#sidequest unlocked: smuggle a possible world-ending timebomb with you because he gave u sad puppy eyes

[recitedemise]

It isn't as though it's his first time feeling lost. Goodness, even before this unfortuitous waking, he had fallen long and hard from his seat by god. He wishes that were proverbial, too, palming at his orb as he violently lurches. Still, he had known his duty, retreating to a cavern to waste in death, but the land has shifted and the seas have turned...and home, his home, is smote to dust. Yes. The world he had loved has changed through flame. Both literally and not, Gale's life he had known has left without him, and looking over, this man, this Caleb, has felt it, too. Surely. That tongue can't offer a viper's words. "And not to be forgotten," Gale suggests, "it's working diligently to convince me that I don't belong. Not that I don't appreciate some shared camaraderie, mind you, but I sincerely hope you'd found your footing. One of us has to, I'm afraid, or we may never leave here."

He's weak-kneed.

And were his heart not weeping, it certainly is now.

Gale, with a fervent focus, hangs stubborn to his words like some blasted marionette. Of course, he can't claim innocence, having still that orb to remind him, after all, but as far he knew, his ruin was singular. In other words, his folly hadn't doomed the whole of the world. Suddenly, fear barrels though him like a flogging whiplash of ice and snow. But what if he had helped? What if his burden razed his home? Perhaps he can't recall it, blind and deaf as he'd fell into slumber, but what if his body had wrought their devastation? What if, gods damned him, he had brought their end? Gale listens, and with every given word, those eyes, his expression, falls darker and colder. Caleb offers his words, tone careful, measured, but undeniably warm. He longs for it truly, having slept so long in endless shadow, but want is not paramount to must and should. He had sought godhood -- and now, all's ruined.

What if. The mage suddenly rises. What if he'd gone and killed them all? Gale looks to him, wondering how great Caleb's loss had been. Horribly, the silence now jeers what more can you take? A lot more. He steadies himself. His orb thunks, his brain pounds, but his heart roars fiercer. "I'm afraid it is exactly that: a chance," he starts. "And if not, of course, then I must insist we change that. This has all been...eye-opening, truly, Caleb Widogast, but there are whole centuries, kingdoms that would span between us. There is no mortal explanation that would reason our meeting as either natural or sane. As loathed as I am say to this, I must say that my acquainting with you is our juncture from where we part -- but you are certainly well read, as expected from a wizard. I say this with an intimate knowledge, but those mages of Avalir were...fatally proud." Oh. That orb howls to them again. Maybe, Caleb Widogast, you had found man's killer.

Yet, still, somewhere aching in voice: do not leave me.

Blue eyes soften with empathy as he watches the strange mage's expressions flicker between confusion, grief, and disbelief. He can only imagine the shock of waking to find the world you knew has crumbled to dust. Nine hundred years… it is unfathomable. Caleb himself has experienced loss, betrayal, the feeling of having your very identity stripped away. But this… to lose everything and everyone you ever knew in what feels like the blink of an eye... his heart sympathizes for this man and he cannot help but believe him. "I cannot pretend to understand exactly what you are feeling," Caleb begins gently, "But I do know the pain of loss. Of having your world shattered and reformed into something… unrecognizable." He takes a breath, steeling himself for the tale he must tell. The words taste bitter on his tongue.

"The records recovered speak of Avalir's might and splendor. A beacon of arcane achievement, pushing the boundaries of what was possible with magic." Caleb's voice is soft, reverent almost. He can’t help it, there is a natural curiosity to this era of time for anyone well-studied in magic. "But they also speak of hubris. Of mages drunk on their own power, seeking to ascend to godhood itself." Much like the Matron of Ravens herself. His eyes flick to meet Gale's chestnut one, searching, wondering how much the man already knows. "The accounts vary on the specifics but they say Avalir's mages delved too deep into magics beyond their control. That they tapped into powers never meant for mortal hands. And it… destroyed them. Destroyed everything." Caleb swallows hard, his voice barely above a whisper now. "Avalir fell from the sky in a cataclysm. Leylines shifted, the Weave reformed. The Age of Arcanum ended and the Calamity began."

The ginger-haired man falls silent for a moment, letting the weight of his words sink in. He cannot meet Gale's expression, instead staring at his own hands clasped tightly in his lap. "I am sorry, truly. Sorry that you had to learn of it this way." After a pause, he looks up again, something fierce and determined in his gaze. "But you are not entirely alone. I may not be of Avalir, but I am a wizard, like yourself. And I believe our meeting here was not mere chance."