The Knights of Grimm - Act 4 - Whispers of Arkhonex

Chapter 28 - Go To The Light

Kassius

The howls of a distant past seem to flow through these catacombs, and the blue light shimmers before their eyes. The beautiful face of Velvet Scarlatina totally transfixed by the stunning array of blues and purples inside of this ball of light. And it is exactly that, there is no drone inside of this thing like they would expect, it is simply light. Floating before them, and gently hovering across the abandoned dark grounds of this old building that has been buried over the thousands of years that have eroded and weathered it away. Kassius watches it, all of them caught in the moment, however they are not foolish enough to simply put their weapons away, but they definitely calm their nerves down a bit.

Emerald watches the little thing move, dancing around like a firefly and she reaches out to it with her hand, and it jolts back from her fingertips. But there is no aggression or fear, it just seems...curious...and intelligent. It gazes back at her red eyes and shimmers slightly, before floating ahead of them towards the bend in the hallway. Coco looks down at the skeleton that rests against the wall, been left here for a very long time. A sword rammed through his stomach, most likely left to bleed out and die.

And in his hand is a piece of paper, shredded and aged over time, but somehow still preserved enough. The lack of sunlight did not bleach it luckily, so she can still read the text left behind on the note. She blows the dust and webs from it, batting a spider from its papery copy and onto the floor.

She reads his letter aloud. "My dearest Anarietta. 'Tis been too long since my eyes fell upon your beauty, and now...I fear I never shall see your gaze ever again. And I cannot say that I blame you for leaving me, for I let my weak mind be bent by a madman. I heard what he did to the beautiful fields, my love. And I cannot forgive him or myself for the part I played in helping him rise to power. I do not know if he was always evil or if he was a master of deception...perhaps it doesn't even matter anymore."

"I'm afraid, I am going to die down here my love. And I just hope that this letter may find you, wherever you are now. If you have moved on from me and I mistakes then I am truly proud of you for doing so, and if you have not then what I say now is the same to what I would say if you did. I am sorry, I am so, so sorry for what I have done. The world has fallen into chaos, and I played a role in it all by fighting for that monster. Arkhonex and Ephai have both fallen, and the Father destroyed himself in the process."

"My love however...deep down...I do not think it ever left me for you, and I merely hope that I can offer you some kind of closure my love. Wherever you are, I hope you are safe and happy, and that your children shall carry onto the next life someday. This is my penance, my punishment."

"...and I accept it with all my heart. This is justice, Ana, and it is right. Goodbye my love. Signed, Edward Tarvoss." Coco concludes, lowering the letter from her gaze and looking at them all. Clearly this man was once a Servant of the Father, and he must have turned against the Congregation of Dawn in the end. They all pay the man respects, and bow their heads to him and pay a moment of silence. It is people like these that make war so difficult, because it can be very easy to forget that the person you might shoot in the head, or drive a blade into the heart of, or blow up with a bomb. Is still a person, who could have a beautiful woman waiting for him with beautiful children.

A family left to mourn the loss of a person that you committed.

Kassius stands there and he sighs, he has always had quite a black and white way of viewing the world, and that is because he has lived quite the cynical life. Sure, growing up around Yang and Ruby did rub off on him, giving him a brighter side, but nearly being eaten alive by a Creature of Grimm would darken a person's future. He clenches his cybernetic hand into a fist as he stares down at the skeleton of Edward Tarvoss, a man who probably died a few thousand years ago. And due to some of the roots that have wrapped around his bones over the years, he must have been alone down here for quite a long time after he finally died.