The Beginning After The End novel Chapter 11

Chapter v11ex1: Vol 11 Extra 1: Early Truth

A/N: In this extra chapter, Arthur purposefully explores an alternative possible timeline in which he meets Cecilia only shortly after she is reincarnated. The intent of this sequence was to show Arthur being more purposeful in his use and navigation of the keystone before gaining the ability to freely manipulate it, as well as to help establish the experiences that led to Arthur’s eventual decisions with Fate. While the events didn’t end up fitting into the narrative of Volume 11, I think Patreon readers will still enjoy the look into both Arthur’s and Cecilia’s motivations, as they connect directly with the plotline’s eventual conclusion.

ARTHUR LEYWIN

From the cover of the trees, I watched Tessia pace back and forth through the sun-dappled glade. Except she was no longer Tessia. Not really. Not now. Tess was there, buried beneath a freshly reincarnated and still confused Cecilia, but it was Cecilia who piloted Tessia’s body as she meandered, head down, her lips moving constantly as if rehearsing something.

The sequestered corner of the village of Eidelholm seemed empty except for Cecilia, but she hadn’t just been left alone in this precarious moment. When I arrived, I had found several emblem-bearing Alacryan mages on guard within the treeline. One of their bodies was growing cold not ten feet from my vantage point, and the others had all been dispatched similarly. More problematic was the vitriolic mana signature I could sense not far away. Despite my rushed passage through the Relictombs to reach this point before Aldir’s incoming attack, I was confident I could defeat Nico if necessary, but it would eat up valuable time and potentially cost me my chance to speak with Cecilia.

It had taken several attempts to pass through the Relictombs in a way that allowed me to escape back into Dicathen with enough time to breach both the mystical fog of the Elshire forest and the spreading Alacryan influence. Due to the vortex effect that caught the momentum of my passage through the keystone’s timeline, each life had to be lived at least somewhat inside each moment; I did not relish the idea of being forced to attempt it all again if this conversation went poorly.

If only there was a better way to navigate this challenge, I thought for only a moment before redirecting my focus back to Cecilia. With how much I’d already changed to reach this point, I couldn’t afford to lose concentration, or I might forget my overall purpose again and slip away into this new life without accomplishing my greater goal.

Drawing in a steadying breath, I slipped out from beneath the shadows of the forest and walked into the open. Cecilia had her back to me as she paced toward the rear of a sprawling elven estate. Reaching the end of her circuitous route, she turned on her heel, took two steps, then came to a sudden halt as she saw me, her far-away gaze refocusing on me.

This was not Cecilia as she had been when we fought within the empty ruins of Exeges’s palace. In the present of this keystone-manifested timeline, she was freshly reincarnated, confused, and barely able to manage the new power she’d been given. And yet, in a few hours, she will go toe-to-toe with an asura at Nico’s side. It wasn’t hatred or even acceptance I saw reflected back at me in her gaze this time. Instead, I saw confusion and fear. And, perhaps, even a small spark of hope.

“Cecilia.” I said her name calmingly as one might speak to a frightened animal. “My name is Arthur. I’d like to talk.”

Her eyes narrowed very slightly, and her hands raised to the level of her waist. Mana stirred around them. “Arthur Leywin. I…know who you are. But…” She closed her eyes and turned her head away, a pained expression flickering across her features.

I took a few tentative steps closer. “You’re experiencing the memories of the woman whose body you’re inhabiting. Tessia Eralith.”

Cecilia bared her teeth in a sour grimace, her eyes still closed. “You were…promised to each other. Stop. Stop it!” These last words were sharp, almost pained, and seemed to be directed inward.

“She’s fighting you.”

“She thought…you were dead…” Cecilia’s eyes flashed open, and she glared at me. “You’re our enemy! You fought Nico.”

“There’s more to it than that,” I replied, still keeping my voice soft and nonthreatening. “You were reincarnated from another world, a place called Earth. Nico was, too. And so was I.”

She froze, going blank. “What?”

Relief washed over me at her obvious surprise. I knew that Agrona had used—or rather, was currently using—the freshly reincarnated Cecilia to deliver a message to the elves as Tessia, and I had guessed that they would not have had time to start manipulating her memories or poisoning her with Nico’s hatred of me.

“I don’t know how clear your memories of that previous life are, but I’m hoping you will remember me.” I held my hands out to my sides, my palms facing her to show clearly that they were empty. “In this world, I’m Arthur Leywin. But during the last, I was called Grey.”

Cecilia gasped, her own hands falling as the magic concentrated around them slipped away. “G-Grey? But…how?”

“Agrona,” I said simply. “Nico and I were the anchors for your own reincarnation. Our relationship with Tessia forged her into your vessel.”

Cecilia’s mouth opened and her brows turned down sharply, but she didn’t find whatever words she was searching for. After a moment her mouth closed again. She half turned and cast a look over her shoulder in the direction of Nico’s mana signature.

“I don’t bear you any ill will for what happened on Earth,” I said firmly, trying to draw her focus back to me. “You took the only road you could see. I regret everything that happened, but we were both used by forces greater than us. And Cecilia, that’s why I’m here now. Because it’s happening again.”

Her gaze was slowly reeled back to me, suspicion seeping over her features. “Tessia. Her mind is cloudy and distant, her thoughts incoherent. She had been silent until your arrival. She’s…confused. In pain. You lied to her.”

I inwardly flinched, although I tried to keep the tic from showing on my face. My purpose here didn’t involve attempting to hash things out with Tessa. That would have to wait until I’d solved the keystone and found a way to remove Cecilia from Tessia’s body without killing Tess. But I hadn’t anticipated Tessia interrupting this conversation or dragging it off course.

“I’m sorry, Tessia, both for the lie and that you found out this way,” I said, speaking through Cecilia to the half-wakeful mind beneath. “But if you ever have held any love for me, then I need you to let me speak to Cecilia without interfering.”

Cecilia’s gaze turned downward, almost as if she were looking into herself. “She’s gone quiet. She…trusts you.” Her focus returned to me. “What do you want, Grey? What do you mean, it’s happening again?”

Letting out a deep breath, I took a seat on a large rock at the edge of the glade. “How much do you know about Agrona and why you’ve been reincarnated?”

She hesitated. “Nico has told me only that Agrona is our benefactor. He is giving us another chance at life in exchange for our help. Nico’s lived for nearly two decades in this world already.”

“Why does he want you, specifically?” I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

Cecilia’s features twitched in distress. “Because I’m the Legacy.”

I nodded, letting out a shallow sigh. “Agrona is a master of mental manipulation. He can even remove and replace your memories. He’s already done it to Nico, and he’s going to do it to you, too. What you went through on Earth will seem kind by comparison.”

Cecilia took a half step back, looking at me as if I’d attacked her. “Nico wouldn’t do that to me. He knows what I went through, better than anyone.”

I shook my head sadly. “He’s not the same person he was before. In part, that’s because of Agrona’s manipulation. But he lived on after you killed yourself with my blade, Cecilia. And all that time, he thought I’d murdered you just to be king. That hatred festered inside him for the rest of his life. Then, after he was reincarnated, Agrona fed that rage, turning Nico into a weapon.”

“No that’s…” Cecilia trailed off, again looking toward Nico’s distant mana signature. “Why are you here, Grey? Why are you telling me any of this?”

I knew I was pushing it. But if I was going to get anything useful from Cecilia in this conversation, I needed her to be ready to tell me anything. “If he hasn’t already, Agrona is going to promise to send you and Nico back to Earth. Not into your old lives, but to any life you desire.” When I finally escaped the keystone, I would eventually have to face Cecilia. The truth was, though, that I didn’t know how to defeat her without destroying Tessia. “This promise is a lie. Agrona is using you, and he has no intention to reward either of you.”

Her brows knit and her gaze sharpened. “How could you possibly know any of this, Grey? You seem very well informed for one of Agrona’s enemies.”

“I know quite a lot,” I admitted, meeting her eye. “But I need to know more. That’s why I’m here. I need your help. If you can tell me what I need to know, I will help you, too.”

“How?”

“What do you want, Cecilia?” I stood, taking a couple of tentative steps toward her. “You’ve been given a second chance at life. I was a king on Earth, but here, I was given what I really always wanted: a family. It may seem like a strange trade, but it’s one I’d gladly make no matter how many times I relive this life. But what about you?”

Cecilia ran a hand over her face, sagging slightly. She walked clumsily back a few steps and slumped onto a bench that rested against the back wall of the elvish estate. “I don’t know.”

Taking a chance, I cautiously closed the distance between us and went to a knee a few feet in front of her. “I know you’re already dealing with so much, and I’m throwing a lot more at you. But I need to know this, Cecilia. If you could do anything with this new life, what would it be?”

She considered for a long time, then finally said, “Normal, Grey. I want to be…normal.”

I remained silent, giving her room to continue speaking.