Yna and I sat in front of a silent Anda and Tasha in an office that was gently lit by a few floating orbs near the roof.
A slightly open window allowed a thin stream of cold air to stream into the room.
It was quite refreshing and providing ambience were the whistling winds of Mount Jivu.
I lightly tapped the table while trying my best to calm my nerves.
I also didn't wanna wake up the baby.
The baby…
"What's her name?" I whispered.
"Siyul." Anda said with a pained smile.
The poor guy had bags under his eyes and a permanent frown on his head.
I wanted to help him ease the stress and so I picked up one of the many documents on the table between us and read through it.
Food wasn't a problem and the mountains had plenty of space.
People were crestfallen, but productivity was within acceptable levels.
Caligo requested a ceasefire meaning we couldn't even rejoice at the imaginary prospects of victory.
We had nothing to soothe the aches over our hearts and I fucking sucked at giving speeches!
"Everything seems to be in order but I'm afraid you may all have to stay here indefinitely." I said prompting Tasha and Anda to glance at each other.
"What do the Wraiths have to say about this?" Tasha asked.
"I'll talk to Nira when I'm done here."
Anda nodded before opening his mouth to speak, but before he could, Siyul started crying.
"My apologies-"
I raised my hand, silencing Tasha who looked as stressed as Anda. Her hair was a mess and the front of her gown was covered in stains.
I didn't want to intrude on these two any longer but I also had to make a decision.
These two were parents and I didn't want them to neglect their child.
Neglect was something I was more than guilty of.
This guilt gnawed at me slightly, but I chose to shelve it before crossing my arms.
"Anda, Tasha, hand over authority of the Ia to the Custodian captains-"
"No!" Anda yelled making Siyul cry even louder.
He noticed this before calming himself as best as he could.
"We- we can still help. Please don't make us sit by while everyone else suffers." Anda pleaded.
I glanced at Tasha but she simply lowered her head and quietly lulled Siyul.
"Nope. I have given my order and if you disobey it even once, both of you will lose all privileges and will be moved to a… less accommodating home." I snapped but this only made Anda's face twist even more.
"You wouldn't…" He said with trembling lips.
"Try me, Anda. Hand over all administrative duties to Yiden and your cousin. Your only focus from now on should be on raising your daughter." I said through gnashed teeth.
Anda lowered his head and I promptly stood up.
"Take us to the Qalb." I instructed as Yna stood.
We then teleported to a platform that was deep within Mt. Jivu.
The platform overlooked a hive of countless paths and doors that went into the very mountain itself.
These were the homes of the wraiths.
Well… the homes of married wraiths.
I looked up and saw a massive hole that reach out towards the top of the mountain.
The way wraiths got air in and out of the mountain was via a web of pipes that space magicians would send air into.
Those pipes all led to the Qalb where all the air was blown up and out of the mountain.
Quite impressive stuff.
"Greetings, lord Katsíki and lady Yna."
I turned around to find two wraiths standing side by side next to a door covered by a dark flap.
"Hey, is Nira around?" I asked.
"Yes. Follow me."
One of the wraths said before leading us into Nira's home.
It was a cosy and simple place that was sparsely decorated although atop of any furniture to be found were countless stacks of paper.
We were led into Nira's office where she and her wife could be seen going over various documents.
"Ah- greetings, Katsíki. What brings you here?" She asked upon noticing me.
"I have a few things I want to discuss with you, most of which will be about the Ia." I said as I sat opposite her alongside Yna.
"I see. Oh- you look cold. Istel, could you get him something?" Nira asked and the silver knight brought me a small blanket which Yna wrapped around me.
I hadn't even noticed that I was shivering but now wasn't the time to whine about being cold.
I told Nira the circumstances the Ia found themselves in and she listened attentively.
"The Ia may have lost Eimval, but I don't want to force you Wraiths into this. If you are uncomfortable with having to accommodate the Ia, I will simply move them all to Rahadiya." I said even though that presented its own problems.
"No, we would gladly take care of our Rendaro brethren, even if they hadn't lost Eimval. Also, isn't Rahadiya unsafe?"
Ah… of course she knew that a crumbling city wouldn't be a suitable settlement.
And even if we made the Ia live on the city's outskirts, Rahadiya was too far from Coh and communication would be drastically slower.
"You're right. But I believe having a plan B is important in these trying times." I sighed.
"Agreed." Nira said.
"Umm… would you like some tea?" She asked and I nodded while thinking about how to best deal with Eimval.
There were still people there and even though most of them had been evacuated.
We could scrap Eimval entirely and use its resources to reinforce and supply everyone else.
Yeah.
That was a good idea.
I shared my thoughts with Nira and she agreed to them.
"Are you sure you don't need any support up there? We have all seen how hard you and the soldiers of Coh have fought and we are more than willing to join you, should Caligo choose to break the agreement you made."
"Don't worry. We'll be fine. Actually, the faster the Oasis and Mt. Jivu develop, the better. I would prefer a future in which you all depend on Coh less." I said, but Nira made a pained expression.
Istel eventually returned with some tea and we silently drank it.
"Thank you." I said after eventually finishing the tea.
"No thanks needed. Oh and do not hesitate to ask for anything in the future, ok?" Nira said as I stood up.
"OK. Yna, let's visit Shiru." I said and Yna teleported us to the front of one of the many homes in Eimvu.
I knocked on the door and Shiru opened the door before suddenly wrapped her arms around me.
Nothing was said as she held me and it wasn't until after a few moments that she let go.
She then led us inside where we found a grumpy looking Erna sitting by the dining table.
The little Rendaro noticed me before suddenly dashing in my direction.
Thoughts of running away crossed my mind, but I stood still as she approached.
"Katsíki! You're here!" She sang as I took one of the seats in the room.
"Indeed, I have returned. Tell me, how is it here? Are you comfortable?" I asked with a raised nose and a haughty voice.
"Yes, but… some of the kids here…" Erna's voice trailed off as she fiddled with her fingers.
"What? Are you being bullied?" I asked but Erna shook her head.
"No, it's just that their all bigger and faster than me. It's hard to keep up in class." She said.
I glanced at Shiru, who was in the kitchen with Yna.
"Mmm… hey, listen. It doesn't matter if their bigger or faster than you. Just do your best and be content with what you achieve."
"C-content?" Erna asked with a tilted head.
"Err… I'm saying give it your all! Remember, you said you would be a great warrior, right? Can't do that if you're worried about other people and how they perform!"
"I'm not worried about them!" Erna said with what I assumed was a frown.
"Hoh? That's good! So keep fighting!"
"Yeah!" She yelped before suddenly making a stiff expression.
"But Katsíki… you're still a kid too but you're always around grown ups. Why?"
"Heh? I'm a grown man!" I cried but Erna crossed her arms.
"Na-ah. You're all short and everything!"
My head fell and I placed a trembling hand on her shoulder.
"A man… is not defined by the size of his fist… but the size of his heart." I said dramatically.
Erna blinked several times before brushing off my hand.
"You sure say some weird things sometimes." She said while taking the seat next to mine.
"I… I wish we could hang out more." She said with a pout, but I ruffled her hair, which had been cut short.
"Hey, once all this is done, I promise we'll hang out all the time."
Erna's eyes lowered for a moment but she eventually grinned.
"Alright! I'll train even harder for now!"
I nodded in approval as Yna and Shiru served up dinner and we all ate as the afternoon sunlight leaked into the room.
"If… if you want to rest, you could spend the night here." Shiru said but I shook my head.
"I've got work to do in Coh. I also want to check up on Farin and Serylea. Don't worry, we'll be back in your old place eating together again before you know it." I said with a weak smile but it didn't look like Shiru believed me.
We eventually finished eating and Yna helped Shiru tidy up.
We then stood by the doorway to leave only for Shiru to hug me once more.
"Send Han and the others our best wishes, ok?"
I nodded as she let me go.
We then teleported back to the Expanse where the evening air retained some of its heat, albeit faintly.
I looked to the north and saw a tall lamp post in the sand.
We walked towards it and saw a large stairway that led deep into the ground.
A Kommáti suddenly appeared next to us and it deeply bowed before gesturing that we enter.
We went down through stairway and eventually arrived at gigantic chamber at the centre of which sat what looked like ancient ruins.
The perfectly rectangular chamber had been carved out by space magicians who had discovered the site several months before Farin and his students set up camp here.
Speaking of which, Farin and his students could be seen camping next to one of the many large pillars in the chamber.
Yna and I walked down the stone carved stairway alongside the chamber's wall.
Farin and company were seated around an orb of light which was surrounded by several beds and crates full of supplies.
The aged Rendaro noticed us and he promptly stood up before greeting us with open arms.
"Hey." He said softly before hugging me.
"Hey." I greeted while looking around.
"Sorry, but I don't have time. I just wanted to check on you guys." I said.
Farin nodded before crossing his arms.
"I see. Well, I guess I'll have to make this quick. We've discovered much since our arrival. First off, our suspicions were correct. There was another collision before the supposed first and an entire race of beings occupied this world at that time. These beings were the Haneem. I know this because their written language is incredibly similar to ours. Pétriniglóssa, they call it or Petriossa as we call it nowadays. Anyway, the Haneem were tall beings of stone who lived for… well, forever." Farin said excitedly.
"Hoh! Do you think those were the stone Lords that Yna spoke of?"
"Mmm… I'm not sure. Those "Lords" may have been high ranking Haneem." Farin explained.
I nodded before thinking about what this implied.
Why did mankind- no, why did the Moon King lie to everyone about the Haneem?
Also, where did they all go?
I trembled at the possibility that Luno actually killed them all.