“Humanity’s first hopes at unification were dashed when the First Kingdom fell. So absolute was its destruction that even now, a millennia after the act, we still have no real idea on what the Kingdom was called. Say that it had existed as an entity once and then no more. Some say it fell due to The Dark Tides, others say it was the elves shattering the alliance. Based on records excavated out of what few ruins remain from that age, I posit that the First Kingdom was betrayed from within. “

- Gallius Segosa, Lecture at the Arterian Academy of History “A Different View on Our Ancestors”

Sophie was quiet, she sat silently after she awoke from the spine shattering attack. With a tired sigh she leaned backwards and gazed up to the sky. What more did you want me to see? What is this truth that you want me to know? Hearing no response from the void beyond, she sighed and picked herself off the ground, another doomed journey to the church beginning.

Her step was different this time, no panic running or determined dashing to the church. A more quiet and mellow jog that kept her just far enough ahead of the monster horde to make it inside before the doors shut. Her presence had drawn quite a bit of attention as always but she ignored it until she managed to slink her way back into her corner. The one place that doesn’t see me getting crushed by rubble.

She snickered to herself at the image of how surprised the faceless knights seemed when they saw her. She knew they were connected somehow to the truth the entity wanted her to see, but how was the main question.

The priest began preaching once again, the boulders crashing against the church roof as civilians cowered. It was when the second volley smashed over the pulpit, sending the roof crashing down that she made her move. She dashed towards the rubble, taking advantage of everyone’s panic and confusion to start moving pieces out of the way big enough to shelter herself. Everything happened the way they did before. Or so she thought.

The first sign of trouble were the footsteps approaching her, though she refused to look up and merely clenched her fists in anticipation for the hatred. The second sign was the audible gasp, feminine in nature and not the muscle head she had expected. The next one were the panicked cries interspersed by light sobbing, but the sobbing sounded much closer than she remembered anyone being. A final sign that something went wrong was when she looked up to find the older sister looking at her with wide eyes.

“You…you’re…” The older sister muttered.

“An elf.” Her brother finished for her, the trio looking mortified.

Sophie just sighed and cocked an eyebrow, hoping her own nervousness did not peek through.

“Are you trying to hide? We saw you running” The younger brother sneered, though there was a tinge of false bravado behind his voice, "Elves aren't welcome here."

“Miro! you can’t just talk…”

“Hurry.” Sophie hissed at the trio, gesturing to the little spot in the rubble, “Get the little ones in.”

She hid her own frustration, her mind at war with her heart. The desire to uncover the mystery battling against her own compassion. Time was ticking and she knew they only had a few moments before the whole scene would erupt into violence.

“Umm are you sure? I mean we just thought…” The older sister muttered as she drew the trembling Mila closer.

Growling in anger at her own stupidity and their hesitation, Sophie quickly yanked the two smaller siblings and shoved them into the little opening, squishing them together in an uncomfortable pile before any of the trio could react. She could see the surprise on their faces, the anger that slowly replaced the shock from such rough treatment. But before they could protest the final act had begun.

Abominations and the three knights kicked open the church doors, the priest lighting his sword on fire as civilians screamed and pleaded.

“Listen you two…umm big sis will make sure to-” The sister trembled slightly as she spoke to her siblings, her eyes staring wide in horror at the onslaught incoming.

“Big sis will be dead if she talks, you two stay quiet and stay still. You, come with me, now.” Sophie snapped at the siblings before yanking the older one along.

“Huh…but they…wait…” The older sister protested as she got dragged along. Though Sophie felt a semblance of resistance, the girl let herself get pulled, her senses likely too rattled by everything to function properly. A pang of sympathy grew within Sophie, she understood the sister’s feeling, the moment when she simply stood idly by while Riza’s friends got executed one by one, or when she got taken, to be so overwhelmed you just freeze, and here I am dragging her away from her family.

“Who…I mean…I’m…uh…Karelia…hahah, I know you’re an elf but um….nice to -umpf!” Karelia stammered before yelping as Sophie shoved her against the wall, “What are you…hey! What?!” She quipped as Sophie hoisted herself up and over the girl’s shoulder to clamber onto the ruined wall just above them.

“Wait-wait! You can’t just leave me here! I-my siblings…they would…I…I don’t want-”

“Hurry and grab my hand.” Sophie hissed as she wrapped her legs around a piece of the wall, hoping the brick chunk would handle their combined weight, “Hurry!”

The girl seemed stunned at the extended hand and stood frozen, staring up whilst Sophie got more and more annoyed. A dying scream from nearby broke her trance and she eventually reached up to grab Sophie’s arm. Praying the bricks don’t give way, Sophie pulled with all her might until the other girl was able to clamber up.

“I-I don’t want to die…” She whimpered, “Umm…uhhh thank you.”

“Up, we have to keep going up.” Sophie murmured, unwilling to look at the other. In her mind, she could only see Karelia and her brother as what they would become. Why am I even helping, they die anyways, she huffed quietly to herself, but this is what Eva would do isn’t it? This is what Aurelia would do.

Her plans had changed, the only hope she saw was to wait out the slaughter, but ground level was suicide. Even if the second level of the church was falling into tatters, if she could get to where the bell tower was she would have a chance. doubtful that anyone would search the ruined structure. We would, she corrected as she hoisted Karelia up again.

“Hurry!” Sophie urged and dragged Karelia along. Despite having clambered up, the girl was still breathing heavily, her mind likely still frozen with fear. Sophie could only hope she understood all her instructions, her eyes trained warily on the gap in the walkway ahead of them.

“Listen, umm Karelia right? I need you to jump across.”

The girl just looked at her with a face on the verge of hyperventilating but nodded regardless. Wordlessly, she lined up a small sprint and leapt, landing onto the other side with a loud thud that made even Sophie wince. Shit, everyone would have heard that. To her displeasure, a peek over the railings saw the horned knight and slender knight pointing up at Karelia, who had been equally surprised and had now frozen in shock. Run, run! Damnit!

Reluctantly Sophie sprinted over and leapt as well, smashing onto the otherwise and startling the poor girl. Where’s that damn bravery that always gets you killed?! Picking herself up, she quickly tugged Karelia along and hurried towards the bell tower. Shit, shit, they’ll know we’re here, we need to hide somehow.

Her worries were soon confirmed when a javelin embedded itself into the marble brick wall, the two girls letting out a startled cry at the sudden attack. By the Goddess, no wonder it felt like my insides exploded when I got hit before. The two ducked and sprinted for the bell tower ruins, Karelia finally seeming to understand Sophie’s plan, much to the latter’s relief.

“Stay low!”

“I know.”

“Incoming!”

In what felt like an agonisingly long few seconds. Sophie watched as another javelin shot towards them. She raced to throw Karelia out of the way but it was too late. Her eyes widened in horror as the projectile speared the girl right through the skull, slamming her body against the marble brick wall, leaving behind a bloody trail. Sophie froze and stared at her companion, the girl weakly clawing at the projectile lodged into her head. Despite the chaos around them, her heart ached at the sight of Mila’s sister writhing in agony, tears running down her eyes even while she tried desperately to cling to life.

“Help…me…” Karelia uttered softly and Sophie knelt down in front of her, taking care to hold the girl’s arms down.

“It’s okay, it’ll…be okay.” Sophie reassured her, though Karelia showed no sign of understanding her words.

“I…I don’t…please…the kids…” Karelia rasped whilst her eyes began flickering, “I...just…” She tried to spit out but one final gasp escaped and Karelia’s writhing form fell still. The occasional muscle twitching in its death throes.

Damn…damn it! Sophie cursed.

Her mind filling up with despair, she concocted one last ditch attempt to salvage the situation. Muttering a soft prayer for Karelia, Sophie grabbed her body and used all her might to toss it over the edge before leaping over right after. Sure enough the sudden falling corpse alerted the knights and they followed it when it hit the ground just as Sophie grappled her target. Taking advantage of the momentary pause she managed to land on the slender knight and slam her opponent to the ground. Before anyone could react she pried the helmet off the knight to confirm everything she saw before.

A short gasp escaped Sophie’s lips just as she felt the vicious bite of an axe cleave into her back. Looking down at the elf below she was met with a vicious snarl. But amidst the pause was what felt like a moment of recognition, a moment of confusion as neither quite knew what to do next.

Thus it was that when the elf finally flung her off to grab her helmet, Sophie just impassively stared at the oncoming axe, the blade aiming to strike into her face. Even when she winced from the pain as it was splitting her open, the thought couldn’t leave her mind. Her eyes…almost gem-like, just like mine.

Sophie laid down, barely moving as she touched her own face. Memorising every detail and noting what subtle differences that she could remember. She almost looked like me. I mean I do remember Markus raving about all the cult stuff, does that mean…

The sky above her cleared at long last, the blood red giving way to a vast expanse of stars and darkness. Countless giant planets swirled around a vortex of dust and echoes as the entity emerged from the emptiness once more. Stunned as she was, Sophie found her mind unwillingly wandering back to Karelia’s last moments, the way her face had seemed so desperate in the midst of such agony. A fearful, worried expression still etched onto her face the moment she passed away. Then at how the elf had looked in contrast. Hatred, fire, and disgust tainted the scarred knight, an anger that showed through in her eyes as Sophie traded but a momentary glance at her.

It was a look that seemed familiar somehow, a look she had seen in the eyes of people when they sometimes looked at her. A feeling of disdainful hatred at the stranger, except that this look was not necessarily directed at Sophie, she could feel it was meant for the people around her, at humanity. She shuddered at the thought but stowed it away as the entity looked down at her at last.

“Still so feeble.” It trilled, her bracelet lighting up in conjunction to the ear shattering noise from above, “But thy mind…I sense it has questions, but also a willingness to understand.”

Sophie grunted, slightly annoyed at how quickly the entity had gained an understanding of her. “Then blood of blood, kin of kin wasn’t for Mila…does that mean…”

“Of yours, indeed.” It answered.

Sophie drew in a small breath and kept the image close. She knew her appearance had been strange, her memory faulty and even Eva claimed to not know where she was from. Admittedly she had not seen many examples of the elven diaspora given Eva’s protectiveness of her, but the way the knight’s gem-like eyes sparkled against hers, she knew they had some connection between them.

“Then…” Sophie started, but stopped to clear her mind, “Then is she…” Her voice lingered, the question unable to quite escape her lips.

“Of what relation I do not know, only that through your blood, I see through thine kin’s eyes.”

Sophie sighed, disappointed but not entirely surprised. Still, it left the questions of why show her any of this at the forefront, and as the thoughts crossed her mind, she could see the entity adopt what she could only assume was a bemused expression with its giant eye.

“Perhaps, one wished for thy feeble mind be tempered by the horrors your kin inflict. Perhaps one hoped that through these visions thou might steel themselves from horrors moving on. Or perhaps one merely assumed thy soul and mind would bond with the other.”

Sophie growled in distaste, the idea of everything happening according to the entity irked her though she knew there wasn’t much she could do.

“So…what? I’m just supposed to accept that I’m not alone here? That I’ve got some evil cousin who’s roaming around?” Sophie grumbled at the eye, “And the hells all the stolen dawn and guiding thing about? I find heroes and…help them grow?”

She scowled but again, no response came her way and she assumed that it cared little for her rant. “Then there’s the whole business with the cultists and the dead! You just let them…let them hurt my friends and me. You…you took Riza! Snatched her up like nothing!”

Yet something odd caught her eye that slowed her speech. The entity had focused its many eye stalks at her, but all appeared to be squinting in some manner of contemplation. Still, with her blood starting to boil, she continued on her tirade. “And my head! All these nights I squirm in fear because of you! All these visions…these nightmares and everything in between. I...I just want to sleep, to dream…to see my friends or pretend to be happy. I…I…I despise all this death, all this suffering and needless pain for what? To torment me? You say it is to train me but do you even know how it-”

Her voice faltered when she watched the planetoid draw closer to her and the town. Its massive size growing exponentially bigger as to her, the central eye seemed like a world of its own. Fiery star filled veins criss crossing the surface, whilst some dark incomprehensible sludge like matter flowed freely in the more prominent veins. Every movement and muscle sent a shudder down Sophie’s spine, her face slowly losing its rage as she grew pale at its approach. I…I shouldn’t be yelling, Hilda would think it rude, ummm as would the guests. Eva also likes it when we spend quiet time together, Goddess I’m sorry.

“Or perhaps, thou art too hasty. For thine understanding is not fully complete, not yet.”

“What?! What the hells does that even mean? I’ve seen the truth haven’t I? You’ve shown me even what everything was like from the eyes of my kin or whatever the hells that monster is.” Sophie decried the notion, so much pain and suffering and somehow I don’t understand? That I couldn’t feel the pain of the people or something?

“Do not be hasty, young one,” It raised a condescending tentacle to admonish her, “I showed you the struggles of your kin, of your blood. How then, could I stimulate all that occurred? All the simulacra beyond their vision?”

“I-huh?” Sophie paused, her next retort cutoff by the question as her mind searched for an answer. Truly, if it was all a vision of things that were seen, then it was strange it would show her the people within the church, afterall, the death and destruction wouldn’t have happened until the exact moment the knights cut through the defenders and into the church. Unless…”There was more than one that I knew.” She gasped at the thought, and assuming its blood of blood that would still be present and not those that have perished, that leaves the sole survivor of the massacare…Mila?!

At her thoughts the entity trilled in satisfaction, seemingly happy that she managed to reach one of the truths it had set out for her. “Thin, the blood’s connection might be, but indeed, of a storied dynasty, where one is a child out of time; one, a child of forsaken tragedies; and one, of the generations long gone.”

“Wait…but that means…she’s…related? And…but how? Mila’s human, I’m sure of that. The knight, she was an elf, so that means…what exactly? That we had the same forefathers? And what do you mean…out of time, forsaken tragedies and generations gone?” Sophie blurted out her questions, her mind set into overdrive at the sudden revelation. “Then what does any of this have to do with the stolen dawn or whatever, and the crystals! Why are any of the crystals even important? What’s with all the stupid cryptic shit ?!” Her mind blurred as dozens of concerns rose to the surface, all the unanswered questions that once lay dormant bubbling up to the surface.

To her shock she felt something slimy pass over her head, the eerily chilling motion sending a strange fearful tingle down her spine.

“In due time, little one, thou questions will find their answers. For now, one should rest, regain your strength. Surely your experiences have proven harrowing at the least.” It trilled what she assumed to be a sly chuckle.

“What?! Yes I mean maybe but that’s not the point! You can’t just…ugh…just…that’s…cheatin..” Sophie yelled before a soft slimy presence slithered up her back, her words growing fuzzy as it coiled around her. “You…not…fair.” She grumbled and fell into a deep sleep. Her last words naught but a murmur in the void.

Soon, there was a quiet, only her little breaths echoing in the emptiness beyond. It watched for a moment before it rose up and in an instant, the town had been emptied, no traces of its previous occupants remaining. Satisfied, it turned to focus back on the little half elf slumbering in its grasp. Certainly, the creature was a little too feeble, her body far weaker than even the average specimen of her race. But recent tests have proven that her spirit at least, remained relatively unbound.

Despite that, it knew it needed to learn more in order to ensure the little one’s success. For too long it had shied away from the affairs of the other divines, but for its companions' well-being it was, at the very least, worth learning of ways they too modify their champions to perform more exceptionally. Still, there was a sense of victory that flowed within it, the little one no longer fell into bouts of extended madness at the mere sight of it. Not only that, but it appeared able to maintain sustained conversations, even grow emotional when conversing, truly an improvement over the countless star cycles wasted.

Rest well, little Sofi, there is much to learn and far more to do.