As soon as Ryne heard of the news, she and her party gathered and prepared for another battle. In the grimmest of tidings, the city of Eulmore swarmed by a beast that began to terrorize the peaceful city without a shred of mercy. No doubt, this chaos would cause even smaller monsters to form from the aura of the original creature. All of them knew exactly how it went, yet with Eulmore; it was different. Where's Rak'Tika and Ahm Araeng were open spaces, making it easier to resist the beasts. Eulmore was a single tower with multiple levels and halls, making fighting anyone more akin to the game of catch rather than a battle. And worst of all, the city's people were utterly defenseless against the arising threat, hence why Ryne and others were ready to fight, as well as some soldiers Lyna sent from the Crystarium.
It felt strange, seeing her old home in person… Ryne's avatar walked along her friends as soldiers as they made their way toward Gatetown and the bridge leading to Eulmore, only to see that the bloodbath already began. The skies have turned dark crimson, signaling the arrival of the monsters, and this time it would not be contained as easily as before. Ryne could feel this rot; the enemies were close, many of them…This city never treated Ryne kindly, and her soul had no fondness for this place. And yet seeing it being tormented by pure chaos wasn't right. None deserved a fate so horrific. Perhaps a chance to return to the city not as a prisoner but as a savior would help Ryne finally make peace with it.
"No, no! They're still hiding there…Run!" A lone man ran away from the city, chased by a small, insect-like creature. He was keeping a safe distance, yet a young woman behind him was lingering too far behind, making it easier for the monster to reach her. The man noticed it with horror in his eyes, almost ready to jump into the fray at any moment. Thankfully, he didn't have to. Ryne manifested an arrow of light with her power, unleashing it at the beast. It was of the weaker kind and was thus easily broken with her power. The insect let out a screech before collapsing to the ground and finally perishing. Both man and woman watched their savior with awe and hope emerging in their eyes.
"Thank the darkness you're here!" The man shouted. "My daughter was about to fall into their trap, and I…"
"It's alright. We can protect you." Ryne reassured him. "You can run away and hide as far as you can; Stilltide will take you in."
"Ho are matters in the city?" Inga asked grimly.
"It's…" The young woman stuttered. "The soldiers are fighting valiantly, yet the first beast is…"
"What is it?"
"It's terrifying! I thought it was a serpent at first, but then I realized that this was but one of its heads…It has overtaken the dungeon, trapping so many people who tried to hide inside, and…"
"Calm down, please," Ryne reassured her; they couldn't suffer another beast emerging right here. "I promise we will deal with it, just run away and hide, do you understand…"
"I…"
"Yes, thank you." The father nodded. "We will be alright. Just please, save the others!" He pleaded before the two made their way towards the nearby village.
"So…What are we waiting for?" Lue-Reeq's voice echoed with simultaneous fear and eagerness. "My family is there, my parents, my cousin…We have to save them!"
"My parents, too…" Inga's lips quivered as she clenched her fist. "I should've returned to protect them or warned to get out of there, I…"
"We will save them, just as all the people we've saved before." Granson took out his claymore, speaking up with pride.
"And if they're already…"
"No." Ryne shook her head. "We cannot allow ourselves to think of the worst, not with the battle that lies ahead of us!" They needed to remain strong for the people that they swore to defend. Showing weakness at a critical moment like this would only cause more panic and add to the blasphemies that emerged within the city.
Suddenly, a piercing howl echoed from Eulmore's tower, a shriek that would make anyone's bones chill.
"Did you hear that?" Giott exclaimed as she clutched her hammer. The presence was unmistakable. The beast found its home inside Eulmore and would not take kindly to anyone coming close to its new nest.
"The darkness stirs…" Ryne spoke with a heavy breath, bracing herself, but this sound was far from the worst. The tower's roof shattered right before the girl's eyes, unleashing the blasted horde. Dozens of crimson monsters roamed the skies, ascending from Eulmore's uppermost level. The monsters had no clear form, they were humanoid, yet all of their limbs were replaced with wavering tentacles; all they sought was prey and nothing more. Once again, Ryne found it hard not to think about the fact that they were living beings just like her ones, that all it took for them was an unfortunate day of fear and doubt for the dark aura to overtake their souls. And now they noticed a larger pray in the face of Eden towering above the city, and so all of them made their way towards Ryne and her friends, as ravenous and merciless as ever.
"They're… They're coming!" Taynor shouted as he raised his staff. The boy has seen many horrors in his life, yet even his voice was filled with encroaching fear, and Ryne understood the sentiment, for it was the first time she saw so many monsters gathered in one place.
"Then we give those bastards the welcome they deserve!" Giott let out a battle cry, ready to face their foes, and others were just as prepared. Granson and Reeq clung to their weapons, as did the Crystarium squad that remained with them. Each of them was a renowned warrior, but Ryne knew that it was her each of them looked up to. And for as long as it remained so, she would give them a reason to look up to her.
Ryne closed her eyes and drained Eden's power. She wasn't able to restore too much in the little break she had, but some of Amaurot's essence was still within the sin-eater, allowing Ryne to hold her own in battle. Countless arrows of light formed, each sent towards one of the flying beasts. The monsters screeched as their skin burned with umbral energy. Their disgusting howls pierced her ears. A few of them fell, unable to resist the pain sin-eater inflicted on them.
The rest continued to battle, trying to reach the monsters with whatever means they had. Reeq's arrows and Taynor's spells would often hit their tentacles, wounding their essence and thus disrupting the flow of their magics that helped the beasts maintain themselves in the air.
"Bring them down!" Granson commanded, immediately trying to attack the monster that fell to the ground. The soldiers from Crystarium came from behind him, aiding Granson in the battle. Inga was there, too, fighting more ferociously than ever before.
"Die!" She shouted as she pierced the nearby monster; Ryne could feel her fear and rage as she desperately battled to save her parents, that was still overtaken by chaos. Only the hope that they were still alive allowed them to persist.
Ryne was about to join her and attack the beasts with the power of light, yet just moments prior, she felt something that made the girl pause. As if a broken connection, the aether current that she desperately maintained was restored. The reunion of a soul that she sensed far away.
A powerful and achingly familiar one…
…
He saw all of it once again, saw the truth of his world before his own eyes. As Emet's soul traveled back through time itself, he felt the sheer power of the Crystal Tower dragging the ascian towards it. Unlike traveling to the past, he did not have to struggle to reach out, did not have to manually pierce the stream and see each and every calamity unfold. Instead, all of this happened in a matter of seconds, making the ascian witness the twelve thousand years of his journey emerge like a swift, piercing lightning, a whirlwind of misery and destruction. A path he finally made peace with…
And yet, in a fleeting moment, Hades saw it. The split that emerged from the timeline he created was a crossroads at which the continuum found itself. An uncharted path, a branch that emerged due to Emet's interference, a path that Emet could not peer into, for his soul was dragged along to the present far, far too quickly.
It was their battle to fight, and Emet still had his. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the final chapter of his life, the one that began as the ascian got all his answers, with the only path left before him to finally act upon them. Finally, his broken, tormented home, a star that, despite everything, still deserved to be saved…
When the echoes ceased, Emet felt he would finally reunite with his body. It was a moment of relief and pleasure, all of the pain that the ascian felt due to the limitations of his avatar was no more, and he was whole once again. He didn't find the strength to open his eyes straight away, but Emet felt that he was lying on a bed in relative comfort. Someone must have taken care of his body…At least it didn't seem like anyone tried to bury or destroy it.
When he finally opened his eyes and looked around, Emet was surprised to find himself alone in an azure room that he recognized as a part of the Crystal Tower, though not the one he had ever been in. It had storage, a bed, a table, and numerous books on installed shelves that were attached to the walls. Ah, it must have been G'raha's study which he retired to during his long vigil. A way to keep himself entertained by gobbling the knowledge of both Source and the First while waiting for his precious hero to arrive, a desire Emet could certainly understand. Now it was time to gather how much time has passed here since the ascian left for the Unsundered world, perhaps…
His musings were interrupted by echoing steps from behind the door; the ascian immediately sensed a soul. Someone was coming and judging by their demeanor rather hastily. Moments after this, the door opened, and Emet witnessed a familiar nu mou that helped guide him to the past. When Beq Lugg saw the ascian in the flesh, they immediately recoiled in fear as their eyes were wide open with surprise and shock.
"Oh my…I…" They looked away, likely contemplating an escape. "I thought you were sent away for much longer…"
"Calm yourself." Emet smiled. "Thankfully for you, I am not in the mood to harm anyone, much less someone who helped me. But I need to know for how long I have been away."
"A week and a half, not more," Beq responded, finally able to breathe freely and relax, realizing that they weren't in danger.
"Wonderful, and here I was, fearing that it might return to a world that is already broken. That means I still have time." The ascian sighed in relief, continuing to confuse the sorcerer.
"Time for what?"
"To repay my debts, of course. Apart from thousands of souls of my brethren that were now released to the stream and will yearn for a chance of reincarnation, as incomplete and short as it will be and a maddened creature that needs to be put down…There are two people with whom I would have a word." The ascian closed his eyes for a moment, envisioning their reunions. It wasn't too long ago that he was certain that they were never destined to happen, and thus he was unsure about what it was he wanted to say exactly. "Where is Ryne?"
"Ryne? In case you're wondering, the last thing she would want right now is to see you again."
"Oh, I am aware, and that's precisely why I am going to find her."
"If you…"
"I will not hurt her, either." The ascian reassured them. "All I want is to talk."
"She is not here."
"Then where?"
"She…Eulmore." Beq sighed. "She and her friends were called away to Eulmore; it is overrun by new beasts as we speak."
"What an occasion…" Emet spoke with intrigue. "I can't imagine this being a simple week for her, and yet she still charges into battle. Impressive, though I suppose I should've expected no less from her."
"And what are you going to do?"
"Liberate her from any distractions so we can talk in peace. If that means going on another round of slaughtering Terminus beasts, then so be it. When that is done, rest assured, you won't have to worry about me any longer."
"You will help?" Beq spoke with hope. "We all would be grateful. Rumors have it that the monster in Eulmore is far stronger than most others."
"Yes, yes, I heard things like this about many foes. And I will help, but not before I leave a parting gift for her."
"A gift?"
"Yes, the one she would enjoy very much, though I would rather leave it a surprise…And the one she deserves to have." Emet spoke quietly, knowing that even this wouldn't be enough to repay her. This girl's life was a living hell because of his actions, directly and indirectly, and an endless spiral of loss and torment for a soul that deserved not a mote of it. Her trauma couldn't be undone, and neither could the dreadful experiences she went through, but she was still young enough to give her a chance to fill the rest of her life with joyful memories…And now that the ascian was adamant about saving the world they all had, he could help speed up the process. "But to conjure that, I would require a bit of concentration, so I would have you step out of the room."
"Are you expecting me to just leave you unattended after all you've done?"
"Well, not like you have a choice. I'm sure you wouldn't want to see the metamorphosis in process…"
"What are you up to, then?"
"Helping her get a semblance of normal life. Now…How about this, you give me ten minutes and step outside, and then come back, and I explain the purpose of it all in detail? A fair warning, should you refuse, I'll push you away myself." Ascian spoke in a cold tone, forcing Beq into an ultimatum.
"Very well…" They looked down, realizing their predicament, and walked to the doors. "Tell me one thing." Beq hesitated and turned around towards Emet. "Did you see the past? Were you able to change it as you wanted…Did my theory work?"
"Too many questions to answer at the same time." Emet chuckled. "But if you crave the knowledge so strongly…Yes, I have seen the past. I saw the friends I yearned for, the city and home that I once lost…And it was beautiful…Oh, that is was."
…
The battle continued as Ryne and the adventurers resisted the onslaught of the flying monsters that swirled around them. The advancement was slow, but they still mashed to make their way into the inner parts of the derelicts, eventually fighting their way toward the tower itself. What horrified Ryne was that there seemed to be no end to those beasts, as if the plague was so rapid that no soul was able to resist it, especially the way it might have toiled on her companions. With each attacking beast, there was more chance that Inga or Lue-Reeq's parents were among them, lost in the sea of mindless monsters that were born of their fear.
"Press on. There are more of them!" Ryne commanded, absorbing Eden's aether and transforming into the form that was engraved into her mind by Mitron's memories, the only positive that came out of this cursed fusion. Blade and arrow in her hands now was Ryne's opportunity to defend those around her and prove that she was the hero they needed, a role she accepted, even with reluctance that her heart still harbored.
"There are…So many!" Inga shouted as she breathed heavily and continued to resist the beasts, plunging her blade into the rat-like monster's leg, forcing its ebon blood to spill onto the grass beneath them. Almost immediately, a flying fiend tried to make its way toward Inga, but this time her friends got her covered. Ryne's arrow wounded the monster and stunned it for a few brief seconds, soon after which Granson sliced its skin with a claymore, shielding Inga from its corrosive nature. "Thank you…I still don't understand…Where is everyone? Where are all the people?"
"They must have ran," Granson explained. "Some jumped to the sea and escaped to Kholusia. Maybe some lucky ones crossed through Gatetown…But most must be still hiding inside the tower."
"Right at that monster's mercy…" Inga's voice shook as yet another realization stroke her mind. The woman looked around her, noticing countless beasts make their way toward the adventurers. Ryne was preoccupied with fighting some of them herself. She wasn't able to immediately rush in and save her friend. Granson was beside her, but even he had to resist an onslaught from incoming vermin. Inga was still fighting, but Ryne could feel her soul growing weaker as fear and worry arose in her heart.
With this, one of the ravaging beasts attempted to attack her and wounded Inga's shoulder. The woman fell to her knees moments before Giott and Reeq distracted the beast's attention to themselves, allowing her a moment to breathe. Of course, this moment was brief, as two other monsters appeared before her, hungering for her soul. No one was there to defend her.
"I…Gods…Dad, Mum…I won't let you die like this, I…You can't be dead; it's impossible!" The woman screamed in agony and fear, dreading to accept even the smallest possibility that they might have been no more. Ryne understood those fears and concerns far too well. She needed Inga to hold on for a little more; the moment the avatar of light would be free, she would rush in headstrong and save her, save everyone that fought beside her; there could be no other way…And yet Ryne feared she might be too late, for the dark aura already began to form around the fearing woman.
"No…No, no, no! "Ryne was about to reach out to her, trying once again to drain more power from Eden, but the process was far too long for her to defend her; one of the hellish hounds made its move towards her…
Only for a rift of pure darkness to emerge between her and the beasts, stopping their advance. The moment that the monster halted and waited was enough for this mysterious force to attack. Two crimson spheres of volatile darkness emerged from this portal and surrounded the monsters. An explosion of pure annihilation followed, burning one of those monsters alive and severely wounding the other. The hound fell to its side, resisting and screaming in agony, unable to stop the clotting blood.
It didn't live for long, for an array of dark arrows followed, descending upon all nearby monsters like a destructive rain that would leave none unscathed.
"What the…" Giott was shocked, but Ryne already recognized this presence, making her avatar shiver in horror, for it was far more terrifying than the bloodthirsty creature.
"How rude of you to enter the most tumultuous of bloodbaths without even calling me…" A sarcastic voice echoed from the portal as it slowly waned and unveiled the silhouette of a yellow-eyed ascian. "And here I thought we were starting to get friendly."
The Shadowbringer was here.