ULTRAMagic Shadowland - Chapter 6
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“You know? When I got out of bed this morning, I didn’t think it’d be to find out that my biological mother is actually the person I've been fighting for the past five years!” Albrecht exclaimed. Things went about as well as expected… The young man shouted for several minutes, stomped his feet, and then knocked over some furniture. The sheer confusion was a bit overwhelming. “HOW DID YOU EVEN PULL THAT OFF?”
Dunja was unable to answer. The gravity of what she had done had finally set in. This left her petrified, staring into nothing and mumbling incoherently. It was like her brain had no idea what to do and was scrambling for something. Barna waved his hand in front of her face. “Dunja? You okay?”
“Hold on, I got this…” Torunn took her fingers and pinched Dunja’s nose.
Torunn’s actions were quite unpleasant. “Ah…ah…ah…Argh! Torunn!”
“Welcome back, your royal highness. Now please explain to Allan… explain to your son what you told me in the letter before he has another conniption. I'm even a bit confused.”
“Right… Allan… Albrecht…. Allan?”
Allan groaned. “Let’s just go with Albrecht for now.”
“Albrecht, I conceived you through a void spell. It was so I could ruin Englehart’s honor back when I was his enemy…”
He had the most perplexed look on his face, but then the answer occurred to him. “Oh, I get it: That piece of human excrement asked you to do it, didn’t he?
Dunja regretfully nodded. “Originally he wanted me to sleep with him, but there was no way in Hell I was going to do that.”
That was a bit of relief. Albrecht still gave an exasperated sigh though. “Just… What even is void magic? Jeez… Normally I refuse to kill, but I am going to put a bullet in Milosh’s head the next time I see him…” He turned to Barna. “So you’re my uncle now?”
“Always have been, I guess.”
“Hey, more family for me!” Aureolus happily declared. “Don’t worry, cousin. I know how you feel. Also I think you are going to really like your father.”
Another sigh, as Albrecht felt like his plight was being somewhat glossed over. “You think so?” He turned back to Dunja and exhaled. “Alright, I’m going blunt about this: It’s going to take a bit for me to see you as my mother. With that being said, thank you for leaving with me Torunn all those years ago.”
“You’re welcome… er, I mean, it was the least I could do…” She was not sure what else to say.
Torunn patted Albrecht on the back reassuringly. “Well don’t worry, kiddo. I’ll be coming home with you when this is all said and done. We’ll work through this together.”
“Really? Alright then. I suppose that makes things a bit easier. Dunja? Sorry for the outburst.”
“No no, it’s alright. It was fully justified.”
Achasiah audibly cleared his throat. “If it’s any consolation, Albrecht, I’ve done a fair share of things that I am not proud of keeping quiet about.”
“Really? Well what have you been up to then?”
The story Achasiah told was something else. Back before The Great Hunt, the curious angel had stumbled across The Unlight. It was a wondrous realm of mystery and intrigue he thoroughly enjoyed exploring. In time he would discover the ever charming Fire World and Earth World. As he spent time on the former, he learned about Shadowland and the plight it was facing. What prompted him to get involved was the fact that Milosh Proch was from his universe. Achasiah felt it was a stain on his honor and would not take this nonsense sitting down. Naturally his first order of business was to help Sten in any way he could.
The king was in hiding at the time due to being ousted. Normally his people loved him, but something strange had afflicted them, causing them to fear their king. Sten was apprehensive when the angel approached him, but accepted Achasiah’s help regardless. The plan the angel came up with was incredibly convoluted. It had so many facets and the slightest disruption could potentially ruin everything. The first order of business was Deimos. He had been split from his body, which created the perfect opportunity for Achasiah. He talked with the disembodied mage and came up with an idea: Blood-Wraith. Achasiah needed to work with The Monolith of Old and it was tedious to get the right conditions in place, but it was worth it in the end.
As a contingency, Achasiah convinced his friend, Valentina, to join Heaven’s armies so she could go to The Unlight. This would give Blood-Wraith a friend and guaranteed he would learn alchemy one way or another. The Great Hunt itself presented a new set of problems that needed to be taken care of immediately. Suspecting this was Milosh’s doing, Achasiah went to Englehart and instructed him to leave some people in The Iron City so it could be looked after. Kresimira and Corentin were perfect (amongst several others in the deeper parts of the city). Dragoslava was not planned for, but helped a great deal regardless.
With everything in place, Achasiah went back to Sten and told him to wait for two dragons to fly by the city. This would be the perfect time to strike back and reclaim his kingdom, for Milosh and Dunja would be at their weakest. At that point, all Achasiah had to do was wait. He adopted the persona of a seer and settled down on Fire World. Occasionally he would return to Heaven to take care of personal business, but that was it. Eventually Blood-Wraith showed up and the rest was history. Everything from that point onwards fell into place like a well-oiled machine…
“... that is except for some loose ends and failures on my part. Vlastimir Dracul was completely out of my control. Desislav Robles was also not planned for, but worked out anyways. And I also intended for Folkvar to sabotage Milosh’s ‘religion,’ but that didn’t work out how I thought it would…” The last comment elicited a groan from the prince. “In hindsight, I should’ve realized Milosh was the cult’s own worst enemy.”
Sten chuckled. “To be fair, Folkvar: While the Darkborne nonsense was sacrilegious, the name itself sounds… What do you kids say nowadays? Ah, cool, as it were…”
“FATHER!” Folkvar cried in embarrassment. Everyone else had a quick laugh.
“I presume I don’t have to go over the rest of what happened?” Achasiah asked the others.
Dunja sat in her chair, beside herself in defeat. “The game was rigged from the beginning…”
Aureolus went over to Achasiah and gave him a hug. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
“You’re welcome, Aureolus.”
“Although I have to ask, Achasiah, why didn’t you and Val just fix everything yourselves? I’d imagine you're more than capable of doing that…”
He knew this question would come up. “Well, about that… Much like with Earth in my universe, Adonai has asked us to not interfere with the Unlight unless it is an absolute emergency at his discretion. You can already imagine the trouble I’m in for what I’ve done already…”
Claudius then had a massive realization. “Huh, this… this answers so many questions I’ve had in life.”
“Precisely” Achasiah replied. “Father has a serious policy and mentality of not coddling his children.”
“That is something I have the utmost respect for,” Sten commented. “I commend Adonai for that as a leader and a father.”
“Wait, your majesty, what about all those programs and stuff you have for people finding jobs?” Aureolus questioned.
“That is not coddling, Aureolus,” Sten said firmly. “I expect my people to work and I make sure they have the opportunity to do so. Inactivity breeds decadence and contempt, which leads to stagnation. Everyone has the potential to be great, they just need direction and structure, not to mention goals. Is it a perfect system? No and I have run into issues before, but I can make it work. It just takes time and patience. I will concede that the system definitely requires some adjustments in recent times, however.”
That explanation was interesting for Aureolus to process. “I see… How fascinating. Being a leader is complicated, isn’t it?”
“Very. It is a role no one should ever envy.”
“On an ending note, I was also scared to death over Vexation” Achasiah confessed. “Curse magic is very powerful and it was sealed away for a reason. And I’m pretty sure he was on to me the whole time. Quite frankly I’m a bit concerned over the fact that Blood is learning his magic at the moment… Anyways, Sten, I’ve said what I have to say. Shall we move onto the important stuff?”
“Yes we shall. Everyone? I fully intend to end this conflict now. Not later, not eventually, NOW” Sten said as he banged his fist on his arm rest, startling some of the group. “Shadowland has been forced into stagnancy for too long and I want that detestable heathen’s head on a silver platter. Barna, your letters indicated you had an idea for how to deal with all of this?”
Barna cackled. “Well, your majesty, I was thinking of blowing up his whole damn church…”
“Okay-do you have an idea that doesn’t involve terrifying my people?”
Barna grumbled. “Alright, then I propose ramping up aggression and rallying the people against the cult.”
“Better. Although I must concede that the destruction of the church is still on the table. The structure is fairly dilapidated…”
Dunja thought about the idea of demolition for a second. “I could destroy that dumb church with my void magic, if that would be better.”
“Ha, I like the sound of that!” Torunn complimented.
Sten nodded in approval. “If you feel you have the strength to do so, then by all means you have my blessing.”
Folkvar was a little apprehensive towards the idea given the logistics involved, but he was slowly warming up to it. “Jeez, ain't that a bit cathartic, aye Allan… Albrecht?”
“Absolutely,” he replied. “Oh, by the way, I got a bit of information to share and I think you all find this fairly interesting: I talked to Gummi recently.”
Barna was taking a drink and swallowed wrong. “ACK! What, really?!” He asked while coughing.
“What did he say to you?” Sten inquired. “Such a meeting does not happen regularly.”
“I’ll admit he asked me to keep this on the down low for now, but we’re still adversaries, so first things first: He thoroughly regrets bullying Corentin. Secondly, he's had time to mull it over and he pretty much has no hope for his father.”
“I mean fair enough…” Barna coughed once more. “I knew the lad wasn’t all that bad, but that doesn’t change what he did earlier… or are you about to reveal something to the contrary?”
Albrecht sighed and shrugged. “I guess he’s just scared of Andelin and Gratiana. Otherwise he’d join us… supposedly.”
Dunja felt her heart ache a little, as she knew Gummi all too well. The boy was hiding something. “Oh no, should we… should we go rescue him?”
Sten pondered this for a moment. “For now, no… maybe… argh, I’m not sure. There’s a lot of risk and we don’t know if he’s being honest yet. If he is truthful, I will pardon him if he joins us. He was born in the Unlight after all.”
Barna groaned. “Blast it all, why do you guys tell me this now of all times…”
Sten gave a concerned sigh. “Barna?”
“What?”
“Why do you speak so disrespectfully? If Gummi is considering leaving his father, it would be ideal to extend the olive branch.”
“I know, I know… It’s just that there’s a lot of history between our families and you can’t just forget the past like that” Barna pointed out.
“Aye, but it’s our responsibility to forgive the lad if he’s come to his senses.” Sten had a sneaking suspicion over what was triggering Barna’s aggression.
A realization then hit Dunja. “Wait a second! Barna, are you implying you’d leave Gummi for dead, if not worse?”
“Would you be surprised if I did?”
That angered her, causing Dunja to slap him across the face and hard. “SHAME ON YOU! YOU MANGY OLD BEAST.”
“Ow-that hurt…”
“Wow, Barna. This isn’t like you…” Torunn stated, disappointed.
“Barna?” Sten’s voice rumbled. “I was hoping your recent letters were just your emotions speaking, but I see it’s deeper than that. I understand how hard everything with Milosh has been. Trust me, I know. You cannot let your emotions control your judgment!”
“Even after all we've been through?! Seriously!?”
“YES. Our true enemy is Milosh Proch. Not his son or the people he courts. Nor is it the people from the realm he hails from. Plus you’ve happily accepted Dunja back into your arms, haven’t you?”
“Yes, but she’s one of us!”
“IRRELEVANT. You will extend that courtesy to Gummi! And anyone else who renounces that vile waste of a man!”
Barna looked Sten in the eye. He knew the king was right and that there was little he could do to change the giant’s mind. Then he looked down at Aureolus. “Son, don’t look at me like that…”
“Dad, only Milosh deserves this level of animosity, let’s be realistic. And even then, I’m content to watch him aimlessly wander like a fool and eventually waste away. As for Gummi? It’s not his fault he was born to that man.”
Albrecht had one last detail to share. “Uncle? Gummi ended up crying a little during that talk we had. So either he’s a really good actor or he's legitimately at his wit’s end.”
Barna sighed, the stress mounting in his chest as his heart pounded. He could feel his leg twitching, as if about to give out. “By the Source, my old heart can’t take this… Alright, alright. I’ll give the boy a chance. Dunja, do you have anything to say about this?”
She glared at him, then relaxed. “I can say that he is not evil like his father is. He only acted because Milosh would either order or manipulate him. That man does not love his son. And if any of you ever wondered why Gummi went on so many solo missions, it’s because I did that to get him away from his father.”
“Really?” Albrecht was surprised. “Mom… even with all that chaos, you still had a heart of gold, just like I’ve been told about...”
Torunn gave a hearty laugh. “See, I knew Dunja was never actually evil. She just needed to learn the hard way…” She put her hand on her shoulder. “...And you're stronger for it. Take notes, Barna.”
Barna shook his head. “Fair enough, lass. Fair enough. No idea what Corentin is going to say though…”
“Honestly, dad, I think he’ll be fine with Gummi,” Aureolus concluded. “He’s an adult and let’s be real for a second: Kresimira would never let him hear the end of it if he was that callous.”
This made Barna laugh. “True, Rose’s daughter is a fiery one about that stuff. Best not provoke her ire, lest I get more slaps across the face!”
Sten smiled, feeling victorious. “Then so be it: The rescue of Gummi and anyone that renounces Milosh Proch is now a priority. Let our hearts charge forward and our minds lead the way.”
Next: Chapter 7
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
Master Post - Patreon
“You know? When I got out of bed this morning, I didn’t think it’d be to find out that my biological mother is actually the person I've been fighting for the past five years!” Albrecht exclaimed. Things went about as well as expected… The young man shouted for several minutes, stomped his feet, and then knocked over some furniture. The sheer confusion was a bit overwhelming. “HOW DID YOU EVEN PULL THAT OFF?”
Dunja was unable to answer. The gravity of what she had done had finally set in. This left her petrified, staring into nothing and mumbling incoherently. It was like her brain had no idea what to do and was scrambling for something. Barna waved his hand in front of her face. “Dunja? You okay?”
“Hold on, I got this…” Torunn took her fingers and pinched Dunja’s nose.
Torunn’s actions were quite unpleasant. “Ah…ah…ah…Argh! Torunn!”
“Welcome back, your royal highness. Now please explain to Allan… explain to your son what you told me in the letter before he has another conniption. I'm even a bit confused.”
“Right… Allan… Albrecht…. Allan?”
Allan groaned. “Let’s just go with Albrecht for now.”
“Albrecht, I conceived you through a void spell. It was so I could ruin Englehart’s honor back when I was his enemy…”
He had the most perplexed look on his face, but then the answer occurred to him. “Oh, I get it: That piece of human excrement asked you to do it, didn’t he?
Dunja regretfully nodded. “Originally he wanted me to sleep with him, but there was no way in Hell I was going to do that.”
That was a bit of relief. Albrecht still gave an exasperated sigh though. “Just… What even is void magic? Jeez… Normally I refuse to kill, but I am going to put a bullet in Milosh’s head the next time I see him…” He turned to Barna. “So you’re my uncle now?”
“Always have been, I guess.”
“Hey, more family for me!” Aureolus happily declared. “Don’t worry, cousin. I know how you feel. Also I think you are going to really like your father.”
Another sigh, as Albrecht felt like his plight was being somewhat glossed over. “You think so?” He turned back to Dunja and exhaled. “Alright, I’m going blunt about this: It’s going to take a bit for me to see you as my mother. With that being said, thank you for leaving with me Torunn all those years ago.”
“You’re welcome… er, I mean, it was the least I could do…” She was not sure what else to say.
Torunn patted Albrecht on the back reassuringly. “Well don’t worry, kiddo. I’ll be coming home with you when this is all said and done. We’ll work through this together.”
“Really? Alright then. I suppose that makes things a bit easier. Dunja? Sorry for the outburst.”
“No no, it’s alright. It was fully justified.”
Achasiah audibly cleared his throat. “If it’s any consolation, Albrecht, I’ve done a fair share of things that I am not proud of keeping quiet about.”
“Really? Well what have you been up to then?”
The story Achasiah told was something else. Back before The Great Hunt, the curious angel had stumbled across The Unlight. It was a wondrous realm of mystery and intrigue he thoroughly enjoyed exploring. In time he would discover the ever charming Fire World and Earth World. As he spent time on the former, he learned about Shadowland and the plight it was facing. What prompted him to get involved was the fact that Milosh Proch was from his universe. Achasiah felt it was a stain on his honor and would not take this nonsense sitting down. Naturally his first order of business was to help Sten in any way he could.
The king was in hiding at the time due to being ousted. Normally his people loved him, but something strange had afflicted them, causing them to fear their king. Sten was apprehensive when the angel approached him, but accepted Achasiah’s help regardless. The plan the angel came up with was incredibly convoluted. It had so many facets and the slightest disruption could potentially ruin everything. The first order of business was Deimos. He had been split from his body, which created the perfect opportunity for Achasiah. He talked with the disembodied mage and came up with an idea: Blood-Wraith. Achasiah needed to work with The Monolith of Old and it was tedious to get the right conditions in place, but it was worth it in the end.
As a contingency, Achasiah convinced his friend, Valentina, to join Heaven’s armies so she could go to The Unlight. This would give Blood-Wraith a friend and guaranteed he would learn alchemy one way or another. The Great Hunt itself presented a new set of problems that needed to be taken care of immediately. Suspecting this was Milosh’s doing, Achasiah went to Englehart and instructed him to leave some people in The Iron City so it could be looked after. Kresimira and Corentin were perfect (amongst several others in the deeper parts of the city). Dragoslava was not planned for, but helped a great deal regardless.
With everything in place, Achasiah went back to Sten and told him to wait for two dragons to fly by the city. This would be the perfect time to strike back and reclaim his kingdom, for Milosh and Dunja would be at their weakest. At that point, all Achasiah had to do was wait. He adopted the persona of a seer and settled down on Fire World. Occasionally he would return to Heaven to take care of personal business, but that was it. Eventually Blood-Wraith showed up and the rest was history. Everything from that point onwards fell into place like a well-oiled machine…
“... that is except for some loose ends and failures on my part. Vlastimir Dracul was completely out of my control. Desislav Robles was also not planned for, but worked out anyways. And I also intended for Folkvar to sabotage Milosh’s ‘religion,’ but that didn’t work out how I thought it would…” The last comment elicited a groan from the prince. “In hindsight, I should’ve realized Milosh was the cult’s own worst enemy.”
Sten chuckled. “To be fair, Folkvar: While the Darkborne nonsense was sacrilegious, the name itself sounds… What do you kids say nowadays? Ah, cool, as it were…”
“FATHER!” Folkvar cried in embarrassment. Everyone else had a quick laugh.
“I presume I don’t have to go over the rest of what happened?” Achasiah asked the others.
Dunja sat in her chair, beside herself in defeat. “The game was rigged from the beginning…”
Aureolus went over to Achasiah and gave him a hug. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
“You’re welcome, Aureolus.”
“Although I have to ask, Achasiah, why didn’t you and Val just fix everything yourselves? I’d imagine you're more than capable of doing that…”
He knew this question would come up. “Well, about that… Much like with Earth in my universe, Adonai has asked us to not interfere with the Unlight unless it is an absolute emergency at his discretion. You can already imagine the trouble I’m in for what I’ve done already…”
Claudius then had a massive realization. “Huh, this… this answers so many questions I’ve had in life.”
“Precisely” Achasiah replied. “Father has a serious policy and mentality of not coddling his children.”
“That is something I have the utmost respect for,” Sten commented. “I commend Adonai for that as a leader and a father.”
“Wait, your majesty, what about all those programs and stuff you have for people finding jobs?” Aureolus questioned.
“That is not coddling, Aureolus,” Sten said firmly. “I expect my people to work and I make sure they have the opportunity to do so. Inactivity breeds decadence and contempt, which leads to stagnation. Everyone has the potential to be great, they just need direction and structure, not to mention goals. Is it a perfect system? No and I have run into issues before, but I can make it work. It just takes time and patience. I will concede that the system definitely requires some adjustments in recent times, however.”
That explanation was interesting for Aureolus to process. “I see… How fascinating. Being a leader is complicated, isn’t it?”
“Very. It is a role no one should ever envy.”
“On an ending note, I was also scared to death over Vexation” Achasiah confessed. “Curse magic is very powerful and it was sealed away for a reason. And I’m pretty sure he was on to me the whole time. Quite frankly I’m a bit concerned over the fact that Blood is learning his magic at the moment… Anyways, Sten, I’ve said what I have to say. Shall we move onto the important stuff?”
“Yes we shall. Everyone? I fully intend to end this conflict now. Not later, not eventually, NOW” Sten said as he banged his fist on his arm rest, startling some of the group. “Shadowland has been forced into stagnancy for too long and I want that detestable heathen’s head on a silver platter. Barna, your letters indicated you had an idea for how to deal with all of this?”
Barna cackled. “Well, your majesty, I was thinking of blowing up his whole damn church…”
“Okay-do you have an idea that doesn’t involve terrifying my people?”
Barna grumbled. “Alright, then I propose ramping up aggression and rallying the people against the cult.”
“Better. Although I must concede that the destruction of the church is still on the table. The structure is fairly dilapidated…”
Dunja thought about the idea of demolition for a second. “I could destroy that dumb church with my void magic, if that would be better.”
“Ha, I like the sound of that!” Torunn complimented.
Sten nodded in approval. “If you feel you have the strength to do so, then by all means you have my blessing.”
Folkvar was a little apprehensive towards the idea given the logistics involved, but he was slowly warming up to it. “Jeez, ain't that a bit cathartic, aye Allan… Albrecht?”
“Absolutely,” he replied. “Oh, by the way, I got a bit of information to share and I think you all find this fairly interesting: I talked to Gummi recently.”
Barna was taking a drink and swallowed wrong. “ACK! What, really?!” He asked while coughing.
“What did he say to you?” Sten inquired. “Such a meeting does not happen regularly.”
“I’ll admit he asked me to keep this on the down low for now, but we’re still adversaries, so first things first: He thoroughly regrets bullying Corentin. Secondly, he's had time to mull it over and he pretty much has no hope for his father.”
“I mean fair enough…” Barna coughed once more. “I knew the lad wasn’t all that bad, but that doesn’t change what he did earlier… or are you about to reveal something to the contrary?”
Albrecht sighed and shrugged. “I guess he’s just scared of Andelin and Gratiana. Otherwise he’d join us… supposedly.”
Dunja felt her heart ache a little, as she knew Gummi all too well. The boy was hiding something. “Oh no, should we… should we go rescue him?”
Sten pondered this for a moment. “For now, no… maybe… argh, I’m not sure. There’s a lot of risk and we don’t know if he’s being honest yet. If he is truthful, I will pardon him if he joins us. He was born in the Unlight after all.”
Barna groaned. “Blast it all, why do you guys tell me this now of all times…”
Sten gave a concerned sigh. “Barna?”
“What?”
“Why do you speak so disrespectfully? If Gummi is considering leaving his father, it would be ideal to extend the olive branch.”
“I know, I know… It’s just that there’s a lot of history between our families and you can’t just forget the past like that” Barna pointed out.
“Aye, but it’s our responsibility to forgive the lad if he’s come to his senses.” Sten had a sneaking suspicion over what was triggering Barna’s aggression.
A realization then hit Dunja. “Wait a second! Barna, are you implying you’d leave Gummi for dead, if not worse?”
“Would you be surprised if I did?”
That angered her, causing Dunja to slap him across the face and hard. “SHAME ON YOU! YOU MANGY OLD BEAST.”
“Ow-that hurt…”
“Wow, Barna. This isn’t like you…” Torunn stated, disappointed.
“Barna?” Sten’s voice rumbled. “I was hoping your recent letters were just your emotions speaking, but I see it’s deeper than that. I understand how hard everything with Milosh has been. Trust me, I know. You cannot let your emotions control your judgment!”
“Even after all we've been through?! Seriously!?”
“YES. Our true enemy is Milosh Proch. Not his son or the people he courts. Nor is it the people from the realm he hails from. Plus you’ve happily accepted Dunja back into your arms, haven’t you?”
“Yes, but she’s one of us!”
“IRRELEVANT. You will extend that courtesy to Gummi! And anyone else who renounces that vile waste of a man!”
Barna looked Sten in the eye. He knew the king was right and that there was little he could do to change the giant’s mind. Then he looked down at Aureolus. “Son, don’t look at me like that…”
“Dad, only Milosh deserves this level of animosity, let’s be realistic. And even then, I’m content to watch him aimlessly wander like a fool and eventually waste away. As for Gummi? It’s not his fault he was born to that man.”
Albrecht had one last detail to share. “Uncle? Gummi ended up crying a little during that talk we had. So either he’s a really good actor or he's legitimately at his wit’s end.”
Barna sighed, the stress mounting in his chest as his heart pounded. He could feel his leg twitching, as if about to give out. “By the Source, my old heart can’t take this… Alright, alright. I’ll give the boy a chance. Dunja, do you have anything to say about this?”
She glared at him, then relaxed. “I can say that he is not evil like his father is. He only acted because Milosh would either order or manipulate him. That man does not love his son. And if any of you ever wondered why Gummi went on so many solo missions, it’s because I did that to get him away from his father.”
“Really?” Albrecht was surprised. “Mom… even with all that chaos, you still had a heart of gold, just like I’ve been told about...”
Torunn gave a hearty laugh. “See, I knew Dunja was never actually evil. She just needed to learn the hard way…” She put her hand on her shoulder. “...And you're stronger for it. Take notes, Barna.”
Barna shook his head. “Fair enough, lass. Fair enough. No idea what Corentin is going to say though…”
“Honestly, dad, I think he’ll be fine with Gummi,” Aureolus concluded. “He’s an adult and let’s be real for a second: Kresimira would never let him hear the end of it if he was that callous.”
This made Barna laugh. “True, Rose’s daughter is a fiery one about that stuff. Best not provoke her ire, lest I get more slaps across the face!”
Sten smiled, feeling victorious. “Then so be it: The rescue of Gummi and anyone that renounces Milosh Proch is now a priority. Let our hearts charge forward and our minds lead the way.”
Next: Chapter 7
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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