Fastforward from the guest room discussions between Yel, Leon and Merika, we find ourselves in the starting point of the journey to Saint Michloe's chapel.
It was an hour past midday, as the carriages were getting ready to depart. 3 in total, all identical.
Merika with a veil over her face to conceal her position as royalty of Malecia to the public, found a seat with Leon and Stella in one of the carriages.
Al remained on the outside to cover their perimeter.
The rest of the party shared the seats in the remaining 2 carriages - in front of Merika's - with all 3 about to set off.
The furthest in front had Yel's group, shared with 2 other members of the rank B Mage party.
As usual, Luche and Klein were 'talking' it out.
"*hick*, gosh, I zink i mayz aff drunk...a little bit err too much" Luche covers her mouth, cheeks pink, borderline drunk.
"And she says I'm the drunkard here" Klein commented
"Ah zippit, u-u di-did, mur...6 but....bottles *hick* than I did" Luche responded, pointing weakly at Klein as she could barely keep her balance.
"Ahaa, but the irony remains, I'm the only one making sense in this conversation"
Klein said supporting Luche, to prevent her from tripping over herself.
"haha somethings never change do they" Yel chuckled.
"Indeed. Heh, Luche's never been one to hold her liquor and urk-"
Klein got rudely interrupted by Luche, who clung and wrapped her arms tightly around him, as if she was squeezing a plushie.
"urk...yup, she gets-clingy too hahah" Klein struggling to speak as she dragged himself with her in tow towards the carriage.
"I'll take her inside, she should be good in an hour" Klein said
Yel nodded, tightening his dagger sheath to his waist while adjusting the fit of his gloves.
"If everything goes smoothly, she should have sobered up long before we get to the forests" Yel said
"Yup ack! talk later my friend, gotta get Luche in before I get -urk, squeezed to death hahaha" Klein said still trying to find the funny side.
Yel shakes his head as he watched them make it inside somehow.
Then he turned around, staring at the horizon.
"(The journey will begin soon, I hope nothing goes wrong)"
Yel walks towards Al, who was done sorting out his team's gear.
"Al, I'm going to scout ahead as planned"
Al nods and throws a small whistle to him, he catches.
"If you notice anything strange, blow the whistle." said Al
Yel examining the small whistle.
It seemed to have been made from the tusks of a bull-drough dog - a ferocious beast famous in Beastkin lands
"It'll produce a sound only String watchers can hear, I'll act accordingly after" Al said
Yel nodded and stashed the whistle.
"I'm off then"
Yel said and took off, being watched through the windows by Stella from within their carriage.
"It seems our scout has set off" Stella announced to Leon. "I hope he stays out of trouble" she continued
With arms folded, Leon stood silent, focused only on their immediately vicinity
"Are you sure we can trust him?" asked Merika, as she took off her veil.
Stella chuckled - "Isn't it a bit too late for that my lady?" she said.
"Still..." Merika muttered
"Well, think of it as the result of... let's say, experience. For you see, there's no such thing as a perfect plan. So, we must always prepare for the unexpected." Stella said
"preparing for the unexpected?" Merika reiterated
"Yes, and you'd be surprised to learn the best way of overcoming an unexpected problem, is by using the least expected of solutions. Yel, is just that" Stella responded with a charming smile.
Merika gave Stella's words some thought and came to the following conclusion.
"I take it this is the experience of Grimstone Banner speaking?" she asked Stella.
"hahaha that'd be giving us far too much credit" replied Stella, leaving the question partially unanswered.
She had this neat way of avoiding questions, one of her strongest suits.
Merika managed to let out a subtle smile, despite her worries.
Placing her hands together on her lap, she's doing her best to remain comfortable for the journey and the sake of the mission.
Meanwhile, back to Yel scouting ahead
He was a fair way away from carriage, evaluating the lay of the land, and analyzing for any inconsistencies.
After scouting for quite a while, he took a brief pause by a nearby lake, it was a short break.
Staring at his reflection on the lake, his thoughts drifted back to the discussion in the guest room at the guild.
Yel's recollection of the guest room interaction goes as follows:
"I'll like you meet Lady Merika, grand-daughter of the All Saint Father and the crown princess of Malecia" Leon introduced Merika.
Caught completely unaware by this, Yel immediately left his seat, going down to his knees as a sign of respect.
"Princess Merika, do forgive my rudeness earlier, I -"
"Please, lift your head, it's no trouble at all" she interrupted as Yel hesitantly responded to her request.
"Thank you"
She nodded and was making her way to a nearby sofa. Leon followed her closely, and remained standing by her side as she sat down, then gestured for Yel to do same.
"Sit, let's talk for a while"
Yel being as discreet as possible, made his way back to his seat.
However, he was still far from comfortable despite the sofa's cushions best effort. Such was the pressure of the dignified presence he had been graced with.
"Leon has already informed me of the knowledge that was shared with you so far. Firstly, I will ask that you keep that knowledge a secret" In a soft voice and considerate tone, Merika spoke.
"O-of course" Yel responded, a little bit hastily.
In the presence of royalty, those of common birth couldn't help but be extra receptive, or recipient. Yel was no different.
"Good" Merika nodded.
"I understand what has been said is quite an unbelievable tale, but... it is the truth and I shall prove it to you." she continued, and then proceeded to place her hands on her chest.
Yel couldn't help but notice the faint light particles that were forming around her, they seemed harmless.
But then, she started groaning in pain, as her silky white hair was haphazardly waving about, affected by the sheer force of the presence she was manifesting.
"Urgh...rrrgghhh" struggling with the pain, she was drawing out what appears to be a sparkly red gemstone, with glyphs and weird codes drawn on its edges.
As soon as the object started revealing itself, Yel felt a spike piercing and painful jolt in his chest
"Urk!"
Yel was facing difficulties breathing, as the pain was unbearable, he squeezed his chest with his left hand, trying to suppress the discomfort.
"Hm?" Leon noticed Yel's condition, but before he could act, Merika's cries drew back his attention.
"Aarhh" she cried out, managing to finally pull the object from her chest.
"Are-are you alright princess?" Yel more concerned about the princess than himself, managed to cloud his pain, as he tried to reach out to her.
But she motioned for him to remain calm and keep to his seat.
"I'm fine, the pain is gone..."
With the item released, Merika could finally catch her breath. Likewise for Yel, as he could no longer feel the throbbing pain in his heart.
"(The pain's stopped... it felt like it was reacting to the artifact? what is that artifact really?)"
The artifact was pulsating in midair, giving off this chilling aura of something menacing, something extraordinarily powerful.
Yel was lost beyond words by what he's just seen and experienced, unable to hide an expression that was rapidly shifting between shock, worry and terrified.
Leon offered Merika a tissue as she coughed a bit on it.
"Thank you Leon" she appreciated his gesture.
"(The pain I felt...was it the same as hers?)" Yel pondered worriedly as he stared at Merika cleaning off a bit off blood from her lips
The pain they both felt was heavy, but it was an effort that needed to be made, to pull out this powerful artifact.
"This is a True Scripture, that of the Shepherd potential killed in Malecia"
Merika kept her hands close together on her lap, and continued.
"In order to maintain order in the 8 kingdoms, and prevent the item from being retaken, Grand father had Ayla seal the item within me, due to the high spiritual energy and resistance I possess"
Yel's eyes widened. "(Don't tell me?)" his mind was filled with immense shock.
"A moving item is harder to steal than a standing one, he said"
Yel clenches his hands into a strong and wicked grip.
He was not impressed, and could only just contain his anger from overflowing in the presence of Merika.
"(That bastard! is that all he cares about? the Holy Inquisition, reputation of the order? Does he fully understand as long as his granddaughter carries this...this burden, she will never be able to safely walk the kingdoms ever again?)" Yel suppressing these thoughts.
Then he stared at Merika, who maintained the same forlorn look she had when she first stepped out of the room.
"(I can't imagine how she must be feeling right now...carrying this dangerous artifact within her)"
"I...I understand why he did it...it's...it's for our kingdoms. And...and my role as princess of Malecia bids me to do everything I can to keep it safe."
The sound of her voice was one that was not sure of herself.
Unconvincing, scared and alone.
Leon as if reading the same script Yel was reading, gently placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Forgive my forthrightness, but I'll take it from here"
She felt slightly relieved and nodded
Leon walked towards the artifact.
"Tasked with its safety, Lady Merika has to get to Saint Michloe's chapel to meet with Saint Ayla. There, we can learn about the True scriptures and perhaps a reason why our 'shadow walkers' find it useful"
"This...this is all-"
"Too much to take?" Leon interrupted Yel, and then continued
"Yes it is. That said, what I'm about to say, is all you need to know"
"Protect Merika, that is the true objective of this mission, everything else, is secondary. Is that understood?" Leon said with a frown.
For the first time, Yel could sense genuine concern and sincerity behind Leon's words.
This was more than just an order.
"Understood" Yel said in a voice filled with determination and resolve.
Leon expression lightens up a bit as he leaned away from the artifact. Delighted he had found another comrade.
"So long as Merika remains safe, the shadow walkers will be forced to act, and that's when we'll make our move to flush them out, and put end to all of this" said Leon as he nodded to Merika.
Then, he removed 2 black rounded stones from his pockets.
"That said, I have a... different plan for you, Yel"
End of Yel's recollection as his full attention got back to the lake and his reflection
"(Shepherds being murdered... an artifact of immense power... and a shadow organization collecting them; no matter how hard I think, there's no good outcome that can possibly come from these series of events)"
Suddenly, a red liquid stained the clear lake reflecting Yel and the skies above.
"huh?"
Then another drop in the lake. Yel intuitively reached to wipe his nose with the back of this hand.
"!?? Im...impossible!!?" shocked he stepped back, there was blood on his hand.
He was bleeding and for the first time it wasn't as the result of a nightmare.
Then it moved on from the nosebleed as blood was leaking from his mouth next, he goes down on his knees coughing extensively.
Barely able to catch his breath, he heard a voice within him, that sounded eerily familiar.
"Hahahahahahahahahaha" It was the voice from his nightmares, the voice of Rute Zenva.
"tsk...what's happening to me" the bleeding was not slowing down as he rushes over to the lake, trying to wash off the blood with much haste before it covers the entire lower half of his face.
"Hahahahahahaha"
The laughing did not stop as he kept on washing and washing
A short while later, the bleeding finally stopped, and then the laughter too.
But replacing the laughter was a premonition.
"Hmhmhm, soon, very soon" the voice spoke to Yel's mind.
"huh?" Yel stared at the lake in shock, his reflection was no more.
Instead it was overshadowed by what seems to be a completely pitch black silhoutte of another person's face entirely.
"All it'll take for an eternity's rest, is but a mere moment of pain and soon, ruin shall come" said the voice as it faded away.
Following that, was the silhoutte reflection; gradually being replaced by that of Yel once more.
The reflection was the face of someone in a great deal of shock, an experience that completely deviated from what was considered the norm.
He stood up, staring at his palm and then back at the lake.
"What...what just happened? That felt...surreal..."
Yel was completely dumbfounded, as what he just experienced and witnessed was beyond believe. It'll take some time before he could steel his resolve once again.
The voice that promised oblivion in his nightmares just spoke to him while awake, promising ruin in turn.
All that has just happened, he could not easily dismiss...