Acrisanctum passage
The carriage wheels ground to a halt, their screeching wheels sliding across stone. Not a moment later, the door swung open as two figures stepped out.
Cypher and Drake both walked down the steps until the night air once again filled their lungs.
They were in the front garden of Drake's home. Instead of the opulence and unnecessary extravagance Cypher had seen from other noble villas in the high district, this was... quite the pleasant living space.
It was built in simple painted white, with three stories and large enough to fit at least twenty or so rooms. Black line struts ran up its surface toward the angular black-tiled roof as the curtains tinted with the radiance of the lunar moon above.
Rose flowers, personally groomed by Drake himself, ran across the green land in rows, while the occasional apple tree towered up, allowing the juicy crimson fruits it bore to hang down, its leaves swaying in the breeze.
Servants, each well-fed, stood on stools to fetch and pick these fruits, not hiding the small scars that lay on their skin. Despite this, they seemed truly happy to work for the Baron, all things considered.
As they walked on a smooth, tiled stone walkway leading up to the mansion's entrance, Cypher couldn't help but think of living here for a while longer.
"Baron, I must say your home is wonderful. Does it not tempt you to add more? Maybe a whisper telling you to drown each edge in gold?" Cypher mused, his question both curious and equally lighthearted.
The Baron smiled, stopping for a moment and bending down.
He held onto his cane for support and grasped a red rose, pulling it from its roots gently.
"Gold, silver - isn't it all just meaningless?" The flower reached his nose as he inhaled its scent, eyes closing as he let out a sigh, "Why must we obsess over such temporary things."
Cypher chuckled, keeping his spine straight and hands behind his back. "Indeed, you're right. These things are just superficial indulgences."
Cypher paused, nodding his head slowly. "When we close our eyes, these things disappear like they never existed. I don't think it's simply the material, money, or treasure that we savor, but their meaning - or the concept behind them."
"Ohh?" Drake reluctantly put the flower back on the ground. "Those strange symbols you wear... do they mean something to you? Please, indulge this old man."
Cypher shook his head slightly. "It's fine."
He grasped the upright crucifix, feeling the coolness of silver against his skin. "This one tells of a weak man who succeeded in achieving his dream. But in the end, he lost everyone and died as a sacrifice for their sins."
He then grasped the reversed crucifix. "And this one tells of an angel who lost his wings and failed to achieve his dreams. In the end, he sacrificed everything else for his ambitions, falling while bringing others down with him."
"I see. Maybe we can learn something from both these men you speak of." Baron Drake gave a solemn nod toward Cypher.
They arrived at the oak wood doors, and Drake pushed them open, allowing the glow of the fireplace inside to illuminate their faces.
They entered a spacious front room with brown timber plank flooring. A white marble fireplace stood at the center while a painting hung above it, filling the room with the smell of burning coal and lavender from a potted plant near a windowsill.
There was a table at the center, filled with scrawled-on and neatly placed parchment notes, as well as a thick book with an eye like symbol on the front cover- Endos Acrisanctum.
As the pattering of steps came from a winding staircase, neatly decorated with a red velvet carpet, Drake stretched his arms out, allowing his bones to crack with well-earned release.
"I much prefer home to the palace. Everything is less threatening here," Drake said, his voice now higher and more relaxed.
"I understand why and am envious that you stay here every night."
"I'm glad. My family built this place from the ground up. We never concerned ourselves with luxury, as that was not what Endo wanted noble society to care for." Drake walked over to a cushioned sofa and plumped back against it.
He patted beside him, signaling Cypher to join.
"I've never learned much about Endo. From what I know, he always seemed like an untouchable angel." Cypher joined Drake as he let the fire's heat warm his skin.
"Ha," Drake seemed to reminisce on something. He turned to Cypher. "The church often portrays him that way, but that's far from the truth."
He grabbed the Acrisanctum on the table, flicking it open to read a passage out loud.
---
Terra Cordis~ 102 BBR
Why...
I fear my brother's state is worsening by the day. Have I not tried my best to warn him?
Today, he came by. He was different. Wrong.
I sense none of that bright soul that lit up the clouds with his smile. That boy, my dear brother, who played in the clouds and dreamt of guiding all souls to Paradise.
I miss him, dearly.
When he came to me today, he rambled, spouting endlessly in his mindless studies of Dreamspeak and obsidian.
I have told him many times not to spread such things in this plane. Hath Father not warned of the untold suffering they will bring?
Yet, he continues, writing in the Necronomicon each of his findings and spreading them across his kingdom.
Each and every moment he wears that black coffin he calls armor, I see him drifting away. I hope you can save him, Father, for I have tried all I can.
I will write again tomorrow...
---
Drake stopped at the last line on the page, feeling a pang of sadness in his heart.
He looked up to Cypher. "Does such a man sound untouchable to you? In reality, I know Endo was a pure soul, not some empty idol."
Cypher reciprocated with understanding eyes, though internally, his thinking was elsewhere.
Father? Releigh and Endo had a father?
The thought deeply affected him. Such a man who raised both these demigods would have to be a god himself, right?
Outwardly, Cypher glanced at a painting above the fireplace, the frame not bearing a single dent or scratch in the metal.
It displayed an image of a young girl with vibrant brown hair and a small, weak frame. She sat in a puddle while rain poured down on the mud she rested on. Around her, soldiers lay frozen in time, their swords piercing through each other as they killed each other in bloody battle.
However, the girl had her neck raised to a figure beside her.
That of a man, so enthralling in the brightness of his smile that it almost bled through the painting. It was as if that smile could wash away all fears and all pain, leaving only hope for the future horizons.
Black hair curled like flowers as it hung down his forehead, blue eyes like ocean water—clear and calming.
He didn't wear armor or noble garments; he simply bore a simple white tunic, unstained by the rain as two wings of feathers sprouted from his back, shielding the girl from the rain.
He wasn't simply shielding her but outstretching his hand to the commoner girl, offering a path for hope.
"Ahh, that's a recreation of the moment my great ancestor received her awakening." Drake walked up behind Cypher, admiring her artistic skills as equally as Cypher was.
"And that man is Endo, right?" Cypher looked at his angelic form glowing through the paint with amazement.
Only, Drake grimaced as if seeing a memory of someone who had long since lost their way.
"No... that man is not Endo. It's Releigh... at least, before he fell."