Ok.
I know saying this from the very beginning is going to make you think I've become crazy(I know I would be) but trust me when I say this.
Raphael Ramonson is no ordinary child.
Now, you might think, who is this Raphael Ramonson and why am I bringing him up to you when I haven't brought up that night for a hundred clicks and the fifty letters that came with it.
I have got a very good explanation for it. Well I mean about Raphael(I'll get back to you about that later but I still think that my actions were sound and yours not so much) but let's forget that for today.
Firstly an update on my well being because I̶̸̲̅ k̶̸̲̅n̶̸̲̅o̶̸̲̅w̶̸̲̅ y̶̸̲̅o̶̸̲̅u̶̸̲̅ h̶̸̲̅a̶̸̲̅v̶̸̲̅e̶̸̲̅ s̶̸̲̅t̶̸̲̅i̶̸̲̅l̶̸̲̅l̶̸̲̅ t̶̸̲̅h̶̸̲̅e̶̸̲̅ l̶̸̲̅e̶̸̲̅a̶̸̲̅s̶̸̲̅t̶̸̲̅ r̶̸̲̅e̶̸̲̅g̶̸̲̅a̶̸̲̅r̶̸̲̅d̶̸̲̅ f̶̸̲̅o̶̸̲̅r̶̸̲̅ i̶̸̲̅t̶̸̲̅/. I am well…well. There hasn't been the slightest change to my daily routine. I still wake up at the morn with a cup of sweet honeyed tea in hand and the skull of my last clone—this one I saw possessed a frame that a Clothed One's skull would have had.
I don't think that makes it a Clothed One however as my skill is far from being able to create clones of different species.
Continuing my morning routine, as you know after waking up a man as distinguished as myself in such a small community must indulge himself in the fine gifts of the others. Thus, I first indulged myself in the flesh comfort of my paramour Grainrat, a thoughtful gift by the village lord. Her supple skin, warm and sweet lips, moist eyebrows, glistening eyes, full breasts and wide hips are characteristics that I'd doubt you'd find in anyone but a Mother or the favoured child of one.
She is a vigorous one, I can tell you that, to see me and realise my requirements and quickly perform them are qualities even a Mother lacks by my experience. Those whores only know to eat away at any unfortunate partner.
Ah it seems that in my description of Grainrat, I am making it look as if she were to be a filial slave and I, her lustful master.
Jeri, sweet Jeri, you know how much of a gentleman I am. Although I enjoy a controlled indulgence of lust, it is still controlled. I am a thoughtful person and as such I approach Grainrat only once every twenty or even forty clicks when I am in dire need of her service. The rest of the time, she is my Matron and I her dutiful guest. She prepares food, cleans my clothes and strings them up on the balcony to dry, she goes to the market to buy groceries and has participated in quite a few brawls regarding great individuals who besmirch either her or my name.
She makes my bed as well and serves me tea when I am in dire need of it.
In return, I am owed her life which I am bound to protect and safeguard for as long as I breathe. I provide her with monies which she may require and sufficient enough to start a new household with a house only a bit less than mine. I give her access to my Neutral Aether directly from my heart despite knowing how it makes me defenseless to any who seek to poison it.
I am not frightened because I know that Grainrat would never do that.
Perhaps if it were a different Era and you were not set in my heart, we would have been more than paramours to each other.
Ah it seems my words have gone elsewhere and I must now bring them back to the focal point.
The son of the village lord Ramon had a son with Elisa of the Shadowed Ones—the faithful union of the two bore the result of Raphael, a person who I believe is a prodigy whose talents are not inferior to yours and mine during our growing period.
You might ask where is this coming from? Well it is coming from a good place whose instincts are best believed (remember the mountain?).
It all began when I and Grainrat visited Ramon's dwelling on the nameday of his child. There was a priest there, one with the blood of some Earth Warlock—the perfect people for telling you someone's fate and then binding a person to it through names—a grim practice but it offered stability to a community as insignificant as theirs.
To these people, a good fate was living till you gave a child to the community and a great fate was warding danger away from them. There was no hope in trying to follow the methods of the Scheduled Tribes and Races as the Form given to them in the second stage is at most subpar and attempting to upgrade it costs more than the village can afford ever.
All things were going as they should have been, gifts given to the priest followed by great celebration and feasting—done beforehand should the name be hapless.
But as the name was to be given and the priest peered into the future of the child, a strange thing happened.
Sparks flew and wind blew as the priest was thrown ass first into the ground, bewildered as hell.
A great silence followed. No one knew what happened but surely it couldn't have been good.
Right?
Well that was my thinking but then the priest hurriedly acted and spoke to graft the name and fate of Raphael onto him. There was a bit of confusion as no one knew what it meant to the priest explained that it signified 'The Mender', someone who would bridge divides and create new things from shattered bits and pieces. It was a name with a substantial fate and would surely assist in the expansion of the village.
Expansion of the village. To these people it was the same as saying 'Advancement to Animi', a phenomena seen ordinary by so many yet for others it was hallowed.
So you can assume just how much they cherished that brat. I was too tired and bored to participate in any further activities but Grainrat caught a wind of some gossip which entailed the sixteen click long celebration coupled with great quantities of food and drinks.
I felt left out, you know.
But wait a moment, it seems I forgot to mention one important detail I noticed while on the nameday. Aether—Water Aether seemed to be surging around Raphael, insignificant in amount to be unnoticeable by almost everyone except me of course. It was simply tiny very tiny bits of moisture entering his body through pores.
That, as you should know, is not something any newborn is supposed to do infact most whom are at the first stage may be unable to do this as to be able to exercise control over such a small quantity and being able to guide it while having been born only a few clicks is only short of the possibility of a second coming of an Animi.
Yes I actually believed that the child was an Animi for a while and would've thought to investigate further had my powers not been limited due to that oath with you. Speaking of which it is nearing its end. Soon I will be with you my dear and I think to bring Grainrat along as well;she is quite a pleasant person and you will be surprised with how many things she can do.
Anyways, eventually my thoughts regarding that Raphael vanished into thin air as important things such as that sweet sweet honeyed tea, my progress in creating better clones alongside keeping up appearances in the village took precedence. Also, I should mention that I never noticed Raphael emitting any Ethereal Waves nor sensed the presence of any spell that hides it. This alongside the lack of crucial evidence led me to forget about that kid entirely.
Until twenty clicks ago, that is.
There I was, returning to my quarters after partaking in Grainrat's company and having drunk more than a few glasses of honeyed tea. I planned to create a clone with the instinctual attunement to Enshrouding Water,which I think is the reason my clone's skull turned out to be a Clothed One, well anyways as I was fine tuning the senses of my clone to reciprocate to Enshrouding Water I noticed a peculiar thing.
You know that while tuning one of my clones I can possess their senses and thus my Animus Construct, despite being sealed due to that damn oath, can actually emulate the features of an Ether Flower designed to receive a Variant Aether and so I was able to partially sense the surrounding Enshrouding Water.
That was when I sensed it.
It was moving from all over the village.
Conglomerating rather towards a singular point—a house. Ramon's residence.
I knew it at once to be Raphael's doing. I don't know why but it truly seemed instinctively the answer.
Note that when I say that it was conglomerating I mean it. Huge amounts of it moving right towards Ramon's roof and hovering above like a great vortex.
I saw it form a spiral that went down into the house and presumably to Raphael.
You must think now that this Raphael is definitely the second coming of a Variant Lord as only they would be capable of doing this.
I had just begun to have that thought when I noticed that something else was also flowing towards Ramon's residence. It was something my senses had easily overlooked due to the greater sight at hand but when I put in the effort I saw it.
Water Aether and its Variant Aether—all of it from the entire area I think was being drawn towards that place.
I recorded the presence of Rotting Water, Drowning Water, Flooding Water, Great River and numerous other Variant Aether as well as Water Aether in the form of the moisture in the air and droplets from water bodies far and wide.
They were all sucked into that place and I think assimilated by that kid.
I don't know why he was doing it but Jeri tell me this
Which second coming of an Animi let alone a Variant Lord has been said to possess the ability to control a vast multitude of Aether from birth?
It should not be possible.
But it is.
And I can't understand why.
This is why I am writing after so long a time and reaching out with everything I have.
I don't know when you will find this or whether it will survive the journey.
I can only hope it reaches you. If you do manage to uncover some details and wish to send me a letter, one with answers if The Sovereign favours me, then follow the bright red road in your dreams and write what you want to in a letter of leaves and set it aside for me.
Forever in your heart— Servid, your dutiful and loving fiancee
Next - Arc 3 - Famine