The Inner Odyssey

When he was fighting within the horde, Alden didn't have any time to think about what might happen to the common warriors of the Sanctuary. As cruel as that was, he had to remain focused. After all, a single mistake would have meant his death.

However, now that he was behind the front lines, Alden had a closer and intimate view of the slaughter of these intrepid humans. He cursed, his heart hurt turning to stone. The sight was just too much for him to bear.

Alden swiftly turned numb.

Just then, he felt something fly into his arms.

Shifting his neck, Alden gazed at his precious bond.

As his eyes pooled with tears, the young man held Ignia tight. He desperately clung to her warmth, hoping the little phoenix could thaw his rapidly freezing heart.

Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around his shoulders, and Alden belatedly realised that Celeste was still there, right beside him. He shuddered, doing his best to keep himself together. The trio - composed of two humans and a phoenix - stayed like that for an interminable length of time.

Ignia continued to nuzzle Alden from the front, while Celeste squeezed him from the back, doing everything she could to be there in his time of need.

The common warriors continued to die around them.

***

Celeste frowned, unnerved at the abrupt change in Alden's demeanour. He was fine just a little while ago, so why did he suddenly seem so down?

As she scanned the front lines with her Mana sense, the young lady had an inkling of the reason.

But that also brought forth another question…

Why did it feel like Alden held himself personally responsible for their deaths?

For the people in the Sanctuary who were born into an Apocalypse - including her and him -, death was an ever-present thing.

It shaped their childhood and day-to-day life, as well as their views on existence, and how futile and fickle that was. Celeste found it a little strange how Alden was so affected by what was happening on the front lines.

Surely he must have seen a lot of death in his time out in the Wilderness.

So why was he so upset right now?

'It's not like he was indirectly responsible for their deaths, right?'

Maybe it had to do with the overwhelming scale of slaughter. This was certainly the most death the two of them had ever seen.

Celeste suppressed her discomfort at that thought.

She tightened her hug, hoping that her embrace could stem some of the alarming negativing coming off Alden. Time passed slowly in this manner. Eventually, Celeste felt her childhood friend shift, breaking out of his daze. She smiled, thinking Alden had overcome whatever was troubling him.

However, in the next moment, she froze. Her eyes widened.

"Thank you, Cece. I'm fine now."

What startled Celeste wasn't what he had said. No, that was perfectly fine.

Rather…

It was how Alden had said it that troubled her.

There was a distinct lack of emotion in his voice.

A twinge of anxiety ran through Celeste. Her love was most definitely not fine.

Just before she could refuse Alden's request for her to extricate herself, he spoke once again. This time, it was a whisper that contained an endless pain.

"Please."

Celeste instinctively let go of Alden's shoulders. She slowly stood up, biting her lips. She clenched her fists, feeling very useless. As if having an inkling of her thoughts, Alden turned around slightly to face her.

"You were a great help."

His lips curled into the smallest hint of a smile, and Celeste's heart broke. Even when he was suffering greatly, Alden still thought about comforting her. She felt her eyes pool, no doubt glistening with an onslaught of tears.

Celeste fought back against that. She didn't want to cry.

Giving him a short nod, the young lady suppressed the uneasiness in her heart.

Celeste watched as Alden turned back around. He spoke over his shoulder.

"I'm going to meditate again. Don't wait for me."

The implication of his words was clear:

…Save as many people as you can.

Summoning her bow, Celeste took a deep breath. She would do her best to fulfil Alden's wish.

Both because she loved him, and also because they shared the same desire. She wanted to prevent as many people from dying as possible. That was another responsibility she held as a Chosen of the Divine Sovereign.

The Dark Elves and the Defiled also had to pay for murdering so many of her race.

As the flames of vengeance roared to life inside Celeste, she shouldered her bow and nocked an arrow.

She took a step forward.

A second later, two arrows flew through the air. The projectiles imbued with life energy swiftly pierced the unlucky abomination in the eye. It swiftly toppled over, dead. Celeste shifted her focus to the next one, and the next, and the next.

A relentless cycle of killing ensued.

As the battle raged on, the air became thick with the smell of blood, both fetid black and crimson. The colour seeped into the snow, dying it a murky red. The surrounding mist also thickened as the intensity of heat and ice increased.

The clangour of combat also rose, growing louder and more disturbing by the second.

Celeste struggled to block it out.

As her fingers protested from launching so many arrows, she gritted her teeth and ignored the pain. Her figure glowed briefly. The young lady fought against her fatigue, using her powers to keep herself going. She couldn't stop. Wouldn't.

The Dark Elves and abominations slowly marched forward, undeterred by the Ember Clan's relentless assault. It seemed the enemy had gotten more harrowing, for the flames that had once given them pause were now no longer as effective.

Celeste's expression turned grave.

Before she could even absorb that fact, she noticed the vanguard of the vast army had conquered a substantial distance. Blood poured as those on the front-line swiftly lost their lives.

The opposing army was now dangerously close to her and Alden. Celeste's eyes instinctively locked onto the Snow Tigers and their feral grins, as well as the strange symbols that denoted the presence of the Dark Elves.

Her face paled slightly.

Celeste paused and took a step back.

'I need to grab Al and run.'

However, just before she could act on her thoughts, out of nowhere, a broad-shouldered man suddenly crashed into the vast horde. Accompanying him was a small but battle-hardened group of fighters wearing golden armour.

When she gazed at them, Celeste felt like she was looking at a miniature reflection of the sun.

She blinked.

She knew that armour.

She also knew that aura…

A bright smile suddenly split her face.

The Sunbrawler's had joined the battle in the nick of time.