"The Gift": Edward's Storyline, Ch 2, Part 3
Story by comidacomida on SoFurry
Well, folks, it looks like Edward has been learning a lot in "The Gift"! Today is the third post of Chapter 2 of Edward's storyline, and he'll be learning more!
Questioning what information he'd been provided, Edward proposes the possibility that the situation could turn out differently, if only he thought enough about options. The Ancient One, of course, doesn't completely agree (or disagree, for that matter). The other spirits weigh in as he receives information from a variety of sources.
At this point Edward is ready to commit to his search for information, and it will result in a major change in trajectory in the discussion for the rest of the chapter. With that in mind, what direction does Edward take?
Here's what the readers chose:
b) --looked to Tom and said plainly "I don't think I can deal with all of this right now. You're really old, right? Can the two of us talk about some of this sanely?"
The Gift
Edward's Storyline, Chapter 2.3
copyright comidacomida 2018
Medved grumbled back with a faint growl to his voice. "They have no call to demand this of him. It should not be his task."
While I didn't disagree with either of them, I still wasn't ready to believe that I could walk away from everything without issue. That, and I hadn't received the chance to resolve all of the lasting issues surrounding my birth, my mom's death, or what all of the spirits meant to and for me. With that in mind, I asked them if I couldn't just find a way for them to continue existing without having to destroy any of them or consume my soul when I died.
Considering the obvious finality with which they discussed the topic I figured I'd start light. "So... there's no way all three of you can continue existing?"
Treboada spoke up from the other side of the room. "They've done it fer this long, Lad... ah be thinkin' they'll do it as long as they have'ta."
The Ancient One wasn't quite so pragmatic. The red furred Dragon blinked, gazing at me as if he were studying me as much as I was him. "Spirits do not age as Humans do. Although we may fade out or be killed, there is nothing natural about death for a spirit. There is no such thing as dying due to the passage of time."
I tried to process what he was saying. "So... you DON'T have to die? I mean... one of you doesn't have to?"
The Ancient One blinked. "You are attempting to reason through something with which you are unfamiliar, Edward. You do not have all of the information and so you could not possibly understand."
I felt my fist start to shake; I've always hated when people talk to me like I'm stupid. "If I'm supposed to be helping you then I think you should take the time to explain it to me then, don't you?"
The rainbow feathered Serpent's voice spoke from the Dragon's mouth. "I told you he would not let us proceed without more information. He does not act impulsively and if we expect him to help with the choice then he must be educated."
Finally I was getting somewhere. "Exactly. That's what I'm saying. Thank you... uh... One-Third-of-The-Ancient-One."
Treboada flopped down on the couch. "Make it a bit easier fer th' poor boy... least yeh could do is introduce yerselves right. Yeh expect 'im t'figger things out an' not bother 'elpin' 'im through any a it?"
The Green Dragon's voice spoke up clearly. "He does not have to meet us; we know him and that is what is important. He has one task, and it is a simple one."
Medved scowled. "If you knew more about Humans you would realize that what you are asking is NOT simple. Humans do not think that way. Humans feel and experience. You cannot expect him to make a choice with no information and no understanding."
I sighed, rolling my eyes. "Actually, I think it might be easier if I just chose at random and got it over with."
My statement immediately caught the attention of all four spirits, and the Bear quickly interjected. "Edward, that is not--"
Before he could go much further I interrupted. "EXCEPT, I don't like the idea of the two remaining parts of The Ancient One eating my soul afterwards."
The red Dragon looked disgusted. "We have no intention of eating your soul, Edward. You are obviously not listening when--"
the green Dragon's voice took control. "We could if you let us. It would mean your pain would be at an end and you wouldn't have to worry about--"
Red forced his way back into the conversation. "There is no soul eating involved. We would not act until your soul already left your body and even then all we would take is the remaining spirit energy your soul left behind."
The situation was complicated enough that I didn't really need to complicate things further but I couldn't help myself. "So... anyway, when you say 'soul', you mean a SOUL soul, right? Like the animating essence that makes me... me?"
Tom stepped closer. "The word 'soul' does not mean the same thing to everyone, Edward, so that is not an easy question to answer."
The red Dragon snorted. "Yes it is. The meaning of 'soul' is unimportant. All that matters is that Edward will not be adversely affected so the discussion is moot."
I wasn't willing to settle on that as an answer. "Not for me it isn't."
The Ancient One's body shuddered and a wave passed through his coils, dispelling the red fur and spreading out two great wings. The rainbow Serpent rose up like a cobra as he spoke. "You may think of the energy we will claim like an inheritance... it is something you will leave behind that can benefit others more."
It made sense in an eerie kind of way, but it brought up another point. "And what if I want to leave that inheritance to someone else? Don't I get a say in this?"
The green Dragon's voice interjected. "No. You do not."
The rainbow Serpent let out a sigh. "Yes, Edward. Of course you have a say."
The red Dragon took the opportunity to object as well. "Lying does not become us, Ch'upikaq. You know very well that Edward is bound to us... his only choice is which two of us will claim his essence and which will be put down."
The Serpent's tongue flickered out from between his scaled lips before he reponded. "I know that Edward is boudn to us, but if we believe in him then we must expect he will have questions and respect his decisions. If he is truly the answer to our problem then we must rely on him to help us define what our problem is. He is our guide in this and we--"
His incredibly surprising statement was interrupted bluntly by the green Dragon's voice. "I am not going to be guided by some Human who has less than two decades to his name. There is nothing he could have learned in under twenty years that we could not have learned in over twenty million millennia."
I had trouble coming to grips with that statement. "You've been around for that long?"
Tom stepped up beside me. "The Ancient One has been in existence longer than any other spirit I have met."
Medved, who came around my other side motioned to the Rhino. "Tom would know... he is the oldest spirit I know aside from the Serpent."
Despite still trying to wrap my head around 'twenty million millennia'. I looked at The Ancient One and asked him (them?) directly "So... which one of you is the oldest?"
I could have sworn I saw the rainbow Serpent's scaled lips quirk into the hint of a smile, but it was the green Dragon's voice that came out. "Ugh... Humans."
Out of all of the things I was learning the most obvious one was that progress when it came to learning about spirits was slow. There was some information that I was touching on but it felt like it was just out of my grasp but close enough that I just had to reach a little farther. Committing to that direction, I--