"Hand of the Twilight Sea, we hear you thrice," the Eyes replied, this time only being a handful of them rather than the cacophony there was before. "We must follow the rules, and as a result of our own faults, we will bless this replacement, loath as some of us may be to do so. You may proceed," they continued.
Don't show any weakness now, the Mouth sent me with a subtle nod, which I returned promptly.
"Then on this day, I hereby proclaim that Edryd Baelis, son and servant of the Twilight Sea, shall be forthwith restored to his rightful place by means of replacement," he began reverently, lifting his hands high into the air.
"May the Eyes forever watch over him as his service has not yet ended," he continued, but at his last word, his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and his entire body began to tremble with a power I couldn't hope to explain.
Thoma, the core! Now! Syldir sent me urgently. I did as she requested and pushed Ed's core into the creature's chest, keeping a tendril of Wraith mana prepared to remove its coating at the right moment.
As the Mouth began to gather this strange power of his, I couldn't help but notice that there was a slight blur in my vision, as if the world itself were beginning to bend to his will between his hands. It was both colorless and colorful, pale yet full of life, vaguely reminding me of the mana Ryfon used to destroy the orb of Leech mana.
Meridian mana, the word came into my mind as if I'd recalled something long forgotten.
"Release it," he said, not as one voice, but as many. I did as he requested and pulled the sealing Wraith mana from the core just in time for him to push the orb of this strange mana into the alternate's chest. There was a bright flash that filled the room, much like opening a curtain in a dark room. The only difference was that it felt as if the sun itself were right outside the window.
For a moment, I was blinded. My ears rang, and my heart pounded with a mixture of fear and astonishment at what I'd just witnessed.
This is nothing like the story Athar or Ardrin had talked about, I realized, thinking that this major difference might have been the reason for Athar's shifting personality.
The light began to dim, as did the overbearing presence of the Eyes, and I noticed that there was hardly even a scar left behind where I'd pushed the core into the creature's chest. The silence was deafening as we waited with bated breath for it to take its first one.
I could hear the others behind and around me beginning to come back to their senses, as Mom, Ysevel, and Bernar were the first to break out of their trance. "The fuck? Hey, shit-bird, what did you do?" Bernar asked, earning him a quick hush from Syldir as we focused our attention on the alternate's chest.
Come on, breathe, you bastard, I thought, counting a total of eight heartbeats, feeling the others move in for a closer look before I saw it suddenly open its mouth and eyes wide, gasping for air and clutching its chest as it sat upright.
The sigh of relief that left my body was unlike anything I'd ever experienced.
"T-Thoma?" Ed asked in his usual yet confused voice, prompting my eyes to begin stinging a little. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Ed," I smiled, rushing forward to wrap my arms tightly around him. "Whoa, hey! What the…?" he began to ask, but I didn't give a shit. "I'm sorry it took so long to bring you back, and for everything that happened," I said, pulling away quickly to inspect him more closely.
I knew that saying that might trigger the memories to flood into his mind, which is why I had pulled away to see his reaction to them. Sure enough, his expression shifted from confused to embarrassed in the time it took me to blink.
"Ah, so that's how that happened. Thoma, I'm sorry. I didn't see it coming. Oh, and, uh… I'm sorry about what I said in the arena, too. Wait, did I really say that?" he asked, but all I could do was put a hand on his shoulder and shake my head.
"You have nothing to apologize for. Right now, just focus on adjusting to your new reality, since your memories will be mixed in with those of your alternate's. It's going to take some getting used to," I smiled thinly, earning me a light chuckle from him.
"My what? The fuck's an alternate? Oh, wait. Nevermind. I just answered my own question. Gods above, this is weird," he said, shaking his head rapidly, prompting me to chuckle. "Ah, and you might want to drink this. Just trust me on that," I said, handing him the vial Ardrin had given me.
He looked at it suspiciously for a moment, but after a nod of reassurance, he drank its contents entirely. "Ugh, I feel like I just swallowed dirty sock water with honey. What the fuck was in that stuff, and how is it supposed to help me, anyway?" he asked, flicking his tongue out of his mouth in disgust a few times.
"Heh, sorry about that. I know someone who can tell you all about how to manage what you're going through in a little while. Right now, let's get you cleaned up and presentable. There's someone else who wants to see you," I said with a warm smile.
Ed's eyes widened as the memories of that fateful evening rushed into his mind. Tears began to well in his eyes, but knowing him as well as I did, they were of relief, not sadness.
He immediately knew exactly whom I was talking about.
"T-Thank you, all of you," he said, looking around the room, halting his eyes on Syldir, then the Mouth. "Uh, I don't mean to be rude, but who are they?" he asked, jutting his thumb over at them. Surprisingly, Syldir broke into a light chuckle, but all that did was leave him even more confused than before.
"You have much to learn, young one, but for now, let's just say we are Thoma's benefactors," she smiled warmly. "Ah, so you were getting more outside help. Lucky bastard," Ed said, giving me a light punch in the shoulder. "I suppose I was," I grinned, rubbing the back of my neck awkwardly.
The next hour or two were rather uneventful. It was mostly just Ed asking questions about what had happened in between his death and rebirth, while trying to convince him that the showers in Tason'Gare wouldn't melt his skin off.
Eventually, he gave in and cleaned off years of dirt and grime, got a haircut courtesy of Ysevel, and dressed himself in a black tunic graciously provided by Sabura.
Needless to say, Ed was also confused about how he could see without eyes, and had the same reaction I'd had when the sage revealed the answer.
Brings back old memories, doesn't it? Ysevel asked, nudging me with her elbow. It sure does, I smiled. So, are we moving on to the next step? Kalia asked. We will soon. There's something I need to do before all that, though, I sent back with an uneasy feeling in my stomach. Kalia and Mom both understood exactly what I'd meant and gave me a short nod, while Ysevel and Bernar looked at me with mild concern.
"Need me to hold your hand?" Bernar asked with blatant sarcasm, making Ysevel giggle. "Nope, I'll be fine. I think…" I trailed off, considering the ramifications of the conversation I was about to have after reuniting Ed and Meliss.
"Ed?" I heard Meliss call out from the other end of the room we were waiting in. She was followed closely behind by the others who'd come along, most of them sharing the same warm expression.
I could see the look of surprise on Ed's face change rapidly into one of relief. "Meliss," he said breathlessly as he turned toward the direction of her voice. Meliss already had tears streaming down her face as she rushed forward and wrapped him in a tight hug.
"I thought I'd lost you for good," she said through a handful of sobs. He didn't say anything, but then again, he didn't have to either. He responded by hugging her close, burying his face in the crook of her neck and closing his eyes.
Bernar raised an eyebrow at me, but I merely shook my head and sent him the memories from our conversation on the Isles.
That absolute twat waffle. Ah, fuck it. At least Ed's happy, he sent me, nearly causing me to chuckle. That's what I said, Kalia jumped in with a pair of raised eyebrows. No, you called her zuresh, though I suppose that's not any better, Ysevel sent with a chuckle.
Meanwhile, I felt a slight tug on my core, signaling it was time for me to go to my other engagement. Having shared my senses with the others, they all understood and let me leave quietly. "Need me to hold your hand?" Bernar asked quietly, as the exception to that silent agreement.
"I'll be alright. I'll let you know if I need you," I muttered. Ysevel gave me a thin-lipped smile, knowing full well what I'd gotten myself into just a few hours prior, but gave me a kiss on the cheek before gently nudging me down the nearby hallway.
This is going to suck, isn't it? I asked myself, steeling my will for what was about to come.
As I reached the last bend in the hallway, I saw my next engagement already waiting for me on the balcony. Syldir and the Mouth were both leaning over the railing that overlooked the city of Tason'Gare, likely holding some silent conversation about the next steps to take.
Here we go, I thought, doing my best to calm my nerves.
"You do not have to fear me, child," the Mouth said over his shoulder, subtly gesturing for me to come toward him with another tinkling of his jewelry. "After that little show of yours, I do not believe you would be capable of doing so," he said, putting up a barrier around us as I approached the railing, mimicking their posture.
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel like I was going to crumble in fear. Had it not been for Syldir's encouragement, I might have," I admitted flatly. The Mouth burst into laughter, throwing his head back and causing all of his ornaments to jingle in synchronous movements.
"I see the hand truly wasn't lying when she said she'd found someone interesting. A truly magnificent Revelation, indeed," he said, that strange smile of his returning to his broad features. "But tell me, Thoma: how do you feel after your victory over the Sco-... I mean, Mideia?" he asked, correcting himself midway through.
"I'm not dumb enough to think that it was a complete victory. He himself said that even Ed could only handle a little less than a third of his true power, and that was easily the most difficult fight I've ever had," I said, letting my words hang before continuing.
"If I were an idiot, I'd say that I was feeling confident that with enough training, I could beat him at full strength, but I'm not. Not at all, actually. Even with the Authority at my disposal, after feeling the pressure from the Eyes, I have to admit that my confidence is a little shaken," I admitted with a sigh.
The two of them looked at me curiously. "You do realize that the Eyes are not simply one being, correct?" Syldir asked, prompting me to raise an eyebrow. "They're a collective. A council, if you will, one that helps govern the balance of the Twilight Sea. That wasn't just one dragon, but the collective weight of eight dragons bearing down on you. The Mouth was once a member of that very same council, though he sought to…" Syldir halted at a gesture from him.
"It's alright, Syldir. I will tell him myself," he said in a tone that hadn't matched any of his usual demeanor, catching me off guard. He sighed heavily and tilted his head up toward the swirling Vexing mana in the sky.
"My name, my true name anyway, is Widner Jera; the last surviving member of my clan. Yes, I was once a member of the council, though I left because I discovered the truth of it, as well as just how deeply Mideia's plans and connections ran. He is a cunning dragon. Intelligent, pragmatic, and never takes a fight when an absolute victory isn't assured," the Mouth began, fiddling with a ring on his finger.
"His machinations stretch across the entirety of the Twilight Sea, but even that can be taught to be navigated if you keep a few things in mind: he will always leave you with what seems like an impossible choice, but if you know his true intent, you have won half the battle already," Widner continued.
"He wants control," I nodded as I recalled my conversation in the depths of the forgotten city, prompting him to raise an eyebrow. "That was the same Revelation I had over a thousand years ago. Are you certain you're not like me?" he asked half-jokingly, but I chuckled and shook my head.