TBATE: Let The Truth Be Known {Completed} - Chapter 29: Calm Before the Storm - Wattpad

TBATE: Let The Truth Be Known {Completed}

After slaying Cadell and discarding Nico, Arthur is confronted with his worst nightmare. Before him is Agrona and even worse, Tessia. At least he wishes he could ignore it.

Chapter 29: Calm Before the Storm

CECILIA

I don't know what to do. I would have thought that I'd be over all of those feelings from my childhood on Earth, but Tessia and her adoration are seeping through. Arthur cares for me like Tessia and I are one and the same—or at least I think he does.

He's been so busy as of late preparing for his 'meeting' with Agrona that he hasn't been speaking with me very much. We leave for the overworld soon, but he's occupied with the occasional solo ascent or meeting with Seris.

Nic—Elijah has been working out in the boonies with Gideon and Emily for the past nearly two months. His dedication to proving himself to Arthur has been admirable, but the remnants of Nico are completely gone. All that is left now is his sharp mind. He has sins to atone for without the personality that committed those sins. It's as if he's paying for the crimes of his predecessors.

Alice's 41st birthday is tomorrow, which Arthur said he'd be back for. The day after, we leave for Taegrin Caelum. It's quite the action-packed weekend.

My only issue is this: I don't have a gift.

I've been wracking my brain for what she could possibly need, but Arthur said I don't need to bother. How could I not get her something? I've been staying in her house for the past few months, but I've got nothing. She has a quaint home with everything she could want. She has two children that she can see often. She even has a support system consisting of her old adventuring party and the former Elven king. She's one of those women who want nothing.

Maybe I can do something less material. Alice doesn't want something physical. I can't exactly promise to take care of Arthur; he does that himself. I could say the same thing for Ellie, but that's just something I should be doing anyway. Is there something that only I can do that would make her happy? I'm the Legacy or whatever, so I have unique powers. Maybe I can will some mana into her core and improve it. Would that even work? Probably not, but I can offer to try. I can't really try it with someone to see if it would work. I'll ask Arthur about it tonight to see if he thinks the theory behind it is possible.

"Hey, Cecilia. Can you do me a favor?" I hear as my bedroom door creaks open.

"Yeah sure. What is it?" I answer.

"Can you help me with getting a gift for my mom?" I hear again as a familiar set of brown hair slinks its way through the crack in the door.

"How do you not have a gift yet, Ellie?" I ask.

"Well, my mom is a bit of a hard person to get a gift for. Arthur can more than take care of himself now. I'm a White core mage now, so I'm almost in the same boat. And well, unless I plan on bringing dad back, I don't think anything will rock her world," she replies before her gaze turns downcast.

"I wish you could, Ellie. I wish you could," I murmur.

The atmosphere becomes eerily still as we both take a moment of silence for Reynolds. I never met him, nor does Tessia know much about him. He's an enigma to me. I wish I had the chance to meet the man that made Grey into Arthur. I'm sure he was immensely kind and caring to bring that solitary man into a thoughtful and strong boy.

"Is there anything particular you have in mind?" I ask, breaking the silence.

"Not really. Do you have something?" she asks in response.

"Well, I can give you an idea that was rather popular on Earth," I answer.

"Ooooh, what is that?" she inquires.

"Well on Earth, whenever we were stumped on what to get, we'd make coupon books. In short, they were tokens that represented an action of some kind that the receiver could use. You could have one that if she gave it back to you could count as you making dinner, staying home with her for a weekend, or even a back massage. They're things that are usually more personal. Get it?" I explain.

"That's not bad. I get why you aren't using it. It's hard to do something like that when you're not her child even though she may treat you like it. I'll do that. I have a bit of paper in my dimension ring. I'll get started now. Thank you, Cecilia!" she shouts in response before skittering away.

She's a good girl. Such a shame no boy will ever get to have her. Not with Arthur as her brother.

I decide to get out of the house to ask the Twin Horns if they have any ideas on what would be a good gift idea. They know her almost as well as her kids do.

On the way out of the house, I find Alice rocking on the porch. Fortunately, she wasn't in the house to overhear my and Ellie's conversation.

"Good morning, Cecilia. Sleep well? I can imagine you're tired of sleeping in that room alone," she asks with a toothy grin.

"Yes, Mrs. Leywin. I slept well enough. It is beginning to be lonely in there since Arthur not only doesn't sleep but also doesn't even come home," I answer.

"That boy is like his father in that regard. He has too much energy. He's always here or there doing whatever it is people need him to do. He's almost too selfless," Alice replies as she continues to rock.

"I hope I get the chance to see him tonight. Tomorrow is a big day. I'll go ahead and act like I don't know how many years it is so you don't have to feel old. 29 right?" I tease.

"30, but close," she says with a chortle.

"Almost," I chuckle. "Anyway, I'll be heading into town for a while. I want to bring Tessia to see Virion."

"Be safe, dear," she replies as I begin to descend the stairs and head into town.

The autumn-like air feels as crisp as it always has been. This zone stays in a perpetual state of a harvest season. Fortunately, this means the crops can grow well enough without being hindered too much. As of late, children have been born in this zone which creates even more mouths to feed. As a result, more fields have been sectioned off, and farming on them has begun.

Walking into town feels even more cathartic than usual. The happy faces of people who have experienced the most horrific scenes over the past few years bring me nothing but joy. They make cobbled roads, erect homes, and even plan to hold a festival soon to celebrate the semi-anniversary of entering the zone. People are at home here despite being in completely foreign scenery.

"Going anywhere, Cecilia?" I hear from over my shoulder. Unbeknownst to me, I was aimlessly walking through town without any particular direction.

"Yes, actually, Helen. I was looking for you all. It's getting close to lunch. Can I join you four?" I answer.

"That a rhetorical question? Of course, you can. Any particular reason?" she replies.

"I need a gift idea. I'm sure Ellie's already asked. I was able to help her, but now I'm even more stuck," I admit.

"Alice is extremely appreciative of anything so I don't know if you'll have a hard time getting something she'll like. However, I know you well enough to know that you want to get her something amazing. Do you have an idea you're not sure of?" she asks.

"Well... I think so," I mutter. "I think it would be possible for me to will mana into her core and purify it. I want to discuss the mana theory behind it with Arthur. Essentially, I could bring her Dark Orange core to Light Yellow or even Initial Silver with enough concentration."

"Y-you can what?" she stutters.

"Well, I don't know if I can. I was going to offer to try it out. She has Djinn blood in her, so the effects of that would increase her core development while in the Relictombs. It's more of a perfect storm. It's the reason Ellie went from Orange all the way to White in just a few months," I explain.

"Okay then. I'd definitely ask Arthur about it. It would be a great thing. Even after years of work, she's only at Dark Orange, so that would be instrumental. She'd be one of the best emitters ever," Helen responds.

"That's the point. She would become of immense use to everyone. I'm sure if Arthur gave her some tips on anatomy too, she'd be an amazing surgeon," I say.

We begin to walk toward the Twin Horns' little cabin on the edge of town. They've been incredibly helpful when it comes to building up the civilization here. They may not be as pivotal as Virion, the Glayders, or the lances, but they've been pillars for the community nonetheless.

"Here we are. Nothing too fancy, but it'll do," Helen announces as we approach the cabin. It's one of six buildings all in a townhouse configuration. They're all Duden's masterpieces.

"It may not be fancy, but it's definitely something. Let's go inside. I want to catch up with you guys."

ARTHUR LEYWIN

The hairs on my skin begin to crawl as I step into the safe zone. The nauseating sensation of moving through normal portals or ascension portals never gets better.

'It feels like I'm on a rollercoaster to hell,' Regis chimes in.

You're not wrong. I want to vomit every time I do it. I wish I could stop, but the fate of the world depends on me or whatever.

'How very humble, princess,' he replies.

I can't really afford to be humble anymore. I've got people to kill and governments to depose. It's virtually impossible to be humble in this scenario.

'Touche,' Regis admits.

The trek from the entry portal to the settlement is the same old journey I've made dozens of times. The boreal trees with the podzol really do evoke memories of Elenoir and the Elshire forest. I wonder if the zone conformed to my intentions. Or maybe it conformed to the sheer number of elves entering it.

My steps creak through the forest as I carelessly step on sticks and logs. It's nice to not have to be so careful here as I do in the outside world.

'ETA roughly 30 steps. Get your head out of your ass and watch where you're going,' Regis points out.

I bring myself from my thoughts at his words to see my mother's cabin. It's been a little over a week in here since I've been here. I hope I timed it right to make my mother's birthday.

The steps to her cabin creak as I remember just as the door does when I open it.

"I'm home," I announce to the largely empty room. Fortunately, the only person in here is the one that matters: my mother.

"Arthur!" she shouts before jumping from a chair by the stovetop. The whole house smells of beef stew. I'm flattered that she'd make that on her special day. "You made it on time!"

"Hah, good. I thought I may have been late. Am I early? I don't see anyone here yet," I ask.

"You're an hour or so early. Ellie and Cecilia are out on the town collecting guests while I'm here cooking. And before you say it, yes I'm cooking for my own birthday because I'm the one who makes the best beef stew. Surely you won't argue?" my mother explains.

"I can't say anything to that. You're the best at it," I relent.

"Good. Now take a seat here or on the porch and wait for everyone to get here," she commands.

She's really exerting her motherly authority today. Good job, Alice. You're the one person who can make the mighty god killer bend the knee, Regis taunts.

You bend the knee to her too. Don't act like you've got that over me.

'Once again, touche,' he replies.

I decide to take a seat on the 'couch' by the fireplace and meditate a bit. I've been so busy that I definitely need to clear my mind. I even got word from Seris' butler's that she's busy playing soldier at Taegrin Caelum to defend her 'master.'

Long story short, I need this time to meditate, but unfortunately, I don't get all that long. Maybe thirty minutes.

"We're here!" my sister shouts as roughly a dozen pairs of footsteps burst through the door. In walk Ellie, Cecilia, the entire council, and the Twin Horns.

"Quite the group of friends you have, Mom. Just about everyone important in town showed up," I tease my mother.

"They're here to see you, not me. It's one of the few times they can guarantee you'll be here," she shoots back.

'She's got an attitude today too,' Regis points out.

"Ouch. Then what do they need?" I ask the whole group.

Before Virion and Bairon get the chance to speak, Cecilia butts in. "I need to speak with you in private for a few minutes. I'll only be a little bit, guys. You can have your politics talks later."

The two men's mouths snap shut as their discontent shows ever so slightly on their faces. Cecilia scampers over to me and grabs my wrist, pulling me over to our room. She whips the door open and quickly shuts it behind us as we enter.

"I need your help," she readily mutters.

"Help? With what?" I ask.

"With a bit of mana theory. I've got an idea, but I want to know your opinion and if it will work or not," she explains.

"Then shoot. I'll see if I can help," I reply.

"So you know how your mother has Djinn blood?"

"Mhmm."

"And you know how that means the development of her core would be expedited while in the Relictombs?"

"Yep."

"And you also know how I can control the flow of mana better than even you can?"

"No need to rub it in, but yes."

"Then what if I will mana into her core and purify it as a birthday gift? Do you think that's possible?"

I bring my hand to my chin to contemplate. Simply put, core development is the willing of mana through your core, which purifies it. I don't believe it would matter who is doing it since we have things like elixirs that help with core advancement. If Cecilia was pushing ambient mana through Mom's core, it would be essentially the same as if my mother was doing it. With the Djinn blood's effect on her mana core development, it wouldn't be crazy to think that Cecilia could push years of mana through Mom's core in just a single night.

"I think it could work. I'd give it a shot. Even if it doesn't work, it's the thought that counts. It would be an extremely beneficial gift to give," I answer.

"Whew. I was worried you'd poke holes in it. I'll give it a go then. Hopefully, she'll be happy with it," Cecilia says with a sigh of relief.

"It'll be fine. No need to worry about it. Great gift idea, Cecilia," I compliment.

"Thanks, Arthur," she mumbles with a blush.

I take her embarrassment as my cue to leave. The living room is packed with dozens of people all gathered to celebrate my mother. It's heartwarming to know that all of these people care about her in my stead when I'm not here.

"Um, Arthur... we have another visitor," Ellie announces while she stands by the opened door.

"Do I need to go check?" I ask.

"I think you should," she answers.

Who could that be?
'I've got a guess, but I'll hold it in for now,' Regis chimes in.

I stride over to the front door and take it from Ellie. She walks off into the house as I take a peek out the door.

"Good afternoon, Arthur. I brought your mother a gift," says a form I didn't expect to see at my door ever again.

"What are you doing here, Elijah?" I ask, moderately enraged at his audacity to show his face.

"As I said, I brought a gift. Here, I don't have to come in, but I wanted to begin making amends somehow. I think you'll appreciate the gift just as much as she will," he answers.

"Who is it, sweetie?" my mother asks from inside the house.

"No one special. Don't worry," I reply as I glare at Elijah's open hands that hold a small black box with a red bow.

"Well they must be somewhat important if you're spending that much time at the door," she says as she walks behind me, peering around my back through the doorway. "Oh, Elijah! Come in, honey!"

My brain has absolutely no idea how to process the information it just experienced. Has she already forgotten everything he's done?

'I was right,' Regis confirms.

I wish you weren't.

Elijah takes a few steps through the door while worriedly observing me and my actions.

"Oh, you brought me a gift? You didn't need to do that," my mother enthusiastically asks.

"Yes ma'am. I wanted to get you something that I thought you could make use of. I hope you won't have to, but it could come in handy," Elijah answers as he hands her the box.

"I'll gladly take it if you're offering it. Should I open it now?" my mother asks.

"You can if you'd like," he replies.

I can only stand here dumbfounded. My whole world is turned upside down as I spectate my mother being buddy-buddy with one of my greatest enemies.

"Oh, wow. It's a ring! It's magical. What does it do?" Mom asks.

"It enhances your emitter abilities. As I said, I hope you won't have to use it, but if you do, it will be really helpful," Elijah explains.

"Wow! Thank you, Elijah," my mother shouts as she brings him into a hug.

'I don't really know how to take it either, but don't you dare cause a scene at your mother's birthday. Let her handle him. You don't have to like it, but she wants him here,' Regis advises.

I hate that you're right. Stop doing that.

Regis chuckles as I rub my temples and attempt to grasp the situation.

"Come around, everyone. It's time to eat!"