Rebirth

Chapter 3: Avalon

A bright golden origin floated erect in a snow covered backyard. His eyes were somewhat contemplative yet underneath was a look of resolve.

"Igohl, I sense that you are leaving."

Igohl turned slowly to the azure origin, Rivas, "Your senses must be alert. I was hoping to leave on my own accord."

"You can't leave. Your host is inside clinging on to dear life. Do you not think it appropriate to at least comfort him? In the end, that is what us origins were meant to do."

"My purpose differs from yours. I was not sent to comfort, I was sent to conquer. Am I not the Supreme Origin?"

"So you are, but that doesn't mean that you can forgo your responsibilities."

"What responsibilities? I was not created to serve the weak and that is exactly what Avalon is."

"You are wrong. Only someone with exceptional fortitude could take on the might of four Mystics and a giant all at once, have his power stripped away by the Source Forge, and still yet survive."

"He didn't survive anything. He died, but the Source Forge had mercy on him and sent him back to the world of the living. His will is completely broken and he lives merely on the goodwill of someone else. No, he has failed as my host."

"Don't judge him so quickly."

"Quiet, you lower being. He is no longer of any use. I don't plan to waste any more time in his presence."

"Your resolve is strong."

"So it should be. Go back to your master. Now I must leave."

Rivas watched with despondent crimson eyes as he disappeared into the fluttering snow. She had never been witness to such an occurrence—nowhere had she heard of an origin leaving its chosen host. That kind of thing was impossible; at least she knew that she couldn't do the same thing and she had no intentions of doing so.

She too vanished and reappeared next to Maya who sat passively near the fire that crackled in the center of the house.

"Rivas, is there something wrong?"

Such was their connection to one another that they could feel when the other was upset without much trouble.

"It's Igohl, Avalon's origin—he has…left."

"What do you mean he's left?"

"He has completely abandoned Avalon claiming that his host did not satisfy his needs and he leaves to find perhaps someone else. Supreme though he is, he cannot survive on his own for long."

"Rivas…I don't believe this. How could Igohl do such a thing…?"

"Arrogance can lead a person to do even the worst thing."

"I wouldn't wish this on anyone…not even Avalon. I wonder how he would react to this."

Rivas shook her head, "No one knows."

"And the consequences, what effects could this have on the body? There's just too many unknowns to do something so reckless."

Rivas could tell that Maya was distressed. She had put plenty of hard-work into keeping Avalon alive and she had expended much of her energy to do so.

"It will be alright, Maya. I'm sure your efforts weren't all for nothing."

"I hope so."

Suddenly the front door opened revealing Kazan back from his daily stroll in the forest.

"Did I interrupt something?" Kazan asked registering the look of surprise on Maya's face.

"N-no, nothing really."

Rivas looked at Maya critically as she said this. Kazan was not entirely convinced, but he didn't push for a straight answer. When he began to move towards his room, Maya immediately leaped to her feet to stop him.

"Maya, what is it?" Kazan asked her with questioning eyes.

"I don't think you can use your room at the moment—it's…a little occupied."

"Occupied? By who pray tell?"

"I know this is going to sound weird, but one of the village kids found Avalon mortally wounded in the forest near the entrance this morning."

"Avalon is still alive? Even after all we went through to stop him, he comes back. Well, where is he now? I never saw him when I came to and from the forest."

"He's…in your room."

Kazan gazed at her as if she had gone completely insane, then he pushed past Maya to look into his room. Sure enough, there was Avalon laying on his back flatly on the bed. Maya had corrected his breathing and so now he slept comfortably, if not peacefully.

"Maya, I trusted you've thought long and hard about this before making this kind of decision."

"I…couldn't let him die. Kazan, you know this was the right thing to do."

"He attempted to destroy the entire world simply because he disliked it. How do you know he won't go right back to doing the same thing?"

"It's impossible now," Maya said quietly, "He's lost all his powers."

"How do you know this?"

"Rivas told me that Igohl has left him…permanently."

"In all my years, I've never heard of such a thing," Kazan peered again at the slumbering Mystic, "Perhaps…this could be a good thing."

"Kazan!" Maya said with sudden anger, "I can't believe you would say such a thing. How would you like it if Deva abandoned you?"

Kazan looked at her shocked by her outburst, but it held some truth.

"I'm sorry," Maya said quickly, "I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay. You weren't entirely wrong. I'm not sure if he ever had any friends. If they were Velna, Elliot, or Marianne, they're all gone. And now, so is Igohl."

"Everyone," Maya confirmed.

"Well, looks like I can't sleep in my room tonight."

"But you like sleeping near the fire on the floor."

"Yeah, right," Kazan said with a grin.

Maya looked into Kazan's room once again for the third time that day to check on him. His face was turned away from her so she would never find out immediately if he was awake. With a sigh, she decided that she needed to go out and buy some more food; Avalon might be hungry when he woke.