In the dead of night, Ira’s silhouette rose in the darkness of the room. Beside him, Avery remained sleep with a blissful grin on her face, one that he found bewitching but shook his head and changed his focus.

Ira’s eyes were glazed over back and from his perspective, he was suddenly standing in a large chamber.

“So, you came?” A person spoke.

A figure wearing a stone mask appeared from the shadows within the chamber. The stone mask depicted three faces, one of a man, one of a woman, and one that was completely ambiguous just like the figure itself.

Ira looked toward the figure without saying a word before walking toward two large doors. He pushed them open and found himself in some room that resembled the meeting place of an ancient council.

“He truly came?” A beautiful woman with violet eyes and long grey hair spoke.

There was no one who could compare to her in terms of beauty but Ira seemed completely repulsed.

“Hunger. I want to consume him.” A floating pile of flesh sitting further away from her groaned. It was covered in dozens of eyes that resembled various beasts.

“As do I,” The violet-eyed woman licked her lips as her eyes hungrily trailed over Ira’s body.

“Now, now, there isn’t a need for that is there? I find him interesting but please, he’s practically a newborn.” A man who vaguely resembled a human chimed in.

It was hard to even call him a man when he seemed more like a mockery of a human. His body hosted long, uneven, proportions and a face with a warped smile that seemed to stop at his ears. And his skin held a waxy texture that made him seem less like a living being and more like a sculpture.

As the figure in the stone-mask joined the party of individuals, they finally began their discussion.

“You’re the replacement of that wolf?” The Violet-Eyed woman asked as if to confirm what she already knew.

“Call it what you want,” Ira replied indifferently.

“Interesting. You are the second to accept the darkness and unlike that Wolf, you’ve kept a physical shell.”

“...Is no one else coming?” The figure in the stone mask inquired.

“Why would they? To see this boy? He hasn’t even lived for a century let alone a millennium,” The Violet-Eyed woman responded but her eyes stayed on Ira.

“And yet, here I am.” Ira’s smile was filled with provocation as he replied.

“Oh? Tell me, do you think yourself something special?” The Violet-Eyed woman laughed as if she were amused.

“Arrogant. An ignorant child. He still smells of his mother’s milk.” The pile of flesh chimed.

“There’s no need to berate him for being...unaware,” The grinning “man” spoke.

“Every so often, to us anyway, an entity is born. And if they aren’t eaten by Hunger they are taken by Chaos. If neither of them get involved, another will.” The figure in the stone mask explained to Ira.

“So tell me, what will your fate be, Ira?” The Violet-Eyed woman asked.

“None of those.”

“Prideful. I want to consume you.” The pile of flesh groaned at Ira.

“Try it,” Ira flashed a smile.

“Now, now, we’re only here to get an idea of him, we all agreed not to harm him...at the moment.” The grinning man seemed to have an even deeper smile form on his face.

“Could I give you some advice, newcomer?” The beautiful woman twirled her hair innocently.

“What?” Ira narrowed his eyes toward the Violet-Eyed woman.

“There is one thing you should remember and that is chaos cannot be avoided by entities like you. The same entities who hold foolish beliefs and chase ideals of the ignorant. You must understand that chaos is constant and because of that, I will eventually reach you, no matter what corner of darkness you’re hiding in.”

“Good to know.” Ira was dismissive of the woman’s words but she paid it no mind and continued.

“I want you to understand that I am not acting out of malice or hate for you. It is in my nature to seek the most chaotic outcome. And you…” She inhaled deeply as if taking in Ira’s scent. “Yes, you will provide me with want I want...won’t you, Ir-Rah?”

Ira found that the woman’s strange pronunciation of his name wasn’t as concerning as the fact that she knew it in the first place. He couldn’t hide his shock and seeing his change of expression caused the woman to gently laugh.

“How do you know-”

“Your name? I have already told you, as long as chaos exists nothing is unreachable to me.”

Ira’s countenance became grim as he stared at the Violet-Eyed woman.

“We shall end it here before a fight starts.” The figure in the stone mask spoke, gently waving their hand and practically severing the growing tension.

“Agreed. I will consume the child at some other point.” The pile of flesh disappeared soon after his statement.

“I came to see the newborn and I have to say, I am not disappointed.” The grinning man licked his lips with a rotting tongue. “Not disappointed at all.”

The grinning man was the second to go, the figure in the stone mask, the Violet-Eyed woman, and Ira.

“I am certain we will see each other very soon, Ir-Rah.”

“You should hope not,” Ira growled.

The Violet-Eyed woman let out a charming laugh before she vanished.

“Ir-Rah, is it?” The figure in the stone mask inquired.

“Ira.”

“Is that not what I said?”

“Forget it.”

“...You are young, Ir-Rah, incredibly young. Do not fall for the provocations of those who have lived long enough to see countless millennia pass. They may not show it, but they will come to be cautious of you the longer you stay alive. The truth is, darkness predates all of us.”

“What are your intentions then?” Ira asked cautiously.

“My intentions? I have none...You will come to learn that most of us are neutral and very few actually do anything.”

“Us?”

“The Elders, The Ancient, The...forgive me, but as most of us are entities who existed before time itself, you can imagine there is no shortage of names to describe our kind.”

Ira let out a laugh as he replied, “Your kind, not mine.”

“That is where you’re wrong.” The figure in the stone mask shook its head. “You carry the same blood as one of us so there is no need to be hostile. After all, we are all essentially related in some way. Think of some of us as distant relatives.” The figure in the stone mask left Ira with those words.

Ira gave the matter some contemplation, but whatever his thoughts were he kept them to himself.

…

Avery stirred at Ira’s side before opening her slowly opening her eyes. The exhaustive five years had come to an end and it seemed as if the fatigue hit her all at once, hence her lengthy slumber.

“Ira.” Avery whispered tiredly as she stared at Ira who was sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Ah? Did I wake you up?” Ira turned to her with a slightly apologetic smile.

Avery’s eyes gained more clarity as she began to rise.

“What is it?” She asked, feeling something was off.

“It’s...nothing. I’ll tell you all about it when the time is right.” Ira waved as he climbed out of bed.

He lightly shrugged and the shadows seemed to gather around him before becoming black garments.

“Besides, Sylun should be pretty busy right now and we have to prepare.”

“I understand, you can’t leave us like that again...never again.” Avery began to dress as she spoke to him.

“If I go anywhere I’ll definitely be taking all of you with me,” Ira said with a reliable smile.

He left the bed chambers with Avery following close behind him and as if they felt it, his children emerged from their rooms one by one, each of them giving an enthusiastic greeting.

“Where are we going exactly?” Raveria asked.

Ira looked at his oldest daughter with a slight surprise as she had become more responsible in his time away.

“A new world.”

“What’s wrong with this one?” Nephele asked innocently.

“A lot.”

“Really? Like what?”

“It has been broken.”

“By who?”

“Well...I may have had a small part in breaking it.”

“Why don’t you just fix it then?” Nephele tilted her head as if she couldn’t comprehend.

“There are some things you just can’t repair, no matter what you do.”

“I see. That makes a lot of sense, Father. I also think the same.” Nephele nodded as if she understood, but it was clear she was just as confused as ever by her repeated assurances.

“Good.” Ira shook his head.

“Ira…” Avery started. “You said that the Origin Force is absent within this...new world?”

“It is.”

“Then what will happen when we depart? Will our children be safe?”

“They’ll have enough time to adjust but I can’t promise it’ll be painless.”

“Will I lose my swords?” Valeryn inquired.

“Probably, but you’ll be better off starting from scratch. All of you will.” Ira thought of the incomprehensible things that lay beyond the Void.

They wouldn’t have paid any attention to him if he hadn’t taken the Wolf’s place, but since he had. It meant that the unknown beings would now have equally unknown intentions toward him. Even if the figure in the stone mask said that they were all more or less like a family, it didn’t mean they would be tied down by the sentiment that came with the connection.

“Her Highness is waiting for you, Keeper.” A Dark Elf approached Ira and bowed deeply before gesturing toward a large door.

“Alright,” Ira nodded and approached the door that gently swung open.

“Keeper.”

The individuals in the room spoke simultaneously and even bowed together.

“That’s enough, I just came to see if we’re ready?”

“Ah, I’ve sent word across the city. All that’s left now is to address the citizens and make adequate preparations. Apologies, Keeper, but I am at a loss as to how we should prepare for the upcoming journey.”

“I’ll handle it,” Ira replied. “Now, is there anything else?”

“There are some who are afraid and maybe even a little hesitant but there are none who wish to remain.”

“Good, give an announcement to your people and I will discuss things with the Valkyries.”

Ira emphasized that there would be nothing easy about the journey before he went off in search of Kara and the Valkyries, leaving everyone else to begin preparing.