Chapter 7: Sunset

Dane's broken spirit took time to heal, and Ephenia eased him into peaceful sleep when the pain became too much. She didn't expect his pain to vanish overnight and return her feelings; It would take time. She could use her power and peer into the future and see when his heart would heal, but it would be more fulfilling if she lived through the time and helped to mend his spirit.

Despite Ephenia's kindness and comfort, Dane felt the world was duller than before. He wanted to vanquish the tiny, heavy feeling of distress in his heart, despite knowing it would never entirely disappear, even in the presence of Ephenia's outward-directed Light.

"What has the great White Mage so perplexed?" Ephenia smiled, standing behind him and massaging his shoulders.

"There is a small bit of Darkness within me that will never go away. But I want to find how I could erase it," Dane thrummed, rolling his head as the stress in his shoulders and neck began to melt.

"Didn't your research reveal a spec of Darkness would always remain no matter how strong a Light it is exposed to?" Ephenia asked, tightening her grip on his shoulders to ease their tension further.

"Yes, but there MUST be a way to erase it. There is a theory in magic that no spell is ever truly unbreakable. But the amount of power required to break it is higher than anyone can produce to overwhelm and break it. Does the Darkness work on the same principle?"

"You also said that this remaining Darkness is like a deformity in one's spirit. Based on your findings, you would need the ability to manipulate and heal the human soul. To my knowledge, only my brother Haim can do such a feat." Dane let out a deep breath as he leaned back in his chair.

"Even if that is the case, we humans should be able to find a way," Dane answered flatly. Ephenia draped her arms around his chest, resting her head on his.

"What if one's memory of the event that created the Darkness allows it to remain?"

"Do you mean that someone must erase their memory for the Darkness to be vanquished?" Dane asked, seeming astonished.

"The human soul can be wounded just like flesh, at least according to what you've found thus far. Often, the severity of a flesh wound determines the severity of the scar left behind. It would appear the soul is the same: the event's severity determines the severity and strength of the Darkness created, and thus the severity of the impression left on the soul."

"And even if a tremendous amount of time has passed, and the memory's details fade, you will never forget that event. Nothing and no one is ever the same after a traumatic event," Dane sighed, looking down at Menodora's research journal sitting in his lap: he would never forget her, but there had to be a way to vanquish Darkness entirely; otherwise, there would be no way to help the world the way he wanted.

"This Darkness has warped even my soul," Ephenia said, her being panicking. Dane pursed his brow: how could a goddess be affected by Darkness? Was its power so terrible? The problem was much worse than he first thought if that were true.

"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, which would cause him much more pain, but he needed to know. Taking a long breath, she turned around and began.

"Many centuries before you were born, I wonder if I cared too much for those I watched and tried to help avoid a destructive path. Despite my influence and guidance, the humans of Usoria would do what they wanted. As a result, I became very distant and lost interest in this world, its people, and events. Usoria passed by with little to no intervention on my part." Ephenia paused and looked at Dane, expecting his expression to be contorted with rage. Instead, Dane wore a blank stare.

"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 I carry. The only path before me is seeking forgiveness from the one 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 you could have prevented her death?" Dane growled, shadows gathering around him in a dark grey haze. Ephenia approached him, standing beside him to catch his peripheral vision.

"If I could go back and prevent her death 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. Yet you stand here in some pseudo body pontificating about your inability! You have the power to prevent her loss, and did NOTHING!" Dane roared, the shadows flowing out as a dark wind, deepening into dense clouds. 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! I could have helped millions of people in the past, and I can guarantee every single one would come seething to my temple begging for a reason why I didn't. All I can tell them is that humanity broke my heart too many times and took me for granted!" Ephenia threw her arms down, a surge of power exploding from her body, throwing Dane 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 a shaking 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," Dane said softly, reaching for his staff and a freshly stocked knapsack, walking out of his home with a limp. Ephenia collapsed to her knees: what had she done? Had she pushed away the one chance to redeem 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.

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 passed before he crested a hill overlooking a vast, deep valley spanning as far as the eye could see. In the valley's center stood a gargantuan tree reaching beyond the clouds, its branches covering nearly half the valley from where it stood. It took Dane another three days to reach 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 reached the base of the tree where a small town resided, nestled between two of its titanic roots. The buildings used vines, wood, and tree leaves for pathways, ladders, and houses.

"Welcome to the city of Eline, traveler." A lilting, musical voice said, startling Dane from his brooding concentration. He turned to see that 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 toward the tree.

"Is there something I can assist you with?" the young man persisted. Dane sighed heavily as he faced him. The last thing he wanted was help.

"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, struggling to hide his discontent. Dane didn't want to pray at a shrine! He wanted to speak with Haim directly, if deities existed at all. Though he had to admit, his interaction with Ephenia did encourage him.

"You might want to 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, suddenly feeling very tired.

"I think that would be best," Dane whispered, taking note of the lights as they began to illuminate the city's streets, paths, and ladders. The young man offered 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 to catch the attention of the few 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 as Dane chuckled nervously at his door blunder.

"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, and went for a room key.

"No need to fret," she chuckled. "The door is made of Feather Wood. It happens more often than you would think." Once he paid 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 nightstand, he fell back onto the down-filled bed. So much was weighed on him; it felt like he had been carrying a mountain. Finding the answer to ridding the world of Darkness became a burden now that Menodora wasn't here to spur him on. But people were counting on him, so he had to find a solution.

"Menodora…" he groaned, 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 to the tiny spec he theorized would remain. Why? Why wouldn't the sorrow of her death leave him? Was it because he desperately wanted to will it away? Did he wish the reason for her death to be more than 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? Ephenia theorized that their memory may need to be altered to erase someone's Darkness completely.

Ephenia. That goddess pretending to be a mortal; She could have prevented Menodora's death if she had been a more attentive goddess. But in the same thought, he felt unsure that shifting blame onto her would be right. She had, after all, tried to be the goddess everyone expected her to be, yet was taken for granted. She had her doubts, 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, shattering 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 simple tonics. Dane spent 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 lay before him.

As he stood before the stairway, the shopkeeper wished him good luck, giving him the momentum he needed to take the first heavy step. He climbed for a full day, reaching a cove carved into the trunk. He could see the town's lights below at the outer edge of the stairs. Looking up, he wasn't even a quarter of the way to the clouds surrounding the trunk just above the lowest of the branches.

Four days passed as he continued his trek upwards, passing by some who had given up, tired from their long journey to the tree and the climb. Dane offered relief from their exhaustion, exchanging healing for a bit of food to continue his journey. Every night, a cove hollowed out by others on the path to sleep waited for him 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. It may have had something to do with being Haim's tree that gave it such a property. The sunlight seemed dimmer but still bright enough to shine through the leaves and illuminate his surroundings.

Standing near the edge, he could see Al Neth, Oreyon, Leafra, and even Moon Terra's and Kritas's borders to the south. To the North, he could see the Enki Sea, and beyond that, the sheer cliffs of Pantheon as well as the shores of the Edeal States to the North-East. Widening his gaze, he realized that he could see the horizon's curve and the infinite emptiness of the heavens beyond the sky: it almost made him dizzy.

Stepping back from the edge, Dane spied a small shrine with five small candles burning near the branch's center. A shrine was not what Dane had come for. He had come to speak with Haim directly, and he would not settle for a shrine. Looking around, Dane 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 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 you seek, it must be quite urgent if you're willing to go that far to talk to me." Dane turned around and 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 on a crackling branch that 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, his lilting accent sounding almost surprised.

"I don't, and I never have. I've been walking among humans for millennia, yet they all seem to think taking on some arduous journey up a ridiculously tall tree will make 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 affects the world and the famine that has fallen upon it?"

"I am aware of this famine as well." Haim sighed. Dane breathed long, 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 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 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 rending this Darkness from the world in an instant. The Darkness 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 soaks into the world, coalescing at this planet's center."

"That sounds like the toxic waste left from using Lidium in Margata," Dane mused, holding his chin.

"That is an apt comparison, White Mage. My brother, sister, and I all saw what the coalescing Darkness 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 tend to those whose spirit had been wounded. Thus, we began the orders of Minerna, Life, Light, and Time.

"Very few people answered our calls, and the Darkness only grew. Centuries passed; The Darkness continued to soak into the world and has become 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 leading 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 you can't get rid of it. You've only told me how you regret your failure to prevent the state of the world we're in now." 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. Treating it like a wound would drive you mad; so many people's pain is making up the Darkness that needs to be cared for individually. That process 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 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, it would overpower you if not properly contained."

"Could you teach me the spell or runes needed for such a feat?" Dane asked eagerly, but Haim's brow remained set.

"Listen, White Mage. The power you speak of containing is on par with Minerna, possibly even the Cosmordia Tridias. Not even the fairies of Usoria in their prime could conjure a fraction of that kind of power. Even with my siblings and Mother, we can't conjure that amount of power."

"What if you could weaken it by healing the wounds in the human soul? In my studies, I have found that Darkness will persist long after the wound has been cared for, even if it is the tiniest speck."

"Have you considered what that would do to the person? Molding a human soul to undo the damage will alter them beyond removing the Darkness. It could also further hurt those around the person, intensifying the Darkness beyond what it was."

"Then is there no hope?" Dane asked as Haim let out a long and quiet sigh.

"Darkness was once a part of someone; it is the result of raw, unresolved negative emotions and wounds a person carried. As such, there is a speck of sentience to the Darkness, meaning it can learn and evolve. What may be a solution today may not work tomorrow." Dane reached for the journal, turning the pages until he found the passage.

"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.

"I am the Deity of Life, and will do what I can to protect and ensure that life endures. But against the Darkness, even I have my limits."

"Then you can do nothing?" Dane asked heavily. Haim could only shrug, the branch he sat on creaking and crackling back to its original position, helping the deity stand.

"As you suggest, it can be, but humanity would suffer dire consequences. If a safe solution exists, I'm sure you will find it, White Mage. I'm sorry 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 you walked 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, at least, not in her full goddessness. 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, turning to walk away when he remembered another reason he'd come to speak with Haim.

"I know I may not have been the best of supplicants, but I have one more request." 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, was a Shaman of the Buried City Azwan. However, he recently died when imprisoned and forced to tend to the power of the Great Obelisk."

" Your grandfather is Master Vusron?" Haim asked with surprised interest.

"Yes," Dane answered.

"I knew Vusron well, one of the many people I called to be a Bishop personally. I am sorry for your loss, but if you are asking for me to revive him-"

"That is not what I seek, Great Haim. There is no bringing the dead back: I know that all too well." Dane nearly whispered, his voice trembling slightly.

"In Azwan, a powerful Shamaness named Hilda of the Crimson Sunset has taken to capturing clerics of your order, as well as the orders of your siblings, forcing them to maintain its power. I have tried many times to stop her and save the clerics, but she and her undead legion are far more than I can defeat alone. Would you lend me your power to complete this task?" Haim looked to think for a moment, crossing his arms and holding his chin while moving away from him, before freezing in place and becoming pale.

"She's killed all of Azwan, hasn't she?" He asked.

"Yes, Great Haim, and used them to create a youth potion for herself." Haim took a long breath, drooping his head and shoulders before turning around with a grave expression.

"As much as I want to help you, I do not have the power to give you. The amount and intensity of Darkness she has absorbed is beyond me. Her dark powers are fueled and enhanced by the anger, hate, and fear of all the citizens of Azwan. Your Light is the only thing capable of standing up to her."

"But my Light was stolen from me! I have none left to give!" Dane snapped. Haim moved to him and pointed to his chest, seeming to almost look past him for a moment.

"The Light of Menodora may be quite dim now, but the Light you and my sister Ariel cultivated can be what you need! My sister often speaks highly of you, favoring you above all humans. That Light can be your new source!" Dane looked away from him, looking at the ground while closing his eyes.

"I fear that Light has already been extinguished," he muttered. Haim smiled, putting a hand to Dane's shoulder and squeezing, the sheer strength in his grip making Dane wince.

"I say this as a friend, it's been quite a while since I've seen her genuinely smile. But if I know humans, despite the hurts, affection between you is not so easily extinguished," he said, reciting a traveler's blessing and turning back to the village. Dane rolled his sore shoulder, his thoughts turning to Ariel.

" 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 through the tree's branches as the sun sank low over the horizon. He reached the tree's outer branches three days later, hardly feeling the misty rain that dampened his clothes. He'd spent his life looking for a way to eliminate the Darkness, and the seeming impossibility that lay before him made him feel defeated. Countering it may be the only option now. He couldn't do it alone if he were to counter it. He would need to wield the Ultimate Light once more.

After a week of traveling, he finally found the hut where he'd stayed with Ephenia, while the words of Hiam came back to him about cultivating the light between them. Would doing so betray Menodora? As he neared the door, the sight before him made his heart freeze.

"No, no, no, not again!"

She didn't intend to hurt Dane. Not him. But her anger boiled so violently that she lost her awareness of the power she exuded and injured him. How could she have hurt someone she loved?

After returning to her home, Ariel extended her mind and followed 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 met with him, 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 silently, 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 the timestream, she turned her Mirror of Time to the Great Disaster. No changes appeared; the Great Disaster had become more ominous and disastrous than in the past. Despite her power, she couldn't see the cause and take steps to avoid it.

"What will let me avoid this?" She muttered to herself, jumping when she heard another voice behind her.

"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 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, making the obvious seem so nonchalant. But they had never steered her wrong, so she must widen her gaze to see what 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 sincere pressure she felt in Dane's arms.

"Dane!" she breathed, realizing 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. She opened her eyes as Ephenia and heaved in a breath, finding 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, moving to 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. After calming Dane, Ephenia led him to a cliff, giving them the perfect view of the sunset as it set the sky ablaze.

"What made you come back?" Ephenia asked, fighting the urge to move closer to him, unsure of their relationship.

"I'm not sure. After meeting with Haim, I simply came here," he answered wistfully, staring across the water.

"I think part of 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, hearing him talk about his past love stung 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 constant 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 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, and 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 to reach out for someone willing to provide the shelter and healing he desperately needed. This would be his path to find the Ultimate Light again. Here, under the blazing sky of the sunset, he would find his salvation.