"Lord Behedet.." Moik stepped down to one knee and lowered his head. "Follow 'its' instructions carefully," Behedet ordered before turning and walking towards Emory.
Moik surveyed the area before raising his arms in the air. "I can feel it... surging through my veins... my body is shifting.. heh, hehe heh, I'm no longer weak!" The corners of his lips curled maliciously.
"I'm coming for you, Elsa." His body began gradually disappearing before turning completely invisible.
Behedet walked towards the baby on the ground, his footsteps crushing the ground beneath him. Towering over the child, Behedet conjured the dark magic and it began to coil his arms once more.
He aimed it toward Emory and it surged at the child, entering his chest cavity.
"-------------------------------------------------------------------" He finished analyzing everything about Emory's life.
With the illusory ink still present, it was time for Emory's recitation. Many of the purple flickers surrounding the baby's body, gradually lifting him in the air. His eyes glowed with a certain hue, and a voice came out of his mouth, it was unfit for his baby body.
"From the subtle artistry of deception, the veils of mist shall answer my command, guided by His unseen hand. Through the barriers of the corporeal, passage shall be granted, a whisper of His boundless reach. The very essence of visibility shall bend to my will, cloaked in the authority of His name. I shall regain the stolen Authority of my Liege, cement the power and glory that was stolen from him. My mortal form shall know a measured strength, a fraction of His enduring might. I offer my being as a sacrifice, awaiting the stirring of His formidable gifts"
The purple flickers slowly descended along with him onto the ground. Behedet spoke to the child, "Once you are 17 years of age, you will come to understand the terms of your recitation. For now, no recollection of this incident will stick with you as you grow"
The baby did not nod nor show any confirmation of understanding.
Behedet glanced over at the fainted Darian, *Interesting.* That was all he thought before tearing a hole through the fabric of the sky and leaving the area.
The dark purple fog diminished and Darian soon awoke. He turned his head left and right, then looking down at his lap, he found Emory was looking up at him with the fish still in his mouth.
"Why are we on the floor?" Confusion plastered all over Darian's face. All he recalled was that they were heading for a funeral, stopped, and stopped at a base for inspection. He did not recall ever leaving the carriage. But now he was sitting on the floor, and multiple craters of destroyed land surrounded him.
My head feels dizzy.. massaging his temples, Darian felt sharp pains all across his skull. He also noticed a large bruise on his hand, the moment he did, the pain began registering. What the... did I hurt myself? Did I hurt Emory!?
After gently turning the baby over and checking for any wounds and bruises, Darian sighed with relief once he knew Emory was not hurt at all. "Let's get to the funeral.." Checking his cheap pocket watch, there was a 25 minutes before it ended.
How are we so late? Scratching his head in confusion, he slowly got up and began walking. "Wait.. where is the carriage driver?" The space ahead of him where a carriage was supposed to be parked was vacant.
He began walking around, trying to find any person. As of now, he was in the middle of nowhere.
After a couple minutes of aimless wandering, a voice called out to them. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?" It was a female military officer. She had long black hair and beautiful blue eyes. Her gear covered her modestly while she held a blade in her right hand.
"Don't you know this area is off-limits to civilians?" She eyes Darian and Emory, inching closer and closer to them, with the tip of the blade facing forward.
Darian's lips quivered before answering "We're just looking for the cemetery! It's my spouses funeral.." The officer, Katrina, immediately lowered her sword as the mood shifted.
"I-I'm sorry to hear that.. It's just, this is a military zone, no one but authorized personnel can enter." She sympathized with him but enforced the rules at the same time.
"I know, we were at a stop, for inspection." Defending his case, he raised his hands in the air slightly.
"By who?" Her eyebrows crinkled. Darian thought it was strange that this officer didn't know about the inspections. "By the military captain, I think that's what he was. He might have been a general... Either way, he stopped our carriage and began interrogating the driver."
Her face dropped. "Sir, military personnel are not authorized nor can run inspections. That's for the Special Forces."
"No, what do you mean? There was more than one man, each checking a different part of our cart."
The blood from her face rushed out, her eyes constricting in the process. "Those are terrorists." Darian's expression faded, "What..?"
She continued, "It looks like they pretended to be military officials. Their plan was most likely to kill everyone in the carriage. Assassins and terrorists, they are."
Emory stayed silent while Darian was on the brink of insanity. We were almost killed by terrorists? If so, what happened to them? Did they die? Why isn't there a carriage anymore? Am I forgetting something?
Katrina saw the expression Darian had on, she knew he had no malicious intent. She sheathed her sword and placed it on her hip before sighing softly.
"I'll help you get to the cemetery, sir. I know the pain of losing someone, the trauma it can have on one's mind." Shifting her body, she began walking in front of them and led the way.
"It's about a 20 minute walk, I'll take you there and wait, it doesn't look like you have a way to get home, sir." Darian repeatedly thanked the generous woman. "It's no problem, sir. That's what I like to think the military is for. Not just protecting people, but keeping them happy and helping when needed in any way."
Her smile lit up the deserted area. Darian chuckled and began following her, Emory eyeing both Darian and Katrina, the latter noticing his gaze.
"You have a very cute child, though I haven't seen his expression change much." She admired Emory for a couple of seconds, blushing faintly at his cuteness.
"He usually doesn't cry, but when he does, oh dear.." Darian kissed Emory's cheek, then began snuggling his nose against it. They continued small talk for 20 minutes, their conversations reaching a wide set of categories.
Not before long, they arrived at the graveyard, right in front of Elara Vaughan's grave. However, the officiant had already left, and Darian must have messed up the times.
The graveyard was still. Empty.
Darian stood frozen, staring at the fresh-turned soil. Elara's name stared back at him from the tombstone, carved with care—and no audience to see it.
His hands trembled. He took a few hollow steps forward, like his body was moving on memory, not will. The world blurred around the edges.
"I'm sorry..." he whispered, voice cracking. "I should've been here. I should've said goodbye in time.."
Emory cooed quietly in his arms, unaware. But Darian's throat tightened. There was no one left to grieve with. No priest, no eulogy. Even though he knew it would be him alone either way, that didn't stop it from hurting just as bad.
Katrina's voice broke the silence. Gentle. "I don't see an officiant… If you'd like… I could say something?"
Darian looked at Katrina with warm but tearful eyes. With a smile and soft voice, he said,
"I'd like that very much."