I was glad I already knew how this ritual worked. The priest conducting it didn’t seem to be the talkative type, which, to be honest, didn’t bother me in the slightest. He prepared his reagents and simply nodded when everything was ready. Cellestra placed her hands on my stomach and back as I bent forward to take in the same minty smell from the herbs as the previous time.

Then, the priest said one word that I didn’t understand, and a familiar blue flame erupted from the offering bowl, engulfing my face in flames that made me feel sleepy…

I stood before Elysa in the goddess’s realm. As soon as I got my bearings, I looked her in the eyes to see worry written all over her face.

“What happened?” I asked, not wanting to waste any time. I figured it wasn’t a long shot to assume that Elysa knew I was referring to the obelisk.

“I do not know,” Elysa said softly. “And it bothers me that I don’t. I’ve been breaking my head over it ever since you touched the stone. I will tell you what I know, and I hope that it’s of some assistance.”

The goddess sighed. “First and foremost, those obelisks are older than I am, and I do not know their exact purpose, other than what I’ve found out so far. When you placed your hand on the stone, it seemed the last remnants of a long-lost magic from your world were forcefully ejected. I immediately tried to analyze it, but there wasn’t much of it left to get a clear answer. If I were to guess, and I will because it serves as a warning, it seemed to be a much older, much more complicated version of a banishment spell.”

“Banishment?” I asked in confusion.

“I think the obelisks serve as some kind of banishment anchor,” Elysa said, closing her eyes. “And I fear the powerful magic residing in you may have undone part of that spell…”

I felt my heart sink at her words as her worry seemed to be projected onto me and intensified. What had I done?

“That is all I have found out so far, and I doubt I’ll be able to find out more unless you visit another of the obelisks, and I most definitely do not want you to do that. ”

“I… What do I do?”

“Don’t get anywhere near the other obelisks, and make sure to relay what I told you to the others. I doubt they will know more than I do, but who knows? Perhaps there is still a tome in this world somewhere that holds the secrets behind those structures.”

I nodded. “I hope so. The uncertainty is killing me.”

“After I gave you a second chance at life?” The goddess smiled for the first time since our meeting this time around. It was a small smile, but it was there. “Don’t you dare get yourself killed again.”

Her words placed a small smile on my own lips. “Thanks.”

I then decided to ask another question while I still had time. “About my parents. I wanted to know, are their memories still their own?”

“They are,” Elysa said. “I took their souls and removed all memory of the attack. In addition, I locked their memories of you and some other people, but I left remnants here and there regarding their profession and such. Now, only the part regarding you will be unlocked when they see you. For the other part, I’m leaving it up to you to decide if you want to tell them. I assure you, I haven’t altered a thing that would change their personalities or anything like that.” The goddess paused briefly.

“I made them wake up near a broken carriage close to a shrine dedicated to me. For all they know, they suffered some kind of accident that would lead to unconsciousness. They might also draw the conclusion they suffered some kind of amnesia from it. I’m confident the priests and priestesses have taken good care of them, and helped them on their way in this new world. I do have the kindest followers, after all.” Elysa smiled at her last statement.

“I see,” I said with a slight nod. “So a lot of it is up to me. Thank you for that. I appreciate it. I also wanted to thank you for placing them here. This place, from what I can see, looks safe.”

The goddess smiled widely now. “No need to thank me. They deserved that. Now, go back to your friends, and do tell Cellestra I said hi.”

“Will do,” I managed to produce just before my surroundings started to blend together until nothing but white remained.

I awoke again after the ritual, feeling a wave of dizziness wash over me. I was staring at the altar in front of me and Cellestra on one side with Vyath and Gwyn standing on my left. When I opened my eyes, I remained where I was, not intending to move until the dizziness passed. For the time being, I simply stared at the ceiling as well.

I must have let out an involuntary groan as I was trying to regain my bearings, as Cellestra stepped to my side in an instant.

“Are you okay?” She asked.

I raised one of my hands, briefly looked at it, and then used both hands to rub my eyes and face. “I think I’m fine. I’m just… the world is spinning. Maybe I should have waited a bit longer before doing this.”

“Don’t kid yourself. There’s no stopping you from doing something like this.”

I let out a small chuckle at the elf’s brutally honest comment. “You’re so right about that…”

“Where’s the priest?” I asked. I did not see him nearby. He, as well as the other priests that were about, seemed to have disappeared.

“They all went to have dinner,” Cellestra said softly.

“Can’t believe he left me behind like that. Oh well, whatever.” I sighed.

“What did you learn?” Vyath said, seemingly in a hurry to get an answer.

“Give her some time, will you?” Gwyn responded to his impatience.

“It’s okay, Gwyn. I can understand his eagerness.” I took a deep breath as I prepared to relay the information I’d gathered. “Since we’re alone now, I might as well tell. What Elysa said was quite shocking. While she doesn’t fully know what the obelisks are for, she made a guess based on the type of magic that was apparently ejected from the obelisk. I’m assuming that was the red beam that we saw. She said it was some kind of ancient banishment magic, the last remnants of it. If I understood it correctly, it means that the obelisk is now completely depleted.”

“Banishment magic?” Vyath asked with a frown, his eyes started darting from side to side, as if he was looking for something.

“She said it was a much older, much more complicated version of a banishment spell. No idea what it means exactly, but it can’t be anything good.”

“Banishment spells are usually bad news,” Vyath explained as he still seemed to be looking for something in his mind. “If this is one, that makes this a dire situation.”

“And there are three obelisks,” I continued. “The goddess hypothesized that they are used as some kind of… what were her words… anchor, for the banishment spell. The magic I inherited from her blessing seems to have undone part of the spell. Elysa suggested that I ask you to gather any information on the structures that you can find, as old as possible.”

“How old?” Cellestra asked.

“Older than Elysa…”

Vyath gasped at my response. I took that as a sign that something like this would be nigh-impossible to find. I had expected as much.

“That’s going to be… impossible,” Vyath affirmed what I was thinking.

“She didn’t seem to think so. In fact, she seemed to be quite confident that there was something, still.” I said. “Either way, I’m not going to get anywhere close to them again. I’m not quite sure what you should tell your superiors.”

I extended an arm to Cellestra at my side who seemed to be worried sick about me. I tried to put up a smile as she took my arm and helped pull my elven torso back in my standing position.

“I think I will tell them more or less the same story you just told me, minus the part where you caused it, of course. Either way, it’s going to be something taken extremely seriously given the fact that if there is something banished in the area, its threat level is largely unknown. It’s not something we’ve had to deal with before,” He said.

He then paused for a few seconds. “It’s a good thing that Gwyn’s people have annexed the region. Research could have been… problematic otherwise,” Vyath explained.

“Research,” I said in disgust. “Why can’t things ever be simple?”

“I don’t quite get it,” Vyath said.

“I do,” Cellestra said softly.

“Seems you’re going to be delving deep in that library of yours,” Gwyn said with a wicked grin. “And then more after that.”

The archivist sighed. “Books older than a goddess. I don’t even know where to start.”