"Well, this is going to take a while…" Emet signed as he took a seat, watching shock emerge in the trio's silent expressions. "I will try to be as clear and concise as I come with a warning. Something malicious is going down, something that, if not stopped, will kickstart a series of events that brought me to where I am in just a few days."
"You do know…" Loghrif spoke up, trying to rationalize this turn of events in her voice. "That appearance and even voice can be altered? One has to be a powerful mage in their own right to do this, but that's enough to prove that you are truly him…"
"Gaia," Themis spoke sternly, though quietly. The disbelief and confusion still echoed in his voice. "We promised to listen before making any judgments."
"I know, I know…"
"So, what is your story, then?" Apollo pressed on.
"I come from the darker future, a world where unthinkable has happened. Amaurot is no more, and our people are exterminated…I am the last survivor of our kind, left with no purpose or chance but this journey." The ascian spoke, making all others go silent once again. "It was due to a calamity named the Final Days when skies above Amaurot turned crimson, and all our fears were made manifest. The waves of despair overtook our people, making a chaotic mess out of our magics and forcing us to create rabid beasts against our will." This wasn't the first time Emet recounted the tale, but doing so before his own people, the ones who had to deal with this catastrophe themselves, was different. Seeing those oblivious faces, listening to this as if some outlandish fable… "It brought ruin to our city, and countless people have died, but in the end, we managed to forestall it. This would be the end of it for a while until a conflict would emerge, an argument that would cause a small group of mages to be split from the rest and conduct a ritual that would sunder this world…"
"Sunder?" Apollo wondered.
"Splitting every living being and the star itself into fourteen. The survivors were annihilated, and stripped of their memory and life, only becoming people after cycles of reincarnation. Even then, they were prone to war and illness, had much shorter lifespans of rarely more than seventy years, and lost any connection to creation magic due to their aether. They built their own civilization on the ruins of ours…And this is the future I come from." He explained, with Elidibus speaking next.
"You say we managed to forestall the Final Days…How?"
"By creating a dark god, the most powerful of our creations, Zodiark. It was by his will that the star was shielded from despair and allowed to flourish again. It wasn't without a cost; however, three-quarters of our people had to be sacrificed and become a part of this dark god, signing themselves to purgatory…" Emet paused and took a deep breath. "He would also need someone to become his heart, his will…That someone was you, Themis." He spoke with unabashed pride as the Emissary recoiled, for once breaking his calm demeanor.
"M…Me?"
"Indeed. When we debated about who of the Convocation should become the first sacrifice, you stepped up. You spoke on conflict back there, of needing an opportunity to truly be what you must, the Emissary who would become the mediator and a protector of his people. This was your opportunity, and you did not shy away from it…You became our hero." Emet explained, noticing Azem looking at Themis with pride.
"See, I always told you you shouldn't doubt yourself…" He looked back at Emet. "But sacrificing three-quarters of our people, even for a cause as noble as this, sounds like madness…Was there truly no other way?"
"Not that we found one."
"Maybe it was that dire if even I agreed…"
"You did not." Emet sighed. "You were the only one that rebelled against the plan when we decided on it…" The ascian thought of their last moments, of how he begged Apollo to stay, begged for him not to be so stubborn in the face of his peers, and for once gave them his support in times like those. "You left the Convocation shortly before the sacrifice, never to be seen again," Emet stated, making Apollo look down to the floor as he pondered. Themis's gaze had changed as well. He looked at Azem with aching disappointment, which he tried to conceal.
"How could you…In times like those?!"
"Well, maybe I could." Azem sighed. He must have known that this wasn't beyond him.
"You're jumping to conclusions," Loghrif spoke. "We don't even know how much of this is true if anything. So, tell me, 'Emet-Selch,' what happened to me in your world?"
"You were the first candidate to volunteer to become Zodiark's heart before Elidibus became one. You lived to see the dark gods rise, and then we're sundered with the rest of the survivors."
"What a delightful fate…But if everyone got sundered, why are you here? You don't seem to be stripped of memory or your personality."
"There were three survivors who escaped because the architects of the Sundering had other plans for us. It was Elidibus who separated from Zodiark, becoming both his avatar and a fragment of his former self, Lahabrea, and I."
"If that's the case, I don't envy Themis with having to put up with you two…."
"We had to put our differences aside and work together to rejoin the worlds and souls of those upon it. We saw seven of the newly formed shards rejoined, though we never finished the job. You were along the sundered Convocation, but you were not entirely gone yet. We found shards of you and others and imbued them with memories via crystals…Like this one." Emet took out his purple crystal. "This is the one imbued with my memories, and we had one for every seat. Those ascended shards would don dark robes and work with the Unsundered three to rejoin the worlds and bring back the souls of those who were forced to stay inside Zodiark. This is what I call the ascians, the last agents of Amaurot in the sundered world." It was clear that even Gaia, but especially Themis and Apollo, were enthralled with Hades's story, even if they couldn't believe all of it. There was much to tell, of course, and he will do so in due time. The details of the Sundering and their encounters with mortals were important in their own right, but not when they needed to stop the Final Days. "However, when we came to attempting eight rejoining, our plans were foiled. It ended with half of the sundered ascians perishing, as well as Lahabrea. This allowed a defector in our midst to grow bolder…He came up with a scheme to resume the Final Days by destroying Zodiark."
"Why would one do such a thing? And more importantly, who?" Elidibus couldn't believe what he heard. When it came to someone who held the Convocation in high regard, such betrayals were hard to believe.
"It was Fandaniel."
"Thana…No, he would've left his seat before then."
"Indeed. The sundered shard of Fandaniel orchestrated Zodiark's downfall; he teamed with one of the sundered's most powerful warriors and put an end to Elidibus's life…And then, in a stroke of rather farcical events, Zodiark was destroyed too."
"So that means…"
"Yes. All the souls were released into the stream, and there was no one to protect the star…The Final Days have returned, and I am not confident about the sundered's chances. Using the machinery that was developed in another timeline and the reservoirs of energy created by our meddling, I was able to send my soul back in time…I was trying to shoot for a few years earlier, but unfortunately, this is as far as I got, and while it isn't written yet, we have to act quickly. Before I left, I found out the true cause of the Final Days, and it is not far from here. The process has already begun…I want to help you stop it. I want to unwrite history and give my people the knowledge they never had. But I will need your cooperation." Emet spoke, his voice slowly turning into that of a plea. He needed their aid desperately so.
"I see…" Themis sighed. "I have a lot of questions about this tale."
"So do I," Gaia added. "How come he didn't know the truth for so many years and then discovered it shortly before this journey? Why would one of our own do something so foolish and self-destructive as to unleash this cataclysm again?"
"And what if it is true?" Apollo wondered.
"That is a very big if." Loghrif shook her head, allowing Elidibus to speak.
"I agree with you, but if there is even the smallest chance that our guest speaks the truth, the ramifications are too major for us to ignore. I would be interested to hear what leads he has on this matter."
"Hm…I wouldn't be so certain." Gaia shook her head before turning to Emet once again. "Can you prove to us beyond any reasonable doubt that you're Emet-Selch?"
"The simplest way would be to have someone with a soul sight compare my soul to that of Emet-Selch, you know. They might differ in density, but at their core, one would find them identical." He explained, immediately beckoning for Apollo to speak up.
"I could ask Hythlodaeus for that or…Well, Hades himself, that would be awkward."
"I'd rather not disclose the truth to anyone else just yet. That would cause too much attention; I'm afraid Lahabrea and some others would rather focus on my persona than prevent the cataclysm."
"Well, that's certainly true, knowing him…" Gaia pondered. "But I hope you see that this puts us in a rather unfortunate position, does it?"
"If you must…" Emet looked at Themis and Apollo. "It was not so long ago when you, Azem, went against the Convocation's decisions in your attempt to save the isle of Critos from an erupting volcano using Lahabrea's masterwork, Ifrita. You succeeded."
"True, but I'm sure it might be public knowledge by now." Apollo retorted.
"And then your dear friends, Hades and Themis, came to visit you on that isle to see how you were doing. Hades arrived slightly earlier and got an opportunity to spend time with the locals, while Themis caught you right in the middle of an attempt to subdue a lizard-like creature, a rather comedic attempt, I might add." Emet recalled the story in detail, immediately seeing the change in Apollo's expression, as well as that of Themis.
"Yes, this is exactly what happened…" The Emissary said. "And I am more than certain that there was no one there but the three of us."
"Well, isn't that an interesting coincidence?" Gaia chuckled.
"It is no coincidence because I was there too with my Themis and Apollo, saw it with my own eyes. Is that enough proof for you to at least hear my proposal out?"
"Yes." Apollo was the first to speak, with his voice sounding firm and confident. "It is." His expression changed. His eyes were no longer displaying curiosity but instead pain and sympathy as he stared at the reflection of his friend. Was it the moment when he truly started believing? Emet would know sooner or later.
"Good…" The ascian sighed. "As I found out, the cause of Final Days is a single man in our time, and his name is Hermes." He announced, causing Gaia to raise an eyebrow in surprise.
"The chief of Elpis?"
"Yes, soon-to-be Fandaniel. It was his shard that sought to destroy Zodiark in the future and succeeded." Emet explained.
"I know him personally, and I can hardly believe this…He has always been shy and reserved, always avoiding conflict and not desiring to bring harm to a single butterfly, much less the whole world."
"Well, I had to learn to beware of the quiet ones the hard way…Truth be told, I can only go by the words of another, the one who revealed this tale to me, but it is enough to understand. Hermes always questioned the ways of Elpis and believed the researchers too quick to unmake a creature when they do not reach their standard…"
"Yes, that much is true. I told him to bring his concerns to the Hall of Rhetoric if he wants to, but I don't think he ever did."
"He didn't feel understood and instead chose to focus on something else…The Meteia project."
"Is it that Entelechie that lives with him…Meteion, right?" Gaia wondered.
"She is one of many. Creatures that can interact with Dynamis, a matter separate from aether that is influenced by emotions. Our souls are too dense to interact with it, but Meteia's aren't. With them, he sought to explore different worlds and search for the meaning other races and civilizations ascribe to their life."
"A very risky endeavor…" Themis noted. "One that can easily go out of control if not treated with care. If those beings can be influenced by emotions…I can see where this is going."
"The vast majority of worlds Meteia found were barren or consumed by war, strife, and plague. The answers they received were that of suffering and despair, making their hivemind come to an ultimate conclusion. To eradicate suffering, one has to eradicate life itself, a judgment they brought upon the entire universe." Emet explained. "Their song would reach our star and rot the aether currents, allowing our magics to be corrupted by unrestricted Dynamis and create those beasts."
"But why didn't anyone stop it or find out?" Gaia wondered. "At least Hermes must have known. Why did he not forewarn others?"
"It is complicated…The day Meteia received the report and got themselves corrupted was the one when Hythlodaeus and I came to assess Hermes for the seat of Fandaniel."
"That is really soon…"
"See what I mean? He and I saw this corruption, but Hermes chose to side with Meteion and endorsed her decision, believing this endeavor to be some kind of "test" for mankind. He then used his device, Kairos, to erase the memories of himself, me, and Hythlodaeus…All to ensure the fairness of his test. The rest I've already told you. He is a ticking bomb that is about to go off, as is his Meteia…And it's up to us to stop him by whatever means necessary." Emet concluded, watching Gaia shake her head.
"And in doing so, accuse a man of a crime he didn't commit, at least yet. That is not how the Convocation works, and as someone who claims to be one of us…You'd know that more than anyone." Gaia said sternly, but Apollo intervened.
"But we can't stand aside and do nothing. If Hermes is allowed to continue his work, who knows how it will end? And by the time he becomes Fandaniel, it might be already too late."
"And how do you imagine that? Telling him that he is about to condemn the whole world to death would certainly not make anyone confrontational or perhaps more inclined to carry out those plans even quicker?" Loghrif questioned, making Emet talk next.
"His reaction is relevant only in the sense of us being able to stop him…And no matter what he plans, together, we can make stop him and prevent Meteion from leaving the star. Whatever resistance he will put up against us, we will be ready for."
"And interfere in his life because of someone with a very questionable identity accusing him? That hardly sounds rational…I would need more cohesive proof than that to be on board with your scheme."
"No need for arguments," Elidibus spoke up, garnering the attention of the other three. "The news that E…I assume I may call you Emet-Selch."
"You may."
"The news that Emet-Selch brought here is rather worrying and damming if true, and to me, it is clear that this must be investigated. The risk of leaving this situation to its own devices is too high." Elidibus outlined before looking at Gaia, she was about to say something, but he was quicker. "However, we will proceed with caution. Loghrif is correct, we cannot accuse Hermes of crimes he did not commit yet, but if Emet-Selch's story is true, that means that he is currently engaged in a project that is extremely dangerous and can end up being destructive even without his involvement. Those are grounds to halt the project and ask for his cooperation on behalf of the Convocation."
"I wouldn't expect him to cooperate if I were you," Emet said.
"We have to try before enacting any significant measures, and I will be the judge of that. We will organize a visit to Elpis, where an opportunity to contact Hermes before our Emet-Selch ventures there to assess him for the seat. Our goal is damage control and prevention. I hope we can all agree on that being the priority?"
"Absolutely." Gaia nodded.
"Indeed." Apollo endorsed.
"If that's the way it is…" Emet sighed before nodding. He would gladly employ measures beyond asking for cooperation, but he had to consider how this situation appeared from their perspective. There was no reason for them to trust him over a respected member of their society unless they had concrete proof.
He only hoped that it would not be too late.
…
And so, with a single tale, the process of unwriting history was set in motion with the last of the Unsundered at the helm of it. There were no words that could describe how immensely grateful Emet was to both Themis and Apollo for believing his words and agreeing to help. They could've easily declared him a lunatic and brought him before the Convocation itself. Lahabrea or Nabriales would not hesitate to decry him. But they knew that despite all the metamorphosis the ascian had gone through, a part of their old friend was still in him, even if broken and twisted.
Gaia wasn't as eager to accept Emet's words as gospel, perhaps understandably so, but the ascian was still grateful for her accepting to help and not disclosing this to anyone else in the Convocation just yet. After all, every skeptic would be taken aback by such news and attempt to prevent the described doom at any cost…According to Hydaelyn's words, it wasn't different from his own reactions when Edwin spoke of it. Loghrif made her way to the Akademia to arrange a visit to Elpis for the four of them, setting the stage for their investigation.
Themis did not waste any time too. His was the goal of digging up any resources that would tell them more about who Hermes was. He wasn't familiar with him but decided that as an Emissary, he had to attain the best possible knowledge of the subject before venturing forth into the unknown. Hermes attained some fame among the people of Amaurot as the chief of Elpis, but few knew him beyond scarce rumors.
As for Apollo, he decided to stay with Hades to get more information, likely out of sheer curiosity. Emet couldn't blame him. After hearing what he heard, one would be brimming with questions, and it would be impossible to disclose every single detail in a retelling like that. Truth be told, Emet didn't mind this prospect in the slightest and gladly joined Apollo in Gaia's garden.
There, the two found themselves in a secluded space, but the windows allowed them to peer into the streets and see the people of Amaurot. Happy and intrigued by the everyday prospects of their lives, every research, every discovery was a cause that brought smiles to their faces. The world that Emet didn't want to seem so alien and distant to him, and yet it did. Ever since the Final Days stroke Amaurot, their everyday lives became those of shame and despair, lives of longing for their sacrificed relatives and friends.
"And here we have it, some more tea for you." Apollo's voice echoed from behind as he came into the garden, bringing a filled kettle from Loghrif's quarters. "Enjoy at your leisure. I'm sure she wouldn't mind."
"Thank you…" Emet said faintly as he poured this tea into his cup.
"Everything alright?" Apollo sat beside him.
"It's simply so…Strange. I can't quite explain it." The ascian sighed. "To see our people so carefree and happy once again…It feels unnatural after all I lived through."
"You'll get used to it if you stay."
"I intend to."
"Huh…If you help the Convocation to uncover such a plot, you will be quickly known as a hero. You might need a new identity. However, having two Hadeses would be a tad confusing."
"We'll figure something out," Emet said with hope.
"I thought about what you told me and…" Apollo stuttered. "I am not sure what to make of it. I know I would oppose the plan if it ever came to pass, but to leave all of you during the cataclysm…"
"You don't think you'd do that?" Emet turned to him, slightly amused.
"I know I wouldn't, for my loyalty lies in Amaurot, first and foremost," Azem stated. "But I can't help but wonder…How did it happen? How did I leave?"
"The news of Themis becoming the heart of Zodiark pushed you to your limits…And Hythlodaeus was among those who were sacrificed, as well. You did not want to accept the necessity of losing them and left your seat, journeying on your own to seek another solution…" Emet sighed.
"I assume I didn't find one."
"No one knows what you found in that search if anything. All I know is that on the last day on which I saw my Apollo, we were both utterly broken and devastated by the news and decisions, but I was ready to bear it while you…He would have none of it." Emet thought back to their goodbyes; there was no point concealing the truth. "I tried to convince him that Zodiark is the only solution and that he should stay, while he stubbornly refused to surrender and argued for another solution. We were both in tears…And now that I think about it, I think both of us weren't as much trying to convince the other of the righteousness of their chosen path but themselves."
"What did the others think of it?"
"Most described you…Even Themis, although I know it wasn't easy for him. I wish I could do the same…I despised y…Him for this betrayal, for abandoning his people in their hour of need, but I think I don't anymore." Emet spoke with a serene voice. "Time helped me understand that this was a decision based on emotions, the ones that overtake us from time to time, and there is nothing we could do about it." Or perhaps he simply got a chance to exact a twisted form of revenge when fighting Edwin and realized that it did not make him feel any better, making Emet realize that he forgave his friend long ago.
"And what of you three? How long did you work to restore the worlds?"
"Twelve thousand years…"
"That's more than three lifespans…" Apollo's voice quivered. "I can't even begin to understand how difficult it must have been for you, but I have to say, you did well in preserving your sanity."
"You think so?"
"Yes, I look into your eyes, listen to your voice, and…I still see you. You may have gone through a lot, but you are still Hades, the one I have always known." Perhaps this was the best compliment Emet could hope for now, that despite everything he endured, despite all the suffering witnessed, in the end, it was still him.
Before he could continue, the ascian felt the pain that made him grunt and put his hand to his heart.
"Aaarg…Damn, it!" Emet clenched his teeth, once again suffering a timely reminder of his body's fragility and his limited time.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just…My transition here wasn't perfect. A part of my soul is still stuck in the future, affecting my own composition…"
"And here I thought your aether was thinner than most of us."
"Don't pay it any mind. I still have more than enough time; we can try and sever this tie once Hermes's project is stopped."
"Whatever you say…You were talking about your experiences. Care to tell more? What happened with Lahabrea and Themis?
"They weren't as lucky as I was…Or perhaps they were, depending on how you look at it. Hephaistos had to hold his sundered son in his own hands, he was the one who came with a plan of rejoining, and it was the one that slowly took away his sanity, making him a fanatical devotee of Zodiark. Elidibus…It was a different story. With him becoming the heart of Zodiark and so many voices echoing in his mind, he started to forget the past. He never lost sight of it completely, but eventually, it became nothing more than fading echoes and thought of completing the duty that he followed to the end. I might have never caved, but it wasn't easy…Watching those frail, spiteful, selfish creatures go through thousands of cycles, unable to reach our levels or even co-exist. No matter how much I tried to guide them, they would commit the same follies and vices; eventually, I decided that it was simpler to exploit them for rejoining. But even so…There were souls of our people in them." Emet clenched his fist. "Seeing them in this state was…Maddening. There are so many…" He stuttered as he felt tears coming to his eyes once again. "So many times I wanted to give up and simply surrender to the stream, become one of the sundered, get rid of my memory…But I continued to fight for the sake of our people still in Zodiark. For the sake of Hephaistos and Themis, they deserved to see the world they adored so much brought back. But now they are both gone, as is Zodiark…Our battle is over. All I can do is to make sure that your world does not meet the same fate, and then…Maybe try to live here as I once did." Emet chuckled, realizing that despite his hope, he will never truly be able to let go. The people he knew were still in the stream, getting sundered one by one, but even in this state, those were their souls still, and now they were condemned to an inevitable fate of rotting and perishing amidst the song of oblivion.
"I see…Well, we will welcome you with open arms when all is said and done, I can promise. To think about the entirety of our kind reduced to a single surviving soul…"
"There is…Another one." Emet let out, uncertain of whether this was the right time, but he knew that sooner or later, she would be brought up. "As it stands, there are two survivors from our kind in my timeline, though I am not sure if she still lives, not whether she deserves to be called one of us." He spoke with animosity, and Azem immediately picked up on that.
"You sound rather rageful."
"With good reason."
"Who is she, then? Not of the Convocation, I assume?"
"She was, once," Emet said with disappointment, trying to restore his breath and focus his thoughts. "And you are very familiar with her, for it is your mentor and the former holder of Azem's seat."
"Venat?!" Apollo gasped with shock.
"You sound surprised…I remember you always speaking highly of your mentor and her abilities, so why would you?"
"I am not surprised. If anyone got to survive all of those events, she would be among the most capable individuals…But why did you speak of her with such disdain? And why not mention her to Themis and Gaia?" His admiration was well-intentioned, of course, but as it stood, Emet couldn't bear to hear anyone sing praise to her, not after what he discovered.
"Because she is the one who slaughtered our people!" Emet let out with rage, his eyes gleaming with purest spite, further shocking Apollo.
"W…What?"
"I have told you about the Final Days, our primary concern, but you know I mentioned another event in our history."
"The Sundering and a Split in our society."
"It took two sacrifices to eliminate the Final Days, first to restore the aether currents, the second one to undo the damage they managed to cause. But we could not leave the people that have given themselves to Zodiark behind, you understand, and so we in the Convocation spoke of the third sacrifice. The one that would consist not of our people but of arcane creations, animals, and, if there is the necessity, people that have sprung up after Zodiark restored the world…Many disagreed, including those in the Convocation, but none went as far as Venat and her clique of summoners."
"I assume she had her reasons, whatever she did…If there's anything to say about Venat is that her methods are unorthodox, but most of the time, they work out just fine." Apollo spoke, trying to come to an understanding.
"Your sight is blinded by your admiration towards her, an understandable feeling, don't get me wrong, and you don't have to let it stain your friendship if you don't want to…But you don't know what Venat, I knew, did." Emet's voice grew quieter. "All of this I had learned in our last meeting shortly before I left the future, a battle that left both of us deeply scarred. She was there when Hermes erased the memories of those present and condemned the world to the Final Days, and she escaped…She knew all this time. There was a time traveler in our timeline, too, a sundered man by the name of Edwin…" Emet tried to explain at the risk of making it too complicated. With the ways their timelines were split, it was hard to keep all of them in mind. "He was from a time when the final days were unleashed again, as well, but I did not survive Omg enough to see it. It was in the hands of the sundered to undo this and to seek out answers he dwelled in the past. All my memories of him were erased by Hermes, but Venat remembered. She heard about the world of the future and became…Infatuated, it would seem. She would speak to me of the sundered people seeing able to interact with Dynamis, as well as being more accustomed to strife."
"I wish I could see those people myself…"
"All of her beliefs are utterly preposterous if you ask me, but she held to them. Venat believed that only they would be able to eventually defeat Meteion and free the star of the Final Days, as her glimpse into the future showed…But she was wrong, and the vaunted hero in which she put so much faith fell."
"So are you saying that she caused the sundering?" Apollo inquired. "Are you sure it wasn't a side effect of something else? I can understand her methods are not without drawback, but at least her heart has to be in the…"
"She admitted to doing it intentionally to do what she believed to be strengthening mankind and bringing about salvation from the Final Days. Her faith was in the same hero I mentioned, Edwin. An…Exceptional individual, even by our standards, but the one that ultimately proved not enough. Hermes might have started this chaos, but it was her that dragged it out and chose to turn a blind eye when her people were in need. She deserves just as much of a punishment!" Emet realized that he was getting heated once again; he tried to take a breather and let go. She was left behind in a world he will not return to, broken and faded, and even if she was still alive, she wouldn't last for long. "Forgive me…But I hope you can understand my feelings well enough."
"I can." Azem nodded reluctantly. "When the truth comes to light, I will talk to Venat myself. Maybe we will come to an understanding of what might have caused her to make such a decision…Without making it again, of course."
"Good enough, I suppose." Emet nodded.
"Try to keep an open mind. Venat, I know, is not the one that did this."
"I know, I know…All I'm saying is that when it comes to living here, it's better for us not to cross paths."
"Maybe I'll help you find common ground. It wouldn't be the first time for Themis and me." Apollo said with hope, but something else was still clearly on his mind. "About those sundered…I had my doubts when you told the initial story, but I have no doubts that those were people, sapient and not unlike us…"
"They had potential but never came close to realizing it is due to their frailty and selfishness," Emet said, knowing full well that Apollo would not be content to leave it at that.
"But they were living, still…And this rejoining. You mentioned the shards, I believe. If every single one of them was inhabited, then…"
"Apollo." Emet took a deep breath before staring at his friend. There was no point in hiding the obvious. "If you are wondering how clean my hands are, then let us not drag this farcical discussion out any longer than it needs to be…They are not. My hands are stained in blood to the extent that only Venat and Hermes can rival me. Me, Lahabrea, and Elidibus made our judgment when we subscribed to the plan of rejoining. Eventually, the souls of the sundered will be restored to their rightful state as the people they once were, but before that, their lives were not our concerns. There are countless civilizations we toppled and seven worlds we annihilated while rejoining it to the Source, along with all the people on it. Each of us had our reservations at the time…But we stopped looking back." Emet turned away from Apollo, feeling shame overtake him. "When you get used to it, it stops mattering, stops hurting…"
"You know we cannot condone such a loss of life…" Apollo said. "Not with Venat, not with Hermes, not with you."
"And that is why I will not ask for forgiveness or redemption…There is nothing to undo what my brethren and I did." Emet shook his head. "I played a part in destroying seven worlds, flooding another one with darkness, bringing one more to the brink, and terrorizing the Source with calamities. Not to mention that by killing Edwin in a fateful battle, I stripped those people of any chance to succeed. There is only one man alive who can become a new hero in Edwin's stead, and even then, he is…Questionable."
"Don't you think you should've helped them deal with this problem before leaving for the past?"
"There is nothing I can do with how far the situation has gotten." Emet shook his head. "It was Venat's desire for those people to exist and replace us as the stewards of the star itself. I'll let her deal with it." It wasn't entirely true with how many of his people he was leaving behind, but it was better to get used to it. This is the thought Emet would have to live with for an eternity. "My goal is to prevent events that set this in motion, even should it simply create another timeline…I have evidence that this is exactly how it will go. If some would have me face justice for what I did in my own time, then so be it. I shall not resist. But here it comes to that…We must change our course together. Before it is too late." Emet pleaded, reaching his hand out to Azem. "And trust me, of all people I would join on this endeavor. There are none I would want by my side more than you!" He could see his friend allow a smile of pride.
"Some things never change, do they…" Apollo grabbed Emet's hands to show his support. "Of course, I would help you. Was there ever any doubt?"
Finally, some pleasant words for Emet's ears. They were enough to make him breathe with relief, as whatever would follow, he didn't have to fight this battle alone.
Not anymore.