Despite his reservations, Walker couldn't help eyeing the strangely shimmering runic symbols covering the portions of Amberlin's skin not covered by her modest wear. However, he quickly averted his gaze to his lap in embarrassment, realizing that his actions might easily be interpreted as highly impolite or disrespectful.
Amberlin rolled her eyes, fixing Walker with a serious gaze as she repeated her statement. "Yes, we need to discuss several important matters. Some of them I have inquired about before, and you refused to provide any answers, and-"
Walker, momentarily puzzled, interrupted her. "When have I ever refused to tell you something?"
Amberlin's eyes gleamed suddenly, turning completely gold. After a brief moment, the golden glow faded, leaving only a faint golden hue in their depths.
Taking her thick brown hair, finally uncovered from the usual robe and hood, she tied it into a tail at the back of head as she chuckled in disbelief. She replied, "Such as the times I've asked about what happened to you on the night the Capital City fell when the King performed his odd ceremony."
". . . " Stunned, Walker stood mute as his mind raced.
"Many still have questions about what was going on behind-the-scenes with the King. Don't you know anything that you'd wish to share?"
Walker visibly recoiled, his gaze shifting around the tent before he eventually shut his eyes, striving to think of anything else. However, the few memories he could grasp, though fragmented and hazy, revolved around the domineering, godlike voice and its commands. The remainder consisted of distorted visions and incoherent imagery—fragments he could neither comprehend nor feel at ease sharing with anyone.
With a bit less conviction, Amberlin stated, "Even if you're unwilling or scared, the King was slain that night by the results of his conduct. You can't be blamed for sharing the truth now."
Walker kept her eyes closed, yet she could still perceive his stream of consciousness. She had already discerned that, although he retained memories of the King's summoning ritual, they were disjointed and lacking coherence.
Learning that they made little sense to Walker was enlightening. His normal thoughts about the world being a game and some voices that only he could hear still caused her to feel slightly disturbed and more than a little confused.
Even if she were somehow uncertain of the ability of her thoughthearing to discern the truth there was also the divine spell 'Truthseeking Eyes' which she had cast several times while observing or conversing with Walker over the past months.
Truthseeking Eyes allowed Amberlin an additional layer of verification of a person's thoughts, as it provided their underlying intent behind their words and actions. The spell also allowed her to peer into a person's overall motivations and was even powerful enough to provide a summary of their immediate goals through its connection with the universe- even if the subject wasn't actively thinking about such topics.
Through the knowledge imparted by the spell, she quickly realized that Walker was not concealing the memories but genuinely lacked the ability to share his own understanding of what had transpired that night.
After all, a result of the spell was the following information:
[Walker Tonlevar from nowhere, Capital City, Rostovo, also known as 513v1nkaI3vra.x91-ERROR]
[Walker is affected by a high-level providing location, information, and imposing various restrictions! Current stored divinity is insufficient to remove or isolate the Mark!]
[Walker's memories are significantly affected by the Mark, effecting to what amounts to near-total amnesia. Divinity is unable to restore his memories, currently.]
[Walker's immediate goals are survival, followed by learning about the world he now finds himself in, then eventually regaining his memories and returning home.]
Walker opened his eyes and noticed the golden glint remaining in Amberlin's eyes amidst her intense observation. He wasn't aware that Amberlin was grappling with the revelations that she had uncovered through her thoughthearing. Though none of the information pertained to the fall of the Capital City or the King's actions on that fateful night, as she had hoped, what she learned proved to be both perplexing and enlightening.
Walker remained an enigma, and while his peculiar condition might escape the notice of most NPCs, a few key individuals were already beginning to observe his unusual nature.
For his part, Walker didn't care. He suddenly looked up unabashedly and said, "I can't tell you much more than what most of the upper echelons of this society, who were present at the Castle that night, already know." Clearing his throat, his gaze turned inward momentarily as he recalled what little he could.
I opened eyes and felt as though I had just woken up. I found myself standing in a hall, fully luxurious and brightly lit. A tall, imposing man stood nearby. I assumed he was the King, although there was no crown his head. Perhaps it was his bearing, I don't know."
Feeling a bit restless, Walker pulled on a nearby tunic and stood, pacing a bit after he did so. "The King walked to me and put his hand on my shoulder and shook me, as if to wake me fully. He asked me if I was the child."
Amberlin interrupted, "A child? That doesn't make any sense, you're clearly a grown man and not of tender years."
Shrugging, he said. "I don't know, but I couldn't tell him if I was the child he meant, or not. I had no idea where I was, who he was, but I do know that at that time I still had all my memories. I began to panic, realizing that this place wasn't where I belong."
"You didn't belong in the Castle? Or the Capital City? Are you actually not from Rostovo?" Amberlin inquired curiously.
"Again, I don't know exactly where I'm from. Definitely not where I've suddenly found myself."
Reaching down he picked up his bow and inspected as he continued speaking. "The King seemed frustrated with my lack of interest in interacting or conversing with him. He grew angry, but I couldn't focus on him."
With a sigh, he continued. "Since waking, I felt as if I couldn't catch my breath for some reason. When I did breathe, the air felt thick and heavy, and it burned my lungs. After only a few moments, the strange feeling from breathing caused my head to suddenly feel as if it were going to float away from my body."
"I then noticed a woman standing a bit behind the King, but she seemed to be made of a dark fog, I couldn't see any of her features. The King looked at her, and then at me. He seemed surprised that I had noticed her, judging from the look on his face. She told him I was the child and to proceed with the ritual."
His mouth dry, Walker placed the bow aside and regarded Amberlin with a grim expression. "I recall very little after that. The King was repeating something, and the woman made of fog was channeling black smoke into me. I beheld a sphere of interwoven silver and black wires, opening into a golden-orange eye that stared deep into me."
Amberlin listened intently with no intention of interrupting. Her heartbeat throbbed powerfully in an unreasonable and palpable fear.
Looking down at her chest and arms she saw goosebumps. Her powers corroborated Walker's belief in the story he was telling her. His mind couldn't lie to itself.
"The only other thing I remember is seeing blood everywhere, hearing screams. My body moved of its own volition as I left, but I don't mean that I just somehow stumbled out of the castle in a daze. I was perfectly coherent by this point. My body just, walked out of there, very casual-like."
Walker's eyes took on a distant gaze as he recounted, "I was merely a passenger in my own body. I passed by countless horrors that disregarded me, as though I did not exist, and I continued walking until I reached the outskirts of the Capital. It's truly odd. Anyone else would've fled at full speed. I could not. I could only walk, and I was not even the one in control."
Amberlin regarded him seriously. "I'll help you. I can't guess what the King was trying to do with you but perhaps we can find out." She stood and stretched, appearing deep in thought. "Rest up. We'll speak more out on the road."
***
Feeling as if he had only just felt the softness of his cot and blanket, Walker blinked and was suddenly walking down the road. The usual bustle of the guards and civilians of the convoy around him as they all were walking earnestly in the early morning sun.
With a weird look on his face, Walker turned and looked off into the trees. There wasn't much to see but he was steadily walking and didn't have much else to do other than shoot arrows as his skill was still pretty poor.
Any grogginess from sleep had been washed away by his moment of confusion and panic. Feeling somewhat jaded that he had lost out on a peaceful morning routine, Walker angrily looked for something to shoot at.
Practicing archery brought him a sense of calm. The satisfying 'thunk' of a successful shot was motivating, while repeated misses prompted him to analyze and adjust his technique. He remained undeterred by each miss, as every arrow released brought him closer to accomplishing his quest objective.
After while of practicing, Wilford approached from ahead. He studied Walker carefully and nodded. "I think you're ready to assume some real scouting duties." Scratching his brown-grey hair near the crown of his head, where it met his balding spot, he then admitted sheepishly. "I sort of need some help and this is a good time to teach you some skills."
Nodding eagerly, Walker stated "I don't mind learning something new. I certainly owe you for helping me out."
Wilford gestured for Walker to accompany him. They departed the highway on its southern side, with Wilford guiding him through the trees and thickly growing brush along narrow trails, overrun with slender, leaf-covered branches.
Noticing a distinct difference between the sound of his own movements, compared to Wilford's near-total silence while moving through the flora, Walker attempted several strategies to try to reduce how much sound he made when moving.
The tests resulted in conflicting results. In attempting to tread more lightly, he instead seemed to crush more objects beneath his feet, producing loud snaps from breaking branches and crushed, dry leaves. When focusing on watching his steps, he inadvertently snagged his clothing and quiver on protruding bushes and thistles.
Beaming with a large grin, Wilford crouched down and allowed Walker some time to catch his breath before he spoke quietly. "I noticed you were trying to reduce how much noise you're making. While you're doing a terrible job of being quiet thus far, I feel that I have to praise you for noticing and attempting to work on it without my even asking or otherwise mentioning it."
Feeling his confidence bolstered, Walker nodded humbly.
The older man continued, "that's one of the first rules of being a scout. You have to be observant and pay attention to things that may look different or appear out of place. Our duties involve being the eyes and ears of our commanders, who can't be everywhere at once."
Wilford lifted a thick bunch of vines and gestured for Walker to move ahead, who did so by quickly crouching and moving forward. On the other side, they continued walking down the trail.
"We gather information about surroundings, battlefields, our opponents, anything we can't. We send that information up the chain of command so they can make reasonable decisions to benefit the entire force and reduce casualties."
Seeing that the younger man was absorbed in what he was saying, Wilford nodded appreciatively and then passed something to him.
It was a black-handled dagger with a large golden hexagon as the pommel.
"Where we are going could be dangerous, so take this. It's yours now so don't argue with me. Just because it looks special, I still want you to have it."
Wilford side-eyed him carefully to make sure Walker understood that he was serious as they approached a fast-moving creek.
"Stay observant."