Sorcerer… Cyborg???

Chapter 275: Memories of Home

"I'll be going then, Father." Kothar said, he felt torn by the recent revelations of his father's intentions, he needed time to gather his thoughts.

"Leaving so soon, son? Wait a minute, I've got something to give you." Tam said, walking over to the writing desk that was ducked away in one corner  of the simply decorated room.

Here. Take this key, you can stay in the house for as long as you need, don't worry, you won't be disturbed." Tam opened the drawer of the writing desk, and gave Kothar a large metal key, smiling at him as he tucked it into his hand.

Kothar returned the smile, though inside he could only focus on the sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Ah, son. Before you go, your Uncle isn't in Balin, he won't be back for some time, so don't spend too long waiting around for him." Tam called out to Kothar as he got up to leave.

"Thanks for telling me, Father." Kothar said, wondering where his uncle had gone. His heart sank further as he realized that he had likely been sent on yet another impossible mission by his father. 

Without even another word, Kothar got up, and hurried out of the room, brushing past Jonas who stood waiting outside.

"Sir! Please, wait for me, I shall escort you out." Jonas' tired voice called out, croaking a little.

The chamberlain's tired voice, and his dry and limp hair, and the overall sad appearance of him only made the sinking feeling worse for Kothar.

Jonas's state was just another reminder of what had been lost, the smiling and bright King, who had been so filled with hope for his people, completely dedicated to improving their lives, was gone. 

Now, he was replaced by a battle hungry maniac, Kotjhar's own father.

Kothar kept walking, ignoring Jonas' yells, and making his own way down the twisting corridors.

"What on earth did I do wrong, huh, dear?" Tam was staring at the door with a frown, talking to an empty space next to his chair.

"I'll never understand that son of ours, he's always been an odd one, but he's even more so nowadays. ALways coming up with strange ideas, disappearing off to who knows where, wearing strange armor and always seeming to have the oddest weapons." Tam continued speaking, his frown growing deeper and deeper.

"Ah, I wish I could hear your voice, you were always far better at dealing with people." Tam sighed, and fell back into his chair.

As Tam complained about Kothar's odd behavior, Kothar himself was hurrying out of the castle. He emerged outside to find the last remnants of light fading from the sky, and hurried back toward his childhood home.

It was almost completely dark by the time Kothar arrived in front of his home, and since the street was completely deserted, he let himself in through the front door.

The inside of the house was dark, and Kothar pulled the small lever by the door to activate all the Mana Crystal lamps throughout the house, causing the hallways to suddenly blaze with light.

The house had obviously not been used in sometime, there were sheets covering much of the furniture, but with a distinct absence of any dust, it seemed that someone had been through to keep the palace clean.

Ignoring everything, Kothar walked straight through the house, and out the back door, into the large courtyard at the back of the house.

He walked slowly through, stopping for a moment to rest his hand on the tree he had sat under, years ago, when he had trained to gather mana for the first time.

Then, with a lump in his throat, Kothar walked into the explosion of color that was the garden at the very end of the courtyard.

He looked around at the flowers, avoiding looking at the spot where he knew his mother lay.

With a deep sigh, Kothar turned to the spot, and let a sphere of lightning float up from his hand so he could see her resting place better.

A small green sapling was growing from the place, and Kothar smiled, just as his mother had wanted, a tree was growing from her remains.

It was a vibrant green, and as Kothar looked closer, he could see the tiniest of flowers sprouting from the thin branches.

Kothar let the ball of lightning disappear, as the moon came out from behind the clouds, silver light shining down onto the garden.

Each of the flowers were like tiny little jewels, of every color, shining brightly in the moonlight.

Kothar sat down next to the sapling, and began to talk.

He told his mother of everything that had come to pass since her death, starting with how he had been thrown into a random plane, and had found himself in a world of giants, dwarfed by even the smallest of insects.

Kothar kept talking, as the moon slipped behind the clouds again, thrusting him into darkness.

He sat there, in the dark, next to his mother's grave, and continued to talk in a low, quiet voice, telling her all about his adventures, and the battles he had fought.

As the first rays of dawn peeked over the horizon, Kothar finally stood from where he had been sitting, and gave a sad smile.

He wished his mother were still here, his father had changed so much after her passing, so much so that he didn't even recognize the man that he had become.

Kothar walked back inside, walking through the corridors, memories of warm smiles, laughter and cheerful conversion flitting through his mind.

Beneath his helm, his eyes were streaming with tears, looking at the tapestries on te walls that he had seen Ophil weave as he was growing was far too much of him.

Without another look at the house around him, Kothar channeled his Spatial Mana, and opened a portal, stepping through, away from Eclat, his changed father, and the painful memories that haunted him.