After navigating to the brightest light in the dim soul space, the familiar radiant pathway pulling my body through.
With a flash I find myself falling through the air, landing on my feet. I find myself overlooking a vast forest from atop a cliff.
A series of small thuds land behind me, Elaine stands looking over the same view, as for alice….she landed in a tangled heap. Walking over I extend a hand to help her to her feet, "You're a bit clumsy for an ancient being." I say in a teasing tone, as I pull Alice to her feet.
"Why must you jest so? I've been locked away for so very long, I simply need time to attune myself to my body again," Alice turns her head to the side indignantly.
"Mmm, it may because I find your reactions truly adorable," turning to Elaine I smile lightly, "Now Miss Elaine, which direction should we go?"
"The objective is to find a beast to form a spirit contract with. There are many powerful presences in the forest to our rear however..." Elaine hesitates for a few moments before continuing, "There's an extremely dark presence further past those, meaning it should be a Divine beast of Shadow."
"Well then why don't we try to find that? I am aligned with the shadow affinity, but I guess I could search for something that goes with lightning or earth as well." I scratch the back of my head my gaze following the direction she point's.
"That would be a difficult spirit to form a contract with," Alice observes from my side as she dusts some dirt from her trousers.
"What is it they say? With great risk comes great reward after all," I laugh my hand resting on the Quillon dagger and Shortsword to steady my hands. "Are Divine spirits capable of communication?"
"The majority are, needless to say this is risky. Their attitude depends on the Deity which blessed them, and their are both evil and good Deities that can bestow blessings. Do you remember what they are from the classes?"
"Yes, to start there are the three High Deities, rulers of the heavens. The god of the sky, Caelum, his sister Sumare, Goddess of the sea, as well as their brother Hua Mas. Then their cousin deities, The god of the forge Conquo, his sister the goddess of knowledge Schenei. Then their husband and wife respectively, the goddess of beauty Decaria and her husband The god of Music Melosic. Their counterparts are the Seven Demon Kings, known only by their titles. There is Wrath, Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Pride, Melancholy, and Sloth. All of these were once regular humans who fell from grace to become the first of the demonic race." I sigh after reciting all I could remember, "That should cover it, right?"
"That's correct, all divine beasts have been blessed by the gods due to a variety of reason's. With how dark the aura is I sense from this one however, I think it's safe to say it may have been blessed by one of the demon kings, depending on which one our chances vary." Elaine shrugs, "Let's see what we'll be up against, considering how stationary the aura has been for the past few hours, it's safe to say it's an artifact or something similar."
Eventually after walking for a few more hours, we come across a large clearing with a stone dome-shaped building in the center. "Is that the place," I quietly question as my eyes scan the area around us.
"This is the place," Elaine confirms, not seeing anything we move towards the building.
The eerie silence in the area grating on my nerves', "Isn't it strange that we haven't seen any animals the entire time we've been walking?" I ask as we stand in front of the large stone entrance.
"It is odd, but it could be due to the aura that's being produced from this area. Most animals' can sense and will instinctively avoid what they perceive as dangerous." Elaine says from behind me.
Reaching out, I trail my fingers on the door, "I wonder why..." I mutter under my breath. A storm of dust and sand falls as the massive doors start to slowly open. The interior of the dome lies another pedestal, with circular symbols carved in the center. 'What the hell? This is made in the same way as Alice's prison.' My eyes glint with a savage light, when a soft wave of mana rolls through the area. I look down at my hands in confusion, when I hear a dull thud and a startled cry from behind me.
I turn around, and my eyes widen, as Elaine has collapsed to her knees. "W-W-What is this?" She mumbles, clenching at her chest and stomach. For some reason tears stream down her face, "What is this feeling?" she cries out.
Alice beside me clenches my cloak, her hand covering her mouth. "I feel...a thirst like when I was a fledgling , but why..." Alice groans as blood flows from her lips, which slowly stops flowing as she heals.
"Tee hee heehn, oh how very unfortunate you are lady." A voice cackles from within the dome, "I am Gluttony, and I welcome you to my shire. Behold a taste of the curse the gods themselves put upon me whilst casting me from the heavens..." A woman's voice echoes in my mind, before trailing into silence.
"What is this," My eyes narrow as I gaze at the pedestal in the shrine.
"To think someone can resist the sensa-" The voice cuts itself off before laughing maniacally, "To think, that a human besides me could feel this way and still maintain their bearings. Let us see if this is simply your will."
"I've no clue what you're trying to do," I smirk as a storm of mana flows through me, "But I don't feel a thing," I blink a few times, as a darkness slowly overcomes my vision.
"Show me everything that you are," I hear a soft whisper as a familiar black space appears around me. "You're wishes, your want's, and most of all your regrets." a tantalizing voice whispers in my right ear as soft hands rest on my shoulders, slowly moving to cup both sides of my head in their hands.
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Images flash past my vision in reverse not unlike that of a movie, before stopping. Then they begin to move forwards. The scene from a time from when I was still a simple child.
As the scenes slowly reel through my mind my both limply floats in the embrace of the spirit in my Spirit plane. A gaze as empty as the void stares at the space in front of us where a screen sits playing the images from my mind.
A younger me, with light blonde hair, as unruly as my behavior. Is racing with my friends on bikes, a rainstorm that had just blown into town chases us as we race it across town. As we hoot and holler speeding through the city streets. When we come to the steepest street in the town, we fly down it not worried in the least. My best friend Jason beside me, I glance to the side, and we both laugh.
As we fly down the hill, kicking up water with our bike tires. Having the best time of our life, but that's when it all fell apart. My bike tire jerks to the side, a rock popping out and flying across the road as I crash into him. His bike veers to the left, slamming into a road railing. The rest of my friends crash over me, simple scraps and bruises. I remember rushing down the steep slope on the left, holding his head, coated in blood, in my hands.
In the floating void of my mind and spirit, a voice softly echoes as I struggle in her grasp. "I see it," she giggles, "The lose took a bit of that person you were away, let us continue."
The next scene from a year later, after failing to find a hammer for my father, he'd beaten me in the sternum. again and again and again. Each time the wind was knocked out of the lungs in my chest, 'till my vision fades to black. With each time I lost consciousness, I shuddered back to it, just to receive yet another. accompanying every loss of consciousness, was a sense of ease, the emptiness of that black void. It came as a comfort. Until the man stopped with the hammer, a single sentence came from his lips. "You shoulder this, and nobody else will need to be harmed."
Later that night, I stood in my pajamas. In front of me an ornate gun case with a shotgun, as tears streamed down my face, I stood with my hand pressed to the glass before going back to bed.
Then came the murder of my mother, on the weeks she had me, I endured abuse by way of mental slurs' and beatings alike. On one fate filled night, I walked to the kitchen for a drink. Hearing an odd noise I peek through the gap in the open door. The man my mother had been friends with for as long as I could remember, was holding her by her shoulders. A knife coated in blood in his hand, as he bit deeply into her throat. The sounds of tearing meat filling my ears. As the terror, rage and fear roiled in my chest, I walk to the dining room where a pistol sat in a drawer. The sound of gunshots echo through the house from the pistol. Afterwards I collapse to my knees, the previously boiling emotions drained from me.
I don't quite know how long I had been there in a trance like state, but police eventually arrived. Their voices falling on deaf ears, pulling me from the house and into a squad car.
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The woman removes her hands from me, floating in front of me with her head tilted to the side. "This is quite odd, for you to be so empty, yet still display emotions, unless..." She draws closer tilting my head up by the chin to look into my eyes.
"Unless it's all simply an act, you mean?" A smile plays on my face, as I reach out brushing the hair from her face. "Have you studied your fill yet?"
"Hehehe, come on now, you know as much as I do what the answer to that is." A thumb trails on my face, "I have released the others from the Aura of Emptiness. That is my reward for what you have provided unto me Ezekiel." She pushes herself closer, "If you desire it, take the artifact that contains me, and consume it. It contains my soul, and therefore my blessings."
"That might be difficult unless you allow me to return to my body." I shrug as we float through the dark expanse that is my soul realm.
I blink as the dark sky appears above me, filled with twinkling stars. Finding my head resting on Alice's thighs. Her hand resting on my chest and one buried in my hair. I slowly sit up, "I wonder how long it's been," I mutter and stand up, lightly dusting my pants off. I walk into the dome, cracking my neck. As the pillars confining Alice had, these fade to dust with a touch.
I stand in front of the pedestal, a small black bead lies in front of me. I raise it to my mouth, to find Alice's hand on my wrist. "What are you doing?" I ask turning to look at her.
"I should be the one asking you that. What is it?" She looks up at me cooly.
"This? It's an artifact crafted from the body of a Sin."
She slowly withdraws her hand from my wrist, "I see, so you wish for the power of the Fourth sin of Gluttony?"
"Do you want to know the reason I was unaffected by that power, Alice?"
She looks at me silently, before reaching out and pressing her palm to my chest, "It's because you're an empty vessel. Devoid of emotion, I've known all along as your scent has never changed."
"I see," a smile plays on my face as I place a hand on top of her's, You've known all along, you're just as perceptive as Isabella, I see. Then does that mean you don't wish for me to take this?"
"Hero from another world. I shall remain by your side, so to pay the debt I owe to you for freeing me." Alice places a hand on her chest, "I hereby swear fealty to you, to be there to serve you for as long as I live. The moment you freed me from my bonds in the ethereal plane, till the end of time. You shall have my companionship." Mana swirls around slowly sinking into the skin on her chest to form a Black symbol, Alice moves forward. Pulling at my shoulder I lean down, her teeth sink into my neck, the blood flowing freely. As it touches the crest it glows a deep crimson, and a message appears in my vision.
Candidate to the 4th Sin of Gluttony, has acquired Slave Vampire Princess Alice. Add to party?
I blink, as Alice licks the blood from my chest and shoulder. 'Yes' I select, Pulling my hand to my mouth I swallow the black pill.