Chapter Four
Path of the Titans
"What. . . do you mean by that?"
That was the first thing that left her mouth without her realizing it, and Ymir simply was left staring at the man in front of her. As soon as the man had introduced himself as Klaus Fritz, Ymir knew from the bottom of her heart that she wasn't anywhere near Marley, or earth for that matter if she had to make a guess, as the sandy dunes were very different from those she had seen in that picture inside of the book, or even the descriptions she had read about them.
Klaus Fritz changed his position and sat on the sand with his legs crossed over each other. He gently patted the sand, with a handful of it quickly floating up and disappearing in seconds. Ymir looked at his actions, and tilted her head, nevertheless, she understood what he wanted, and she sat on the sand right in front of him.
"The actual meaning of my words hold no weight as of this moment, as my presence outside is long gone after what my son had done." The blonde king said, with heaviness and sadness practically spilling out of his mouth.
Ymir didn't say anything, because she didn't know what to say, at all. This situation was surreal for her, but even so, her curiosity won out in the end. "Where are we?"
The place they were in was a mystery to her, and she didn't like that very much. Ymir wanted to go back to her dad and grandmother and continued with her day, but she knew that this event was happening for a reason, though that reason was unknown to her.
"We are in the coordinate," Klaus responded, his face unmoving and without emotion this time. "The place where all Eldians connect, where everything started, where everything will continue until the ends of times."
"Where everything started. . ." Whispered out Ymir, who looked up at the sky, feeling something well up inside of her heart.
The words spoken by Klaus Fritz felt eerily familiar, but the freckled girl didn't know why. She looked down, blinked, and stared at a small silhouette in the distance. It looked like a small blonde girl, but she was so far away that Ymir couldn't make out any features. The dark-haired girl blinked once more, and the small girl disappeared. She rubbed her eyes with her forearm and saw Klaus Fritz looking at her movements with intrigue and some sense of relief.
No words were spoken for a few seconds, and not before long had Ymir noticed people walking in the background. The girl quickly got up and ran toward them, with Klaus Fritz walking right behind her. As soon as Ymir reached the people's location, she noticed their robes and how each one of them had a crown similar to Klaus.
Confusion quickly settled over her features, and Ymir continued to stare at them. They jerked, stiffening their body before they moved to mold the sand beneath them. It was a strange sight, for sure, but Ymir didn't know what to make of it.
"Who are these people? Also kings?" Ymir asked, turning around as soon as she heard Klaus reaching her location.
The king nodded and answered. "Those of blood connected to my son, those born after his vow."
The freckled girl frowned and looked back at them.
They looked dead, shadows drowning their eyes as they seemed to be moving out of their own accord, as though they are forced to do what they are doing at the moment. Every single one of them was helping mold a single creature made out of the sand, one that she did not recognize, mostly.
"Why are they acting like that?" Ymir asked.
"Because of me," Klaus Fritz admitted. "I was made aware of the foolish decision my son would make in the future, and I made certain counter-measure to ensure something would come to pass."
"What was that vow exactly?" The freckled girl asked, knowing that she would come to ask about those measures later, though she had an idea after watching Karl's descendants molding the sand.
"That his descendants wouldn't be able to use the Founder to protect the Eldians within the walls of Paradise."
". . .I am afraid I don't follow. . ." She mumbled under her breath.
Klaus seemed to have heard her, and he explained. "He erased the memories of those in Paradise, dooming them to a fate worse than death, a slow one, not knowing what was happening outside of their cage, waiting for the day of reckoning for sins that have long forgotten."
"That's. . . what he did?" Ymir was surprised at how unsure her voice sounded. It was a mixture of question and realization. That explained the vow in more detail.
She had been told—and she had to promise to not say anything—that the Tybur family had done some sort of deal with King Karl Fritz before he was exiled away from the lands of Marley toward Paradise. Her dad had never gone too much into detail, but being told what happened by the father of the King, who was no king, is certainly something else.
"What are they doing?" Ymir asked, curiosity finally leaking out. She pointed at the descendants of Karl Fritz molding the sand. Now looking like a quadruped being.
"They are making the Titans that Marley has been using for near thirty years," Klaus commented, and slightly purse his lips. "They will be taking at least fifteen minutes before their finish doing it."
Fifteen minutes!? I can't be here that long! Ymir panicked, but before she could say anything, the king spoke, as though noticing her distress.
"Time here passes quicker than outside, less than a second has passed there." He commented, nonchalantly.
Ymir's heart calmed down, and she looked down at the sand. Then, looking up, the branches from the tree had extended slightly, and she noticed one of them had branched off somewhere else, while one has merged with the nearest one, turning into one.
She looked at Klaus. "Why am I here?"
"Because I wish to ask you something," Klaus said softly, almost ashamed of himself.
The girl frowned and inquired. "What is that? I don't know why a King from the past would ask anything from me, unless. . . it had something to do with my name."
Klaus nodded. "Very sharp of you, that's correct." Then, he kneeled.
"What are you doing?" Ymir asked, confused and startled by the sudden action.
"Please, be the one that the Eldians inside of Marley never had." He said, voice pleading. Ymir felt uncomfortable having a king of all people pleading—almost begging—at her. "My son was naive into thinking that no action was going to solve everything, the young ones that had never fought in a battle are practically dead as soon as they are born because of his actions." The olive-skin girl frowned as he continued.
"If he simply shaped Eldian into a better empire, nothing of what is happening at the moment would have come to fruition. Our people wouldn't have been divided, one part of them suffering, and the other not knowing what they are. I beg of you to help the ones inside of Marley, and then free those that are inside of Paradise."
Ymir was a sudden loss of words, sweat running down her forehead as she stared at the kneeling king in front of her. It was such a heavy task she had been asked to carry, and Ymir almost felt the need to deny his words and go back to her dad. But she knew that her dad wanted the Eldians inside of Marley to be happy and stop the suffering they have, and as such, she had no choice but to answer in the best way possible.
"Why exactly are you telling me this?" She asked. "Why me? What exactly can I do when I have no power in this world?"
She didn't have any power over one of the Nine Titans and had no say in the matter because of her age. She was going to be told exactly what she was going to do soon, though she had an idea, even then she had no power to make changes unless someone else does it for her.
What could she do when she had nothing to do, but others could?
"Because someone close to me told me to not give up," Klaus said, looking up to the girl square in the eyes. "He told me what my son would do as soon as he had the Founder, and he told me about what my son has been doing, how he has been feeling, and the thing he will do after he obtains the Founding Titan."
Ymir listened intently.
"But the words that had been seared into my mind ever since the day he told me all of that, would be the reason for my coming into contact with you." Klaus stood up, looking down at the girl with a look full of determination.
He slowly lifted his hand, extending it to her. Ymir took it without hesitation, feeling that something was about to happen.
Klaus finished with a smile on his face. "Is that we have to keep on fighting for our future, your freedom, Ymir."
Keep on fighting. . . A whisper within the confused Ymir's mind echoed. To be free. . .
Right then, a light-blue thunderbolt struck a confused Ymir, and she disappeared from the Paths.
Ymir blinked and found herself back beside her dad as she continued to grab the blonde's man hand. She was mostly confused, as a single thought went over her mind. . .
What. . .
"This is Otto, the one in charge of the construction of the church," Wallace commented, and Otto stopped grabbing Ymir's hand as he gave a heart-full laugh. "If it weren't for him, the church wouldn't have been finished until much later."
"Everyone worked hard as well, don't need to make me look like the only one that has done something," Otto said, a smile on his face. "Even so, thank you for your words."
"Hello," Ymir simply voiced out, looking around.
The dark-haired girl tuned out her dad and Otto for a second and gazed around. She also her grandmother talking to someone else, looking ready to murder someone, for some reason, though that was normal for her, and as long as Ymir was not in the receiving end of the deal, she would only pity those who dare have her grandmother's wrath.
She liked helping, but she had self-preservation.
Ymir turned in once again the voices around her.
"—You are finally going to tell what is her role in all of this?" Otto's voiced was the first thing that entered her ears. It caught Ymir's attention, and she looked at both men beside her.
Wallace shook his head, kneeling and grabbing Ymir's hand, which the girl squeezed gently. He glanced down at the freckled girl. "Not yet, but knowing her she has her guesses about it. Come, Ymir, we are going inside of it. My mother seems to be. . . distracted at the moment." He mused, worrying about the one receiving the murderous glare of his mother, and murmured. "I commend his resistance, maybe I should hire him."
"Please don't." Otto chuckled, "I don't think he will survive much longer." And he moved to save his partner.
Ymir had to agree on that one.
Both of them walked inside of the church, and Ymir was in awe at the sight. The scent in the air was fresh and new, the marble in the structure glistened with the light that came from the window above. There was a giant statue in the background—a statue, mind you, that looked too much like Ymir, freckles and all—made out of white stone, chairs around right beside the other, making a large row out of the wooden chairs united as though they were a single one.
Ymir continued to look around until her eyes fell on the statue. She nudged Wallace's hand and pointed with her free hand toward it. "Why does that look like me?"
It was a simple question, one that the girl had a possible answer for, but she wanted to hear it from her dad.
Wallace looked at the statue and then at Ymir. "It is time to finally to tell you duty, come." He whispered to her and dragged her off gently to a hidden room somewhere far into the building of the church.
He lifted Ymir and put her on a chair, then walked to close the door, and strolled right in front of her.
"Dad, please just say it," Ymir said.
"Very well," Wallace mumbled and then raised his voice somewhat. "Once I announced the purpose of the church, you are to become the figure-head, the image of this church. That is the reason why the statue looks like you, I had to get a lot of people to get it done before it was opened, hope you like it." He offered a smile.
"Thanks," Voiced out Ymir, words pouring from her heart.
"We are going to help the Eldians get better treatment from the rest of the world," Wallace continued. "If they follow the church, Marleyan will consider giving them more freedom in their day-to-day lives, and maybe we can help change their mind that us, Eldians, are not a race born from the blood of a devil."
So, I will be able to help regardless of my actions. . . Ymir wondered about that as she nodded. She recalled the words of Klaus Fritz, that still rang deep in her mind. She will help because no matter what, everyone had been born into this world to enjoy it, no matter who's blood one had.
Even so, Ymir more or less understood why the Eldians were treated the way they had been treated. People that could turn into a gigantic beast that could trample the earth were not exactly the best people to get along with, least make enemies of.
She needed more information.
"Dad," The dark-haired girl called out. "How are people turn into Titans?"
Wallace's eyes furrowed, in confusion. "Why would you ask that?" He shook his head. "They inject a serum through a syringe and when the liquid goes inside an Eldian they are turned into Titans, I could get more information for you later, but right now we have to prepare you for your big day."
Ymir nodded, but something stood out.
"My big day?" Inquired the girl.
"Yes, Ymir," Wallace nodded. "Tomorrow is the day when the church is announced for all of Marley and the Eldians here. Tomorrow will be the beginning of your duty. For Eldia's future."
Ymir nodded, a blue spark cracking beneath her skin, while a wide smile was painted across her face as Wallace continued.
"For a better tomorrow."
A/N: Sorry for the delay, I was away from my house for a few days and couldn't write.
Penny for your thoughts?