"You're... in quite a bit of trouble, aren't you?"
A soft, flickering light reflected the pale yellow fabric of her ethereal dress.
Intricate frills and segmented designs decorated the surface of the silky cloth of her ball gown, which swayed with a rhythm. It looked as if it was an extension of her long blonde hair that draped down her shoulders, untied and flowing. Her ghostly blue eyes that reflected his figure, contrasted neatly with the dark maroon table she leaned against. In the palm of her hands, a porcelain candle without a base burned silently.
'Creak...'
He was standing in the middle of his room, surrounded by familiar furniture and objects, but glancing to the window, it was pitch black. It wasn't night, nor were the windows covered. Karlos could tell that the sky outside had completely darkened. The only source of light was the candle held by the girl.
"Say... Do you believe your actions have consenquences?"
Karlos tried to respond, but nothing happened.
"...Is that so? Then why have you not atoned?"
The candle in her hand melted rapidly. Scorching wax dripped onto her skin, but she didn't seem to have a reaction to it.
His eyes moved rapidly, but no matter the effort, Karlos stood in silence.
"We both watched it, didn't we? That fantastic theater only we knew..." She leaned forward, bringing the candle slightly closer to his face. "When we were both just children, we saw his fate. Didn't we? The path that you paved for him. Yet, when he made it to the edge of that path, you hesitated.
And he fell, didn't he?"
The candle, which was about the size of a finger, was no thicker than a coin now. Wax clumps dropped from her hand onto the floor. She held a pool of burning liquid in her palm, yet her skin remained unhurt and pure, like a doll.
A doll... That would be the best description for what Karlos saw in front of him. And yet...
"Don't you have emphathy? "
...Who are you?
"...'You?' "
The girl got down from the table. Her dress and hair gracefully flowed in the air as she walked, like a moving painting. Her blue eyes, which seemed so clear before, were imbued with disdain.
'SPLASH'
Turning over her palm, a clump of wax pathetically dripped onto the floor. In the middle of the puddle of melted liquid, a candlewick burned silently.
Slowly.
She was not looking at Karlos. Rather, she was looking at the final embers of the candlewick, which burnt into ash. In an instant, the two were plunged into absolute darkness as the flame died.
It was not just darkness. His nose could not smell the wax. His body felt numb. His tongue forgot the very concept of taste. He even lost the sensation of where his limbs where.
And just before his ears stopped ringing,
in this world of nothingness,
Karlos heard a voice.
"...Did you really forget who gave you that second chance?"
...
Karlos opened his eyes.
He rubbed his head with his hands as he tried to alleviate his headache, even though he had no such thing. It was simply instinctual.
After a moment, sensations crept into his body as he regained his sense of touch, smell, and sight. Slowly opening his eyes, he found himself in an open plain surrounded by all manner of oddities. Up above, he did not see the familiar wooden planks of his manor, the rocky ceiling of the cavern, or even the enigmatic white void. Instead, he was met with a golden sky that seemed to be caused by an eternal sunset. The scenery around him seemed to come straight out of a picture book.
Large, bountiful trees of golden apples swayed gently, carrying with them the majestic birds of legend. Along the ground, he saw all manner of mythological beasts coexisting. Karlos was not particularily religious, but for a moment, he suspected he had arrived in the land of the gods.
Eventually, his eyes landed on a familiar figure that was approaching him.
"Y-You're..."
"Yes, Karlos Lippe. I am Asclepius."
"..."
"..."
A hybrid creature with the body of a goat and the tail of a fish bleated.
"...May I ask where I am? Or why I'm here?"
"You are not permitted."
Thought so...
"However, you have appeared before me to be informed of your success."
Karlos was more confused than if he was simply put here with no explanation. Every word from the snake shook his cluttered thoughts, and yet, he felt calm. Perhaps it was the atmosphere of his surroundings? Or...
Asclepius, as if reading his mind, responded frankly.
"You met my descendant."
"Descendant?" Karlos had to sit down. His body was gently caressed by the flowing grass that felt like silk, comforted by the wind that smelled of honey. If he wasn't careful, he may slept then and there.
The last thing I remembered was... That blade... and.... a silver snake... Silver...!
A wave of shock passed through Karlos. His hands trembled under the pressure. His expression only shifted slightly, but his body grew cold with fear, angst, and even anger. A laughing voice echoed in his mind. So loud that he had to cover his ears. But it didn't stop.
Kassel.
That name terrified him.
"..." After sitting in silence for a moment, Asclepius circled behind Karlos, whose tattered clothes contradicted his body that was free of wounds.
"As a reward for your efforts, I shall impart to you rudimentary knowledge of Psyche."
Before Karlos could ask, Asclepius slithered his cold tail onto his skin and shifted the snake mark from his back, distorting the symbol like water to a painting.
"You are already aware of this power. That companion of yours with the silver hair has already used one form of Psyche against the Cage Boar. And... my descendant." Asclepius seemed to be calm, but his words held a trace of scorn. Though, Karlos didn't notice.
Cage Boar... Karlos shuddered at the thought of the living siege ram. The sound of his own bones breaking still resonated within his ears. Moreso, he slightly twitched at hearing the word 'companion.'
Was that what Kassel was now?
"That is unimportant, for now. Let's begin." Drawing a rough outline using his tail, Asclepius sketched a human body and 7 distinct circles up the middle, beginning from the feet.
"Every living creature possesses an inherent Psyche. This natural power is a manifestation of the mind..."
He drew a few symbols, one being a cloud and one a small circle. Karlos followed with his eyes, but realization struck his mind.
"...Only when concentrated throughout the body do we have the capability of conscious thought. These points are the 'Chakra', or more commonly referred to as Circles. By focusing-"
"I don't want this."
Karlos glared at Asclepius.
"...What do you mean?"
The young man hardly blinked, as if the snake in front of him would disappear if he did. Despite that, his voice was unshaken.
"If your gift is this, then I refuse to listen. From the beginning, you've never told me anything that could help me. Everything you said, everything you did... You forced me to follow your directions. So let me ask.
Who are you?"
"...I am Asclepius-"
"Who are you?"
"..."
The two entered a silence, but this time, it was different. Karlos was not waiting for a response from Asclepius, he was demanding it. Asclepius was not simply thinking how to respond, he was contemplating about how to refuse.
After an lengthy period of quiet, Asclepius took the initiative to break the brief tranquility for once.
"...Will you regret this decision?"
"That's not for me to decide, is it?"
Silence.
"...When you awake, the minute knowledge I have taught you thus far will allow you to momentarily regain strength. Save my descendant. After that, retreat to safety and recover."
Karlos didn't want more orders, but he had no time to argue. His time was running out.
"...Alright."
Asclepius paused for a moment.
"One last thing..." He started drawing a new picture on the soil, this time of an abstract symbol made up of various geometric shapes and lines.
"I have replaced your old mark with a new one. Since you have not been taught how to focus your Psyche, this mark will guide you."
Unlike the vicious fangs of a snake, this symbol resembled a cracked snail shell with a flower growing out of it. The swirls on the shell directly over his heart.
"...You aren't going to tell me how it works?"
"You will come to know." Asclepius gave his signature vague reply.
With nothing else to discuss, Karlos felt his mind go blank as his eyes dimmed.
"When we meet again, you will not be the same."
Eventually, he was overtaken with darkness.
...
Karlos opened his eyes to see the rocky cavern ceiling, laced with glowing blue plants and vines.
'COUGH'
It felt like tiny needles were dancing down his sore throat. He slowly raised his trembling hand and rubbed his head.
After a moment, thoughts poured into his mind.
My wounds... It doesn't seem like they've healed, but I don't feel much pain... Despite not remembering what happened during the time he was unconscious, he knew he had something he needed to do.
Stop Kassel Justiz.
Looking around, he heard a familiar laughter, tinged with unfamiliar joy.
"Hahaha!"
Karlos hesitated for a moment. The outburst was arrogant, yet cold, completely different from the upbeat girl Karlos once knew.
But he wouldn't sit back and watch helplessly any longer.
He thought how to go about his next steps for a moment, before running towards the corpse of the Cage Boar. Mustering all the strength in his legs, he tried his hardest to remove one of the imposing tusks.
One... Two... Three!
'RIP'
Thankfully, the earlier impact, the softening of the water, the tightening of the ink snakes, and the burning from the torch had all worked in tandem to loosen the tusks, making it possible to remove one.
Now armed with a weapon, Karlos sprinted straight towards the source of the laughter.
Eventually, he saw Kassel holding a staff, with a silver-haired gorgon trembling in pain on the ground beneath her feet.
There was no time to waste. He tightly clutched the boar tusk and charged straight at his former best friend.
Kassel noticed him, but it was too late.
He was simply moving too fast for her react and he slammed the large tusk on her right arm with a violent sound.
'THUD' 'CRACK'
She stumbled, but Karlos hadn't stopped. The moment he lost momentum, he threw the tusk at Kassel with all his strength, hurling her straight into a tree along with the large chunk of charred enamel and ivory.
'CRASH'
Karlos spared no time. He hurriedly ran over to the struggling gorgon.
"Hey! Can you stand? We need to leave!"
Her body was red from the bruises and she grimaced in pain. She was barely able to prop her body up.
"Here, I'll help." Karlos fought through the pain of his own wounds and reached out his hand.
She reached out hers.
Under immense pain,
Under immense burden,
They stood.