Homecoming

Chugga... Chugga... Chugga... Such was the sound Theodore woke up to. Beside him, there was Albatross, sleeping soundly, her head resting on top of his as they leaned against one another. By his lap, there was Peter, as sound asleep as Albatross.

Across from him, Theodore found Fiana, staring out of the window, her eyes wide in wonder as the scenery sped by. From what he had heard, this was her first time outside of Lancea and, of course, her first time riding a train.

Taking a few moments to let his consciousness settle, Theodore breathed a sigh of relief. They've made it. They've made it out of the city.

The escape was surprisingly simple. Albatross, under the guise of delivering a letter, left the city first and waited at the town by the lagoon. As it was assumed that apprentices-in-name would not be able to leave Lancea's vicinity, the guards at the city gates were not overtly cautious of her actions.

The tricky part was when it came time for Theodore and Fiana to make their exit. Fiana had permission to leave thanks to Kalman, but Theodore did not. He had to sneak past the guards by hiding under the carriage Fiana had borrowed ahead of time and utilizing his 'Stealth' behavioral matrix to trick their Aether-senses.

In the end, however, Theodore and Fiana easily made it out as well. This was in part thanks to guards being replaced with more inexperience apprentices while those more skilled had been placed on teams that would make their way towards the depth to either deal with the Corrupted Domain beneath the city or to compete with the rest to obtain the 'artifact' hidden within.

It was nighttime when they finally left Lancea. From there, they wasted no time and took the carriage towards the city of Nix. After resting at an inn for the remainder of the night, they got on the first train the next day and headed eastward.

While the original plan was to head directly into the Cygnus Union from there, Theodore wanted to see Eastcliff with his own eyes.

Rather than take a single train, however, they opted to ride on the same train only on short trips, changing trains at different stations to avoid being tracked. At times, they would even make their way on foot if the next station was not too far away.

As Theodore sat on the train with Albatross leaning on him, he felt a great sense of relief. Had he followed his original plan, he would be heading into the depths along with the other mages, competing and fighting for the 'treasure' sleeping beneath the city. Though, rather than calling it an 'artifact' or a 'treasure', Theodore was more inclined to call it an 'entity.'

That being said, it has nothing to do with him anymore. He had already given up on it. The Demon Lord would continue to dwell within him. Still, since successfully leaving the city Theodore was feeling optimistic, a sensation he hadn't felt for a long time.

With him no longer in the city, Theodore realized that he would not have as much of a need to rely on the Demon Lord's memories. He would no longer have to keep drawing from it and let it consume him at the pace that it did.

Perhaps he would last until he finds another solution to his Demon Lord problem. At least, that was the optimism Theodore felt at the time.

***

The rented carriage rolled down the deserted stone-paved road, the grass peeking out between the stones taking the opportunity presented by the lack of human presence to grow.

At the front of the carriage were Theodore and Fiana. Hardly ever driven a carriage before, Theodore was showing the master alchemist how it was done. He'd do it himself, but a child driving a carriage would have looked mighty suspicious.

Soon, they arrived at the outskirts of the town of Eastcliff. From what they could tell by a glance, the buildings were intact with minimal damage and the infrastructures such as roads and bridges were well-maintained. However, vines could be seen climbing upon the walls of these seemingly untouched houses and weeds could be seen slowly overtaking the roads.

There was also a lack of noise. Even the sounds of birds and insects could hardly be heard, but that was perhaps due to the approach of autumn as summer comes to an end.

Tying the horses to a nearby tree, Theodore and the rest proceed on foot. They could have ridden the carriage all the way to the temple, but Theodore insisted. He even told the rest that they could wait on the spot if they so desire, but they were inclined to follow.

As he dragged the slightly oversized suitcase along with him, Theodore walked down the familiar roads, his gaze going over the houses, each one without a soul to be found. Upon scrutiny, traces of bloodstains could be seen here and there, spots that the rain would not have been able to reach and thusly unable to wash the blood away.

Thinking about it, Theodore did not recall hearing the details of what happened in Eastcliff from Annaliese. Either he was too shocked to hear her when she told him or that she had spared him the details while he himself never dared to ask. Either way, it was clear that something bad had happened here, that much was no lie.

Eventually, they arrived at the temple. Theodore stood at the entrance, staring down that the doors that had been torn off their hinges as if they'd been kicked in. Thanks to that, Theodore was able to look directly into the place he once called home and witness with his own eyes how empty it had become.

After hesitating for a brief moment, Theodore finally stepped inside. "I'm home," he wanted to say, but as he saw the stains of blood splattered on the wall, his tongue froze. It wasn't quite the warm welcome he had hoped it would be.

"Theodore. We can wait outside if you want," Fiana suggested, standing to the side with Peter held in her arms.

Theodore merely nodded and went further in.

One by one, Theodore search through the room, each out about as lifeless as the empty houses outside. From the accumulation of dust, it was clear that no one was here for a while. Yet, reminding him of those that once inhabited these rooms, the belongings had been left behind.

The clothes left in the drawers, the small trinkets on shelves, and the beds lined up in a room shared by three, all remained there as if waiting for their owners to return.

Theodore walked up to what was once his bed, left where it had always been as if he was expected to return sometime soon. He lay there, feeling both the familiarity of his own bed and the alienness of such a cramped room. His room back in the workshop was much more spacious.

Softly, Theodore heard a pitter-patter entering the room. Turning his head to look, he spotted Peter coming in. As if this was the bedroom back in the workshop, Peter went slipped right under the bed, his favorite hiding spot.

"Hey, get out of there. You're going to get all dusty," said Theodore as he got off the bed to reach under it, trying to get Peter out.

As he felt around for the hare, however, Theodore's hand bumped into something hard. Along with Peter, Theodore pulled the object out of the bed.

The object was wooden, a carving of some sort. The craftsmanship was amateurish and for a moment there, Theodore could not quite tell what it was supposed to be. However, as he stared at it, he found it to resemble a shape of a person.

Slowly, he began to remember.

"Peter! Peter, where are you?" Albatross came running down the hall and eventually ended up in front of the room. "Hey Theodore, have you seen- There you are!"

"Slippery little fellow, isn't he," said Theodore as he left the room with Peter in one hand and the wooden carving in the other.

"What's that?" Albatross asked, eying the carving with a look of curiosity.

"Just a little something I left behind," Theodore answered.

Returning outside, Theodore went to his suitcase placed by the door. He had brought it along in case he had something to take with him.

Opening the suitcase, he reached into a side compartment and pulled out a set of five carvings, similar to the one he had just found. He had not once taken them out of the suitcase. Perhaps there was a part of him that wanted to keep them safe and tucked away, and perhaps another part of him wanted to keep them hidden from sight so that he won't be reminded of what he was missing. Either way, this was the first time Theodore had taken them out, the wooden carving Lina had given him before he left.

Carrying the carvings to the altar of Remigia at the end of the main hall, Theodore lined the carvings up on the altar.

With a wistful look on his face, Theodore took a few steps back, gazing upon them as he tried to find some kind of closure within him.

Softly, he whispered, "I'm home."

***

End of Chapter 125

***