The second-floor railing was filled with the sound of hushed whispers coming from the crowd of hunched backs and wrinkled fossils. Some Elders had neatly trimmed beards of silver that cascaded down their chests, and a few others had glasses that made their aged faces look wise. Most apparent was the fact that they are all sporting the same attire; gray cloaks that had fur on the collars and cuffs.
Isaac leaned over to Laila and said, "Why are they wearing fur?"
"Don't know. Maybe it's for fashion?" She responded in a whisper.
As the Elders made their way down the stairs, the room reverberated with the sound of creaking wood. Once everyone arrived, they all shuffled around to form a circle around Laila and Isaac.
"Well, I'll be… Taligen! Aren't these two from Bellagros?" One man croaked. He leaned heavily on a long stick, his frail body trembling with the effort.
"Has your memory already dulled, Gozan? Have you forgotten what Taligen told us after the meeting?" An old lady hissed. She had neck-length hair, her cheeks were plump and dimpled, and her nose had a cute smattering of freckles.
"Astren… You know the old coot has some screws loose in that pea-sized brain of his." Another chimed in from behind the siblings. When Isaac cocked his head to check who was talking this time, he couldn't help but shout,
"Damn you're tall as shit lady!"
As soon as he spoke, he was filled with shame and quickly clapped his hand over his mouth, not daring to look the woman in the eye. After the outburst, the air in the room was still and filled with tension.
"S-Sorry about that. I know you Apithiens are a species that isn't lacking in the height department, but it's still so surprising…"
The lady stood quietly, her gaze fixed on the boy as she remained motionless.
Isaac thought that the woman was waiting for him to apologize because of the eerie silence. Right as he removed his hand from his mouth, ready to apologize, the old lady let out a puff of air from her mouth, smirking.
"Pfft! Oh my, excuse me. This boy's straightforwardness caught me off-guard."
All eyes were on the woman as she smiled, her face glowing with joy. As Isaac mentioned, she was tall. Her two-hundred and ten cm frame cast an intimidating shadow as she stood in the room, towering over everyone by a good few inches. Her hair was like silk, falling in waves to her posterior, and her eyes shimmered with life as they peered out from behind her vanilla-colored glasses, perched atop her graceful, aquiline nose. The lady's smile was tender and loving, bringing to mind the fondness of a grandmother spending time with her grandchildren. Except, she had little to no wrinkles on her face, which surprised the two the most.
With a collective gasp of reverence, the circle bent down onto their knees.
"We greet the Grand Elder!" they roared in unison. To the siblings, it was like watching knights kneeling in front of their king.
"D-Do we bow?" Laila mouthed to her brother. Isaac glanced at the lady for a brief second and shrugged his shoulders.
"You may rise, dear friends." The Grand Elder spoke, her voice as smooth as marble. Upon the Grand Elder's command, the Elders sharply rose to their full heights. The woman named Astren spoke first.
"Grand Elder! It is a surprise to us all that you came here! You rarely take part in our meetings nowadays."
"Astren is right, Grand Elder," said another Elder. This one had a beard that was comically long and a head as shiny as a squeaky-clean window in the daytime. "You weren't in the meeting room, so we assumed you were off with more important matters, yet here you are!"
"Well, Quilon. I caught wind that Solgen and Volken had attained new disciples! I wanted to see them with my own eyes…" Grand Elder winked at Laila and Isaac.
"You say that, but as far as appearances go, I see nothing special," Quilon continued. "These are mere children still wet behind the ears. The constitution of their bodies… their experience… and the fact that they're a species we've never heard of!"
Quilon's observation drew a chorus of murmurs, with some people in the crowd nodding in agreement. Isaac's lips pursed as he stared in disapproval at the man. Laila was silent as she continued to watch from the sidelines with eyebrows squeezed together. The Grand Elder observed the siblings with a gentle smile, in contrast to the disgruntled murmurs of the surrounding Elders.
"Even when they're around an atmosphere of negativity, they do not resort to anger or hostility," she thought to herself. Not only that, but I can also feel the strength of their mana, especially from the young boy.
After a careful appraisal of the siblings, the Grand Elder decided to proceed with additional tests. The authority figure raised her arm to silence the crowd. In a split second, the room was hushed and the only sound was the faint ticking of the clock.
"Thank you. First off, Taligen."
"Yes, Grand Elder." Taligen answered immediately.
"Please stay here with the Elders while I speak with the humans privately."
"Understood," he bowed. The Elders exchanged nervous glances, but none of them said a word in response to their leader's request. They all kept quiet, knowing that not even their most persuasive words could sway the Grand Elder. The lady scanned her colleague's faces one more time before snapping her fingers. In that split second, the surrounding scenery changed, and the two siblings were no longer in the lobby of the lodge, but instead in a small room.
It was a room that was inviting and comforting, the sound of the crackling fire in the fireplace, and the cushioned chairs in front inviting one to relax. In the middle of the chairs sat a small table, with a woven wicker basket filled to the brim with colourful fruits and freshly baked cookies. On the opposite end of the room was a large bookshelf with a plethora of multi-colored books, ranging from short books, poems, and even picture books. The room was permeated by the bright, white light of the sun streaming in through the window.
"How the he- Ahem!" Isaac stopped himself just in time. "I mean… how did you do that? It didn't even feel like we moved!"
"Curious, are you?" Grand Elder chuckled as she made her way to an available seat near the fireplace. Her movements just now were graceful, filled with poise and confidence. For someone that tall, you would guess she would move awkwardly for her size, but it was the opposite for Grand Elder. To Isaac, the Grand Elder might as well have been gliding!
"What are you two standing around for? Come! Have a seat!" She pointed at the two chairs in front of her. Without hesitation, the two of them eagerly accepted her offer and settled into the chairs. Laila opted for an armchair while Isaac delightedly plopped himself onto the rocking chair that was adorned with a soft floral cushion. The boy promptly rocked back and forth, all while surprised the chair made no creaking noise at all.
"To answer your question from before, and you probably already know the answer, I teleported us to a nearby room."
"Teleportation?" Laila repeated. "You can teleport just like Solgen?"
"Yes and no, dearie." Grand Elder politely denied. "Solgen can teleport without needing to touch a person or object. For my magic to activate, I must be in contact. Frankly, I'm a bit jealous." She sighed, cradling her forehead in her hand.
"Enough about that!" The Grand Elder clasped her hands together. "I'm going to get straight to the point. Solgen used her teleportation magic to transport you guys here. Am I correct?"
"Yes…" Laila answered. She was surprised that the Grand Elder figured that bit out quickly.
"The only person who could bypass the barrier I whipped up is Solgen. There aren't that many ways for one to infiltrate South Osmen," The Grand Elder happily informed. "May I ask why Solgen transported you here? I don't see nor sense Solgen or Volken around here."
And there it is! The big question! This was the moment Isaac and Laila dreaded once they woke up from their sleep. Laila's mouth would pucker as she struggled to vocalize her thoughts, but thinking back to that haunting day had her fingers trembling and her throat tightened. Knowing that his sister could not speak, Isaac stopped swaying in his chair and leaned forward, his lips turned upside down and forehead creased.
"I… don't know how to break it to you…" Isaac faltered for a second, but he continued. "… Solgen and Volken… they are-"
"They're dead, aren't they?" The Grand Elder finished. The gloomy duo snapped their heads toward the woman.
"Y-You knew?" Laila gasped. The Grand Elder solemnly nodded.
"…I had a feeling they would meet their end in their battle against the Pillars or each other," the woman sighed deeply, withdrawing deeper in her chair. "Volken had told me everything the last time he visited Frigiod. Unwillingly, might I add. Starting from the beginning of their journey against the Pillars a decade ago and what led to him capturing his own sister. How he had to serve under the Pillars just so they don't annihilate the Apithiens, and how he met two interesting humans with great potential."
Isaac and Laila were still as statues, their ears straining to hear every syllable uttered by the Grand Elder. The woman's voice sounded distant, like she was in a faraway place. She spoke in an almost-whisper, but the siblings still heard her clear as day.
"Volken had many troubles plaguing his mind for someone as young as he was due to his position as leader. Oh, and to cover that up Solgen's mysterious disappearance, he informed the Elders and I that she was doing secluded training and won't know when she'll be back. The Elders believed him without an ounce of skepticism, but not I… I knew that boy better than anyone. That was when I figured something terrible had happened to Solgen…"
The Grand Elder sighed once again, crossing one of her legs.
"He felt the overwhelming burden of responsibility, almost as if he was carrying the world on his shoulders. A weight he was too afraid of sharing with anyone else, fearful of the stares he would receive from the Apithiens if one were to hear of his actions. When I found Volken falling through a portal erected by Solgen herself and landing right in front of my humble abode, something snapped inside Volken's mind. Once he saw me standing in front of him with a smile on my face, he spilled everything to me…"
As her sentence drew to a close, the firewood crackled with intensity, and a sequence of sharp snaps and fizzing pops filled the air as the wood released its steam. The room was invaded by a smoky sweetness as time went on, the aroma of ashes and sugar mingling in the air. Everything in the room was quiet other than the fireplace and the subtle shaking of windows.
"…How did they die? If you don't mind me asking…" The Grand Elder whispered. Isaac opened his mouth first, but Laila responded immediately.
"T-They died protecting us from Luna, one of the Pillars," said Laila, her voice cracking. "This all happened yesterday at the t-throne room in Port Silis. S-Solgen used one of her p-portals to take Isaac and I to a s-safe place, far from Luna's clutches..."
"Volken pushed me aside from Luna's attack and took the brunt of the force to save me," Isaac quickly added in, looking away from the Grand Elder. "For someone like him to save me… it was unexpected. I didn't even get the chance to thank him…"
"…I see," the woman whispered, her voice barely audible.
"Also, we're Solgens disciples. Volken only had Airon…" Laila said, averting her eyes.
The Grand Elder snorted and said, "Please, I knew none of you were Volken's disciples. It was obvious once I laid my eyes on you. Solgen and Volken's teaching methods are… unorthodox, to say the least."
"What do you mean by that?" Isaac asked.
"Solgen believed that the pursuit of physical strength is key to becoming a powerful individual, even if it means pushing the body until the legs give out. Volken believed that pushing the mind to its breaking point is needed for a warrior to fight unreservedly and toss away needless emotions. The traditional way we teach is to strike a balance between the two. Personally, their way of teaching was absolute rubbish…"
Isaac and Laila exchanged glances, thinking back to their training with Solgen. The running around the village on one foot, spending your mana until you were shriveled husk, sparring with Solgen with little to no rest… They couldn't help but shiver at the experience.
"Solgen mentioned that her Apithien training was three times worse than what we went through in a month. Me and my brother couldn't walk straight during the first two weeks…"
"All that work made me want to dig a hole and curl into a ball as I beg for forgiveness… I could feel every single one of his muscles tearing and repairing itself," Isaac groaned as he remembered the pain. The agony he went through was traumatizing for the teenager.
"That's it?" What a shame… I expected better from Solgen." She smiled deviously at the pair. That wicked smirk had Laila and Isaac's bodies jolt upward like frightened felines.
"I'll have to inform the Elders and the whole village about the passing of their leaders," The Grand Elder said as she rose from her chair. She walked to the nearest window and stood there, gazing out at the landscape, listening to the birds chirping in the distance.
"Solgen and Volken were among the brightest and strongest Apithiens the village had the fortune of cultivating. This news will dampen the spirits of the Apithiens. We have incurred a heavy loss in which the Apithiens will weep for generations to come."
"…"
"A great memorial service will be held in a few days' time," she calmly announced. "It will be the biggest an Apithien has ever held. Apithiens from other villages in South and North Osmen will flock here to pay their respects. As the Great Elder of the Apithiens, I have much work to do."
Suddenly, the woman whirled her body around to face the two. A determined face rested on the Grand Elder's unblemished face.
"You two will attend the event as special guests! I will not take no for an answer."
"We wouldn't have it any other way," Laila proclaimed, standing up from her seat. Isaac nodded vigorously and was out of his seat too.
"Splendid!" The woman beamed with a giant smile. "Now then, with that in order, I would like to know more about you two and your journey throughout Athiens! I'm a sucker for learning about the unknown, especially from this planet known as… Earth?"
"Er… If we were to do that, then we'll be talking for an extremely long time," Laila pointed out.
"I don't mind. I just want to know more about my child's disciple!"
"That's all? Heh." Isaac chuckled, sitting back down on the rocking chair. "Then I guess we can spare a- wait a minute. Did you just say... my child?"
"Hmm? Oh, that's right, you didn't know! I'm the mother of Solgen and Volken. It's a pleasure to meet you," she so proudly stated.
The news was so surprising that Laila and Isaac were speechless, their jaws dropped in shock. The gears in their brain stopped, their thoughts unable to progress any further as an endless loop of the same sentence played in their mind like a stuck record.
"This was going to be a long day."