THE GOODBYES

Deep within the stretches of North, far beyond the edges of where the snow and ice met the erosion, five figures were hovering above the clouds, looking down at the ravine devoid of life. Black smoke and shadows danced about endlessly, and from time to time screams would break out from its depths. All five figures wore a deep frown, their hands crossed against their chests, stuck in deep contemplation.

“He sure is taking his sweet time,” the one who spoke was a woman in her early thirties; she was extremely slender and pale, her eyes round and seemingly vacant, silver in hue. She wore white battle armor, with two short sickles tied neatly to her waist. Her name was Hylana, and she was amongst the weakest in the group. “Do you think he’s afraid to show up?”

“It doesn’t matter,” a muscular, middle-aged man replied in a hoarse voice; he was over two meters tall and was wearing beautifully crafted plate armor, adorned with various gems and stones. On his back hung a massive greatsword, silver in hue, with red rubies embedded into the surface of the blade. “He’ll get out eventually.” his name was Stork, and he was considered vice-leader of the group.

“Hm, Stork is right,” a youth seemingly in his early twenties added; he was relatively average, both in looks and stature, yet had extremely deep, green eyes. There was a brilliant, golden shortsword tucked into a beautiful scabbard strapped to his waist. His name was Grath and he was the strongest person currently in the group. “Even if he restores to his peak condition, he still won’t be our match.”

“Do you think he’ll delay until the little drakey awakens?” a tall woman suddenly spoke; her skin was slightly tanned, and she had a sort of motherly air about her, her eyes filled with kindness. Two seemingly crude and plain shortswords rested at her back, made out of copper. Her name was Ruela. “Maybe he plans to join him.”

“Doubt it,” a short, plump man replied; he had two warhammers strapped to his waist, and was standing at the back of the group, as if afraid to lead the charge. His name was Sorth. “Maybe he’s waiting for us to get bored and retreat?”

“Hai, you really are a coward beyond cowards Sorth!” Stork exclaimed, shaking his head lightly. “If you really want to, then scurry your ass back home and explain yourself to the Master.”

“No, no, no, no, definitely not!” Sorth shook his head restlessly, clearly terrified of his Master. “I’ll fight, I’ll definitely fight.”

“Ah, don’t bully him Stork!” Ruela said, suddenly stretching out her arm and gently caressing Sorth’s head. “You know how he is. Just let him be.”

“Ai, you’re too kind big sis,” Hylana said. “Even if he was a frog you’d defend him.”

“Who’s a frog?!” Sorth said angrily.

“I said if, you deaf buffoon.”

“Damn you white witch! Leave house once and meet the sun to face!”

“I’m more beautiful this way!” Hylana replied calmly.

“Beautiful my ass!” although Sorth was truly a coward in front of the entire world, his courageous side would burst out when dealing with Hylana. It was simply because he truly couldn’t stand her. “If you’re beautiful, then I’m a freaking Dragon!”

“Hur hur,” Hylana laughed mockingly. “You surely think highly of yourself. Dragon? Maybe in a million years.”

“Enough!!” Grath yelled at the two, as they immediately stopped talking. “We’ve already sent someone to keep an eye out for the Dragon. If he moves, we’ll know. So stay still and pay attention. If he doesn’t come out within a year, we’ll give him a visit.”

“You want to go into his domain?” Hylana asked, arching her brows slightly.

“I have decent understanding of his formations,” Grath replied. “If we take extra care, we should be fine.”

“If that’s what you want…”

“H-how about no?”

“Ha ha, that’s our leader! Ha ha! Yeah, let’s charge down! Let’s wreak havoc!”

“Don’t worry Sorth, I’ll protect you!”

**

Lynne woke up after five days of recuperation. As he inspected his body, he was truly shocked; there wasn’t even a trace of his injuries anywhere except one place – his soul. However, with time, even that should heal; that is, if he doesn’t go on burning out every couple of days. Elynal had already woken before him and was currently eating dried loafs of bread, so Lynne joined him. Because the monkey and the bird were exhausted, the two fell asleep in the corner.

Lynne also took out some wine from his pouch and began drinking; half because he missed the scorching feeling it invokes inside of him, and half because he was trying to pause the workings of his brain. The two ate in silence, and as the dried bread ran out, Lynne took out his own provisions, which mostly consisted of different types of wine. Luckily, there were some dried apples there – which he used to brew his own wine – so the duo swept that as well, before being somewhat sated.

“How are you?” Elynal asked as he took a gourd of wine Lynne offered him.

“Fine.” Lynne replied. “You?”

“Been better.”

“… sorry.” Lynne said, sighing.

“What for?”

“If I acted earlier… if I didn’t hesitate… then…”

“Don’t,” Elynal forced a smile as he continued drinking. “It’s fine. I can also say that if I was stronger, I’d have been able to protect her. Doesn’t make a damn difference either way.”

“Do you know who they were?” Lynne asked.

“Yeah.”

“Why did they do it?”

“Grand plans and dreams,” Elynal smiled bitterly as he thought about it. “Don’t worry your mind unnecessarily. It’s not something either you or I can do much about. In the end, what you did saved many lives. The news of it had already spread. There’s no way for them to hide anymore.”

“Ah,” Lynne drank some more as he sighed. “I’d rather I saved her than everyone else. She was just a kid…”

“She understood the dangers,” Elynal said. “In the end, we will all die one day.”

“Did you like her?” Lynne suddenly asked.

“Ha ha, no,” Elynal shook his head as he laughed softly. “The two of us simply had a lot in common, as we withstood the same problems. We drew closer, but it never bloomed, as we simply weren’t meant to be.”

“Why was she in the sect anyway?” Lynne asked. “Shouldn’t she be training at the Palace? Extend that question to yourself as well.”

“Hm,” although it was brief, Lynne spotted it – extreme hatred, anger bellowing so loudly it’s nearly impossible to hide it. However, even if he noticed it, he said nothing as he continued drinking wine. “One day, perhaps, you’ll get to know. There’s no reason to drag you into the politics tied in knots to the thrones.”

“Where’s Thalia?” Lynne asked after a short silence. “I didn’t see her with you guys.”

“…” Elynal remained silent as he played with the gourd. “Who knows?” he replied in the end. “If you’re asking whether she’s alive or not, she definitely is. Her Master wouldn’t allow her to die even if the sky was falling.”

“…” Lynne quickly understood silent implications, and slight resentment present in Elynal’s voice; even Lynne felt slightly uncomfortable about it. He didn’t think her Master would save them, but she could have at least relayed some news if nothing else. “Will you stay in the sect?”

“No,” Elynal shook his head. “I have some business back home to take care of. I also need to bring Anna back to her parents.”

“Need my help?”

“Thanks, but no,” he said. “It’s best you just return to the sect and lay low for the time being.”

“Lay low…” Lynne muttered as he took another gourd of wine; dad’s execution day isn’t far off. I wonder if I can make it in time? Aii, even if I make it, he’ll probably just scold me with his eyes if he spots me… “When will you be leaving?”

“Tonight,” Elynal said. “They should have dispersed by now, and if I travel at night, I should be relatively safe. Although I can’t use teleportation arrays, you can,” he then added. “There are several around,” a small, rectangular parchment suddenly appeared in his hand as he gave it to Lynne; it was a small map, pointing out the closest places that had the teleportation array. “You should bounce around a few, just to be safe. Also, you should exchange all gold you have for Mana Stones in one of the bigger cities, as nearly everything worthwhile can’t be bought with gold, but with Mana Stones.”

“Hm,” Lynne nodded, putting the map away. “Here,” he then raised his gourd, toasting. “For Anna.”

“For Anna.”

The two drank some more, and the night soon fell. Elynal said his farewells and departed, leaving Lynne behind with the monkey and the bird. A few hours later, he himself stepped out of the cave. He found himself atop the mountain, staring down at the world. Half-moon hung in the sky, surrounded by shimmering stars, without a cloud in sight. It was a beautiful scenery, yet Lynne couldn’t enjoy it.

He suddenly felt a spacial tear nearby and, alarmed, took out his Chakrams as he turned around; black vortex hung in the air as a slender pair of legs appeared, followed by the rest of the figure. Lynne’s body relaxed quickly and his Chakrams disappeared. The vortex behind Thalia disappeared as she left, her hair dancing lightly in the gentle breeze. Her usual, playful countenance was nowhere to be found, as her expression was exceedingly solemn, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

“Glad to see you’re safe.” she said.

“Didn’t your parents tell you it’s bad to lie?” Lynne smiled lightly as he spoke.

“… I’m not here to banter with you,” she said. “I’m here to apologize.”

“It’s not me you should be apologizing to.” Lynne replied indifferently.

“I--”

“It’s fine,” Lynne waved his arm lightly as he spoke. “We are but mere acquaintances. What expectations could I possibly have?”

“Why don’t you come with me?” Thalia said. “My Master is also interested in you. Someone who’s training in Origin Laws has no place in ordinary Magus world.” Dammit, I knew it!!

“No need,” Lynne quickly declined. “I have my own way.”

“You do realize this is an opportunity of a lifetime, right?” she said, somewhat annoyed. “Don’t you need a moment to think things through?”

“Pardon me for being blunt,” Lynne said. “But I’d rather skew the stars than become a disciple of someone who can watch thousands of people die without doing anything. Alas, that’s just who I am.”

“You!!” Thalia exclaimed angrily, but she couldn’t refute him, as he was telling the truth. “You think my Master has time to pay attention to some lackluster Mages who’ll never amount to anything?”

“That’s where you and I differ,” Lynne explained softly. “It’s just a matter of perspective, really, but it’s that perspective that separates us. Perhaps, with the way things are, I’ll become just like you, sooner or later. I’ll see people, and I’ll kill the same people without batting an eyelid. However, until that day comes, I’ll still be myself. And you be yourself. In the end, we all walk our own roads, fight our own battles, and write our own tales. If, by chance, our tales intersect once more in the future, I hope it will be under better circumstances.”

“You really are stubborn…” Thalia sighed, shaking her head. “Fine, be it your way. Dance the dance of the mortals for as long as you want. Just don’t feel any regrets.”

“Ai, don’t mention regrets,” Lynne’s tone suddenly mellowed as he spoke with deep sadness. “Now you’ve reminded me. Tell me, do you know the name of my Nameless Lady?”

“Eh?!” Thalia was immediately stunned, unable to reply.

“Ah, she, a heavenly creature, beyond compare; ah, stole my heart and ran away! Find her, I shall, one day… for my love burns for bedroom play!”

“…”

“Don’t judge! If you had seen her, you’d understand me! Mature maidens are, after all, something you can’t compare with… their beauty outclasses you by countless realms. No offense, though.”

“… why did I even come here?…”

“Ai, I wonder! I know my charms are otherworldly, and that you have fallen for me, but alas, little lass, I simply can’t love thee!”

“Oh, f*ck off,” she cursed as the black vortex suddenly appeared behind her. “Good luck.”

Lynne said nothing as he watched her disappear the same way she appeared. In truth, he was quite tempted with her offer. However, in the end, he had to reject; there were simply too many secrets he had to keep. Not even mentioning the fact that the Emperor’s Flame Sect is actually hidden in his soul, just the deal with that creature five years from now he made couldn’t be exposed. He felt, deep down, that he would become an enemy of far too many people when the destined day arrived…