Card Nineteen: The Tower

“The sailors on this planet are certainly brave,” Achitha commented next to her prince about two weeks after they’d set off from shore. They’d spent nearly three weeks on Pearalis in total, and while everything seemed fairly normal on the outside, there was a looming sense of dread among the villagers as the waters became increasingly dangerous to travel through. It’d started just over two years ago, fairly recently, when this planet that was mostly water began to have its ships attacked by an unknown monster, some people describing it as an eel and others describing it as a blue serpent. Regardless, hundreds of people had already died or gone missing, and yet there were still sailors willing to bring them to where most of the disappearances had taken place. Perhaps it was because Cirrus had revealed his identity as the Crown Prince of Lilino and the one who bore the fate of prophecy, but it was still impressive to see how brave these sailors truly were, especially now that they were starting to get into a rather dangerous zone. 

“You’re right,” Cirrus agreed as he leaned on the ship’s edge, overlooking the still blue waters that seemed all too peaceful. “This is where most of the ships have been disappearing, but… nothing really seems to be out of place quite yet. Though, well, we’re just here looking for the miracle worker. I suppose if he already handled whatever is happening here, that would be better.”

And Feather, who was loitering on the same deck a level up while mindlessly eating candy, heard those hopeful words and erupted into a wry grin from where he’d been sunbathing like a cat, carefully getting up and jumping down onto the lower deck to slink over beside Cirrus with sly precision, ready to make some fun for himself. “Oh? You’re just going to let all of your problems be solved by someone else? How passive,” he jeered rudely, leaning over the edge with a bright giggle, only to be pulled back by the scruff of his white turtleneck by Achitha, the woman giving him a quizzical stare as she stopped him from leaning too far over. 

“You should be careful,” she chided firmly, dragging him farther off the edge as Feather let out a childish and gleeful laugh filled with joy. “And we aren’t here to solve this planet’s monster problem. We are only here to track the miracle worker and recruit him, as that is the only task we’ve been given by our leaders,” she reminded firmly, and Cirrus gave a solemn nod at those words. He wished he could help, but Ruba had specifically told him he was to recruit the miracle worker as a priority, so it would be best to delegate the task of saving these waters to someone else who had more time and was more capable. Except, both of them suddenly had to pause when Feather’s incessant giggling died down, unnerved to watch his face shift into one of stubborn dislike. 

It was an odd change, to see that expressive, child-like face suddenly turn very dull, and both Achitha and Cirrus turned to look at him as he grimaced down at the water below. “I don’t like that,” Feather spoke smally, voice sounding uncharacteristically quiet as Cirrus froze. “If there’s a problem here, we should fix it. You’re the future leader of the Central Domain Alliance, aren’t you? And Pearalis is a member of that. If anything bad is happening to them, it’s your duty to fix it, isn’t it? And even if it wasn’t, if you’re not willing to help a planet that clearly needs it just because it wasn’t your original goal, then I’m not going to align myself with you. Even if it’s not your duty, I won’t follow someone who’s willing to ignore a minority from dying just to save the majority in the long run. You need to focus on the lives in front of you as well, or else you’re nothing but a spineless hypocrite hiding behind a prophecy just because it tells you you’re great,” he spat, voice growing increasingly venomous with his neutral expression turned twisted before he glared towards Cirrus, almost as if he were testing him. Feather’s eyes were narrowed and threatening, full of a kind of sincerity he’d never seen from him before. And it…

It sounded so… so simple. Such a statement that was so raw it left him speechless. Cirrus was the Crown Prince of Lilino, son of the leader of the Central Domain Alliance, and future leader of the same organization. He had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, but he had never once objected to carrying it. The large burden of saving reality belonged to Cirrus and Cirrus alone, or so it had always been. It got to the point where smaller burdens were always delegated over to others, so that he could focus on his grand overarching cause. In fact, he usually wouldn’t have been the one to seek out the miracle worker on this wild goose chase in the first place, and instead would’ve been part of the group that was exploring Viscendant’s uncovered laboratory for more clues, but… for some strange reason, Ruba had given him this mission instead, and had called it his most important one yet. Though he still hadn’t quite figured out why. But…

To save others because it was his duty, not because he felt it in his heart… to save others because the prophecy told him to… was that how it looked to other people? Cirrus liked to think of himself as a good person. He wanted to save as many lives as possible, as that was his only purpose and reason for existing in this world, the prophecy said so itself. And reality’s collapse had always been the biggest, scariest, and most deadly threat on his mind, so he’d focused all of his efforts into that, and ignored everything else that didn’t relate… had that been the wrong thing to do? 

His mother had always told him that everyone had their role to play, and that his role was fulfilling the prophecies that spoke of him and sung his praises. She always told him he shouldn’t focus on anything more. Perhaps Nadia was just afraid that if he took on any more than what had already been handed to him at his birth, he might fall, break, and shatter completely, yet at the same time… 

Ruba had told him that if he ever needed to choose between recruiting the miracle worker and recruiting the man who would not respect him, he should choose the latter. And that same man who didn’t have a shred of respect for him at all, Feather the miraculous and brilliant divine healer whose abilities were one of a kind, was telling him to save the people in front of him. People his prophecy had never mentioned. Feather was telling him to look at the lives that were being lost right now and to do something about it, or else he would not follow. But in a way, wasn’t Feather also saying that if he… if he took on more loads, he would help? Perhaps Cirrus’ heart was a bit too selfish for its own good, because the moment that thought wrapped its way around his mind, he suddenly wanted to do whatever he possibly could for this planet and the people on it that he didn’t even know, all so that Feather and his immense power could be beside him, on his side, fighting with him in this war with reality… sharing his heavy burdens. 

All of these overwhelming thoughts swept up his mind in mere moments, and in his shock, he had to be snapped out of it when Achitha began scolding the brilliant man in front of them, not letting him have any more time to process as Cirrus looked between the two, his second in command looking rather angry at Feather. “Cirrus already has more than enough on his plate. You’re asking for too much if you expect him to do everything,” the strong woman remarked roughly, looking awfully impatient with Feather for the statements he’d made. “If the miracle worker is not here, then of course we’ll have Queen Nadia send in more reinforcements to deal with the monster problem while we continue looking. But as of now, it really isn’t our issue to deal with. You need to learn when and when not to fight. Cirrus does enough for reality as it is.”

And, well… Cirrus didn’t know what to say to that either, and felt a bit nervous seeing the way Feather’s blank face deepened into a harsher, colder glare at Achitha’s firm statements. His mind was being torn between two different ideologies… between two different desires. Between the desire to have a companion just as powerful as himself, if not even more brilliant and innately talented… or continuing to delegate these smaller burdens out to the world so that he could have some rest and peace, so that he wouldn’t become overwhelmed, so that he could hide behind his prophecy, just as Feather had called him out for. Though, his silence must have been the wrong choice of action, and he felt almost scared when Feather looked past Achitha to sneer at him, clearly not liking how complacent he was acting. He could imagine that the blond was taking his silence to mean that he must agree with Achitha, or that he was at least letting her make decisions for him. And yeah, Feather wasn’t the type of guy to like something like that. Though, somehow, Cirrus’ blood froze even further when he suddenly felt that arrogant sneer he was being given here was somehow… familiar. Only he couldn’t place it at all. 

And either way, it didn’t really matter, because he barely had time to think about anything else other than the pissed off blond in front of him, stiffening and leaning back while Feather closed in on him. “You’re a coward,” he hissed, taking another step closer to the prince as Achitha glared at him, immediately stepping in front to cut him off. 

“You best watch your tongue, how dare you speak to him like that—”

“Oh shut it, you two are nothing but slaves to prophecy,” Feather snapped louder, approaching Cirrus further as he shoved himself past Achitha’s broad arm. “I don’t actually hate prophecies, you know! I see why they’re important! They foretell possible futures, and that can help guide us to wonderful outcomes! But prophecies don’t come true because you follow them blindly, they come true because you are yourself, the person the prophecy was made for. Without you, the prophecy wouldn’t exist, which means that even if the prophecy wasn’t there for you to hide behind it like a coward, your fate would still be the same! Because you are Cirrus Aixon, Crown Fucking Prince of Lilino, and you are going to lead every world and every universe into a utopia by stopping the collapse of reality, not because you were told to, but because of who you are! So I say ignore that shitty prophecy and decide what the hell you want to do and achieve without it, because that is the only way it will come true!” Feather growled, Achitha gaping at him in pure astonishment as Cirrus listened to those words like they were holy. 

“If you don’t know what you’re doing without the prophecy, then you are leading yourself down a blind road where you will suffer and burn and perish without ever doing what you need to! The prophecy isn’t there to guide you, it’s merely just telling you what you were going to do anyway! Prophecies aren’t even always accurate, you know! It doesn’t matter how many prophecies of Ruba’s have come true, they’re still an unstable art form that can’t always be trusted! So, knowing that, what are you going to do with yourself, Cirrus?!” Feather’s voice boomed loudly in his ears, eyes of strangers and friends turning to look at them as Eve paused in her snowy meditation and Jayce merely gawked like he didn’t know what on earth he was listening to. “That prophecy isn’t going to come true just because you follow it and hide behind it like a scared little bitch! It’s going to come true because that’s the kind of person you are! Because that is who can grow to be! But you don't know what kind of person you are yet, because that stupid prophecy has been blinding you since the moment you were born, tricking you into thinking you were special and that your life was more important than everyone else’s around you! So stop being a fucking coward and letting other people do things that you could easily do yourself! This planet is in danger, people are dying right now, and isn’t that exactly what the prince upheld by the world should be trying to prevent?! Who are you, Cirrus Aixon?! Who do you think you are?!”

“That’s enough—!” Achitha went to command, voice brimming with fury, Cirrus already crumbling underneath the weight and meaning behind those words. He had no clue what he should even say, still too conflicted for his own peace of mind, only for the boat to suddenly rock sideways before the three of them were flung to the opposite end, his thoughts spinning in overwhelm as he desperately tried to recover himself. The roar of a mythical beast thrummed loudly in his ears as Cirrus looked up to see a large, white and blueish green serpent roaring above them, already wrapping itself around the ship as his mind continued to lull. 

“Agh, damn you, you good for nothing pushover. What are you even doing with your life?” Feather snapped, pushing Cirrus and Achitha away from him as he wiggled against the side of the ship, flipping himself over the rim as he created dozens of portals, scooping people out of the sea before they succumbed to drowning or the beast’s hunger before teleporting them all the way back to the port they’d set off from. But he wasn’t going anywhere. He wanted to know more about this monster. This was the second mythical beast he’d seen with a kill count of over ten thousand, even though mythical beasts were supposed to be docile and non-aggressive with humans, which only made him wonder what the hell was going on, because something was clearly not right. 

And Cirrus watched with a wide amber eye as Feather let himself fall through one of his portals, the other end appearing on top of the monster before he landed on its head on all fours, immediately clinging to the beast’s long white whiskers for leverage as it swung him around. 

“What’s wrong with you, huh?! Aren’t you supposed to be a peaceful creature?! What the hell is happening to you guys?!” he screamed, Cirrus’ mind turning upside down at the vivid sight. 

Feather had just saved everyone on this ship singlehandedly. There were no casualties because he was such a skilled teleporter. The only people left hanging on were Cirrus himself, Achitha, Jayce, Eve, Kya, and Leocadies, and everyone else that had been resting in the hull had also been teleported back to land. And what had he done? Besides fight and kill monsters on worlds that were already ruined, what had Cirrus done for the Udimeia’s people?

He’d been getting to know Feather for a little over a month now, and always right when he thought he was coming to truly understand him, things like this happened. Feather always acted immature and childish, and he often needed coddling from Leocadies and Kya to function properly, and all of that sometimes overshadowed how competent he truly was. And at times, his smug arrogance that he displayed and his constant disrespect towards Cirrus made him forget how kind he was, too. But all of a sudden, Cirrus felt like he could now understand where all that disrespect he’d been getting from Feather came from, and suddenly found his mind clearer than it had ever been before. Because in the end, all Cirrus wanted was an equal companion. If he could have that, then he could take on any number of heavy burdens, big and small, because he would know that in the end, he wouldn’t be alone with them. 

Clenching his teeth, ice exploded on the ship as he used his third concept of telekinesis to levitate Achitha over to where Jayce and Eve lay flat against the forecastle, his ice grounding him in its familiarity as he wrapped it around his feet and ankles and drove himself forward. “Feather, you need to be careful! You may be brilliant, but you’re still only a healer!” he yelled with caution, freezing the serpent’s core around the crushed ship as it roared against the hissing cold, and he brought his ice all the way around the mythical creature’s neck so that it would stop jerking Feather around and straining the poor blond further. Not that the man seemed to care too much.  

“Shut it! I’ll do what I want!” the manic healer yelled at him, pulling at the mythical beast's whiskers even harder with incomparable rage as he kept screaming at it. “Now what the hell do you think you’re doing, eh?! Mythical creatures like you aren’t supposed to be aggressive! And don’t you have the ability to talk with humans telepathically? Go on and tell me why you’re acting like this, you big lump of flesh and scales!”

“Ah, are you sure you should be talking to it so disrespectfully? It’s still a mythical beast,” Cirrus protested awkwardly, only for Feather to not even spare him a glance while he continued to snap. 

“Shut up, you pushover prince! I’ll talk to this thing however I want after how many people it’s killed!”

“Oh, right… you have a point,” the prince stumbled out, before looking down at the screaming creature that kept writhing and wriggling against the ice that trapped it. 

Mythical creatures were usually harmless. They were powerful beings that transcended worlds and were the only animals alive known to be worldhoppers just like the other sentient species of the Udimeia, but they were always wise and stoic, never interacting with humans unless they had to, and never harming any unless they were attacked first. Why had one lashed out so aggressively and without reason? And, not to mention, hadn’t the miracle worker also hunted and killed a mythical beast after it’d started ransacking civilizations? His mother had said that if they ever found the legendary man, that they would pardon him for breaking the law of not killing mythical beasts… after all, it’d been necessary to save others. But now there was another one acting out? Why? What in the world was happening to these poor, legendary creatures?

Another earsplitting roar echoed around the sea, the water growing stormy and volatile as the serpent began to make a noise that sounded akin to crying. Please! Please help me! I want to die, I want to die! Please kill me, kill me!

“Eh? Do we have a suicidal mythical beast on our hands or what?” Feather snapped impatiently, pulling at the beast’s white whiskers all over again without a care. “Why do you wanna die, huh? You better tell me, otherwise I’m not killin’ ya.”

Ahhh, it hurts, I am in pain! I want to die because I am in pain! Please, make it stop, make it stop… it wallowed, its cries becoming more and more desperate as Feather stared at it, puzzled. 

Although, after a brief moment of contemplation, Cirrus eventually moved his hand to press against the side of the mythical serpent’s face, its blue and green scales cold to touch. “What is it that is causing you so much pain?” he whispered softly, the beast moaning as shimmering clear tears fell from its beady black eyes. 

They have poisoned me, they have poisoned me… I am no longer myself… the concept of evil consumes me, it has been injected into my blood… please, kill me, spare me! I don’t want to be subjugated to this fate any longer!

“What… did you say the concept of evil?” Cirrus had to double take, not certain if he’d heard that correctly while he kept his hand pressed against the creature’s thick scaly neck. But really, he hadn’t heard of anyone trying to master that illegal concept for over a millennia… not only was it one of the most taboo and immoral concepts out there, but it was a concept only the most diabolical of people could ever harness… most anyone who wanted to try and use it were arrested and killed for other crimes before they ever managed to come close.

Feather was the only one who didn’t seem as if he were phased, but his expression turned a little more gentle as he stopped tugging on the serpent’s whiskers. “Who’s using it? Do you know?” he asked directly, allowing it to cry and wail without giving it further pain, although it was clear he still expected an answer.

I don’t know, I don’t know, I am so sorry! It was injected into my blood by a strange man with violet hair, bronze skin, and golden eyes, but that is all I know! I don’t know who this man was, or how he got the vials filled with black blood that was possessed by the concept of evil! the serpent kept crying, wilting deeper into the ice as more tears flowed from its eyes like falling rivers. Now please, please… I have told you all I know, so please kill me… please, men of prophecy, please put me out of my misery, I am begging you… oh, please, I am in so much pain…

“Ah…” Cirrus hesitated, his mind reeling at the disgusting information he’d just received. 

Vials of black blood? Like the ones they’d found in that laboratory next to the autopsy table? And they’d been possessed by the concept of evil? In other words, when injected with that specific type of black blood that had somehow been mixed with such a taboo concept, it could turn creatures against their nature, corrupting them… knowing this, how could he possibly kill this poor beast? It was still a wise mythical creature, something that had once been pure and sacred. But if he didn’t, and if he let the serpent go, it would be forced to kill more innocents against its will. How could he choose between these options? How could he ever…

“Cirrus,” he suddenly heard his name called sharply, and responded to Feather’s summons with a look filled with conflicted despair. Except, when he met the blond’s calm demeanor, watching as a small, confident smile took its rightful place on his fair vanilla features, he suddenly felt inexplicably at ease. “You’re forgetting that I’m here. I’m the best healer in the world, and I can do anything. So you just relax and watch, alright?” Feather grinned, taking hold of the serpent's long whiskers all over again while he cackled. “If I heal you and restore you to your original state, will you take me to where you were poisoned?”

Ahhh, heal me? Impossible! How can you hope to heal me?! Just kill me, please kill me…

“Sorry, I don’t kill people,” Feather responded instead, smile never fading as he patted the serpent’s smooth back. “But don’t worry, I do heal, and I’m really good at it. So just you wait, you’re safe with me. And instead of dying a meaningless death like what you’re asking for, I’ll make sure you can work hard to repent by defeating the person who did this to you. In my opinion, after all this suffering under the concept of evil that has now resurfaced into the world, that is the least you can do.”