"I first met your parents roughly twenty-two years ago," Bartolo began, a fond smile spreading across his features with the words. "They were ambassadors coming to discuss trade deals with Creek. The town was small, but its farming and trade industries were crucial to helping Saintsbridge function. Soon afterwards, we became friends, and that friendship only deepened after they met Archbishop Josef. He had come through Saintsbridge as part of the Kindling, and he met them along the way. The three of them got along like few others had. It was like they were family right from the start."

"Father mentioned that he was close with my parents years ago," Ophilia said with a small nod. "He didn't tell me much about them though... I was too afraid to breach the subject, to be perfectly honest."

"You didn't want to think about the attack that had destroyed Creek to begin with," Bartolo concluded, and Ophilia nodded. His smile turned sad as he looked down to his hands. "It shouldn't have ever ended that way to begin with. The leader of Quarrycrest... He was a coward, and he shouldn't have ever dared to harm your village or your family that way. The archbishop and I both mourned the day they perished."

"Quarrycrest got into a dispute with Saintsbridge, and that was the reason for the attack... Or so I've heard," Ophilia murmured. She swallowed dryly, steeling herself for what she was about to hear. She knew where the story was going all too well, and she was almost afraid of what was going to come next.

Bartolo nodded. "The leader of Quarrycrest was not in charge because of fairness or justice. He was the richest man in a town primarily consisting of poor miners, and he was able to claim power easily because he was the one at the top of the totem pole," he explained. "After he arrived in Quarrycrest, he took full control of the mining operations, and he reaped the rewards immediately, building an even greater fortune on top of what he already possessed. But... It was suspicious to me how quickly he was earning his resources and his fame. Something felt wrong to me, so I sent a few inspectors to Quarrycrest to see what was going on there."

Ophilia bit down on the inside of her lip as Bartolo continued. "We were met with human rights violations unlike what you have ever seen. Every miner was being pushed to the brink, barely able to carry themselves around the town. They were struggling, and we could see immediately how he was able to seize power. He claimed that he would offer wealth to the poor town of Quarrycrest, but all he did was destroy it instead, forcing its people into brutal working conditions and leaving them to drift over the edge of what their bodies could take. It was inhumane at best and criminal at worst."

"And that was what caused the conflict," Ophilia concluded. "You didn't like the way that the people of Quarrycrest were being treated, so you pushed back against it."

"The church has been in charge of Saintsbridge's rule and governance for as long as Saintsbridge has stood. I couldn't simply sit back and call myself a follower of Aelfric's teachings knowing what was happening in the next major town over. I told the man responsible for this madness to stop, but he refused. When Saintsbridge inspectors attempted to liberate the miners, he declared war and made to march on Saintsbridge immediately," Bartolo said. He hesitated for a long moment before sighing. "But... He knew that he wouldn't be able to claim Saintsbridge itself on his own, not lacking in soldiers as he was. The miners were mostly weak from fighting, and they wouldn't have stood a chance against the fighters the church had at its disposal. So... He targeted the leg that he thought would make Saintsbridge the weakest."

"Creek," Ophilia finished for him. "He had the town razed to the ground so that they wouldn't be able to provide any resources for your soldiers."

Bartolo closed his eyes and nodded sadly. "I wish there was more that we could have done to defend them, but... By the time we realized what was happening, it was far too late. It appeared as if everyone had been killed, but... You were the sole miracle to survive it all."

Ophilia stared at him silently for a long moment, unable to say the truth that she had been keeping deep inside ever since she first heard it all from Aelfric. She had been saved by the gods, an act of divine intervention that would allow her to become the Flamebearer years later. She was the sole survivor to the razing of Creek, and now, she stood before Aelfric's flame with the Ember in hand, carrying out the destiny that had been placed on her shoulders a decade and a half prior.

"As soon as Josef heard about what had happened, he came here to meet with me," Bartolo went on. "You were being kept in the church for the time being, but... It wouldn't shock me if you didn't remember it. You were so numb to everything... You didn't speak to anyone or even eat. Josef said that he wanted to bring you back to Flamesgrace, and just like that, you left us."

Ophilia hesitated for a long moment. Bartolo was right; she didn't remember any of that. She knew that she had been caught up in her grief after witnessing the destruction of Creek, but she hadn't realized that there were a few scarce days where she had been in Saintsbridge after the fall. Then again, who could blame her for not remembering it? She had just seen her family's murder at the hands of the Quarrycrest mercenaries, and how was a child meant to process all of that?

Bartolo seemed to realize that she wasn't ready to speak, so he continued on his own. "The Quarrycrest campaign ended soon after Creek's destruction. The soldiers from Quarrycrest were much too weak to carry on a long war. Many of them were miners that had been pulled away from their regular work to fight, and they weren't trained for long marches. Saintsbridge was able to easily overpower them in a final battle, and the leader of Quarrycrest agreed to hold off on his terrible labor practices," he said. "The war was over in the blink of an eye, and to most, it would seem as if it had never happened to begin with, but... We lost many great people in Creek that day, and Saintsbridge took years to recover from the blow that dealt both in terms of the souls who were lost and the land that was destroyed."

"I never knew the details," Ophilia admitted when she was finally able to bring herself to speak again. "At the time, the war was just a distant concept to me. I think my parents were trying to protect me so that I didn't find out the truth, but... They couldn't keep me safe from the invasion. Everyone died that day, and... If not for Lianna, I probably never would have been able to pull myself out of my grief."

"To this day, the Quarrycrest battle remains a dark stain on Saintsbridge's history," Bartolo told her with a shake of his head. "I wish that it had never come to that because of the greed of a selfish and powerful man, but at the very least, the people who were suffering in Quarrycrest have been freed of their misery..." He trailed off at that, clearly wanting to say more but stopping himself before he had the chance.

Ophilia, however, wasn't going to let it go quite so easily. "Is there something else?" she questioned, something in her stomach twisting at the thought. How could there still be more after she had heard of the terrible series of events that ended with the death of her childhood home and her blood family?

"I have no evidence to say this with certainty, but... I wouldn't be entirely surprised if the man behind the attack years ago decided to continue his unsavory labor practices," Bartolo told her carefully. "Quarrycrest and Saintsbridge have understandably had a tense relationship since the war fifteen years ago, and I haven't been able to investigate it. Even if I could search for more information, I don't know if I would have the power to fight back. I don't want to put anybody in danger the way that I did fifteen years ago. Creek's destruction could have been avoided in another life, and..."

"You don't want to get anybody else hurt that way," Ophilia finished for him, and Bartolo nodded. She shook her head a moment later. "You couldn't have known it was going to end that way, and... I don't want you to blame yourself for it. I don't know if the leader of Quarrycrest is still doing all of that, but... I need to know. Is he still in charge?"

Bartolo nodded. "He is... He's become much more private about the details of Quarrycrest's operations though. Quarrycrest is a merchant town, but only those involve with the mining efforts there know the truth of what is really happening behind the scenes. I've heard that the merchant district is the primary quarter that has been cared for after all these years. He doesn't see much of a point in looking after anything that doesn't see him earning more profit... In that way, I suppose that he still hasn't changed. He's simply gotten better at keeping the truth of his operations out of the public eye."

"What's his name?" Ophilia asked before she could stop herself. Her heart was speeding in her chest now, and she didn't know how she was going to calm down if she didn't hear who was behind all of this. The group was heading to Quarrycrest next, and even if Ophilia had no intentions on getting revenge, she still wanted to know who to look out for in case the group had to stay there for longer than expected.

"I... I don't know if I should share," Bartolo admitted. "The last thing I want is for you to pursue vengeance against the man. He most certainly deserves to face punishment for his actions, but it's hardly your place to do such a thing. I can't have the Flamebearer endangering herself for something that happened fifteen years ago."

Ophilia shook her head. "I'm not planning on going after him... But my friends and I are setting out for Quarrycrest on the way to Victors Hollow tomorrow, and that means that I need to know who to look out for," she replied. "I can't imagine that we'll be staying there for too long, but I don't want us to be placed in danger because we get involved with the wrong sort of person."

Bartolo hummed at that, processing her words for a long moment before he sighed heavily. "Morlock," he eventually replied. "Morlock Clarke. As far as I've heard, he lives in a mansion at the peak of the town and looks out over the people who live in Quarrycrest. I can't imagine that you'll run into him given how little time he spends out of his home, but... I would ask that you stay safe. The last thing I want is for you to be caught up in his twisted web. Orsterra needs you, and it needs you alive."

Ophilia nodded. "I understand," she assured Bartolo. "I'm not planning on seeking him out... Regardless of what he did fifteen years ago, it... It doesn't feel like my place. Revenge never truly soothes a person's heart. All it does is fill you with a rage that never fades." For a brief moment, Ophilia's mind flickered over to Primrose and how the dancer had lost her deepest desire since the group was in Stillsnow. Primrose didn't speak of it much, but Ophilia could tell by the lack of a gleam in the dancer's eyes that she didn't want revenge as much as she once had. Things had changed, and so had Primrose.

"You're right... And I'm glad that you're going to keep yourself away from the flames of vengeance," Bartolo said with a relieved smile. "Goldshore will be waiting for you, and it would hardly do for you to never arrive because you got caught up in matters in Quarrycrest."

"I'm going to make sure that I arrive to Goldshore safely," Ophilia promised him with small smile. She didn't feel much like smiling given the circumstances, but she still had to do something to put his nerves to rest. "The rest of my friends are going to be there for me too. We're going to be alright. I promise."

"Good... I'm sure Josef will be glad to know that he has such a passionate daughter," Bartolo murmured. "I have no doubt that he'll move past his malady with time. He is a powerful man, and he won't succumb to illness quite so easily. It's simply not in his nature."

Ophilia nodded once again. The healers back at Flamesgrace had told her that he would recover with time, and even if Josef was less certain of it, Ophilia was sure that he would still be there when she returned home. He wouldn't bow to sickness quite so easily, and Ophilia wouldn't abandon him either. As soon as she was finished in Goldshore, she would return home with the rest of the travelers in tow to complete the Kindling and introduce them to her father. She had no doubts that they would all love to meet him, and she was sure that he would adore them in return as well. So much had changed since Ophilia left Flamesgrace, but she knew that the two sides of her life could still blend easily. She could feel it.

On the note of the other travelers, Ophilia pushed herself to her feet with a light smile on her face, though she couldn't tell if she felt heavier after hearing about Morlock's shameless destruction of Creek in a failed war or if she felt lighter for knowing the truth about all that had happened. Either way, she couldn't afford to linger any longer than she already had. "I believe I should get going," she told Bartolo after a brief silence fell between them. "The rest of my companions will be waiting for me, and I have no doubt that you have other business to attend to as well."

"I do... But having you here was still lovely, Sister Ophilia. If you wish to come and visit once more, I would be more than happy to host you," Bartolo said kindly. "Until then, I wish you nothing but the best throughout the rest of your time in Saintsbridge."

"Thank you again, Bishop," Ophilia smiled. She bowed her head deeply to him before she started off towards the doors of the cathedral. Once she was outside, she allowed her fingers to curl around the handle of the Lanthorn as she raised it closer to her face. Something about the Ember simply felt magical for those few moments, and Ophilia was confident that it was because of Aelfric. She could feel the eyes of the goddess on her even in the silence.

"I am proud of thee."

Ophilia smiled at the sound of Aelfric's voice echoing in her mind, and she looked up to the skies overhead. There was still a lot rushing through her mind, but she knew that this had been necessary. She finally understood the truth, and she was relieved that she had allowed herself to take the plunge.

Ophilia looked down to the Lanthorn again a moment later, feeling the warmth of the Ember brush against her cheek. "Yeah," she replied simply. "I am too."

When dinnertime arrived, Olberic and Cyrus were the first ones to arrive at the tavern for the group's planned dinner. Tressa was the one who had suggested it, saying that they should go out together after the group had finished their business elsewhere in town. Ophilia was going to be coming off the heels of a highly emotional conversation with Bartolo about her past, and Tressa assumed this would be the best way to cheer her up. Olberic and Cyrus, who hadn't been doing much more aside from relax in their inn room, were more than happy to go and reserve a table for the party as the sun started to fall over the horizon. Tressa, meanwhile, had taken to searching through town for the other members of the group, promising to return as soon as she had found them.

For the time being though, that left Olberic and Cyrus alone at the table. Cyrus was looking over the map he had received from Barham, clearly trying to use the process of elimination to figure out where the remaining four shrines were going to be. He was confident that they were going to find one shrine in the area of Quarrycrest and another around Victors Hollow given the trends of shrine locations that the group had gotten used to up to that point. That left four shrines undiscovered, and Cyrus was taking his duty to determine their locations seriously. It seemed to be the best way for him to fill his time until he was able to get his hands on another few tomes to read while on the road, and Olberic had gotten used to the soothing murmurs of Cyrus' deductive reasoning late into the night.

Olberic tapped his finger mindlessly against the wooden table below, his mind drifting in a thousand different directions. Given that the group had passed through Wellspring without doing anything of note, they had been brought to Saintsbridge much faster than Olberic could have expected. He hadn't realized it at the time, but he had been counting on the group lingering in Wellspring for the sake of his mental wellbeing. Instead, he was there in Saintsbridge, realizing more and more with each passing moment that they would be in Victors Hollow within the next few days. There wouldn't be a way for him to outrun his past any longer when they arrived.

He hadn't explained much of his past beyond vague details, if he was being honest, simply because he didn't know how he was supposed to tell the rest of his companions. The shame he felt for allowing his king to die still burned hot and guiltily in the pit of his stomach, and his thoughts towards Erhardt were complicated at best and catastrophic at worst. They knew that Olberic had been a knight of Hornburg in some distant life none of them understood anymore, but they didn't press for details of they could avoid it. That was the best they could do for him, and Olberic was glad for it. Besides, there had been other things on their minds up to that point, so it wasn't as if they had been able to ask questions to begin with.

But things had changed, and the group was getting closer to their destination with each passing day. Victors Hollow was on the horizon, and Olberic had no idea how to feel about it. On one hand, he knew that this would be his best way to uncover information about Erhardt. On the other hand, he had to wonder if he even wanted to know anything more about his old friend than he already did. Erhardt had shattered his world and his heart into a thousand pieces, throwing out years of brotherly love-and something even more, if Olberic was being honest-with a single slash of a sword. But the truth was finally almost in reach. Olberic was going to get closer to the honesty of the past when they arrived in Victors Hollow, and he had no idea what he was going to do about it.

"Is something the matter?"

Olberic looked up at the sound of Cyrus' voice, and he realized that the scholar was watching him with intent, curious eyes. Olberic let out a small sigh before shaking his head. "It... It is nothing," he forced himself to say. Even if he wanted to, he wouldn't have been able to explain everything that was going through his head. It felt as if he was being eaten alive by the disaster that he didn't understand. He was going to have to face the truth of what he was facing with Erhardt soon enough, but that didn't mean he wanted to acknowledge it yet.

Unfortunately for Olberic, Cyrus didn't seem ready to let this go quite yet, and he allowed himself to lean forward onto the map to get a bit closer to his warrior companion. "I somehow doubt that you would be so unfocused if there truly was nothing on your mind," Cyrus countered. "If you would like to discuss what is bothering you, I would be more than happy to listen, but if you would rather not speak about it, then I won't push you for any information."

Olberic opened his mouth to try and respond, but he couldn't formulate a reply no. matter how hard he tried. He, luckily, didn't have to, as Tressa came walking in soon afterwards with Primrose and Alfyn in hot pursuit. "Good evening," Primrose greeted as she sat down beside Olberic. Alfyn claimed her other side, though he was still busy shoving what appeared to be a few stray herbs into his pouch. "I hope we didn't miss too much."

"No, not at all," Olberic assured her. He paused for a moment as he glanced to the other three unoccupied chairs once Tressa had sat down as well. "Do you know where H'aanit and Therion are?"

"H'aanit decided to go huntin' this afternoon. We ran into her on the way back into town, and she said that she and Linde were going to wrap things up before they came back," Alfyn said. "Linde has apparently been a bit stir crazy today, and H'aanit decided to let her blow off steam for a while longer."

"Therion will be here soon too," Tressa went on. "He was out wandering the town when we saw him, though I think he's going to be happy to have the distraction of eating. He's seemed a bit unhappy ever since we got here, but maybe this will be able to cheer him up."

Cyrus' gaze fell to Alfyn's satchel as the apothecary finally wrestled the clasp shut across the table. "Where did you find all those herbs? I didn't realize that they were being sold in the shops here," he commented.

"Prim and I gathered them together," Alfyn explained. "We got to talkin', and we decided to do a bit of scavenging for herbs before we left town. There's a lot of great stuff here. If I ever need a refill on supplies, we can come back here with the Warp Staff to buy more... Though I could just pick them myself if I wanted to. There's lots of wild plants around Saintsbridge that work real well in medicine."

Tressa nodded. "I looked through the shops earlier too, and there's a lot of good stuff for sale. It's pretty expensive though, so we might want to come back a bit later on when we have more funds," she said. "I could get a few supplies through haggling, but I don't want to dip too much into our money before we get to Quarrycrest."

"That's probably for the best," Alfyn agreed. "Well, I guess we know where we'll be coming if we ever need to top off any of our supplies. We can keep that in mind in the future."

Olberic hummed as H'aanit came through the door, her bow still firm in her grasp. Linde curled around her feet, clearly excited even after they had finished their day of hunting. "I hopen I am not too late," H'aanit said as she politely sat down beside Olberic. Linde was more than happy to settle down a moment later, her tail flicking gently along the way.

"Not at all. Considering that Tressa and Therion still aren't here, you're fine," Primrose assured her with a light smile. She snuck a glance in to Olberic out of the corner of her eye, and the warrior was certain that Primrose could tell something was wrong. He wasn't saying anything openly, and she was respecting that, but Olberic was still a bit anxious about how firm she was in examining him. Olberic didn't want to think at all about what was going on inside of his own head, and the last thing he wanted was to admit his fears and see them made real.

Deep down, Olberic knew that hiding the truth wasn't going to help him forever. The facts of his past and his fears regarding it were going to come out eventually, most likely when they got to Victors Hollow. Until then, all Olberic could do was try to move through his anxiety over getting closer to Erhardt. He wanted to understand, but at the same time, he was afraid of what he might find. Still, he had spent more than enough time hiding from the truth, and it was high time he finally tried to make a difference for his own sake.

"I'm so sorry I'm late."

Ophilia's voice pulled Olberic out of his thoughts. Therion was a few feet behind her, and he was twirling an apple by tossing it up a few inches before catching it once more. Olberic didn't know where Therion always managed to find apples no matter where they traveled, but he supposed that it didn't matter all that much. Instead, Olberic chose to shift his attention to Ophilia.

If he had to guess, Olberic would have said that she had just come back from the cathedral. Everything about her stance and posture felt lighter, as if a weight had finally been pulled off her shoulders, but there was still a lot on her mind. Before today, Ophilia had been suffering from the same anxieties that Olberic was dealing with at present. They both wanted to understand the truth that had brought them up to this point, but they feared what they would find at the same time. Even though they knew that they couldn't hold off their search forever, the anxieties yet lingered.

But Ophilia seemed to be doing quite well for herself as she slid into the seat next to Tressa, leaving Therion to take the final available chair between her and H'aanit. "I hope I didn't keep you all waiting for too long," Ophilia went on. "After I finished speaking with Bishop Bartolo, I started to wander through the streets while thinking about all that he had said, and I lost track of time along the way. I didn't mean to make you all sit here waiting for me."

"Don't worry about it," Tressa assured her with a shake of her head. "Do you think that you want to talk about what you heard? If you'd rather keep it to yourself, that's okay too, but... I at least want to make the offer."

Ophilia hesitated for a long moment at that before she nodded. "Seeing as we're going to be heading to Quarrycrest next, I think it would be for the best if I told you all that I've learned," she replied. "It was a lot for me to take in, and it's still a lot to think about, but... I think it's important that you all know."

"That's a bit concerning," Primrose frowned, picking up on the small intricacies of Ophilia's tone in the silence that followed the cleric's words. "Did you hear something bad from the bishop?"

Ophilia thought about how to continue before she shrugged. "It wasn't exactly anything good given the subject matter, but... I still think that you need to be brought up to date about it all," she replied carefully. "It would be best to be safe rather than sorry."

Olberic nodded at that, though he could tell that Ophilia had a lot more on her mind than she wanted the rest of the world to see. How could she not? She had just heard the details behind the gruesome murder of her entire village, and now, she was going to retell the story for the rest of the group. It didn't matter how much she trusted them or how sure she was that the truth needed to come out; she was going to be anxious regardless, and Olberic could only wish her the best in explaining it.

The longer that Olberic stared at Ophilia, the more he could see himself in her, and he hoped with everything he had that she would find peace soon. She deserved that given all that she had been through, and she needed it doubly after the battle against the wolf earlier that day. Ophilia's eyes, despite their brightness, were exhausted, as if she had seen multiple lifetimes in the span of just a few hours. In some ways, Olberic couldn't dispute that statement. However, he would do everything he could to help her along the way the same way that she had helped the rest of the group up to that point. It was the least that the travelers could offer to one another after all they had been through together.

Ophilia took in a careful breath, glancing around the rest of the table. Her gaze lingered on Olberic for a moment, no doubt her way of saying that she could see the emotion clouding behind his gaze, but she didn't stare at him for too long. Instead, she allowed her fingers to drift down to where the Lanthorn hung from her hips as the rest of the travelers watched her intently. When she let her exhale out, it was shaky, almost as if she was trembling from the inside out despite her attempts at certainty.

"Alright," Ophilia finally declared, pushing through her anxieties in the name of the other members of the party who continued to watch her in silent anticipation. "Let me start from the beginning..."

Well... Here we are.

I'm sure that you're all wondering about that opening scene with Ophilia and Bartolo. Interesting, isn't it? Here's the culmination of the details I've been leaving behind about the fall of Creek. Well, at least for the time being, because there's still a lot we're going to see before we can leave behind this subplot once and for all. Most of it went into detail about facts that we already knew about the fast and hasty war, but the new facts are intriguing, aren't they? Morlock... I wonder if that'll be relevant. Hm.

As for the rest of the chapter, I really like how the tavern scene turned out, especially since it was from Olberic's perspective. His chapter two is going to be the last of the bunch, and I wanted to remedy our massive length of time without his perspective by having him be our narrator again here. His issues with seeking the truth about Erhardt parallel Ophilia's struggles perfectly, so it makes a lot of sense to line them up together. They're going to get more time as a pair in the future too when we get to Quarrycrest.

Speaking of Quarrycrest, we're going to be heading out there soon, probably after one more chapter here in Saintsbridge. We'll be starting with Cyrus' chapter two before going to Tressa. For now though, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is appreciated as always. Have a nice day, everyone!

-Digital