The Blade Witch: Songs of Eldrin, Book 0.5

Chapter Fourteen - Dark Revelations

"I used to go to the convent and play with the little girl. Watched as she learned how to walk, then talk. She used to call me Benny. Time went on and I stopped by less and less. Maybe once or twice a year at most." Brennan said, lost in a sad reminiscence. "Goffried and Jennah did their best to conceal the child's true nature. They passed her off as Jennah's misbegotten child and that was good enough for the Faith. They even changed the name her mother intended to give her to something more Ridonian," he looked away from her, unable to meet her gaze. "To Estra."

The bard had taken on a sickly complexion during his recounting of the events. If she'd asked, Estra wasn't sure he would have been able to go on, but there was no need. No matter how much she wanted to deny it, there was undeniable merit to the tale, it all made sense, and everything fit.

"Helena is my mother." Just saying the words felt like she'd made a pact with a demon.

"That's the truth of it," Brennan said, completely lacking his usual mirth. "There's more though. Jennah and the old man kept studying, trying to find a way to destroy the gate forever. What they found is that, just as the God's blood can open the gate, so can it be controlled by someone bearing enough of it. They can throw its doors wide open, slam them shut, and they can even destroy it. You've been bonded to the gate since childhood Estra, you've already witnessed half its secrets once and survived. You're an adult now, no one can use you as a key. You're the only one who can end all of this."

Estra stared down at her hands, expecting them to begin shaking at any moment. But they lay still, refusing to show the quake of emotion that was shaking her down to the core. She supposed that was the worst thing about it. No matter how shocking it was to hear, somewhere within, part of her had always known.

"Now you know who you are," Brennan said. "And you know what your faith is as well. They're willing to sacrifice young mothers and unborn children to further goals, and I'm sure you've seen more of what their willing to do than any of us. If you stay on their path, you'll soon find yourself the one committing the atrocities. Is that something you can live with?"

"Enough Brennan," Lency gave the man a look of warning.

The bard glanced at the girl before speaking to Estra in notably softer tone. "No more secrets for us to share. I know this is a lot for you to take in right now, but you've got a decision to make Estra. Join me and work to put an end to all this suffering, or side with the Faith under full knowledge of what they'd be willing to sacrifice in order to accomplish their true goals."

There was nothing holding Estra back, there were an infinite number of paths she could have taken. She could have even boarded the first boat across the ocean and left the entire ordeal behind. Her faith was unshakable as ever, her prayers would still find their way to paradise, her sword would forever swing in the name of the Enlightened, but Estra knew she could no longer struggle with the evils of the institution she served. The time had come for her to strike out on her own path.

Estra rose, turning her back on the others. She made her way to the front door of the brothel, breathing in the cool night air, leaving on her own without offering another word. She moved through the darkness lost in a sea of thoughts she felt she could drown in.

Estra didn't know how long she walked, nor how far she'd traveled, but she found herself in a packed bar, doing her best to numb her mind with the strongest drinks she had the funds for. Her night ended with a drunken stumble back to the brothel where she found the warm skin of another welcoming her just beyond the doorway. She accepted the devil's bargain, losing herself in the sinful comfort she needed, if only for a night.