The air was rushing through her gunmetal colored hair as she flew through the relic tomb skies. Flying was the most amazing feeling Tess had ever experienced, well, it was in the top five, but it was her favorite thing about being a white core mage.

After the first encounter with the predator aether beasts they began showing a constant presence near and around the camp. They only attacked the camp one time, but it was brief, long enough for them to realize they wouldn't be able to breach the walls in a timely enough manner. Since then they had only been seen occasionally circling the camp or just watching from outside the range of the conjurers and archers. They probably would have gotten closer if not for every fire mage burning the tall grass to the ground up to one hundred feet outside of firing range from the camp, then slowly expanding as the miners searched for a suitable mining area.

Due to the importance of finding the ore, as well as the teleportation gate, Arthur decided that only those who could fly would search for the gate. With that said, Arthur, Tess, and Elijah would spend hours every day mapping the floor in search of the gate. Regis on the other hand had a different mission, to locate the predator beast's den. After three days of searching, the only thing they found was an underground spring nearby that they were now tapping into to establish a stable water supply for the camp.

After a long day of searching, Tess was on her way back for a hot meal and some rest. She had been alone nearly all day, except when Arthur left his search area to have lunch with her, and have a little private time they couldn't have back at the camp. With all the rumors about him circulating she wasn't about to say anything about him visiting her to anyone.

As she approached she saw several plumes of smoke a little ways away from the camp. The search area was needing to be expanded again, and a few fire mages were clearing away more grass. She made sure to avoid the smoke and continued on, and saw one of the teams escorting a miner searching for ore.

Deciding to have a little fun, she decided to fly low as she picked up speed to do a fly over. As she approached she saw Caria and Darvus. Flying quietly she approached, then flew quickly over their heads, the wind messing with their hair as she passed. She looked back and saw them waving to her, so she returned the gesture before flying over the wall and landing in the middle of camp.

"Hey Tess," Elijah greeted.

"Hey," Tess replied, sounding slightly nervous.

Elijah noticed, but he wasn't surprised, she knew about Nico and how he was after her. He actually preferred it this way, he worried that if they were at least being friendly that Nico would get out of control again like he started to do at the wedding, and without Sylvie being here that would be very bad.

"So, anything?" He asked, making awkward small talk.

"Nothing."

"That means Arthur will be the one to find it. As big as this floor is, I'm surprised it's in the last section of the floor to be checked."

"No I'm telling you, he knows way too much about this place," a voice said. "We just discovered this place, yet he seems to have all the answers, he's got to be getting them from somewhere."

Both Elijah and Tess heard the voice and chose to follow it, knowing they were talking about Arthur. They walked and found a campfire surrounded by several tents, and a group sitting around it. Most of them were miners with nothing to do until the mining location was found, the others were members of Kaspian's team and the twin horns.

"You realize the sanctuary was built by the ancient mages right? How do you know Arthur didn't find some artifact or writings down their talking about this place?" Durden said in Arthur's defense.

"Exactly!" A man with black hair replied. "If it was something as simple as that, why don't the council or general just shut these rumors down?"

"Because they have better things to do," Jasmine replied, a tinge of annoyance in her voice.

"I'm sorry, but with rumors that he's a traitor swirling around, I'd say that's a priority to squash."

"Then maybe I should squash these rumors by dealing with you," Jasmine threatened with a hand gripping one of her daggers.

"Don't think that just because you were trained by general Bloom that you can beat me," the black haired man replied as electricity sparked along his body.

Having heard enough Elijah formed a simple stone gauntlet around his right fist, and punched the lightning mage in the head.

"Just shut up if you don't know what you're talking about," Elijah said as he punched him.

"Wha?" The mage mumbled as he shook his head after the surprise attack.

"Arthur has killed a scythe and multiple retainers throughout this war! Not to mention all of the battles that were won because of him!" Tess spat.

"After all he's done to call him a traitor?" Elijah shook his head. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

"So says a former POW!" He shot back. "I heard about you too. You were captured early in the war, then he suddenly finds you again and puts you on this mission? This whole thing is suspect if you ask me."

Jasmine stood up as she drew her daggers, others who heard the altercation began walking over, several standing beside the man as if to show their support. Others did the same around Tess and Elijah as people started to release the pressure from their cores, as if preparing for battle.

"What is going on here?!" Kaspian shouted as he stormed over with Helen beside him.

"You do realize these beasts are drawn to mana right? You all are basically calling out to every beast on this floor and inviting them over!" Helen said angrily.

"Sorry Kaspian, but I can't keep my mouth shut anymore! We are in an unfamiliar place, being lead by an eighteen year old general who we can't even trust! He needs to be replaced with someone we can trust, or he needs to explain everything to us!"

"Sorry," Arthur said as he floated in. "But neither of those things are going to happen."

"You need to learn a thing or two about leadership, little boy! People won't follow someone they don't trust!"

Arthur just stared at him with a look of disinterest. "Do you think I care if you trust me? We were given orders, and you are following Captains Bladeheart and Shard, not me. The answers you want are classified, made so by the council. If you have a problem with that, take it up with them." Arthur then looked to Kaspian. "My area was clear, no gate or beast den." He then turned to walk away.

"General, wait," Kaspian said, and walked quickly to catch up to him. "Even though I understand your position, please try to understand ours. You have made so many references to Alacrya in regards to this mission, it makes no sense that you can know all this."

"And yet I do." Arthur rubbed his temple. "Kaspian, I don't need them to trust me, I just need them to follow your orders and for you to follow mine. Can you do that?"

Kaspian didn't reply as he sighed and looked away.

"You've got to be kidding me," Arthur groaned.

"I'm sorry, General. I can follow your orders, but I can't shake this doubt that you are hiding something so big and dangerous from us."

"I am hiding things, a lot of things. Things that would shut you and everyone up, and follow me without question if you knew. But at the same time, I can't just reveal this to everyone. If this information gets out and Alacrya learns of it, we'll lose a huge tactical advantage going forward."

"I understand that, but without the loyalty of everyone here, this mission becomes a lot more dangerous."

Arthur groaned and looked up at the sky.

"Controlling by fear would work, it's been proven in my old world many times, and since there are others over me the ramifications will be a lot less. All I need is one massive show of force," Arthur thought to himself.

He looked back down at Kaspian as he prepared to unleash the full pressure of his cores, but then noticed his mother behind him in the crowd. His resolve wavered. He couldn't do that to his family, the last thing he wanted was for them to fear him.

He looked back to Kaspian and Helen and stared at them both as he weighed his options. His left eyebrow then raised as he realized something. "I don't need everyone's trust and loyalty, just two highly decorated and respected Captains. I don't need everyone's cooperation for long, so maybe..."

"Ok, I'll fill you both in. You won't share this with anyone, and will silence these rumors yourselves however you deem necessary," Arthur informed them.

"Thank you General," Kaspian replied with a bow of his head. "Let's head back to the command tent, you can explain everything there."

"No, we'll do it right here. Are you familiar with the method of using mana to relay memories?"

"Familiar yes, capable no."

"Helen?"

"Same."

"That's fine, I'll initiate," Arthur replied as he stepped closer.

Normally this technique would use mana, but Arthur was only familiar doing this using Aether with Three Steps. He organized his thoughts as he raised his hands and channeled aether into them, then placed it on their foreheads. In a matter of seconds the two captains witnessed two years worth of pain, suffering, and heartache. He of course didn't share everything, making sure they knew nothing about him being part Asura, while still allowing them to witness the experiments the Vritia scientists performed. Once Arthur was done they both collapsed to their knees trembling.

"Kaspian!" Robert yelled as he withdrew a battle ax and charged in with his body sparking with electricity.

He wasn't alone however, as others who supported him were right behind him. Those who supported Arthur were running to his aid as well, ready to clash with the others.

"Stop!" Kaspian shouted. "Everyone stand down!"

He looked up at Arthur, his eyes wide in horror. Not because he feared Arthur, but because of the pain he witnessed Arthur go through. Helen had her hands over her mouth as tears streamed down her face. Not only did she witness her own death, but the deaths of so many others she knew and loved.

Claire pushed her way through the crowd to her uncle, as the twin horns rushed to Helen. Before Claire could even say a single word he immediately pulled her into a tight embrace as tears began streaming down his cheeks. Memories of Claire's death were permanently burned into his brain. As soon as Helen saw her family there checking on her, she immediately began holding them tightly one after another.

"Kaspian?" Robert asked, unsure what to make of the current situation.

Kaspian released Claire as he took a deep breath, then wiped the tears from his eyes as he stood up.

"From this moment forward no one is to ever question General Leywin's loyalty ever again."

"What?"

"These rumors that question General Leywin's loyalty end here and now! If I hear anyone spreading these rumors again you will be charged with defamation of a senior officer, and punished accordingly," Kaspian announced loudly so all could hear.

"What did you show them?" Jasmine asked as she looked up at her adopted brother questioningly.

"Hell," Helen replied. "More suffering than any one person should have to ever endure in a lifetime." She then stood up and wrapped her arms around Arthur in the tightest embrace she was capable of. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that."

"It's ok," Arthur replied as he returned the hug. "It wasn't your fault or anything." He then broke the hug and walked away.

—————————————————————-

Arthur entered his and Tess' small stone cottage he conjured, and dropped himself on the bed, mentally exhausted from having to reveal the other timeline again. He suspected this would eventually be necessary with more than just the council, but that didn't mean he wanted to share it. If not for his mother being there, or Helen, who he often saw as family, he probably would have more strongly considered a show of force to get the results he needed.

Knock knock

"You can come in mom," Arthur replied, still laying down.

"How did you know it was me?" Alice asked as she entered and closed the door.

"I can distinguish all of the affinities, and emitters appear different from the rest."

"I see," she replied. "Arthur, are you ok?"

Arthur sat up and smiled. "Yeah I'm fine, just a little tired."

"You know," she said as she sat down at the foot of the bed. "I've always been able to tell when something is bothering you. Call it mothers intuition, but I just know."

Arthur was surprised by this, but at the same time she did always check on him and seem concerned when he had a lot on his mind.

"You don't have to tell me, I know you might even prefer to talk about your problems with Tess, although it's not like you ever talked to your father or I about your problems."

"Even in my previous life I never could talk to anyone. My problems were always mine to carry alone. Even though I do feel I've gotten better about sharing since then, it's still hard for me. Maybe it's just the war that's keeping certain parts of me the way I used to be, to make everything easier to handle it all."

"There is nothing wrong about relying on others, especially family. Your problems are your families problems, and together you can carry and resolve them."

The door knocked again, but instead of waiting for a reply, Ellie opened the door and walked in.

"Tess said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Pffftt." Arthur laughed, leaving his mother and sister confused. "It seems my lovely wife had decided that it's time for me to follow through with my promise."

"What promise?" Ellie asked.

Arthur patted the bed and stood up as a chair formed beside the bed. Ellie sat beside her mother as Arthur sat in the chair and cast a sound canceling barrier.

"The promise was for me to be honest with you two."

"Is this about you being reincarnated?" Ellie asked bluntly. Arthur and Alice both looked at her with wide eyes. "What? Mom and dad talked about it a lot while you were gone training. Even though they were careful, they weren't nearly careful enough."

"Were you eavesdropping?" Alice accusatorily.

"I didn't even need to try hard. You two were way too loud. I've heard they make sound dampening artifacts, maybe you should invest in one," Ellie replied casually.

"Maybe we should invest in a bell to put around your neck so we know when you're around," Arthur replied.

"I second that," Alice agreed as she looked down on Ellie sternly.

"C-come on now. We're family, we shouldn't be keeping secrets between each other."

"Yeah," Arthur replied with a solemn tone. "I haven't been completely honest with you guys about my new magic."

"Were you taught by that ancient mage crystal?" Alice asked, concerned that there may have been some truth to the rumors.

"I did, but I didn't find it the way I said, or where."

"How and where then?" Ellie asked.

"After a battle against two scythes I was about to lose. I was beaten, core drained and breaking, backlash was right around the corner. I had unlocked the third stage of my beast will, and used it to create a portal to the sanctuary. I then pushed Tess and a survivor for the battle of Etistin through, but when I fell in, it didn't take me to the sanctuary, but a relic tomb...in Alacrya."

Arthur then slowly explained everything, without holding anything back, refusing to make them witness everything like he had Kaspian and Helen. They learned of his struggles through the relic tombs, surviving undercover in Alacrya, his battles upon being discovered, the pains he went through after he returned to Dicathen, then how he rewound time. As every word slipped out of his lips, his heart felt weighed down with fear, fear that things would go down a dark and lonely path, especially when he explained the part about now being part Asura.

Arthur completed his explanation with a feeling of dred, as his mother and sister had looks of disbelief upon their faces.

"So, you're part Asura now," Ellie said in confirmation.

"Yeah," Arthur replied, wishing that they focused more on one of, any of the other points of their talk.

"Does that mean you'll live for like, a thousand years or something?"

"I don't know. I hope not, but I'll probably at least live longer than a normal human mage."

"Are...are you still you?" Alice asked as her voice cracked and her body trembled.

"Um, more or less. I mean, I have a lot more experiences, darker more painful experiences. I feel like I'm a lot closer to who I was during my previous life than I was in this one."

"No, what I mean is, are you still my son?" The tears of fear Alice held back began pouring out from her eyes. "Are you still the son I raised, that made me worry endlessly when you were little, that left me with so many sleepless nights as you grew up facing dangers in the beast glades. Are you still our Arthur who thought he had to try so hard to be apart of this family when you were here?"

Tears began to escape from his eyes. "I..I think so. But I failed you, this family so much. Dad died twice because of me, I saw both of you die because I couldn't protect you. And now here we are agian, we're in a dangerous place, and I'm going to have to leave again soon."

Slowly Alice stood up and walked over to Arthur, knelt down, and pulled him into a warm motherly hug.

"You have never failed us. You always fought with everything you had to keep us safe, even when we didn't go along with your plans." Ellie came over and wrapped her arms around Arthur as well. "We are alive today because of you. Our family has hope for a future because of you. Even though we don't remember it, you've sacrificed and hurt so much, for us. You are Arthur Leywin, my son and Elenoir's brother, and nothing, niether reincarnation nor a part godly body will ever change that. Don't you ever forget that, your family will always love you."

Tears flowed freely from his eyes as he returned the hugs. The guilt he carried from the previous timeline melted away, as if being carried away by his tears.

"Hey warrior princess, I hate to interrupt..."

Regis started after a whole day of silence.

"Then don't please."

"I wish I could, but we've got a problem."

________________________________

Kaspian entered his tent and sat back in his chair letting out a tired sigh. He rubbed his eyes, wiping out the tears which were still present. After witnessing the original timeline from Arthur, Kaspian was shaken to the very core after seeing so many deaths of the people he knew.

The one that shook him the most was Claire's, even though she was present right there in front of him. Seeing her die such a horrible death didn't help, and the image was engraved in his mind forever. Which made him wonder how Arthur was handling himself all this time experiencing all this himself losing his loved ones and going through such a devastating experience of being experimented on.

Kaspian knew Arthur could've just taken his family and ran away into relictombs to keep them safe when he rewound time but despite that he didn't. But he fought back and was now risking everything to allow Dicathen a better chance at war, such a level of loyalty that even he didn't possess. Kaspian grew a new found respect for Arthur after this and decided that he'll support him in any way possible.

"Uncle?!" Claire called out as she barged into the tent.

Kaspian's eyes shot open as he sat straight. Seeing Claire's face again the memories of her death started flashing through his mind again but he still composed himself.

"Yes Claire, how can I help you?" Kaspian asked, already knowing why she came here.

"Uncle, you know why I'm here. What was that? I never saw you break down like that? What did Arthur show you?" Claire asked in a concerned tone.

"Sorry Claire but I can't tell you anything, General's orders." Kaspian responded in a serious tone.

"Uncle, Arthur is my friend and because of those rumours not just me but everyone is worried sick about him. Not to mention yours and Helen's reactions after Arthur showed his memories is only making me worry." Claire said.

Kaspian leaned back on his chair as he rubbed his eyes. "I'm sorry Claire but I can't tell you anything about it. If you want to learn, your best shot is to learn from Arthur himself. Though I would suggest not to ask him now. You can ask him during your dive, but I would suggest you don't force him since the truth isn't very good." Kaspian said.

"Uncl-" Before Claire could complete Kaspian interrupted.

"Please Claire, I'm trying my best to bury what I saw deep in my mind. Please, don't make it more difficult for me than it already is." Kaspian said in a pleading tone.

Seeing such a look on her Uncle's face Claire couldn't make herself push him further. She gave him a nod and exited the tent. As she left she saw Theodore, Curtis, Kathyln, Lilia and Feyrith waiting for her.

"Any Luck?" Curtis asked.

Claire just shook her head before speaking. "He's way too shaken. He even wishes that he never saw those memories and is trying to forget them." Claire said.

"Damn it." Theo grunted as he kicked a stray rock. "Why are we kept in the dark? Aren't we his friends?"

"Theo, I'm sure he has his reasons and from seeing uncle's reaction I'm even afraid to know the truth. He admitted the truth isn't good at all." Claire said.

"You all saw the condition of the Captains after Arthur showed them the memories. It means Arthur had to go through them too. If this is the condition of those who just saw those memories, what would be the condition of the one who actually experienced them?" Kathyln asked.

Hearing her everyone's expression got tense making them wonder whether they should still ask Arthur or not.