors and Devils, if they are willing, will aid. Any objections?"
The room went silent again.
"Then, this meeting is closed."
As one, the councilors rose, bowed towards each other, then exited their booths. Upon exiting his both, Talish found a slightly on edge Sahlin waiting for him, causing him to raise a brow of confusion.
"Sister Sahlin. Is there something you wanted to add?
Sahlin nodded slowly, the took Talish's arm so that they could walk together.
"It's about the boy. I am, concerned about his current care."
"Do not fear my sister. Giln is a reliable captain. Though he is not of my House, I can speak highly of his character."
"I do not doubt your judgment, but the way the boy acted. Having a mysterious male thrust upon him at that age. It is not well for him. He needs a gentler hand. A mother, or just a female, something to fill the mother figure in his life."
Talish was silent for a moment, thinking.
"I'm not sure what else I can do. We have already made the arrangements for the boy's dwelling and care. To change it now would waste precious time and result in more confusion for him. Surely you don't want that?"
"Then perhaps we can provide his care for a second. Someone who can visit him frequently to make sure he is well taken care of without having to move him. But they also need to be someone of influence so that their word is taken seriously. Your daughter perhaps?"
"Skakar is much to busy with her studies. I don't think."
"Her studies are in nurturing as well as politics. This job involves both brother Talish. Besides. I cannot think of someone who would be better for this."
He sighed, rubbing his temple as he removed his arm from hers.
"Alright. I will see that it is done. The boy will remain in the care of Captain Giln and Skakar will visit frequently and provide him with a nurturing and mothering figure."
Sahlin nodded, a smile on her face as she dipped her head, then turned to leave. However, before she got far, a thought stopped her.
"Brother Talish."
He glanced back at her.
"What will we do once we catch these rogue servitors?"
"Depending on the condition. Either cleansed and wiped or destroyed."
She nodded slowly.
"And. If it turns out… that we were wrong. That these attacks aren't the works of rogue servitors, but of something else."
Talish stared back, face firm before he exhaled slightly.
"Then, we pray that the Great Machine is the god we wish it to be."
Authors Note: Happy New Years everybody! A major, fantabulous, and glorious shoutout to my good friend ZOMAN338 for helping (doing most of the good stuff) in this chapter. My gratitude for all the support and appreciation I've received while working on this FanFiction. I would've released this on New Year's Day itself as a sort of "Yeah I'm still alive!" But I decided to wait knowing how busy you'd all be (and I was busy as well). ANY support, criticism and general ideas that you the reader has for this story, that's something I WANT to hear. I love this FanFiction, and it's characters. But I love bringing in new ones, both of my creation and my readers. New friends have been made, old habits ended and toxic interactions had, yet here I am. I know this is a little late, but happy new year everyone and let's make 2018 a great year.