Winifred looked around. The supposed home of the man before her was covered in frost, several inches deep. Brown branches stuck out of the frost, a few charred spots on them. Cold winds swept by them, pushing her hair everywhere. Her expression had barely changed but there was a little compassion in her eyes. Nathan was sure he wasn't imagining it.
"The war of the gods?"
"Well, around that time. It's hard to believe but there was once a prosperous principality situated on this peak. It was said to have been destroyed by an eruption."
"It doesn't look like an active volcano."
"It isn't. It was destroyed by fire. We lived in the ruins of the principality. I was born and raised here. I tried to restore it as a Principality but fate is a cruel thing."
"It was destroyed by fire again."
"Yes. It is believed that I destroyed my home in a battle with one of the gods. But in reality, it was a sneak attack. To draw me out of my home, they decided to use my loved one. It made me look down on lofty gods who are sure they can accomplish anything under the heavens. But it also made me aware of another rule. Gods cannot arbitrarily interfere with the lives of humans."
"Doesn't seem to me like they abide to this rule."
"Trust me, they do. Now, we are actually in the best place possible. This way, we know that this dimension is shaped after the old world, a world I'm better acquainted with. This way, we can shatter the illusion and find my body."
"If your body was truly here, won't you have felt it or something?"
"You're absolutely right! Instead, I'm feeling something else."
"What's that?"
"An insanely deep feeling of Wrath."
A bright light shone behind them, forcing them to turn their attention to the sky. There, hovering right above them, was something that could only be described as an angel. A tall man with four wings sprouting from his back, a third eye on his forehead and two more on his open palms. A long, golden spear floated beside him.
"You keep making enemies everywhere you go, Nathan. Who is that?"
The corners of Nathan's mouth quirked upwards, forming a sinister smile. Winifred soon found herself wrapped in a barrier that she assumed was from Nathan. It was the second time he protected her like this.
"That, my dear, is my loved one."
Winifred had no words. Saints themselves were rare but to think the two were in a relationship. From what she could watch in the fight, neither of them were willing to kill themselves. Even though it was nothing more than an illusion, Nathan couldn't bring himself to kill his loved one.
"What is his name?"
Her voice was small, lost in the harsh winds of the mountain that had picked up because of the fight between the two. However, she discovered, within that second, that the barrier could move with her. "How convenient," she mumbled to herself, while moving to a part of the mountain that caught her eye earlier.
It was nothing more than a oddly bent branch sticking out with something copper colored. She was sure she wouldn't get hurt with Nathan's barrier surrounding her so she went ahead to touch the copper colored thing. When she pulled it out, she realized it was a tablet.
"In here, you'll find the body of the great deceiver," she reads then scoffs. "I know a deceiver. He's fighting up there. But here you are, trying to deceive me again. I know his body won't be that easy to find. So, what's your game?"
The battle continued fiercely while she wasn't provided an answer. She decided to change her tactics, reaching her hand to the sky.
"Nathan."
It seemed stupid, like she might be ignored again. However, the winds began blowing in her direction. As impossible as it was, he stood before her, a cheeky grin on his face, widening a cut he sustained.
"Yes, my lady?"
He was covered in blood, blood that wasn't his.
"It looks like my judgment was wrong. It's not that you couldn't kill him. You didn't want to."
"You're always right, my lady. What did you find?"
"A tablet. It says your body is resting here."
"Hmm, that won't be strange. Wait! I'm not the deceiver."
"Then who is?"
Nathan turned around and couldn't find his opponent anymore. The copper tablet shone in his hand, turning a resplendent gold.
"He was the great deceiver."
---------------------------------
If Darryl had to hear Freya's lonesome sigh one more time, he was sure he would be driven mad. The Lady did nothing but lounge beside windows these days, looking wistfully over the hills. Even when he was overwhelmed with chores, she really just paraded the halls, doing basically nothing. He wasn't the type to call her out for her laziness but he was the type to worry.
"I'm sure Lord Silver and Winifred are fine."
"I'm not saying they're not. I'm just saying...It's quite boring here. Without the little lady, this place feels quite empty. Don't you agree?"
"Well, there's just nothing we can do, even if we miss them. Now, if you'd excuse me..."
"An...an invitation for a banquet came in."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"It's a relative of the Queen so we can't refuse. It's an invitation for both I and Winifred but now that she isn't here, I have to attend in her stead. Still, I feel skeptic about going alone."
"You can always request help from his highness."
"His highness is away on business!"
"Dame Circe said we could always ask her for a favor. It won't do you any good to be shy now, Lady Freya. Now if you excuse me, I have..."
"You have to come with me! Dame Circe already said she would come."
Darryl eventually realized it was a trap. He wasn't being asked. He was being told.
--------------------------------
The dark cave was illuminated with a wooden torch in Nathan's hands. Winifred took the lead, taking each step down the long, cobbled path down the mountain daintily. Still, Nathan didn't complain, watching their back. They found a path a little over an hour ago into the mountain and had been climbing down ever since.
"I think I've found the floor," Winifred suddenly says, stopping. She was right and soon, Nathan was able to illuminate the place. When he sees what is inside the room, he chuckles. It was an armory filled to the brim with weapons Winifred couldn't have heard of because of how ancient they were. However, it also had ten shelves of books that were strangely perfectly preserved.
"How fortunate."
"Where are we, Nathan?"
"This is the Vault of Ancient Records. It also happens to be the place I found later in my life after guarding it for a long, hard twenty years."
"Let me guess, it has records of war?"
"Something like that. It records old kings, dynasties and of course, weapons. I don't know if the Vault was updated after the death of the last Recorder of Times but let's see what we can find."
The two split up to check the vault for anything valuable. Nathan assured Winifred that the Vault was safe and real, not an illusion or imitation. When asked why he thought so, Nathan simply said he was loved by all the women in the world and the one above it. It was also the reason why he had a bump on his forehead.
The first book Winifred found was the documentary of the first monarch on the continent. Surprisingly, the first monarch was a woman titled Diana Redheart the first, Queen of Light. She was said to be a powerful and just Queen, ruling with powers, gifted from the gods. She apparently possessed the power to split oceans into two, becoming the first champion of the gods.
Everything was going well for Queen Diana until it was time for her to choose her royal consort. Queen Diana, for many unrecorded reasons, would not pick a man to be her consort. According to a direct quote, 'Men are uncivilized creatures with the basic decency of a yak. They are only useful for carting horses. Their bedroom skills are lacking to satisfy a Queen.'
This drew up a lot of hidden enemity for the beloved Queen, especially from the men who served in her army as serfs. The army of one thousand women was a specially cultivated army by Queen Diana, an army she bestowed her power upon. The men were there as serfs but truthfully, they were only there as breeders during war and hunting season.
"If this story was told in reverse, I'm sure it would be less pleasant to read," Winifred said to herself, chuckling.
Queen Diana finally picked a royal consort that was a man. He was more beautiful than a woman and more elegant than an elk. He was a man but his appearance closely suggested he was a woman. His position was so high, he was appointed a special title, King. This man became the first King of Light, Lyon.
"Well, if he's sketched like that, I can see why people got confused."
Queen Diana was quite feminine herself, an elegant swordswoman who captured the heart of her allies and enemies with her beautiful sword play. Yet, this man's beauty surpassed hers. They did not consummate their marriage until the King was forced to drug the Queen and give her a child.
This was a great offense. The next morning, the beautiful King was taken to the prison, chained to a mountain for several months until the Queen had her baby. Unfortunately, the child that the Queen had was not a girl. The Queen had a male child as her first born.
"How unfortunate indeed."
The King was released from prison and tasked with raising this child rejected by the Queen. For seven more years, the Queen did not see her child or father of her child. On the eve of the first day of the eight year, the King was summoned by the Queen. They consummated their marriage properly and the Queen conceived a child again. The Queen declared that this child would be killed if it was a boy.
"Wait! This can't possibly be the end! Nathan!"
He came running from the other end of the vault. When he saw her unharmed, he shook his head.
"What's the problem?"
"The documentary of the Queen of Light. Is this the end?"
"Unexpectedly, you found it. You never cease to exceed my expectations."
"What are you talking about?"
"That book in your hand is known as the hidden book of the Vault. Not just anyone can pick it up because apparently, it has a mind of its own. That also happens to be what we're looking for."
"Why?"
"I have reasons to believe you might be the reincarnation of the First Queen of Light, Winifred."