Chapter 20: The Truth Of Everything
The crackling of a campfire intermingled with voices from both Issac and Felix's groups of adepts cordially talking with each other while they all worked to clean up from the quick dinner they put together on the side of the road. With Ivan's foot still injured and in need of more attention, it was hard for him to travel as quickly as both groups would have liked. The Jupiter adept's lingering feeling of unease had only grown stronger as time passed, but there was nothing they could do about that except for press on as fast as was feasible.
Felix ended up making the decision to travel alongside Isaac and his friends back to Contigo as a show of good faith, and to prove his intent to reconcile their differences without running away again. As introductions were made and the two groups were able to intermingle, a bit of the tension had a chance to be eased, though there was naturally still some stiffness in the interactions between the opposing sides. With the final pots and pans being packed away, the time had finally come to address that issue however.
"Felix," Isaac called out, catching everyone's attention as he sat down next to Mia and Garet. "You promised you would discuss everything with us tonight, and now seems like a good time," he said.
Felix looked over to read Isaac's expression. There was a seriousness to it, but it was not judgmental. It was the face of someone who wants to believe in an old friend, but is unsure and wavering on the edge of if he really could or not. Other conversations quickly died down now that the main topic on the minds of both groups had been brought up.
The brown haired Venus adept nodded in acknowledgement. "All right. This is probably the best time while everyone is here," he agreed.
Everyone looked on and waited as Felix thought things through, trying to decide what to start with. He wasn't the talkative type so it was clear he was struggling a bit with what to say.
Understanding her brother's struggle after opposing Isaac's efforts for so long, Jenna decided to step in. "What can we say?" she asked. "Has Felix ever actually harmed you? Have we ever fought against you?" she added rhetorically to try to start the conversation off on the right foot.
Understanding the need for additional support and a united front, Sheba also spoke up. "Sure, Felix has certainly been avoiding you…but like Jenna said, we have never had any intention of actually fighting against you."
Felix looked between both Jenna and Sheba with a smile, happy for their help and vote of confidence. "That much is true…" he said with a nod to confirm it.
"All of you came to our aid back at the lighthouse as well, which we definitely appreciated," Mia pointed out. "We were in serious trouble there, and I think it's fair to say you bear us no ill will after everything that's happened today," she admitted.
"I agree," Ivan stated. "It would have been easy to abandon us to our fate and just light the lighthouses like you said you were going to," he added, addressing Felix directly. "We were your enemies and are in direct opposition to your goal. Even if you only saved us because of your ties with Isaac and Garet…that alone proves you aren't like Saturos and Menardi."
"We were worried about you guys too…" Garet spoke up, wanting to present a slightly dissenting opinion. "We thought you were being forced into all of this by Saturos and Menardi, and yet…Once they were gone you still ran," he pointed out. "Jenna…I get it. Felix is your brother that you didn't even know was alive for years, but even so you all are clearly following Saturos and Menardi's plans of your own free will. Sheba isn't a captive, and no matter what happened I can't see Felix threatening his own sister…" he trailed off with a shake of his head. "No. There must be more to it…but still, why run?"
Piers took the opportunity to provide an explanation. "They didn't know what would happen if you met," he said simply. "I know Jenna at least was afraid you would both be forced into a conflict at first…"
Jenna nodded to confirm the accuracy of Pier's statement. "Especially with Saturos and Menardi still around, I didn't want you to catch up. I ended up being right about that…when it eventually happened, there was a fight to the death. Leaving the Venus Lighthouse not knowing if I'd ever see you again…" she said, pausing to look at both Isaac and Garet. "That was tough, and I never want to experience something like it ever again."
Sheba put a comforting arm around Jenna's shoulder as the redhead re-lived the painful thoughts from that time. "After those two were gone it got better though," she explained to everyone from Isaac's party. "That said, even with Saturos and Menardi out of the picture, Felix still felt you guys might use force to stop us from lighting the remaining lighthouses. It was mostly Jenna who eventually changed Felix's mind about that and allowed for a meeting like this to take place at all."
Isaac nodded towards Jenna and Sheba. "I understand," he said. "I know that nobody on our side was happy about the idea of resorting to violence either, but none of this explains why you're doing any of this in the first place," the Venus adept pointed out.
Felix acknowledged the truth of that statement. "I'm sorry Isaac," he said. "My actions…what we've been doing…it's a betrayal of everything Vale teaches. Honestly I never wanted to get anyone else involved. I thought it would be okay so long as I alone could be the villain…"
Felix shook his head slightly with a hint of a smile appearing on his face. "Thanks to my companions I've come to believe that's the wrong way to approach all of this, and that's why we'll tell you everything…and the truth behind our goal."
"No matter what though…lighting the lighthouses is…" Garet started to say before trailing off.
"We had to!" Jenna exclaimed, not waiting to wait any longer. "Our parent's lives were at stake!"
Isaac and Garet looked shocked by what she said. "Your…parents?" Garet managed to get out a few moments later. "But the storm back then…the boulder…we saw them die…"
Isaac was looking down with a furrowed brow, thinking intensely. "Well…Felix survived…" was all he said.
Garet looked over at his friend in realization. "You can't mean…?"
"That's right," Felix stepped in. "Nobody died that day," he emphasized, addressing Isaac specifically.
Mia and Ivan finally caught on to what that meant as well and all eyes rested upon the blonde Venus adept, who quickly looked up to catch Felix's gaze. Isaac didn't blink as he stared at Felix in stunned disbelief. There was no hint of deception in his old friend's gaze. It was the truth.
"But that means…" Ivan started to say.
"Isaac's dad?" Mia questioned.
"...and both of Jenna's parents…" Garet couldn't believe it. None of them were able to string together a full sentence in their surprise.
"So they survived…" Isaac finally said, looking between Felix and Jenna as he confirmed it. "But how…?"
Jenna looked over to Felix, knowing he was the one to answer that question best. "Saturos and Menardi…" Felix confirmed, putting another piece of the puzzle into place. "They saved all of us. They saved me…my parents…and your father."
"Those two? Saving people?" Ivan spoke up. "That's…hard to imagine."
"It's true though," Jenna pressed, wanting everyone to know that they were indeed alive.
"I…can't believe that…" Isaac shook his head as thoughts of all the terrible deeds Saturos and Menardi had performed went through his mind.
Felix shook his head. "It wasn't some act of kindness," he explained. "That night of the storm…Saturos and Menardi failed to retrieve the elemental stars. They only saved us so we could become their leverage to use against Vale if it came to that," Felix paused. "Me. My Parents. Your Father," the brown haired adept emphasized, pointing first to himself and then Isaac. "We were taken as captives back to Prox, where they are from," Felix continued. "It was after they made it clear we would not be let go until the lighthouses are lit that I decided to help them with that task…"
It was silent for several seconds as everyone absorbed the tale they just heard. It was a revelation that nobody on Isaac's side had expected or been prepared for.
Mia shook her head and placed a comforting hand on Isaac's shoulder to support him after learning the truth. "Why didn't you tell us?" she asked. "I'm sure we would have worked together to rescue your parents at the very least…" Mia voiced, looking to the others for confirmation.
Ivan and Garet nodded while Isaac remained still, being the most affected by the news since it involved his father.
"That's right!" Garet emphasized. "We could have helped rescue them with you instead of going along with Saturos and Menardi to light the lighthouses," he argued.
Ivan shook his head though. "We had only just begun our journey though so maybe we weren't strong enough…" he said, guessing the reason Felix had for not reaching out.
"No, it's not like that," Piers answered for Felix. "There was another reason to light the lighthouse anyway," he said. The Mercury adept looked over at Felix to ensure it was okay for him to continue and received a nod in reply. "You see…unless the lighthouse beacons are lit, all of Weyard will eventually be destroyed."
"Destroyed?!" Isaac exclaimed as everyone else in his party was blindsided for the second time. "But how?"
Piers slowly shook his head. "King Hydros of Lemuria has noticed that our world is steadily shrinking," he explained. "The Gaia Falls at the edge of our world have been slowly eroding all of Weyard since alchemy was sealed," Piers stated.
"That's…" Isaac couldn't find the words.
"How can we believe that?" Garet asked.
Mia spoke at the same time. "Lemuria?" she questioned.
Piers nodded at Mia before turning to Felix. "Do you still have that map?" he asked the Venus adept. Felix confirmed with a nod and pulled an ancient looking map out of his pack while Piers grabbed one from the modern day. They set the two maps side by side on a nearby tree stump to compare them.
"I'm Lemurian myself," Piers explained, answering Mia's question first. He pointed to the old and tattered map. "This map was created by Lemurians and is roughly 1000 years old," he said as everyone gathered around to look. "You can clearly see the difference when you set both of these maps side by side. There's so much more land that existed back then that is no longer here." He tapped the present day map for emphasis.
As the eyes of Isaac and his friends scanned over the two maps, they could easily see the disparity between them and the missing landmasses that only appeared on the older map.
"So these places are all gone?" Isaac asked, pointing out a couple of the islands on the older map.
"Yes," Piers confirmed. "All of them are now lost settlements or entire civilizations that have vanished," he explained. "When I was surveying the oceans to confirm the difference between Lemuria's understanding of the world and the present day, I came across more settlements on the precipice of extinction as well," the Mercury adept said, pointing to some of the islands close to the edge of Gaia Falls on the present day map.
There was a moment of silence as the weight of that sunk in. Garet was the first to speak. "Well you would be hard pressed to make the situation more clear cut than that…but the Wise One also told us the world could be destroyed if alchemy is unleashed…" he mused.
Isaac shook his head. "What a choice. We can wait for the end of the world or wind up accidentally triggering it ourselves…"
Mia continued to stare at the maps, but interjected to share her thoughts. "But if we do nothing then the world will definitely end right?" she asked.
"And we'll lose all the islands sitting near the edge of the world in a relatively short amount of time too…" Ivan added.
"Was this the true reason you were helping Saturos and Menardi?" Garet asked Felix.
Felix nodded. "It wasn't just to save our parents. Prox, the land Saturos and Menardi came from, is affected by this phenomenon as well," he added.
"So when Menardi was talking about saving her hometown back at the Venus Lighthouse this is what she meant?" Mia asked.
Felix felt a slight smile appear on his face as he remembered the former Mars adepts. "That's right. Their methods were questionable and I'm not defending their actions, but when it came down to it they were just trying to save their town and people from oblivion," he explained.
Piers shook his head again. "I didn't know either of those two, but when I met Felix it was after I had confirmed the truth of the shrinking world, and seen the perilous situation of some island settlements for myself. That's why when I found out these three were trying to do something to save those places and people, I decided to join them," he explained, indicating Jenna and Sheba as well.
"This…is a lot to think about," Isaac said, sharing a glance or two with his friends. "It changes everything about how we should view alchemy and the Elemental Lighthouses." He looked over at Felix as if seeing him in a new light. "Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Isaac asked. "I…probably would have helped," he said.
Felix shook his head. "It goes against everything Vale teaches…"
"What he's trying to say is that he didn't know if you could betray Vale like that," Jenna chimed in to clarify.
Isaac shared a look with Mia briefly before addressing that uncertainty. "It's true that initially I might not have…" he admitted. "That said, my faith was shaken somewhat after seeing the benefits of the Mercury beacon being lit. While a phenomenon like the healing water of that lighthouse hasn't re-occurred, that was a powerful image imprinted on my mind," he explained. "Especially given what we know now, I personally don't think it's impossible to help with lighting the final lighthouse…"
"I agree," Mia stated with confidence. "The healing water will be a lifesaver for the Imilian winter and left a pretty large impression on me as well."
Isaac nodded at the cerulean haired girl before turning to Garet and Ivan. "I know this is sudden, but I think under the circumstances, the right thing to do is to help save the world, even if it means unleashing alchemy upon it," he explained. "It's not a decision to take lightly though, and certainly not one I can make for anyone else. What do you guys think?" he asked.
Garet gave his friend a smile and clapped Isaac's back with his hand. "Do you really need to ask?" he replied. "If these are the facts, we can't just leave all these places to wither away and disappear can we?" he stated, patting the current world map with his other hand.
Ivan nodded at Garet's answer. "Now that we know, we can't just sit back and do nothing. The way I see it we have a duty to see this out given that we've been hindering efforts to save the world up until this point," he expressed.
Isaac nodded in the direction of all his friends before turning back to see a smiling Jenna and a look of relief in the faces of Felix, Sheba, and Piers. "Well…there you have it," Isaac told his fellow Venus adept. "We'd like to help in your efforts to light the final beacon if you would have us." Isaac stuck out his hand in an offer to officially shake on it.
Felix's face finally broke out into a real smile thanks to being on the same page as his old friends for the first time in forever. Without hesitation he clasped Isaac's hand and completed the shake, officially combining the two teams under the same goal.
The mood among the considerably larger group of people became happier with their mutual understanding, and the conversation slowly began to devolve into stories of each other's travels as the night got later. Hearing about past events from Felix's perspective was interesting for Isaac and Garet to listen to, while Ivan and Piers joined in as applicable. Jenna and Sheba had quickly managed to pull Mia over to connect with the only girl from Isaac's side, and snippets of their conversation about taking care of their hair on the road floated over to the others.
The rest of the short evening passed in a lighthearted manner, but the group of adepts knew they would need to be on the road in the morning to continue towards Contigo as soon as possible. Though things between everyone became more easygoing, Ivan's sense of unease since the Jupiter Lighthouse beacon was lit had not faded. It was still a priority to get back to town and find out what the source of the feeling was.
"Ivan and I will take first watch," Mia volunteered for both of them as everyone began talking about getting some sleep for the next day. "I want to spend some more time healing his foot so he'll have an easier time keeping up," she explained.
Ivan nodded his agreement, knowing that he didn't want to be slowing the group down any more than necessary. With that settled, the rest of the adepts trickled off to bed as Mia found herself tending to Ivan's injury.
...
–| The Next Day, On The Outskirts Of Contigo |-
"Something is wrong," Ivan stated, his unease blossoming into full fledged alarm.
"I've been feeling uneasy too the closer we get to town," Sheba added, as they both looked toward Contigo in front of them.
There was nothing unusual looking at a glance, but Ivan's words spurred the group into a state of readiness for whatever it was that lay ahead. If nothing else, the thing they had all learned over the course of their journey was to expect the unexpected.
Considering Ivan's foot, the group of adepts managed to make good time back to Contigo, but tension continued to build as the ominous feeling Ivan had the day before continued to get stronger. You might be able to write off one Jupiter adept, but with Sheba starting to feel it too there was no room for doubt. Ivan was right - something was wrong.
"Let's go then!" Garet called out, drawing his sword in anticipation of some sort of battle.
Though everyone else quickly followed after the Mars adept as he ran into town, they kept their weapons sheathed for the time being. The scene that greeted them was not some manner of creature, but instead a congregation of people standing outside the sanctum where Isaac and his friends had spoken to Master Hama the other day. The crowd's gazes remained transfixed on the sanctum itself, with the imposing landmark inspiring hushed whispers among the crowd.
It was easy to see why it was the center of attention. The entrance of the sanctum was currently blanketed in a bright violet light. From the adept's vantage point it was easy to see past the crowd and notice a lone figure kneeling in front of the sanctum itself, also surrounded by the same violet glow.
"Is that Hama?" Isaac questioned, trying to make out the features of the solitary person from afar.
"Hama…as in Master Hama?" Sheba asked looking between Isaac and the sanctum to try to verify the claim.
"You know Hama too?" Mia asked, receiving nods from everyone in Felix's group.
"We do, but right now we need to find out what's happening," Felix voiced, concern evident in his voice.
The group pushed their way past the crowd gathered to watch what was happening and quickly made their way over to Hama's side. As they approached, they could see dancing psynergetic light wafting off of her, contributing to the violet glow.
"Hama…" Ivan spoke first as they all approached.
"Ah…you're here…" she answered without opening her eyes or breaking concentration.
"Master Hama, what's going on here?" Isaac asked after Ivan's greeting, trying to get to the bottom of things.
"Remember…I came here for…the seal," she managed to get out, though her voice sounded very strained. "It must not be allowed to break…"
Hama exhaled, cutting off her flow of psynergy as she slumped backward and opened her eyes to look over the assembled adepts. Ivan knelt down and helped to support her back with his arm as Isaac's group thought back to Hama's words from the other day, echoing what she was saying now.
"How did this happen?" Ivan asked, watching as Hama closed her eyes for a moment to rest.
"With the beacon now lit…" She started to answer. "The power of Anemos…was waking," Hama continued, struggling with her words and trying to catch her breath.
"So this is what you meant by supporting from afar…" Isaac mused, making the connection between the power of the lighthouse and the breaking of the seal. "Wait, but that means…have you been working to keep the sanctum sealed since the Jupiter Lighthouse was lit?" he asked in concern.
"No wonder you're exhausted," Mia commented, reaching the same conclusion. She stepped forward and called upon her healing psynergy to provide relief to the violet haired adept.
Hama just smiled in response to confirm the truth before opening her eyes and looking around at the assembled adepts once more. Isaac joined the healing effort as Mia continued to look over Hama with concern.
"It's…stable now…though…" Hama struggled to get out, particles of psynergy continuing to escape her body despite her no longer using her powers.
"Sister…why?" Ivan asked as he watched the deteriorating form of his sister in his arms. "You should have told us! We…We could have helped!" he stuttered.
With great effort Hama shook her head slowly. "No…this was…the only way…" She turned towards Mia and Isaac, interrupting Mia with a gentle touch on the arm. "Thank you…but there's…no need," she got out. "I'm too far beyond…healing psynergy…"
"No…" Mia said with a shake of her head, rejecting that idea that it was too late and redoubling her efforts. Isaac found himself hesitating for a moment and bowed his head in recognition of the conclusion Hama was referring to.
"Don't say that sister!" Ivan implored. "Mia's a good healer…she can-"
Ivan was interrupted by Hama reaching up with a trembling arm to wipe away the tears starting to make an appearance in his eyes. Jenna's hand went to cover her mouth in silence as it became clear what was happening. Garet turned away for a moment, not wanting to stare at his friend in this state. Felix, Sheba, and Piers all looked on in silence, afraid to interrupt the interaction between Ivan and his sister.
"Don't…cry…" Hama smiled softly, looking upon her brother with a kindness in her eyes.
Despite Mia's best efforts, Hama's body seemed even more faint than before, emitting more psynergetic light as it withered away. The Mercury adept stopped healing, and slowly removed her hand as she bitterly accepted the truth that there really was nothing she could do.
"I'm sorry Ivan…" Hama said, seeing how devastated the blonde boy looked, holding her in his arms. "We can't…cheat…death…" she smiled. "This was…my…role," she added, trying to show Ivan that she was at peace with what was happening. "My pocket…I need you to…"
Holding back tears, Ivan fumbled for the pocket Hama barely was able to indicate, and pulled out a folded piece of parchment. "This?" he asked, holding it up in front of his sister's eyes to show her.
"Yes…" Hama answered, her eyes struggling to stay open as her strength left her. "You will need…" she whispered before cutting off.
"Hama? Sister…?" Ivan asked, doing his best to support her as Hama's eyes closed for the final time.
"I'm glad…I got to see…you again…brother…" Hama's voice whispered out, barely audible to those nearby. With that her head turned against Ivan's arm as if she had fallen asleep, and the strength in her arms vanished, dropping limply to her sides.
The pinpricks of violet light escaping Hama's body increased in tempo, radiating out in the silence following her words before her entire body burst into wisps of psynergy and vanished. The remaining psynergy slowly floated away and dissipated into the air as Ivan stayed frozen in place with his arms still outstretched to support his sister despite having nothing to hold onto.
As the last few lingering particles danced in the air, Ivan finally looked up to them and reached out with his hand as if to grab them. Just before he could close his fist, the final lights winked out of existence.
For a moment nobody moved. A few tears finally fully escaped Ivan's eyes and ran down his cheek as everyone among the group of adepts stood in silence. Felix bowed his head in respect, while Garet knelt down next to Ivan and tentatively placed a hand on the younger boy's shoulder in a gesture of comfort.
Murmuring from the crowd was all that could be heard, though none of the voices were distinct enough to make out what they were saying. Looking around at the onlookers and at the state of Ivan, Mia finally made a suggestion.
"Maybe we should head somewhere else..?" she voiced, indicating the crowd nearby that was still looking over at where they all were. At the very least, Ivan would be able to have some more privacy as they all processed what had just happened.
"Ah…that's a good idea," Garet agreed, glancing around at the assembled people.
"Ivan, are you okay to stand?" Isaac asked gently, holding out his hand to help his younger friend steady himself as he got up. Ivan accepted it and stood up in silence, still staring toward the place where his sister had been just a minute prior.
"I'll handle the crowd," Felix offered, pointing the group off in another direction to escape from all the watchful gazes.
"Then I guess I should check the seal to make sure it's…" Sheba started to say before her voice failed, also excusing herself for a short time. Given that it was Jupiter related and Ivan was obviously not in any state to worry about something like that, she was the only logical choice to ensure nothing else would go wrong with the Anemos Sanctum..
"I'll come help with the crowd as well," Piers offered, getting a nod from Felix.
As the pair of adepts took their leave and Sheba moved closer to the sanctum entrance's seal, Isaac and Garet stood on either side of Ivan to support the blonde boy since he was the one hit the hardest by Hama's passing and helped lead him away to a more secluded area. Jenna and Mia followed along behind, rounding a corner to get out of the sight of the main plaza. The atmosphere was still somber as they all took a seat in another seating area that was nearly deserted.
Nobody wanted to be the first to say anything and so they sat together in silence some more before Ivan reached up to cover his face with his arm and wipe away some tears on his sleeve. "I'm sorry for this…" Ivan apologized suddenly, trying to be strong in the face of his sudden loss. "I really only just met her…but she was my sister…you know? And now…"
"Ivan, it's okay," Jenna stressed before anyone else could comfort him. "Losing family is…" she trailed off. "Well it's hard. There's no reason to apologize about these emotions," Jenna explained. "Take your time to process it. It's never easy…"
"Jenna's right…" Mia chimed in. "...And we're here for you as well if you need us," she added, speaking for everyone. Both Isaac and Garet sat on either side of Ivan and nodded at Mia's words as they all dealt with their feelings in their own way.
Ivan forced out a smile, though it quickly faded. "Thanks guys. I do truly appreciate that," he said. He thought for a moment, then turned towards Jenna and took a quick breath before asking a question. "How did you deal with it back then?" he inquired, asking about when she had thought she lost both her parents and brother.
It was Jenna's turn to give Ivan a sad smile. "Honestly? You just do the best you can and keep moving forward. It's hard…but that's the way it is," she explained.
Ivan nodded. "It's strange for me I think," he said. "I feel like I barely knew her…but now I never will." He shook his head slightly. "I don't think that fact has truly sunk in yet, but it is the part that's hitting me most right now," Ivan explained.
Garet gave his friend a pat on the back. "That's okay. No need to rush yourself," he voiced.
Ivan looked over and nodded before looking back down at his hands recently used to support Hama in her final moments. "I'll be okay," he said to reassure everyone, including himself. As silence once again descended among the adepts, Sheba, Felix, and Piers made their way back over and sat down with those keeping Ivan company.
Seeing that nobody was talking, none of the newcomers wanted to butt in without understanding the situation. Sheba shot Jenna a discrete look to ask how Ivan was holding up, and got a nod in response. That gave her the confidence to speak.
"The seal is holding up well," she commented so everyone else knew the town was safe and they didn't need to have that thought linger in the back of their mind. Sheba received some nods of acknowledgement from a few of the adepts who were harboring that concern, but not much else in response.
"That's good news," Ivan spoke up again with a forced smile. He was genuinely glad to know that the seal was fine, but still couldn't muster up a real smile given the circumstances. Coming to a decision, the Jupiter adept held out his hand to Isaac, offering the folded up note Hama had left to the blonde boy. "Here Isaac, you read this," he requested. "I…don't think I can handle any more than this right now," Ivan added.
Hearing Ivan's explanation, Isaac nodded and accepted the paper from the younger boy. "Sure, I can read it," he agreed, getting a nod of approval from Ivan, who was doing his best to maintain composure.
Slowly unfolding the note, Isaac looked around at the somber faces of his fellow adepts that were still in a mild state of shock from the suddenness of what happened. On the note itself, Hama's writing was neat and unhurried, but Isaac paused a moment to make sure he could read it well before continuing.
Isaac took a breath and then started speaking Hama's words out loud:
"Ivan, if you're reading this letter then I was right about what I felt would come to pass after the Jupiter Lighthouse, and I hope your group was able to reconcile your differences with Felix. I know that given the circumstances I owe you a full explanation, so here it is:
I had a premonition about the events surrounding the Jupiter Lighthouse as well as your journey beyond, which is why I came to meet both you and Felix in Contigo before either of you traveled to the lighthouse itself. As I mentioned when we spoke, I came here to keep an eye on the seal of the Anemos Sanctum to prevent it from breaking and unleashing the ancient powers within that were locked away millennia ago.
Unfortunately I knew that the lighting of the Jupiter Lighthouse was going to become the catalyst to break that seal, and could not allow that future to come to pass. That's why I gave my life to instead protect the seal, and ensure the lighting of the beacon would not cause the destruction I had foreseen in other potential futures.
I did look for other options of course - futures in which we could spend more time together and get to know each other, however no viable alternatives to this current path presented themselves. I've known now for a time how this was all likely to turn out, so please do not allow yourself or the others to waver from your path due to the actions I've taken on my own. I made this decision to pave the way for your success, and have never once regretted it.
While I may now be gone, I did not leave you empty handed. I left a gift for all of you on Pier's ship since Felix and his friends are the ones with the original goal of lighting all of the lighthouses. I'm sorry I could not help you all reconcile your differences sooner, but now that you presumably have (and understand the importance of lighting the lighthouses), I wanted to further aid you in reaching the Mars beacon.
We've installed an ancient artifact on that vessel called the Wings of Anemos. They are attuned with the power of Jupiter and with the lighthouse beacon lit, will allow your ship to fly and bypass the frozen seas to the north that are ordinarily impassable by ship. It works by channeling psynergy into the wings to allow the ship to hover, but takes a lot of power, so be careful when using it.
It is my hope that this will be able to get you to the Mars Lighthouse and allow you to save Weyard. Please let Felix and his group know about these wings when you have the chance.
Ivan, on a more personal note I also want to apologize for the short time we were able to spend together, and for not letting you know we were siblings back at the Lama Temple. Though our time together was cut short, please know that I enjoyed seeing you all grown up and was happy to have the chance to talk as brother and sister. I am very proud of you, and the person you've become over the course of your journey.
I knew what fate had in store for me the second I stepped in to play my role, so please don't mourn me too much. I've long been prepared for this day, and while I can't see what the future holds for you from here on out, I have all the faith in your ability to overcome any obstacle with your friends.
I wish you luck as you work to save the world."
- Hama
As Isaac finished reading it and stated Hama's name at the end, there was dead silence for nearly 20 seconds until Ivan finally laughed bitterly.
"She knew all along…" he commented, the incredulity of the situation hitting him along with the others. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that but…" Ivan trailed off.
"It certainly seems that way," Isaac stated, folding up the letter and handing it back to Ivan as a memento of his sister.
"Honestly, knowing that she knew what was going on is a comforting thing," Ivan stated as he tucked the note away for the time being. "I'm not sure why, but something about her knowing makes me feel a bit better."
"That's good," Garet spoke up. "Honestly, I was having trouble thinking of what I could say to help you feel better, but in the end there's nothing more effective than words directly from your sister huh?"
Ivan smiled his first genuine smile since they had arrived back in Contigo. "Yeah, I think you're right," he agreed.
"I regret not being able to help her," Mia admitted. "...But, based on the circumstances I can understand why she decided to make the choice she did."
Ivan nodded again. "If it was me…I'd probably have made the same choice," he said. "I can't blame her for that." The rest of the adepts nodded in agreement, glad to see the letter had helped Ivan to feel at least slightly better.
"These 'Wings of Anemos' she spoke of also sound interesting," Piers commented, taking the chance to segway into a slightly different topic to avoid everyone sinking back into dwelling on the depressing topic of Hama's death.
"To think it's possible to make a ship fly…" Jenna commented, trying to envision what it would be like and support Pier's effort to improve the mood a bit at the same time.
"I wonder if it works like my psynergy?" Sheba questioned, thinking about one of the powers she commanded as a Jupiter adept.
"You can fly?!" Garet exclaimed, leaning forward in his seat in surprise and anticipation of the answer.
Sheba was able to find a smile at that reaction, but held back a laugh she felt would not be appropriate right now. "No, it's not flying really," she explained. "It's more like the ability to hover in the air or manipulate how I fall."
Mia glanced over at Isaac to see how he reacted, especially to the final part about falling. "Wait," she interjected. "Is that how you survived falling off the Venus Lighthouse?" she asked.
That got the attention of everyone that had been there at the time and witnessed that insane fall. Sheba quickly denied it with a shake of her head however. "No, I didn't have a good grasp on any of my powers back then," she explained. "It was only recently that I really learned how to use my psynergy in that way," Sheba added.
Felix placed a hand on Sheba's shoulder. "She may not have known she was doing it, but I think she tapped into her psynergy unconsciously without ever realizing it," he theorized. "While it wasn't the only thing that saved us from that fall, I do think we can attribute some of that to Sheba's instincts," Felix stated.
"Still, that's incredible…" Isaac commented as Sheba tried her best to shrug the compliment off.
"Wait, can you do that too?" Garet asked Ivan.
"Hover in the air using psynergy?" he replied. "No way. I don't think I ever even considered it," the blonde boy replied truthfully.
"Adepts can have unique skill sets right?" Piers commented. "It was only briefly that I was able to see it, but the way Mia healed Ivan's foot like that is something I could never do," he admitted. "I'm sure the same is true of the rest of you if you look," Piers added.
Mia acknowledged the praise with a nod, but didn't have anything she could say back since she had not yet seen her fellow Mercury adept in action.
Isaac used the pause in discussion to bring the conversation back to the idea of flying the ship. "Based on how you and Hama described the north, it sounds like the ability to bypass all that ice is going to make things a lot easier for us," Isaac commented, looking over to Felix for confirmation since he was the only one that had ever actually been there previously.
The brown haired adept nodded back to him. "Prox is quite close to the Mars Lighthouse so if we're able to fly over the frozen seas to right outside of town…"
The implications of Hama's gift weren't lost on any of them. Trekking over land across frozen oceans sounded like a horrible way to travel.
"Well, we have two ships now, but it sounds like only yours has these wings on it that will allow us to do that," Isaac commented.
Felix nodded. "We should go take a look for ourselves, but it would probably be better to just take one ship with all of us I think," he suggested, looking over to Piers for confirmation.
Piers agreed. "My ship should work fine for traveling with everyone. There are plenty of cabins available still so it won't be too cramped," he offered.
"Traveling together sounds nice too," Jenna chimed in, her eyes wandering over in Isaac's direction subconsciously.
"We can make a final decision once we take a look at the ships," Felix stated, looking around to see everyone else agreeing with that statement.
"If we are going to swap ships, we'll have to move some supplies and stuff over to the new one," Garet pointed out. "It'll probably take some time to do," he added.
Ivan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Well, how about we hop to it then?" he asked. "I wouldn't mind having something to do as a bit of a distraction right now," he explained, not wanting to dwell on thoughts of his sister in the absence of anything else.
"Are you sure you're up to it?" Mia inquired, not wanting Ivan to push himself too fast.
The Jupiter adept gave her a sad smile. "I'm not really," he admitted. "This is all going to take time to process, but I can't have all of you worrying about me all day either," he added.
Isaac nodded and reached over to put an arm around Ivan's shoulder for a moment in a gesture of comfort before he stood up to show his support. "I guess it's decided then. Let's go check out the ships and get everything sorted out," he said.
Ivan was the second to stand up, indicating his resolve to keep moving forward, and the rest followed along, gathering the things they had with them. Though the air among the group was primarily melancholy, there was still a slight sense of hope among the adepts now that they were all working towards a common goal.
...
–| Later That Evening |-
Mia was tired. Moving everything from Babi's ship over to Piers' turned out to be exhausting work. It didn't seem like there was all that much to take care of, but between food and water stores, adventuring gear, supplies they had stocked up, and dealing with the local port authorities to leave Babi's ship in their care for the time being, it had taken longer than anticipated.
At least the work had the benefit of strengthening the bonds between new traveling companions and helping everyone deal with the impact of today's events. Felix's group cooperated with Isaac's to help transfer everything they would need between ships, and new friendships were starting to form. Everyone found themselves feeling a lot better by the time evening rolled around, and they were able to laugh and joke again a little bit while eating dinner together. It was clear that Ivan in particular was still feeling down, but that came as no surprise. Despite that he did his best to participate with a positive and resilient attitude.
Mia found herself washing dishes along with Piers as part of the clean up from dinner and was using that time to learn more about Lemuria and where he was from. In turn, Piers was also curious about the Mercury Clan and their many years of protecting the Lighthouse outside of Imil.
It was weird for Mia to realize that they had sailed right past Lemuria more than once in their efforts to track down Felix. Piers was able to confirm the hidden city was right where Babi suspected within the mysterious mist blanketing the center of the Great Eastern Sea. Apparently it had not always been hidden away, but the sealing of alchemy long ago caused instability around the island city and made it inaccessible to the rest of Weyard. The seas within the mists were volatile, preventing the safe passage of ships and even leaving Piers himself stranded from his homeland without the help of Felix and the others.
It had taken the combined efforts of four psynergy users and a Lemurian ship to break through the chaotic waves and allow the Mercury adept to return home. That was how Felix and his friends were able to tap into the wisdom of Lemuria to confirm the truth of the shrinking world and the need to ensure the lighthouses were lit to save it.
"It's still crazy to think Weyard itself is eroding away," Mia said, wiping off a bowl with a dishcloth before setting it to the side with the others.
Piers shrugged. "We were completely unaware of it as well until seeing a modern day map and noticing the discrepancies between them ourselves," he commented, setting a glass down near the bowl Mia had just washed.
"Is that why you used the maps when explaining it to us as well?" Mia questioned, picking up some utensils and dipping them in the soapy water.
"It was the easiest way to help you understand I think," Piers explained. "It's such an abstract concept that it's hard to believe without some form of proof you can see," he added.
Mia nodded. "Nobody anywhere seems to have noticed it or talked about it either," she commented. "I suppose that's no surprise given how slowly it happens over such a long period of time, but still…"
Piers set down another cleaned glass and turned toward Mia slightly. "Well it's not an observable phenomenon within a normal human lifespan. Nobody is going to notice a small bit of missing ocean at the edge of the world, even if they spent their whole life on the sea," he speculated. "I'm willing to bet the only people even aware of it were the island settlements on the edge of the world, and they probably thought it was unique to them."
Mia considered it for a minute as she absentmindedly finished cleaning the utensils and set them out to dry. "Honestly, that makes a lot of sense," she finally said. "Unless multiple islands in contact with each other were in danger at the same time, they would never know…"
The cerulean haired girl grabbed the last bowl that needed to be washed and carefully cleaned it off. Piers nodded his agreement with Mia's assessment and backed off slightly to give her more room since he had finished with the glasses he was working on. As Mia laid the final bowl with the others, she dried her own hands and set down her dishrag. "Whew…all done," she commented with a smile at the adept next to her.
Piers returned the smile and nodded. "I'll go toss the soapy water," he offered, carefully picking up the bucket they had been using to wash the dishes in so it wouldn't spill on the ground.
"Sounds good," Mia replied. "I think I might go retire early tonight. A lot has happened these past couple days and I could use the extra rest," she explained.
"I understand," Piers answered. "Let me know if you need anything. I'm not certain what all the other cabins we weren't using had in them already," he said.
Mia held up a hand. "It's okay," she replied. "We took a look earlier and the room looked perfectly fine to me. Thanks again for letting us travel on your ship as well," Mia added for good measure.
Piers smiled. "Of course! We're all comrades now, so it only makes sense," he answered.
"I'll see you tomorrow then," Mia said as Piers turned to leave the galley with the bucket of water.
"Good night Mia," he answered with a smile still on his face before disappearing up towards the deck.
Mia took another quick glance around to make sure everything seemed to be in place before taking her leave as well, heading down towards the cabins deeper into the heart of the ship. Considering Babi's ship was also of Lemurian make, the layout was still familiar and the rooms were set up the same way, making it a relatively easy adjustment to her living situation.
As the Mercury adept made her way towards her new room, she could hear voices coming from around the corner up ahead. Mia continued to walk forward, intending to be polite and interact with them briefly before going into her room, but abruptly stopped just as their owners came into view.
Isaac and Jenna were standing close together outside Jenna's room and the Mars adept was holding both of Isaac's hands in her own. Mia's heart jumped at the sight of it. They had not noticed her yet, but seeing Isaac and Jenna together gave rise to a feeling of anxiety that grew as she froze in place. Mia knew she should leave them alone, but her body didn't want to obey her mind.
A few seconds after Mia noticed them, Jenna leaned forward and balanced on her tiptoes, planting a quick kiss directly on Isaac's lips. The auburn haired girl stepped back onto her heels again and looked at Isaac's chest to avoid eye contact for a moment as a light blush appeared in her cheeks.
It didn't take long for Jenna to recover however, and she glanced back up at Isaac who seemed a bit unsure what to do with himself. "That is how I feel about you," she told the blonde boy matter of factly, removing any last vestiges of doubt about her words at the Venus Lighthouse.
"Jenna…" was all Isaac could utter, lost for words.
Mia ducked completely out of sight around the corner, leaning back against the wall for support as she released breath she didn't realize she was holding. Her hand was over her heart, feeling the elevated beating in her chest as she tried to calm herself down.
She really does love him… Mia's mind raced as she finally saw irrefutable proof of Jenna's true feelings for Isaac. It didn't feel as real previously when it was just words, but witnessing it for herself hurt a lot more than expected.
"I've been waiting so long to see you again," Jenna's voice said from the corridor beyond Mia. "All these months…I've missed you so much," she added.
"I've wanted to see you again too," Isaac admitted after a moment, trying to recover from the surprise kiss the Mars adept had sprung on him. "You startled me though…" he trailed off.
Mia found herself peaking around the corner again as Jenna giggled mischievously.
"I…can't help that," she replied with a grin, pulling herself into an embrace with the blonde boy as if to prove that point.
"We've been together forever it feels like…" Jenna said in a more serious tone. "Suddenly spending a year apart like this…well, it was hard," she explained. "I thought you were going to be the one person always there for me after I lost my family, but then…" Jenna trailed off as she buried her face into Isaac's shoulder to hide her expression.
Isaac sighed softly and wrapped his arms around Mars adept to comfort her after hearing those words. "Oh Jenna…I didn't mean to leave you alone," he said, trying to help her understand it wasn't by choice.
"I know," Jenna's muffled voice replied before pulling away slightly so she could be properly heard. "All this time apart really put things into perspective for me though," she said. "It opened my eyes and made me realize how I really feel."
Jenna looked up at Isaac with eyes that were pleading for him to understand. "I…want to be with you," she said. "I enjoy being with you, and I think I always have…but I just never acknowledged how strong that desire was until now…after experiencing what it's like without you…" the Mars adept told him.
"I was never going to just abandon you," Isaac answered, still holding Jenna steady with a hand each around her back and waist. "You're family to me," he added. "The whole reason Garet and I even set off on this journey in the first place was because of you," the Venus adept told Jenna. "It wasn't because of the elemental stars…it wasn't because of something we were told about the fate of the world…" Isaac trailed off. "Sure, those became motivations as we learned more about what was happening…but at first it was solely out of a desire to save you," he admitted.
Jenna felt her eyes starting to water slightly at those words, but decided to express her emotions directly through another kiss instead. She leaned forward into Isaac again, causing the arm around the back of her waist to shift down below the waistline as she held the kiss for several seconds. When she finally broke the kiss off, an embarrassed Isaac removed his hand after realizing where it had ended up.
"You don't have to move it you know…" Jenna emphasized coyly, slowly running her hand down the arm Isaac had pulled away until she reached his wrist. Taking hold of the arm, Jenna brought his hand up and held Isaac's palm directly against her chest with an alluring smile on her face.
It was a signal as clear as day, and Mia felt her face burn red from just witnessing how bold the Mars adept's actions were.
"Jenna what-" Isaac started to say with his own complexion compromised by her actions as well, but the redhead shushed him with yet another kiss.
"I want to make up for all the time that we've lost," she replied, before gently leading Isaac towards the door to her cabin by the arm.
A stunned Isaac found his usual composure shattered in surprise, and his feet automatically followed Jenna's calm yet insistent pull, allowing the Mars adept to guide him into her room. Mia shifted herself completely out of sight once more as Jenna closed the door behind herself and Isaac.
The sound of the closing door seemed to echo loudly in Mia's mind like the stone slab of a tomb put in place for the final time. It felt to her like Isaac had gone someplace she could no longer follow, and as that thought hit her, she felt her body slowly slide down the wall all the way to the floor.
Mia found that her face had become wet with tears at some point without her noticing as they dripped slowly into the involuntarily trembling hands she was holding out in front of herself. The cerulean haired girl's chest hurt with a sharp pain that made her want to curl up and tune out the world around her.
It was as if her heart had cracked, shattering like a dropped mirror. The rising tide of emotions swelling up within Mia threatened to drown her as she crossed her arms on top of her knees and buried her face within them. The sleeve of her robes did a much better job of absorbing the tears she could not control as she quietly sobbed in the corner of the corridor. It was a visceral display of emotion that Mia hoped nobody else would see.
It was only recently that the Mercury adept felt she had managed to mend her relationship with Isaac after months of awkwardness on the ship, making the sight of him with another girl so soon afterwards all the more devastating. The confidence and security she built up piece by piece was crumbling before her eyes, dissipating the same way Hama's body had that morning.
Footsteps startled Mia though, her ears picking up the noise of someone coming down the hallway in her direction. Part of her didn't care anymore if she was discovered, but there was no way the cerulean haired girl would be able to hold any semblance of a coherent conversation, and she didn't feel like trying.
Forcing herself to move, Mia pushed herself up from the floor and did her best to quietly slink away before the owner of the footsteps could appear. She quickly moved right past where Isaac and Jenna were standing a minute ago, grasping the knob on the door next to Jenna's room. Twisting it gently as if afraid to make a sound, the Mercury adept slipped into her room and shut the door behind her, heart beating erratically from the irrational fear of getting caught.
As Mia took a couple steps into the room, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the nearby mirror and stopped. The puffy red eyes and mishmash of bangs bent all out of place was a good portrayal of her inner turmoil. She took a moment to just stare at herself and what she had become.
The sound of something heavy falling to the floor or being knocked over reverberated through the wall from Jenna's room and broke Mia out of her trance. It didn't really matter what had caused the noise. For Mia it only amounted to a painful reminder of how close Isaac was, yet how she couldn't reach him. Her legs felt weak and she stumbled slightly as she took a few more steps over to her bed. Crawling into it, Mia reached out to grab a pillow and buried her head into it face first, doing her best to regulate her breathing and avoid the uncontrollable sobbing from earlier.
Isaac and Jenna's muffled voices were the next thing Mia heard, though they were not clear enough to make out what they were saying. She flinched as the sound of a shoe, or perhaps a person bumped into the shared wall of her room, triggering a cascade of thoughts she did not want to entertain.
More voices could be heard and then the unmistakable creaking sound of someone falling onto a bed pierced Mia's ears. It was too cruel for the cerulean haired girl to listen to. She bit down on her trembling lip as she wiped away more tears with her hands, and begged for it to end.
No more…please, no more… Mia repeated in her head, even the slightest sound feeling like a knife twisting in her chest. It was suffocating, and she couldn't stand it. It felt like there was no escape, and Mia reached for the only thing she could think of.
She grabbed her pillow and smashed it over both of her ears, surrendering to the blissful silence that followed. There were no more sounds and for a moment Mia felt the sweet relief of being alone, closing her eyes as she tried to shut out everything around her.
The fleeting peace wouldn't last however. With the loss of multiple senses, Mia's mind began to compensate, and her thoughts bloomed to life in the form of vivid imagery instead. She saw the kisses she had just witnessed along with Jenna placing Isaac's hand on herself in stark detail. She imagined the way she had cuddled with Isaac in bed just a few days ago and what it might have led to, except with Jenna in her place. The memory of each and every sound heard through the wall echoed in her head as she envisioned Isaac and Jenna together in a way Mia never wanted to.
She couldn't hold it back any longer and let the tears out, quickly covering her mouth with one hand so as not to be heard. There would be no relief this night for Mia as she cried herself to sleep.
A/N: Whew. That was a tough chapter to write. I hope it didn't feel like it jumped around too much, but I didn't want to try to stretch any of these moments out into full length chapters of their own. I do sort of want to write that last bit from Isaac's perspective as well, but the entire story so far has been primarily Mia's point of view and I'm not sure I want to flirt with a possible M rating.
Anyway, look forward to more story coming your way soon™
