Existentially Bound: Part 6
Family
The ordeal had exhausted them all. Paige slept soundly in the bedroom, while Emily found herself drift to sleep in a chair just outside. Tahlia, who never left Shiera's side also put her head upon her patient's bed, the Whisperer allowing herself a bit of rest. Thus, there was very little fanfare given to welcome Harid and Tressa's arrival.Harid's voice came from below as they made their way up the stairs. "And whatever you do, stop encouraging Jinx to say my name wrong. I know you think it's funny, but it's really not! She doesn't need that kind of encouragement; stop stirring her up!"
"Stirring things up with my hand?" Tressa said coyly, a stretch to make reference to the man's missing arm.
Harid grumbled, but a glance to her ensure Tressa was attempting to be humorous - something she often struggled with. Harid rolled his eyes but did so with a slight smirk. While his missing appendage had been replaced with asuran tech to make up for it, the man felt the stares of everyone in the market and everyone which passed him as they made their way back. Yet, Tressa Solenaceae, the former assassin known as The Black Rose, had been his companion throughout the entire ordeal, and the man had to appreciate the simple fact that she had become easy enough around him to attempt a joke (even if it was a bit poorly executed).
The couple came to a sudden stop as they exited the stairs, both realizing they were not alone. With a soft thud, a bag of food and fruit landed on the floor, Tressa's hand already wielding at dagger at the sight of the intruders. Harid's mouth was agape, staring at both the Whisperer's foreign look, as well as a half-covered pale nude woman upon his bed, but a quick scan of the room found Ember slouched in a chair.
"It's okay. I think their friendlies," he said to his companion, who had already stealthily traveled to a nearby shadow, closer to her target. "Black Rose! Stand down!" He said as loudly as he could without recklessly disturbing the scene. The man had been in his fair share of battles; had seen is fair share of the aftermath, and knew the scene well. Nevertheless, he did need to find out what was going on, and further still, worried about his absent daughter. Harid decided to clear his throat loud enough to rouse the women.
Valandra sat up in the chair, immediately waking Ember. "Intruders?" the ice queen's hands immediately frosted over to defend against the assailants.
"No! Not intruders!" Ember made Valandra steady herself. "This is Harid… This is… Oh Gods," Ember said with the realization. "This is your father."
"Father?" Valandra blurted loudly.
Harid raised an eyebrow. "Ember? You've never called me…"
"It's Emily now!" hissed the woman.
"Fleshlings put profound importance onto their names and titles. Never understood it; we are the actions we take…" came almost a whisper from the shadows, only loud enough for Harid's ear.
"Okay… Emily it is. Curious though: when did you decide to go by the name, I always thought-"
"Since we became one: Ember and the child you abandoned!" she said with a fusion of both Ember's past issues with her own father, and the lonely orphaned child Valandra once was.
"I… Valandra you mean. Paige… Paige told me she found her, Ember. Told me you and she…" The man's mouth hadn't closed, and his expression was that of a child getting caught. He shook his head and reoriented himself, taking in a deep breath and sat down the bag of groceries before coming to stand in front of Emily.
"There's nothing I can say that will excuse any of this... Valandra, when I was in my youth, I fell in love with your mother. We were young, wild-eyed, and the future seemed limitless." He paused with a sigh, tried to find the words to continue. Rubbing his head with a metallic hand, he stared at the device. "You know… sometimes the real world deals us cards we aren't ready for, and we do our best to adapt. Back then I was younger, and I didn't know how to adapt. My parents demanded we leave, and I complied. I crossed the seas with my parents. I didn't want to; I should have fought it. But, as I say, I was not experienced with adaption. I shouldn't have left… I just…" The man cleared his throat, pushing through the lump within. "I want you to know, Valandra, that I'm happy you were born and that I deeply regret not knowing you."
"Yeah well... It's done now huh?" Ember scoffed, taking over when Valandra didn't speak. "What the hell's going on with your arm anyway?" She said both out of curiosity and for a subject change.
Harid held up his left arm, flexing the metallic digits. "Wasn't by choice really. Didn't want to... but it's useful enough," the man said dismissively. He had fought the need for the asuran appendage replacement as long as he could, but doing the most menial of tasks had been a chore, let alone being self-efficient on excursions.
"I like it." Tressa grinned a red glow from the corner. It was the first time she made her presence known and while Emily attempted to be nonchalant at the sylvari's abrupt appearance, she clearly jerked.
Harid raised his eyebrow at the woman. "You never told me that. I always thought you thought the arm was a joke, or at least enjoying yourself seeing others stare at it?"
The Black Rose removed her hood, pulsed the vibrant red-lined pattern upon her skin-like leaves. "I don't enjoy their stares. I have lived with them; I was enjoying not being the particular target of their stares for once."
Harid huffed. "Well, happy to be your distraction, I guess. This is-"
"An associate," Tressa interrupted.
"We've met briefly," said Emily. "Dark Rose, yeah?"
"Dark… Black… such matters not to me," the sylvari said coldly. After a moment, she stepped from the shadows and sighed. "What I mean is… You may call me Tressa. And I recall you as well; with less… winter."
Ember cracked a sly grin. "Indeed," came a different voice from within her.
Tressa's eyes flashed amber, went directly to Harid at the sudden realization of just who Ember was, and to whom she was related. Her thorny eyebrow raised as she sidled up beside him, whispering something softly in his ear. In turn, Harid's face immediately flushed with concern and dread.
Ember knew Harid a long time. In many ways the man had brought her under his wing. The worry-filled expression made her immediately weak in the knees, filled with the same raw emotion it conveyed. "What… What is it?" She uttered with the realization something dire had happened, forcing the question out.
"I… I can't even begin…" Harid's normally strengthened voice faltered and cracked.
"She is of your flower garden. You must tell her, but tend to the flower with a gentle hand."
Ember and Valandra both blinked a few times, a worrisome expression frozen on her.
"Well… Your father, Ailden… He came back and tried to take the remains of the manor… the land… everything left of the vineyards… Everything."
"Father? I thought he was out of the picture… What did he-"
Harid sighed. "We did too. Tressa here found out he was on the move and I rallied the defenses we had left and… well, we fought him. And it was a brutal fight; Ailden had powerful artifacts that… Well, it changed him. He was no longer the Ailden we knew."
"And a Champion Wyvern and its ilk. They fought along side him," Tressa added.
"Wait… He could command Wyverns? And, what artifacts? What did they look like?" Ember said, almost frantically.
"A staff and… Something in a glowing bag…" Tressa said.
Ember was panicked. She had searched the manor after the explosion that decimated it, but came up short when trying to find her possessions. It was with great turmoil she had stopped the frantic search for them, and after their trip to Elona, she had planned to return with an excavation team she would requisition through Paige. Her heart sank when she thought of her very own father claiming anything of hers, let alone a magical powerful staff that had been kept in her family for generations.
"There is a recording," the Black Rose said, hoping it would help. "The asura Jinx showed me on the holo security systems from the manor. I can show you. Come," she said without waiting for a response as she headed to the makeshift lab.
Harid followed, passing by a pale woman and another which wore a covering over her eyes. Both women were resting and while he wished to understand why these strangers were here, he knew the explanation would come in time, yet he paused momentarily, debating on starting a conversation anyway. Truthfully the man was lollygagging on purpose, procrastinating from having to deliver news that would surely devastate Ember. Tressa called from below, urging him to swallow the lump in his throat and proceed: Ember needed to know, no matter how difficult it would be. With a disheartened sigh, he turned and descended the stairs.
Ember glanced to the taller man as he came to stand beside her. In many ways, Harid was like the father she never had. He had a way about him: while a bit of promiscuity in his travels, he always had been willing to take in those less fortunate than himself. He had done so with her as well as Six, and even though Valandra had reservations about him, she could feel Ember's surrogate daughterly love for him. The man was a rock. Generally someone Ember could look up to -both literally and metaphorically, but the dour expression he now wore gave her an anxiety, having only seen it once before during the war in Kourna.
"I'm not going to like this, am I?" she muttered.
Harid couldn't look at her; couldn't say more than a forced, "No."
One man suddenly stood erect, waving his arms at Lord Ailden. "I have it!" he exclaimed with glee, pointing to a burlap sack with blue light shining from its pores.
Ailden folded his arms and nodded, obviously not completely happy with the results. "That's all well and good and I'm sure that the damned asura will be happy, but that's not the primary purpose we came. Bring me the shards, but keep searching, everyone," he said proclaiming loudly. "We do not leave here until what I want is found!"
Emily -both Valandra and Ember simultaneously- gasped loudly, her hand immediately covering their mouth. "No! They… They took the ice sword?"
"My… vessel?" the ice queen exhaled.
Harid mumbled. "It… um… it gets worse."
Ember's eyes flashed an icy blue, reflected from the hologram which changed and fizzled into another feed. It appeared as several days had passed, with most of the search parties having left, yet Ailden remained. In his hand was a vile, which he brought to his lips and consumed. He groaned loudly, which steadily became a deep and otherworldly growl. He looked forward with large bright green glowing eyes, slits for pupils. Words came forth from the man's mouth: an ancient language even the asura system couldn't translate.
He raised his hands as the whispers grew to shouts, followed by a guttural growl. When he stopped, however, the growl continued - not from the man's mouth… but from the wreckage.
"What has he…"
A creature of enormous size suddenly exploded from the manor's remains with wings of the darkest grey, eyes mirroring what once were Ailden's own. The colossal wyvren screeched and growled, pulling itself aloft. In its talons, was Ember's heritage: her family's staff of power.
Ember's eyes grew wide. "My heritage! What in the Underworld… We have to stop him! Has he-"
"We did stop him; the security system was still active during… Should I show?" The Black Rose asked looking at Harid, who solemnly nodded. The sylvari returned to the console, pressed a few more buttons, echoing Harid's earlier statement. "Yes, but… It… um… it gets worse."
"Show me what? What else was stolen from me?"
Harid shut his eyes and sighed.
Tressa answered in a soft whisper. "Your garden."
The image fizzled again, resuming from yet another angle around the mansion's docks where the drake nests once were. Ailden stood, an obvious magical corruption in his eyes and in his heart, having succumbed to the awesome power of their family's artifact and whatever changes he went through to control the wyvrens. His fists were clenched, one around the staff… the other… around Arya's throat.
"My cousin!" Ember screamed, reaching futilely through the hologram. Harid's metallic hand caught hold of her other hand, held it supportively.
Ailden's laughter boomed for a moment. It was wild, animalistic, and unwavering, before a magical explosion of energy bubbled from him, knocking out the feed.
Static remained for a moment, then dissipated as Harid and Tressa focused on Ember, waiting somberly. The woman was an unblinking statue.
Until she suddenly burst into laughter. "You think she's dead? You of all people should know, Harid! All the pranks she plays with that stealthy shadow magic? She's fine! You watch!" Ember said, but tears started to find her way down the woman's cheeks.
Tressa mouthed the words to Harid, "Tell her."
"Arya… she… well, she tricked him. He tried to kill Black Rose and I and I offered myself as bait. But… He was too powerful. Nearly killed us both… But Arya… she did that poof-smokey thing, but when the smoke cleared…" Harid's voice stopped at the knot he felt. He could only squeeze Ember's hand.
"Arya… I had gotten to know her a bit. She came heroically. She saved not only us, but all that would have been laid waste by the corruption your father had within. She gave her life for everyone; her petals have truly fallen." Tressa said in the most humanistic and caring tone Harid had ever heard the former assassin use.
The man finally forced himself to console her, even though his own heart had ached for a month since it happened. "Rose here even helped me give her a proper funeral and burial. It was befitting of her. Small, but warm. She's with her sister now."
Valandra's voice softly whispered in her head. "Emily… I… I feel as you do… I… There are no words. You can feel my presence with you. I am always here for you…"
Ember sniffled. "My… father? My… cousin? My… wife?" Tears streamed down her face. "I think I… should… be alone now."
Harid nodded, kissed her forehead, then turned to the stairs.
Tressa took a few steps past the woman, then turned to address her. "I used to think this too: to be alone. But, there is… comfort in leaning on those close to you. This I have discovered only recently. Do not be the lonely wilted rose in a bed full of other flowers which may help support you." After a moment, she turned, walked quietly past Harid. She didn't know Ember that well, but knew of her importance to her own 'garden.'
Ember held back her sobs, but internally she was screaming. "Please… Valandra… take over," she thought as she left the ice queen in control.
Tressa tilted her head for a moment, noting the bodily mannerism change. She approached Harid. "She's… She's gone now," she said cryptically before descending to the main floor.
Harid looked back worriedly at Emily. "Are you… Will you be alright?"
Valandra looked at the man as she passed. "I shall do what I can for her… father."
A few minutes after the women had left, Harid let out his breath, slumped his shoulders and rubbed his head with his good hand. "Have to be a good man… For my family. They need me more than ever," he said the reaffirmation quietly to himself before leaving.
"Thinking about the sea?" came the soft voice of Paige.
"Slightly. Perhaps hoping for Raven's sign.
A smile came to the mocha woman's face, her normal pigment only recently returning after the ordeal with Shiera. "Mind if I join you? I could use a little of Raven's wisdom; It's been a trying few weeks."
Rodia grinned. "You may join, Lady Paige Dejarin. And, indeed, it has."
Paige worked through a few issues with her dress as she sat down next to Rodia. While Paige wasn't exactly the smallest woman, at times she felt minuscule in contrast to the norn's exotic physique. Her friend never acted as though it was an issue, though the tiny voice in her head often did. It was the same which used to compare her own body image to others. Paige had to remind herself that such things were in her past; the woman was beautiful to Ember and Demitra.
"In town for long?" Paige asked, forcefully bringing her mind back from her musings.
"A while now, I believe. This was the last of the scheduled shipments to Amnoon. And, with Kralkatorrik's movements, I'm not sure how much more lucrative it will remain. Such a thing is not for me to ponder though."
Paige cleared her throat. "That shits dragon will be the death of me, I swear."
Rodia chuckled. "Oh, you swore alright. (Not quite sure how well you did though!) Who taught you to swear Lady Paige?"
"It was this guy named Geoffry." Paige said, without thinking. A dark red hue filled the woman's cheeks.
Without even looking at the woman Rodia could feel the woman's weight shift. The norn grinned a moment. "This is your lover? (If I may ask a noble such a question.)" She still struggled with the etiquette.
"It's… um… it's okay. And, no. Not really. I mean, he wanted to… but… Well, anyway, that was long in the past. My 'lovers' as you say… You've met Ember (I mean… Emily)?"
A tattoo eyebrow was raised. "Perhaps I do not possess such nuances to understand human culture, but the two of you did not strike me as mates."
Paige blushed again, at both the woman's insight and her straightforwardness. After a few moments of hesitation, however, the woman finally sighed. "You picked up on that too? I tried to be a bit discreet; guess I wasnt that successful... But. Yes. We are. Or... were? I dont know anymore, to be honest. Sometimes I see it in her: the old Ember. Yet, other times I see and hear my half-sister, Valandra. And, well, to be honest it creeps me out to be with her... in that way." Paige covered her mouth a moment as the words left it. "I apologize. I didn't mean to go into detail there. I just... I don't know what to do."
Rodia simply nodded at the women's confession. She looked into the distance. "Perhaps you should seek such knowledge from Raven. She has much to explain for those who listen."
"I've studied a bit on the spirits of the norn. Raven is said to be very wise and knowledgeable. Is that why you're out here, too?"
"Indeed. I invoke her wisdom as I contemplate my future."
"Your future? Are you not happy here?" Paige said looking over the woman, trying to read her. Whether it was her racical stoicism or the women's own purposeful demeanor, Rodia Raventear only expressed what she wanted one to see.
"I am. My time on the sea prior to this was... turbulent at best." A small, almost imperceptible smile came to her face at the pun. "Point is, the seas always harbored a bit of... unrest within for me. Yet, as a captain in your fleet, I have actually enjoyed myself."
Paige smiled with relief. "Good. Then what's all this about your future?"
"You see, norn weave tapestries and tell tales of their journeys... "
"Your Legend?" Paige happily interjected the answer.
Rodia made a quick expression of surprise, but quickly wiped it from her face. Her grin however, remained. "Indeed. You surprise me, Lady Paige. Perhaps you do carry Raven within your heart, for your insight is correct. Upon our last voyage back to Tyria, (when I no longer had a young woman asking many questions)," she paused an winked at Paige who giggled, "I let my mind drift on the sea for a time, and I continued arriving at the conclusion that my story… my Legend has more to it."
"Well, it's not too late, right? If there was one thing you feel you want to do or change in your life, what would it be?" Paige asked in earnest.
Rodia's eyes trailed off somewhere distant: beyond the horizon, and clearly into her own tragic past. Her face grimaced a moment and the norn closed her eyes, a slight expression of sorrow upon her brown. Paige cleared her throat, picking up on the woman's obvious unease, decided to tread away from whatever vexed her friend.
"The air is nice out here. The soft breeze almost makes you forget about worries of the day. I actually needed some fresh air. You know, after you left a while back, I was able to save Shiera with blood and death magic. You remember her, the armored one? Well, when father found out he was… well he wasn't thrilled, to put it mildly. He doesn't like necromancy in the slightest; he fears it because of what it did to my mother. And, now the more I've grown into her powers, the more he fears I'll become like her…"
The sound of the wind filled the silence for a few minutes. At first, Paige had considered she may have overstepped her bounds by sharing so much, and was extremely relieved when Rodia finally did speak.
"It is their hope. Parent often worry of what shall become of their ilk. Moreover, they simply wish for their cubs to succeed, and most importantly triumph where they have faltered. Your father wishes for you to not follow in your mother's footsteps which lead to her downfall, yes? Your father may wish to remind himself that, while he may not wish for you to travel a certain path, the path is yours to travel, and the mistakes are yours to make; repeating or otherwise. And, he should take solace in the simple fact that you are still upon this world writing your story to make such choices.
Paige ran her fingers through her hair like a comb (which promptly sprung back into place). "As opposed to the alternative? Yeah. I suppose that's true. Granted, I may not be as well traveled, but I've lost count at how many times I've not been claimed by the mists. Even now, I feel so… ill-prepared. I don't even know why our enemies continue to harass us! What would they still even want with the estate in shambles? To torture us?"
Rodia nodded. "Perhaps. But you will forever continue guessing without knowing, unless you actually know. There is truly only one way to know your adversary's motives: you must confront them head-on," the norn clenched her fist as she spoke.
Rubbing the back of her neck Paige took in the advice, finally leaning back with a sigh. "I think you're probably right, my friend. I'm sorry… I must seem like I'm all over the place."
"Yes, you are," Rodia said as she also leaned back, mirroring the woman's pose. She looked directly at Paige (the first time she'd done so since their talk began). "But, it reminds me of…. someone."
Paige blinked. "Who?"
The norn's eyes turned to the sky above where the clouds overhead played a disappearing game with the stars. She wondered how carefully Snow Leopard would travel the path of the conversation and silently asked him for strength. "There was a… cub I only barely got to know," she began in her own time. "She was much younger, of course. She was a child, but about as tall as you stand, being a norn. Just as you, though, she was 'all over the place'."
"What happened?" Paige asked softly.
Rodia sighed deeply, eyes still on the sky above. "Her potential was never fully realized; her story ended before it ever truly began."
"Oh… I… see. How is it that you knew her?"
A sorrowful anguish flashed on Rodia's face as her eyes closed. The next words, were the most emotionally honestly and sincere Paige had ever heard from her friend. "She… was my cub."
Paige felt her own eyes tear up. She hadn't expected the revelation; was shocked and completely heartbroken to hear it. The only words that she could force out was the most earnest apology.
The sun finally lowered itself beyond the horizon, giving both women a point to focus their attention and break the uncomfortableness of the topic. Paige didn't know what to say; her experience with norn culture was somewhat limited, and while twenty questions flooded her mind, she knew it was best not to dwell on such a heart-wrenching topic. Rodia had trusted her with something of such profoundness, she struggled with how to move past it. Much to her relief, Rodia did.
"You wish to confront this foe which vexes you? Then we must hunt them! You shall ask them up close just why they continue to torment you and your… family. While Raven may wish my future to remain uncertain, I am certain Bear would enjoy the hunt!"
The warmest smile came to Paige's face. "I think I'd like that. You are an honorable companion (is how I believe your kind say it, yes?). And… well, it may not be by blood or lineage or anything like that, but… you, my friend, are of our family too."
[To Be Continued...]
