《The Great Hero》Chapter 13: Apparitions of a Bygone Era
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“Able do you wish to join me on a journey to the demon capitol Lusteria?”
Able turned her head and looked to begin contemplating. Novae’s eyes alternated between the two of us with a questioning gaze. Able turned her head to face to me and said with a grim determination “If it would not be too much trouble for you; I would be great full to accompany you on this journey with Novae.”
I let out a sigh and said “I never thought it would be this easy to convince you to leave your home and livelihood.”
“I may be sentimental. But I’m not stupid; the state of the capitol; most of the human kingdoms and empires are in a state of turmoil. Wars have being getting more common between the smaller kingdoms and tensions have been rising; even between the larger empires. The gap between the upper echelons of society and the working man has been growing ever larger. Many people are disgruntled by the aristocracy; unprecedented premonitions of a full scale civil war across multiple countries are afoot. However If it were just that I would not be so decisive on joining you on a journey… This place means a lot to me …”
Once again her eyes lost focus as assumed scars of her past bared down on her.
She shook her head and elaborated further on her prior line of reasoning “Never mind where was I… Oh yes! The reason I am being so quick to make this choice is that the kingdoms, in conjunction with the church, have been building anti-demon sentiment. I assume it’s the age old tactic of uniting against a common enemy. Focus the population’s aggression against a common foe and defer the inevitable collapse of the power dynamic of the entire continent. The various religious groups of the continent, given their actions as of late, seem to be proxies of the kingdoms and empires they are bound to. With the increase in resentment against the ‘common enemy’ large proportions of the populous have ignored the current state of oppression and are beginning to form a dangerous toxic mentality. I was planning on leaving by the weeks end. But it seems like I had been too late as evidenced by the events of last night. This has only reinforced the point that the continent is a box of kindling and the slightest spark will send it into chaos; for better or worse. We don’t want to be at the epicentre of a catastrophe of such proportions. This is further strengthened by the immanent summoning of [The Crimson]. Therefore our best hope for escape is you. We have little power by ourselves but you seem to have an almost indomitable might so our best bets are to leave with you.”[1]
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I sat there in an undeniable amazement. Able is far more intuitive then she looks. Though I thought something like this was occurring with the state of the world; I had done it off the back of information gathered with the [Absolute Apprehension] I had used on the monarch of this country. She had no such source of information. I looked at her quizzically and questioned:
“I’m impressed you have such insights that question even the highest powers of the kingdom. Where have you gathered such information from?”
She looked back at me with an almost “How can you be this stupid?” look.
“In this world is there any place more fitting to gather information then a tavern.”
The response made me cough up the food I had just put into my mouth as I broke down in laughter. I guess some things remain constant across worlds.
“Of course a lot of it was guesswork on my part.” She elaborated.
As my laughing quieted down Novae seemed to suddenly understand something.
“Mommy? We’re.. we’re leaving? … what about daddy? You said he would return here… How will he find us if we leave?” Novae pondered.
The Jovial atmosphere shattered and only silence remained. Able’s once joking face turned deadly serious. She turned her head and shot an incredibly meaningful glare my way. I could only deeply sigh. Though I cannot understand the circumstances of novae’s father’s disappearance, given that everything pertaining to him has deeply saddened Able, I can only assume he is no longer of this world. [2]
It must be that Able wishes to keep Novae in a happy delusion rather than face the harsh reality of Novae’s farther being gone forever. I personally cannot condone such actions as, though it’s a harsh reality, this is only deferring the inevitable sadness Novae will face. Perpetuating the lie will only lead to more sorrow and possible distrust further down the line. I won’t interject now but I must speak to Able about this later. I nod apprehensively to Able’s glare and remain silent for the time being.
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Able’s glare softened as she picked up Novae. She looked directly at her and said “Your daddy is off in a faraway place and always knows where we are…”
Her look faltered between being distant and caring.
*Hic*
Novae looked back up at her mother with tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
“Will daddy definitely return one day?” Novae asked.
“He will.” Able replied.
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
I looked on with flashbacks to the past ever hassling me like persistent apparitions from golden days; long gone and never to return. I kept up such delusions when my wife went missing. To my sons… my daughters… and mostly myself. I have experienced first-hand the amplifying effects such actions can take on catastrophes. The capturing and, subsequent execution of my wife, combined with the amplifying effects of denying her death resulted in great sorrow. When the proof was un-deniable.. That she was dead… turned a war of defence into a war of annihilation. I guess I justified it with the supposed “reconciliation” we could have after annexing and unifying most of the world under a single banner. However, I knew… I knew I was digging a grave for my entire race… Well those are matters of the past and should remain matters of the past. This is why I’m fighting now ... and I must not forget that.
As I drew a deep breath and calmed down it looked like Novae and Able had also reconciled.
I asked Novae and Able to prepare to leave. Novae was reluctant to begin with but the events of last night gave her the resolve to follow us back to the demon capitol. We all packed our various amenities and headed to the gates.
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[1]Welcome to 1937 Germany. Enjoy you stay :D.(info-dumping since 1939)
[2] Rip tense.
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HOi. New chapter! Hope you enjoyed reading it and reply with any grammatical errors;or plot holes; or even if the plot is beginning to loose its bearing altogether(I'm not a consistent person :3) . Rate it if you like it or hate it and leave constructive criticism if you do so.
:P
(Don't mind me I'm a derp and posted this chapter to the wrong series Q-Q).
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