The Brink of Creation

Chapter 11 - The Hallowed Bog

The baobabs lurched towards the Some as the weary travelers slopped through the earth. The Scientist scraped the tough clay compacted itself onto his sandals, sandals which not long ago had seen little wear, but were now threatening to flee from his crusted feet.

The Destroyer watched his friend struggle with the damp ground. The open wounds in his own ankles baked the moisture from the clay as they squelched into the earth. The sticky soil held the monstrous trees in place as they croaked tiredly.

The boababs were dying.

"Scientist, I should tell ya somethin'."

"What is it now, friend? Surely you're not going to tell me we have to crawl under a pair of titans again?"

"No, not quite like that. A friend o' mine resides not far from our path. I think it'd be good for ya to meet 'er."

The Scientist flicked mud from between his fingers, his dark eyebrows burrowing into the center of his forehead. "We have a mission, my brother. Are you suggesting we delay ourselves?"

The Destroyer's fire-cracked face furrowed at his friend's negative response. "No, this friend... she's quite special. She took me in when I was very young, and taught me how to live with my curse, use it as a strength rather than a weakness."

"Are you saying I'm cursed?" The Scientist looked sideways at his newly-named guide.

The ashen man spit embers angrily. "Ya know what, nevermind. I'm just tryin' to be a help."

The Scientist's eyes apologetically searched the ground. "I've been ungrateful. You have been of unspeakable value to our goal, and I cannot thank you enough. I'm just... confused. I don't understand what is happening to me. I feel the channels of light as they pass us by. Their strength increases by the day. Something is growing inside me, like my heart's width expands with my awareness of the lights around us. What are they? What is happening to me, brother?"

"I felt the same when I was cursed by Justice," The Destroyer spoke, empathizing with his companion. "When I awoke in that crater, devoid of my family, my friends, my own brother-- "

He halted to regather his emotions. "I had no one left, Scientist. She taught me what the lights are and how to control them. You have the Some. Let's figure this out together. She can help you."

The Paladin, overhearing their conversation, stepped up between them. "Who is she? What is she going to do?"

The Destroyer's charred face relaxed with nostalgia. "Her name is Wisdom. The most beautiful bein' I've ever met, and a general of Light. She will teach ya what ya need to know to harness the channels."

"What are they?" The Scientist ran his hand through the light. It darted through his fingers like a stream of water, flowing northward.

"They are the remnant of Light Himself. They're the reason we know he's still here, with us. The vigor of The Uncaused. I was taught how to use the light to create weapons and enflame them. If I'm in danger, the heat in my body grows intensely and I'm able to use the light to create vastly powerful infernos. It was Wisdom that taught me this." Nameless produced a fiery dagger from the channel beside them, presenting its sides to them before sending it back into the light. It dematerialized instantly, its atoms melting into pure shining brilliance.

The firehearted boy's heart shuddered as the reality became clearer to him. "So this is Light's... soul? Do you think I used it when I was about to be hit by the Titan?"

The Destroyer smiled, repeating himself in awe. "Yeah, I do. I sure do." His look turned into one of earnestness. "You need to see Wisdom. I couldn't figure it out without 'er. I don't think it's smart to delay it. Power like that – able to penetrate the thousand-year-old curse of Freedom and Honor – you sliced clean through his fingers! You shouldn't delay it, Scientist. Not one bit. Power like that can be very dangerous in the hands of one untrained."