Saying goodbye was the hardest thing he's ever done.
"I'll miss ye, Laddie," Rab bawls, hugging him tightly. "Ye've made me proud so many times. I know my beautiful Eleanor and Irwin are smilin' down on their little boy."
Erik wraps an arm around his neck and pulls him in. "I've been with you all the way. You've never let me down, not once. I know you can do this. Just promise me, when you go back, give that bastard hell for us."
The thief releases him with a grin, then Jade appears and pulls him into a proper hug. "We've been apart for so long, it pains me to let you leave again. But this is something you're dead set on doing, right? So I won't stop you. I'm proud to be your sister."
Hendrik steps up as Jade retreats. "When you go back, we will be enemies again. Just know that I will always cherish the time I spent as your companion, honored Luminary."
"Oh, darling, my world of smiles won't be complete without you!" Sylvando crushes him in a hug, openly weeping. "You've made my dream more than possible, El. Thank you."
Serena clasps her hands with his, tears in her eyes. "I promised myself I would shed no more tears, but losing you too..."
She releases his hands and instead hugs him tightly. He can feel tears seeping into his shoulder. "I am eternally grateful for everything, Eleven. Please, save my dear sister."
Serena steps back, reaching up to wipe at his eyes. He hadn't even realized he'd been crying.
"I love you all," he says softly as they all step back.
Though they will never remember the days they spent after Yggdrasil had fallen, he will never forget. And he'll create a world from that bleak future, one where Yggdrasil never falls, where Mordegon is defeated, and where Serena never has to mourn for her sister.
She deserves to be here with them, too.
When it's time to leave, he starts up the stairs. The Timekeeper follows him with her hollow gaze. "Are you ready?"
He almost says no, but then he turns to his friends, and he feels his conviction return. These are the people that made saving the world a reality. Who never lost faith in him, even when he lost faith in himself. And that's why they deserve a world free from ruin. It's the least he can do to repay them.
"Yes."
The Sword of Light is raised into the air. It comes down onto the sphere with a crack, splitting it straight down the middle, along with the sword itself.
"This isn't goodbye!" Erik shouts as the shards of the Timesphere begin glowing. "We'll be right there besides you, always!"
His friends are the last thing he sees as he vanishes.
Everyone can tell there's something wrong with Eleven.
It's not just the huge, evil looking sword on his back (and that raised more than a few eyebrows), but the way he acts, too. Staring at them when he thinks they're not paying attention, being even quieter than usual, and the way he fought.
("Damn…" Erik whispers as Eleven cleaves a blue dragon nearly in half with that huge sword, where his dagger barely scratches it. The thief definitely doesn't remember him being that strong, nor that ruthless, even to monsters.)
Erik swears that red gem on the pommel blinked at him. He stayed far away from it after that.
The whole party had been searching for him that morning. Erik had woken up to an empty room, which by itself wasn't suspicious, but he knew something was wrong when he was the only one absent from breakfast.
And just as they were about to give up searching in Arboria, and start searching the surrounding areas, he appeared. Like it was the first time he'd ever set foot in the town, that ugly sword on his back.
And the way he looked at Veronica… It was so sad. Erik wasn't sure what to make of it, and El himself certainly wasn't going to explain. Not when he immediately left for the inn as soon as they found him.
"I'll go after him," Erik volunteers when no one else does.
When he reaches the room, Erik pauses as a clang rang out from behind the door. Was he forging in an inn?
"El?" he calls, knocking. "You mind if I come in?"
A pause. "Sure."
He opens the door and nearly knocks over a lance leaning on the wall. That's not all, there's all sorts of weapons strewn haphazardly around the room. "Whoa, where did you get all of these?"
There's absolutely no way he forged them all,right? He was only gone for a few minutes. Erik picks up a dagger and inspects it. The blade is sharp, much sharper than his own.
"I made a few of them," El says, still hammering away between sentences. "But a couple of them I bought or found. That one's yours, by the way."
"Is that where you disappeared off to?" Erik asks, testing the dagger with a few swings. He hopes this one wasn't something he bought; a dagger like this would cost a fortune. "You made everyone worried."
El stops the forge and stands. (Was it Erik's imagination, or did he get a little taller?) "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare anyone."
"Heh, well I'm sure all will be forgiven with all this," he gestures to the weapons. There were staves, shields, swords, daggers, lances, even axes (did anyone in their group even use those?) of similar quality all around. "You seriously outdid yourself here."
"I'm glad you think so," there's something strange in his voice.
"You sure you're alright?" Erik sheaths the dagger, laying one hand on his hip. El nods. "I'll let everyone know what you've been up to. Don't be surprised if Veronica comes banging on your door; she's been complaining about her old staff for a while now."
There's definitely something wrong with him, Erik thinks, as El flinches. He's not fooling anybody.
"Will you stop giving me weird looks like that?" Veronica finally asks.
They'd stopped at a camp just before Yggdrasil's Alter, after Rab had complained about back pain, ("Finally admitting your age is catching up to you?" Jade had said.). Rab had gone to sleep early after that, while Erik and Jade went to collect firewood. Sylvando and Serena were talking while she prepared dinner.
Caught in the act, Eleven could only look away guiltily. Veronica huffs and stands up to walk over to him. Instead of yelling at him like he expects, though, she sits down next to him. "What's gotten into you? You've been acting strange ever since you disappeared off to who knows where."
El frowns, staring at his hands. Was it really so obvious?
"Just don't let whatever it is distract you, alright? Not while we're so close to Yggdrasil," she says.
"I won't," he responds, looking away. He's been anything but distracted, but he can't tell them that. Not yet, not while the stakes were so high.
Maybe not ever.
Veronica gasps. Eleven looks up sharply only to see her knocking away a bug crawling on her arm. She lets out an irritated noise. "Ugh! I can't wait until this is over. A Hotto steam bath sounds lovely right about now."
El swallows. "Yeah."
He'd make sure to take her, after she comes back down alive.
When they finally reach the heart of Yggdrasil, Eleven is tense.
This is it. Where it all had gone wrong last time.
Thankfully, his friends are too enamoured with the heart to pay attention to him, and he allows himself a few deep breaths to calm himself. He couldn't allow himself to get careless here. Not with everything at stake.
"It's so beautiful…" Serena breathes. "I never thought I'd get the chance to see it for myself…"
"So this is the source of all life," Erik mutters. "Definitely lives up to its reputation…"
"So pretty…" Sylvando smiles, reaching out to touch it. Eleven stops him before he can. "Oh, you're right darling. Probably not a good idea."
"Ay, I'm sure the Tree doesnae take kindly to being touched," Rab says, turning to El, "Unless ye've got Her mark, of course. Go on, laddie."
He nods and steps forward. At his approach, the vines ensnaring the heart unfurled, revealing the golden core. Inside rested the legendary Sword of Light.
As soon as he reaches his hand up, that's when Jasper will strike, just as he had in the past. With that in mind, Eleven did just that.
And as soon as his hand neared it, he spun, unsheathing the Sword of Shadows for an attack he's sure is coming.
Only… It doesn't. The only thing that greets him are the looks of shock on his friends faces.
"What are you doing?" Veronica growls. Eleven winces but doesn't put the sword away. Any moment now, Jasper will attack. He will.
"Uh, you alright there?" Erik asked, looking back where the sword was pointed. Nothing. "I don't think we're about to be attacked in Yggdrasil of all places, you know."
"You've been acting strangely for a while now," Jade says with narrowed eyes. "I don't know what's wrong, but you're worrying us."
I don't understand. Where is Jasper? Where is Mordegon?
"You can put that ugly thing away now, darling," Sylvando says soothingly, waving his hand up and down.
Feeling numb, he does. They were supposed to be attacked, he knows they were. Jasper would come in after blasting him in the back, and they'd be too weak to defeat him. That's exactly what happened the first time. What happened?!
What did he do wrong?
"I-I'm sorry," he says quietly, turning back to the heart. He can't hide his shaky hands, or how wide his eyes are.
This time, he's able to grasp the Sword of Light, and take it.
And that's when he knows everything has gone terribly wrong.
"Very very clever, my dear Luminary."
King Carnelian sits upon his throne in Heliodor Castle. Except, he's not King Carnelian, and hasn't been for over sixteen years.
"So you sought to undo all my work, hm?"
Mordegon stands, the stolen body of the King exuding a dark and foul aura. His staff taps the ground, causing the rug to smoulder where it rests. He chuckles, deep and loud.
"Did you really think you could rewrite fate so easily? That you could bend time to your will, so that you might erase my influence?"
He sheds his disguise, the king slumping to the throne behind him. Mordegon emerges, no longer smiling.
"I will make you pay dearly for that."