Chapter Text
Aether swirls through the body of one Zenos Yae Galvus as he closes his eyes and focuses on the feeling of it swirling around inside of him. Back, forth, from his feet to the tips of his fingers to the ends of his hair. As a Garlean he's never been able to manipulate aether so freely— instead needing to find workarounds such as crystals embedded beneath his skin or technology capable of infusing metal with aether for him to use— but thanks to the work of someone calling himself the Crystal Exarch, Zenos has the rare gift of something new to learn. The body he inhabits is not solely his own, but rather a mix of his body and the Ala Mhigan soldier he had possessed.
The side of his head is shaven down in a military cut, with the top being half down to his waist as it was in his own body. His third eye is still there, providing him with even more information about his surroundings than just his aether alone. He can sense everything that surrounds him, from the barren trees, the blades of grass, and even each living thing in his vicinity.
Two beings approach him as he sits in the grass, one behind the other, both moving slowly as if stalking their prey. The one farther back readies itself to attack by lowering itself to the ground, and in the instant that it was going to attack Zenos brings himself to his feet, slashing through the air and sending a concentrated wave of aether out to precisely hit his target. A noise that sounds vaguely like a squeak comes from the other being— the little girl that Zenos stole away in a bid to give her guardian known as Ran'jit a reason to give Zenos a fight. Zenos looks down at her, the blonde hair and piercing blue eyes not completely unlike his own.
He has heard much of this Oracle of Light, though her reputation doesn't mean much of anything to someone like Zenos. The stories of her valiantly leading a resistance are hardly of note when compared to the Eikon–Slayer. Even more, Zenos isn't superstitious enough to think that a child reincarnation might be at the same level as her predecessor.
“I-!” She starts, her voice already cracking while her entire body quivers in terror. “I am the Oracle of Light, and you shall return me to Eulmore at once so I may continue with my training and help to save this world before—”
Zenos tilts his head, and the girl takes a step back, unable to finish her sentence. Rather well spoken for her young age, and surprisingly courageous even through her fear, things that do manage to intrigue Zenos. “Leave, if you so desire it. See how far you can make it,” he challenges as he watches her. A part of him does hope that she might take him up on that, undecided on if he might just let her go free or if he might hunt her down.
The girl is frozen, staring on at the much larger man in fear without moving. Zenos is the one to break eye contact when it begins to bore him, he turns around and once more begins to visualize the aether that flows through his body, manipulating it from one end to another, slowly ramping up the speed and viscosity of the aether as he courses it through himself. She still watches him, but eventually goes to sit beneath the tree where she awoke.
Zenos doesn’t quite understand the logic of prey who act as if at any moment he might lash out and kill them, as if they stomp on insects beneath them just for the pleasure of killing things lesser than them. It's a ridiculous notion that only serves to heighten the irrational fears of those who have already accepted their inferiority.
Zenos feels a resonance in his pocket from the linkpearl given to him by the Crystal Exarch before he was sent to retrieve the girl. To keep in touch, the man had said before sending Zenos on his way. He might have thrown it off into the ocean at the first opportunity he got, but the Exarch is working to bring the Eikon–Slayer from the Source to this world— something Zenos would be most interested to know about.
“Are you there? Have you had any success in freeing the oracle?” Zenos hears the Exarch's voice as soon as he holds the pearl close to his ear— he could respond of course, though that would offer him little in turn. Slipping the pearl into his pocket once more Zenos decides to continue his training, taking deep breaths with closed eyes. This time he attempts a different method of channeling— he focuses his energy on a being in front of him with the form of a dodo (though called by some other name in this world, he’s sure), Zenos focuses until something magical begins to crystalize, the temperature in the entire area seems to lower as he forms the mass of ice which then shatters out and sends shards flying out.
The creature doesn't go down immediately, Zenos bites his lip as he braces for the incoming attacks while he channels another attack fueled by aether. The bird is weak enough that Zenos doesn’t find himself challenged by the fight, neither by the force of its attacks nor its ability to withstand the damage Zenos rains down. With the death of one prey it only emboldens Zenos, who quickly moves to another with increased fervour, this time he channels his aether into a different form, visualizing the light, wispy, trails of heat all spreading from a single point, culminating in a burst of flames powerful enough to stagger his opponent. All too quickly he downs yet another and grows bolder still, locking onto his third target to deliver a swift charge of lightning to fry it. The ease with which he can dispatch them is frightfully boring, even as they squirm in pain it provides no more entertainment than training with a sack of flour.
After killing four additional birds, Zenos walks back over to the dying tree the girl is sitting beneath, sitting himself down to her right without paying her any mind. Instead, Zenos finds himself with passing memories of Ala Mhigo— of the final battle before he took his own life and the expression on Rhys’ face as he watched. A certain pain blooms in his chest, caused not by physical ailments but rather the burning desire to engage once more in the type of conflict that might satiate his thirst for something more. It’s still bright out, as the very concept of ‘days’ and ‘nights’ seem at best absent from this world and its people, yet Zenos still finds himself tired after the day’s events. He crosses his arms and closes his eyes to get some amount of rest, his third eye working to keep himself aware of all his surroundings, and his guard never lowered.
As the wind blows, Zenos senses the movements of each and every blade of grass, he senses the shifting next to him, a nervous fidgeting that he imagines he isn't supposed to be noticing. He doesn’t have an exact gauge of time while drifting between states of consciousness, but his attention is caught when the shifting turns to standing, when the girl moves ever so carefully closer, her light fingers carefully reaching for the blade around his waist— one gifted to him that he dare never use. Zenos’ eyes shoot open as his hand grabs the girl's wrist, regret washes over her now pale face. Zenos loosens his grip expecting her to retreat, though he finds himself impressed by her zeal when she grabs hold of the handle to his dagger and pulls it free.
“Were I to fail in returning, countless lives would be lost! I may not know what it is that you want but I can promise you will not receive it should this entire world be consumed by the light!” She shouts, pointing the dagger at Zenos with shaking hands. She backs away to put distance between them, making her only weapon nigh useless as a defensive tool with its lesser reach.
“Your spirit is admirable, child. You could have ran, but you chose to take the riskier method to gain the advantage of a weapon. Tell me, what drives you to go back there? To a place you live as naught more than a servant to those above you. Surely there must be more you seek rather than just attending to the duties assigned to you like an unthinking dog?”
“My duties are important, and Ran'jit is important to me. He has loved and protected me, all so I can go on to fill Minfilia's role,” she speaks as if she's reading off the words that have been ingrained into her since she had the capacity to hear it. It's a familiar sound to Zenos, unlike the passion she displayed before it seems much more rehearsed. Were Zenos capable of it, such a thing might give him some amount of empathy for her. Zenos tilts his head, considering whether or not she could be of interest to him.
“What is your name?”
“I… I am Minfilia.”
Zenos hums, so hopelessly lost in what those around you want you to be, he thinks to himself. Yet, still so spirited. It almost reminds Zenos of those he had taken under his tutelage before, those he had given the ability to reach what their hearts desired. Zenos steps forward, taking hold of the dagger in 'Minfilia's hand by the blade, and cutting into his own palm in the process.
“I shall make you an offer that will be in your best interest to accept, but regardless of your answer I will be needing this back,” 'Minfilia' quivers, her eyes darting between Zenos’ hand on the blade and his eyes on her, her grip loosens as Zenos takes the dagger back, wiping off his blood with his sleeve. “Were you to go back, it would lose me a useful bargaining chip, that said, giving you an opportunity to do as such can serve as entertainment, even if you disappoint in your capabilities.”
'Minfilia' furrows her brow as she listens to Zenos’ proposal. He continues, “Show me your fervour once more, and should you manage a single hit upon my person I will bring you to wherever you wish. No restrictions, you're welcome to try as many times as you see fit for as long as I have a reason to keep you around.”
Before 'Minfilia' responds, something catches her attention from behind Zenos. When he turns, he spots several soldiers from Eulmore scouting the area. Since he didn't take the girl too far from the city, it doesn't surprise him that some of those in Ran'jit's army have branched out enough to find them by now. Zenos mimes for 'Minfilia' to stay low to the ground, and to remain silent.
“What a shame my prey himself couldn't deign to be here,” Zenos walks with an intimidating presence towards the soldiers, they ready their weapons, giving Zenos plenty of time to charge his aether before he explodes it outward in a fiery burst. He may not be the most adept at using aether at this time, and nor does he have a weapon on him, but target practice might be able to serve him well— so long as they survive long enough.
Zenos switches seamlessly between his spells, the soldiers yell into their linkpearls for backup before they burn to ash. Three more searching in the area rush over, though their strength is just as unremarkable as the ones that came before. A pillar of ice forms around one, before splintering out into shards that fly into and cut through the others. The one Zenos focused his attack on goes down, with the other two falling to their knees, while blood trails down each of their bodies.
Walking between the two, Zenos holds his hands out to their heads— sees the fear within their eyes as they look upon him. Lightning surges through the area, the fight is over all too soon. Those also in the area are bound to be on their way, perhaps even Ran'jit himself, so Zenos decides to keep moving— believing a fight without a weapon to not serve the purpose he has in mind.
'Minfilia' watches his return, she closes her eyes to brace when he nears, her head tucked down and her breathing rapid. Zenos stays silent, watching, until she opens her eyes and looks back up at him.
“Have you considered my offer?”