Cypher didn’t hold much faith in old man Syntinnial. He trusted him not to attack him out of the blue, or threaten his life, but beyond that, he wasn’t sure how to deal with the man. He also had many things on his plate to deal with aside from some random stranger his mother asked to watch over him.
Cypher could only look at the man and assume he was a lone Conductor living the hermit’s life wandering the wilderness. He doubted that the man could reveal much of anything concerning his mother, his friends, or anything else he might want to know about.
Still, he was in a foreign land. Farnor might neighbor Dellorim, but Cypher had never been here before. There was a lot he didn’t know, first and foremost, his current location within the country. That bit of information was both crucial and unnecessary since he could just use a Slingate to return home.
As it was, he followed the old man back to his cottage. Cypher expected something humble, but what he saw after that short journey took him a bit by surprise. Syntinnial’s cottage was nestled under a great oak tree that rested upon a small grassy hill with a small well off to the side.
In the wide valley below, many bright blue flowers bloomed in the crisp air. Each resembled the ones around the Hawthorn trees in Seven City. Each row of bright blue flowers twinkled in the fading sunlight. Seeing so many in one place was quite breathtaking, and he couldn’t help but admire such a view.
Shaking away his awe at such a scene, Cypher took note of the position of the sun and the angle of the light. From that, he was able to tell that something like two days had passed since the encounter with Aylynah and the Order. He grew frustrated that Syntinnial hadn’t mentioned that, but hid his annoyance. With that feeling, another thought came to mind.
“Hey wait a minute, if it’s been two whole days since my battle in the warehouse, shouldn’t you have recovered enough from your bout with that worm to have fought it off yourself? Why the hell would you make me handle it alone?! Or at all for that matter!?” he asked.
Syntinnial completely ignored the question and opened the front door. Stepping inside, he began ushering Cypher in as well. As he stepped inside the cottage, Syntinnial began going about gathering bread and fruit for his new guest.
“Oi, answer me, old man!” Cypher exclaimed, but Syntinnial only whistled innocently and worked faster to gather up the items. Cypher grumbled a bit more but ultimately let it go for now. It was clear that Syntinnial was not going to address the issue at all and pressing for more information would only be a hassle.
If he didn’t know better, he’d be surprised that the old man had so much vitality after spending two days inside a cave. But this was no ordinary old man. Even if for some reason his battle prowess was lacking, Syntinnial would still have a decently powerful body despite his apparent age.
He still couldn’t get a read on the guy. Still, given that he had driven a Rank-Three Drudge Worm out of its home without harming it could only mean that Syntinnial himself was at least in the upper tier of the Third Rank, perhaps even the lower tier of the fourth. Furthermore, he was able to scry Cypher from an entire country away, and even do so without being noticed by the Order’s anti-espionage wards that no doubt riddled that warehouse from top to bottom.
Syntinnial was clearly much more powerful than he had first assumed. Why this man decided to play the fool was anyone’s guess.
Cypher looked around at the trappings of the small cottage. It was unimpressive to be sure and was quite simple. A small table with a couple of cups on its rough surface sat in the middle of the first two rooms. It had three chairs placed around it, and a thick brown wool rug lay on the floor beneath the table.
A sink stood against the wall behind it, surrounded by a series of small cabinets on either side. A small rounded window rested above it, and one could get a clear view of the blue valley below. Against another wall rested a short bookshelf filled with books of varying sizes, save for the bottom row which held nothing.
Light decorations covered the walls in some places and a sword lay in the corner covered in cobwebs. Cypher had been right in his assessment that Syntinnial was once a swordsman. The other room was behind a closed door, and Cypher imagined that it was Syntinnial’s room.
Syntinnial waved his hand at one of the empty chairs around the table and said, “Have a seat!” He himself had already sat down with the bowl of food, and as Cypher joined him, the two began eating. Cypher soon realized exactly how hungry he was.
He had used almost all of his energy in the battle with Aylynah, and after that, another two days of being unconscious had passed. Coupled with the earlier battle against the worm, it was a wonder that Cypher was even able to defeat it in the first place.
Cypher continued eating even as Syntinnial finished and began to enjoy a small cup of tea. The man smiled and stared out the window, patiently waiting for Cypher to finish. He didn’t seem to mind that Cypher was wolfing down the loaf of apple bread and the assortment of cherries and pears he had gathered. Even the small hunk of salted pork didn’t stand a chance against the ravenous young Conductor.
After Cypher finished he knocked back a glass of what he could only guess was Farnorian Mead, and then quickly filled it for another few gulps. Cypher wasn’t much for alcohol, but this was sweet, and seemed to quench his thirst about as well as water would. Of course, it also had that familiar bite that alcohol carried, but it was masked quite well by a hint of cinnamon and roasted nuts.
“So,” began Syntinnial, “I’m going to just cut to the chase here and drop the bullshit. Where would you like me to begin?”
Cypher thought for a moment, taken aback by Syntinnial’s sudden declaration but decided to roll with it. “How about the part where you know my parents?”
Syntinnial nodded and cleared his throat. “Very well,” he began, “About twenty years ago, your father and I worked together on a secret assignment given to us by the previous king of Dellorim. It wasn’t a very difficult mission all things considered, but we became great friends through the encounter.”
Cypher nodded and Syntinnial continued, “Of course, I had known of Fenix for quite some time. I had been watching him since he was but a child, just as I have done for his father and his grandfather before him.”
Cypher choked a little on the mead he was drinking when he heard that. “What? Do you mean to tell me that you knew my great-grandfather?”
Syntinnial smiled and nodded, “Yes, I’ve had my eye on your family for quite some time. You could say that I’m a protector of sorts. I’ve seen twelve generations of Ceraunus men and women grow into powerful Conductors Cypher, and it’s a good thing I did.”
Cypher went wide-eyed. He ran the numbers over in his mind quickly. If he averaged that his ancestors made it to the fourth rank, then their lives would have been extended by quite a lot, at least 450 years in some cases. Cypher himself would live to be 200 if he stopped his advancements right now. He quickly lost count of how many years would have had to have passed for that many generations of his family to come and go.
“That’s impossible!” Cypher declared after a moment, and Syntinnial chuckled. “You would have to be over a thousand years old! Even if you made it to the Relic Ranks you’d only live for a maximum of 700 years!” finished Cypher.
It was pretty well known that Conductors gained about a hundred years of life every time they advanced a rank. That of course varied thanks to life and death battles, as well as other factors that could cut their lives short, but generally, it was a safe metric to assume.
Syntinnial swirled the liquid in his cup around for a moment as he chuckled softly and said, “Yes Cypher, it would indeed. To be exact, I’m six thousand and twenty-six years old.” Cypher froze then and slowly set his cup down.
A claim like that was madness, and Cypher thought about leaving the moment his brain registered what the old man had said. However, when he saw how serious Syntinnial was, he decided to humor him.
“Okay, let’s say that I believe you. How is it possible that you’re that ancient and still living?” Cypher asked, swinging his cup at him as he settled back into his seat.
“Are you sure you want to know? It’s a long story,” Syntinnial replied. Cypher only nodded, and Syntinnial smiled and began speaking again.
