Chapter 10: The Echo in the Ember
The return to Last-Hope was a somber procession. There were no cheers this time, only the quiet respect of a people who understood the cost of their survival. They saw Orion, leaning heavily on Roric's shoulder, his knuckles raw and swollen. They saw the pallor of exhaustion on Elpis's face, the distant look in Leander's eyes. This was not the clean triumph of the Blackwood ambush. This was the grim aftermath of a battle against something far darker.
In the days that followed, a fragile normalcy returned. The blight did not reappear. Scouts reported that the forests, while still dangerous, were no longer unnaturally silent. The immediate threat had been lifted. But a new tension had taken its place, one born of Pythios's final promise.
Leander found himself haunted. Not by nightmares of Azhoroth, but by the memory of his own actions. The feeling of his will piercing Pythios's mind, of manipulating the demon's deepest insecurities, left a cold stain on his soul. It had been necessary, but it felt… corrupt. He had used a weapon of shadow, not of light.
He sought solitude in the highest watchtower, staring out at the horizon where the demonic legions festered. The connection he had felt to Azhoroth's rage and Pythios's pride terrified him. It was as if breaking the world's barrier had also broken a seal within himself, allowing him to touch the same darkness he was sworn to fight.
"You are not the only one who feels changed."
Leander turned to find Elpis standing behind him. Her hands were wrapped in clean linen, but she carried herself with a new steadiness.
"After the fire… it's like I can feel the heat in everything now," she said, joining him at the ledge. "The stones in the sun, the breath of the people… it's all a low, warm hum. It's beautiful, but it's also… overwhelming." She looked at him, her gaze knowing. "And you? It's more than just tiredness, isn't it?"
Leander didn't answer immediately. He looked at his own hands, clean and unmarked, yet feeling filthy. "To stop him, I had to understand him," he confessed, the words feeling like a betrayal of his own purpose. "I had to touch his pride, his servitude to Deimos. And in doing so, I felt it. The echo of it is still inside me. What if… what if the Catalyst isn't just meant to awaken our light? What if it's meant to channel their darkness, too?"
Before Elpis could respond, a commotion below drew their attention. Shouts, not of alarm, but of confusion. They descended the tower to find a crowd gathered in the main square. At its center stood Captain Vorlik, and before him was a stranger.
The man was tall, clad in worn but functional traveler's leathers. He carried no visible weapon, but he stood with an unnerving stillness that commanded space. His hair was stark white, though his face seemed young, and his eyes held a weight of years that mirrored the look people often accused Leander of having.
"I am called Kaelen," the stranger said, his voice calm and clear, carrying effortlessly over the murmuring crowd. "I have traveled from the Sunken City of Aethel, and I have come in search of the one they call the Catalyst."
Every eye in the square turned to Leander. Vorlik's hand rested cautiously on the hilt of his sword. "State your business, traveler. We are wary of strangers bearing titles."
Kaelen's gaze found Leander, and it was like being seen for the first time. Those ancient eyes seemed to look right through him, past the fear and the doubt, to the fractured power at his core.
"My business is with the echo in the ember," Kaelen said, his words cryptic yet resonant. "I felt the shattering, even from across the blighted plains. And I felt the… riposte. You have drawn the gaze of the true enemy, young Catalyst. And you have done it by using a power you do not understand."
He took a step forward, ignoring the tense guards.
"You believe you awakened humanity," Kaelen continued, his voice dropping, meant for Leander alone now. "But you are mistaken. You have simply begun a process that was interrupted long ago. And the enemy you face, the one you call Deimos… his true name is Azhoroth. And he is not just a fallen god."
Kaelen's eyes held a terrifying, knowing light.
"He is your progenitor, Leander. The first Catalyst. And the power you fear within yourself… it is his legacy."
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Author's Note:
A bombshell revelation and a mysterious stranger! The plot deepens as Leander's own origin and the true nature of his power are called into question. Who is Kaelen, and can he be trusted? What does it mean that Azhoroth was the first Catalyst?
The story takes a dramatic new turn! Thank you for your continued engagement. If you're captivated by the unfolding mysteries, your support through adding the story to your library or a rating is immensely valuable and motivates the journey forward.