Yaci enters the tent.
"Sorry for earlier. I shouldn’t have left like that, leaving you alone."
"It’s okay. Yara was there with me. She took me to meet the council of elders."
"Oh, those hags. What did they say?"
"Nothing of matter, actually. Just welcomed me and told me I was to stay in your tent until they decide what to do with me. It looks like there will be a more official meeting later on."
"Yeah... the Tree of the Enchanted Ones had several ripe fruits. There will be a celebration this night or the next."
That was not the first time I heard that name. Oya also called the tree that name.
"What exactly are those fruits, and why is the tree called that?"
Yaci’s grin at that moment told me everything I needed to know about my next hours. It was the "I’m glad you asked" kind of grin that precedes a passionate storytelling.
Long time ago, when the dragons still roamed free and there was no Goddess ruling the world, the ancestors of the beastkin formed a covenant.
There were both humans and dragonkin between them, bonded to the spirit animals who were the guardians of the natural world.
Those spirits were wary of the development of the war between dragons and humans and were trying to create a third force to bring balance and end the conflict.
It was then that the spirit contractors convened here in the Barren Wilds. At the time, this wasn’t a barren land but a lush and fertile jungle, crossed by several rivers.
The covenant thus created mixed the blood of all contractors and the essence of the spirits, creating the Loa.
Each animal spirit became one Loa, one for each tribe that would be created. The contractors then received that new blood, becoming the original founders of the beastkin tribes.
Every time a beastkin dies, it joins the Loa of their tribe, increasing its knowledge and power. They became the de facto deities of the beastkin people.
They are the Enchanted Ones, the sacred spirits who guide and nurture the tribes.
And they gave a special bush-tree that gives a blessed fruit. When eaten within the correct procedures and rituals, it allows the tribes to communicate directly with the Loa.
To eat one without those procedures could have detrimental effects on the health of the person, sometimes even bringing them into madness.
So that’s what happened. Probably my luck was that Oya found me before something bad happened.
And that answers some of my questions about the genetics of that marriage system as well.
They all share the same blood lineage; the difference is which Loa the soul is bound to, and that’s what defines which tribe they belong to when they are born.
"I have one question... what happened to this land to transform it from a lush jungle to a barren land?"
Yaci looks at me with a sad face.
"The war. I don’t know much about it, but it’s said that the goddess of humans and the Loa had a massive battle that left deep scars throughout the land."
"A battle between deities..."
If they can unleash power capable of this, I can’t simply fight them head-on. If I approach this the wrong way, I’m fried.
After all, actual deities fought her before and failed.
I need to learn more. It would be nice to talk to the Loa someday.
"You said that there will be a celebration because of those fruits... is it a ritual to talk to the Loa?"
"Yes. It’s something that happens only every few years, because it’s really rare for the Tree of the Enchanted Ones to bear fruit. The fact that it appeared so quickly since the last time is unsettling."
"How long has it been since the last time?"
"Four months. It was right after they captured my mother. They told me to wait for the thunder that would come from the south."
"The thunder from the south... What does that mean?"
"It means you, dummy. You came from the south. And as I was patrolling yesterday, there was that huge lightning falling from the cloudless sky."
Yaci smiles and pets my head.
"I went to the place it fell on, and there was you, unconscious at the side of a Tree of the Enchanted Ones full of ripe fruit."
I see. The thunder was probably the moment Oya unlocked the system and gave me that title that gives me control over lightning.
It makes sense that they would see me as the thunder they were expecting.
But what does that mean for me?
I’m not a messiah nor a white savior. Nor do I have any intention of becoming one.
I want to free my mother and everyone there, yes.
I want to fight the slavery system, yes.
But I don’t want to become a messiah.
And what does being a messiah of an actual and real god mean, after all? In a world where gods actually exist and act in the world?
"Huh? Aurea? Is everything okay?"
Damn, I spaced out again, didn’t I?
"Huh? Sorry, I was thinking about all you told me."
"So you weren’t even listening to me right now, were you?"
Yaci just hugs me suddenly, soothing me like I was a child. Well, in her eyes I am, in fact, a child.
"There’s no need to worry about all that... You’ve passed through harsh times, but now you are safe. So, just rest and leave everything for the adults."
Her embrace is warm and surprisingly soft. I melt into it, feeling like all the weight of my thoughts had been lifted from my shoulders.
When I notice, I’m already crying like I was an actual child.
Yeah, maybe this body was in need of that. I don’t try to rein in the overflowing emotions, instead cherishing the warmth that is so kindly offered.
Today is the first day in my new life in which I feel safe.