CHAPTER 6.
" Wha-what's that?" He stammered, slowly sliding backward and off his bed.
" No need to fret child. Just open the door and I'll be done quickly." A voice echoed through the window, unhinged and husky.
The voice sent chills down his spine as he continued to step backward while his body continued to tremble. He wanted to leave the room as soon as possible while not letting his eyes of the strange creature.
He managed to reach the door after a few steps and he immediately opened it and ran out of the room. Just as he was out, he closed the door behind him and rushed downstairs.
His heart was beating louder with each passing second, his feet thudding loudly against the wooden floor as he tried to reach the living room as soon as possible.
" Hey..." He called out as he reached the bottom of the stairs, his voice trailing off at the sight of something even worse.
The two boys had their eyes fixed on the front door that had just flung open, and in came walking a black cat with glowing red eyes, the same he had seen through the window.
" Ohh a cat." The boy mumbled, staring at the strange cat.
" Hey back!" Nexus yelled as he sent a vase straight towards the cat.
His fear had only intensified after seeing the creature since he didn't know why it would come to visit him. Quite different from heavenly beings, spirits can take whatever they want as well.
With the descent of calamity that birthed forth curses, many of them were absorbed, leaving them almost extinct. But even after that, the excess spiritual energy left in the world would slowly gather once more, giving birth to a new spirit.
These creatures needed human companions to feed off in order to keep themselves alive, feeding off the person's soul until their inevitable deaths.
They would manipulate you to their will and then force you to sign a contract, one that could only be broken at the death of the contractor.
" That's enough." The cat boomed, its voice echoing throughout the room once more.
The vase had shattered right before it could reach the cat — hit by a strange invisible force.
It directed a burning glare towards the very person who had sent the vase flying towards it, before slowly furthering its advance into the room.
" Both weak in every possible aspect, prompting a contract right now would only lead to their deaths, but my time isn't long now." It mumbled, its eyes moving between the two boys.
It was contemplating on who best to choose between the both of them as its contractor.
" Ehh, hey, was it just me or did it just talk?" The boy inquired, now staring at the creature, " I didn't see its mouth mo..."
" Silence..."
The cat ordered, sending an intent glare right his way. The boy quickly stepped back in fear while the cat continued to proceed towards the both of them.
" Maybe I'll just see the answers I need for myself." It mumbled as its already glowing eyes lit brighter once more.
It looked straight into the eyes of the boy closest to it and the boy's eyes began glowing the same colour as its. A bright, bloody red emitting an ominous aura that made the room feel incredibly suffocating.
Nexus was trying to catch his breath watching everything unfold before him. A feeling of death loomed over him as he thought of how to escape the predicament her now found himself in.
It was clear to him that there wouldn't be anyone coming to save him, and the creature was too powerful for him so physical conflict was out of the question.
While he was still pondering, the process with the boy promptly came to an end and before he could act, he was caught in a daze too.
The boy fell to his knees, breathing heavily as his gaze slightly blurred. Tiny drops of tears went trailing down his cheeks while his entire body continued to tremble greatly.
Every ounce of energy he had had been completely drained that he could barely turn to Nexus who was already screaming in pain.
The boy fell to his knees as he began pulling his hair. His eyes were trembling and after about fifteen seconds, he fell to the floor.
" Stop it, please stop." He pleaded.
" So then, I guess we have a deal." A voice echoed in his head as he lay helplessly on the floor, " ..."
He slowly held out his hand without any objections to what the voice had just uttered. His head was throbbing in pain, and his body was trembling, but he still mustered all the strength left in him to reach out his right hand.
A searing pain went through his hand and...
[Spiritual binding complete.]
[New familial spirit: Ethereal cat of faith.]
[Innate familial talents:
Eye of faith,
Future gaze,
Flames of darkness.]
[Bonding complete]
[Merging familial talents with host]
[Additional talent: Spiritual gauge]
What it was that happened before the system notifications was completely unbeknownst to him, but he had a good idea of what happened anyway.
The cat had forced the contract on him, thereby becoming one with him. It was a symbiotic relationship that came at the cost of a shortened lifespan in place of power.
" Well then, child, I guess it'll be the both of us for a while now, won't it." The voice echoed in his head once more.
The voice continued to echo in his head, causing him to let out another scream at the top of his lungs. His eyes glowing red and this time, it was blood that came flowing out from his eyes.
The sounds of his bones breaking continued to resound throughout the room and after a while of great pain, he slowly got up from the floor, his eyes as red as ever.
" Well isn't this interesting. His body was able to adapt far more quickly than I thought." He mumbled, folding his hands repeatedly as a smirk slowly crept up his face.