Arthur's Point of View

Helmsforth Temple

There was no response. Slowly pushing open the door revealed Ayda sitting at a desk staring off into space. The room was a mess. Papers decorated the floor, along with other miscellaneous items. Stepping into the room was met with no response. It was… Concerning, to say the least.

“Ayda.” I said softly as I stepped in front of her desk.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the Elf’s head turned to me as her eyes met mine. “Arthur…” She let out before looking around in a lost manner. “I am sorry for the mess. I-“

“It’s fine, Ayda.” I told her before I found a chest and placed it in front of her desk to sit down. “I’m here for you.”

“Me?”

“I’ve heard you’re not doing too good.”

“…”

“Want to talk about it?”

“The rumors surrounding me are of no interest to me.” The Elf retorted dully as she seemed to retreat in on herself.

“Those same rumors are why I’m here, Ayda. It’s no secret you and I don’t get along as well as others.”

“Then why are you here?” Her eyes snapped to mine.

Steepling my fingers, I paused to find my words. “You may not know it, Ayda, but I owe you a great debt.”

Ayda’s eyes bounced back and forth between mine as she finally started to show some emotion. “Why? What have I ever done for you?”

With a weak chuckle, I looked away for a moment. “Let’s just say you gave me a reason to keep on fighting. To live once more. It hurt in the end, but even if it’s mostly spite keeping me going, I still have more of a personal reason for this fight.” Then I sighed before looking back at her. “I imagine you have a good reason to take the Demons more seriously now as well.”

“Taking anything seriously is pointless when they are far stronger than you.” She then lazily gestured to me, and her hand thumped onto her desk. “You leave, they return, you are not here to stop them, and we all fall.” This time, the Elf looked off to the side. “It has been made abundantly clear that we are being allowed to live,” The inflection in her voice died once again. “But for how long?”

“Is this how you want to use what you think is your remaining time?” I asked back. “Waiting for an end that you don’t know when will come?”

“Then what would you suggest?” She shot back. “Surely you know of a better way for me to spend my time. After all, you know everything and only share it when it is convenient for you.”

I quirked a brow at that. “Is it my responsibility to share what I know with you?” My question got her to frown. “Do I have a duty to enlighten you and your kind? While true that I owe you a debt, it doesn’t mean you own me nor have a right to my knowledge.” Again, she had become quiet. “Look, I know what you’re going through, Ayda.”

As soon as I said it, I noticed a rush of magic to her hands, but they didn’t ignite. Clearly, I’d hit a nerve. Ayda’s fingers curled slowly as they made a fist. No longer was the Elf emotionless as a withering glare was directed my way. I continued to sit there indifferent to the newfound hostility.

“Of course, you do because we now come full circle to you knowing everything.” Ayda’s bitter response was filled with contempt. “What do you know of losing a father? A hero!?” She raised her voice.

“And your mother?” I asked, baiting her.

That did it. Ayda’s magic flared to life, but not as it usually did. Putting a barrier around the room, the Elf’s magic ran wild. It wasn’t on purpose though. Screaming in pain as her magic flared about destroying parts of the room, the Elf began to cry. Pained sobs, fearful sobs, left her lips as she trembled and looked like a scared little girl.

Ayda looked at me with pleading eyes. Yet, another part of her seemed to want this to happen. See what would become of her if her magic just continued to leave her body. Tears evaporated in her magic, turning into tiny crystals, which made no sense to me, but I wasn’t familiar with how magic worked.

Between her sobs, she spoke. “Why!?” Ayda cried out. “Why did this happen!?”