With night air nipping cold and acerbic, the whole weight of the day's events still replayed within his mind as Zephyr walked towards his quarters. Today he had proved a point to himself and to the Guild that he could indeed control the Abyss. Yet even now, he knew full well that long afterward he would be hearing the soft whisperings of the relic, haunting him-a shadow which he could never quite rid himself of. For the Abyss wasn't tamed; it was merely waiting, watching.
Inside, Mira was already there, lying on her bunk and reclining her head in weariness, the usual brightness diffused. She looked up and gave him a tired smile. "You're finally back! I was starting to wonder if Kieran was making you scrub the whole training hall."
Zephyr chuckled, equally sounded exhausted. "Felt like it. He wasn't exactly light on the praise, but I suppose that's his way."
She nodded contemplatively. "Kieran is tough, but he sees potential in you. Today, you showed why. None other than you could face that relic the way you did, Zephyr."
He shifted in his seat, the freshness of the memory of the dark spear in his head. "It was not as clean as it looked, I swear. The Abyss… it's unforgiving, Mira. I thought I was in control, but there was this one moment when…" His voice tailed off, not to relive it. The chilling pull of the Abyss, the whispers of seduction… So real, so close to overtaking him.
Mira easily leaned forward, her hand falling reassuringly onto his shoulder. "Hey, don't doubt yourself-you did what most can't. I have seen the way you push yourself, Zephyr; you don't just control the shadows, you make them your own."
The words fell soft, but within, the darkness stirred restlessly. He would have spoken if a clear, insistent knock upon the door hadn't interrupted him. In the next heartbeat, before either could summon words, the door groaned open, and a figure stepped inside. Alistair gained admission to the room with silent ease; his face hooded inside the folds of his cloak.
"Zephyr. Mira. We have need to speak.
They straightened, catching something serious in his tone. Alistair wasn't one for casual visits. He was a senior Conduit in the Guild, a good, trusted ally, but heavy tension clung to him tonight.
"What's wrong?" Zephyr asked, nervousness already clenching the knot in his stomach.
Alistair shut the door behind him, his face sombre. "It's about Kieran. There's something you should know.
Mira and Zephyr exchanged a concerned glance before turning back to Alistair, awaiting his continuation.
"Kieran has been observed over the past month to perform… unorthodox rituals," Alistair began slowly. "Rituals against what the Guild has taught us. There are rumors that he is researching the dark depths of the Abyss-seeking power that no Conduit should ever try to harness.
Zephyr's eyes had widened. Kieran? The man who preached caution to him, the man who kept reminding him to keep his ambition in check?
Mira frowned, the cast of her face clouding up in unbelief. "Are you sure, Alistair? Kieran may be harsh, but he is the last one who would break all rules concerning the Guild's principles."
Alistair sighed hard, his face weighted with conflicted emotions. "That is what makes this even harder to take in. But I have seen the signs myself. His aura… it's changed. The shadows around him feel different, darker and more chaotic. The Guild has been watching him, and tonight they'll be moving to confront him. I came to warn you both because…" He checked, looking directly at Zephyr. "You're close to him, Zephyr. I thought you deserved to know.
Zephyr was beyond reeling. Kieran had been more than a mentor; he'd been a figure of respect, someone he aspired to be. That he'd corrupt these powers was… incomprehensible.
"But… why?" Zephyr finally could get out with a voice hoarse from the disbelief.
Alistair shook his head. "Sometimes, power corrupts even the stoutest of souls, Zephyr. Sometimes, the Abyss doesn't stop at whispers. It pokes, tests, until even the strong shatter."
It was as if the weight of Alistair's words had settled upon them, the room silent. Zephyr fought with the revelation-hard-fisted. First, if Kieran, with all those warnings and discipline, could fall to the Abyss, then what to say for himself? Was he, too, one day bound to fall?
What do we do?" Mira cut through the quiet, underlined with overtones of urgency. "Do we try talking to him? Convince him to stop?"
Alistair's eyes went flinty. "It's too late for that. The Guild leaders will talk to him tonight. It's out of our hands now.
Zephyr nodded slowly, an ache deep in his chest. He had trusted Kieran, believed in him. It was as if the bottom gave way under his feet all of a sudden.
"Thanks for the candor, Alistair," Zephyr said, his voice strong and yet hollow.
Alistair nodded and relaxed his features just a bit. "I know this is none of it is easy. Remember, all of us must stay alert. The Abyss is dangerous road and none of us utterly resistant to it." Thus saying, he whirled and he was gone, leaving behind other two staring at his back in stunned silence.
They sat amidst the silence awhile, lost to their thoughts. Finally, Mira spoke into the heavy stillness, her voice low and laced with steely determination. "If Kieran fell, we need to be stronger, Zephyr. We can't afford to let ourselves fall into the Abyss."
Zephyr looked up, and their eyes met. There was firmness in her eyes that steadied him; at this one moment, in the middle of the storm, a spark of hope lit as he mustered a faint smile and nodded. "You're right, Mira; we won't let it consume us."
Later that night, unable to sleep, Zephyr slipped out of his quarters. The air was free, and he needed space to get a hold of his thoughts. The yard was deserted; the shadows stretched long and silent due to the moonlight. He wandered aimlessly, his mind with questions and doubts, which just didn't seem to go away.
He turned a corner and heard voices-a quieted conversation carried on the night air. He froze and listened hard.
". not here, Kieran. If they catch us-"
"Do you think I care?" said Kieran in a low tone with that strange, unfamiliar weight of intensity. "The Guild has blinded itself with fear, content with mere scraps of the true power of the Abyss. But I've seen what lies beyond."
Zeph's heart was racing as he pressed himself against the wall, edging closer to hear.
"Kieran," the other voice-one he recognized as another senior Conduit, a quiet and aloof woman named Selene-sounded torn. "If they find out, it isn't going to be exile. You'll be destroyed."
"Let them try." Sour acid seemed to etch Kieran's words. "They think they can rein us in, bind us to their meaningless regulations. But I've already transcended them. With the power I have discovered, I can reshape this world-to free it from fear."
Zephyr's blood ran cold. This wasn't some passing error, some small wrong. Kieran had indeed fallen, succumbed to the temptation of the Abyss. Evidently, he would not be coming back.
He listened, growing horror with every word, as suddenly the realization dawned-he had to warn the Guild. If this was something Kieran had planned in the use of forbidden power, then the Guild had a right to know. But how was he to betray the one man who so patiently had trained him, taught him? Part of him still clung to the memories of Kieran, the mentor whom he had looked up to. The figure that was standing before him and talking was no longer him.
He didn't take a single moment to hesitate before he vanished into the dead of night, trying to make his way through the silence as fast as he could. His heart racing, he was making for the quarters of the Council of Guilds and elders; all that happened, he would have to tell.
The following morning, the Guild was alive with whispers of Kieran's betrayal. A grim, sulky mood processed through the house. Zephyr eyed the others grimly, his mind fleeing to how many lives Kieran's ambition would alter. Mira found him near the training hall, the furrow on her brow deep.
"You did the right thing, Zephyr," she said softly, trying to reach into what turmoil lay in Zephyr's mind.
He nodded, even though it felt shallow. "It doesn't feel like it.
She laid a comforting hand upon his shoulder. "The Abyss is a path lined with choices. Some easy, some impossibly hard. But you've proven today that you are stronger than it. You chose loyalty to the Guild over personal loyalty."
Zephyr stared into her eyes-the trust shining in them-for the first time since Alistair's revelation. He was finally a little at peace.
But as the sun climbed further, and the Guild was getting ready to leave with Kieran, he knew this peace would not last. The shadows would come back, and with them, the more gruelling tests. For that, all strength would be required to face what lay ahead of him.