All four of them had sat down at the table with the men at one side and the woman and child on the other. Interestingly enough, Edward had chosen to sit next to Garret and at the same time being as far away from his family as possible. The alchemist for a brief moment wondered if the young man was doing so to make him feel more at ease that his family was out of reach or was the young man bothered to be next to a family? Garret chose not to make a comment or question while Haruna and Luna didn't seem to notice.

Like he had somewhat promised, stew had been prepared and brought to the table. Garret had gotten himself a hearty bowl as he thoroughly enjoyed his wife's stew while the chef and their daughter had gotten modest bowls. Edward had taken a small amount that almost looked like a small puddle in the wooden bowl.

"You can have more if you would like, Garret is always going for seconds so I make plenty."

"Thank you, but this is fine." Edward's voice was barely a whisper as he kept his head down and his lone hand raised up to grab a spoon to begin quietly eating. Haruna and Garret both shared a look, likely trying to decide on their next course of action when Luna spoke up.

"You know that your body needs food to work right? Maybe if you ate more you wouldn't forget to clean yourself."

Garret started coughing as he sucked in his food too quickly while Haruna looked downright horrified at what the little girl said.

"Luna!"

The child didn't even look up from her food nor showed any sign that she regretted what she said. Garret's coughs subsided as he took a breath before looking over to Edward who actually paused for a moment before continuing to slowly sip at his puddle.

"You cannot say things like that to our guests! You don't have any idea what's going on in his life right now."

"You're right I don't, but tip-toeing around him won't solve the problem you two have been trying to solve."

Haruna looked like she was about to say something but the sound of a spoon being placed on the table caught her attention.

"Thank you for the food, the shower, and the clothes. I must be going now. I will return these clothes to you after I wash mine." Edward scooted his chair back and stood up.

Garret paused while eating and stared up at the young man. It was true that this wasn't his idea and he was still reluctant to do so, Edward leaving so abruptly defeated the purpose of coming here for dinner. That being said, the alchemist knew how hard it was to crawl out of the hole Edward found himself in.

Becoming aware of your feelings and experiencing the full spectrum of human emotion was an extremely overwhelming endeavor. Even more so when your first real dose of it was an ocean of guilt. Edward had likely drowned when trying to process all of that guilt and was now hunkering down trying to feel as little as possible.

It was a coping mechanism but a poor one that would only cause more strain on his soul. Sectioning off pieces that would eventually come to war with one another ultimately led toward mutual destruction.

From what the alchemist could see, his attempts to patch one soul together left some issues. He could tell that the Edward who was trying to leave now was the dominant host, the one that was bound to his son's body. There was another identity tied to him that was closed off even to Garret, if he didn't know better, he'd hope it was Rahim but could guess it was whatever persona is currently torturing the young man.

"So you're just gonna leave after having just a sip? You're really insincere, you know that?"

Edward's eyes slid over to the little girl who looked more interested in making sure she didn't spill any of her dinner as she reached over her bowl with her small arms. She had been making biting remarks to him all night while her parents were indeed tiptoeing around him. From what he gathered, Haruna had only invited him out of pity for what her husband had gone through. Garret didn't have the heart to tell her no and went along with her good deed but truthfully didn't want him here. They no doubt told the little girl and thus she was trying to kick him out for her parents' sake.

"I have a lot to do, maybe when you get olde-"

"All you're doing is moping and feeling sorry for yourself. Really, what's the last thing you've actually accomplished?"

The young man frowned and had to clamp down a remark. He was above getting into an argument with a child, but the way she spoke as if he was grating on her nerves, reminded him of someone. Turning to Garret who pointedly focused on his food, clarified who he was thinking of.

Talib would often take that same tone and manner of speaking as this little girl did. Given who and what her dad was, he shouldn't be surprised nor should he lash out. She couldn't help where her behavioral tendencies came from, plus if he was being really honest with himself, she was right. Today alone there had been 3 different people who had more or less said the same thing to him.

The logical part of his mind advised him to hear them out and take what they said seriously but his body just did not have the energy to do so. It wasn't like he ignored people's attempts to talk to him; he heard Klein, it was just easier to snap at him than actually talk about how he felt. Helping rebuild Arendelle had become a routine to him to maintain a sense of stability, his body was given a task and he allowed him to exercise throughout the day and actually get things done, but in the back of his head, he didn't care.

He didn't care if the rebuilding effort took the remainder of his very long life or if he finished it tomorrow. All it amounted to was something for him to do and he'd find something else to do if it came to that. He agreed that he was hunkering down to avoid exploring the feelings he had, by definition he was being a coward but he truly did not care.

Edward had never said that to anyone, saying the words would eventually lead to the next set of words that would hurt anyone he cared for.

I don't care about living anymore.

He didn't want to imagine the face of anyone he cared about hearing those words. Whatever expression they took would probably light the fuse that would send him over the edge.

The young man shook his head, he didn't need to get bogged down in this line of thought. If he continued then he would start thinking about specific people, the same people he had seen earlier today. It had been a sight to see them all at once together when most of them had only come one by one over the last few months.

Everyone except…

"Stop it." The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them. They were aimed at himself but he didn't miss the fact that he said it aloud and looked up ready to apologize but Luna beat him to it.

"You know, my mom would always tell me that if I wanted something, I'd have to start small. I once told her that I wanted to ride on something called a train when I grew up. It's this giant metal carriage that is moved by steam and goes much faster than a horse. My first step was me just saying I wanted to ride one, my next one is gonna be finding out where a train is, then the next step and the one after that. I don't need to know the how exactly but having a goal is always a step in the right direction."

The little girl then focused entirely on him and he found himself unable to look away.

"So what is it that you want?"

Habitually, he would've said whatever he thought would satisfy the little girl and end the conversation but staring into her gaze, it was like looking into a mirror. When he looked at her all he could see was himself staring at him, as if he had asked himself that question from the body of a little girl.

There's something just…off…with this little girl.

All these months, that dream of him falling to Rahim and failing to reach Walter had haunted his dreams. While his waking hours were haunted by the Captain's silent spectre. His coping mechanism was mindlessly working and drinking that numbed him but also weighed on him. All of these things hammered at him and he now knew they were Edward's way of torturing him.

Earlier he had mused that his attempts at torturing Edward were loud and vicious but paled in comparison to the container's more subtle approach. Edward wouldn't speak to him, didn't need to speak with him, and he had been laid low. He was actually afraid of the day Edward spoke to him because of what he could say but when Luna asked him that question and he could see himself in her eyes, his mouth moved.

He wasn't answering Luna, he was answering Edward.

"I want all of it to stop."

Neither Garret or Haruna expected such a raw answer from the young man as well as the emotion behind it. He sounded completely and utterly broken as if the slightest breeze would bring him to his knees.

Garret had the experience of newfound emotional weight coming down on his shoulders all at once during a crisis but even when he had help working through it, he never quite expressed it. Haruna, being the one who helped him, was aware of the built up emotion but thought it would take time for the young man to express himself. Both of them had not expected their four year old to bring out such a response, so soon after just meeting their dinner guest.

It was uncharacteristic of him, but he didn't make a plan when his wife had asked/told him to invite the young man. The two of them had a goal to reach out and attempt to help him through this phase but had no clear plan on how to do so. He couldn't bring himself to give much thought to it, all of his thoughts were preoccupied reminding himself that this wasn't his son.

This wasn't Rahim, who he had promised to help but ultimately chose to betray instead.

Part of him wanted to blame Walter but the Captain spoke nothing but the truth. Garret knew that even the truth could be used to manipulate someone but Walter had given Rahim every chance to stop but his son did not. Rahim's eyes were cold and lifeless on the surface but burning with rage buried so deep that Garret was sure his son wasn't aware how angry he was.

In a way, Rahim was also hiding from how he truly felt and was masking it with cold logic.

The same way Talib does…

Garret shook his head, now was not the time to think about Talib.

"Well…if you want your stomach to stop growling, you should eat some more."

The alchemist's attention was brought back to the present and his focus returned to Edward who opened his mouth to say something, only for his stomach to make itself known. Some might've found it funny but with the current mood, Haruna simply offered to take the young man's bowl. He stared at the outstretched hand as if he was debating on it before sitting back down and picking up his bowl.

He almost handed it to her when he was hit with some intense wave of feeling that had him drop the bowl on the table. He would've worried about the action if all the hair on his body stood on end and he just felt off put but something.

Like he was suddenly deep at the bottom of the ocean floor with all the water pressing on his entire being. His heartbeat was slower and felt like it wanted to join all of his other organs at the bottom of his stomach. He could move fine, he just felt heavy.

Apparently he wasn't the only one. Luna also froze and dropped her spoon into her bowl. The earlier wisdom and calm she displayed was wiped off her face and she actually looked like a little girl that was scared of some monster in the closet. His eyes slid over to Haruna who didn't seem affected and looked at him with confusion not noticing her daughter.

Garret whoever stood up and faced in a direction away from their table.

"What have you done…?"

Ledgar and Jorgen had continued speaking long after Edward had left. The former regained his easy smile while the latter retained his irritated one. Neither had made any threatening actions and mostly just spoke about their current investment; Walter.

"I know you've been helping him, despite having the physical ability to do so, it would give away his position if he used his abilities to get around. Thus, you've been supplying him with access to your global network of trade routes and business ventures. Gotta say, for someone who had made extensive plans to wipe out all of humanity, you've gotten pretty good at taking advantage of them."

Jorgen's face didn't change, he knew the compliment was bait, to get him to offer information for free. The harbormaster was well aware of the old man's ability to ascertain the truth from people without speaking, he himself could do it to a lesser extent but focused more on keeping the man at bay. They may have had their differences and weren't enemies, Jorgen knew he needed to take Ledgar seriously.

While he may have used Walter the most, Ledgar was the one who taught him the most. Walter's fighting ability wasn't the most dangerous thing about the man, no, his most concerning trait was his mind. His mindset to be able to pick out weaknesses as well as getting into people's minds came from Ledgar's teachings.

While Jorgen hadn't seen Ledgar in many years by human standards, he could still remember the scores of times that Ledgar had talked people into killing one another without lifting a finger. He exploited people's doubts, fears, and even their murderous intentions. Honestly, Jorgen kicked himself for never considering that the tools he had been picking from over the years were Ledgar's rejects.

While he was sure that the man himself didn't think of them that way, the fact was that out of all the killers that Ledgar had overseen, Walter was the only one to be considered worthy. Jorgen almost wanted to laugh, here he had thought that he finally found a return in an investment he made so many years ago but the way Walter acted, fought, and spoke all pointed to Ledgar.

What made it so infuriating was the fact that Ledgar had succeeded so quickly when Jorgen spent centuries creating a system to produce the best candidates. From that school high in the mountains, to engineering horrific conflicts on the graduating class. Being a harbormaster allowed him access to many different people and goods that allowed him to expand his power over the world in a subtle way that no one would suspect.

By the time he really met Walter, the man had graduated as a child, survived wars with his father who was his prime choice at the time, and proved that he was ruthless enough to allow nothing stand in his way when he blinded his own brother and killed his father. Jorgen was sure that someone like that would be strong enough to finally put an end to his imprisonment in this naive hovel.

He just didn't realize that Ledgar had sunk his teeth into Walter before the harbormaster had the chance to pull the teen out of that death row brigade and get him leading his own forces. Jorgen supposed he should be grateful, Walter wouldn't be nearly as effective as he is now, if Ledgar hadn't taken the time but it was still an annoyance.

Ledgar was older, wiser, and more dangerous than Jorgen. The harbormaster was self aware enough to admit those things and even if the old man acted like that part of his life was behind him, anyone that let their guard down around this being didn't value their existence.

"Are you just gonna keep glaring at me or are you gonna say something?"

"You said you wanted to talk about Archibald, what about him?"

The old man snickered before he shrugged. "I only said that to get your attention and tell you who I was but if it interests you, he's still silent. I don't think we'll see any activity from him until Walter has grown more accustomed to his new reality."

Jorgen took in the information silently, he couldn't risk getting close to Archibald, he was already missing half of his soul and was well aware how an encounter between them would go. That was the main reason he chose Walter and his father, he could control them, Archibald was an entirely different animal.

"That however will take some time, even though Walter's making some exceedingly impressive progress, you know as well as I, he suffered a loss at the hands of Abraham's thralls. As strong as they are, they pale in comparison to your former apprentice, not to mention the fact that he seems to have adopted his own apprentice."

Ledgar's smile finally dropped and his face took on a grave expression. "I know you've felt him, despite only being a pup, he's already fast approaching the line between Soul Weavers and Soul Eaters."

The harbormaster scowl deepened, those two names were what they had started calling themselves that millenia ago after a human decided to study them. While the names were fitting, it brought up memories of the last Soul Eater he had to contend with.

Archibald was a plague that consumed anything he touched.

The man might as well have been Death given a soul. Anything that came into contact with him became a memory. He never stopped or paused in spreading over the world and single handedly setting back humans, mythical creatures, and Soul Weavers alike. Jorgen remembered meeting that human so long ago and thinking he'd be a perfect rabid dog to let loose on the human race, he never expected the dog to follow him home as a wolf.

Before it took many of them to stop him, Jorgen would not suffer another Soul Eater like Archibald again.

"Unfortunately though, neither you nor I can hope to go against him." The harbormaster already knew that Ledgar had an answer, he always did, but true to their nature; everything came at a price.

"Then what is it you suggest?"

The old man didn't make any attempts at lightening the mood, things had progressed so far so soon. Walter coming to see him and him getting a first hand look at the threat Rahim posed had forced his hand. He had truly come to Arendelle in Walter's memory to see that list done but he also came for specific reasons.

"I suggest that we-"

The world around them erupted in a horrible earthquake. The stone they were standing on clashed against one another as the waves warred under them and the sky looked as if it was falling. The two of them stood their ground as Jorgen focused and with an intense burst of exertion, the world stilled.

Ledgar stood up straight and slowly exhaled.

"Our time grows ever short."

Far away, in an unknown dense forest, Walter turned with a scowl on his face. His wounds had healed from his battle and he was on his way toward his next objective when he felt it.

Felt them.

They were fighting, he didn't know how but he could feel two entities fighting. The first was completely foreign to him, it carried the overwhelming pressure that had washed over him but that wasn't what bothered him.

It was the other one, he knew that one.

Rahim had killed him, an impressive feat, one that forever branded how the avenger felt in Walter's soul. When they had fought, the boy was weak and mostly used Edward to secure his victory.

Now, Walter could feel the cold and empty aura Rahim radiated.

It was as if he was dying, alone on a battlefield in the rain. He could feel the ground sucking away his body heat and as the rain continued to pour on him making his body all the more colder. The thousands of nameless bodies scattered all around him told him he would die alone, no one would mourn his loss or even find his body. He was truly alone as he lay here, dying in the rain.

Walter turned back to the path and continued walking, already knowing the outcome of the battle.

The entire island of Blackdust trembled at the new presence that just revealed itself. Before it had been a well respected and feared individual that even a King would be reluctant to reproach.

Now, it was something else entirely.

Every footstep caused the ground to quiver in fear, every breath repelled the trees, and the roar…

When he roared, all that the eye could see seemed to flee, except Rahim who stood his ground and gripped his weapon with chilling resolve as he aimed his blade at Pride who had finally, for once in his life, decided to fight with everything at his disposal.

Hope you enjoyed the new chapter, sorry it was a month late. I had a few career deadlines that I needed to devote my time to but still I WILL FINISH THIS YEAR. Please PM me or review if you wish to contact me, have a nice one!