Aethelos: The Bastard of Light

(SCENARIO: Edge of the forest. Late afternoon. The sun is low and the light is weak and orange.) · Eli Cari and Yana left the forest under the weak light of late afternoon. The fresh air of the plain was a relief, but the weight of the scene left behind — the decapitated body, Lygar’s cold speed — was crushing. Eli Cari could barely walk. His arm, burned by the Light projectile, pulsed with every step, and each movement was agony. · Eli Cari has short, messy dark-brown hair dirty with dirt and blood. Eli Cari has golden/amber eyes dulled by pain and shame. Eli Cari wears a grey training suit with light armor details, torn and burned on the right arm. · He found a hidden rock and helped Yana sit down. The girl, pale, was still trembling, but her gaze was firm. · Yana has dark hair (dark-brown or black) of medium length, messy and dirty. Yana has green or light-brown eyes that still look frightened. Yana wears modest clothes that are torn and stained with dirt. · Eli Cari concentrated what little Light he had left into his wounded arm. It was not enough to heal, but the golden energy helped stop the bleeding and ease the sharp pain. · “Don’t worry about my arm,” Eli Cari said, breathing hard. “Are you okay? Did he… did he hurt you?” · Yana touched the cheek where the Vindicari had struck her with his glowing hand. “Just the pain. It’s already gone. Thank you for… trying.” She paused. “And thank you for Lygar.” · “Lygar,” Eli Cari murmured, the name tasting bitter. “He… he’s a killer.” · “He saved us,” Yana corrected. “You tried. He succeeded.” She looked at him with deep eyes. “Your Light power is strange. It’s not strong like theirs.” · Eli Cari felt the heat of shame. His Mixed heritage had been exposed. “I… I’m training for the Selection. My powers are still developing.” He looked away. · “What was that thing you did?” Eli Cari asked, quickly changing the subject. “Groien? That tree…” · Yana’s face lit up a little with pride. “It’s the Ancient Tongue of Éteris. It means ‘to grow’ or ‘to raise’. It’s my power. I’m from Terranova.” · When Yana uses Groien, green plants, roots and vines burst from the ground. · Eli Cari looked at her in surprise. The descendants of Éteris were scattered across Aethelos, but they rarely spoke of their ancestral houses. “You’re a Terranova from Éteris. What element is your power? Earth?” · “Yes. We of Terranova connect to the essence of the Earth. It was the only thing I could think of when he was about to throw Light at you.” Yana stopped, returning to the reason for the fight. “They weren’t there by chance, Eli. They were looking for me.” · “Why?” · “Because the Vindicari purity cults of Aethelos hate us. They hate anyone who still carries the power of Éteris. They say our Earth power is impure and that we were the ones who brought the chaos that destroyed the old world. They say we are the root of disorder.” · Yana’s words were an echo of the propaganda Eli Cari had heard his whole life about chaos. But this time, the chaos was him — Eli Cari, the Mixed-blood saved by a Shadow — and the attackers were the self-proclaimed bearers of Order. · Eli Cari wiped the blood from his lip. His father, a man who had fought for Order, had died because of the “chaos” of terrorist attacks. And now, Order was trying to murder an unarmed girl. · “Those two… they were pure-blood Vindicari,” Eli Cari said in a low voice. “Lygar… Lygar has the power of Darkness, from Erebus. He’s a Noxian.” · Yana nodded. “Probably. He had the speed of Shadow. Lygar is known around here on the outskirts as someone who doesn’t get involved. But when he does, it’s fast and final.” · Eli Cari clenched his fists. He had been saved by the very thing his world had taught him to hate. He had been exposed by his own weakness. · “I thought… that being the best in the Selection would be enough. That Light would be enough,” Eli Cari said, looking at his wounded arm. “But my Light is weak. They were servants of Order, and their Order was to kill you. And the chaos… his chaos saved us.” · Yana smiled weakly. “If you’re training for the Selection, you have potential. But first you have to learn how to survive. The forest is full of snakes that dress themselves in Light.” · Eli Cari absorbed the criticism. His worldview was shattered, but his motivation was now fiercer. He could no longer fight for the blind Order of Aethelos. He had to fight for the strength to protect the weak. His life lesson was complete. · “Let’s go,” Eli Cari said. “You need to get out of here. And I need to take care of this.” · “Are you really going to the Selection?” Yana asked. · “More than ever,” Eli Cari answered. His golden eyes gained a new, harder light. “But my motivation has changed. I need real strength. And I need to find out who really killed my father.”