Astral Flow

Chapter 47

The sun was shining brighter than ever as Lily emerged onto the streets of the bustling city, an atmosphere like that of a peaceful central hub unfolding before her.

It was truly a strange thing to witness, but she somehow felt like she was already growing used to it.

"So, what do you know of Resovult?" Vonder asks as he walks in front of her, ready to guide her around.

"Nothing really, I've only heard whispers and old stories." Lily admits, slowly walking behind him while taking in all the little details. "Honestly this is nothing like what I had been expecting."

"Really? What were you expecting?" Aida asks, now landing on Lily's shoulder.

"I dunno, something darker and grimmer I guess? I wasn't expecting all this... life." Lily says as she looks around, noticing that there was even a bard performing on the streets.

"Sounds like the rest of the world is further gone than I anticipated then." Vonder sighs a bit. "Guess that's just more reason to cherish this fleeting moment of peace." He smiles a bit, trying to stay as optimistic as possible. "Now here's a little history lesson about this place, this place was originally a small farming village before Saint Vann evolved it beyond that, her descendant known as Ignius Margreeve became the first king of this ancient land, his bloodline following in his footsteps and turning Resovult into the open place it is now."

"I actually wanted to ask you about that, Night is a beastkin, right? Is the guild those other beastkin really bad enough to bar them from entry to a place like this?" Lily asks, now pondering further. "They didn't seem that bad."

"It's pretty complicated." Aida chimes in. "They were with the Beast Lord's Cult, any with them are permanently marked as a danger and barred entry from most places, most guards are even given the order to kill them on sight."

"The Beast Lord's Cult earned their reputation for a number of unsavory reasons, the main one being they provided the Invaders with a means to corrupt the first Sun God." Vonder continues, now walking up some steps towards a gate. "Which is why even those who broke off afterwards still bear the weight of the Cult's sins."

"That's possible to do? Corrupting a god I mean?" Lily is now stunned beyond belief, if that was possible then what else could be?

Gods were supposed to be beings higher than all others, right? If so then how could one be corrupted by just regular people?
Was magic truly that strong here? Or was there something more to this?

"Anything can be corrupted given the right tools, magic and time." Vonder's voice gets a bit more serious, deathly so as he gazes beyond the gate at what looks like a temple in the distance. "No beings are truly perfect and inscrutable, even one like the Creator herself could become corrupted with time given the right circumstances."

Before Lily can respond he begins making his way to the temple, leaving her behind with Aida.

"Sorry about him, living the life of a Hunter hasn't exactly been the easiest on him." Aida comments with a hint of sorrow in her voice. "I'm sure he'll be fine soon though, he doesn't usually let these thoughts get to him."

"Right, sorry if I pushed it a bit." Lily apologizes, hoping she didn't push away two people now.

Honestly, what was she thinking?

This wasn't like her, not at all.

Perhaps it was because everything was so strange and new that she was losing herself a bit, getting dragged along by the rush of curiosity and excitement.

Or perhaps it was Six's personality already melding with hers, she couldn't know for certain though.

"You're fine, trust me." Aida reassures her with a friendly tone and calm smile. "I've known him for over 10 years now, it takes more than that to make him angry."