He chuckled to himself, trying to hide how scared and nervous he was at the moment. He had expected this to happen, but he had just hoped it wouldn't. It had.

"It's been a while, Aether? Have you made up your mind... on what you desire?"

The figure standing in front of him was exactly like him, from head to toe, with no flaw. A shadow of who he was, but one with its own will, to overthrow its master.

The Abyss.

He hadn't missed this question, after all; last time, it meant his teacher's death, so he was scared that it might mean something, and yet, if it was, he wasn't going to let anyone under him die anymore.

Aether sighed, lying down on the floor, knowing he was going to be there for a long time.

"Not sure. Either way, how have you been? I enjoyed not having you in my head while inside Frozen Crown."

He tried to get a reaction out of it, but instead of getting mad or saying something to him, he just smiled, as if he knew something he didn't.

"Yeah, sure. I've noticed you got Voidpiercer, or rather, a copy. Figures, you aren't worthy of the real deal."

Aether rested his head in his palm, smiling cockily. It was a duel on who could make the other break the other's facade. He knew that both of them were angry, and that these comments weren't making things better, but he also knew so he could let it get to him, and lose.

"Maybe one day I will. After all, I think I like The Daemon more than you. He seems more powerful."

...

The Abyss burst out laughing, catching him off guard slightly, but he regained himself. It made his stomach twist weirdly, how his laugh was so similar to his, yet at the same time, so evil and different.

"That little child? Stronger than me? That's the funniest thing I have ever heard in my life. And I wasn't born yesterday, you know?"

...

"You say that, but you can't replicate my mark."

...

The Abyss stopped laughing, looking down at his arm, which indeed had no mark. They were perfectly the same everywhere else, and yet, in the perfect disguise, the most important thing was missing, the Mark.

"If you are stronger than him, why can't you bear this mark? Isn't it your mark?"

The Abyss frowned, covering his arm with the sleeve of his cloak.

"You don't know anything, brat, don't try talking about the past when you know nothing."

Aether stood up, stretching his body.

"You're right, I hardly know anything about the past, only pieces of a memory. But what I do know is the present, the one I am living in. If you think about it, your past and identity revolve around me now; everything I do will be part of your past."

...

"Maybe you are part of the present, but you won't be part of my future, as before that, I would have already taken you over completely. How much do you think you will endure? Even now, I am getting stronger, while you stay the same. So talk, all you want."

Aether wanted to say he wasn't bothered by that fact, but he very much was. The Abyss got stronger with each day; even when he didn't, he could sleep all day, or challenge a book, and no matter what, it would get stronger. And if it became stronger than him, it was going to take over.

"Like I'll ever let you. You're underestimating me, your vessel?"

The Abyss tilted its head slightly.

"I've never said anything like that; you're just making stuff up now. Of course I'm not underestimating you..." ... "I'm thinking too highly of you, actually. You're only a lonely slave."

Aether got closer, summoning his blade to strike, thinking that there might be a chance that its ability would work wherever they were, even if in reality it was only a dream.

But it had unfortunately failed; he was unable to kill in this place.

"You said that, but I am chosen, aren't I?

...

Aether opened his eyes, finally waking up; he had been asleep for a while. He could notice that from how much the place had changed. It looked... cleaner. Either Lyra had found herself a new hobby, or someone new had joined and cleaned their whole house; if there was someone like that, they were replacing Lyra as his left hand.

Of course, he was joking; he would never. Even if she wasn't the most powerful, Lyra was someone who was very intelligent, so she could plan stuff and make it happen. But more importantly, he trusted her. Just like he trusted Riven with all his heart.

He didn't think there was going to be someone to replace her, even more Riven, so he was kind of stuck with her by his side, which made him pray she picked up some good habits, since she had too few compared to her bad habits.

Riven, of course, wasn't causing him any problem; the boy was intelligent and actually listened, compared to a certain someone.

Walking barefoot on the broken wooden floor, he had some splinters get into his feet, but he quickly got them out without even shouting out of pain. He had gotten used to this kind of pain, so it didn't matter to him,

Walking into the living room, he only saw Riven, taking a little break from what it seemed like. Either way, it seems like they hadn't moved away, so they were going to continue staying here; it didn't matter to him, after all, they were at the Library, his second home, the place his teacher liked most.

***

[Character Codex: Sync Stable]

Name: Aether Moirai

Age: 14

Race: Human

Affiliation: Royal Family

[Path]: —Vessel of the Abyss—

> You were never meant to hold this power. And yet… the Abyss has chosen you.

Knowledge Rank — [Echo]

>0/1000 knowledge shard

Codex Class — [Reader]

> Sync Rate: 73%

Affinity — [Abyss]

> A slumbering void stirs within you. It gazes back.

[Affinity Bane]: —Stranded Resolve —

[Mental Fortitude Thresholds]

> 80 — Clear Mind: Subject resists Abyssal influence entirely

> 60–79 — Subtle Echoes: Whispered thoughts emerge

> 40–59 — Instability Detected: Reflexive Abyssal traits may emerge

> 20–39 — Possession Risk: Abyss seeks control

< 20 — Vessel Breach: Control lost temporarily

Mental Fortitude: 100/100

Status: Subject is in full control.

[Abyssal Pulse Log]

-------------------

[Skills / Abilities]

Abyssal Abilities — [Shadow Speech],[Mask of the Fool]

Skills—  [Echo Word]

[Relics]

—[Hair extension]

— [Cloak of Dread]

—[VoidPiercer Wound (Replica)]

—[The Waning Tear]

—[Unwavering Paint]

***

He stared at his sync, not believing how close he had gotten in recent times. Not long ago, when he was with his master, he had only climbed to nine sync in like three years, so now, that he was sitting so close to finally reaching enlightenment, he couldn't wait. He knew how close they were to starting to clear books, so he was really excited.

"Riven, hey, are you the only one left or something?" Aether said jokingly, waving his hand to his most trusted subordinate.

The boy laughed, happy to see his master awake again after who knows how long.

"No, we're all alive. The others have a little work to do, but they will be back. We have been doing well until now, so now that you are back, I expect big things."

Riven said, filled with pride, he was trying to make himself seem like a great leader, and putting pressure on him, little did she know, this was making her want to do his plan even more.

"Oh, you should expect amazing things.

...

"So, um, this is all?"

Seven people, seven in his personal squad, yes, he hadn't chosen them, but more by the Riven, either way, he trusted that Riven knew what he was doing when he picked everyone, after all, he himself was fit for a leader, so he knew who was best for his kingdom.

A girl with skin like chocolate, and eyes and hair like a darker coffee.

A boy with red hair like blood, and eyes darker than the Abyss itself, he couldn't even see his reflection inside of them. How did he even know where his pupil was?

There were more, like a girl with skin like marble, and white as snow, and with blonde hair as light as his. Glistening even inside the darkness.

But to give each a description was going to take a while, so he wasn't, because affinities were more important, and either way, he was probably not going to remember most. Even if one of them died in a story, they would be replaced. It was a sad fact.

He cleared his throat, finding it a little harder to make up his ideas when seven whole people are awaiting them, even if he had been a leader of a cult, since it was more like a cult versus cult inside of Frozen Crown.

But in the end, he was able to do it.

"So what do you think of joining a book after this. I just want to see what state the district is in. We need to get stronger after all."

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