RE: The Broken Prophecy (Walls O' Text)
07-15-2012, 04:34 AM
"Has anyone else used the gateway?"
Father Lepid shook his head.
"Not since I've been here. I don't know any more about it than what Blackbird has told me. You can have a closer look at it once you're ready to leave if you'd like."
"And is there a way I might return to this time?"
Blackbird spoke up.
"You could always try coming back the same way you got here, but I can't guarantee you'll like what you see, or even that you'll be able to get back to the return gateway again. I'd suggest you take care of what you can in your own time before you try it."
Edwin nodded.
"I understand. One more thing, Blackbird. You said you've managed to change the future in small ways. Could you tell me more about that?"
Blackbird paced around the room and said nothing for the better part of a minute, then let out a small sigh.
"I'll be honest. Every time I've tried to change something for the better, something else has gone worse. If I stop a man from breaking his leg, he'll break his arm instead. If I save one man's life, another dies. I've never changed the outcome of a battle or prevented a war, and to be quite honest, with that track record I'm not sure I want to see what would happen if I did."
Edwin looked down, dejected.
"So if I stopped the demons from winning the war... might I bring on as great a catastrophe?"
"It's possible," Blackbird conceded. "But let me ask you this. You saw that vision of Alicia facing the demons, did you not?"
Edwin nodded.
"Yes. And it showed that we would lose if she fell."
"And what did you do when she fell?"
A determined look crossed Edwin's face.
"I swore to fight on. It was what she would have wanted."
Blackbird smiled.
"And what would she want you to do now?"
"She would want me to fight for a better future than this."
"Then you'd best not disappoint her," Blackbird said with a grin.
"I will not. It would be a disgrace to her memory..."
Edwin's face suddenly turned pale as his words trailed off.
"What troubles you, Edwin?" Father Lepid asked. "You seem worried.
"I have another question. An important one."
"Go on," said the older priest.
Edwin took a deep breath before he continues.
"When I came to Mira's village, it was attacked by knights who had fallen in battle. And Alicia, or rather, a demon inhabiting her body, was their commander."
A look of worry crossed Blackbird's face, but he said nothing.
"Is there some way I can prevent this perversion of fate? I realize necromancy is a forbidden art, and you would know little of it, but might there be a way to sanctify her corpse?"
Father Lepid mused.
"The best I have is a guess. There's an old funeral rite which may be of help here. It was considered outdated even in my youth, but there were a few aging traditionalists who requested that it be performed at their burials."
"Why do you think it might help?"
"As I said, it's merely a guess... but the rite was said to date from the time of the Conqueror."
"The Necromancer-King," Edwin said breathlessly. "His army of the dead was feared across the entire realm. Even bodies that had been reduced to ash could rise up under his command."
"You know your history well," Father Lepid replied with a nod. "And so this rite may just be what you need. I should remind you, though, that this is only a guess. And the rite, though not complex, may take some work to perform."
"Tell me," Edwin said. "I cannot let the bodies of my comrades be misused."
"There is a flower. Red petals, a white center. It only grows high in the mountains, and there are few patches left. Sprinkle the petals on the corpse, and let a loved one speak these words:
"To you who have passed on,
I pledge to live with your memory.
As we bonded in life, so shall we bond in death."
"Thank you," Edwin said quietly.
"I cannot promise this will work. And, of course, as it needs a loved one, you may not be able to protect all the fallen knights even if you were to find enough flowers."
"I must try," Edwin replied. "They gave their lives for a better future, I cannot allow the demons to make a mockery of that sacrifice."
"You are a brave young man, Edwin," Father Lepid said, tears welling up in his eyes. "And to think that the Church, in its last days, called you a heretic! I can only hope this injustice will be righted when you return."
"It is enough to know that there are good men on my side. Thank you, Father, for all you've done for me."
Edwin embraced his old colleague, and turned to Blackbird.
"I believe I'm ready to return," he said.
"Not quite," the mercenary grumbled. "There are some questions you're forgetting to ask. I've got info you'll need about Damien when you return, and I also need to tell you some important things about Rhakkashalgaros."
Father Lepid shook his head.
"Not since I've been here. I don't know any more about it than what Blackbird has told me. You can have a closer look at it once you're ready to leave if you'd like."
"And is there a way I might return to this time?"
Blackbird spoke up.
"You could always try coming back the same way you got here, but I can't guarantee you'll like what you see, or even that you'll be able to get back to the return gateway again. I'd suggest you take care of what you can in your own time before you try it."
Edwin nodded.
"I understand. One more thing, Blackbird. You said you've managed to change the future in small ways. Could you tell me more about that?"
Blackbird paced around the room and said nothing for the better part of a minute, then let out a small sigh.
"I'll be honest. Every time I've tried to change something for the better, something else has gone worse. If I stop a man from breaking his leg, he'll break his arm instead. If I save one man's life, another dies. I've never changed the outcome of a battle or prevented a war, and to be quite honest, with that track record I'm not sure I want to see what would happen if I did."
Edwin looked down, dejected.
"So if I stopped the demons from winning the war... might I bring on as great a catastrophe?"
"It's possible," Blackbird conceded. "But let me ask you this. You saw that vision of Alicia facing the demons, did you not?"
Edwin nodded.
"Yes. And it showed that we would lose if she fell."
"And what did you do when she fell?"
A determined look crossed Edwin's face.
"I swore to fight on. It was what she would have wanted."
Blackbird smiled.
"And what would she want you to do now?"
"She would want me to fight for a better future than this."
"Then you'd best not disappoint her," Blackbird said with a grin.
"I will not. It would be a disgrace to her memory..."
Edwin's face suddenly turned pale as his words trailed off.
"What troubles you, Edwin?" Father Lepid asked. "You seem worried.
"I have another question. An important one."
"Go on," said the older priest.
Edwin took a deep breath before he continues.
"When I came to Mira's village, it was attacked by knights who had fallen in battle. And Alicia, or rather, a demon inhabiting her body, was their commander."
A look of worry crossed Blackbird's face, but he said nothing.
"Is there some way I can prevent this perversion of fate? I realize necromancy is a forbidden art, and you would know little of it, but might there be a way to sanctify her corpse?"
Father Lepid mused.
"The best I have is a guess. There's an old funeral rite which may be of help here. It was considered outdated even in my youth, but there were a few aging traditionalists who requested that it be performed at their burials."
"Why do you think it might help?"
"As I said, it's merely a guess... but the rite was said to date from the time of the Conqueror."
"The Necromancer-King," Edwin said breathlessly. "His army of the dead was feared across the entire realm. Even bodies that had been reduced to ash could rise up under his command."
"You know your history well," Father Lepid replied with a nod. "And so this rite may just be what you need. I should remind you, though, that this is only a guess. And the rite, though not complex, may take some work to perform."
"Tell me," Edwin said. "I cannot let the bodies of my comrades be misused."
"There is a flower. Red petals, a white center. It only grows high in the mountains, and there are few patches left. Sprinkle the petals on the corpse, and let a loved one speak these words:
"To you who have passed on,
I pledge to live with your memory.
As we bonded in life, so shall we bond in death."
"Thank you," Edwin said quietly.
"I cannot promise this will work. And, of course, as it needs a loved one, you may not be able to protect all the fallen knights even if you were to find enough flowers."
"I must try," Edwin replied. "They gave their lives for a better future, I cannot allow the demons to make a mockery of that sacrifice."
"You are a brave young man, Edwin," Father Lepid said, tears welling up in his eyes. "And to think that the Church, in its last days, called you a heretic! I can only hope this injustice will be righted when you return."
"It is enough to know that there are good men on my side. Thank you, Father, for all you've done for me."
Edwin embraced his old colleague, and turned to Blackbird.
"I believe I'm ready to return," he said.
"Not quite," the mercenary grumbled. "There are some questions you're forgetting to ask. I've got info you'll need about Damien when you return, and I also need to tell you some important things about Rhakkashalgaros."