Symphonic Odyssey
: Vol. Two: Beneath the Hawthorn Tree: Verse Ninety

Cypher had spent the rest of the evening telling Alex all about what had happened. He held back the more sensitive details, those about the Order of Eternal night and about opening the chest. Those were personal matters and if he thought about it, secret ones. It might be dangerous for Alex to know too much and Cypher was not eager to expose his friend to more danger.

Alex had been shocked to hear about the attack on Galvan manor, and he consoled Cypher about the loss of Molly. But he was even more shocked to hear that Cypher could cast such powerful spells, and was even jealous that he was getting to train alone with the combat professor.

“So let me get this straight, you almost kill a guy and as a reward, you get some private tutoring? I dunno man that sounds pretty unfair, maybe I should be more upset with you after all!” Cypher smiled as Alex joked around and the two continued to talk.

Alex was extremely interested in the whole idea of ‘Battle Pressure’ and was eager to test it out for himself once he got out of the medical ward. He was only a few weeks away from being back at his peak and was more than happy that his time here was almost over. Like Cypher, he had been keeping up with the assignments and reading up on the various lessons he had applied for but was lacking in that hands-on instruction that could only be found in the classroom.

After the sun had set, Cypher bid Alex goodnight and headed back to his quarters. His heart was still heavy with feelings of grief, and while those wounds would take time to heal, he was in a better mood than before and even happy that his friend still accepted him.

As he entered his apartment and kicked off his shoes, he was startled by Alvin who was sitting on his couch reading and drinking his usual cup of tea. “So I heard you were looking for me a while ago. I figured I’d wait here for you and see what it was that was so important that you’d come looking for me of your own accord. I’m usually the one who has to hunt you down so this is a welcome surprise for sure.”

Cypher sighed and walked into the kitchen to make himself a drink. “You know, people are going to think you live here if you keep popping in like this all the time. But I’m glad you’re here, we need to talk.”

“Oh? Is that right?” Alvin asked, raising an eyebrow as he put his cup down and turned to face Cypher.

“Yeah actually, it is. I think you owe me some answers to a few choice questions. I can’t help but feel like you’re holding out on me. Aren’t you supposed to be a history teacher?” Cypher asked, downing his drink in a single gulp.

Alvin sighed and patted the couch next to him, “I am, and you’ve missed every single one of my classes so far,” he said with a sarcastic tone in his voice, “but go ahead and ask away, I’ve got plenty of time right now. What do you want to know?” he asked as Cypher plopped down next to him.

Cypher spent the next few minutes explaining everything about the contents of the chest his mother had left for him and when he finished Alvin looked a bit more pale than normal. “So basically, I want to know what this Ark War is all about and what the Order of Eternal Night has to do with it.”

Alvin frowned and stroked his beard as he thought for a moment, then he took another sip of his tea and began slowly speaking, “The Ark War is a lengthy subject, and not much is known about the Order of Eternal Night. They’re also a bit of a taboo topic but I’ll do my best to summarize what I can. To understand why the Ark War began, you need to know how the world came to be. Are you at all familiar with the origins of this world?”

Cypher shook his head, he had heard a few things here and there, but most of it was confusing or didn’t make much sense. As per usual the Galvans never really told Cypher much beyond what they felt he needed to know. Reading as much as he had in those days hadn’t yielded many answers either. Most of what he read was fiction or exaggerated stories based on real life.

Alvin took a deep breath and then began, “In an age before time, space, or even conscious thought. A small glimmer of light took hold and began to pour into the void of infinity. From this light, seven mighty Gods emerged into the nothing that was. These seven knew not why they had received life, nor did they know who, or what had bestowed it upon them.

“Eventually, each came to possess a will of their own, and so took upon themselves title, and form. To call them glorious would have been irredeemably insulting. As it was with them all, their shape, form, and presence were beyond anything mortals could ever understand. Gifted with powers and existence beyond mortal comprehension, these seven Divines simultaneously set to work, for within them all burned a compulsion, an irrefutable command that compelled them to do one thing and one thing only: Create.

“Time had yet to be at this point but to say it did not pass or approach as it does for us would be more accurate. In any event, together they forged the universe and the world we live in, as well as every living being upon it. As a final gift to the world, they created the Ark of Ages, a powerful relic that enabled a linear flow of time.

“Before that moment, events seemed to happen simultaneously or in some cases, events or creatures were unmade. For the Divines, this was no issue, they existed beyond the constraints of time and space. But for the mortal beings they created, time was a necessity and brought order and coherence to their lives.

“However, among them was a traitor. Satis, the dark God. He saw the gifts the others had bestowed upon creation and grew jealous. From the antithesis of their own energies, he crafted a relic similar to the Ark of Ages and of equal power known as the Blood Ark. The Ark of Ages brought order, but this Blood Ark was an item capable of unleashing chaos and destruction.

“In the wrong hands, it could even unmake all of creation, and that was exactly what Satis had in mind. Seeing this the others grew furious with their brother and together, destroyed his body as they could not simply kill him. They then sealed his mind into a crystal which they banished to the far reaches of the Universe.

“The two Arks were hidden in our world and the Seven Guardians were appointed to watch over and protect them. In time, rumors of these powerful relics spread across the world, and greed drove many to seek them out and attempt to claim them for their own purposes. The Guardians, however, always managed to strike down any who tried. Like this, thousands of years passed.

Cypher could now guess what had triggered the Ark War. It was in the name and more straightforward than he had expected. “So what happened to start the war? Weren’t the Guardians powerful enough to stop any force that tried to get their hands on them? Why didn’t they do anything?” he asked.

Alvin sighed and continued, “Unfortunately, for reasons we still don’t understand, the Guardians suddenly vanished from the world. During their absence, a group of people who worshipped Satis began to rise to power and sought to claim the Blood Ark. Each of the divines has a group of worship.

“They can be found in various parts of the world and no one group stands above another. They are all revered equally in this day and age. It is a precarious balance, but one that has remained steadfast throughout the millennia. However, when it comes to the worshipers of Satis, they stand apart. They seek to raise their deity above the other six and in so doing lay claim to the world.

“As I’m sure you can imagine, they are the Order of Eternal Night. It was their attempt to claim the Blood Ark that started the Ark War. Billions died, entire species went extinct, and the land was destroyed or warped in several places by the cataclysmic forces that raged in these battles.

“In those days, reaching the Heroic ranks was a lot easier and there were even many Relic Ranked Conductors as well, far more than what exists today. As such, their power was hard to imagine. You see, the Relic Ranks are what lay beyond the Heroic Ranks. A single Relic Ranked Conductor could easily handle dozens of peak Heroic Ranked Conductors and not even break a sweat, such power is terrifying to imagine…

“In any event, the war raged on for two thousand years, and just as the Order neared their goal, the Guardians returned out of nowhere. With the help of the Ark of Ages, they destroyed the leader of the Order of Eternal Night. However, in doing so, they were forced to lay down their lives in the process. Afterward, the remaining Divines sealed away the Blood Ark, and for the last two Ages it has remained hidden away in a place no mortals can reach.”