In the Sunlight: Chapter 3

• The Black Wings have risen once again to revive the Black Mage. But this time, there are no heroes, no legends of Maple World. In the midst of this, one unfortunate group of Adventurers find themselves caught within the mess – and the most unlikely hero rises up above all.

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Chapter 3: Turn of Events
Word Count: 2186

When they got back to Henesys, they immediately reported to Athena Pierce. Silas gave his brief explanation of the situation – he had managed to get himself together while on the ship back, and he wasn’t as terrible looking as he was in Edelstein.

Athena frowned when she heard the news. “Sinclair is right. This calls for an Alliance meeting …” She paced behind her desk, thinking carefully. “I will go, because I am the general face of the instructors. I must bring Grendal and Dark Lord, because they are both intelligent people…”

The woman thought carefully, taking a large breath and sighing heavily. “Kain, Silas, Skylar. You lot should represent the adventurers in this meeting. The instructors will represent the younger ones, but you are past our guidance. You must represent those that are no longer in the guidance of the instructors.”

The three of them nodded. “We’ll be leaving,” said Kain respectfully, bowing. Athena nodded to them, and the four walked out.

Outside, Kain frowned. “This seems a bit more obvious than it should be.”

Silas nodded. “I think … we should all pick one person to bring.”

Skylar thought about it… It was a logical decision. The last thing that should happen is one of them there alone … She crossed her arms and nodded.

“Before we decide anyone, we should obviously invite Analise,” Silas commented with a shrug. “She’s normally at the forefront of the adventurers.” Mostly because she was a genius, diplomatic, and possibly the only sane one in their entire bossing group but…

Kain nodded. “I’ll… I’ll bring Riven. He’s a Corsair from Svalinn. A good guy, with a sensible mind. He’ll help to keep everything calm.”

Silas nodded, thinking over things. Aischeron would definitely be there – mostly because he was one of Eckhart’s most loyal students, and also because he was a rather trustworthy person… Plus, they couldn’t spare any Night Walkers. Since the conference is held in Ereve, they’ll go to lengths to protect the conference table. No Cygnus Knight would be free…

“Prin,” Silas said simply. “He deserves to see Ai, and if worse comes to worse, he won’t be emotionally volatile.”

Skylar nodded. “Sensible … I guess I’ll bring Eunjin. If anything bad happens, he’s capable of coming up with a plan.” Her eyes moved towards Sinclair. “You’re going to be there, right? With the Resistance?”

Sinclair blinked his red eyes. “Oh- oh, yeah, I think. Brighton wants me to go…” He looked thoughtful. “Xiphen will be there…”

Silas winced at the mention of brothers – bringing along Eunjin would complicate things, especially when the dual blades are coming … Silas had been old enough to understand the animosity and situation between the dual blades and thieves, but Eunjin had barely been an adventurer at that point … No doubt Ren had kept him in the dark about the topic.

Kain snapped his fingers in front of Silas’s face, frowning. The orange haired man blinked back to attention. “Mm?” He asked.

“Go tell Prin he’s coming along. I have to ask Riven,” Kain mumbled as he walked away, hands in his pockets.

Silas looked after the black haired man, shaking his head slightly. Always the harsh one… Even as children, Kain had always been a bit more … he didn’t want to call him pompous, but it was true. He had everything he wanted – parents, wealth, but … well, he supposed that wasn’t a good life. Kain was surrounded by butlers, and maids, and he was surprised that the man hadn’t ended up worse than he was right now.

Companionship was not his forte. Silas didn’t expect the man to know how to act around people, even if Skylar had adopted him, and Silas had made the effort to move to Henesys with Ai and Prin to accompany him. He was glad that Kain had met Quinn when he did – otherwise the man’s attitude would be abysmal by now.

And Silas had grown used to it, really, being brushed off by Kain’s bad attitude, because he didn’t really know better. He didn’t expect any sort of miracle where Kain suddenly became a genius at being social – honestly, he’d probably be a little creeped out. He loved Kain, he really did, but dealing with the man could be so difficult, and he could get tired of him so easily.

Silas sighed, turning on his heel. Riven lived in Orbis, so he’d have to fly over … Prin should either be home, or at Perion, but, he’d check out home first.

The orange haired man walked aimlessly through the streets of Henesys, stopping at the small house. He had commissioned an architect to make the small house as space efficient as it could be – which, unfortunately, resulted in some small rooms … It was a simple two story house, with a white exterior and red roof. There wasn’t much in decoration, although Aischeron had taken care to engrave their names into a sign next to the door. On the bottom floor was a combined kitchen and dining room, and a living room in front of it. On the top floor were the three bedrooms – he and Ai had insisted that Prin took the biggest room, mostly because neither of them really stayed at home. Aischeron, because he mostly lived on Ereve, took the smallest, while Silas took the one in between.

He unlocked the door, glancing in. It was quiet, and the lights were off … Either Prin was asleep or not here. Silas glanced around, walking up the steps quietly, and stopping in front of his youngest brother’s room. All of their doors were rather plain, except the engraving of their name. Aischeron’s was elegant – he had taken the most care with his, Prin’s was simple and neat, and Silas’s own was a bit messy, although to be fair, he had been running late for Pianus when he did it …

He knocked lightly on his youngest brother’s door, opening it slowly and peering inside. A helmet on the desk, a sword propped up against the wall… Prin was definitely home. At the thought, he smiled a bit. Prin being so much lower leveled than him meant that they couldn’t train together, but he didn’t really mind that as long as he got to talk to him … which was often, considering Printences was a member of his guild.

“Prin?” He called out, seeing the black mop of hair on the teen’s pillow. It was a few seconds, maybe a minute, before he saw the sheets move, and a tired face peer out from under them.

“Silas?” His speech was slurred from sleep, and he sat up fully, rubbing at his eyes.

He turned on the lights, grinning at the boy when he winced, covering his eyes. Silas hummed slightly – seeing his younger brother always made him happy, despite essentially living with him anyway. Prin’s work as a Hero in Perion and Silas’s own work as a bosser kept them on different sides of the map, but he always tried to make an effort to visit his brothers at least once a month. He ran a hand through his orange hair – he was the only one in their family to not have black hair, although their father had said something about his father or mother having orange hair …

“Ey, kiddo,” he greeted cheerfully, walking over. He sat down on the bed, next to the smaller teenager, and ruffled his hair with a hand. The boy in question yawned, looking at his elder brother with a questioning blue gaze.

“Why’re you here?” Prin asked, a slightly confused look on his tanned face.

“There’s going to be a World Alliance meeting in a few days,” Silas commented, leaning back. “You’re comin’ along.”

The black haired teen blinked at him. “I am? Wouldn’t Ario or Valencia be better for this?” He scratched his head idly, a look of bewilderment on his face.

Silas laughed. “It’s not that I don’t trust them. It’s just that I’d rather you come along, Prin. Plus, it’s been a long time since you’ve seen Ai, isn’t it?”

His brother’s eyes brightened up, and he seemed fully awake by this point. “Ai’s going to be there?” Prin sat up a bit straighter, pulling the blankets off of his body.

The elder grinned. “As always. You know that island is the only place he ever does anything.” Prin laughed a bit at Silas’s joke, a small smile settling on his face.

“He should come home more often. I miss him,” the black haired teen said lightly. Silas smoothed out his hair, letting out a sigh.

“I know, Prin. I know.”

The two sat there for a few moments, the air eerily silent despite the two talking often … Silas let out a sigh, slowly standing up. “I think we should leave within a few days,” he said distantly, although his eyes were more focused. “I’ll make sure to check with Kain and Sky. Make sure to pack everything you need, okay?” He drew closer to the door, standing next to it.

“Yeah- I’ll see you at dinner…?” It was more of a question than a statement – they never knew if they would have dinner together these days … Especially with the impending dangers.

“I’ll make it, don’t you worry kid.” He gave Prin a reassuring smile. “I need to go check up on Kain, alright? I’ll talk to you later.” He waited until his brother had nodded, before he quietly shut the door behind him.

Silas loved his brothers, he really did, but … Their conflicting schedules, being on different islands entirely, and how busy all of them were left much to be desired in their relationship. Aischeron always tried to make it for their birthdays, and Printences always sent gifts when he was caught up at Perion. And he and Prin would always surprise Aischeron at Ereve… It was a hard arrangement, but they made it work. They had to.

As he walked down the stairs, he let out a sigh. He always had strong opinions over his family – since they were young, he had been the adult. Their mother had died during Prin’s birth; they didn’t hold it against him. Their father, a Knight in service to the Empress, fell during a siege. So, to say he didn’t want Aischeron to join the Cygnus Knights was a huge understatement … But he didn’t have the right to tell him what to do.

He stepped outside of the house, tapping at his wrist to pull up his contacts. The watch was something every standard adventurer had – using technology from New Leaf City and Omega Sector, along with magic, it had a sort of holographic screen that could be used. A gloved finger slid down the list, before resting at a starred name – Kain Lioxeno. He pressed it.

“What?” came his cousin’s voice. There was a bit of impatience in it.

“Done here with Prin. Are you good with Riven?” He asked, reclining in a nearby bench. He played with a strand of hair.

A new voice. “Does this answer your question?” It was light and a bit distant – airy as well. Almost as if he wasn’t really in the conversation … Yep. That was Riven. “Hello Silas. How are you?”

Silas let out a smile at the elder man’s voice. “Mm, pretty good. Excited to see Ai again. What’s up with you?” The sun shone in his eyes, and he raised his right hand to block the light.

“Ah! That’s right. Aischeron is going to be there. How exciting.” His voice was honestly cheerful despite his generally passive tone of voice. Riven wasn’t very outspoken, nor was he too interested in politics, but he had a way of calming people down with his presence. He was easy to get along with.

“Yep! Prin’s comin’ along.” There was a stupid, but happy grin spread on his face. To see his family was the highlight of his life.

“That’s great to hear!” There was a pause and a clatter of sorts. Riven’s voice came back through, although distant – like he was yelling. “Wait!! Eralis, why is Alex at the kitchen? He should be out!”

“Seems like you’re busy,” Silas commented. He heard a laugh over the speaker.

“Oh, not really. But Alexander isn’t allowed to cook after last time.” There was a tone of amusement, and the orange haired man smiled. “I have to go now. It was nice talking to you Silas! Goodbye, to you and to Kain.”

The connection ceased, and Silas smiled brightly at the sunlight gleaming behind the Maple Tree’s leaves. Sometimes, it was easy to ignore the fact that there was a war approaching. He couldn’t imagine Henesys, the peaceful town of archers and farmers, being torn between war. It just wouldn’t fit.

After a few moments, he shoved up off the bench, and towards the market. If he was seeing Ai, he’d better bring a gift.