The Forsaken Hero

The banquet hall hadn’t changed since I’d seen it. The stained glass panels in the vaulted ceilings allowed just enough sunlight through to dance on the beautiful mosaics painted across the tile floor. The rest of the light came from the grand chandeliers shining with thousands of light crystals, illuminating the ornately carved elongated tables that served as seating for the guests.

There were plenty of guests, perhaps fifty in total. The atmosphere was festive and lively, though contained within the pretentious auras of the nobles and clergy. The faces were all blurred, their features unimportant to me or the vision, save for the table resting on the raised dias below the space of royalty and the upper echelon of the church. Luke must have noticed them the same moment I did, for his soul quivered with anger even as I shrank back.

Soltair sat at the head with Alex and a woman I didn’t recognize on either side. Connor was there, as well, though he seemed absorbed in his own thoughts, idly sipping from a cup of fine wine. Ronin sat on the other end with R’lissea, though they were spaced further apart than I’d ever seen them sit. From the young elf girl’s distracted gaze and apparent stiffness toward the War Hero, it seemed their relationship was not as I’d last seen it. She didn’t seem interested in anything, actually, just staring at her plate of untouched food, idly twisting a long strand of glossy blonde hair between her fingers.

Their heroic presence and powerful souls should have filled a kingdom, yet the table felt empty and barren. The seats were barely half full, the holes in the heroes’ ranks more than apparent.

Ten seats for ten heroes. The table for heroes. Only heroes could sit there. At that thought, my gaze snapped back to the woman sitting beside Soltair. She was younger than I first guessed, seeming about my own age, though there was a purity and innocence around her I could never have, not after the darkness I’d suffered. She had shining silver hair bound in a tight braid that reached her waist and eyes of a matching color. Her dress was beautiful and heavily embroidered, featuring a single, ornate star on a bodice that revealed too much of her ample breasts for my taste. The skirt was long and trailing, trimmed with silk that brushed about her ankles, yet still managing to show off her perfect form.

My soul shivered as she looked up, a slight frown on her lips, seeming to stare right at me. Bits of starlight floated across her pupils like bits of flotsam, and the currents of her soul were unmistakable. This beautiful, pure girl sitting at Soltair’s side was the Fate Hero.

It was confirmed a moment later as Soltair himself reached over and rested a hand over hers, a gesture with unmistakable intimacy. ”Verity, is everything alright? You look distracted.”

Verity blinked and gave her a head a little shake. ”I...think so,” she said in a voice as soft and sweet as a summer flower. ”My mana’s doing something strange, but I don’t know why. I didn’t even activate my ability or anything.”

Soltair’s eyebrows knit together, and he leaned forward, strengthening his grip on her hand. ”Strange, and you’re sure it’s related to the Eyes of Fate?”

”I’m not sure,” she admitted, ”it’s just an impression. Maybe I’m just nervous. It is my first banquet, after all. I’m just glad you’re here.”

She smiled shyly at him and turned her hand up, lacing her fingers through his. Soltair’s face split into a sunny smile as he sat back, letting out a breath of relief.

”Good. Let me know if it gets worse.”

As the two turned back to the table, R’lissea suddenly spoke. ”Didn’t Xiviyah mention feeling that way sometimes? Usually right before something bad happ–”

She bit her lip, silencing herself, as Soltair’s warmth turned ice cold, his aura flaring to suppress the entire table. He glared at her, and the Life Hero shrank back, her pointed ears twitching nervously.

”Don’t mention her again,” Soltair said through gritted teeth. ”You soil the air with the mere mention of her name.”

”S-sorry,” she stammered, ”But she’s not like...I just wanted to...never mind.”

”Oh, relax,” Alex said, dragging out the second word with a long sigh. ”I don’t get why you get so worked up about that slut. You already managed to push the Pope to set the inquisitors on her, so it’s not like you’ll ever see her again.”

”She killed Levin,” Connor said suddenly, breaking from his reverie. ”And Victor lost his hand trying to apprehend her. I didn’t get a chance to see her in Brithlite, but I doubt we’ve seen the last of her plots.”

”I am sorry about that,” Verity said, biting her lower lip. ”I thought you might be able to, um, you know, capture her or something. It was just a fragment of a vision, I think. I’m still trying to figure it all out.”

”It’s nothing; we just lost a few battalions of low-level soldiers,” Connor said, dismissing her with a wave. ”It was worth the intel we got. Now we know she’s working with the demons, or at least a few of them. Her army killed even more demons than I did, but I definitely saw one or two fighting with them.”

Alex groaned and rolled his eyes. ”Do you guys ever stop talking about the war? It’s just that one kingdom on the northern continent–”

”And the gate that broke in the Cervox Empire,” Ronin interjected with a grunt.

Alex gave him a withering glare. ”Yeah, and that one. But that’s beside the point. It’s all so far away, so let’s just lighten up and enjoy the moment. It’s not like we get to feast together every day, right? As Verity mentioned, it’s her first banquet, so let’s make it one to remember!”

A ripple coursed through the banquet hall, though the guests seemed unperturbed. I turned my senses toward the source of the disturbance, shuddering as I found Luke staring at the table with hatred.

”Yeah, you’re right,” Soltair said, nodding. ”We should relax now; it will be busy once the negotiations with the elves are complete. I still can’t believe how difficult they’re being.”

Ronin sighed. ”Honestly. If they would just surrender their archmage, we could get things back on track. Maybe R’lissea and I will pay them a visit and see if we can use our elven blood to soften their hearts. We need those airships.”

”Soltair,” Verity said excitedly, ”Look! The bards are coming on!”

Soltair smiled at her, and she blushed. ”Sorry, I keep forgetting you’ve never seen them before. Ronin, let’s talk about the airships later. We won’t have long to enjoy ourselves, and I want to spend every second I can with Verity before we’re forced to be apart.”

”That’s the spirit,” Alex cheered. ”I’m going to find me some new girl, too Wonderful as they are, my slaves just haven’t been doing it recently. You up for it, R’lissea?”

The elf girl went pale and shook her head violently. ”N-No!”

The table all laughed, much to her shame. Before they spoke again, Luke let out a feral cry, releasing so much of his aura, the vision apart, and even his soul’s visible form, which was disrupted for a second.

”They dare!” he said, glaring at the fading remnants of the heroes’ table. ”How can they sit and dine while we fight and die on the front lines of this war? Have they no shame?”

His ferocious aura radiated outward, destabilizing my soul space with his fury. The stars of fate trembled as ripples of chaos spread through the darkness. I grew anxious as his rampaging power struck deep within my soul, throwing my mana into discord. The gentle flow I’d basked in since healing my soul was gone, and I groaned in pain as everything shifted.

”Will they be smiling when I burn this world to ash? Or when I ascend and grind their precious gods to dust?” Luke raged. ”How dare they mock my pain!”

My soulspace was a place where thoughts, feelings, and souls were visceral. It was through my own desperation and fear that I first learned how to manipulate my visions and Luke’s need that showed us the scene of the heroes. Fate responded to the heart as much as the mind, one of the many reasons it was unknowable and unpredictable.

That malleable aspect of fate turned against me, my control torn apart by the waves of anger emanating from Luke. His soul’s hands clenched into fists, his tail lashed, and he threw back his head and growled at the sweeping night sky. His anger manifested as tides of blackness that drowned out the glistening stars and set me staggering and disoriented.

”Luke!” I cried, groaning as the chaos bludgeoned my soul, ”Please, it’s just a vision!”

I should have prepared him better, should have taught him about the nature of fate and my relationship with it. It had taken me days to sort out my first vision, always wondering if the waking world was but another dream. Luke had been thrust into it with barely an explanation. It was no wonder he was confused and overwhelmed by the raw power of his emotion.

Perhaps there was more to it. Perhaps he wasn’t as in control as the persona he created. This darkness and hate, while amplified by the setting, had to have originated elsewhere.

Slowly, shuddering with pain, I reached toward him. The black winds and waves buffeted me, but I caught his hand and pulled it close, clutching it desperately. The moment our souls connected, the stars of fate materialized around us in thick clouds, rapidly dancing and weaving scenes that jumped from one to the next without any sort of conformity.

It took me a moment to realize I was watching scenes from his memories, just as I had done with Fable when our souls intertwined. It was dangerous, running the risk of both our identities being destroyed or lost, but the storm of history had begun, and I could do nothing but witness the events that made the Apostle of Curses.