At Lake Morveth's shore.
"You think praying to God will actually help us?" Vivia remained skeptical.
"That's how the story goes," Finnian said. "The elder brother adored his younger brother. He suffered the anguish of being unable to meet his brother banished to Hell. It's said that with a sincere heart, he fulfills the wishes of those who call on Him. And we've good chances of success. After all, we have Lady Judith with us - who belongs to the Great Three."
"I've barely ever prayed to God," Judith shrugged.
"Your status still makes much more sense."
"Well, I don't mind trying. But don't hold any hopes. What should I do?"
"Hmm, I don't think there's a particular ritual. Simply kneel before the lake and pray."
Judith turned to the lake and knelt, joined her hands and closed her eyes.
Everybody watched her, curious to know how much truth the myth actually held. Out of nowhere, Judith stumbled backwards - though was quickly caught by Silas.
"What happened?" Vivia asked, alarmed.
"Are you alright?" Silas steadied her.
"Yes," Judith straightened. "I don't know how to describe it, but it felt like…I was just struck by lightning. Like it was a rejection."
Arzan was dumbfounded. "So-Someone from the Blessed's family received God's rejection?"
"Well, like I said I've never prayed before, so God might be quite salty about my lack of devotion."
"I don't suppose Gods are so petty," Finnian stared at her, his gaze unreadable.
"Now, what?"
After some contemplation, Vivia asked, "Does it only have to be a Great Three? Could I not try?"
"Lady Judith was our best bet, but Gods are also supposed to be fair, so my lady is welcome to try."
Zerath didn't look too comfortable with that. "What if you face something similar too?"
She leaned in and whispered. "I've trained under Master. I believe even lightning would pale in comparison to what she has put me through."
"Good point. I'll join you."
They knelt side by side before the lake. Vivia exhaled slowly and closed her eyes.
'O God. Umm…Hello?' she coughed, already feeling the awkwardness.
Like Judith, she had never prayed in any real sense. She wasn't sure how any of this was supposed to go.
'I really don't know how to do this. I apologize I never spoke to you before…But Zerath truly needs your help. He needs to be back in Rudaheim, though I don't want to - No, no! Ignore that! Ignore that!
I mean I'm just babbling because I missed him so much, but Zerath really needs to be back to his realm or everything would fall apart. Could you please, please open the Shifting Vein for Zerath and his company to get back to Rudaheim safely?'
She squeezed her eyelids shut, fingers clasped firmly. She waited, but nothing moved. Her shoulders slumped with disappointment. Then - a sudden gust of wind swept past her face, and her eyes opened on their own.
Lake Morveth was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, a vast green expanse, alive with a garden of lilybells chiming merrily with the wind, greeted her sight. She wasn't alone - as Zerath was right beside her, equally stunned.
"Is this the a-astral realm?" Vivia whispered.
"No," a new voice echoed - from everywhere and nowhere at once.
"This is a glimpse of Heaven."
Heaven…?
Enthralled was far too small of a word to describe the grandeur of what Vivia and Zerath were witnessing before them. If the Realm of Harmony's beauty was enough to mesmerize them, then what lay before them at this moment was truly indescribable beyond words.
A vast, green expanse stretched endlessly, blooming with flowers neither of them had ever seen before. The only one they recognized was the lilybell, but even those looked more vivid and bright, dazzling them to oblivion. Their pleasant chimes through the air felt as if a festival was being celebrated.
Far in the distance, a giant waterfall cascaded from somewhere high in the clouds, its source invisible and incomprehensible. Sunlight that poured through it glistened the water with the hue of a rainbow.
But the most damning thing their eyes couldn't pull away from was a tree right before them. No matter how far back they craned their necks, the tree simply kept going - impossibly tall, impossibly wide, its canopy like an entire mountain range laid across the sky. Its leaves were enormous, as though encompassing every colorful season. Birds perched upon its thick branches and sang melodiously, weaving into the zeal of the lilybells' chimes. The long and wide branches expanded upward infinitely.
As much as Vivia was in awe, an odd sense of peace settled over her - as though a stillness resonated somewhere deep within her. The lingering fatigue from the poisonous water now faded away with something clean and warm moving through her. The very air she breathed was so fresh and pure, as if her body had become light enough to float in the air.
"I may be wrong, Zerath, but I've a very strong feeling that the tree before us is…the Aetherios."
Zerath was too awed to respond. He had seen the grandeur of Lavos and Aetherios from a distance - but never this. His title of the Crown Prince, the luxury of Rudaheim palace's seemed very small compared to witnessing the pure magic here.
"I…"
Words failed to find him. Spellbound by Aetherios's majestic beauty, a delicate butterfly perched upon the back of his hand, its wings fluttering gently. It reminded him of his childhood days when he loved chasing after the butterflies. Nostalgia formed a lump in his throat. Within his stringent duties as the Crown Prince, he had very little time to enjoy these small joys the world had to offer. He had forgotten how it was to just keep running on the road until he felt breathless.
Zerath touched the butterfly's wing as lightly as a feather. It took flight - only to perch upon the tip of his nose next.
Vivia burst into laughter. "You look cute."
The butterfly drifted away. Zerath cleared his throat. He turned to her and caught a yellow leaf sitting on top of her head.
"So do you," he chuckled, lifting the leaf and placing it in her palm.
Vivia gasped at its sheer size - a leaf that outstretched her fingertips. She held it up to the sunlight and smiled.
"It's a beautiful golden just like your eyes."
In the distance, she noticed a hazy shape she hadn't seen before. A shadow seated on one of the massive branches, legs dangling idly back and forth over the edge, hands resting on the bark. A soft mist surrounded that silhouette, further obscuring him.
Vivia and Zerath straightened as they faced him. For an unknown reason, her heart pounded in her chest loud and clear.
"We are truly before the Aetherios, aren't we?" She asked, breathless.
The figure said, "Yes."
Recalling Finnian's story, Zerath asked, "...Are you the brother who formed the Aetherios?"
Nara had narrated the story a long time ago - about two twin brothers whose personalities were as opposite as day and night. The elder was calm and kind, the younger was fiery and passionate. But a tragedy had struck, born of the younger brother's fury - the deadly result of which had split them apart. The elder brother ascended in Heaven to become a God, and the younger brother was banished to Hell. Yet the elder one loved his brother dearly, and though forbidden for a God to ever enter Hell - he forged a path to reach his brother regardless.
Vivia swallowed a gulp, her chest barely able to contain her drumming heartbeats.
Are we truly in front of God? I thought a Shifting Vein would open right away, but I didn't expect we'd land in Heaven straightaway!
"Are you curious?" The figure's pleasant voice echoed.
Vivia observed a small bird land atop his shoulder. It seemed as though the figure was nudging it ever so lightly with his finger - though she couldn't be too sure.
Zerath exhaled. "I had heard the story from my master. I just…" He then bowed before him and said, "We need your help."
Vivia lowered her head beside him, goosebumps still alive on her skin. "Could you please help us? Zerath and his company need to be back to Rudaheim. Would you be willing to open a Shifting Vein for them to travel back to the Demon Realm?"
The wind moved through the grass and lilybells. Nothing else stirred. Not hearing a response was more nerve-wracking than anything.
"I will grant your wish. But you must do something for me first."