Chapter 7: Sunset
Ephenia kept near Dane, easing him into peaceful sleep every night while listening to the cries of his heart. She didn't expect him to be healed and return her feelings all within the same week. It would take time. She could peer into the future and find when that point would be, but it would be more fulfilling, allowing time to pass and reach it together.
Despite Ephenia's kindness and comfort, the world felt duller than before to Dane. He began to wonder if he would ever thoroughly shake the Darkness within him. The notes and discoveries made by him and Menodora pointed out that this small yet heavy feeling of distress in his heart should be gone or become smaller. But it was stubborn, even in the presence of Ephenia's outwards directed Light.
"What's the matter, Dane? You have that look as though you can't understand something." Ephenia smiled, standing behind him and massaging his shoulders.
"There is a small bit of Darkness within me that simply will not go away." Dane thrummed, rolling his head as the stress in his shoulders and neck began to melt.
"Perhaps there is a spot of Darkness within everyone that won't go away no matter how much Light it is exposed to. You've said that Darkness is, and I quote, 'the wounds left behind by the trials and tribulations of life.'" Dane let out a deep breath as he leaned back in his chair.
"Even if that is the case, it should be diminishing," Dane answered flatly. Ephenia draped her arms around his chest, resting her head on his.
"What if one's constant thoughts about the pain makes the Darkness unable to dissipate. Similar to constantly picking a scab will never allow a flesh wound to heal." She suggested. Dane sighed; Ephenia was right on some level, but there had to be a way to be rid of the Darkness entirely. There had to be a way; otherwise, there would be no way to help the world the way he wanted.
"Even I am not impervious to this Darkness," Ephenia said, her being panicking after she had spoken. Dane was taken aback: how could a goddess be affected by Darkness? Was its power so terrible? If that were the case, the problem was much more widespread than he first thought.
"That can't be," Dane whispered, taking her hand from his chest and turning to look at her.
"Oh, but it can, Dane." Ephenia sighed heavily, taking a step back. She would have to tell him what her Darkness was, but it would cause him much more pain. Taking a long breath, she turned around and began.
"Many centuries before you were born, I lost interest in this world, in its people, and happenings. No matter what I did, the humans of Usoria would do what they wanted. Perhaps I cared too much for those I watched and tried to steer away from a destructive path. But, as a result, I became very distant. Usoria passed by with little to no intervention on my part." Ephenia paused, turning around, expecting Dane's expression to be that of anger. But she only saw a blank stare.
"As I said, my attention was drawn back to this world when your 'Great Circle' collapsed and released all its contained energy. If I had been more attentive, I could have prevented the loss of Menodora. But my negligence led to that very moment. It is a weight that I carry. The only path that lays before me is seeking forgiveness from the one that I hurt the most." Ephenia drooped her delicate wings as Dane backed away from her, staring out through a window of vines overlooking the Aquanan sea.
"This is the second time you've mentioned Menodora's death. And now you tell me her death could have been prevented?" Dane growled, shadows gathering around him in a dark grey haze. Ephenia went to him, standing beside him as best she could to catch his peripheral vision.
"If I could go back and prevent such an act from happening without affecting the timeline so negatively, I would."
"You are the goddess of time, Ariel. As sure as I am standing here, you have the power to do just that. And yet you stand here in some pseudo body telling me that you can't! You had the power to prevent her loss, and you did NOTHING!" Dane roared, the shadows around him flowing out as a dark wind. Ephenia clenched her jaw as a tear fell from her eye, power flowing from her being, pushing back against the shadows.
"When one has lived as long as I have, a time will come when even a goddess finds her care taken for granted! YOU HUMANS ARE ALL THE SAME! There are millions of people that I could have helped in the past! And I can guarantee that every single one of them would come seething to my temple begging for a reason as to why I didn't. All I can tell them is that my heart was broken too many times because I cared too much!" Ephenia threw her arms down, a surge of power exploding from her body, throwing Dane to the ground and into a pile of vines. She heard a loud crack from him, waking her from her furious rant to see Dane slumped on the floor. Covering her mouth with her hand, she moved to him when he pulled himself to his feet and looked up to her.
Fear, understanding, grief, and anger settled across Dane's face. Such Darkness residing within a goddess was something he never considered. Regardless, it still hurt to know that Menodora's death was so preventable. With a grunt, Dane stood and stretched his back before walking to his staff.
"Dane, I'm…"
"Goodbye, Ephenia." He said softly, picking up his staff and walking out of the circle with a limp, grabbing his freshly stocked knapsack. Ephenia collapsed to her knees: what had she done? Had she pushed away from the one chance she had at redeeming herself? Had she just crushed the love she thought she was building? When Dane was out of sight, Ariel pulled her mind back, and her body fell limp within the clearing.
Dane meanwhile pressed on to find the Great Tree of Haim. He didn't need healing, especially not from some pseudo woman claiming to be a goddess, and certainly not one that let Menodora die. He needed to know how to get rid of the Darkness once and for all.
Three days went by before Dane crested a hill overlooking a vast, deep valley spanning as far as the eye could see. In the very center of the valley stood a tree reaching beyond the clouds, its branches covering nearly half the valley from where it stood. It took Dane another three days to get into the outermost branch's shade, where maple leaves the size of houses lay strewn across the ground in a sunset-colored sea. Another day passed before Dane stood at the very base of the tree where a small town had been established, nestled between two of its titanic roots. The buildings used vines, wood, and fallen leaves of the tree they lived next to for pathways, ladders, and houses.
"Welcome to the city of Eline traveler." A voice said, startling Dane out of his brooding concentration. The voice belonged to a young elfin man wearing white garments adorned with gold while a delicate chain hung from the tip of his ear to its lobe.
"Thank you," Dane replied shortly, continuing on his way towards the tree.
"Is there something that I can assist you with?" the young man persisted. Dane sighed heavily, turning back to face him.
"Perhaps. I am searching for a way to speak with Haim. I hear that this tree is where he resides." The young man nodded and motioned towards a set of stairs carved into the bark, winding around the trunk.
"That stairway leads to his shrine within the center of the branches. You can direct your prayers to him there. It is said that prayers offered there are heard by him the best." the man stated. Dane nodded his understanding. A shrine to offer prayers wasn't what he was looking for; he wanted a direct conversation if deities even existed at all. Though he had to admit, his interaction with Ephenia did encourage him to their existence.
"Perhaps you can stay the night and start your journey in the morning. The path to the top is a long one. Many have started, but few have finished." The man suggested. Looking to the horizon, it was the first time Dane noticed how long the shadows had grown as the sky began to cloak itself.
"I think that would be best," Dane whispered, taking note of the lights as they began to illuminate the streets, paths, and ladders of the city. The young man offered him directions to the nearest Inn and gave him a parting blessing of well traveling. Dane found the Inn quickly enough, opening the light door with enough force that it caught the attention of the few that were inside.
"Welcome to the Astral Gem. Are you seeking a room for the night?" a woman's voice asked. The elfin woman at the reception podium there gravitated his gaze to her. Dane chuckled nervously at his door blunder before responding.
"Yes, I will. I apologize for opening the door with such force. It's much lighter than it looks." The woman smiled as she reached for her ink well and quill to sign the roster as she reached for a room key.
"No need to fret. The door is made of Feather Wood. It happens more often than you would think." Once paying the fee, he gathered a simple meal and took it to his room. Branches and leaves decorated the walls and ceiling, giving the room a fairy-like atmosphere. Setting the food on the desk, he fell back onto the down-filled bed. So much was weighed on him; it felt as if he had been carrying a mountain. Once Menodora died, finding the answer to ridding the world of Darkness became a burden. But people were counting on him, so he had to find a solution.
"Menodora…" he whispered, draping his arm over his eyes. Her death brought such Darkness to his heart, a black and persisting sadness that even Ephenia's tender care would not subside. Why? Why wouldn't the sorrow of her death leave him? Was it because he desperately wanted to just will it away? Was it because he wished why she died to be different from a greedy man's lust for power? Did he even want to let go of the grief, fearing that letting it go meant forgetting Menodora?
And then there was the revelation by Ephenia; if she had been more attentive as a goddess, Menodora's death would have been prevented. But in the same thought, he felt unsure shifting any blame onto her would be right. She had, after all, tried to be the goddess everyone expected her to be, and yet she was taken for granted. She had her own doubt, troubles, and Darkness to contend with. Closing his eyes, Dane drifted to sleep as tears slipped over his nose, becoming lost in the sheets he lay upon.
When morning broke, it was an unwelcome sting to his eyes, breaking his dreams of Menodora. Dragging his heavy body from the bed, he put the hardened bread from the night before in his knapsack, returned the key for his room, and set out for the base of the tree. At the bottom of the stairs was a small goods shop selling water, food, and some simple tonics. Dane his remaining coin to buy food and water for the journey ahead. If the walk to this town was any indication, there was no doubt a few days of climbing at least lay before him.
As he stood before the first step, the shopkeeper wished him good luck, giving him the momentum he needed to take the first heavy step. He climbed nearly a full day, reaching a cove carved into the trunk. At the edge of the stairs, he could see the town's lights so very far down. Looking up, he was a quarter of the way to the clouds surrounding the trunk just above the lowest of the branches.
Four days passed him by as he continued his trek upwards, passing by some who had given up. Some were tired from their long journey to the tree and from their climb up. Dane offered relief from their exhaustion, exchanging healing for a small bit of food to continue his journey. Every night he found a cove hollowed out by others on the path to sleep so as not to fall off the stairs and plummet to their deaths.
Two weeks passed before Dane finally reached the top of the stairs. His chin sported a rough beard, and his hair had become tangled and matted. Despite being so high up, the air was still quite breathable, a puzzling phenomenon given his scientific background. Perhaps it had something to do with it being Haim's tree that gave it such a property. Looking around, the light of the world seemed dimmer here but still enough to shine through the leaves.
Near the branches' center stood a small shrine with five small candles burning. This is not what Dane had come for. He had come to speak with Haim directly, and he would not settle for a shrine. Looking around, he decided to climb higher where Haim was sure to be. No pathways were leading up, but he needed to try. As he was about to climb a branch, someone's voice from behind him caught his attention.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's a dangerous climb, and I doubt you'd survive the fall. Whatever it is you're seeking, it must be quite urgent if you're willing to go that far to talk to me." Dane turned around revealed the young man he had spoken to at the town's entrance standing behind him.
"You are Haim?" Dane asked with irritated skepticism.
"That I am." He answered proudly, taking a bow before sitting down on a branch that crackled and weaved over to him.
"Then why make me go through this entire journey? Why would you make so many people climb this monument of a tree just for a prayer to you?" Dane snapped as Haim chuckled, putting a hand to his chest and shaking his head.
"I don't, and I never have. I've been walking among humans for millennia now, yet they all seem to think taking on some arduous journey up a ridiculously tall tree will have their prayers heard better. And yet, no one has asked if I am Haim when I greet them at the quaint little town at the bottom of this tree. Pity really. Now, what can I do for you?" Haim asked, waving his hand as another branch twisted and crackled into place before him, waiting for Dane to take a seat.
"As you are no doubt aware, the world has been warped for some time by a Darkness." Dane began as he sat. Haim sighed and nodded.
"That I am." The Deity of Life confirmed, crossing his legs and reclining against the branch chair.
"Then you are also aware of how it is affecting the world and the famine that has fallen upon it?"
"I am aware of this famine as well." Haim sighed. Dane breathed a long breath, trying to resist his urge to lash out.
"Crops are dying, the forests are becoming sick on their fringes. People are losing hope for a better tomorrow. If this is left unchecked, the people themselves will soon begin to die off. As the Deity of Life, doesn't that concern you even a little?"
"It does." Haim sighed, nodding.
"Then why haven't you done anything?! Is it because you need to know what the Darkness really is? Because I have discovered that, and I can tell you."
"That will not be needed, White Mage. I know what the Darkness is." Dane was taken aback but told himself that he shouldn't be surprised.
"Then why haven't you done anything? The Darkness threatens the very thing you are charged with!"
"If it were a matter of life alone, then I would have no issue in rending this Darkness from the world in an instant. The Darkness itself is the eventual result of wounds in people's souls that have not been cared for or cared for correctly, am I right?" Dane nodded his head as Haim continued.
"When a human dies, the Darkness they carried does not simply vanish. It has to go somewhere. So, it soaked into the world. My brother, sister, and I all saw what this would lead to, thanks to Ariel's help. We brought the problem to our mother, Minerna, and she proposed we elect bishops in our names to help heal those who needed it. Thus, we began the orders of Minerna, Life, Light, and Time.
"Very few answered our calls, and the Darkness only grew. Centuries passed; The Darkness continued to soak into the world, becoming so concentrated that it has begun to compound the Darkness within the people living. My sister Ariel tried to help by steering some away from paths that would lead to more Darkness, but it was in vain. My brother and I sent out a more desperate call; still, only a few answered." Dane rested his nose on his laced fingers before answering.
"You haven't told me why the Darkness isn't as easy as simply getting rid of it. All you've told me is how you yearn for the fact that you couldn't prevent what is happening in the world." Dane growled, the air darkening around him.
"Darkness cannot simply be vanquished, White Mage. It needs to either be cared for like a wound or extracted and put somewhere like poison. If you were to treat it like a wound, it would drive you mad as there are so many different people's pain making up the Darkness as a whole. You would need to care for each one individually. And that would take far more time than even a deity such as myself has."
"What if I were to extract it? Where could it be put?" Dane asked, keen on finally being rid of the Darkness that he carried most of all. Haim became serious, his brow falling and his eyes darkening.
"That is dangerous, White Mage. Even if you found a way to muster the power needed, the Darkness has become so concentrated it could easily overpower someone if not properly contained. I fear it has also begun to spawn creatures of its own. Remember, Darkness was once a part of someone; it is the compiled raw, unresolved negative emotions and wounds a person carried. As such, there is a speck of sentience to the Darkness itself." Dane pulled the journal out and turned the pages until he came to the passage he had been seeking.
"It has no form yet it fills the world; it has no substance yet it taints even the purest of hearts; it has no will, yet all who see it succumb to it," Dane whispered, slumping his shoulders in defeat.
"As you said, I am the Deity of Life. I will do what I can to protect and ensure that life endures. But against the Darkness, even I have my limits."
"Is there nothing that can be done?" Dane asked heavily. Haim could only shrug, the branch he was using at a seat creaking and crackling back to its original position, helping the deity stand once again.
"If there is, I'm sure you will find it, White Mage. I'm sorry that I couldn't be of more help to you." Dane began his long trek down the stairs with a nod until Haim put a hand on his shoulder, snapping his fingers and bringing them both to the outer edge of the town.
"Tell me something, Haim. You said that you have been walking amongst us humans for millennia. Why hasn't Ariel or Nanahuatzin done the same?" Haim smirked, looking in their respective directions.
"Ariel can't walk here because her power would warp time everywhere she stepped, mostly for the worse. Nanahuatzin is the deity of light, and as such, he can never be seen directly. His power would blind or obliterate anything near to him." Dane nodded his understanding and walked away sadly without hearing the traveling blessing of Haim.
"I know I may not have been the best of supplicants, but I have one more request," Dane said before walking too far. Haim's face broke into a smirk before laughing softly.
"Trust me, White Mage, you are far from the worst. What else troubles you?" he answered, putting a hand to Dane's shoulder.
"My grandfather, Vusron; he is a Shaman of the Buried City Azwan. He is held captive by a Shamaness named Hilda, who has used every citizen of that city to create a potion. My grandfather is the sole member of my family remaining, and I wish to rescue him. However, I lack the power to do so. Would you grant me this ability?" Haim looked to think for a moment, looking here and there as he walked away a short distance crossing his arms.
"Your grandfather is Master Vusron?" Haim asked with surprised interest.
"Yes," Dane answered.
"I knew Vusron well, one of the many people I personally called to be a Bishop. But alas, there is nothing that you or I can do for him. Being the only one maintaining Azwan's power, his Life Force is now inseparable from it." Dane furrowed his brow and clenched his jaw.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that he is already beyond my power: he has been maintaining that power for so long that he can no longer leave its presence. When was the last you spoke with him?" Haim asked with a slight edge in his words. Dane thought back, trying to remember his last visit. The only event that came to mind was near the beginning of his relationship with Menodora.
"Quite a while, I'm afraid," Dane muttered, looking down to his hands. Haim sighed heavily.
"Then somewhere in that time is when Hilda made him a prisoner. I'm sorry White Mage, but there is nothing that I can do. You would save him only to bury him." Dane's shoulders slumped, nodding his thanks to Haim.
"Oh, and before you go White Mage, I heard my sister Ariel has taken quite a shine to you." the deity smirked, winking to him cheekily.
"I would say be careful not to break her heart, but that light in your eyes says you've already done so." Haim smiled, putting a hand to Dane's shoulder and squeezing. Dane tried to remain blank, but the sheer strength that Haim produced in his grip made Dane falter, finally wincing as Haim let go and patted his back.
"I say this as a friend, it's been quite a while since I've seen her genuinely smile. Try not to mess it up." he said, giving him another traveler's blessing and turning back to the village. Dane rolled his sore shoulder, his thoughts returning to his grandfather.
"So... that's it? Nothing can be done for my grandfather, the world, or for those that are haunted by Darkness?" he asked himself. He reached the tree's outer branches three days later, hardly feeling the rain that soaked his clothes within minutes. He spent his life looking for a way to eliminate the Darkness, and now his life felt empty with the news of impossibility. Countering it may be the only option now. If he were to counter it, though, he couldn't do it alone. He would need to wield the Ultimate Light once more.
"Is there a way to find it again?" he thought. A week later, he found himself at the house where he had stayed with Ephenia.
"Would it be alright to find that light again, Menodora? Even, if it isn't you?" he thought, looking up to the brightly colored sky as the sun sank low over the horizon.
She didn't intend to hurt Dane. Not him. But her anger boiled so violently she lost her awareness of the power she exuded and injured him. How could she have hurt someone she loved?
Ariel extended her mind once more, following Dane as he trekked to Haim's tree, almost laughing outright when he hadn't noticed Haim standing right there offering his help in the town. But when Dane was granted the meeting, it was as Ariel suspected; The Darkness was not so easily or quickly dealt with.
With her curiosity sated, she recalled her mind and sat in silence, trying to restart her duties as a goddess. Dane made her see that she may have been hurt, but it didn't excuse her from obligations to Usoria. Dane was a human, in pain, and he still saw to his duties, so how much more did that mean for her as a goddess?
As she tended to the timestream one day, she turned her Mirror of Time to the great disaster. No changes appeared; in fact, the great catastrophe had become more ominous and even more disastrous than in the past. Despite all her power, she could not see its cause and take steps and avoid it.
"I do not think it is because you cannot see it, but rather that you will not see it." A Monk of the Red surmised, watching her Mirror of Time.
"What do you mean, monk?" Ariel asked shortly, unaware that anyone else was watching the mirror with her.
"The cause of the disaster that you are seeing; you have blinded yourself to it because you do not wish to see it as such. Be wary, goddess." Ariel lowered her brow as the monk stepped away. The Monks of the Red had such an irritating way of speaking in riddles that made the obvious seem so nonchalant. But they had never steered her wrong in the past, so she must widen her gaze to try to see the thing she had blinded herself to.
As she stared long and hard into the mirror, she felt a touch on the small of her back. It was a firm pressure as if to pull her. She then felt a gentle brush against her cheek. The ghost of a life that seemed so far away now. She leaned into the feeling and pulled her arms around herself, remembering the gentle but urgent pressure she felt with Dane's arms around her.
"Dane!" she breathed, realizing that he must have returned to the clearing to find her body limp and unresponsive. He couldn't have thought she was dead, could he? She was, after all, a goddess. Her interaction with him was only through the use of, as he called it, a pseudo body she had left behind. Maybe he did think she was dead.
She went to her chambers and lay down, closing her eyes and extending her mind into the body once more. She opened her eyes as Ephenia and heaved in a breath. She found herself tightly held as Dane wept over her, loosening his grip when he felt her respond.
"Ephenia? Are you…"
"I'm here. What's wrong?" the goddess asked, sitting up on her knees and putting her hands on either side of his head.
"I thought… I thought you were…" Ephenia smirked and brushed a hand across his cheek.
"No, I simply pulled my mind back. I'm here, Dane. I'm here as long as you need me to be." She soothed. Dane gripped her wrist, leaning his head over and kissing the inside of it. There was a small glimmer of hope that he could find the Ultimate Light again. But he would need help to do it. Ephenia led him to a cliff, giving them the perfect view of the sunset, lighting the sky ablaze.
"What made you come back?" Ephenia asked, fighting the urge to move closer to him, unsure of what their relationship was.
"I'm not sure. After meeting with Haim, I simply came here. Perhaps the reason this spot of Darkness won't go away is that I don't want it to. What if letting it go would mean forgetting Menodora?" Ephenia sighed; it stung to hear him talk about her when he knew what she felt for him; at least she hoped he understood.
"Just because you heal, doesn't mean you'll ever forget. You two were bonded in ways that will never come again. You will never forget Menodora. But that by no means bars you from moving on. Menodora wouldn't want you to be stuck here in a constant state of pain." Dane closed his eyes as his being seemed to slump.
"Give me time, Ephenia. I want to move on, but..." Dane breathed, picking up his hand to reach for hers, hesitating. Ephenia instead reached out and grasped his hand, touching his jaw and pulling him close as she kissed his forehead. Dane squinted his eyes hard as tears began forming. In the back of his mind, he thought he could hear Menodora whisper to him.
"It is alright, Dane, my love, Move forward. Don't let your heart become a cold ember. Let it be the roaring fire I know it can be." This time, Dane truly felt his agony hit him. But now, he wasn't afraid of reaching for another's heart, willing to provide the shelter and healing he so desperately needed. This would be his path. This would be the way to find the Ultimate Light once again. Here, under the blazing sky of the sunset, he would find his salvation.