False Gods

Book VIII: The Fourth Driver

Chapter LXII

I entered the living room of the ship, and surprisingly Granny was the only one in there. I assumed everyone else was prepping.

"I'm glad you came out here," she greeted. "Come and sit down for awhile, I want to talk to you."

I didn't hesitate, I had some of my own questions to ask.

"Years ago, I fought with Waylon and Rex during the Cereza incident. It was the closest I had ever been to dying, and many lives were lost. After everything was said and done, Waylon told me to guard Mythra's and Azami's core crystal. Eventually, Tora had to go on with his life, without Poppi, and I was left with her as well. Tora is the reason technology is so advanced, and that anyone can fight, regardless of whether they have a blade or not. He died 130 years after Waylon left, only regretting that he couldn't fix Poppi. Zeke and Morag decided to get married in the name of a new future for Alrest, but Mor Ardain decided they didn't want an empire three hundred years later, so Morag decided to leave and help direct the BAP instead. Rex and Pyra helped develop the Garfont Mercenaries into the BAP, and then they disappeared forty years later, and were never seen again. Adonis began getting influence twenty years after Waylon left...."

"How?!" I immediately asked.

"He lived under a different identity, and then he'd disappear for about fifty years before coming back under a different idea. He'd push his ideology for about fifty years before repeating this pattern. He's the sole reason New Torna has its anti-Blade philosophy, why Mor Ardain is in shambles and rejected its empire, and why Tantal rejected its king. He's even responsible for Juliani's doctrine, but she refuses to accept that. Gormott follows whatever New Torna does. Leftheria has always been left away from everything, and Adonis ignored it until the day you awakened Mythra. Uraya is the last nation that's not under his control, and he is the sole reason I fled to Leftheria, and why Azurda brought you to me. I don't know what Adonis is, but I want you to understand what you're fighting against. This man is no idiot, and you have to be sure of yourself and of who you fight with. You need to have unwavering trust in your blades and in Mythra. He cannot be allowed to live."

What... was he? My thoughts clouded me quickly, but I still had my own questions.

"Granny, if you're a blade, why are you aging?"

Granny snickered a bit. "I'm a flesh eater, and there's no such thing as a perfect flesh eater."

"But your core crystal should keep you appearing the same, shouldn't it?"

She pulled down her shirt to show me her core crystal, parts were crimson, but parts were blue, they melded together, kind of like different hard candies aimed towards kids.

"A blade eater is decided as either a success or failure based on their power output before their transformation compared to their power after the transformation has completed. If they have terrifying, unnatural power after the transformation, they were a success. I am one such success," she explained. "But..., this power doesn't come without cost. Jin was history's most powerful blade, even before he became a flesh eater. To transform, he devoured the entire heart of his driver, and his core crystal became a solid crimson red. He was history's most perfect flesh eater. He could defy physics themself and move at the speed of light, faster than Mythra could ever even attack. However, this power had cost, and after five hundred years of using it, his core crystal could no longer keep itself together and it cracked. He died with a smile on his face...."

"So your power ages you?" I questioned.

"Yeah, that's right," she answered. "I helped Dromarch heal all of the drivers of BAP as often as I could. When I noticed I was aging, I was scared... but I realized that I only aged after using my power. To restore the lives of others, I reduce my own. I'm not scared anymore though, because everyone needs to be able to die at some point, and eternity isn't for me, you get it?"

I almost wanted to cry. "Granny... do you... want to die?"

She had to hide her own tears. "This life... this duty I hold... to raise you. I've completed it. I've done everything Waylon and Rex asked me to do, and I must admit I'm tired. I'm not looking to end my own life, mind you, but I can't help but understand how Azurda felt."

I wrapped her in a hug and held her close. "Please, can you wait a little longer? I'm not ready to lose you yet. I know it's selfish for me to ask this... but I care about you so much and I don't know what I'd do without you. Please don't leave me just yet."

Granny did finally break and cry a bit. "Selfish is correct, but I promise as long as you need me, I'll be here."

Readability Level: 11-12th Grade
Time Taken: 2 Hours (Mostly me arguing with myself what I wanted to do for this chapter)