Crucible Aeternum: Ascending through Skill Trees

Galeon sighed in exasperation. He wondered whether it was a mistake to turn down Vivi's offer to join her organisation. He realised that he might not be getting any rest from here on out considering all the strange things that has been happening in the Eastern Region for some time now.

It started even before the Vernal Bloom crashed down in Vaulkeen's End, but that moment felt like the real trigger for Galeon. Previously, none of these strange occurrences were pertinent to him. Now, however, he felt like he was in the middle of a chaotic whirlpool that raged more and more as the days passed.

He shook his head to get rid of such thoughts. He made the correct decision in not joining the Concord. They reeked of a suspicious stench that told him to stay far away. He would trust his instinct, but it did not mean he was not curious about them.

The Concord was the organisation where his mother and his supposed sister worked in. From what little Vivi had shared with him, Galeon had a faint impression of them being a lair of mad scientists. He did not know how accurate that was, but in retrospect, what organisation nowadays did not dabble in some kind of unethical scientific projects?

The Guild was an exception, but Galeon did not believe they were completely clean either. In this day and age where survival was split between two extremes—those who lived for a hundred or more years and those who died before even reaching their fifties— morality was as thin as paper.

He would rather stick to being a Contractor affiliated with the Guild. At least, he still had his freedom here.

He shook his head once more as he forced himself to focus on the task at hand. His destination was clear. He had to prepare before entering the depths of the forest. Behind him, his wings turned into liquid crystal as they flowed and moulded over his body, turning into the white coat that he always liked to wear over his suit. And he finally stepped into the inner ring of the Forbidden Forest.

There were many things that Galeon was wary of inside the forest, particularly beasts. The swarm of goat beetles that attacked him had come from here after all. As he walked toward the depths of the Forbidden Forest, he did encounter many beasts. The problem was that he never once fought them.

Normally this was not a problem, but something to be thankful for. After all, who would want to be attacked by a wild beast while taking a stroll? But the situation is different when he was literally inside the territory of beasts. They should have been attacking him constantly, and yet they were not even paying much mind.

In fact, they seemed startled and a bit frightened. When Galeon tried to go near a ten feet long snake hanging from a tree branch, it immediately hissed at him in fright. But that was all. It did not even attack him and instead dropped to the ground and immediately slithered away at top speed. It seemed to frantically search for a hiding place, likely one with greater elevation.

That was another thing he noted. Most of the beasts he encountered were hiding among the trees and their branches. It was as though the forest floor had become lava, no one dared to step on it. And with this realisation, the ominous feeling that Galeon had been getting since entering the inner ring of the Forbidden Forest only grew more pronounced.

Something was happening, but he did not know what. In fact, the beasts did not seem to know what it was either as they all were alert and looking around the forest shiftily. Taking cues from this, Galeon decided to fly up near the canopy rather than walk on the ground.

He moved swiftly, scanning the area around him to find any trace of the target, but the Forbidden Forest was huge. There was a reason people believed it to be alive. It was literally growing in size every day. Several years back, it was just half the size of the current Melchior. But now, the Forbidden Forest acted as the barrier separating Melchior in the north from Vaulkeen's End in the south.

With such a large area to cover, it could take at least a day for Galeon to scour the whole place. In that time, whatever bad things may happen to the target could happen. It was this thought that pushed him more with greater urgency. Whatever it was that made the beasts so frightened, he did not want to be stuck here when it came.

Fortunately, after spending close to five hours speeding through the forest, Galeon finally found what he had been looking for. Unfortunately, he also found something that made him realise that this was not a simple case of abduction.

It was still only 3 in the afternoon, but the dark clouds in the sky did not move one bit. It cast a bleak darkness over the land as it seemed to whisper the coming of something worthy of the woeful mourning of the already aggrieved people.

In a clearing in the depths of the Forbidden Forest, an encampment was bustling with activity. The bonfires and torches were lit to shed light, revealing the vigilant humans moving about. They were like soldiers, wearing uniform armours made from beast materials and Prisma. On the tents they had set up, there were banners that hung down by the side of the entrances.

The banners sported an insignia that was unknown to most. It was a shield with the image of a world in it. There were a few continents spread apart, quite unlike Corrin's singular supercontinent. Not many might recognise it anymore, but this was a depiction of Corrin... from before the advent of Prisma.

From the central tent, a loud and shrill feminine voice rang out in both anger and fear.

"Leave me alone already! I just want to go back home! Please!"

Only silence followed. The response was likely not as loud so it could not be heard outside. Either way, none of the soldiers moving busily outside the tent bothered with the girl's yells. They had work to do, and they had to do it fast. In fact, some of the tents were already being taken down and folded. Evidently, these people were preparing to leave.

The entrance to the central tent opened after a while as man in similar armoured uniform as the other soldiers stepped out. He had shoulder-length black and greying hair. His eyes were weary, but still bright with strict discipline and valiance. He sighed as he walked toward the centre of the camp, inspecting the progress of his soldiers who were packing up.

It was at that moment that low buzzing hum seemed to zip through the air, crashing to the ground in front of the man with great impact. It blew away the nearby soldiers, sweeping them off their feet while sending dust and dirt up in a small cloud that obscured one's vision.

The man who just came out of the tent managed to resist being thrown away by impact that sounded like an explosion. He immediately regained his bearings and went on high alert. All the soldiers instantly prepared for battle without being ordered by their commander.

When the dust settled, they found a man standing in a small crater he had created with his descent. His entire body was hidden beneath a high tech suit that seemed to be faintly glowing. The man's face could not be seen as it too was hidden beneath faceless and featureless helmet. Four strips of thin cloth-like material fluttered behind him like a cape. The suited man then spoke, his gaze locked solely on the man who had just exited the tent.

"V32G, acknowledge."

The man did not reply. His gaze growing sharper while hiding his stirred emotions. He only stared at the suited man in cold silence, his vigilance raised to the utmost. The suited man repeated his words once more, this time with greater authority as he brought out a badge representing the Guild itself.

"Contractor V32G, acknowledge."

Again, the man who was being called Contractor V32G did not respond. His conflicted gaze slowly turning into a tumultuous raging fire of resolve. He understood what he was doing. By not acknowledging his designation, he was basically forsaking his identity as a Contractor affiliated with the Guild.

There were very special circumstances when one is asked to acknowledge their identity, and one of them is just like now when a Contractor is found to be involved in a commission with potential criminal implications.

Not acknowledging now meant he was admitting to the fact that he was indeed involved in the criminal activity that resulted in the application of this commission. He was essentially betraying the Guild and violating their creed. Galeon sighed in exasperation thinking that this day could not get any worse.

"Verglas, just what the hell have you gotten yourself into?"

"G413... Galeon, it's best for you to leave... please."

Contractor V32G, Verglas, that was his name. He was a stalwart and valiant man who never shied away from battle. But today, in front of his soldiers, he pleaded Galeon to just leave.