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Clearing his mind was difficult. Perhaps even impossible, at the moment. So he’d stopped trying, as of late. With his meditations, he’d been attempting new strategies. New sources of peace and comfort.

Instead of a blank canvas in his mind, he allowed his thoughts to turn to his ancestors. It was a simple enough matter, thanks to all the times he’d been able to sift through Axiolis’ memories. By now, it almost felt like those memories were his own.

Visions of the past.

Particularly, it gave him insight into what the previous Water Dragons of Sair were like. He’d been curious about this since the very first time he’d been able to harness pan-forma with Ax, but it felt especially relevant now.

Nerida Sebolt. Mercutio Garza. Cristina Zabat. Viviana Stroud. Cassius Merlo. Lluc and Marcelo Redwater. Rafael Delaguna.

Rhein Ricardo.

First of the Water Dragons. Admittedly, Rhein was the one that Zeff was most interested in, but Axiolis’ memories of the man were not as detailed as he might’ve liked. Ax had not been particularly influential during that time. In fact, he’d apparently been a bit of a bum. Held in low esteem by most of his kin for not keeping his word very often.

Strange to compare with the Axiolis that Zeff had known for thirty years now. If nothing else, it was clear evidence that even reapers were capable of growing and changing over time, despite how impossible that often seemed.

And even though they all shared the same divine ability, the Water Dragons themselves were surprisingly varied in terms of personality. Zeff recalled hearing theories in the past about how a servant’s ability was linked, in some way, to their personality, but these memories seemed to counter that idea--at least partially, if not entirely.

Lluc and Marcelo, for example, were infamously bold and brash men, always making a scene wherever they went.

Viviana, meanwhile, was a meek and dainty young woman who rarely spoke a word--to the point that it turned into something of a crisis, even. She grew up during a period of peace and was able to enjoy her youth in comfort, becoming quite well-known as a magnificent painter.

But when war arrived and her kin looked to her for guidance, she did not handle the change well. She proved consistently indecisive and allowed strife between the Houses to reach a fever pitch, until the entire tradition of the Water Dragon being treated as the defacto leader of the Rainlords was undone.