Getting to the Forest of Spirits was fairly straightforward after that. There was a small patch of open grassland that took a few hours to cross, then the party found themselves in a different forest. The Forest of Spirits was a thinner forest than Plansect. Plansect's cover was so complete that it was dark in the day, pitch black at night. The Forest of Spirits had a brighter ambience. Given what Ben had heard about Sylph, he suspected this was why she preferred this particular forest. Supposedly, it also contained monsters with better dispositions than the plants, insects, and slimes that inhabited Plansect. On the downside, Promestein cautioned that humans were barely tolerated within this forest. The elves and fairies preferred to venture out to get semen. As part of the United Provinces, humans could not legally be prevented from entering the forest, but the elves and fairies enforced a strict policy of not having sex with intruding humans, lest more be encouraged to enter the sacred forest.
Ben had heard that elves and fairies populated the forest, but couldn't find any sign of either species. Nor did he see any sign of Sylph.
"So how do we find this spirit?" Ben asked Promestein.
"We don't," the angel replied. "She finds us. If she's not interested in us, then we've wasted our time."
"That's real comforting," Ben said sarcastically. "Then what?"
"Plan A is still in effect," she answered, shrugging. "The spirits are formidable, but they are no substitute for Luka's power given the nature of the threat the world faces."
"How will she even know we're here?" Ashley asked.
"Sylph will know," Promestein assured her. "She can sense our presence in the wind. She's a curious sort. Besides, I'm here. She'll want to know what I'm doing in here for sure. So I think we can be pretty certain of getting an audience with her. Unless she simply doesn't want to see us, in which case…"
"We pray that we can find the Luka ring," Emma finished for her.
The group trudged on through the forest. Ben was starting to get very concerned that there were no signs of life other than the trees that surrounded them. Everything he'd read on the forest said that its population of elves and fairies was high. He knew that they did not welcome humans, but was it normal for them to avoid them entirely? Soon enough, Ben received a partial answer, as a goblin armed with a spear halted them.
"Halt!" the little goblin ordered. "State your business in our forest!"
"We're here to see Sylph," Promestein replied. "We mean this forest no harm."
"The fairies and elves tell us otherwise," the goblin stated matter of factly.
"Us?" Ben asked, confused.
"Us," the goblin repeated, as dozens more goblins emerged from behind trees, also armed with spears.
"Come along quietly and you won't be harmed," a much larger goblin ordered, pointing her spear at Promestein.
Emma drew her sword. Nearly all the goblin spears turned to point at her. The dragonkin warrior wasn't backing down, though.
"Emma!" Ben shouted. "Please don't get yourself killed for nothing! They said they wouldn't harm us! Let's just go with them and get this straightened out!"
Emma reluctantly sheathed her sword. The goblins, many of whom had no desire to take on a dragonkin warrior, breathed an obvious sigh of relief, making no secret of their fear of her.
The party was led through the forest for a few miles towards a small goblin village. Huts and treehouses were the favored domiciles. Ben was confused. He'd heard of no goblin settlements in the Forest of Spirits.
Before too long they were brought into a large tent that looked like the kind of tent a commander would use. Was this an invading army? Is that why the elves and fairies were nowhere to be found? The four were brought before a regal looking blonde haired goblin who was obviously in charge. Goblins weren't known for their beauty, but this goblin was stunning. Ben found himself staring.
"Greetings," the head goblin announced. "I am Greta, the queen goblin. I have been informed that you seek Sylph?"
"That's right," Ben answered.
"If you seek to contract with a spirit," the queen replied. "You must have a good reason. No one sees a spirit simply to chat. The consequences of bothering elemental spirits for frivolous reasons are dire. Sylph is quite aware of your presence."
"Then can I see her?" Ben asked eagerly.
"She will see you if and when she sees fit," Greta replied. "But first, she wishes to know why you brought the fallen angel here. This angel is extremely dangerous, and untrustworthy. We advised the fairies and elves to make themselves scarce as soon as Sylph was aware of her presence."
Ben looked at Promestein meaningfully, wondering what she had done to piss off a spirit. Promestein met his gaze sheepishly.
"I might have…. Sealed the spirits at one time," Promestein said.
"Not only did you seal us," a voice said from behind the queen. "But you tried to copy us! You made fake spirits who mimicked our abilities! Sacrilege!"
The figure that had stood behind Greta was a small, almost elven girl. Not quite, however. Actually, when Ben looked again, he decided that she might be part fairy as well. Could that be Sylph? He wondered.
"I'm not that person anymore," Promestein said. "I served Ilias to the best of my ability. Then I served Luka to the best of my ability, and did so for two hundred years. You were present for all of it. I didn't know that the air spirit held grudges."
"Unlike you," Sylph replied angrily. "We stand by our friends. Even after pledging your loyalty to Luka, you betrayed him."
What?! Ben thought in disbelief. Promestein betrayed Luka?!
"First off," Promestein argued. "I did not betray him. I simply… manipulated him into doing what had to be done. Second, I never pledged loyalty of any kind to him. In fact, I warned him I wasn't to be trusted."
"You didn't tell me you couldn't be trusted," Ben interjected.
"He's got a point!" Sylph said, folding her arms.
"This isn't about me," Promestein said. "I don't know if you're aware, but Zurith has returned. Given the threat that demon poses to even you, I'm sure you can see the wisdom of contracting with this boy in order to save the world from being turned into a hellscape."
"Zurith?" Sylph breathed, her expression fearful. "No, I haven't heard. But my omniscience doesn't extend beyond this forest, so that's to be expected. Assuming you're telling the truth."
Sylph floated on a gust of air towards Ben. She appraised him briefly.
"Tell me, boy," Sylph said. "Have you seen any evidence that demons walk the surface?"
"I…." Ben stuttered, realizing that all this time he'd been taking Promestein's word for it that there was a threat. "I guess not. I haven't seen any yet."
"She hasn't broken through the barrier yet," Promestein explained. "Once she does, things will start happening very fast. If I'd waited until I actually saw demons to go looking for the spirits, we'd already be doomed."
"A convenient explanation," Sylph said skeptically. "Perhaps it is even true. So how did you become aware of this? You weren't alive when Zurith last threatened the world."
"I read about it in Ilias' journals," Promestein explained. "I'm the only one who knows about Zurith other than Ilias, the Dark God, and you spirits."
"And how did you find out that she was on the verge of breaking past the barrier Ilias created?" Sylph asked.
"Ilias spoke to me in a dream. She told me to find someone who could be the hero to defeat the demon. I believe that hero is Ben."
"Do you?" Sylph asked, voice still dripping with skepticism. The air spirit turned to Ben. "So, young one, what do you think of all this? Do you think you're a hero?"
"I…. I really don't know," Ben admitted. "I can't fight very well, I have no magic. I've just been told that I can wield some ring that can destroy the demon."
"Ah yes," Sylph said, nodding. "The Luka Ring. Since Promestein helped to create it, I guess it is sensible that she would seek someone worthy to wield it. I hoped that I'd never run into another young, idealistic hero trying to save the world all by himself."
"I'm not trying to save the world by myself," Ben insisted. "I just got roped into this and I'll take any help I can get. I care about my family and friends. I don't want to see them die. So I'll do whatever I have to do. But I have no delusions about trying to do it alone."
"That makes you much smarter than Heinrich," Sylph said pointedly. "Luka was smarter. He was willing to rely on friends to help him, although he started out on his own."
"I thought he was traveling with the Monster Lord?" Ben asked.
"That's like traveling alone," Sylph sighed. "I didn't like her, either. Luka was too forgiving, too trusting. It's a miracle that boy lived so long. So, Promestein, do you know where the ring is?"
"I'm afraid not," the angel admitted ruefully. "Luka didn't entrust the ring to me. He kept it himself. And now…. Well, now I don't even know if he's alive or dead. Has he called you in recent years?"
"He hasn't," Sylph sighed. "Not for centuries. He retired from adventuring nearly two thousand years ago. I don't know if he's still around. He had a ring that prevented him from aging, so maybe."
"I doubt it," Promestein said. "If he was alive, Ilias would surely have contacted him, and not me."
"True," Sylph replied pointedly. "If you are Ilias' best hope, we're in a lot of trouble."
"Again, this isn't about me," Promestein retorted. "Will you contract with the boy, or not? We don't have time for this."
Sylph harrumphed and turned to Ben, looking him up and down. She also seemed to be listening to something. "She hears the wind," Emma whispered near Ben's ear. "she's asking the wind if you're worthy."
"I already believe he's worthy," Sylph interjected. "The question is, is he strong? Weak men cannot wield the spirits. When they try, death is usually the result."
"That doesn't sound good," Ben said.
"He's strong in the ways that matter," Promestein said helpfully. "That's why I believe he can wield the Luka ring."
"The Luka ring only requires that the wielder have a compatible soul," Sylph responded, still looking Ben up and down. "Wielding spirits requires physical strength as well as spiritual strength. Luka and Heinrich were strong humans."
"He's descended from Earthmen, just like Luka," Ashley offered. "Plus he's got monster blood!"
"Mmmm hmmmm," Sylph mumbled absently, looking skeptical. "Most monsters can't wield the spirits, and neither can most Earthmen. Ben, you've taken on a dangerous mission, more dangerous than even the legendary heroes Heinrich and Luka took on. If you're willing to see this through, I'll agree to contract with you. Normally I'd test you, but that would be pointless. You'd fail."
"That doesn't sound encouraging," Ben gulped.
"I can't guarantee that the other spirits won't demand a test of you," Sylph warned. "But then again, I can't guarantee you'll survive contracting with me. This is very dangerous, boy. Are you sure you want to do this?"
Ben was sweating. Every fiber of his being told him to go home, to stop going along with this madness. I'm no hero! He thought to himself. I'm just a kid who wants to go to college and make his parents proud! But Promestein had told him that he was the best hope for the world. If he went home, everyone he knew would probably die. Assuming Promestein was telling the truth. Sylph seemed to believe her. Somewhat, at least. Ben screwed up his courage and answered.
"I have to protect the people I love," Ben said. "I don't know how much I can trust Promestein, but I trust you. Do you think I should do this?"
"For your own sake, no," Sylph answered. "For the sake of all you love…. Perhaps. Only you can make the choice."
"Then let's do this," Ben said with finality.
"Fine," Sylph replied. "Let's go outside."
Promestein, Ashley, and Emma followed Sylph outside, accompanied by a few goblins. Outside, numerous elves and fairies had come to cautiously witness the proceedings.
"So how does this work?" Ben asked.
"We'll start with the basic contract," Sylph answered. "It's pretty simple, actually. I just do… this."
Taking his hand, Sylph touched Ben's wrist. Suddenly, Sylph disappeared. Where had she gone?
"Well, you survived the entry!" Sylph exclaimed inside his head. No, it felt more as if she was in his heart, a part of his soul. "That's more than I expected!"
"Ben, do you feel any different?" Promestein asked.
"I can hear her voice in my… heart," Ben breathed. "But…. Otherwise, no, I'm not sure I feel any diff-"
Without warning, Ben shot up into the air like a rocket, hitting several tree branches before breaking through the canopy of the forest. Everyone stood silent, dumbfounded.
"Was that supposed to happen?" Ashley asked Promestein.
"I… did not expect that," Promestein answered.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! SYLPH!"
"Wheeeeeeeee!!!!!" Sylph replied.
"Sylph, please put me down! Gently! I'm afraid of heights!" Ben screamed.
"I'm not doing anything!" Sylph replied. "This is all you!"
"I'm not doing anything either!" Ben insisted, still in a panic, and still ascending with incredible speed.
"This is one of the consequences of a weak man receiving the spirits," Sylph explained. "The wind is controlling you rather than you controlling the wind. It's a good thing you didn't try to contract with Salamander first."
"What would have happened if I'd contracted with Salamander?" Ben asked.
"You would have instantly burst into flame!" Sylph responded brightly.
"I don't think going splat on the ground is much better!" Ben retorted.
"Oh, don't worry!" Sylph responded helpfully. "At the rate we're ascending, you'll run out of oxygen soon. You probably won't be conscious when you hit the ground. Or maybe you will be. I'm not sure about the science. But you're going to want to straighten out, because we're about five thousand feet up."
"How do I do that?!" Ben asked.
"Just command the wind!" Sylph explained. "Right now the wind is pushing you up. Just command it to hold your altitude while pushing you forward."
"Okayokayokay… Wind…. Stop making me go higher! Level me out!"
Nothing happened. Ben's alarming ascent continued.
"That's not how you command the wind, silly goose!" Sylph laughed. "You have to first listen to it!"
"I am listening! All I hear is wind right now! It's very loud!"
"You're thinking too literally!" Sylph admonished. "Just as you hear me in your heart, hear the voice of the wind in your heart. It loves to play! It's playing with you right now! Just get it to play a new game! But be quick, we're at ten thousand feet now!"
Indeed, it was getting extremely cold and the air was much thinner. Ben tried to calm himself and listen. To his surprise, he heard it right away once he opened his heart to it. It was a slight, playful whisper over the cacophony of the wind rushing past his ears, but it was there.
"A new game?" Ben whispered. "Okay, a new game. Let's play a new game. Ever heard of Superman, wind?"
He tried to imagine himself as Superman, soaring through the air, completely under control. The wind responded at once, leveling him off, but not decreasing his speed. Now, instead of shooting straight up, he was soaring thousands of feet up, the forest of spirits far below. But the immediate danger had passed. He was flying! And in control! Sort of.
"Wow, you did it!" Sylph exulted. "I was sure you were going to die! The toughest part is going to be the landing, though. Maybe you should have gone to Gnome first. With her help you could have survived any landing! Without her…"
"To hell with landing!" Ben exulted. "I'm flying! I'm like a superhero!"
"Like in the comics!" Sylph replied excitedly. "Wheeeee!!!! The wind likes this game! Play as long as you want, get the hang of it!"
Experimentally, Ben urged the wind to fly him faster and faster.
BOOM!!!!! Ben's friends and the denizens of the forest flinched when they heard the sound.
"What was that?" Emma asked, startled. "Did he crash somewhere?! We have to go find him!"
"That wasn't the sound of a crash," Promestein replied, perplexed. "I think that was… a sonic boom?"
"Is that…. Good or bad?" Emma asked.
"Probably both," Promestein replied. "We can't do anything for him except wait and hope he gets down in one piece."
"I could fly up over the trees and take a look," Ashley offered.
"Let's just wait a bit," Promestein advised. "If he's flying around up there faster than the speed of sound, we don't want to risk him crashing into you up there."
"Faster than the speed of sound?!" Emma asked in disbelief. "Could Luka or Heinrich do that?"
"No," Promestein replied, shaking her head. "They could fly, but nowhere near that fast."
"Maybe it was just a jet flying overhead," Ashley mused.
"Do you hear that?" Emma asked, her sharp ears picking up what sounded like…. A scream?
"Hear wh-" Promestein started, then she heard it as well.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" Ben yelled as he slammed back through the forest canopy. The sound of his scream was abruptly cut off as he hit the ground a few hundred yards away.
"Ben!" Emma cried as she darted towards the crash site. Ashley and Promestein quickly followed, curious fairies, elves, and goblins close behind.
Promstein breathed a sigh of relief when the ladies found Ben propped up against a tree, moaning. She bent down quickly to inspect his injuries. Nothing was broken, thank goodness.
"Oohhhhhh…" Ben moaned. Leading up to where he sat was a long trough on the ground where he'd skidded to a stop just before impacting the tree.
"You were lucky to get off so light," Promestein informed him. "But you're basically unhurt."
"I don't feel unhurt," Ben whimpered.
"Bumps and bruises," Promestein explained. "We'll probably need to rest here until at least tomorrow. Any idea what happened there?"
Sylph popped out of Ben's chest. "He's a weak man wielding a spirit," the wind spirit explained. "He should be dead now. I warned him, but he didn't listen."
"That's why I think he's enough like Luka to be compatible with his ring," Promestein said. "He was willing to risk dying in order to save the world."
"Hmph," Sylph muttered. "He also demonstrated Luka's resourcefulness. The boy is different. No one should have been able to control the wind like he did. Heinrich and Luka didn't have that level of wind mastery."
"Wait a minute," Promestein said. "Are you saying he's mastered the wind? In like, five minutes?"
"At least when it comes to flying and pure speed, he's got a knack for it like nothing I've ever seen before. Anyone else would have been a red splotch on the ground right now. You weren't wrong about him being special."
The goblin queen strode forward. She addressed the entire gathering.
"I think that I speak for all of us," the queen pronounced."When I say that anyone who has been accepted by the wind spirit is welcome here. You may all stay as long as you like."
They ended up staying for only one day. Ben, being an athlete, healed quickly since nothing was broken. Promestein was relieved, since she had no idea how much time they had and didn't want to waste any. Demons could start breaking through at any moment, and Ben had only one spirit, with the world's most important defense, the Luka Ring, nowhere near being found.
The next morning was spent traveling by foot to a small town in the Natalia region called Otterville. Ben had no idea why it was called Otterville, as otters were nowhere to be seen. But Otterville did have a very nice hotel, mainly because it was a tourist spot. Spirit worship had made a bit of a comeback over the centuries, even though Sylph never showed her face to any of her prospective worshippers. The main Sylph temple was located in Otterville due to its proximity to the Forest of Spirits. Worshippers would travel by foot to the forest to pray to Sylph, and would usually be greeted by elves and fairies looking for a quick meal, as long as it was outside the forest. The worshippers came for Sylph, but stayed for the elves and fairies. And came. And came. And came. The goblins had settled in the forest because the elves and fairies were kind enough to provide them a share of the semen they harvested. While most goblin girls were not ugly, they had a reputation for being bullies, which to this day caused humans to choose flight over surrender more often than not, whereas elves and fairies were regarded as friendly. It didn't hurt that most of them were gorgeous.
"Damn," Emma breathed, marveling at the hotel's posh foyer. "Are you rich or something? This is a really nice hotel."
"I've saved my pennies over the centuries," Promestein said with a smirk. "We might not survive long enough for me to even make a dent in my bank account, so why not be as comfortable as we can while we're still around to enjoy it?"
"So we've got two rooms, each with two beds," Ashley noted. "Who gets to stay with Ben?"
"I do," Promestein said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"What?! Why?" Emma asked.
"I paid for the rooms, I get the privilege of assigning them," Promestein said smugly. "Don't worry, we'll be staying in hotels in Noah, Sabasa, and Gold too. You'll each get your chance for some alone time with him."
Ben was embarrassed seeing women fight over him. He'd never had much luck with human girls, and had steered clear of the monster girls in school simply because he knew most would not share his desire to wait until they were in love to play around. He had nothing against monster girls, of course. But Ashley and Emma had vindicated his reluctance to make a monster girl his first girlfriend. They hadn't even waited to have a real conversation before they'd started feeding off of him. He was relieved that Promestein would be his roommate for the night. Promestein wasn't predatory. If anything, she was almost starting to feel like a mother figure. A very warped, untrustworthy mother figure, but a mother figure nonetheless.
Grumbling, Emma and Ashley went to their room, while Promestein used the key she had been issued to enter the other room. Ben, like Emma, marveled at the accommodations. For all the stress and danger this trip had brought him so far, Promestein had not been stingy with her cash, making sure Ben had everything he could need that money could buy.
"Take whichever bed you want," Promestein said. "Get out of those clothes and go shower first, though."
Ben agreed with that sentiment wholeheartedly. He hadn't had a shower in days. He entered the bathroom and enjoyed what he was sure was the greatest shower of his life.
When he turned off the water, he heard Promstein shout, "Come on out when you're dry, I've got some nice pajamas for you!"
Putting a towel around his waist, he came out to see that Promestein was already in a nightgown. She handed him a rather childish pair of pajamas with stars and moons on them. Shrugging, he put them on, trying hard to maneuver himself so that the towel kept him covered, and failing. Promestein made a crack about how she'd already seen everything several times. She had a point, Ben thought.
"How come you don't need to shower?" Ben asked.
"I'm an angel," she replied. "Dirt just slides right off of us, we don't sweat, and we have no other body odors either. My clothes do get nasty. We'll do laundry in the morning before we head out into the desert."
"Do you know where to find Gnome?"
"More or less. She hangs out in some ruins. It shouldn't be hard to get information on where to find those ruins. It will still mean two days in the desert, maybe three. We'll have to get provisioned."
"How do you know all this?" Ben asked. "Did Luka tell you?"
"Yes," Promestein replied. "He was always so open. Ask him a question, he'd give you an answer. Almost never kept secrets."
Ben laid on his bed, marveling at how comfortable it was. Still, he felt restless and troubled. The high of gaining Sylph's power had worn off, replaced by worry about many things. His life, the lives of his new friends, his parents, school…. School!
"Oh my God!" Ben yelled, sitting up in bed. "Finals were yesterday! I missed finals!"
"No you didn't," Promestein said, stretching out on her own bed. "You got all As. Your term paper got an A as well."
"Wait, did you-?"
"You were busy and it was no trouble for me," she replied. "Remember, twelve Nobels?"
"But that's cheating! I didn't earn that!"
"You would have, if I hadn't dragged you on this quest. It was the least I could do."
"Well, at least that's one less thing to worry about," Ben sighed. "I guess it is silly to worry about that kind of thing when the world is ending."
"It's not silly at all. If you save the world, you'll need something to go back to. Repeating your senior year wouldn't be much of a reward for the hero who saved the world, now would it?"
"I don't feel like a hero," Ben said, laying back down. "I'm scared as hell."
"There's nothing wrong with being scared," Promestein said. "Fear keeps you alert. Just don't let it interfere with your sleep. Lack of sleep can hurt your alertness even if you're afraid. I know I'm not a monster, and I don't induce critical ecstasy, but if you need help sleeping…."
"What?! Seriously? I thought rooming with you would mean that kind of thing wouldn't happen?!"
"I'm not forcing you. It's just an offer. If you want me to make you feel good, just tell me how you want me to and I'll do it. You know, your life expectancy is pretty short. You should get what pleasures you can out of life."
"There is something you can do for me, then," Ben said.
"Yeah? Anything you want. Nothing's too perverted for me. Any sick fantasy you've had you can fulfill tonight if it will make you happy."
"Would you hold me?"
Promestein seemed taken aback by his request, almost as if requesting to be held was beyond any perversion she could have imagined.
"Hold you?" Promestein asked, confused. "And do what while I'm holding you?"
"Nothing. Just… hold me. I'll sleep if you hold me."
Promestein said nothing for a moment. She just stared, as if trying to decipher what Ben actually meant with his request.
"Promestein," Ben said. "Have you never held anyone before?"
"I guess I haven't," she replied. "That's really what you want?"
"If you'd ever held someone or been held, it would make perfect sense to you."
The scientist seemed to decide that while the request was weird to her, this was an opportunity to learn something new. Reluctantly, Promestein transferred to Ben's bed and joined him under the covers. She tentatively put an arm around him. Ben backed up and snuggled into her.
"Do you really think I can do this?" Ben asked. "Save the world?"
"You're a lot like Luka, so I think you're a match. The ring should work for you. You've already shown more aptitude with the wind element than Luka ever did."
"What was he like?"
"Luka?" she asked. "Well, he was a lot like you, I guess. He was brave. He was honest. He was the most forgiving man I've ever met. But I think what struck me most about him was that he had this way about him, almost this magic. He made you want to be a better person. It was almost as if his goodness was a virus that you could catch if you hung around him long enough."
"None of that sounds like me," Ben said.
"You don't have to be exactly like Luka for the ring to work. I designed the enchantment. If you had to be an exact match, then it woiuldn't work for you, or anyone else. It would be completely useless. Luka had me design the ring so that someone whose soul, whose essence, was close to his own, would be able to use his power. Instead of thinking about how you fall short of Luka, think about the things you two have in common."
"How do you know that he isn't still alive?" he asked.
"I don't know that, not for sure. But I don't think he's with us anymore. If he was, Ilias would have spoken in his dreams, not mine. Ilias doesn't like me. If she came to me, it's because I was the only one she could reach who was capable of helping her."
"When did you last hear from him?"
"A long time ago. At least a thousand years."
"If all these immortal beings are still around, why did they go into hiding?"
"Hiding is the wrong word for it," she explained. "What happened was that as the world modernized, people stopped believing in magic. They stopped believing in immortals. They stopped believing in gods. Sure, they still have churches. Technically Eden has more worshippers now than she ever had, and many monsters still follow the Dark God. Not to mention the religions that were imported from Earth, like your own. But few REALLY believe. So we all took on normal identities and did normal things, at least those of us who lived on the surface. Mortals had found their own way. They didn't need immortals messing with their modern societies and becoming objects of worship, to be consulted for all major decisions. That's what happens when mortals know about us. They stop being independent. They think we're wiser and the solution to all of their problems. I mean, I guess I am smarter, and I've won twelve Nobels. My discoveries have made the world a better place."
"You really think the world is better now?" Ben asked. "My parents say things just keep getting worse."
"Try living in the world Luka lived in when he first arrived here," Promestein chuckled. "Believe me, while there's always ups and downs, the trend has been towards things getting better for the last two thousand years. Mostly, anyway. There are admittedly some ways that things have gotten worse. Pollution is one good example."
Promestein cut off her dissertation when she heard Ben lightly snoring. Well what do you know? She thought. This cuddling thing is actually kinda ni-
Promestein was asleep before she could finish the thought.
Ben awoke with a start to the sound of an insistent knock on the door. Promestein awoke beside him, surprised to find that it was morning. Had she slept all through the night? She never did that! Might have to try this cuddling thing again, she thought to herself with a smile.
The knocking wiped the smile off her face. Ben got out of bed to answer it, assuming it must be Emma and Ashley. Before Promestein could warn him to look through the peephole first, he had already opened the door to reveal a man in a suit and tie. The man was dark skinned and bald, with well groomed facial hair. He had an air of authority about him. Oh shit, Promestein thought. A cop. The man flashed an ID at Ben.
"Good morning," the man said politely. "My name is Landon Haven. I'm a PROTECT agent. Can I come in? I need to ask you a few questions."
Promestein jumped out of bed to forestall Ben. "Hi there," she said to Agent Haven. "Do you have a warrant? If not, we have nothing to say to you."
"I'm not a cop," he said amiably. "And I don't care that you stole the Angel Halo. I'm not here to arrest you. Now, you can refuse to let me in, but I can't help you if you send me away."
"What kind of help can you possibly offer us?" Promestein asked.
"That depends on what possessed you to steal an ancient sword from the Monster Lord's castle. I'm sure you had a reason. The four of you don't look like thieves to me. Taking Sylph out of her forest for the first time in two thousand years also tipped us off that something's going on. Now, do you want to talk about this stuff out in the open, in this hallway, or can I come in?"
Promestein reluctantly gestured for Ben to let Agent Haven in. Thanking her, the agent entered and sat down on an easy chair. Ben closed the door.
"Okay," she said. "I get how you managed to track us here after I stole Angel Halo. They caught me on camera, after all. But how did you know about Sylph? Have you been following us?"
"Following you?" the agent asked, clearly amused. "I only just found out about you today, Miss Promestein. I was handed a file and told your current location. Do you know how thick your file is at PROTECT headquarters?"
"Wow, so you know who I am, too," she said, now looking quite worried. "Just what is PROTECT? I've worked for a ton of government agencies over the centuries, and handled a ton of classified data, but I've never heard of any PROTECT. Is this some kind of new intelligence agency? What does PROTECT stand for?"
"It doesn't stand for anything. Our founder just thought it appropriate, given our mission. We protect the world from threats most people don't even believe in. Rogue gods, other immortals like yourself, aliens, invaders from other dimensions, that sort of thing. What I'm here to find out, Miss Promestein, is…. Are you a threat I should be worried about? Or did you steal the Angel Halo and recruit Sylph because you're fighting a threat that I should be worried about?"
"Look, I don't know you! I don't know your organization! If you're not here to arrest us, you need to leave!"
"I know where you're headed," the agent responded. "You're going to try to get Gnome to join you. Why? What are you up to?"
"if all goes well," she replied. "You'll never have to find out."
"Fine," Haven said. "I won't bother you any further today. If you change your mind, here's my card. I think that we can help each other, assuming you aren't up to no good again. If you are…. You'll be seeing a lot more of me. I'll let myself out. Oh, by the way, as a sign of good faith I've done something for you for free. The authorities aren't looking for you anymore. You can travel freely now. I convinced the Monster Lord to let the matter drop. But she'll want that sword back when you're done with it."
Ben watched as Agent Haven left. Promestein seemed unsettled by the encounter.
"Does this change our plans at all?" Ben asked.
"No," Promestein replied after some thought. "We just have to hope he's not going to be a problem."
"Promestein, if you were up to something, would you tell me? This isn't one of your plots, is it?"
"I don't know what answer I can give you that would reassure you," she replied softly. "I guess the price of my past sins is that I can't tell you to just trust me."
"I guess you can't. But I want to, I really do. I like you a lot, Promestein. I want to believe in you, in everything you've told me. So I guess I'm just going to have to follow you down whatever road you're leading me."
"And I guess," Promestein replied. "That will have to be enough for both of us."
"Actually, no. It's not enough. I want to be able to trust you. But if I'm to start trusting that you're not the person everyone thinks you are, you need to open up more."
"What, like…. Talk about feelings?"
"I don't know!" Ben exclaimed. "But okay, let's talk about feelings. Have you ever been in love?"
"What could that possibly have anything to do with whether or not you can trust me? People in love are the least trustworthy people there are!"
"I just want to know! I need to get an idea of what kind of person you are! So far, all I know about you is that you're an angel, the most brilliant scientist in history, and someone who uses people! So yeah, it's kinda important to be whether you're capable of caring about anybody but yourself!"
Promestein was taken aback. Was this human winning an argument with her? She struggled to respond, then decided to just tell the truth.
"No," she answered. "I've never been in love. I don't think I've ever even had a real friend."
"Oh, Promestein. I'm so sorry. How do you stand it?"
"I think you lack understanding of what an immortal is. Immortals aren't complete persons. We're archetypes. We were all created for a specific purpose. My purpose was to be an intellectual. Ilias created me out of her own essence because she didn't enjoy intellectual pursuits. I wasn't created to be anything but smart. The part of Ilias that was capable of love and valued friendships was split off into another being, the Seraph Eden. She had no patience for those sentimental feelings either. She thought they got in the way of her own purpose."
"So Ilias is stupid and can't love anyone?"
"Sometimes it seems that way," Promestein chuckled. "But no. Ilias, back when she was at her peak of power, had more than enough of herself to create thousands of beings, all created for specific purposes. Despite the splitting of herself so many times, she remained incredibly intelligent and did value her relationships. It wasn't that she wasn't capable of being an intellectual. It's not that she was incapable of caring about others. She simply lacked the desire to be that kind of person. Being worshipped gave her a big head, made her think she was better than everyone else. It made her think she was above such trivial things. Since she lost most of her power thanks to Luka, she's been forced to become more of a real person."
"And how about you?"
"I've…. Changed. A lot. Luka changed me. I said I had no friends, but Luka tried. Goddess, did he try! I guess we were friends, but I tried to keep him at emotional arms length by treating him as my boss. He never saw the relationship that way. He had a savior complex. I think he pitied me, which made me even more determined to reject his overtures. Nevertheless, the changes were subtle and built up over time. I started to care. I started to want more out of life than to just find answers to big scientific questions."
"So when did you two lose touch? And why?"
"The when was after Alice died. Luka was… inconsolable and it made me uncomfortable so I stayed away from him. His children died shortly thereafter, a few years apart."
"That's horrible!" Ben exclaimed. "To have to live to bury everyone you love…."
"I hadn't thought of it that way, but you're right. Humans aren't meant to outlive their children. So anyway, by then the world was pretty much as you see it now. Luka's modernization project was basically complete. He never visited the castle again after that. He associated the place too much with his dead wife. He found love again, of course. The relationship between he and Granberia remained close. He even asked her to marry him a few years later. As I told you before, she turned him down."
"Why would she do that? The legends say that she loved him before even Alice did."
"The legends are true," Promestein replied. "But once he'd married Alice, Granberia had no interest in making him a husband. She was satisfied with the relationship they had. She didn't want to be his second choice. She had his close friendship, and they were occasionally lovers as well, which is one reason so many people think they must have gotten married at some point. I think she also didn't want him to have to bury another wife. Granberia, being very long lived herself, was very cognizant of what it meant to lose everyone you love. Tamamo, on the other hand, had no qualms about being a second, or even third, choice. It didn't hurt that she's immortal, and so Luka and her could truly live happily ever after. At least as long as his ring lasted. Unfortunately, it was already an ancient enchantment when he found it."
"I realize we're getting a little off subject here," Ben noted. "But I've read that there are legendary enchantments that are thousands of years old and still active."
"Yes," Promestein replied, relieved that the conversation had turned to more intellectual topics. "The Luka ring should theoretically last forever. That's because the enchantment is passive until activated. The ring of immortality worked differently. Every day, it had to reverse any aging that occurred. No enchantment that has to do that much work can last forever, and the older Luka became, the harder it had to work. When Luka was twenty, it only activated monthly to reverse whatever aging his cells had done. When Luka went past one hundred, it had to work every minute to prevent him from croaking on the spot. Later on, every second."
"You're a brilliant scientist! How come you didn't just… fix the ring? Or recharge it?"
"It was an ancient enchantment," Promestein sighed. "It also used a very rare gem that might not even have existed on this planet anymore. That being said, I'm sure I could have found a solution."
"But he didn't want you to, did he?"
"No, he didn't," Promestein answered, looking at the floor. "Eventually, he lost Granberia and Alma Elma, and all that were left were distant descendants and Tamamo. The only reason he hadn't taken off the ring himself after Alice died was because Ilias had told him that the world would have need of him. She never named the threat, but I'm sure she was talking about Zurith."
"We don't know he's gone," Ben pointed out.
"We don't know, that much is true," Promestein conceded. "But the evidence points to Luka having left us a long time ago. The threat never materialized. Luka had grown so tired the last time I talked to him. Tamamo made him as happy as she could, but his life had ceased to have purpose other than continuing to live to face a threat that might never come."
"How horrible," Ben breathed. "That's not a happy story for a hero like that."
"Don't feel too bad for him," Promestein said with a smile. "Tamamo is the kind of wife any man would love to have. They had centuries of marital bliss. Monsters and humans alike loved him. Luka tried to pretend that he didn't enjoy the adulation, but he clearly basked in it. He loved the role of hero, although he'd never admit it."
"So then why disappear?"
"Because all immortals disappeared," Promestein shrugged. "The world changed. There was never any literal meeting where we all decided to hide who we were. It just sorta evolved that way. The world was in good shape. Humans and monsters, even angels, were all getting along for the most part. Modernization had increased quality of life for all, even those rat girls you feel so sorry for. Luka simply decided to retire from the hero business permanently and live a happy, content life with Tamamo until his day came. I don't know when that day came. I last heard from him over a thousand years ago. Before that, it had been centuries, so that doesn't mean he's gone. We immortals, being so long lived, can lose touch for centuries, even millennia, and we don't even think about it. When Ilias contacted me to tell me Zurith was returning, it had been the first time in two thousand years that we'd spoken. Maybe it's different for other immortals, but since I don't really have any friends, none of them talk to me."
There was another knock. Alarmed, both jerked their gaze to the door. The knock came again, more insistent.
"Open up, dickheads!" the voice of Emma said from behind the door. "We've got a mission to complete! No time for sleeping in!"
"In a second!" Ben shouted, then turned back to Promestein. "Look, Promestein…. Thank you for this talk. I believe you. And I… mostly trust you. But this isn't the last of our talks. I need to understand who you are. You need to start opening up, and not withhold information."
"Agreed," Promestein replied.