Kaden, weakened and disoriented, attempts to clean his grandfather Raven's house, reflecting on his own frailty compared to Raven's vibrant spirit. He realizes Raven's eyes still hold immense life despite his failing body. Raven shares a profound lesson about love and self-preservation, urging Kaden to find balance without losing himself. They then bond over stories, with Kaden teasing Raven about his son and grandson.
Two days had elapsed within that peculiar realm, and on the third day, a drastic shift occurred – not for the better, as one might have hoped, but far worse than anything imaginable.
Raven’s curse, or whatever affliction plagued the old man, had intensified exponentially. He could no longer remain seated for extended periods before his chest would constrict, his lungs rebelling against drawing in air. During these episodes, he would open his mouth pathetically, like a fish gasping for water, convulsing as if gripped by a seizure, desperately trying to breathe.
The sight was utterly harrowing the first time it transpired that morning. Kaden stood frozen, unable to process what he was witnessing. However, he quickly regained his composure and assisted his grandfather before the curse could complete its grim work. This was merely the onset of the ordeal.
In real-time, Kaden watched as Raven’s body visibly began to waste away – muscles, bones, and skin liquefying, unable to sustain the vessel of a life. He could barely manage a single step before collapsing like a sack of rocks. At this point, Raven looked up at his grandson, the profound pain and sorrow in his bright eyes undeniable.
"Ah, my boy, I believe I shall desperately require your assistance now," he whispered, attempting a sheepish grin. "I will need you to look after me. The bathroom. The food." He paused, his smile widening. "Will you?"
Kaden could not muster a verbal response, managing only a faint nod.
One might have anticipated him to shatter under such a burden, to collapse inward as he had been doing since the quest commenced. Yet, that was not the case. The young Warborn found an unexpected surge of fortitude. It wasn't physical strength, but a profound resilience of mind and spirit.
For witnessing Raven’s eyes – luminous, mischievous, imbued with a profound wisdom that left Kaden speechless – on what was effectively his deathbed, had imparted a crucial lesson. What right did he possess to grieve, to weep, and to remain entombed within his own despair, when this old man was still fighting, not just for himself, but for his grandson?
This realization infused him with a strength he hadn't known he still possessed. Thus, Kaden commenced his duties as a caregiver. Each morning, he would gently lift his grandfather, who weighed next to nothing, cradling him like a father would a child, and transport him to the bathroom within the humble wooden dwelling.
The old man insisted he didn't mind, but Kaden would invariably avert his gaze while inside the bathroom, relying on a mere sliver of his perception as he bathed him. Given the extreme fragility of Raven's skin, Kaden exerted the gentlest touch imaginable.
Then came the matter of the toilet. It was there that Raven brought forth a memory Kaden had nearly forgotten – a pearl of wisdom once shared by the old beggar on the festival day of Sul Lotus Blood, in the squalor of a dark alley.
"I believe I have reached that stage, have I not?" Raven inquired as Kaden helped him settle on the toilet seat.
"What stage?" Kaden responded softly, his own suffering now entirely disregarded, the slowing rhythm of his heart a mere background hum.
"One day I will feel so weak, so utterly useless, that I will require someone to wipe my backside," Raven echoed the beggar's words, gazing at his grandson with a faint smile, his eyes glistening. "Well, my boy, I think I have indeed reached that point, haven’t I?"
Once more, Kaden found himself without words. He looked at his grandfather, trying to picture the man Raven had been before the curse descended. A figure cut from the same heroic cloth as his father, or perhaps even more formidable. A man capable of obliterating an entire city with a mere exertion of intent, who had once boasted to Kaden of his ability to seamlessly merge two distinct spatial dimensions. A godlike power that mortals would undoubtedly revere and worship with fervent devotion.
And that same individual was now reduced to this state: frail, utterly powerless, incapable of even attending to his basic bodily needs without his grandson’s intervention. The sheer impact of this reality caused Kaden to inwardly reel. The profound futility of all their struggles struck him with overwhelming force, a realization so tragically ironic and heart-wrenching that he bit his lip fiercely to suppress the encroaching tears.
Raven observed him and offered a slight smile. "What? Do you intend to watch too?" he quipped, attempting to diffuse the somber tension.
Kaden let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head. "I think I'll abstain from that," he murmured, stepping aside to grant his grandfather privacy.
When Raven summoned him back, Kaden performed the necessary task with an unreadable expression, then carried the frail elder back to his bed. Without a moment's rest, his face glistening with perspiration from the exertion of moving his weakened body, Kaden proceeded to prepare food.
The curse had decimated Raven's teeth and digestive functions, rendering him unable to process anything complex or coarse. Consequently, Kaden meticulously prepared a simple porridge from the available vegetables and fruits. He then sat beside his grandfather, assisted him into a slightly more upright position, and patiently fed him, spoonful by spoonful.
Occasionally, Raven would inadvertently let some food slip from his mouth, his jaw muscles tiring quickly. Each time, he would offer Kaden a look of apologetic regret.
Kaden could only offer a smile in return—a smile because the alternative was to weep—while using a scrap of his own clothing to tend to his grandfather’s face.
Once their simple meal and a drink of water were finished, the old man seemed content. He settled back onto his bed, his hollowed eyes growing heavy-lidded, a gentle smile gracing his lips.
“You know, my boy, you still have an answer to give me by the end of five days,” Raven suddenly announced, peeking from beneath his weary eyelids at Kaden, who was seated close by.
“Yes, grandfather,” Kaden replied.
“Ah, then allow me to impart the secret to achieving full marks, for I am a most generous grandfather,” he continued, pausing to emit a fit of coughing that brought up a mixture of black blood and saliva.
Kaden promptly offered him water. “Here. Drink. It’s alright.”
Once the coughing subsided, Raven resumed, a spark of eagerness returning to his gaze.
“To attain full marks,” he whispered, “you simply need to hold my hands, my boy. And bestow a kiss upon my forehead. Do this now and then. It’s that simple, isn’t it? Now, tell me, am I not the most wonderful grandfather?”
Kaden’s lower lip quivered. He bowed his head, extended both hands, and tenderly clasped his grandfather’s right hand within his own.
Inclining forward, he pressed his lips to his forehead, unfazed by the skin’s coarse texture.
Raven’s eyes visibly lit up. A broad, infectious grin spread across his lined face.
“My boy, thank you,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion, his eyes beginning to glisten. “Thank you for looking after me.”
Kaden lowered his head even further, concealing his own tears. “No,” he responded. “It is I who should be thanking you, grandfather.”
Raven let out a dry, faint chuckle. “Then we are each other’s necessity, are we not?” He gazed at Kaden, meeting his own tear-filled eyes. “This is why family is important, Kaden. This is why friends, companions, and those who genuinely cherish you hold significance in your life, my boy.”
Kaden tightened his grip on Raven’s hand, absorbing his words.
“The reason is quite apparent when you look at me,” he smiled. “I likely would have perished from solitude, or been consumed by this curse, had you not been present. And I would have met my end much sooner if my sister Scarlet had not stayed by my side. Furthermore, I might have strayed far down the wrong path if a dear friend had not given me a severe thrashing to bring me to my senses.”
Kaden managed a chuckle at this last remark, even as tears streamed down his cheeks.
“That’s simply how life unfolds, wouldn’t you agree, my boy?”
“Yes, grandfather. It truly is.”
“So, do not forget it,” he whispered, his voice growing drowsy. “Just as at the commencement of life, when an infant requires others for survival. So too, at the end, when one stands on the precipice of the grave like myself, assistance from others is vital. And here is a small truth, my boy…”
He closed his eyes.
“…in the period between, you also require others.”
Raven succumbed to sleep almost instantly thereafter.
Kaden bowed his head, tears flowing unhindered.
“I have heard you…”
And within him, Reditha—his sole companion—stirred, enveloping him with spectral arms.
