Chapter 4255: Broken Bonds (Part 1)

"Here." Aran stepped forward with one hand extended towards Lith and the other clinging to the scruff of Onyx’s neck.

The Emperor Beast had yet to revert to her human form because her warm fur reassured him every time Aran had a bad dream since he was just four.

"I did something stupid, and you need to know it." The young boy swallowed hard.

Lith found no such thing in Aran’s memory.

’Revealing that he has Awakened at his age will make things a bit more difficult, but it’s no mistake. Not going all out with everyone’s lives at stake would have been plain stupid.’ Lith thought.

"Don’t be silly, Little Brother." He actually said. "Using a mace was not stupid. It’s just proof that you’ve been raised right and respect all lives, even those of people who don’t respect yours."

"But-"

"No buts." Lith cut him short. "Nice trick with the ice crystal and the hard-light construct, Little Brother. Even I would have never thought of such a method to enhance Light Mastery."

"You saw that?" Aran lowered his eyes in embarrassment. "You weren’t supposed to see that. It’s one of the secret techniques of Auntie Dawn."

For once, even Nalrond had no reaction at the mention of the Horseman.

"Don’t worry, I’ll tell her it’s not your fault when I thank her." Lith patted Aran’s head. "I’m willing to promise never to use her technique if that’s what she wants. I’d rather miss a few tricks than risk Dawn stops teaching you."

’Yeah, today she indirectly saved our family, and we wouldn’t even know without Aran’s blunder.’ Solus said via the mind link. ’Sometimes, I wish that Aunt Loka would do something as selfless as this.’

"Thank you, Big Brother." Aran sighed in relief for one second and then went back to wringing his hands. "I still think that using that mace was not the right move. If not for Onyx..." He failed to complete the phrase.

"Those guys were bright blue-cored Awakened much older than you, Lil Bro." Lith knelt to get to Aran’s eye level. "There was no way you could win. What you did was simply amazing. Stop beating yourself up."

"He’s right." Onyx shapeshifted into her human form, that of a young girl the same age as Aran, and hugged him. "You did your best, and that’s more than enough. Leave the nasty stuff to me."

Onyx and Abominus were much stronger than Protector back when he was at their same mana core level. While he had chosen for himself a quiet life, the two Emperor Beasts did nothing but train, study, and then practice what they learned in combat simulations since the day they had Awakened.

While Aran and Leria attended the magical school in the Desert, Onyx and Abominus received practical combat lessons from the Phoenixes. Even though most of the time the Emperor Beasts acted like giant plushies, they were a force to be reckoned with.

"Dad too was amazing." Aran returned her embrace. "How did you hit that guy so hard, and since when are you that good with magic, Dad?"

"I took a page from your brother’s book, son. I cheated." Raaz uncovered his arm and revealed the presence of the tattoo. "I got this from Zogar."

He explained how the tattoo potions worked and how he and the others had trained in their use. Yet the more Raaz spoke, the more ashamed Rena and Elina felt.

’I had the same kind of power. I trained just as long as him/Dad, yet when the moment came, I froze.’ Both women thought.

Usually, the triplets would have cried and moaned for being left out of such a cool training, but this time they remained silent. They had no doubt they wouldn’t have acted differently from their mother.

Moreover, Falco and Teryon were worried sick about Lenart. They vaguely knew what had happened to him since Reaper had mentioned no detail in their presence, but they could feel that their bond with their brother was as good as gone.

While Teryon and Falco had shared a similar experience and could relate to each other thanks to their private language, Lenart was cut off from them. He barely spoke and listened, missing every signal his siblings sent him.

The triplets were used to perform like a well-oiled machine composed of three parts, with two of them working as a sound board whenever one clicked. Now, Lenart didn’t click at all, and when Teryon and Falco did, the sound faded into silence.

"Uncle Lith." Leria pulled at his leg. "Would it help me if I showed you my side of the fight?"

"That depends on you." Lith gently pinched her cheeks. "If you feel strong enough, the mind link will help you face your fears and realize that the threat is over. If you are still shaken, however, it will be like pouring oil on a fire."

"I want to do it." She offered him her hand, and Lith took it.

’You can use ice crystals for heat rays too?’ Lith was flabbergasted. ’I almost regret my earlier promise.’

’Please, not now.’ Solus said. ’Focus on what Leria saw. On how she lived the kidnapping attempt. Not on our potential magical gains.’

Lith nodded, noticing that, unlike Aran, Leria wasn’t clinging to Abominus’ fur, and she kept her distance from him.

’She’s... afraid of him.’ Lith thought. ’She has never seen Abominus kill before, and the ease with which he did it scares Leria. Also, she resents him for not letting her go after her siblings.’

’My thoughts exactly.’ Solus sighed. ’The divide between them might take a lot of time and effort to heal.’

"How do you feel?" Lith asked, ignoring everything else.

"Terrible." Leria shuddered. "I didn’t know what I was doing. I just did what felt right at the moment, but now I’m not so sure anymore. Have I turned into a murderer, Uncle Lith?"

"No, you didn’t." Lith replied. "You didn’t set out to kill anyone today. You just wanted to visit Grandpa Zekell. Those Awakened, instead, attacked you with bad intentions and were ready to hurt the people you love.

"You simply did what you had to protect our family, Leria. You should focus on the lives you’ve saved with your bravery, not on those that were lost because of selfish choices."

Leria looked at her grandparents and parents, seeing the images of the Awakened ready to kidnap her mother and kill her grandfather flash in front of her eyes.

Then, she turned towards Abominus and tackled him in an embrace.

"I’m so sorry." She started to sob. "You were only trying to protect me from the Awakened and myself, yet I acted like an ungrateful runt. Thank you for always being by my side, Abominus."

"It’s okay, Leria." The Pyrmir licked her face, covering Leria in slobber and making her chuckle.

’Or not.’ Solus thought. ’Thank the gods for...’

Kamila entered the room with the babies, asking a barrage of predictable questions.

Surin was the happiest to see her, crying in joy the moment she saw the rest of the toddlers.

"Should I let her go?" Faluel asked.

"Sure." Elina nodded, refusing to come close to any of the babies.

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