Balance and Love (Ch. 5)

Soundtrack - Alicia Keys - A Woman's Worth

Returning to the realm of the Wind Goddess, I gathered my belongings and prepared for what could be a long time away from home. I spoke with my friends and family and let them know that I was being summoned away. They seemed to understand, but I knew at that point there was much more I needed to learn before I could even consider revealing the whole story.

A convenient portal was waiting for me in the Metalworks, where Master Engineer Cid placed a hand on my shoulder. "Guan, you've got a journey before you that I would've hated when I was your age. Better you than me, son." I couldn't help but laugh and smile at the man, who had done so very much for the city of Bastok, and wonder how exactly he seemed to know everything that was going on regardless of where it happened.

"I need to get your spy network, Cid-sama. I am never unimpressed by the span of your influence." We shared a knowing glance, and he watched as the portal began to envelop me.

"May Death find you well, Guan." The familiar salute brought his hand to his chest as a Bastokan send off.

"And return my body to my homeland," came my reply, returning the salute as I vanished from the realm of the Wind Goddess again, appearing on an elegant windswept plain...that was devoid of a breeze. "Irony," I thought to myself as I headed toward the direction that I was naturally drawn.

The palace shimmered where it stood, like a crystal and hematite spell, inlaid with marble flooring. I was almost afraid to touch it for fear of breaking something and having the walls come crashing down around me. Hematite wasn't really known for its durability, you know! I'tedaal waited there, elegant in her strapless ice blue gown, stark contrast to the colors of the room. "Welcome Guan, I am going to keep this short and to the point, just your style." Her smile seemed gentle, but I noted there was almost a malice behind her soft petaled lips.

Before I could ponder what that bitterness might coming from, she continued, "Love is a vicious and jealous mistress. She will not see her own flaws before she passes an unfair judgment to those with her; when she does realize these same flaws, she will find ways that they are justified. She has been twisted by the darkness of the society and has become somewhat of a project for it to lead astray. She is like a fallen avatar in a sense, that the elemental messengers have been unable to reconcile with her natural way of being. This job now falls upon you since you have accepted the mission assigned to you from the universe."

I nodded, "It doesn't sound that bad really, does it? I help people, set the elements right, and make love pure once again in the world." No, it didn't sound bad at all...but it sounded like something I was totally unqualified to do. Even my will and power wasn't strong enough to overcome all the darkness of the realms, if it had corrupted Love herself, I worried. Dealing with the Shadow Lord, Kirin, or even Hydra was one thing...but this was a beast that couldn't be harmed by blade or spell, nor even debuffed. Confronting it directly would be like standing in front of a charging Behemoth and just seeing how much impact it would make. Not the brightest of ideas.

I'tedaal smiled, and before I even blinked she was right beside me; her voice had a venomous edge to it that compelled me to be silent and listen motionlessly, "Know that everything you come to care for, she will smile as it is lost to you, Guan. This is her revelry in the darkness, where Love has made her domain. If you take this path, you will find pain. A crystal is held by the warriors of Sutekh in the lands of Altepa, a place I understand you are quite familiar with. Go there first, and I will only warn you this once, Guan Kim. Shield your heart, lest it be wrenched painfully from your chest."