"Camie and all the others are orphans." Jayson stated. "Well, not Avery, I grew up with her on an island outside of Ignus in my early childhood. My dad sent me there after my mom died because he thought it would be a better environment for me to be in and to train my water essence. However, they kept my mother's death a secret from me until I returned to Ignus six years later. When I did go back, things in the capital were... different."
"Different how?" Treya questioned.
"People were protesting in the streets
outside of the palace almost every day. Saying things like 'remove the lazy king' and 'give us back our god'. My uncle Kajar was the primary person stirring the pot by sparking those protests, which eventually turned to riots. During that time, my father stayed neutral during everything, but his passivenesss was misconstrued as indolence. Kajar's people ended up giving him the same treatment as my grandfather."
"Damn, your family got issues." Kaden said out of the blue, which was followed by Mai glaring at him. "Apologies, please continue."
"After seeing how the public slowly turned on my father for no reason at all, a friend of his came to check on me one day at our residence. Her name was Mother Merina Canton. She was the director of a foster home not far from where I was living at the time. She periodically came over to check on me because my dad wasn't coming home as often anymore due to everything going on. Soon enough, I was going to the foster home instead to make things easier on her. Admittedly, I was beginning to feel lonely at home, so I thought it'd be nice to help out at the home. It was there that I met who I now call 'my family'. Nakayla and Shaedon were already staying there full time under Mother Merina's care. The others came in later on at different points. I never pried too much into their previous lives before the foster home because I always felt as if it didn't matter where they came from. I just knew I wanted to do anything I could to give them a better life now. Pertaining to Camie, there was one thing I always thought was strange. Mother Merina brought in all the others herself. Whether it be because of a message or an anonymous tip, she would go investigate the situation herself before taking in the child. Camie, however, just appeared on the front steps of the foster home on one rainy night. She was only six at the time, so of course Mother Merina didn't turn her away."
"Did this Mother Merina not make an effort to find out the child's background?" Faye questioned.
"She did, but every loose thread tied to Camie came up empty. Even her last name, Baxter. There wasn't anybody in the Ignus registry who shared that name. It was like she just fell out of the sky along with the rain."
"Yet you bring her on an intercontinental journey with you." Treya stated.
"Camie was no exception from the others in regard to the relationship I had built with them. Like I said, it didn't matter to me what their previous life was, I just wanted to do anything I could for them now. She was smart and very resourceful. She had a quick temper towards the boys, but that was her way of showing that she loved them. Before the incident happened, Camie, Tanner, and Mano all disappeared while I was training Kaden. He told me that they found Mano and Tanner, but they never located Camie. This is why you're asking about her, isn't it?"
"Tanner and Mano were both unconscious and had bruising on the back of their necks, which made us believe someone knocked them out with a blow to that area." Maleah explained. "A severe strike to that area could possibly be deadly if done recklessly, so it takes some level of skill to successfully knock out two people like that without them even noticing you. The boys are well now and have recovered, and they've said that they don't remember what happened to them. They just remember being hit from behind."
"Kaden and Mai reported that just before the incident, they encountered a dense fog cloud near the swampland area." Treya added. "Tanner and Mano told us that they were in a heavy cloud of fog before they were knocked out, and Camie was with them. That fog cloud was a technique used primarily by Sister Mildred, so we can deduce that those two were in close proximity to each other before the incident."
"And now both of them are still missing." Faye commented. "Also, it should be fine to say now since everything has already happened, but that swampland area is where the rune was that kept the lake suspended above Aestus."
"Wait... so that burst of blue light I remember seeing was..."
"It was the rune being destroyed." Faye said, finishing Kaden's sentence.
"...Jayson, are we missing any information that could possibly help us get a grasp on what exactly happened?" Treya asked carefully. "Do you have any idea how they knew the Phoenix was here?"
"...No. I don't know. I'm sorry." Jayson replied apologetically.
Treya glanced back at the other elders and nodded her head to signify that Jayson was telling the truth.
"Thank you for everything you shared with us, Jayson." Said Claire. "The other members of your family are all safe and well. If you'd like, Mai here can take you to them."
"Before that." Kaden interjected. "A small request."
"Yes, Kaden? What is it?"
"Well -"
KEEEAAAW!
A sudden bird call took the attention of everyone on the platform, followed by the sudden appearance of a falcon.
"Taibai!" Faye exclaimed.
"Sister, you know that bird?" Claire questioned.
"He's a messenger from Ventus, and he's no ordinary bird. Taibai has lived for several decades, much longer than any normal falcon, because of a blessing he received from one of Ventus' deities. The Caladrius."
His appearance was also slightly different from regular falcons as Taibai possessed a white belly along with a white tail. A white stripe traveled from his tail all the way up his back and over the top of his flat head, and his wings were brown on top while orange underneath. The feathered friend perched on a branch next to Elder Faye, where she noticed a rolled up sheet of paper being gripped by his talons.
"Is this for me?" Faye asked as she presented her hand to Taibai.
The bird inspected her hand and then inspected her face before releasing the letter and raising his foot of it. Faye then took the letter, unrolled it while walking closer to the others.
"I hope this letter finds you well, Elders of Aestus. I am both shocked and appalled by the actions of Ignus and Kajar Syton on the water continent, and there is no doubt that repercussions must be sent their way immediately. Unfortunately, Ventus is in no position to aid you with such actions at the moment. To be honest, we were preparing to seek out assistance from you before we received the recent news. However, now that it has come to my attention the circumstances you're currently under, we'll figure things out on our own over here. Hopefully, we can sort things out quickly so that we may be of some assistance soon. Take care, Elders.
-Tuzi"
"Ventus was going to ask for our help?" Treya highlighted.
"They must be having some serious difficulties." Faye commented. "They never ask anyone outside of their land for assistance in anything."
"There isn't anything we could do without the help of Ventus right now." Maleah stated. "However, we don't have the personnel availability to send people over there."
"... I can go." Jayson exclaimed confidently.
Everyone turned to look at Jayson after his sudden remark in the conversation.
"I can go to Ventus... to help out on behalf of Aestus."
"Why?" Claire questioned.
"It's obvious that you need all of your people here to help with the rebuild of the village." Jayson replied. "But depending on what's happening in Ventus, who knows when you'll be able to gain assistance from them. If you send me, you'd be able to continue with progress as usual while Ventus gets the help they may need."
"Jay-"
"I've been on the fire continent for most of my life, helping others in any way I could there, but now, the Aestian blood in me wants to do something for this land."
Maleah was slightly stunned by the conviction she saw in the young boy's eyes. For just a moment, it reminded her of her own son.
"We greatly appreciate the sentiment, but we are not going to send you to a foreign land to face an unknown problem on your own." Faye responded. "The journey to Ventus on its own is far too dangerous for you, especially since you are Ignian. There are many people here on the water continent who want blood for everything Ignus has done to us over the last century. They don't know you like we do, so they won't give you any mercy."
"What if we eliminate the journey part?" Kaden asked, jumping in. "Before we were interrupted, I was going to ask if I could go ahead and attempt the next gate?"
"You want to do that now?" Treya questioned.
"You guys prevented me from going back before the incident and understandably so, but now there shouldn't be a reason why I can't. Aaron and I have also been learning more about this world from Via, or I guess I should say this realm. One of the things she showed us was a map of the world her parents had. If what I saw on the map was correct, then the Gate of Sloth, which is on the air continent, would be the next closest gate."
"So if you were to complete the Gate of Greed, it would create a method of intercontinental travel." stated Maleah, fascinated about the revelation.
"Going beyond that, I wouldn't mind traveling with Jayson and helping out too."
"That still doesn't alleviate my concern about you two traveling to a land you've both never been to and to deal with an unknown problem." Faye restated.
"What if I go with them, ma'am?" Mai suggested to everyone's surprise.
"Mai you..." Maleah began to say while looking at her granddaughter with concern.
"I'd be able to provide quick communication from Ventus. Especially if we could use the gates to cut off such a large portion of the travel. If anything were to go wrong, or if the situation is too much for us to handle, I'll report it immediately and call off the mission."
"... You believe you're ready for something like this, Mai?"
"Sister Aira, are you really considering this?" Faye questioned.
"I think we should." Maleah replied sternly. "If it's the last thing I do, Ignus will pay for what they did to us. Our village! Our people! However, with our current strength, there isn't much we can do in terms of retaliation. We would need Ventus. To get into contact with Humus would take far too long, as if they would even help in the first place. So yes, if doing this means it would move us closer to bringing justice for the fallen and justice for the suffering, then I will consider it!"
"..."
"If you feel so strongly about this sister, then we'll think it over for you." Claire stated calmly.
"Tomorrow morning." Treya added. "We will receive a majority decision on the matter then. Jayson just woke up, and I'm sure he's still far from one hundred percent. Mai, could you please see him to his family."
"Yes, ma'am."
Mai and Jayson promptly left the area, with Jayson appearing to be growing weaker with every passing minute.
"Kaden, I'm sure you're aware of this, but even if we decide to let you three go, you won't be going anywhere if you don't clear the trial." Maleah stated.
"Yeah, I know." Kaden answered. "That first gate really took me by surprise, but now that I know what I'm dealing with, I've been prepping in a different way this go around. Also, I think our party is gonna be just a smidge bit bigger than three people."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm pretty certain it's going to be five of us if you let us go."
"Who are the other two?" Faye questioned.
Kaden grinned as it became fairly obvious who he was subtly referring to.
.....
WOOSH!
"C'mon Aaron, keep up with me!" Via cheerfully exclaimed as she flew around the monstrous redwood trees at an incredible speed.
Not far behind her, but visibly being more cautious and careful as he whipped around the forest. Aaron followed behind her, carrying a bag of books on his back, which was weighing him down just a slight bit. He landed on the thick branch of a tree where Via had stopped for a moment to wait on him.
"Seems like you've been really happy these past few days." Aaron stated as the two gazed out at the wildlife.
"This forest... It's the closest thing I have to a home." Via explained happily. "The village is nice, but I'm like a rose in a field of tulips there. This is what I'm familiar with."
"I get where you're coming from. Home..."