Hearing that question, Woldemir immediately sunk into sadness as if Eric flipped a Lever. Although his tone shaking here and there, Woldemir still managed to explain a little bit. "Eric my son, your mother was definitely unique but..."
"But was she a witch?" Eric asked once more, becoming sadder by the moment since the topic is about his mother.
Seeing no reason to hide this anymore since thicker facts are visible, Woldemir answered. "She was... Yes she was a witch! A fire witch!"
Eric expected this answer and even if Woldemir chose to lie again, Eric would still believe that his mother is a witch although he never met her. Having all these powers explains it all, Woldemir can't blast fire either so that points out towards the fact.
Keeping calm, hoping to squash more information out of his father, Eric decided to ask. "What happened to her? I think I'm old enough to know now!"
Willing to be honest, but trying to break it down easier, Woldemir sunk in the war a tad bit. "One night, I woke up to flames and smoke. Those illustratios found out that your mother is... a Witch."
Able to put two and two together, basing it from countless stories he heard about witches and wizards being murdered and excuse slaughter by labelling them Demons, A tear broke out of Eric's eye as he tightened his teeth.
Standing strong, refusing to cry no matter what, holding himself together which feels like an entire exercise, the only thing he could speak was one word. "And?"
Finally getting to the point, Woldemir explained. "It's hard to tell you this but the illustratios killed your mother. In Fact they tried to kill all three of us."
Grabbing Eric firmly by the shoulders to show comfort while telling the story, Woldemir continues with the hardest to hear part. "I woke up to flames and smoke but I wasn't on my bed. The smoke put me in a deep sleep, but it didn't take down your mother though."
As he explained this sensitive matter, all Stefan and Mogranius could do was stand and watch. Them commenting in this situation can add more stress to the young Eric, it's better to listen or just sit on a stump.
Woldemir continued to explain, "When I was awake she already dragged me all the way through the room and threw me out of the bedroom window."
Pushing away these strong feelings, Eric forced himself to speak a bit more this time. "But she should have survived along with us right? She was a fire Controller after all! How did she..."
Eric failed to finish one sentence, but thankfully his father understood and continued. "Right after I woke up, I crawled up the window and saw your mother approaching with three month old you in her arms. But... right after she handed you to me, the building... collapsed and your mother got crushed because of it."
Breaking down, Eric let it all out with a shout. "So it is because of me? She died while getting me out of the house?" Several tears followed after, he had no chance to stop them anymore.
Woldemir shouts from the top of his lungs. "Neither you or I or your mother are to blame. If those bastards didn't lit the house on fire, none of this would have happened."
Eric murmured, "But..."
"There is no but." Woldemir shouted again, and pulled his son into a hug.
This at least helped, Eric won't see his mother ever again but at least he has Woldemir. His presence, his hug is helping more than Eric expected. All the young man could do was keep his arms down since he isn't used to hugs, but it sure felt nice.
Detaching from the hug, Woldemir continued to try and comfort. "It's hard to swallow but your mother is dead. However with you as the Electus we do have a chance to fight back!"
Seeing that the father son moment is close to an end, Mogranius jumped in between their conversation and asked. "Wait, where is BlackWind?"
"Oh no."
"Well we can't carry a horse."
"We left him back at..."
"Looks like we didn't leave him there after all."
After that they see BlackWind running through the woods breaking branch after branch and bush after bush. A six foot tall half a ton horse would leave landmarks like that easily. But they all were happy that BlackWind made it. He is part of the family after all. Now all of the Gang members are together.
The moment BlackWind reached them(with an illustratio guard's helmet tangled on his hair), they were all happy to see BlackWind in one piece. And all of them ran towards the beautiful horse, and rubbed his fur and with big smiles on their faces they kept repeating.
"HaHa that's our horse."
"That's our beauty."
"He is our soldier."
"The illustratio he ran over will have nightmares."
"If he is alive that is."
"He is a good Horse."
"A good strong boy."
But apart from all the compliments Black Wind got, he turned towards Woldemir and blew his hot nose air on his face in an angry manner.
Obviously the Horse didn't like how he got left behind, especially from Woldemir. Horses got feelings too, but loyalty even more.
Speaking to a Horse, Woldemir tried to comfort. "I know it was unfair to leave you behind, but at least you are alive hehe."
BlackWind yet again blows hot air through his nose towards Woldemir's face and walks away, not far away though. Just a few feet apart from the gang to chew on a bush.
"Well since the whole gang's here, how about we move on?" Pointed out Woldemir but met himself seeing many perplexed faces.
Adding a bit of sass, Stefan added. "Move on? Move on to where? We can't live under a bush."
Used of exploring, and used of living in the wild. Mogranius explained shortly while feeling a bit annoyed too. "A moon away there is a cave, perfect for meditation and no one can find us there."
Pointing out the risk factors, since it has become usual for him throughout his lifetime, Mogranius slightly complained. "Is it safe to be just a moon away from this spot? Eric caused a lot of damage, the King would do anything to massacre us."
Pointing out stupidity, Mogranius butchered. "Nono, it's far from the road, plus the illustratios wouldn't know a cave which has spiritual value."
Liking how illustratios are getting cussed, Stefan answered. "Good point, let's move."