Chapter 116: Pillar Begets the Weeping Spirits

Chapter 116: Pillar Begets the Weeping Spirits

Chapter 116

Pillar Begets the Weeping Spirits

She blew into her hands despite not needing to. She was never cold, not once in her life. In fact, she was never anything except normal--being burnt or chilled escaped her, the sensations as distant as that of love. There was something to be said, she knew, about living life never experiencing any highs or lows, existing in a perpetual state of content. Though she felt happiness and sadness, those emotions were abstract, elusive, hard to connect to. If they reflected in physical discomfort, she might have--but they never did.

Nonetheless, she blew into her hands. It was because of a strange feeling--one she hadnt experienced before. She felt jittery, jumpy, unsettled. No, there was a transgression there that abounded it--her body felt those things. Her right knee would dance up and down madly. Her heart pumped faster. Her breathing grew shallower. She even bit her lips involuntarily.New novel chapters are published on

Staring at the distant town, a part of her wanted to run toward it. Not knowing was perhaps far more terrifying than being in the thick of the flames. She wanted to pray, to clasp her hands in front of her chest and close her eyes and mumble into the wind. But... she knew it was pointless. The act of prayer was wasted, she knew. The gods loved only her and would answer only for her. To them, he was likely an interesting anomaly that they were either tolerating or were indulging and engaging with.

Another sensation washed over her, one that she experienced quite a few times before--helplessness. It was the very same emotion, the very same feeling, that had nearly driven her to the edge of sanity. The common knowledge regarding the Prophets was that theyd see too many awful things in their visions and lose their minds because they were incapable of processing so many of them. But that wasnt quite right.

Though watching awful things in a dream certainly wasnt easy, it was knowing that she had no ability to change anything that haunted her--and many others. When she was eight, she had a dream in which a red, falcon-signed flag fluttered ragged in a horrid, violent wind. The flag was perched on top of an old, downtrodden castle whose walls were already falling apart, looking over a massive courtyard.

There, some twenty people were lined up, on their knees, mass-executed one after another in a bid of cruelty entirely inhumane. She woke up then, trembling, crying, screaming--but only for a moment. Then, like a gust of wind, something cold swept through her and calmed her down. Replaced the sorrow with helplessness. Shed seen what would happen, but what of it? She didnt know which castle it was, whose flag it was, or who those people were.

In fact, she never learned--some of her dreams she ended up seeing in reality, but most remained elusive, blurry, distant. It was that sense of helplessness that caused many to lose their minds. She wasnt a unique specimen among the Prophets--all of them were loved equally by the Gods, given the very same things she was given, given the same privileges. The likely difference, for her, was that she spent her formative years in the woods, entirely divorced from the world.

Her dreams remained dreams--she never saw them play out in reality, or saw others ignore her warnings. Others... did. Prophets, in and of themselves, were vaguely looked at across the Kingdom--it was beyond rare for a case like Cains to occur, where a Prophet was accepted by someone and where his visions were adhered to properly. It was far more common for them to either be entirely ignored or, worse yet, accused of dark worship or attempting to usurp the Kingdoms peace.

Madness was equal parts derived from dreams as it was from reality--and as she was missing the reality part during her formative years, it became easier for her to live. And lived she did, though not the longest. Shed occasionally hear whispers of those before her, some of whom lived a hundred years even and heralded Kingdoms and Empires with their assistance.

She was dragged out of her thoughts by an abrupt shake--she felt the tremors run through the dirt and directly into her spine, knocking her down forcibly into the snow. She held her arms back and helped herself up, though not for long as yet another tremor came, knocking her down yet again. Before she had the opportunity to lift herself up, the world... erupted.

It was a deafening explosion that entirely disoriented her, turning the entire world into a blend of sounds and colors that confused her mind. Amidst all of it, however, she still managed to see a pillar of a white and black surge like a coiling dragon toward the sky. It roared like one, too, at least in her mind--with the expulsion of energy being such that it decimated the entire village into a crater that nearly reached her, this far off from the epicenter.

Just as she was about to run away, she saw a silhouette blur toward her and yelped; yet, it landed some five hundred yards in front of her, though continued to roll uncontrollably until it was basically just fifty feet away. Despite the horrid state he was in, she recognized him immediately.

Know... is a strong word, he said. No, Ivent a clue, really. I just know that people like im are really fuckin strong and Ive no business fighting them. And yet, I fought. Even wounded the bastard. If anything, that fight worked to sharpen my ego rather than wound it, as you were about to say.

... I have a memory. Again, she said, lowering her head.

Not a good one, I assume?

Its of you, she replied, looking up into his eyes. At the end. Lying there. Burnt and wounded beyond help. You... you looked...

Crispy? Roasted? Freshly-fried?

How can you joke about it?!! Werent you in pain?! she blew out.

Of course I was, he said. Every inch of me hurt.

Then how--

--because its nothing new, he smiled. I know this may shock you, but that wouldnt qualify even for the top 50 of my most painful deaths. One time, while I was training in my Way, I miscalculated and accidentally damaged my veins as well as my nerves, essentially paralyzing myself. As I was outside the castle, nobody could find me. And, so, I spent a whole two weeks in excruciating pain, hungry, cold, and thirsty. But unable to die.

...

Dont look that pained, he said. Youre making me uncomfortable.

Oh, geez, well if Im making you uncomfortable--like hell!!

Ha ha ha, its alright. Im sorry you had to see me like that, though, he added, pouring her a cup. But I need you sharp. Im about to share a shitload of loaded information that you and I will need to decipher. Not to mention... well still have to kill that thing if we want to advance, no?

I... I suppose so...

So, lets get drunk, try to erase the bad feelings, and get down to business.