Gazing upon the towering flesh that headed towards the heavens, Cetas found his eyes shed bloody tears. It trickled down to his cheeks, ultimately being absorbed by the onyx scales of his body.
It felt nauseating to say the least, making Cetas almost vomit once more.
Yet, he kept gazing above and focused on the faerie-like Skadi, enamored by her resemblance of hope.
Then suddenly..
All of the dark clouds above vanished, followed by the tower's disintegration that rained particles of red blood down the sunken streets.
It looked as if red ashes flowed down from above, carried by the winds in which they fluttered down slowly.
Skadi's glowing figure, too, descended from the skies, heading downwards to the red dome.
Upon noticing this Cetas waded through the sunken ground and ran to the red dome. Without even sparing a sight to Elishia, who was kneeled down on the red cobbled pavement, Cetas flashed through her figure as his feet splashed down with blood.
Elishia instantly turned around and finally opened her eyes only to see that Cetas had already left.
Making his way across the silent streets, Cetas heard a distinct call from behind:
"Hey, wait! Cetas!"
With her voice entering his ears, Cetas abruptly stopped and shifted his body around. Then, he noticed Elishia, her auburn hair bouncing with every step while hidden by a blue bandana which showcased her disguise as a lost sailor. Her white and blue outfit had been mostly covered in crimson blood and her face looked as if she had encountered a ghost.
Well, what she encountered was much worse than a ghost.
Anyhow, Cetas parted his lips and let out a light voice.
"It's you.. Elishia."
Elishia arrived at his location after 2 seconds, panting due to her struggle to traverse upon the blood-barren streets.
"..Ha.. Where.. exactly.. ha.. are.. you going?"
Cetas pointed backwards, "To Skadi, she's there!"
"Skadi? Alright.."
With that, the two traversed the silent maze and headed towards the desolated red dome. It took them no longer than a minute to arrive as the distance was not quite long.
Still, wading through the blood depleted their energy, making both of the kids pant in exhaustion.
Upon arriving, they saw Skadi walking away from a naked man whose figure was engulfed in flames. Then, Skadi brought her arms down to the side similar to an axe or a guillotine. In an instant, the naked man's head swiftly left its body, forming a clean slice on the neck.
Skadi gathered the winds around her but ultimately stopped upon noticing a shift in the winds near her.
She turned her head to the right and glanced upon two children no older than the age of 16, standing amidst the flooded streets near a brick house.
She softly addressed them, "You two, come."
Cetas and Elishia silently made their way to her position, then, looking all scared and panicked, Elishia rushed towards Skadi and embraced her tightly.
Tears went rolling down her eyes, making their way to her chin and becoming droplets that fell to the blood below.
"I thought you were- I thought you were gone!," Elishia wailed, tightening her embrace on Skadi's waist.
Skadi simply placed her soft hands on Elishia's hair, forming a warm smile on her face, "I'm here now, Elishia.. Do you not know who I am? I'm Skadi, conqueror of the Wind Elemental! None could ever topple me!"
She moved her delicate hands left to right, comforting Elishia as she continued to weep.
Simultaneously, Cetas arrived near her, his eyes filled with awe and inspiration.
He wanted to say a lot of words, a lot of admiration and amazement, a lot of adoration towards her status and strength as a Zealot!
Nonetheless, only simple words came out of his mouth - words that couldn't express how joyous he felt.
"Thank you.."
Hearing this, Skadi smiled and placed her other hand to Cetas head. She followed the similar actions that she performed on Elishia and moved her hand left to right.
Then, she moved her rosy lips and let out her soft yet piercing voice:
"Did you do that?," she tilted her head to the direction of the shattered red dome. To which Cetas responded with a light nod.
Then, Skadi gave a look of approval, her eyes exuding a motherly and warm presence.
Cetas felt a distant sense of comfort - much akin to a sensation that he had experienced long ago.
"Well done and thank you, Cetas," Skadi complimented.
Cetas sensed a cozy feeling rise up within him, he felt an unknown emotion dwell inside of his heart.
This..
This feeling could be simply explained as satisfaction.
He smiled accordingly and received Skadi's gentle care.
*
Walking back with Skadi's arms occupied by the two children's respective hands - Elishia on the left, and Cetas on the right, the golden-haired woman casually let her voice out to ask a couple of questions to Cetas and Elishia.
"How long was I gone?"
Elishia, whose eyes were puffed, answered Skadi's question, "Less than an hour, I suppose.."
"I see," she contemplated, thinking about the time that she had spent on her Soul.
It felt like eternity..
Nevertheless, she continued with her queries:
"What of the others? Are they safe?"
Once more, Elishia answered, "Galkan should be alright. Last I saw him, he faced a dark man with a very durable body. Knowing Galkan though, he would probably toy with that man.."
Elishia giggled a little, remembering the fiery personality of a person that she admires.
Letting out a silent chuckle, Skadi looked ahead and agreed, "That is quite true.."
Elishia continued:
"Reid, however, is in a squabble with an assassin. He looked to be quite troubled in that battle as he was completely challenged in terms of speed. Jones is there to aid him but I do feel worried.."
Skadi gazed at Elishia's face, "He'll be alright. I'm quite sure of it."
That boy had a potential that has never been seen before after all..
Only becoming a Zealot for 6 months yet he'd already attained the status of a Bringer! In a few months, he would soon turn into a Spire - a high-leveled Acumen similar to Skadi and Galkan!
Perhaps his ascension to a Sage would be even faster than Skadi's. However, nothing was certain, all they could do was wait for that day to arrive.
Moreover, on her right, she felt a burning vision of potential. She gazed at Cetas, her mind racing at his ability to wield a Wayfinder I - leveled relic. Additionally, he altered the attributes of the relic, turning the winds into condensation and rain!
Skadi deemed that she'd have to teach Cetas about the terminologies of Zeal Relics and Weapons later..
He seemed like someone that doesn't turn arrogant due to praise so Skadi determined that he needed to realize his accomplishments and build upon them.
It scared Skadi to think that there is a potential far greater than Reid's..
Perhaps Cetas would soon unlock his first Flourish.
I wonder what Origin he would choose?
It's best to leave it to his own accord.
The three continued to wade through the bloodied streets - their legs covered by a veil of wind which effectively blocked the blood from entering their garments and preventing their movements to slow.
Minutes later, they arrived at the docks and saw Jones, Reid, and Galkan gathered together.
Galkan had a man's body near his feet while Jones and Reid looked to be in discussion.
The first to notice Cetas and the other's arrival was Galkan, his face smiling greatly at the sight of the three. Then, his loud voice permeated the air and echoed all around the docks.
"Skadi! I knew nothing could match your strength!"
Skadi maintained her composed nature and nodded to Galkan's greetings. Then, the three of them arrived near Galkan and the others.
Cetas and Elishia let go of Skadi's hands, walking to the side where the group was gathered.
Suddenly, Jones reprimanded Cetas, "Foolish boy! You acted impulsively! Running into the gale like that? What would have occurred if your life turned to the grave! You- foolish, foolish boy!"
Jones would've continued if it weren't for Skadi placing her hand in between them.
"I understand your frustration, Jones. However, if it weren't for Cetas, I wouldn't have defeated Falkone."
Jones' emerald eyes twitched as he let hot steam out of his nostrils, "I still stand by my words. Nevertheless.."
His tone shifted, turning into a curious and composed nature, "You speak of words of defeating Falkone? I have no doubt in your words Captain, seeing as that amalgamation of flesh rose up in the skies, chasing you and disintegrating as a consequence. Truly appropriate for our Captain."
She nodded and acknowledged Jones' verbose words, "Indeed. It was not an easy challenge though. Falkone had an imposing aura, capable of striking fear into the heart of a high-level Acumen such as myself. Nevertheless, I learned a few things regarding his strength. However, before I brief you all of this information, I would like to formally apologize."
Skadi placed her right hand on her left chest and felt the striking beat of her heart. Then, she deeply bowed, bending a 90 degree angle with her upper body.
"I apologize for putting you all to grave danger. I severely underestimated our enemy and shouldn't have been complacent! What happened today shall never occur in the future once more, I will become more vigilant and strategic. Therefore, I am sorry.."
The first to react to her apology was Elishia, shaking her hands to gesture to Skadi that she need not bow so deeply to apologize.
"Y-you don't need to apologize, Captain! we were all engrossed in this, we took part of it in our own way! You took the major piece of this Hunt and felled the notorious Falkone!"
The second to respond was Galkan, laughing loudly as he placed his arms on his waist, "The girl is right. We chose to be a part of this so we already expect some sort of danger! Don't mind it Captain and let us focus on the future - a future where we swim in Solaris!"
Reid and Jones remained silent but nodded their heads in agreement.
With that out of the way, Skadi raised her head and continued to speak, "Thank you, everyone.. really."
Skadi nodded her head, "Alright, now... regarding the power behind Falkone-"