CHAPTER 813: CHAPTER 813 - ZAHRA’S MYSTERIOUS PAST

A little earlier, their entire group was being led down a large set of stairs by Zahra. They also noticed an elevator similar to the one they found in Enkare Nkai, though the trio didn’t seem to know what it was. Regardless, they took the stairs because their group was too large.

Along the way down, Erik asked Zahra to speak a little about her past, as well as that of the city, and how she’d ended up inheriting it, much like Naeku had. The obvious similarities with Naeku’s family and Enkare Nkai were easy to notice.

Despite seeming a little hesitant, Zahra nodded. "I— I suppose I can tell you a little about it," she muttered softly, then began. "Before the awakening, I lived in a small village, located right here where the city stands now..." she began in a soft, strange tone.

There was some melancholy there, but also something else... Perhaps fear? Hatred? To Erik and Elora, her emotions were obviously complicated and mostly negative, but not entirely. The exact reason for this would remain a mystery for now, however, as Naeku stayed very basic and shallow in her story.

Naturally, her village harboured one of Audumla’s altars. Her family was large, strict, traditional, and everyone was aware of both the altar and the medallion. Yet, only the head of the family could hold the medallion and use its power, and at the time, that’d been Zahra’s father.

The medallion wouldn’t be passed down from parent to child, however. Instead, every child of the family reaching fifteen would be tested with what Elora determined to be a kinetic sigil—the only type of sigil capable of being used in a world without aetherium.

The sigil would determine the child’s affinity rank and general talent, then compare their potential to the current family head. This consideration included the current head’s age, to ensure the inheritance wouldn’t occur too late in the current head’s life; if the child were deemed more promising, they’d immediately receive the medallion and be prepared to take over the family in the future.

When Zahra came of age, she naturally took this test. By this time, Erik suspected she’d have come out on top, and he was right, but...

"...but I wasn’t the only one," she whispered, her eyes staring into the distance even as she continued walking down the stairs. For a moment there, she looked like she’d forgotten the others were even present, until she suddenly stopped in her tracks, stiff as a board, and fell silent.

The others followed suit, and Erik cocked an eyebrow at her. "Yes? You weren’t the only one? Sounds complicated."

Zahra snapped around to look at him, and Erik became a little startled by the look in her eyes. She was filled with guilt, self-blame, helpless anger, and sadness.

But, she quickly got a hold of herself, calmed down, and shook her head. "N— No, never mind..." she muttered, quickly turning around to continue walking. "I misspoke."

Blinking from her sudden reaction, Erik and his companions looked over at Nasir and Zohran. Unfortunately, the two of them could only shrug, clearly having no idea what was going on.

"I’m 26 now, so that happened 11 years ago," Zahra continued in a steely voice, clearly forcing herself to move on as much as telling her listeners that she wouldn’t be talking any further about her misspeak. "Since my potential surpassed my father’s, I became the new family head at 18... just before the awakening."

Erik and the others watched her speak and move forward, seemingly ignoring them as they still stood still behind her. After a moment of silence, a curious Erik started following her again. His interest in Zahra suddenly skyrocketed, but he knew insisting on this matter now would not endear her to him.

"Hehe, you’ve always had a thing for girls with a rough past, huh?"

Elora giggled through their bond, having noticed his interest. "Is it because your first love always appeared perfect until she didn’t, so now you believe only those with a rough past are genuine? Or do you just enjoy ’fixing’ them so their loyalty to you is bound by gratitude?"

Erik rolled his eyes. He was used to this behaviour from her. "Who knows? Perhaps it’s both? Please don’t psychoanalyse me while I’m trying to pay attention."

Elora giggled a little more, but then fell silent. Of course, she knew the answer already; she just enjoyed teasing her beloved. She’d never shared her findings with him, however. Why would she? She didn’t see it as a flaw.

"After the awakening, this city appeared a few days later, in the middle of the night," Zahra continued unperturbed, clearly in a hurry to finish now. "The village we’d known for so long was wiped away, but we got a powerful base in a new world in return," she continued, some fondness now slipping into her voice.

Erik nodded behind her. "The same happened to Naeku. Did you also lose pictures or other mementoes? We could help you recover some of them if you like," he suggested gently.

Zahra looked over her shoulder, clearly surprised at his offer. Whether she was more surprised that he made the offer at all, or at his ability to accomplish it, was unclear.

"I—" she muttered, hesitant at first... but then turned around with a shake of her head. "No, thank you... I can’t think of anything."

Shrugging, Erik didn’t insist. "As you wish. What about your family? Do they live in the city?"

"Yes." Zahra responded curtly, clearly unwilling to explain further. Once again, Zohran and Nasir looked just as confused as the rest of them.

At this point, they reached an open archway at the bottom of the stairs, flanked by a minotaur statue very similar to the one they found in Enkare Nkai. Zahra pointed at it. "When we explored the city, we eventually found this statue, and when I stood in front of it... something awakened."

What followed was a story very similar to what they’d experienced during Naeku’s inheritance, though without the extensive trials and ancient spirit.