“I think that it’s a shame you can’t become an Awakened because you’re born for magical research. I’m thrilled at the idea of what you could achieve if you had the long life and the access to the seventh element that only Awakened have. I hope that the Fringe can give you this chance.” Nalrond said.
“Also, I respect you and your sister for keeping all of Lith’s secrets even though you’d have a lot to gain from doing otherwise. I’m taking a leap of faith in the hope you two will do the same for me.”
“Well, our Nalrond sure is full of surprises.” Faluel clapped her hands, drawing their attention on her.
“I approve of your idea. Friya, I understand that your life has not been easy, but you’ve been too lucky to be as lost as you are and have so little faith in yourself. Maybe you’ll be as lucky as my grandmother and you’ll find what you need in the Fringe.
“Quylla, I agree with Nalrond. You deserve a chance at Awakening. Yet I hope that even if it turns out to be impossible, you’ll not consider becoming an undead. I can’t argue with the power of Liches, but I think they are those who lose most of themselves in the process.
“Splitting your soul doesn’t just give you immortality, it also means to put away a part of yourself in a place where no one, not even you, can ever find it again. If you decide to make this trip, let me know and I’ll arrange your departure for tomorrow morning.
“I advise you to get a good night’s sleep and then to put your business in order before you leave. I’m sure that having a guide helps, but Fringes are dangerous places and unlike Nalrond, you’ll be unwanted guests.”
“Faluel is right.” Nalrond nodded. “I can get you in, but Mogar might treat you as intruders.”
“Just one question. Did Acala reach the Fringe on his own?” Friya asked.
“Yes. It’s one of the reasons why we trusted him. We thought that Mogar had recognized him as our kindred spirit as it had always happened in the past.”
“Well, that means that either Mogar fucked up big time with him or that maybe your people and Dawn are not so different.” Friya said.
“What?” Nalrond clenched his jaw and fists, feeling as if those words tainted the memories he had of his village.
“Think about it.” Friya’s voice held no malice, just cold reasoning. “You belong to a hybrid race who wants to become whole by harmonizing your human and beast essence, correct?”
“Correct.”
“The same can be said for Dawn. She wants to erase the undead’s weakness to sunlight and to do it, she needed a partner. By merging with Acala, they became a hybrid as well. Not like Lith, but like you and Solus.” Friya said.
“You’re right. Solus told me that with her mana sense she could perceive two cores in their body. Acala’s mana core and Dawn’s power core.” The edge in his voice disappeared as Nalrond understood her reasoning.
“Exactly. My point is that they merged into a human-artifact hybrid whose goal is to reach perfection. If I’m right, then the key to a Horseman’s task may lay in harmonizing the host’s essence with Dawn’s. Maybe Baba Yaga is right.
“Maybe the reason why Mogar didn’t do anything against Dawn when she attacked your village is the same reason why the planet did nothing against those Abominations and is interested in Lith. Maybe Mogar really is experimenting on hybrids.” Friya said.
“If you are right, then it means that all the people who reached our village were kindred spirits to Dawn and that she has Mogar’s attention as well.” Nalrond’s words disturbed everyone, yet they sounded too plausible to ignore them.
“That’s a creepy thought if I ever heard one, but even mulling it all night long will bring us nowhere.” Faluel said. “If the Fringe is still there and you get to speak with Mogar, however, that’s a question worth asking. Nalrond, I’ll see you here tomorrow at sunrise.
“As for you girls, please, remember that this is a dangerous task that might accomplish nothing but endanger your lives. Nalrond is the only one that can get in and out of the Fringe safely so don’t follow him unless you’re sure it’s the right choice.”
***
City of Reghia, Jiera Continent.
After breakfast, Phloria went out on her own to clear her mind. On the one hand, she was excited at the idea of visiting another continent. On the other hand, however, being forced to leave her home to follow Lith spread salt over her wounds.
‘Gods, I can’t believe after all that jackass Deirus did I’m the one gone on exile.’ Phloria thought. ‘I’ve thought long and hard as to how even the score, but even with Mom’s help, I failed to find a way that didn’t involve getting my family into trouble.
‘A direct attack would be idiotic and without any proof of his involvement in the Belin mines’ coup, the law is by his side. I hate the idea of Deirus getting away with it as much as I wanted to kill him when he used Yurial’s name to cover his sorry ass.
‘Unfortunately, the only thing I can do right now is to bide my time and wait for an opportunity to put Faluel’s teachings into action. Anything else would be just playing into his hand and ruining Mom’s hard work.’
During her stroll through Reghia’s streets, Phloria noticed that distinguishing between the home of a magical beast, an Emperor Beast, and a plant folk was easy.
Magical beasts still retained most of their feral nature and had no use for things like windows or doors. They lived in small artificial caves with just one room and one entrance the size of which depended on them having a family or not.
Emperor Beasts, instead, due to their ability to shapeshift and use all the elements, liked to build for themselves more complex structures. They had no use as well for most human’s rooms like a dining room or a living room.
Emperor Beasts needed solely a place to sleep and used the rest of the space to arrange their magical labs. Their housings rarely extended upwards on multiple floors. Beasts preferred to dig underground to keep the nature of their research hidden.
Plant folks, instead, made their homes entirely out of vegetation grown and shaped according to their will. They had no walls nor rooms since plant folks had no concept or need for privacy.
The most complex buildings resembled stilt houses that were mostly used to host the plant folk’s guests.
Phloria’s neighbor, however, had created a building almost as big as her own with ample windows, several floors, and a solid structure that could easily accommodate dozens of magical beasts at once.
On top of that, even during their brief stay, she had noticed a constant flow of people belonging to all races, some of which she had never seen before, that came and went from the building.
‘Maybe the rest of the city looks so dead because it’s early morning but at least there is someone who seems to be sociable. I wonder if I can join the party or whatever they are doing there instead of brooding alone.’
