"Azier"
"It's been a while, Heir of the Eternal Snow," He murmured, his voice deep and ancient.
I gazed up at the sky, snowflakes drifting endlessly as cold winds scraped my skin. The familiar enormous tree stood in the distance, its branches piercing the heavens. In front of me stood a figure, looking no older than myself.
His eyes gleamed in a blue radiance, focused on me. He raised his hand forward toward me, and a faint smile painted his face.
"Let's talk, shall we? I suppose you must have a lot of questions."
He walked across the endless garden of white lilies beneath his feet, their petals scattering like snow.
"Why did you bring me here?" I aksed
"I didn't," He simply said.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you are already here, right? So it doesn't really matter," he paused for a second, his eyes gazing at the colossal tree in the distance. His expression darkened.
"You don't have much time, Rayne." He muttered, his tone serious and grim.
"The echoes are getting stronger, and I can't stop them for much longer. You need to get stronger—fast."
"The echoes," I frowned, "What are you talking about?"
He studied me for a while and then began explaining "The blood flowing inside you…. it's very special, it grants you immense power, however, that power comes at a cost."
"What cost?"
"The blood, it's like a curse that attracts the defiled beings towards you, not only that it can even lead to shards erupting around you."
My breath caught.
"Didn't you find it strange that the creature you encountered in the forest followed you all the way to the fallen city?"
It suddenly dawned upon me, as I realised. It was all my fault, the reason I lost my right arm, the reason Zei almost died.
"It was all because of me," I whispered, the weight of guilt pressing down on my heart.
"Don't blame yourself for what has already happened, Rayne." A familiar pair of words reached my ears
"You're right…" I murmured
He continued, "We call it The Echoes. They gnaw at your mind with the ravings and screams of people and creatures until you fall into madness. Right now, I am using my essence to keep the ravings at bay, but that won't last for long."
"I cannot contain them for long, my power will wither away sooner or later."
The garden of lilies swayed as silence stretched between us. I stood there looking at him, this was too much information to take in at once.
"That is why….you need to grow stronger, once you merge with the horizon, it will give me enough power to seal off the ravings for a while longer."
"Can I ask you something?"
His gaze settled on me, a faint smile painted on his face. "Sure, go ahead."
"Who are you?" I muttered.
"We are what your kind once called The Whisperers."
"Whisperers?"
"Yes. We were meant to aid the Aeriths' fight against Nexus and the defiled beings. However, after the war was over, they started to fear us."
"The Whisperers were hunted down as the Aeriths deemed us as dangerous. I am one of the few remaining survivors from that carnage." His voice trembled, only for a moment
I hesitated. "..How long were you trapped in the sword?"
He lowered his gaze. "I… don't remember. I was asleep for a long time."
"Well, at least you won't be as lonely anymore." I said quietly, " I don't know what you have been through, but staying in that sword all alone must have been terrible."
"...I suppose you are right," he chuckled.
"Why didn't you appear after the last incident?"
'Cause I couldn't"
"What do you mean?"
"The sword you have acts as a tether between you and this world. If you lose the sword, you will lose the connection as well." He explained.
"You still don't have enough Ember or Aether to maintain a stable connection with the horizon on your own, that's why my existence acts as your bridge," he added
"The sword in itself is not just a piece of metal; it acts as a vessel for the Blade of the Eternal Night, for me. Hence, losing the sword severs the connection you have with me and the horizon."
"I see."
"Its going to be dawn soon, so let's stop here for now," Azier murmured.
"Can I talk to you again?"
"Of course, once the imprinting is done, we can talk more often."
"What's imprinting?"
"You will find out soon enough," he muttered with a faint smile. "Oh, one more thing, Rayne."
"What is it?"
"Keep my existence a secret from Zeilona, at least for the time being."
"Why"
"The existence of Whisperers is a taboo in your world, it's better to hide it for the time being."
"I understand," I nodded
His blue eyes shone as the dream began to collapse, snow and lilies dissolving into light,
"Then let's meet again, Heir of The Eternal Snow"
I gave him a wry smile.
"I would prefer if you would rather call me Rayne"