"Hey Alex, I brought back some great news."
"Then why don't you sound so happy?"
"Because it's morbidly great."
"...Do I want to know?"
"Probably not, but I'm going to tell you anyways."
"Great."
With their new-found respect for each other, Alexandria finally let Prophet call her by her nickname.
It was the fourth day of preparing, and Clair and Alex had just come back from training. Clair was surprisingly fast on her feet, so she was pretty good with hit-and-run tactics. Alex, on the other hand, hits hard with her magic-infused whip. Prophet continued to complain that they wouldn't let him fight.
"So, what's this new info you have?" Alex asked as she took a sip of water from a cup. Prophet had decided to wait until Clair was finished washing herself before breaking the news that he just learned.
"Yeah, so...I'm a genuine flesh golem." Prophet said with a sigh. "We took some...Extreme tests in the labs today."
Clair raised an eyebrow. "Extreme? Extreme how?"
"Let's put it this way," the man flexed his fingers in front of his face as he said this. "the more severe the damage done to my body, the faster it'll heal. About three hours ago, my hand was disconnected to my body." Both of the women's faces turned a bit green at that. "Not even a minute after, I grew another hand. It was excruciatingly painful, yes, but I don't think I can be killed by anything short of total evaporation."
"...You cut off your own hand?!" Alex shouted. "The hell is wrong with you?! What if you weren't a golem?!"
"Then I'd be short-handed." Prophet thought about what he said for a moment before he said, "Ba-dum, tsh!"
"...What?"
"Nothing, forget I did that. So, I'm going to go out on a stroll, would either of you lovely ladies care to join me?"
They both shook their heads as Clair explained, "We're both exhausted from training. We're just going to grab a bite and then sleep."
"Suit yourself. I'll be back by midnight." And with that, he rolled out of the room.
When she was sure he was out of earshot, Clair said, "I'm surprised at how well he's taking this."
Alex shook her head. "No, I just don't think it's completely hit him yet. After the base I worked in was destroyed, it didn't hit me for well over a week. I had to see the ruins of the base before everything completely sunk in."
The blond woman rested herself on her bed. "You know, I thought golems didn't have free will...Well, at least not as much as Prophet shows."
"I couldn't tell you." Alex shrugged. "The art of making golems has been lost, supposedly, and the making of flesh golems is outlawed; even though no one knows how to make them."
"Why's that?"
"...Let's just say that there's a reason they're called flesh golems."
"Oh...Oh! That's..."
"Yeah, it's best not to dwell on it for too long."
...
Prophet rolled through the academic city aimlessly, too busy with his own thoughts to worry about where he was going. He wondered which weapon would suit him, given that he was stuck in a wheelchair. He was weighing the pros and cons of a pike when he saw something in the corner of his eye.
Something tall.
Something dressed in white.
Something with a sword and shield.
Something with brown-red hair.
Something named Kratos Aurion.
Prophet just stared at the man as he strolled through the city. "He's already here? Damn that was really, really quick. Damn my visions for not having a sense of time! Damn them I say!" So, in light of this new information, he did what he believed was the smart thing to do.
And that was confront Kratos.
"Hello there." Prophet greeted as he neared the Eternal Swordsman.
He was ignored.
"It's common courtesy to say hello back when greeted, even if the person is a complete stranger."
The tall man gave Prophet barely a glance before saying, "Go away, I don't have time to deal with you."
"My apologies...Kratos Aurion." Next thing he knew, Kratos was calmly pushing him into a nearby ally. "Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Who knew you were so kind?" The Seraphim didn't say a word as he led them into the ally. "Now that the pleasantries are out of the-" He blinked and there was now a sword dangerously close to his throat. "...I should've expected this."
"Talk." Kratos demanded. "What else do you know?"
Prophet realised that his regenerative abilities may not apply to his head if he was decapitated. "Well, um, let's see...You're uh, Lloyd's father and-" Unfortunately, panic tends to warp your sense of carefulness. Prophet figured this out the hard way when he felt a searing pain from his neck and the world started spinning like mad. "Augh!" He shouted in pain when his head hit the pavement. "Freaking hell, man! I may live through this, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt like a bitch! Dear god, this hurts!"
Kratos didn't seem a surprised as most people would have if they encountered someone who could still speak after getting their head severed from their body. "A flesh golem..." He mumbled as he sheathed his sword.
Prophet's vision soon went black as he heard some sickening popping and cracking noises. When he could finally see again, the pain was gone and his head was back on his body. "...WOW that felt weird. And painful. I'd rather not have to experience that again, if you please."
"...What are you?"
"A crippled flesh golem that can see into the past and future...Oh don't give me that look, you've been alive for four millenia, I know you've seen stranger."
The swordsman raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "I thought flesh golems were banned from being created?"
"I wouldn't know; I can't remember anything from before a month or so ago, and I just discovered that I'm a golem a few days back. I was planning to go to Altessa's to see if he knows anything about me, as he's the only person who could possibly know about me in my visions...Except Cruxis, but like hell I'd trust them."
Kratos tilted his head in contemplation. "What's stopping me from taking you back with me, or just eradicating you right now?"
Crap, Prophet hadn't thought about those possibilities. "Uh...Because you're one of the good guys...? I also swear to never tell Lloyd and his group anything if I come across them." Kratos didn't look convinced, but for all he knew that could be the swordsman's default expression. It was best to be on the safe side though, so he added, "I'll also tell you anything you need to know if you ever come across me! Like right now! Ask away, I'm an open book!" Prophet didn't even know why he was doing this. He could have just ignored Kratos and avoided all this.
"...Do you know about the Ring of the Pact?"
Well, he didn't expect that question, but, "Sure I do! It allows anyone who has a pact with Origin to wield the Eternal Sword; Half-Elf or not...Or something along those lines."
"...So, do you..." Kratos shook his head. "Nevermind." He started walking away. "As long as you stay out of my affairs, no harm will be done to y-"
"You were about to ask if I knew how to make it, correct?" The man stopped walking. He didn't turn around, but Prophet knew he was listening. "You'll need Sacred Wood that grows somewhere around Ozette to fuel the fire, Aionis to shape the ring...Or the ring is made out of it or something, and Adamantite for polishing. There may be more stuff, my visions on the process of making the Ring is kinda fuzzy. Oh, also, only a Dwarf has the skills to perfectly make the Ring."
Kratos finally turned around and crossed his arms. "So, it seems you aren't mentally insane after all."
"...Wait, so you knew this?! What the hell?! I had to dig deep into my brain for this. I kept on getting zircon and Aionis confused for god's sake!"
"That doesn't matter."
"Of course not, what was I thinking."
"You will be spared...And I may come to you in the future...May. As long as you do not tell Lloyd anything, I will make sure that you remain out of the law's hands...And Cruxis'."
Prophet blinked and thought for a moment. "...Wait, Cruxis?"
Kratos nodded. "We keep records on all the Humans in the ranches. Magnius's last report mentioned something about a man who could see into the future. We shrugged it off as lunacy...But we're keeping a close eye on the two worlds, just in case."
The cripple sighed in exasperation and leaned his head back. "Wonderful. Now I have a bunch of angels trying to capture me." Kratos seemed to be finished talking, as he started walking away again. "Hey, can you tell me one thing?" The swordsman stopped. "How long ago was it that you...Betrayed Lloyd and his friends?"
"Three hours ago." And then he was gone.
Prophet looked up at the sky, which had become much darker during his talk with Kratos. "...Why do I feel like I'm in some convoluted story?"
Oh Proph, you have no idea how right you are.
Next stop, Gorrachia forest! ...Goracchia...I'll have to look it up.
Thanks for reading!
