"The invitations you requested me to deliver were all received. What would you have me do now?"
In the bright, cool silence, a voice asked with a reverent tone. The one to whom it belonged knelt down without daring to raise his face. He dreaded catching even a glimpse of the one he served. He hadn't been allowed that in millennia.
No reply came for the inquiry that had been made for a while, but then...
"Be my company for now. That is all I need at the moment. It will be some time until you must leave my side, correct?" a voice that could have crawled out of the lips of a man or woman came, along with the soft ruffle noises that indicated lazy movements a few paces away.
"Why, of course," said the first voice in joyous tone.
An awkward lull followed. It seemed there was no particular subject that came to mind for either party. Thankfully, after minutes of thorough thought, the easiest of topics finally found its way to the lips of the second party to speak.
It was easy, yet heavy.
"It baffles me, you know? Every so often, there always rises someone who would see the world turn to flames, crushed of its beauty and people. Someone that doubts the might of the Deities, seeks to taint its reputation with course tradition and activity, or even to thwart the benevolence provided each day. However, I've never seen one who wishes to abuse it. Never. How ambitious."
"I-I see. The man you wish to stop right now..."
"Yes. Yes it is. Hmmm. But see, the problem isn't always the person who causes terror. The problem is that long durations of peace exist in between each tragedy, causing the ignorant masses to grow soft. The fools they get caught at their most vulnerable every, single, time!"
"Oh yes. We have seen that together, haven't we?."
"Yes," an agitated click of the tongue followed. "Do you know how many Incandescent Stage experts there are between Feinheath and Opungale?"
"No. I could never—"
"Only 275. A measly number like this would have been laughed at back in the day. Those beyond Incandescent... Oh, I can count them on one hand. This is the price of peace. It deludes and erodes the wills of even the strongest. They are forced to make the choice to idle by each day, feeling their strength slip away. I remember the years where only Pelian had more than 300 Incandescent Stage experts. Guess how many Opungale had in those days."
"Uh... 8—"
"More than a thousand! After the Second Grand War, vicious monsters casually roamed Aigas. True firms powers. I was proud to see my people get something profound from the years of suffering that had finally ended. Well, they blundered later on with their relations, but at least their skills had been sharpened."
"Surely that must have—"
"Oh, you wouldn't underrated. It ached me to see them all fall. It was especially harrowing when they fell to age. As did those in Pelian, Emeradis and Maqi. I swear I could have... <Sigh>. Worse yet, when I ascended to where I am now. I watched and learned, yet all these beings who termed themselves intelligent, didn't get it. Fiends always rise. They always do!"
"I can only imagine ho—"
"I blame the Purity. They give the commonfolk too much peace of mind. Even my own kind were fooled into relaxing... into thinking that collaborating with these posers could bring out long sustainable peace. What they needed was constant harassment to help them get it through their heads. The constant conflict of the Grand Wars. But manufacturing such a thing would make me no different to the likes of Fulgardt."
"Of course, that's why—"
"Yes. That why I made the tough choice. The Severed Union. I had to make my own hub of the strongest that kept those who were willing to maintain their strength stimulated. Man and Sif alike."
Afraid to be cut off while making a decent attempt at receiving the monologue, the owner of the first voice paused. His counterpart didn't continue raging on, however.
It had been a long time since he had heard this person furiously reminisce, and in actual fact, what he had heard were details that he had started to forget, so he wasn't pretending to be interested.
"The others. Do they know? Have they already caught on to what is happening now? Are they prepared?"
The second voice maintained several moments of silence before answering.
"Oh they know. Just like me, they are already aware, but I doubt that they are prepared. I have more eyes than both of them combined. More hands. One of them can only flee at times, and the other has pride so fat it could weigh successfully on the seas. I may have chosen to stay hidden, but I play a valuable part in keeping Aigas safe far more than them."
"So... your decree..."
"You will know when it is time to open it, and read it along whomever concerns. Just make sure they all make haste. You will find out, along with them, that I have prepared everything they need for the journey. It is terrible news that I can no longer divine the presence and actions of that fiend, but very well, I cannot be reckless either."
The owner of the first voice nodded, and bowed.
The piercing gaze of his counterpart turned to him, and his spine creaked from the sensation.
That person's eyes were always cold, in the literally sense.
"Thank you. While watching, I often forget to speak. We'll speak more when I know things are going as I envision. For now, serve me a drink, will you?"
Obediently, the owner of the first voice turned and disappeared to accomplish what had been asked of him. He delighted in it, and he only exposed that he did, when was in front of the one whom he served.
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