“…how far is it to Kani’s realm?” she asked, unable to respond to his comment.
Caritas sighed, raising his hand to reach for something but then changing his mind “I…it’s like I’ve said. Past, present, future. All times and places are the same. You know the way there, you just haven’t opened your eyes.”
“If I know the way then why are you here? Is it not to lead me?”
“I am here because I choose to be- not because I am being forced to take you somewhere.”
“What have I done to you that makes you want to be here?”
He laughed and turned away, continuing to walk even though he had said he would not lead “Tell me, when you look at me what do you see?” he asked.
She stared at him in the dark, trying hard to make out some kind of feature “I see…your cloak…I see that you’re taller than I and…and you move gracefully.” She answered.
“Then you are still looking with your mortal eyes. What you see is a body…something physical. When I look at you,” he turned “I see your soul, just as I see the soul of the water we walk in, and the people who we pass. Everything on Palis is like this, but when you’re alive you cannot see it. When you still breathe what you see is an illusion- it is only the state.”
“I don’t understand…speak simply and I will try to grasp what you say!”
“You haven’t changed at all,” he laughed, his voice echoing in the tunnel “everyone has a soul, right?”
She nodded.
“Everyone has a soul, and everyone has a body. Everything…every grain of sand, every insect is made up of the same thing- I will call it a soul. This soul is the reality- the true universe. The body –what we see when we’re alive- is an illusion. It is what hides the truth of everything. This place…this is the border of life because it is where the two elements mix most- where both forms are most visible.”
Titania nodded “I think I understand…” she said “The place I’m trying to find…Kani’s Realm- is it in the physical world? Or is it part of the true universe?”
“In truth they are the same.” Caritas corrected “You have always been living in the true universe- you just haven’t been able to see it.”
“Please, don’t confuse me more.” She protested.
“Alright…Kani’s Realm lies halfway between Palis and Heaven. Kani has been able to reach the Celestial Kingdom because he is only a demigod at the moment.”
”Then he means to reach the land of the gods?”
“He means to become a god.”
“What do you mean?”
“Ages ago, Kani absorbed the energy of his sister, Isea. This was simple for him, because she had once been a part of his own- her soul having been a part of his. This initial action was to end her pain- to make sure she would live on through him rather than to suffer and disappear through illness. His intention was good, but soon he could not resist the power that he had taken in. He wanted more.”
“But how…it’s impossible to absorb someone’s soul!”
“Not impossible. If one is connected to both the body and soul –as Kani was- it is as simple as breathing.”
“Body and soul…” Titania repeated “Then…by building his fortress between the two layers of the world he means to-”
“Yes, I’m afraid so. He’s using his position to absorb the life force from those who still roam on Palis. He plans to make himself a god by feeding off the souls of others.”
“Then why- why does he need us? Why is he luring us in?”
“He knows that you and Noah hold the keys to heaven. He is only part of it. Without you two he cannot advance any further.”
“Noah? But I thought…”
“The fate stone- or the soul of the fate stone. The thing that you lost in a duel with Kani.” He said, reminding her of the scene she had seen aboard the Highwind- the fight that had occurred before she spoke with Variel for the first time in this life “It was split into two, and the half that Kani received was given to Noah- his most trusted friend. The soul still lingers with the knight even now, and it is a key to heaven.”
“Then why does he need me?”
“As Ishtar’s child you are the one who will find the lock which these keys can turn.”
“Then he does need us…” she muttered “And we’re walking straight to him.”
“There’s no other way.”
Titania turned to Caritas with quiet eyes “Do we have any chance? Any chance of destroying him?”
“You do.”
“And what about…what about surviving?”
“…” Caritas was silent for a moment, trying to answer her the best he could “…the past has a habit of repeating itself.” He finally muttered.
She lowered her gaze, staring at the ground to mask her reaction “How long do I have?”
“Two sunsets at most, and then you will find your end.”
“…you would think I’d be glad to die. I’ve hoped for death for nearly a month now, yet as it stares me in the face I can’t help but feel fear.”
“We all feel fear before we go. It is natural. Have courage and persevere, your only other option is to run.”
“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t tempting.”
He smiled and lifted her chin “Just focus on the present. The past and the future are out of your control.”
She nodded “Your voice is assuring. Perhaps…perhaps I
do remember you.”
A smile tore at his cold lips for a brief second, but he turned away, showing a pain in the action “Come, try to focus on the realm you are seeking. You’ve been there before, you need only to remember it.”
She took his hand, weaving her small fingers into his “You must help me. Come, lend me some of your power” His own skin seemed like ice against her white palms and he stared at it in curiousity when she did not withdraw.
Titania closed her eyes and thought, rifling through all of her dreams- all of the visions that had eaten away at her for nearly a year now. As the seasons changed, she saw her past melt into the rivers and fall yellow from the shivering trees. She saw Noah in the cherry blossoms of Adinem, and Variel in the fish that swam in the ocean. She saw Kani and Isea –the latter whom she had never met- and in a flash of lightning she saw Gadriel. She felt his grasp as he carried her across Ishtar’s pool, treading in the sacredness that had separated her from the rest of the world. When finally he stood firm on the other side he was no longer the prince of a distant kingdom, he was Malice.
Finally, she opened her eyes, and there before her rose the gates of Kani’s kingdom- as terrible as death. She turned to face Caritas and nearly withdrew behind him “This is where I must go? Will you not come with me?”
“My time in the realm of mortals is over. I could not return even if I wanted to.”
“Then you don’t want to?” she asked, and sounded disappointed “…you mean for me to leave you? “
“Indeed it must be so.” He answered, but drew her close, pressing his palm against her feeble stomach “I will pass to you all that is left of my life force- that you may have the power enough to defeat Kani. This spell that I give to you now will make great difference in the world. Use it wisely and know that it is my own power which I choose to give to you.”
She waited a moment as the spell passed from his hand to her own soul “You trust me with such a gift yet you claim to know me only from the battle of Gracia.”
“I did not say
only”
“It is no use anyways, I know of you now. Tell me,
Caritas will I ever see you again?”
He smiled though his face seemed sad “You will see me in due time.”
“Two sunsets.” She smiled slightly, tears gathered in her ethereal eyes “Two sunsets and then I will find you by the sea that we both miss.”
Kani’s realm began to circle around her, pulling her away though she wished to stand behind. His cloak billowing in the quiet wind, he watched her in the shadow, silent as she seemed to melt away.
“Thank you,” Titania whispered quietly, knowing he could hear her “Thank you, Malice.”
*
“Glenn?”
The knight turned and saw his friend behind him, her focus spread across the disturbing mural on the wall. He said nothing as she moved slowly forward, kneeling before the daggers which were slotted into the ground. Quietly, she said a prayer to the Wind Goddess and withdrew the weapons, able to do so only because Malice's life force now flowed through her. Turning back to Glenn with a thousand silent words, she sheathed the objects and placed them the best she could in her sash. She nodded to him, falling to the back of the group without so much as a word.
“I suppose that means everyone is here…” The knight finally muttered, turning back to face the wall, his gaze falling on the old scythe “…everyone who
should be here is here.”