Crusade – Chapter 73: Broken Magic

Geshton quickened his pace yet again as his eyes flew over the most recent note his daughter's Goddess had written. First she had told him that she would visit Maria and that he was welcome to join them in her room. He was fine with that; a Goddess was not really beholden to the same rules as they were. Making a high ranking priest wait would often already result in unpleasant scenarios, he had no desire to see what would happen if he did that to a Goddess.

What he was not so fine with was the news the second note had brought. He was not sure how, but apparently the soul of his daughter had been damaged. While he may not know how such a thing was even possible, he was willing to trust the word of the winged Goddess. She did fix the System, after all… And it identifies her as the All-Mother.

Still, when it came to his daughter, he did not really care who he had to go against. If it was somehow the fault of the All-Mother… Geshton did not know what he would do. He balled his fists, crumpling the piece of paper he still held in the process. Why does it never end?

Life had begun to look a bit brighter again. Vigil and Inanis were gone for good, their goons no longer trying to get into their home as they tried to internalise the fact that their Gods were dead. He had already written a letter to Jace, letting his son know that his sister was finally able to start living a normal life. Now he would have to pen another, taking back the good news he had sent — Maria was still in danger. Perhaps even more than before.

Geshton's steps faltered a little as he saw the open door to his daughter's room. The knowledge of what lay waiting inside splashed over him, quelling a good deal of the rage he was feeling. No matter how much he might want to blame Aperio for what had happened, she was not responsible for the actions of others. Even if she claims to be.

He wasn't exactly sure what her exact role in the pantheon was, but he assumed it was something above the rest. Given that the System identified her as the All-Mother, Geshton would guess she was some kind of adviser to, or progenitor of, the current deities. But she could have stopped this.

Even if he was willing to actually blame the Goddess for what the churches of Vigil and Inanis had done, he wouldn't be able to do anything. He couldn't fight her. I probably can't even injure her. He was, after all, a mortal. Not even particularly strong, as he had not yet reached level two hundred.

Having to spend more and more time managing the estate and the companies the family owned, as well as taking care of Maria's and Jace's safety, had not left him with much free time. Adding to that was the fact that, even after all this time, he still had days on which he simply could not find a reason to leave his bed; days where he just wanted to do nothing but cry over what he had lost. Geshton simply had little opportunity and drive to go out and raise his level. Not that it actually means much.

Maria might have a high level for her age, but her actual abilities were beyond what one would guess from looking at the number. But then, she was blessed by the All-Mother…

Geshton tightened his fists further at the thought and took the last few steps to the doorway of his daughter's room. The first thing he saw was Aperio sitting on the floor, seemingly uncaring for any propriety as she had the last time he saw her. Her wings were swept forwards, wrapping around Maria — and someone else, if the giggles were anything to go by.

The sight of the Elf sitting on the floor, her long hair pooling messily on the ground, and the happy giggle of Maria caused Geshton to pause. For a brief moment the wisps of mana floating around the All-Mother disappeared from his vision, the woman herself replaced by his long-dead wife as she played with their daughter. She had spent most of her time here, taking care of their miraculous little girl that somehow could already access and use her mana.

"Lord Terenyk," Aperio said, her words sending a shiver down his spine that ripped him out of his reverie. Despite the voice at the back of his back mind screaming at him to run, he stood firm; unwilling to abandon his daughter.

The Goddess remained quiet, seemingly content to continue working whatever magic she had conjured. While Geshton could not figure out what she was doing, he had no trouble telling that she was doing something. Is she already healing Maria? Answering prayers? ...Repairing the moon?

A part of it had disappeared in a blinding flash shortly after the fall of Vigil and Inanis, after all. Does it even need replacement? He pushed the thought from his mind as quickly as it came, quite unnerved at the unusual wandering of his mind. What's happening to me?

"There is no need to panic, Lord Terenyk. No-one here means you or your daughter any harm."

Geshton did not reply immediately. The fact that she knew how he felt without even looking at him was not something he questioned. She is a Goddess, after all. An important one, if my guess is correct. Why she didn't have her own church set up was beyond him, but he wouldn't judge a deity for wanting some peace and quiet. But, why did she bless Maria?

Instead of talking to her back, he slowly circled around the winged Goddess as she did not seem inclined to turn and face him. The reason became apparent as soon as he had made his way around: his daughter and another girl he did not recognise were sitting under her wings, playing with a more solid-looking wisp of the Goddess' mana. Something that did not fit with the image he had had of the Goddess up until now.

Aperio kept her eyes closed, her aura's perception more than enough to sense the world. Lord Terenyk's rapidly beating heart did not even require her to use her aura at all, her ears more than enough to pick it up. Focusing her senses on the man was preferable to hearing the city outside ramping up to midday busyness, even if she found herself slightly disgusted at all the subtle sounds a Human body made. My own body doesn't sound so… disgusting. Why are they like that?

She had a heart, one that pumped blood through her veins, just like everyone else. It's just that I don't really need them, do I? Diskrye had described her body as a shell that was struggling to contain her; a statement that would at least start to explain why she continuously applied her mana to get stronger without even thinking about it. Doesn't tell me why I wasn't like this before, though.

Ferio had said that her strength eclipsed that of her old self already, something that did not really make sense if she considered the fact that she was the creator of everything. Or did dying change something? It was just another thing she would have to figure out once she retrieved more of her memories.

With a mental sigh, Aperio directed her attention back to the head of the house, waiting for him to speak up. She had informed him of Mara's state and expected a torrent of questions and, perhaps, blame. None of it came as the man seemed to be too panicked to speak. Or is it fright? I told him that he has nothing to fear, though.

That Maria wasn't scared of her was to be expected, the girl did carry her blessing after all. The same could not be said for Brenia, but her mother was Aperio's Scion and the girl herself seemed to lack any sense of danger. Though, the first thing she knew about me was that I had saved her brothers. ...And I gifted her one of my feathers.

"Why is this happening to her?" Lord Terenyk finally asked.

Aperio opened her eyes at the words, casting her gaze on the man. He seemed to shrink slightly under her attention, obviously uncomfortable. "I do not know yet, and I do not wish to share the thoughts I have without being certain."

That her main theory resolved around the fact that she had thrown Maria's soul with all she had to escape her Void was also a reason for why she did not want to reveal any possible cause just yet. There was another potential theory as to why Maria's soul was damaged, one that — if true — would be much more problematic.

The girl had access to a lot of mana, much more than someone her age should reasonably have and, as far as Aperio could tell, had had no training on how to control it. She was by no means an expert on magic, or even knowledgeable about what kind of training a mortal usually underwent, but the difference between everyone else's mana and that of Maria was as clear as day to the All-Mother.

It behaved much closer to her own, simply flowing along the body of its host in what she would consider a natural manner. When Maria laughed, the flow quickened, happily bubbling at the joy the girl felt. In a way, it was much like her relationship with the world itself, just that Maria's mana did not seem to influence her as it did Aperio.

The others present had an almost erratic flow of mana in their bodies — Caethya less so, but Aperio assumed that that was because she carried her blessing. The flow of her own daughter's mana also resembled what Aperio would call natural — much more than those of Lord Terenyk and Amelia.

Her growing fear was simple enough to state. Mortals, perhaps, could not withstand the normal flow of mana, and especially not the amounts Maria had access to. The source of it was the soul, after all, and the rate at which mana entered and exited it was much higher in everyone she had blessed. What if her soul can't handle that yet?

"Caethya." Her disciple stood a little straighter at the words, having seemingly not expected the attention of her Goddess. "What kind of education did you receive on magic as a child?"

"Just the basics everyone should be taught, my Lady," she replied with a frown. "How to restrict your mana and not let your emotions influence it. After that I proceeded on my own, as what the tutors suggested did not work well for me."

"And you, Maria?"

The girl looked at her father briefly before casting her gaze downwards. "None… Nothing the teachers tried worked. When I want to use magic, I just... do. Chants or Skills don't work."

"Could you cast a simple spell for me?"

Maria nodded after looking to her father for confirmation. A moment later, Aperio could feel — see — the mana moving through the girl’s body. One of the cracks in the girl's soul deepened, and her mana slithered out from it. It slunk heavily down her arms, until it finally reached her hand and was able to leave her body. Above the girl's palm a small ball flickered into existence, bathing the room in a surprisingly bright light.

"That is enough, Maria," Aperio said, gently pushing the girl’s hand down, thereby extinguishing the ball of light. "Thank you." She can't use magic for a while.

"And? Did you find anything?" Lord Terenyk asked, his worry for his daughter easily overshadowing the fear he had felt previously.

"I did, yes. Maria should not use magic until I have healed her completely. It would be counterproductive."

"Heal me?" Maria asked. "Is that why I feel so warm and… light?"

"Yes," Aperio replied, even if she herself had no idea what being healed by her magic would actually feel like. "Something I did not expect has happened to you. I must fix it." Because it is my fault. There was no other possible way to understand it. A thrown soul was an unhealthy soul. And she had thrown this one as hard as she had been able to manage at the time...

"But what is wrong with me? I don't feel sick."

The All-Mother took an unneeded breath at the question. She had not wanted Maria to ask, but it was obvious that she would once she had been told that something was wrong. Telling someone their soul was slowly breaking apart was not something she ever wanted to get used to.

"Your soul. It is damaged."

"How?"

Aperio remained silent for a moment. Should I tell her the truth? The thought alone caused a mixture of pain and disgust to flow through her, despite her knowing that it was the right thing to do. With a sigh, the All-Mother lowered her head and spoke.

"Because I was careless."

GamingWolf

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