While six of my physical forms continued battling Black, my awareness finally shifted away from that violent clash and narrowed toward the fragment that had followed Veneri into Elyonari's memories.
The transition felt strange. The sounds of combat faded. The scent of stone dust and blood vanished and suddenly I was standing somewhere else entirely.
Veneri stood a short distance ahead of me as he observed the scene unfolding before him. In front of us stood Arthrea.
Even though I heard Elyonari describe her mother many times, seeing her directly inside a preserved memory was different. Arthrea looked regal, tall and impossibly beautiful in that cold, commanding way the Mintheris bloodline carried so naturally. Her long silver-green hair flowed down her back her emerald eyes held the sharp composure of someone used to ruling over others.
But the beauty meant nothing once you knew what she had done. In her arms she held two infants, Veylonar and Elyonari.
They were barely more than newborns. Their tiny bodies were wrapped carefully in pale cloth as Arthrea held them close to her chest. The surrounding scene told the rest of the story.
The elven city around her was destroyed. Buildings were shattered. Streets were filled with tens of thousands of corpses.
The bodies of elves lay piled across the city like discarded dolls. Their lifeless eyes stared upward toward the sky while the air was thick with the fading residue of stolen souls. I already knew what had happened here but seeing it directly was still revolting.
I glanced at Veneri.
"How long have you been here?"
He didn't turn around.
"A few minutes. I watched the whole thing."
His gaze remained fixed on Arthrea.
"She annihilated an entire elven city just to gather enough souls to make those two. She used the corpses of her own kind as the vessel for the ritual. She really is daring."
I didn't argue with that because he was right. Arthrea had always been a monster but so were we. He finally turned his head slightly toward me.
"You already knew Elyonari's life story, right?"
"Yes."
He sighed quietly before turning back to the memory unfolding before us.
"When I entered this place, I heard the World Tree's voice."
That caught my attention immediately.
"Mintherenia?"
"Yes. She told me to find Elyonari within the memory artifact she gave her. When we first met in the elven city days ago, Elyonari was holding a small sphere. The sphere was this artifact. Our consciousness are inside it right now. The World Tree said Ely is somewhere inside these memories. She's seeing her life flash before her eyes."
"That means she's close to death."
He nodded.
"Probably. It might take hours to find her. In here, time flows differently inside the artifact. In the real world it'll only be a few minutes."
That was good because I wasn't sure how long my other bodies could keep Black occupied.
"I'll guide you. My fragments are still protecting you outside so you'll be fine."
The memory shifted suddenly. The ruined city dissolved into mist.
When the new scene stabilized, we found ourselves standing inside a grand palace hall filled with warm golden light and the soft sounds of celebration. Colorful banners decorated the walls. Servants moved around carrying trays of food. Soft music played in the background while dozens of elves gathered around a hall. At the center of the celebration sat two small children.
Elyonari and Veylonar looked about six years old. Their eyes sparkled with childish excitement as they tore open the bright wrapping paper around their presents.
Elyonari laughed loudly when she opened one gift and discovered a small carved wooden bow inside, while Veylonar held up a strange crystal toy that lit up faintly when he shook it.
I glanced sideways at Veneri. He was watching the scene quietly.
"This is their first birthday celebration," I murmured.
Then our attention shifted toward the far end of the hall. Arthrea stood there speaking with several priestesses dressed in flowing white and emerald robes embroidered with the symbol of the World Tree. They were the Priestesses of the Ancient Temple of Mintherenia.
One of them stepped forward and spoke calmly.
"Your Majesty. The time has come."
Arthrea folded her arms slightly.
"For what?"
"The World Tree has given us Her will."
The priestess gestured subtly toward Elyonari.
"The girl must join the temple."
Arthrea's eyes narrowed.
"When?"
"Tomorrow. The moment her Ascension occurs at midnight, she will belong to the temple."
Arthrea stared at the priestess.
"Is there another way?"
The priestess shook her head.
"No. It is the World Tree's will."
Arthrea's jaw tightened slightly.
"For millennia I served the World Tree faithfully and yet the moment my children came into existence… Mintherenia stopped speaking to me entirely."
None of the priestesses responded..Arthrea exhaled quietly.
"Very well. If it is the World Tree's will, I will not defy it."
The memory shifted again. The celebration vanished. Night fell. Now, we stood inside a royal bedroom. However, the sounds we heard next were awful.
Elyonari and Veylonar were both writhing on the bed in agony.
Their small bodies trembled violently as glowing green energy pulsed through their skin. Vines began sprouting from the bed beneath them, crawling across the sheets and walls while the entire room filled with the suffocating pressure of their awakening to the Essentia Rank.
For children, it was pure torture. Veneri experienced it at noon but his was so severe he went into a coma for a year.
Elyonari screamed louder than Veylonar. Her small hands clawed desperately at the sheets while tears streamed down her face.
"It hurts!"
Arthrea sat between them on the bed and pulled both children into her arms tightly despite the vines wrapping around the room. Her voice was strangely gentle.
"It's alright, It's almost over."
Elyonari sobbed into her shoulder.
"It hurts so much!"
Arthrea stroked her hair softly.
"I know."
Vines covered the bed now. The room had become a small forest of growing life.
"Just a little longer, my dears. It will be over soon."
The memory changed once again.
A massive temple rose before the children. Priests and priestesses bowed low as Elyonari and Veylonar approached. I could feel Veneri's gaze on how Elyonari's small fingers trembled.
The High Priestess was there. She was nearly their age and surrounded by a few Priestesses.
Arthrea spoke to the Priestess.
"Teach her well. Make her strong. She is my daughter and she must not falter."
Arthrea knelt and hugged Elyonari tightly. Her lips brushed the child's forehead.
"Be brave, my little blossom. I will come to check on you."
But the promise was empty. I knew it, and so did Veneri. Soon, they turned, and Arthrea and Veylonar left the temple. Elyonari's tiny fingers fumbled as the distance between them grew.
The young High Priestess knelt in front of Elyonari.
"My name is Aria, Princess. Don't worry. You'll love it here."
Elyonari's lips quivered, then curled into a tentative smile.
"O-okay."
The memory shifted but this time, it shocked both of us.
Elyonari was panting as sweat and blood mingled on her skin. The arena was covered with blood stains with Arthrea standing before her.
"Why can't you use your Base Tethers? Your brother can yet you remain… helpless."
I felt Veneri's fists clench beside me.
Elyonari's body shook violently. One arm was already gone. She couldn't open one eye either. The Priestesses watched silently but none intervened. They would die if they did.
"You are to be the future Monarchess of Dynasty Mintheris. You must be strong. Strength is demanded and weakness will not be tolerated."
Elyonari tried again in tears as she summoned wind and fire, earth and water, pouring every fragment of herself into attacks meant to prove she could endure but nothing worked. It didn't last more than ten seconds.
"You're a disappointment. I was sad that the World Tree took you, yet you are useless. Your gifts are wasted. Nothing has changed in a year."
Elyonari wiped her tears.
"From now on, the palace is closed to you. You are no longer my daughter. Your life belongs elsewhere. I will invest my hopes in Veylonar alone. He will be the Monarch, and you…"
She turned, leaving Elyonari on the cold stone floor.
"…you are nothing to me anymore."
Elyonari lay there, crying. The High Priestess came to her and began to heal her wounds. This was a memory that not even I knew about. She suffered for a year like this as a child?
Now I'm starting to see that the other didn't quite share all their past stories.