Tale of Four

Leaning over the horse, Isis stared ahead at the path. After resting in the forest and making sure no one else was coming, they had decided to move on, using the horses left behind to clear more ground. Isis looked to her right and saw Seth looking ahead with a bored expression, and couldn’t help but sigh, forcing her horse closer to him.

”Thank you. I know I put us in danger-” Seth raised his hand to cut her off and chuckled.

”It was fun. Listen, Isis, if you’re about to do soemthing that will seriously hinder my life, I will make sure to stop you, even if I have to forcefully do it. But soemthing like that,” Seth let out another chuckle, remembering the tree, ”You don’t need to worry. It’s exciting. Although I would rather be able to get more sleep at night.”

”I’m sorry. I should be able to help you more. I don’t like being so defenceless, leaving it all to you.” Seth scoffed and wave dhis hand.

”You gave me the signal for when they were approaching. That was enough.” Looking ahead, Seth thinly smiled, ”When we get to Danmor, although I hate the city, it is a massive trade hub for things other than slaves. I should be able to get materials to make you a weapon.”

”And what do you want for it?” Isis looked into his eyes, ”Nothing is free in this world.” Seth pretended to mull over it for a while, looking into the sky.

”Entertain me. You already did well with Cras, but there are a lot more places we have to go.” Isis smiled and let out a sigh of relief. After a moment of silence, Isis finally asked a question that was on the tip of her tongue.

”You’re from the southern continent. Aren’t you?” Seth was silent for a moment.

”Why do you assume that?” It wasn’t a yes or a no, but an answer that made Isis click her tongue.

”Your name. My mother told me I was named after a friend of hers from the southern continent. I don’t know if this is true, however, but if it is, then it makes sense that you would be from there. After all, our names have similar origins.” Before Seth could speak, Isis cut him off, ”Secondly, you have an accent. Not any from Veston, not like Tyraks, not like those of Cras. And you’re not Lunarian. The way you talk about it proves you’re an outsider, and you’re definitely not from the Farsagon Empire, or you would have their noble title.”

Seth slowly chuckled, nodding, ”I guess I should expect that much from a chronicler. You’re right, although you got lucky by guessing my name. It is common in other places and isn’t even the original version.”

”Then did you know my name was from there? In fact, can you tell me a bit about my name?” Isis asked, looking at Seth with pleading eyes. Sighing, Seth rubbed the back of his head and nodded.

”Your name comes from a place called the Eternal Dynasty. As for me, I come from one of their tributary states.” Seth looked at Isis and warmly smiled, ”Isis is a most blessed name, the name of the daughter of the Eternal Dynasties Holy Guardian, a figure who is most similar to the God of Chivalry and Repentance if I could match it to anything. To name a child Isis means you wish for them to be protected by the Holy Guardian, the way he protects his own daughter.”

Seth paused, trying to remember what he could, ”I think Isis is also a God. I can’t remember, she wasn’t a popular one in my homeland. But anyway, as for what your name means, it’s along the lines of Noble Ferryier. As I said, I think she is a God-related to that type of thing.”

”Huh.” Isis thought about it for a moment and smiled to herself, ”Doesn’t really fit the name of a prostitute’s daughter.”

”If people from the Eternal Dynasty found out, I think they would agree. As for my opinion, well, a beautiful name for a beautiful woman.” Isis rolled her eyes but smiled.

”Then what about you. Your name?” Isis asked, getting a sly smirk from Seth.

”Are names so interesting to you?” Seth has asked a question of his own. Isis nodded and looked ahead at the empty plain.

”A name is the most intimate thing a person has, Seth and most names have a meaning. On Veston, I know the meanings of most names. I just wonder if yours matches who you are as a person.” Isis looked back at him, ”After all, it could be our fates are set the moment we receive a name.”

”You shouldn’t believe in fate, Isis. It isn’t real.” Isis looked at Seth before looking away, wondering if he was wrong. The voice before she was born told her to chronicle the world and choose a side. She had no intention of doing it when she lived inside the brothel, and yet here she was doing that exact thing, and likely would be without the command. When that time came, when she needed to choose, would it have been fate that led her there or herself? It was a question she couldn’t ever know the answer to unless she spoke to the one who gave her the command.

”Did my philosophy touch soemthing inside of you?” Seth said, breaking her line of thought. Shaking her head, Isis smiled.

”It’s nothing. Anyway, you never answered me.”

”Seth is a translation of an original version, one that suited my homeland’s tongue and the name it is derived from in the Eternal Dynasty. Sutekh is the name in its original form. Sutekh is the God of Fools, the God of Joy, the God of Change and so on.” His voice was mocking as he named the titles, ”Anyway, Seth is the translation in my native tongue, which is why I said you were lucky.”

Isis laughed, getting a weird look from Seth, ”Sorry.” Sighing, she chuckled again, ”It’s just fitting for you. The God of Fools. The God of Joy. You play a fool and only live to be entertained. Maybe you’re wrong about fate, Seth.”

”I wasn’t always like this. But after so long, you need to find a reason to live, and this was the one I found. It’s a mere coincidence that my name just happens to match how I live my life.”

”And do the other titles of this God match you as a person?” Seth stayed silent; it was a clear enough answer. ”I disagree with you about fate. Fate exists, but maybe not in the way you think. I mean, first things first. Everyone is fated to die. You can’t escape it.” Looking at Seth, he pursed his lips, wishing to speak but stopping himself, ”You can cheat death?”

Seth stayed silent for nearly five minutes before clicking his tongue, relenting at Isis’s piercing glare that wouldn’t leave him until he answered. ”It’s possible. When I said my teacher glimpsed at Godhood but failed the final hurdle, this was part of it. He theorised numerous ways someone could achieve immortality. His only issue was putting said theory into motion.”

”Then what about you. You must know all these theories.” Isis narrowed her eyes, ”Is this why you don’t tell me how old you are?”

”I’m an old man. Can I not be shy?” His attempt at joking past it failed. ”Isis, yes, I have these theories, but I am not immortal. If my teacher failed, I most certainly would, so I didn’t attempt to reach that goal. Instead, I do the things he did to extend his life.”

”And that is?”

”First, why do people die?” Seth asked a question instead. Isis stared at him and shrugged. ”It’s our bodies. My teacher discovered that at a certain age, our organs change, no longer repairing damage that is irreparable and unnoticeable. So he thought of a method. Replace the organs with fresh ones. It works to an extent but carries massive risks. As for bones and muscles, you just need to make sure that you constantly take care of them via potions and runes.”

Isis stared at Seth with a wide mouth. Feeling the words trapped in her throat, she dryly laughed and looked him up and down, ”You changed your organs?”

”All bar my brain and eyes. Granted, it’s incredible, but you don’t understand. I can’t just pick out a person and steal their organs. My teacher did a lot of research into this. You have to make sure their blood is the same as yours, make sure they haven’t drunk heavily or smoked, don’t take drugs, haven’t been poisoned, and have no illness. Like I said, a very long and dangerous process. Then, actually replacing them is only possible with the right equipment, things my teacher made for that specific process, that I now own.” Seth casually said, making Isis fall into deeper disbelief as if he wasn’t saying soemthing completely insane.

”Is anything inside your chest and stomach original?” Isis leaned forward, a morbid fascination looking at him.

”My bones. That’s about it.” Isis raised an eyebrow.

”Even your heart?”

”My teacher did the operation to change that for me. Closest I came to death.” Seth said with a smile. Isis looked at him in disbelief, her gaze questioning if what he said was true.

Seth saw it and smiled, unbuttoning his vest and shirt. Pulling them apart, Isis’ mouth fell open again as her eyes widened. Along his body, massive scars ran. Each one was gruesome, a death sentence for anyone who suffered that wound, yet Seth had done it all to modify himself.

”You...” Isis paused and thought, staring at Seth’s body. Thinking back ot the people she remembered dying due to faults in their bodies that were only discovered after death, she realised what she looked at, ”This is one of the greatest discoveries to exist.” It was Seth’s turn to widen his eyes in disbelief, not expecting the answer, ”How many die becuase they need a new heart or soemthing. How many bodies have been examined before they were buried, only to find a damaged liver?”

Seth smiled and buttoned his shirt up, ”It’s not simple. You need to get the organs from someone. Believe it or not, no one really wished to hand them out to people.”

”You steal them?” Isis said, disgusted, earning an offended look from Seth.

”I don’t kill people just for their organs. I usually wait until they die first, but they have to be young usually; otherwise, there is no point. Then in and out.” Seth stared at her and laughed, ”What’s wrong with this. They’re not using them anymore. Besides, it’s not a constant thing. Every change can last decades if the person is healthy.”

”Right...” Her words trailed as she looked ahead. Seth opened his mouth to speak, but stopped. Taking a deep breath, he smiled.

”Shall we continue our language lessons?” Changing the topic, Isis stayed silent for a moment before nodding.

”Sure.”