Crusade – Chapter 75: A Test of Patience

Lord Ternyk lowered his hands at his daughter's words, the mist that had shrouded his form slowly dissipating. Aperio averted her eyes; the mist had not impaired her vision much, but now that it was fading away just looking at the man caused some of the memories in her mind to stir again.

Calm, she thought to herself as she took an unneeded breath, tensing slightly as Ferio's hand pushed past her wings to rest on her back. The minuscule weight of Maria in her arms and the touch of her daughter did a good job of grounding her mind to the present, allowing the All-Mother to look at Lord Terenyk again.

Geshton Terenyk | [Protector of the Innocent (Hidden)] | Level: 194

...Hidden? He cannot see his own title? That a title could be invisible to its owner was news to her, not something she had expected after the System had announced that the [Status] function was available for everyone. It shouldn't have been a surprise, however; the System was bound to have functions that were not accessible by anyone but her. How many things are hidden in there?

With a slight shake of her head, Aperio pushed the thoughts away and focused on Geshton. While a part of her mind still equated the man to her old master, she would not let herself be held back by that. She could do without another breakdown — without having to remember the pain that was her old life.

"Maria," Lord Terenyk said. As he looked at his daughter, the fury that burned in his eyes disappeared for a moment, only to return in full force when his gaze shifted onto the All-Mother. "Why are you still with her? Don't you understand what her carelessness has done to you? To our family?"

The girl shrunk a little at her father's words, an action that caused Aperio to shift her to hold her a little closer; a little tighter. She would not allow more harm to come to Maria. I've already brought enough. Aperio did not want to see the last of the girl's family fall apart, especially not so shortly after she had to relive some of the more cruel parts of her own. A life she only lived because she was betrayed, not only by the Gods she herself had made but also the mortals she had been born to.

Until recently, family had been synonymous with betrayal. Only after she had met Ferio did she feel something akin to trust, a small seed that would take lifetimes to grow and could be burned by the smallest misstep. Being unable to trust anyone was not an experience she would want anyone to have, least of all the little girl she held in her arms.

"What others did is not her fault," Maria whispered, her voice so quiet that Aperio doubted Geshton had even heard her. "You said yourself."

Despite the quietness of Maria's statement, her father had managed to hear her. At least Aperio assumed that was what the slight slump of his shoulders meant. A slight change in her aura caught Aperio's attention, causing her to shift a bit of her focus on it.

What she perceived did not quite make sense to her still-troubled mind, and her concentration shifted enough that she missed the next word Geshton spoke. There was something strange happening far outside the city, but besides the...anomaly, there was nothing of note to be found. Only a few errant plants and trees.. What is that?

Something deep inside her was urging her to leave, to get there and investigate. But, she did not move. Leaving now would make the situation at hand worse and, perhaps more importantly, whatever was happening only felt weird — not wrong. That led her to believe it did not require her immediate attention.

"Why are you so determined to blame my mother for this?" Ferio asked, her tone laced with such malice it ripped Aperio from her inspection and almost caused her to silence Ferio. "Your daughter has been given the chance to ascend and you are trying to take it away? What kind of father are you?"

"One that cares," he replied, not backing down from what Aperio would consider a challenge.

Before either of them could say another word, the All-Mother lightly cleared her throat. The quiet noise still somehow managed to fill every corner of the room, undoubtedly enhanced by her silent wish for the two of them to not fight.

"I want to help Maria," Aperio said. "It is her choice to accept or deny my aid, not yours. You may loathe and hate me all you want, but if Maria wishes for my help — I will give it." She was not happy with her words. They conveyed what she wanted, yes, but they also served to drive the two apart; an outcome she had wanted to avoid.

Nevertheless, it was the best she could come up with at the moment. The closest to how I feel. It was liberating to speak her mind in a way, the wave of disgust that usually accompanied such words still absent. Did I break or fix myself? Nothing about her that she could perceive had changed and a more thorough inspection would have to wait until the current situation was resolved. And after I've scouted out that... thing. She suppressed the sigh she wanted to let out as she fixed her gaze on Lord Terenyk.

"I don't want you to fight," Maria said, seemingly ignoring the statement Ferio had made about the possibility of her ascension. "I want to paint and play. Go outside and see the city... Go to school?"

Aperio fixed her gaze on the maid who still stood in the corner, her slight giggle immediately replaced by a deathly silence as she stared at her feet. The All-Mother could hear her heart beat faster, could see the slight sheen of sweat that formed on her skin.

She sighed and tore her eyes from the frightened maid, shifting Maria slightly in her arms. That the girl completely ignored most of what had happened was fine with Aperio, the current direction of the conversation vastly preferable to the confrontation it was heading to before.

Lord Terenyk lowered his head, the last bit of fight fleeing from his form. "If that is what you wish, Maria. I just ask that you think about who you are dealing with. Being associated with her has cost us your mother already."

Before anything could be said, Aperio stood up, shifting Maria slightly in her arms and wrapped one of her wings halfway around her daughter; the feathered appendage easily preventing her from moving and making it clear that the mortal's words would go unanswered. At least from their side. Once her daughter had let out a disgruntled huff and sent her a small mental nudge that she would stay, Aperio removed her wing.

The mortals in the room still felt Ferio's anger, even if she had been held back by her mother. Even Caethya held her breath for a short moment, turning ever so slightly to shield Brenia from potential harm. While this motion might not have meant much to most people, for Aperio it was a sign that her blessing had not gone to the wrong person.

"But aren't the ones that did that gone now?" Maria asked, oblivious to the tension in the room..

"No," her father replied with a shake of his head. "Their Gods are gone, but the people remain and they could start to think that the All-Mother acted on behalf of our family, even if that is not the case."

"If you believe the estate to not be sufficiently guarded, I would be willing to talk to the [Grandmaster] for you. I have no doubts she would be willing to organise a guard." And it would give me a reason to visit Roots again. I really need to know how broken the System is.

Lord Terenyk did not reply immediately; clearly mulling over what Aperio had said. Perhaps he did not trust the [Guides] or, more likely, he did not trust Aperio. Even if she could understand the reason for his distrust, she did not like it. But then, I don't trust either.

A light tap on her chest caused Aperio to look down at the girl in her arms. Words were not needed for her to realise that Maria wanted to be set down. Very gently, Aperio lowered the girl to the floor, careful to not injure her on accident — making sure the soul-river's water still flowed around her injury. Why must everything be so fragile?

Thus far, the only being that had been able to withstand more than the tiniest fraction of her strength was Ferio, with a close runner-up being trees of a certain forest. And both of those were a while ago. She had grown by leaps and bounds since then, the strengthening of her body only progressing faster and faster. Do I even want to know where this will lead? What I would be without this ...shell?

Diskrye had made it quite clear that her body was disposable — a notion Aperio still did not appreciate. For the first time in her remembered life she felt good, and liked how she looked. But then, this body looks like this because it is what I want, no? She sighed at the thought, her wandering mind always trying to answer questions at the most inconvenient of times.

Instead of pursuing thoughts she would likely be unable to answer anyway, Aperio set her eyes on Maria as she made her way to her father. The girl hugged the man as best she could once she reached him, not caring for any sense of propriety Aperio was sure she had.

Geshton returned the embrace, picking his daughter up and holding her close. "I don't want to lose you too," he whispered. "She might be the All-Mother, but that means she does not understand or even care for us, Maria. You have to understand that. She is not like you or I."

Aperio wanted to give the man a sign that she could hear every word, but decided against it. He already knows that, doesn't he? He has to. Geshton obviously knew that she was beyond anything people would consider normal, that she had better hearing should be obvious. That the thought about her hearing had brought with it the annoying noises of the city was pointedly ignored in hope of it vanishing again.

"Perhaps it is best if we leave and let the two of you discuss this in peace? It appears that you have much to talk about that is not meant to be heard by others."

Maria wriggled in her father's arms at the words, trying to turn around. Geshton helped her after a moment's hesitation, shifting his daughter to one arm so she might look at her Goddess. "But how am I supposed to reach you? My prayers always fail..."

"They do, at the moment. But now I know what to look for; even if the message is lost I will still know you called for me," Aperio said. "I will also continue to heal you, which means a part of me remains with you, in a way." That she kept watch over Maria through her aura was left unsaid. The mortals did not need to know that she could survey the world in detail with little effort. Or any restriction on range… "Once your soul is fully healed, that should no longer be a problem."

"How long will that take?" Lord Terenyk asked.

"A week, perhaps a bit less," Aperio replied. The cracks on Maria's soul healed a lot faster than the runes that had been meticulously inscribed on the other mortal souls. Though, this method is slower than having her bathe in the water directly… Or is it the Void that speeds up the healing?

It was obvious that Geshton was not happy with the reply, but there was nothing Aperio could do to change that. Besides using my mana to heal her soul, but that would only create more problems. The situation wasn't that dire, she knew that Maria was not in danger of dying anytime soon — the soul was much more resilient than she would have expected. Everything is more resilient than it appears to me, isn't it?

"I do not wish for you to fight each other, but it is easy enough to understand that you, Lord Terenyk, do not want me here and will not back down." Even if I could kill you with a thought, she thought before continuing. "So I will take my leave."

Her words were accompanied by the sound of breaking glass as reality splintered apart behind her. A small mental query informed Caethya and Ferio about her intent to leave, even if it was likely not necessary. Her disciple took Brenia's hand and pointed at Laelia who was visible through the portal Aperio had created, saying something to her that the All-Mother did not understand as the pair walked through.

Ferio kept her gaze on Geshton for a moment longer, a small fire flickering in her eyes before she turned and left without another word. Once her daughter had stepped through the portal Aperio lowered her head slightly, the motion accompanied by a touch of her magic blocking sight and sound from travelling through the tear she had made.

"I am sorry for what has happened to your wife, Geshton," she said. "There is no excuse for my own actions, I know that, but continued hatred will only break you. Trust me."

Before the man could reply, Aperio gave a small wave directed at Maria and vanished alongside the portal she had created.

GamingWolf

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