Ah, Emberfell… As gloomy as it always has been. The sun was slowly setting and the brisk air surged around as a heavy wind made its way through the city streets. Aiden quickly dashed out of the train and the station, before he went to hail a cab. He quickly realized that his wallet was in Sylvanwood, so, he walked. And walked, and walked… The Manor was at the complete other end of the city, and this wasn't going to be a short one.
However, it gave Aiden a nice viewpoint on just how different Emberfell and Sylvanwood are from one another. In Emberfell, skyscrapers broke through the clouds, and wherever you turned your head there would be a café, a shopping mall, something to do. Meanwhile, Sylvanwood was much simpler. Besides a few local owned restaurants and shops, the streets were mostly filled with craftspeople, local farmers selling freshly cultivated honey, fruits and vegetables. The difference was palpable, despite their close proximity. And, although he was a city boy at heart, Aiden preferred the calm and detailed aesthetic of Sylvanwood compared to the bustling streets and crowded sidewalks and boulevards. Was it his isolation as a child that made him prefer the quiet, or was it something different? Because, despite how much larger the population was in the city, Aiden knew almost nobody, nor did he ever get a chance too meet people.
In Sylvanwood, not even a few months after he moved, everyone already treated him like a local. Everyone considered him a friend, and the sense of community was much greater than anyone could ever accomplish here. Now that he had a better chance to think about it, Aiden was disgusted at himself that he would ever throw away something he worked so hard to achieve - just for a crumb of power.
"Maybe Gabriel is right…" Aiden weighed everyone's words in his head, trying too see who was right. "Khiara has a point, I should take this chance to make a name for myself… But, Gabriel and Dad, they're right too. I shouldn't go out there soaking my hands in blood, just because I have a reason."
Aiden couldn't come to terms with himself on what he actually wanted. And, lost in thought, he arrived at the manor before he even came to a conclusion.
Ringing the doorbell, Aiden was almost instantly greeted by someone. It was Valarie and Runa.
"Come on, Dad told us you were coming. No need to take a bus, I'll drive you home" said Valarie.
"Aiden!" Runa jumped out behind Valarie, hugging him. "Dad said you went to the doctor. Are you okay?"
"Yeah… I'm fine. Just a routine check-up." Aiden tried reassuring Runa everything is okay, despite the wildfire burning in his head.
"Come on, I'm sure you want to get home as soon as possible. You're clearly tired, you can't even open your eyes fully." Valarie pulled her keys out of her pocket and jiggled them, before she headed out towards the car.
Aiden was getting beaten by his sleepiness, but he couldn't sleep in a car for the life of him. So, he began chatting with Valarie.
"So, Aiden," Valarie broke the silence, her eyes focused on the road. "How did it really go with Gabriel? Dad said it was more than just a check-up."
"Don't even ask. I mean, I'm completely okay… physically that is." Aiden sighed deeply. "My head has been a mess since leaving that office. After hearing Gabriel's analysis, I feared my power. But, Khiara's words stung me in the heart."
"Yeah, Dad told me most of the story. He's clearly completely against you ever using Inherit." As Valarie stopped at a red light, she leaned over and opened the glove box. "I mean, I can see what he means. It's not a lighthearted one like mine is." In the compartment was a notebook with a red cover that read 'Most used'.
"Yeah, yours is tough to beat on that front." Aiden chuckled. "I don't know, I guess I'll take the next few days to think this through. Rushing it won't help."
"Hey, who knows." Valarie slammed the throttle as she drove away from the red light, pushing Aiden back in his seat. "Maybe you could inherit one power and call it a day, and forget that Inherit ever existed."
"If only I could. I feel as if this is a scenario where I either don't use it at all, or actively use it. No middle ground." They were now on a long straight part of the road without anyone on it, and Aiden looked over at the gauge cluster of the car. He saw that Valarie was going almost double the speed limit. "Valarie, I know I said I wanted to be there quick, and that this car has all the new safety features, but please, slow down… Uh, for Runa's sake that is."
"Yeah, yeah. Sure it is." Valarie laughed.
And as they two kept talking about Aiden's new life in Sylvanwood, Runa kept occasionally chiming in, asking questions. Aiden tried his best to answer, but of course, he couldn't tell her the whole truth. Valarie's driving slowed down considerably, but Sylvanwood wasn't far. Soon, they were at the town's entrance.
Valarie dropped him off in front of his apartment. He said goodbye and got out of the wagon, before leaning through the back window to ruffle Runa's hair a little. She got all pouty, and Aiden couldn't help but laugh.
"See you guys! Love you!" Aiden said as he waved them two off. Valarie turned around in the parking lot in front of the building, before heading back for Emberfell. Aiden dragged himself to his apartment, and as soon as he got in, he locked the door behind him and threw himself into bed. Before he even registered that he fell asleep, dawn was already cracking.
After shuffling around in his bed until he finally managed to get up, he figured he should have breakfast, but, being out of town for this long meant most of his groceries had either gone bad, or were missing entirely, since he missed his usual shopping day. So, after getting dressed for the cloudy weather, anticipating rain, Aiden quickly bolted to the bakery and grabbed a few pastries and an espresso, before heading to the local market. Sunday was typically market day, but you could still find a few vendors even on Saturday, and Aiden always preferred fresh food.
As his feet hit the stone paved streets of Sylvanwood, his mind began drifting. "I guess I should let Midori know I'm back. She's going to be so furious I didn't call or text, though…"
He kept strolling before he made his way to his favorite vendor, and grabbed some vegetables. And as he turned around to leave, in front of him, almost as if his thoughts summoned her, was Midori.
"Aiden!" she screamed when she saw him, before jumping in to hug him. "Where were you?! I was worried sick."
Midori's screaming made quite a few heads turn, and Aiden, careful about spreading information on his recent troubles, carefully weighed his choices.
"I- It's a long, long story. One I can't tell you here." Aiden quickly glanced around. "Let me finish shopping, and we'll head to my place. I'll explain to you everything there."
Midori nodded to agree, before they headed out. The shopped hurriedly, Midori asking questions every now and then, ones Aiden merely brushed of with a promise of a full explanation soon. As they finally finished, they began heading back, and Midori was always a few steps ahead of Aiden. Clearly, she was dying to know what went down.
Unlocking the door to his apartment, Aiden immediately threw a kettle on the stove, before pulling out two bags of cranberry tea from his cabinet. He brought some snacks, made the tea, before he sat down and began explaining everything.
After taking a sip of his tea, Aiden took a deep breath. "Where do I even begin. So, remember when I took that double shift, so I'd have a day off for our dinner at your place."
"Yeah, when you mauled down those bao buns like a madman." Midori giggled.
"Yeah, that dinner. When we were finishing the shift, I stayed behind to pack everything up, while the team went home." Aiden leaned back in his chair. "And I met this, old, sulky man. He told me his name was Cassius, before he quickly began talking all sorts of nonsense. Powers, Soul Marks, Deities, cults… I was in a daze."
Midori's eyes seemed to widen at the mention of the word Deities. "Aiden, don't tell me you joined a Cult…"
"I know it seems bad now, but you need to see it through my eyes. This man knew things about me, things no one knew." He pointed his finger to the scar on his wrist he got during the ritual. "Looking now, I see he was merely trying to persuade me. But, it was almost like he could peer into my soul."
"And so, after our dinner, us two met in the Forest of Clarity. They had a base in the heart of the forest. Although, it was more a town than it was a base."
"A town in the forest?" Midori seemed confused. "I never heard of such a place existing…"
"Neither did I, or anyone for that matter." He stopped for a second, before taking another sip, and loudly exhaling. "I began training for what Cassius lead me to believe was a way for me to get powers… when in reality, it was a ritual."
The word 'ritual' had hung in the air for a solid few seconds. Aiden stopped speaking, wanting to give Midori a chance to reply, but… nothing. She was just sitting there, frozen almost, his words almost seemed to bounce off of her.
"A- A ritual?" Midori managed hoarsely, the hand which was until now calmly resting on her lap tightly gripping the fabric of her dress.
"A ritual. Thankfully, it failed, since the Oracle intervened-" Aiden's thought was now cut short, as through the room echoed a loud knock on the door.
"I'm not expecting anyone…" Aiden said as he got up from the sofa. "But, doesn't hurt to check. Maybe it's Olek?"
Aiden opened the door, and before he could even begin speaking, a fist had solidly connected to his face. Not even getting a chance to register the pain, the world went black.
Aiden now began slowly re-awakening, expecting for him to be captured and taken to some secret hideout. However, as his eyes traced the pattern on the ceiling, and the wallpaper stretching from corner to corner… this was still his apartment. He was just laying down on the sofa?
Looking over, near the door, he saw a few men tied up with what seemed to be vines of some sort, before looking back at the table and the sofa opposite his, where he saw Midori, calmly sipping her tea almost as if nothing happened.
So many questions raced Aiden's mind. Who were these people? What just happened? How did Midori stop them?
But, stopping his thoughts immediately, Aiden yelled out. "What the hell is this, Midori?!"