Name

We were now so close to the sky that once felt so far away. As I gazed up through the crumbled layers above, peeking through the hanging rubble, clear blue skies awaited us. The walls closed in on the sky above, its circumference smaller than what I had seen before. It seemed like the structure of this spire thinned out the further up we went. I wanted to stare into the blue for hours, basking in what I have been missing, but I still have a journey to take. I turned my gaze back down to the path ahead, looking upon the hundreds of dragon corpses that dotted the plane. The black stains of corruption were ever-present, covering the ground in roots and boils. Gigantic black spikes grew from the black growth, reaching up and away from the layer's edge, nearly matching the heights of the petrified dragon wings. Dust of ground up dragon scales covered the floor beneath me, leaving footprints in my wake. The air was dry from the airborne dragon scale dust and its scent was nonexistent. Not a sound but our footsteps echoed about the open space.

I looked around some more as Fesha and I trudged on. I stared into the dark next to me, barely being able to make out the shapes of toppled ruins. The sky light could hardly reach the dark ends of the spire, but I began to see the rough texture of the inner wall way into the distance. The darkness that I had first thought was infinite was now showing its ends. Perhaps this was a sign that we were nearing the top of the spire, the destination Fesha and I had both long sought for. As we walked through fields of long diseased corpses, Fesha decided to speak, her words inspired by the sight of the dead dragons. 

"This work is truly extraordinary, the kind of view a dragon slayer would take pride in. Perhaps my god too feeleth the same way." She said calmly.

A question suddenly popped into my head. "You talk quite a bit about this god, but I haven't heard its name." I said.

"Ah, so even that thou hast no recollection of. Are we even from the same world?" Fesha said jokingly, but I knew her joke was spot on. Her tone changed to a more serious one."I find it strange that thou lackest this much knowledge, despite everyone else we've encountered thus far retaining something. Thou'rt more akin to that of a child exploring the world for the very first time. Why is that?" She asked seemingly already knowing what my answer would be.

I hung on her question for a bit, wondering if I should finally tell her. We have been through enough together to finally have that amount of trust, yet something about it seemed wrong. It was a strange feeling, one that I could not put into words, but it was a feeling that I truly felt nonetheless. I decided to shrug off her pondering.

"Um, I can't really say, but my accent has been different from everyone else's so I must be from somewhere far from here." I could not muster up any more words for a more in depth excuse. Still, it seems Fesha took it harmlessly.

"Well, whatever it is, surely it will cometh back to thee. I've never really been much further than Caelum, so perhaps thou hast knowledge of places I've never been, though even outsiders who've visited Caelum knoweth of the properties of divine worship. Nevertheless, I retain my trust in thee." She said.

I looked back at her, trying to communicate my sincerity in what I was about to say next. "There's still a lot I can't remember, but there are pieces. I just don't remember what they mean yet, but when I do I'll be ready to tell you all about who I was."

 She smiled then cleared her throat. "Now to answer thy question. Names and titles have power behind them, especially those of the gods. Their names offer strength to those who wield miracles and curses to those who don't. Even speaking the name of a god thou doesn't communest with hast dire consequences." She paused. "Ah, but there is a drawback to mentioning thy god's name for strength. Those who do so are stripped of their miracles afterward, unable to cast ever again."

Her words lingered. I had thought Fesha was already strong, but to find out that she could go further seemed threatening. My curiosity kept me thinking until Fesha interrupted when she changed the subject.

"Come to think of it, thou hast never given me thy name, or at the very least something to call thee by." Fesha said.

"I guess I never thought about it, and you never mentioned it until now." I said.

"Huh, to think we've gotten this close and I haven't called thee by a name at all. Thou still callest me by an alias. Does my true name Magde--- still not reach thee?" She said.

Somehow I heard more of her name than I had before, only the last part of it still in a blur. Perhaps the dragon tooth was working further. I remarked on it to her. "Magdeh? Sorry, I guess I still can't hear it fully, but I think the dragon tooth is working. I hear more of it." I paused. "Maybe I'll get my name back soon, so we'll save that till then."

Fesha nodded.

Suddenly, Verit's words strung curiosity in my mind. "Speaking of, what was Verit's deal with the tooth... and something about an akin dragon? Why did he hate to see you have it?" I asked.

Fesha answered back lightheartedly. "Who knows? No matter the cult, most always find some arbitrary symbol to recognize their union. Perhaps that was the case. If it makes that sickly man angered, then I shall keep it on, representing my pride as a dragon slayer."

I let out a little laugh and Fesha followed suite. It has been ages since we have felt some form of joy. Many of our recent adventures had bogged my mind down: the grotesque scenes before us, the injuries I have sustained, and the loss of Serrum and Dente. They still tainted my mind, but being able to laugh in this very moment lifted my spirits I little bit. We continued our lighthearted chit chat, excited to see the full sky again and hoping the answers we find to the questions we have had will put us at ease. We talked of dreams of our futures, and possibly continuing our adventures together once we have made it out, but I knew I could not keep a promise like that. I was glad to have a friend like her, but one day I would have to leave her, to go back to my old world, back to my mother.