The war room sat silent as Arlus and Elia entered it, the generals and councilors who had sat among it's seats now either gone or packing up. Among the seats only three men remained, one of them bearing blond hair and an almost neatly trimmed beard. Arlus only sighed as he walked up to the man. 'Adrius Orius, best known as the diplomatic envoy to the eastern kingdom.' Arlus had spoken to Elia earlier while they were walking along the castle halls, informing her of the current situation. 'Normally holding good relations with the eastern lands along with a knowledge on their actions, he's begun to sneak out of his own home and into taverns directly, as if not even trusting his own staff on something. If anyone's a likely suspect, it will be him.'

Arlus then stopped directly beside the man, noticing a small amount of sweat beginning to form on their brow. "Hello, Orius. Stressed from the current events?" Arlus spoke, making the man jump as he sat down beside him. The man only looked at Arlus in shock as the prince's gaze pierced through him, making the man shudder as he looked back to the table.

"Y-yes, my lord, just a bit flustered over the fact that there was a mercenary camp near the city that had been taking villagers." Orius responded as Elia moved behind him, the man not even noticing as he kept his gaze on the prince. "To think that they had a boy controlling such a creature."

"Indeed, it's not something you see everyday." Arlus spoke as he looked to the papers in front of the man. Envelopes that he was pushing before the attack that came from the eastern kingdom, requesting trade rights with their slavers. Arlus then smirked as Orius began to stand up in haste. "So tell me, how did you know they had kidnapped villagers when all we've found are attack sites where villagers are butchered?"

To this Orius stopped mid-rise, his gaze not changing as Elia drew her blade, resting it on the man's neck. "If what Arlus hints at is true, then you have a lot of lives to answer for." Elia spoke as she nodded to the guards, the other two generals sitting in the area looking over in confusion as the guards who watched the entrance moved in to grab the man. Orius himself was at a loss for words as his hands shook, two guards immediately grabbing his shoulders and moving him to the entryway, where the guards who followed Arlus and Elia were waiting.

"Now all that remains is any proof that could be at the camp, if that hunter hasn't already grabbed it." Arlus spoke as he leaned back in his chair, the two generals who were sitting there as well only looking at Arlus in shock.

"You just arrested a diplomat that has the only good relations to Dalce that we have." Spoke one of the generals, a pale man who was slightly larger than Arlus, but nowhere near the height of Darius. Arlus just looked to the man with a calm gaze, his head going through the man's name and rank.

'Urius, second hand to the master of strategy, and formerly a general under Elia's master.' Arlus thought as he leaned forward, clasping his hands together on the table as he looked to the man. "We never had good relationships with Dalce to begin with since their king overthrew and massacred the parents and families of the previous monarchy, General." Arlus responded as he kept his gaze on the man, his own head going through the past relations with the country. "We've had constant attacks on our borders from them, and every time they've agreed to stop they've gone and broken their agreements. They've even forced the subjugation of the northeastern kingdom and have constantly attempted to invade the far north, which we are allied to if I must remind you. This very act may well be their own attempt to weaken us, meaning the idea of an invasion being prepared."

"Something that normally takes far more than just a simple mercenary camp to set up." Responded the second man, a frailer man who had white lines already over their hair, along with a beard that settled right to his chest. Arlus only looked to the man in silence as he went through their info in his head again: Indlas, an old man who was tossed into the army by his family at a young age, being stripped of his royal name and rank, rising up to the position of the Eastern General. His strategy and tactics are all that held the eastern kingdom from actually taking any territory, and he always kept his mind open for different possibilities, even granting him the option to be reinstated in his family's nobility. "If the idea you claim is correct, then you'll still need more evidence over Orius. It'll also mean that I'll have to thin out some of the bordering patrols to find any other camps like it."

"That all depends on what they may find at the camp." Arlus responded as he looked to the door, hearing the voices sounding around there as Elia stood beside him, her blade now sheathed. As the other two men looked to it, the doors opened as Oliver entered, his uniform itself seeming cleaner than when he had made it to the camp as his blade hung by his side. His gaze, however, seemed more serious than Arlus had expected.

"Well now, first I get permission to enter the castle by the guards and now I see a guy being hauled away by guards? If I didn't know any better I'd say something's going down." Oliver joked as he walked up to the table, Elia and the two generals looking at him in confusion, Arlus's own gaze observed the man as Oliver walked up and set his hands down on the table, leaning forward to the point that the gem on the hilt of his sword almost tapped the edge. "Did I interrupt something important? If so, I can come back later, would give Ksalso more time to decrypt those papers I found as well as time for me to get myself better suited for my meeting with you lot."

"Who's Ksalso?" was Elia's reply as she looked at Oliver confused, both her and Arlus surprised by his appearance. Arlus, on the other hand, had a small grin as he saw Oliver. "More importantly, how did you get here so fast?"

"I rode a horse, one of the fastest ways of travel in this day and age." Oliver responded with a smile, seeing the confused look among the other two generals faces as he finally set his gaze on Elia, seeing her surprise still clear along with annoyance of the answer. "Look, if I revealed all my secrets then I'd lose all the fun of confusing and shocking you people. As for Ksalso, they're one of my strongest assets and among my closest friends, as well as the greatest war machine I've ever created. Would've brought him, too, but that would've caused people running away in a panic because of his presence."

"More importantly, you said that he's decrypting papers you found at the camp?" Arlus responded, making Oliver nod as his gaze rested on the man. Arlus then looked to the hilt of Oliver's blade, noticing the red gem with the circling runes as he pondered through the possibilities. "You're sure they were encrypted instead of just being something you couldn't read?"

"As sure as I am that I left the head of the commander of that camp on a pole." Oliver responded, making the entire group look at him in shock. Oliver just sighed as he stood up, his features changing from their carefree look to that of a more tempered form, his gaze seeming to shake the generals and Elia as Arlus sat there un-phased. "If it was of another language, I could've read it regardless given my own training had me learn close to every dialect, save for a certain few. However, it's markings and the way it was processed through were those of a clear encryption, so I decided I would have a go at decrypting it without the catalyst."

'Though in truth it's because the darkness doesn't translate anything that is of an encryption outside of the actual word meanings, forcing me to actually learn the patterns of the encryption itself.' Oliver thought as he raised his hand to his beard, stroking it as he felt it reach to his neck. 'I should probably shave after this, given I'm going to have to look more formal here on out since my powers have returned…'

"In the meantime, however, I heard something interesting from Reginhard." Oliver spoke as he looked to the prince again, the presence he let out now fading as the generals breathed in, not even realizing the fact they were holding it to begin with. "He said your meeting had apparently decided on what to do with the boy and his behemoth."

"Indeed we did, though you may not like the results of the meeting." Arlus spoke, his voice unchanged as he felt the tension coming from Oliver. "The war council decided that the boy shall be pardoned, given he was a prisoner for their own designs, but that the beast must be killed."

"And you think that's just?" Oliver asked, his voice annoyed as he turned and started walking around the table, his pacing immediately stopped as one of the guards stood in his way. Oliver just sighed as he started stepping back, taking a few steps before he stopped beside a chair, his gaze hard as he looked at the group. "More importantly, do you think that's the most strategic thing you have? Because if so, then it's one of the stupidest ideas in here."

"And you have something better?" Elia asked, her voice harsh as she looked at Oliver with an angered look. He understood why, he was defending a creature that had killed her soldiers and was butting his nose into direct orders of this very room; something he'd guess was to be considered absolute law. "The beast has just killed some of our best soldiers, all of which were unable to damage it. Along with this, it either killed or captured traders and villagers for those men to either interrogate or enslave and seems to be loyal to only itself."

"All of which it came out unscathed, as you so generously mentioned, unable to be touched by the weapons any of your soldiers bore, while only doing what it had to in order to ensure the boy's safety against those mercenaries." Oliver spoke, pulling out the chair beside him as he sat down in it, kicking his feet onto the table as the guard who had stopped him kept firm in his place. "To the untrained eye it may seem disloyal, but it is in truth only loyal to the boy it fought for."

"You speak of it as if it's a person." Arlus responded, his voice stern and causing the group to look at him confused. "Regardless of it's reasons for doing so, it is still a beast that has killed our people, we cannot allow it to walk away free of it's crimes."

"Nor am I asking you to, only to deal a different punishment that I can aid in." Oliver responded as he looked to the man, now making Arlus raise his eyebrows. "If you'd be so kind, I cannot say it around such a crowd."

"…Very well." Arlus spoke, waving his hand and causing the soldiers to begin to move. The generals also stood up, moving out of the area as Elia remained in her spot beside the prince, making Oliver only smirk as the soldier who had originally blocked him moved past him. After a few seconds, the sounds of footsteps were replaced with the slamming of the entrance of the war room, leaving Oliver alone with the two royals. "I've given you the trust that you won't slit our throats in here, so you better have an option that can explain your current actions."

"Of course, though in all honesty you would've been dead if I wanted you to be, along with this entire castle." Oliver spoke, soon standing up as he raised his right hand, a black orb rising from it and floating over into the middle of the table. "There's an old ability with the darkness that was originally used by Myrkr during the war, granting those who had done crimes in order to aid or protect others a second chance at life. It's an ability used by masters of the art, and very few are actually able to use it because of the amount of power it requires. For me, however, it's as simple as child's play."

"And what exactly is this ability that gives others a second chance at life?" Arlus asked, making Oliver smirk as he closed his hand, causing the orb to change into a hourglass filled with sand, the sand itself already at the bottom.

"The ability I speak of, my prince." Oliver spoke, twisting his hand as the hourglass turned upside down, allowing the sand to slowly pour again. "…Is one that can allow not only the beast a second chance, but a chance for you to gain a valuable asset in the later game of the coming war."

"And what makes you think this will lead to a war?" Elia asked, making Oliver look at her smirking.

"A mercenary camp so close to the capital that it ended up capturing civilians to torture and kill, for one." Oliver spoke as he looked to Elia, who then closed her mouth as she looked at his gaze. "Their main mission was to stay there at the camp, but they obviously had changed it from what some of the letters may reveal."

"So you know that they're mercenaries?" Arlus responded, his own gaze analyzing Oliver, leaning back into his chair as Oliver nodded.

"Mercenaries that were given their job from a noble in Orlas, wherever that is." Oliver responded, his gaze now on the table as he placed his palm on the surface of it. Though it was a dark grey and seemed to be completely one thing save for a few cracks, the table itself felt as if it was a form of wood. Oliver then lifted his hand, causing the darkness under it to rise into a small enclosure that looked almost identical to the camp he had been in. "Before I killed their commander, I probed him for information and learned that he was given a ring to ensure his silence along with his cooperation. Some form of magic, believe it or not."

"You said their job came from someone in Orlas?" Arlus asked, Oliver only nodding as he twirled his hand around the small camp, causing it to change into a small lizard with wings, a faint red glow coming out of it's eyes as it moved past him and walked around the table, catching the eyes of Elia and Arlus as Oliver smiled while leaning back. "Do you still have the ring?"

"Yup, right here." Oliver spoke as he unbuttoned his left sleeve and shook it, causing the ring to roll out of it and onto the table. The other two just looked at it confused as Oliver smirked, the small lizard walking around the area soon noticing it and trotting over, picking up the ring with it's mouth as it turned to Arlus. "What, did you expect me to put it in my pocket and risk putting it on?"

"Wouldn't it have been safer to put it in a bag?" Elia questioned as the lizard flapped it's wings soon flying over to Arlus as it dropped the ring directly in front of him, allowing him to get a better look at it as he picked it up.

"Maybe, but I didn't really have one on me at the time, as you may notice." Oliver spoke as he stood up, patting his sides as he made the statement. He then sat down again with a quick look over of the pockets covering his shirt and pants "Mind you I have a few pockets, but there'd still be the risk of putting it on while I'm pulling it out. The last thing I need is to be taken control of, would really kill the mood of victory I have."

"You said you took this ring from the commander of those mercenaries?" Arlus spoke as he looked the ring over, Oliver only nodding as he set it down. "There's tales of the far eastern countries, past the plains, using rings such as these, all tied to a single ring that forces them under the will of the person who wears it."

"Talk about one ring to rule them all..." Oliver muttered as he looked at the ring in the prince's hand. He then saw Arlus and Elia look at him confused, making him sigh as he leaned back. The winged lizard he had made simply flapped it's wings a bit before it started to fly around the table, looking over the seats as it flew circles around each. "It's from the start of a book that I read a few years back, would gladly lend it to you if I had any in your native tongue."

"Regardless of what it reminds you of, this type of magic has been known to be used by the Eastern kingdom of Dalce in order to keep some of their slaves in check." Arlus spoke as he set the ring down, the lizard soon flying over and picking it up as Oliver's hands twitched at the sentence. The lizard then continued it's flight circle as its eyes glowed even more, a red tint seeming to cover the ring as Elia watched the creature circle the tables. "From what we know of these rings, they can't be removed by normal methods. How did you manage to take it off and preserve it's form while interrogating the man?"

"Trust me, it's better you not know." Oliver responded as the lizard soon flew beside Elia, dropping the ring in front of her as it turned and flew to the center of the table, it's entire body seeming to shake as Oliver looked at it smirking. "And here's some news I was hoping to hear soon."

"My Lord, I have just broken the code of the first letter, but it seems that each are made in separate codes." Came the lizard as it landed at the center of the room, causing the prince and princess to look at the creature in utter shock as it's gaze looked to Oliver. "I'm now currently decoding the parts I can while working on the remaining codes, but it looks to be from someone within this city."

"So that's why the guy was being taken by the guards." Oliver spoke as he looked to Arlus, who kept his gaze on the creature sitting on the table in confusion, Elia herself just circling it while holding her hand on her blade. "So, how long until you finish breaking all the codes on it?"

"From now, around four to six hours, but you may want to give this to the prince over there once the letters are done. From what I've read through so far, the speculation doesn't look good." The creature replied, soon walking over to Oliver and resting it's head on the back of his hand. With that, the creature faded back to darkness, rolling into Oliver's hand as Elia and Arlus kept their gaze on where it once rested. As it did so, the ring in front of them cracked and rusted, the red tint seeming to embed itself deep in it and cause a faint green smoke to flow out of it.

"What was that?" Elia asked, her gaze now resting on Oliver as she released the grip on her blade. Oliver only smirked as he raised his hand, a black orb coming out of it again that soon took the form of a dragon head.

"That, my princess, was Ksalso, or at least his voice relaying the message to me." Oliver spoke, clear pride in his eyes as the dragon head slowly spun in his hand. "Keeper and Pilot of the Dragon's Heart, the greatest base of operations and mobile fortress I had made before my country's civil war. He's also among the strongest of my allies during the war, having been taught by one of the greatest strategic minds of our time."

"Wait, a mobile fortress?" Elia asked, making Oliver smirk as he looked at her. "No such thing exists outside of ships. Are you telling me you commanded a ship the size of a fortress?"

"In a sense, though it's more command since I never lost my control over it." Oliver replied as he closed his hand around the dragon head, causing it to shatter into small bits of darkness that faded away through the lighting of the flames around them. His gaze then set on Arlus, his own mind still stuck to one matter. "The fact that even he's saying the situation doesn't look good from a mere rough draft, however, means that there's some serious shit going down, mind my language, and it's all the more reason to have both the boy and Susanoo in your pocket when the time comes."

"...I'm guessing Susanoo is the behemoth we saw?" Arlus asked, making Oliver only nod as he set his hand down, the rust on the ring now being encased with darkness as Elia kept her gaze on it. "And how do you purpose we deal with it's crimes?"

"Quite simple, really." Oliver responded as he leaned forward, a red glow coming out of his eyes as the darkness surrounding the ring released, revealing it good as new. "We reset it's time."

-Oliver's house, two hours later-

Susanoo laid outside of the house as Isao sat in the center of the creatures mass, the boy resting on the behemoth's stomach while eating some food that had been cooked before they had even got there. Reginhard, who had come there shortly after their arrival, had offered them the food while they waited, his own gaze clouded over by the darkness he had come out of while Isao looked over to him. "So how much longer will it be till he returns?" the boy asked, looking to Reginhard as the behemoth shifted a bit, getting more comfortable as the old figure turned to the boy.

"It shouldn't be too long, he's just finished talking to his student and should be on his way back." Reginhard spoke as his gaze cleared, looking to the shadows of the trees covering the path to the road. "From what it looked like, she didn't seem too happy."

"Of course she didn't, he's thinking of sparing the creature that killed men she had fought alongside." came a voice, making Reginhard turn to see Eanor come up from the shadows of the patio, soon walking over to one of the chairs and sitting down in it as he looked at Reginhard. "Knowing how I used to be, however, he's indefinitely going to decide to take all that anger she has against the beast on himself. By the way, it's good to see you after so long Reginhard."

"Something has come up, I'll leave you two to waiting for him." Reginhard spoke as the boy kept his gaze on the path, oblivious to the presence of Eanor as the Behemoth's fur slightly puffed out, sensing the man behind them yet not his exact location. Reginhard then turned to Eanor and walked up, a puff of darkness falling off of him as he took each step up to the patio, soon standing directly in front of the warrior. "I'm guessing you're the fragment that Oliver had spoke of?"

"The very same, and you can call me Eanor." Eanor responded, waving his hand to the other seat before Reginhard walked to it and sat down. With that, Eanor's gaze returned to the forest across from the two, a sigh escaping him as he leaned on one of his hands. "You know, I really had a terrible time accepting those losses that happened during the war, took me ten years to start accepting the fact that I couldn't have done anything with the experience I had at the time."

"Hopefully it won't be as long for Oliver, given the ordeal he's going to go through if he keeps to this path." Reginhard responded, making Eanor look to him with an annoyed glare. "He's done a lot in his life, but to think he'd go straight back into a fight that could cause him to choose a side after only a year of consciousness, after living a life of peace."

"What, you think that he's going to regret it?" Eanor asked, looking at Reginhard as the old man turned his gaze to him, confused. "Sure, he may have said that he wanted to live a life of peace, but don't think he even believed that peace would last. After all, both him and I were a kid who looked at the state of our country at the time before we even met Myrkr and went 'Why is it that all this is happening, yet I can't do anything to change it, anything to stop this country from falling completely?' He's always had that notion to deal with bastards that are harming the innocent for their own personal gains, it's just that his methods are far from those of the caped heroes we always read about, despite the little bonus of our abilities."

"...Indeed, he did hold that ideology before he even made the agreement with Myrkr." Reginhard spoke, looking over to the boy, who had finished his food and was now resting on the Behemoth, slowly falling asleep despite all that had recently transpired around him. "Speaking of, what did make you believe that?"

"Honestly, who knows?" Eanor spoke as he rested his head back on the chair, looking up at the hole in the ceiling. Reginhards gaze then turned to him, analyzing the warrior as they reached their hand up towards the hole. "I first took up that mindset when I was just eleven while listening to my father talking to one of his friends about the sorry state the country had become, and decided then and there. Sure, I didn't know what could be changed at the time, nor did I know how bad it actually was and how I was going to do it. It just felt like an idea that sort of completed me, like it called to me in a way that I never felt before... Oliver doesn't feel that same tug at the moment, though. That tug vanished for him the moment the war had ended and he finished the reform of the country with the aid of Eric, something that took me a decade to feel again when I saw the city my current life was raised in being attacked."

"Hopefully it will be sooner than that, from how he's heading." Reginhard responded, picking himself up as he walked over to the edge of the patio. "He may have all that experience from the previous war under him, but he's still in the early parts of his life. It's worrying me that he may end up causing more problems for both himself and the world if he veers onto the wrong path..."

"I see..." Eanor spoke, his right hand moving to a pouch on his side that seemed fairly large for anything other than carrying items. "If you're so worried over not knowing what may happen in his future, I could help in finding out which direction it will take him."

"What do you mean by that?" Reginhard asked, clearly confused as Eanor put his hand inside of the pouch, soon pulling out a small velvet bag. Reginhard's gaze remained confused until Eanor loosened the straps of the bag and put his hand in, soon pulling out a smooth white disk not even bigger than his thumb, upon it being an black upward arrow, allowing Reginhard a moment to realize what it was. "...You plan to give a rune reading of his current fate? Something that focuses on the fates of those tied to the world tree of the realm they reside in? That's impossible to accomplish with those, even for you."

"It is indeed impossible most of the time, at least under normal circumstances." Eanor responded as he placed the rune back inside of the bag soon reaching in his pouch again and pulling out a small folded cloth. Eanor then stood up and moved to sitting on the ground, shaking the folded cloth out before placing it upon the wooden floor, revealing it to be a fairly large cloth square as he placed the bag down to the right of him, soon looking up at Reginhard with a smirk again. "I made these runes from a few petrified roots of Yggdrasil during my travels, carving each rune by concentrating the primordial darkness into each for three years, using my own spirit as the focal point. My actions ended up turning these runes into one of the only sets that are tied to the fates of those who control the primordial darkness, from what I was told by Odin, and can therefore tell the fate intertwined with the Primordial Darkness itself in order to see what direction fate takes."

Reginhard just stared at the Eanor, processing what the man had spoken. 'Runes intertwined with darkness... that's something I've never even heard of from Alegar.' Reginhard thought as he sat down in front of Eanor, who now had his left hand sitting inside the bag, as if knowing what Reginhard would say next. "Fine, I'll entertain your idea." Reginhard spoke as he saw a smile appear on Eanor's face, making the old man sigh as he heard the clicking of the runes. "So how do you enact them?"

"Well I decide on what style I use first by concentrating upon the runes themselves, allowing myself to feel their power and pick the ones that resonate strongest." Eanor spoke as he closed his eyes, causing Reginhard to look at him confused. However, the next moment Reginhard felt an eerie calmness coming off of the man, something even the Behemoth felt as it looked behind to where they were at, a low growl coming off of it. At the same time, a sort of power seemed to come off of Eanors hand as it moved through the runes, soon picking one out of the group and looking at it to find it as a rune that seemed to only be a straight line, before setting it back and shuffling through them again. When he pulled a second one out, this one without any marks upon it, he took a quick look and placed it back in, however the power coming off of his hand seemed to grow even more, allowing his hand to move almost fluidly through the runes again before he pulled another out once more, raising the rune in his gaze and smiling as he showed it to Reginhard. "And it seems like we're going to have to look further in by using the three rune spread, given you'll probably not like the answer."

"An upside down M decided that?" Reginhard asked as he looked at the rune in front of him, the way it was drawn clearly looking like an upside-down M, though his sight soon shifted the letter to it's meaning in the actual tongue. "...Ehwaz? An E?"

"The rune of Movement. In rune reading, it means that movement has been blocked when it is upside down, which could signify how he is currently being pushed from his life of peace and is seeming to be dragged into the political affairs of this world, as well as the eventual conflicts if they continue." Eanor as he put the rune back into the bag, looking back to Reginhard as the man stared at him as if expecting more of an explanation. "To move past this block, he will have to realize that not all possibilities are open to him as of this moment, which could also mean that he won't be able to live as a hermit anymore, at least until all the current problems are said and done. He'd be punching himself too much otherwise."

"So it's something that I've already summarized, and is basic common sense..." Reginhard spoke, sighing as the calm he felt from Eanor didn't even weaken after the reading. "So what is the three rune spread?"

"It's something that gives a bit more of a detailed answer, there are three runes pulled to explain past events, the current challenge, and what must be accomplished for it to happen." Eanor spoke as he placed his hand in the bag, shuffling through them as he began to hum a small tune to himself, soon picking up a rune and setting it down on the right side of the cloth; an oddly shaped H. He then placed his hand back in the bag, shuffling through it again before he pulled another rune out: This time it was an R, which he set in the center of the cloth. As he moved his hand to the bag again, his humming stopped as he closed his eyes, the feeling of power seeming to grow around him as Reginhard looked at the man in anticipation. Eanor then pulled out the final rune and set it on his left side: two triangles meeting together to form an hourglass, sitting on its side. Eanor then opened his eyes, causing Reginhard to feel as if a cold air blew over him despite his current form, Eanors hand soon pointing to the rune to the right. "The rune Hagallaz, the Rune of Disruption, Elemental Power, and Hail. This rune is his recent past: he has gone through a great change that acted as a great awakening to his senses, bringing him to accept these disruptions in his being by growing to be beyond them."

Eanor then moved his hand to the second rune, which sat directly in the center of the cloth as he stared into it, as if reading the styling. "Raido: the Rune of Journey, Communication, Union, and Reunion. Another rune of the Cycle of Initiation, this rune's placement represents the challenge, or the future if you will. This rune symbolizes a time of self-healing, self change and union. This union cannot be forced nor can it be directed, it must occur gradually." Eanor then raised his hand to the third rune, the sideways hourglass as he placed his hand on top of it. "Dagaz, the rune of Breakthrough, Transformation, and Day. It represents transformation, one so radical that it will put them in a complete turn on their life to the point that they cannot live it in the ordinary way any longer. This rune's placement means that it is the required action to overcome the challenge of Raido. As it is a rune that belongs to the Cycle of Initiation, along with both Raido and Hagallaz, it means that his fate will be all the more endearing, that there will be just as many difficulties. As Hagallaz and Raido are side by side in the cycle, it could also mean that he is currently undergoing the current stages of the Trials of Initiation, the change itself possibly being triggered from the point of his arrival."

"This is, however, speculation from what I know of the meanings behind each rune." Eanor spoke as he picked up the runes from the cloth, the calm that Reginhard felt seeming to fade as each rune went back in the bag. "The runes simply speak of how fate will be, never what it is. So if you want Oliver to know about the reading and find out for himself, or watch his path go remarkably similar to what the runes have said, then that's up to you."

Eanor then picked up the cloth, his body beginning to fade as both him and Reginhard felt something heading their way. "Seems he's arriving now, so you might as well decide in the moment." Eanor spoke as he placed the cloth and rune bag in his pouch, soon vanishing completely as Reginhard stood up, his gaze turning to the pathway that led to the house. As he did so, he felt Oliver's presence pop up at the moment, but along with another that made Reginhard's gaze harden as the two came out from the trees. Oliver had stepped out from under them first, stretching as he did so, while at the same time the sound of hooves came from behind him as Elia came out on horseback, causing Susanoo to look at the two with hard eyes as they approached.

"I told you it would be easier traveling here through darkness, albeit a bit of a problem for your stomach during the first go." Oliver spoke as he looked over to the Elia, her gaze set on the behemoth and the boy as they continued towards the house. He then smiled as he noticed the boy and behemoth, soon raising his hand up to them. "Hey, we worked something out for you guys."

The boy was still trying to figure out what was going on as the Behemoth rose, causing him to stand up as he looked around. Oliver only smirked as he stopped a few yards away from the two, looking back at Elia as she got off her horse and led it to the house. At the same time, Reginhard decided it was best to reappear as he walked down from the steps of the house, his staff once again tapping on the stone as it appeared in his hand. "So I can be able to go home?" the boy spoke, his voice actually in shock as his mind was still registering what was said, Reginhard only sighing as he thought through the possibilities that Oliver had to agree to in order for this to occur.

"Don't get your hopes up too much, there's always a price for things like this, especially when dead soldiers and villagers were on the line." Reginhard spoke, making the boy jump as he looked over to Reginhard, Elia herself releasing the reigns of her horse and moving her hand to her blade. The Behemoth and the horse, on the other hand, paid no mind to him and acted as if he was there the entire time, making Oliver chuckle as he looked to the old man. "So what did they agree to? Surely they didn't want something like the Behemoth running wild."

"They certainly don't, but I gave them an offer that she's here to witness." Oliver spoke as he motioned his hand to Elia, who had moved her hands back to the reigns and walked to the horse post beside the house. He then sighed before he placed his hand on Erebus, soon drawing the blade as the area seemed to brighten, the darkness around seeming to try and drag itself towards the blade as Oliver held it up, looking at the design. "I agreed to use a certain ability to ensure the behemoth doesn't do any more damage, one that I've not had to use since the starting months of the war."

The boy's face then turn rigid as the behemoth walked up to Oliver, looking down at the man with hardened eyes as Oliver looked up with a smirk, the two seeming to have a personal conversation as the blade of the sword began to glow a light purple. "What are you planning to do to him?" the boy asked, his voice now in fear as Susanoo's gaze kept on Oliver's, the two seeming to be like statues as the boy looked to the beast. "Susanoo?"

"Right now the two are communicating through a different means." Reginhard spoke as Elia walked to the two, making the boy look up at the man as the glow on Oliver's blade grew brighter. "Though animals are believed to not have evolved as well as we have, they still have a form of communication that most humans can't understand or hear, much less communicate in."

"Yet Oliver can speak with the beast in that form of communication?" Elia asked as she looked to Reginhard, who simply nodded as he looked at the two intently. "What are they even saying?"

Reginhard just smirked at the question from her. Not a question as to where he learned it, or why he could possibly need to use it, but what the two were talking about. 'A far better learner than what I got from her actions in her duel with Oliver...' Reginhard thought as he kept his gaze Oliver and Susanoo. "Currently, he's having the beast explain why it goes so far for Isao, the boy beside us, which they heard them be called by their father." Reginhard spoke as he looked down to the boy, who just looked at Susanoo with worry. "The boy brought him into his family five years ago, back when it was only two years old and he was five, and watched it grow to the size we see here today. It felt indebted to him for freeing it from the cage they put the creature in and made it an obligation to protect him. Quite an interesting tale."

"It was during my birthday, and my father wanted me to choose a pet from a place he later learned was smuggling and poaching animals shortly afterwards, soon followed by him dealing with the group and releasing the known wild animals, the ones already trained being given to men who wanted them or those who could be aided by them." Isao spoke, his voice wavering as Oliver pointed the blade at Susanoo, the beast simply closing its eyes as it laid down. "What's happening now?"

"Now Oliver deals the judgement and sentence he feels necessary for this event." Reginhard responded as he stared at Oliver, already knowing the decision. "And from the color of the blade, the judgement had been decided from the very start."

"What judgement is that?" Elia asked, her gaze looking over to Reginhard in confusion before they heard the snap of a twig, causing her to look back to see Oliver's blade stabbed dead center in the behemoth's skull. Oliver simply said one thing in response as the glow of the blade soon started in the eyes of the behemoth, ripples starting to form on the beasts skin from the force of the attack:

"A second chance."


Yo, Ron here, and holy shit it's been ages since I posted a new chapter. I wonder why that is, heheheh... nothing to do with the 2000+ hours on ffxiv at all, nope.

either way, part of the reason why is because I've been working around the clock lately, and have been really stressed when seeing current events occur. I won't try to go any further than there are too many morons that are in power at the moment, but just know that I've been really hating how it's turning out for current events.

Now onto the chapter itself: How did you guys take the rune reading from Eanor? The runes themselves are something I really loved of the old norse and germanic religions and the reading that Eanor himself gives is one that I actually did for the event. As to if it looks nice or not, I'll let you decide on that, but know that it is something that will give you an idea on what to expect in the next few chapters. I won't put any subtle hints about what the runes are speaking of, but trust me when I say you'll still see the signs of their meanings. Along with this, you guys are probably asking "Woah, why the hell did he just stab the giant silver fluff?!"

Well, you'll just have to wait for the next chapter to learn why he did that. In the meantime, this is Ron signing out, and I hope you're enjoying the story. Tell me if there's anything I need to fix or not, as always, and I'll see you the next time I post a chapter, hopefully sooner than this last one...

EDIT: SO I JUST REALIZED THAT I FORGOT TO FINISH A FEW SENTENCES! heheh my fuck up, give me a shout if you see any more throughout the chapters.