History Lesson I

JP with Bandorchu, Lucian, and Lorem

“Don’t make promises you don’t know you can keep.”

Alexis smiled somewhat mirthfully.
She closed her eyes for a moment, collecting herself.

“It is… a pretty lengthy story.”

She sat back down, having resolved to just spill the beans. If not to her friends, to whom?
Looking Voah in the eyes, she began.

“You asked me whether I had talked to the Twin Gods. I didn’t, but I also didn’t escape the Arcadian pantheon as a whole.”

She took a deep breath and continued.

“You might remember Tar? The hermit that was with us when we found each other near Maru? I ran into him again, when I searched for Islana and Hunter. He helped me, but for a prize.”

Alexis could feel the weight of the hammer head by her side, now somewhat placid for a change.

“I was to help him collect the fragments of an artefact belonging to a nearly forgotten fire god named Fosia. I did. Along the way I met Tarmen who helped me collect leads to the missing part. I don’t think I could have done it without you, but… I still wish I had kept you out of it.”

She said looking at the Kru’ll man with regret.

“As it turned out, our destination was to be Gra’akast, just like Islana’s. On the way, we got ourselves into a fight with pillagers from Sentinel. Tar died in that fight, protecting me. I have carried on his quest for the artefact since then.”

Tarmen spoke up after that brief summary. After seeing Alexis being driven down by the hammer even before they were split up and given their current openness, he prodded her to go deeper.

“Might as well bring them in on the little details. The parts that are weighin’ on you the most.”

Alexis nodded and pulled out the hammer head, unwrapping it to let them see.

“This is one half of the artefact. Tar had already found it when I met him. Turns out Fosia might be forgotten, but he is far from gone. And he has some hold on me now. Can’t tell you how much I have been questioning my sanity since I have taken it up.”

Gonyaul was taking it all in silently. He believed her completely, never having reason to doubt Alexis’ word. It was an extraordinary story, captivating his attention.

Alexis pulled one leg to her chest and rested her arms on her knee.

“Tarmen and I got separated on our journey through the desert, but I carried on to Gra’akast. Since coming here, I didn’t learn anything about the location of the second half - prior to last night, that is - but I did learn a lot about the history of the Ozainae gods, as well as the artefact’s involvement in it.”

She said gesturing at the painted walls.

“Given the all encompassing devotion to the Twin Gods, you might be surprised to hear that they have not always been two. Once upon a time, there were three. Which is something the Ozainae really, really don’t like to remember. In fact, if they do even know about it still, drawing the symbol of the trinity is forbidden.”

The mercenary pointed out one of the ever present triangles.

“And the name of the third is said to bring ill fate. Can’t say I’m surprised, given what I learned. You see, as a trinity, their role was to keep the Ether at bay. And the Ether is… damn if I know. Don’t think I have the capacity to truly comprehend it. Let us say it is a destructive, outside force which is the origin of all magik. So, interestingly enough, the Trinity was supposed to do what the Pillars do in Helias. As you might guess with the abundance of magik in Arcadia, that is not how it went.”

Alexis looked down on the hammer head.

“The Twins turned on the third, Ziarae, and tricked Fosia into providing his hammer so they could shatter the bonds between them. They shackled Ziarae beneath the sands and bound a part of her soul into the immortal being that is known as Sister Locust. I don’t think I really understand the specifics, but they did all that so they could get access to the Ether, and grant their people magik as a boon, rather than the wild kind we know.”

She looked back at Voah.

“The magik they grant is somehow different. It would appear that Gonyaul’s, ah, gift? It would not work on it. At the very least not as absolute as it did on the ice witch. Quite possible that the Inquisition’s usual tactics might be less effective, as well.”