Chapter 88 - What're friends for?

After I had posed the question, Voxea went unusually quiet. I kept walking in silence as my ghostly companion ruminated over the question. It makes sense that such a question would take hours to-[Nope].

Or three minutes, sure .

[Nope?], I asked.

[Nope. I've been "dead" for a little over eight hundred years without any contact with any of my family members, descendants or sect members in that time period because I assumed they all died when the dragons rampaged all across the Empire. And even if they did survive that, unless they pulled a weird magical trick like I did, they probably lived to ripe old ages until life took them that way], Voxea ranted.

[Okay that's...fair. But don't you want to see how your descendants or cousins fared then?], I asked.

[I mean...I do to an extent, but it's not exactly easy to explain to someone that you're their great great great great great great grandaunt, possible grandmother, and that you turned yourself into the same living weapons that caused the current status quo], Voxea explained.

[What was that grandmother bit]?

[Don't worry about that, just know that even if I wanted to talk to them, I am in literally no state to do so], she replied with a huff...well what felt like a huff.

The conversation stopped at that moment and we just walked in silence as I formulated a response.

[Well...what if I helped you]?

[What?], Voxea asked incredulously.

[Like you said earlier, we're bonded as monster and binder right? I'd be a crap binder if I let one of monsters suffer in silence. And if that's not reason enough, you saved my life, we're friends, mentor and student and I owe you for setting me on this path in the first place], I explained to her, [Before I ran into you, I was pretty sure I was going to live a normal life, carry on the family trade and probably watch my friend get buried].

[But...], Voxea began with a minute amount of her usual amus.e.m.e.nt.

[But now, I'm a binder, a maji in training, learned that my family's trade is a lot more elaborate than brewing and I just saved my best friend from death. If that ain't a good enough reason to help you, then I don't know what is]. A sense of finality hung in the air as I finished my piece. None of what I said was shameless lying either. I genuinely owe Voxea quite a bit for saving my life and setting me on this path. Even if it was dangerous, it wasn't boring.

[... that's... actually sweet. Thanks], Voxea said quietly.

[You're Welcome].

[And now I feel more obligated to tell you that your parents are now talking to my great grandnephew dead ahead of us], Voxea suddenly said.

[What]?!

I suddenly stopped in my step as I stared straight ahead to see what she was saying. A few feet away from us, I saw as Sir Agiros talk to two robed figures that were wearing simple yet effective face masks.

[You mean the masked people?], I asked Voxea.

[Si Senorita. They may be masked, but they can't hide their auras from someone like me remember? I said this before], Voxea said smugly.

[Remind me to ask you to teach me that trick later], I told her, [so what do we do now]?

[Simply put-],"Miss Vex!", [-too late, just improv].

"Ah! Sir Agiros, it's good to see you have survived the night!", I began in that accent and hoping that it's enough to throw off any suspicions, "what happened? I was too busy dealing with the Grim Shrieker in order to help, my apologies".

"Haha! I actually almost didn't make it! Once the Grim Shrieker had left to try and kill you and your partner, an entire horde showed up out of nowhere. But before we got overwhelmed these two showed up to save the night. Oh right, let me introduce you! These two are...uh...I don't think they gave me any names", Agiros explained.

"Such things are hard to do when monsters attack, but for all intents and purposes, you can call me Gaia", the smaller of the two robed figures said in a feminine voice. If I had to guess, that was my mother.

"Call me Zeus", said the the larger figure in a deep voice that was clearly my father's.

[Please tell me you have a way of disguising myself further]?