54 Elder Speech (2/2)
Lu'um sighed and said, ”…I know only two people skilled and foolish enough to have attempted what you have described, Ka'an. I can immediately rule out one of them with absolute certainty, which leaves us with…”
”With who? Who's this all-power person who's gone out of his way to mess with me across time?”
”An idiot. And the last, best hope of the universe. That was probably a message he left for you, Ka'an, to receive at a certain point in time. Only someone as mindless as him would leave a spatiotemporal message for someone else to receive in the future.”
”That does make sense. Those who reach another shore of time can see the past, present, and future at will. Only someone who has climbed the staircase can earn such a right and, well, there are only two such people in this current cycle that have done such a thing…” said Lacrima in a solemn tone.
”Again, who are these two people you two are talking about? Are these your gods or something? Can't speak their names, or what?”
”It is not as if we cannot speak their names, boy, but rather you are not ready to learn about them. Not even remotely. It is on you to uncover the truth on your own — that is your punishment and your journey. The girl and I are merely here to assist you in that journey, not to carry you to your destination. Never forget this. You are a sinner.”
”...But if you must know, I can offer you a smidgen of knowledge. The First One is a coward and traitor who forsook everything and has become our greatest enemy. He sold himself in order to foolishly protect what he loved… and ended up losing it all because he cast his soul aside. What remains of him is a miserable shade of what he once was.”
”The Second One is a fool and who forsook himself in order to protect what he loved, against the wishes of those who loved him. Blinded by hatred and fear of loss, he saved the world — or rather, prolonged the coming of the end by doing something very reckless. It is he who the three moons wait for, and he who will correct the mistake of the First…”
Reed said, ”Those are some messed-up gods, to be honest. Don't you have any better stories to tell? You know, something less… depressing?”
”You're the one who asked, boy, so you can't complain when you hear the awful truth. If you don't want to hear, don't ask. Keep your nose out of stuff you aren't ready to learn about yet.”
Lu'um interjected and said, ”For now, don't even think about using what you learned about from the hooded man. You aren't ready to use something as powerful as Elder Speech. It requires a certain level of finesse with Anima that you do not even remotely possess. That is why when you unintentionally used it, it affected everything around you without distinction.”
”She's right, boy. You'd only be putting everyone around you at risk if you used it in a fight. Both friend and foe would suffer the same fate if you misused Elder Speech. We can teach you how to use it when you are ready for it, but for now, it is best that you focus on your fundamentals first. Do not bite off more than you can chew.”
Reed shrugged and said, ”Fine, I get it. It's not like I wanted to use it again; I'm not interested in getting another damn headache again…”
”That is a common after-effect for those who use Elder Speech without proper training. The stronger the words, the greater the risk that comes with the power you draw from them. Stronger words can drive practitioners insane, or even kill them outright depending on the backlash, Ka'an. Be grateful that you only spoke something relatively simple…”
Reed suddenly felt a lump in his throat. He felt that it was not to learn something as dangerous as Elder Speech. Dying because he spoke incorrectly sounded like the dumbest way to go.
He preferred not to accidentally kill himself one day… via mispronunciation.