The tumultuous wind whistled the howls of damned souls. Again and again, masked by a cacophony of empty promises.
“I must save her.
“Failure isn’t an option.
“I deserve to exist.
“I deserve. . .
“Exist. . .
“I . . .
The raging storm brewed an everlasting potion of sorrow and anger. He was trapped within its eye—forced to watch as the mories around him spun faster and faster, until even his vision blurred.
There were scenes of a woman’s smile—full of yearning and trust. Her starry eyes watching his destiny unfold before her own end. There were also scenes of darkness, of desperate pleas, of true hope dangling just beyond his reach.
There was a scene. . . where his failures fully materialized.
And as the whispers of wind aid to strangle him, he glanced down below him to find a bloody mountain—its starry summit twinkling beyond sight’s edge, trembling as it twisted and morphed into sothing unrecognizable.
There was only one whisper that reached him in the end:
“Thank you. . . for caring for all this ti, Elara.”
His mind scattered in all directions, only to be pieced back together monts later. A flash of light enveloped him that quickly faded into a dark and gloomy scene.
Soren jolted awake, his heart beating out of chest as his breaths ca and went.
“You’re finally up,” Ynixia’s annoyance echoed with each syllable. He glanced around, noticing himself atop a colossal skeletal creature. Albert’s heavy steps treaded upon Carcosa’s harsh soil, sending rhythmic shudders through his bones.
He glanced toward the dark coffin positioned next to him. Its missing lid revealed a bed of pale white flowers—a young noble girl slumbering peacefully atop it.
“You’re one to talk,” he clicked his tongue then clutched his throbbing temples. “I’ve been helping with Albert’s als all this ti. When will you awaken?”
She paused for a second, then an answer echoed from the surrounding dark mist. “I believe it won’t take long. By the ti we reach Hyades Castle, I should regain most of my body’s functions.”
“Hyades Castle. . .” The na made him recall many things.
To others, it may seem unbelievable, but after spending three or four months in Carcosa, it beca far too difficult to deny this one singular truth:
The Avalon Empire still exists here.
No, perhaps calling it that might be inaccurate. Lately, Soren began calling it sothing else instead:
The Death Empire.
Everything that once existed in Yarian—every aspect of the now erased Age of Mysteries—existed here as well. In Carcosa.
Hyades Castle was one such relic. It was the origin of King Arthur’s reign—the very first bastion he conquered after arriving on that mystical land. But the Outer Boundary held many other ancient secrets. The ruins they were currently crossing for example hold a deep connection to the Avalon Empire too. Many of the ‘Shadows’ that road aimlessly there were of people from that long forgotten era.
Kirell was one such example. That child likely belonged to a clan or tribe that once worshipped the Heavenly Loop during that era. He could also tell from the ancient Dulvali accent he spoke in. Many of the other shadows they had hunted in the past few weeks possessed similar origins.
It was all really strange. And since Ynixia’s mories were unreliable, Soren had no way of confirming the truth.
He did, however, cultivate a theory. Since his arrival in this world seed related to the Naless Mist, it was fair to assu the sa applied to the rest of things he had witnessed during his travels. As rlin put it, King Arthur once aid to erase the existence of his own lies. . .
You could be reading stolen content. Head to for the genuine story.
He had erased His own empire—the very thing He and His knights poured blood, sweat, and tears to build. Nurous sacrifices were made, all for Him to throw it all away in the end.
And now, the fractured mories of that bygone era were once again appearing before his very eyes. As if to resist their own demise—desperately clinging to the light.
The light of rembrance. . .
Indeed, even the remaining inhabitants possess this quality. Every person Soren had t so far aside from Ynixia has been the sa: Shadows clinging to what once was. Fragnted mories that can’t even recall their own existence.
So of them have forgotten nas. Others have forgotten faces, like Kirell. . . There were even so that possessed all of these qualities, but lacked no consciousness at all. As if they were simply puppets, operating on a script. These fragnts were usually the most annoying to deal with.
Strangest of all, each inhabitant possessed a living shadow—an embodint of what had been erased. These shadows were also extrely unique. So held antagonistic relationships with their fragnted self, while others were either more neutral or extrely friendly. There were even so that desired independence—roaming the Outer Boundaries without a care in the world, completely separated from their other half.
The independent ones were usually the most terrifying to deal with. Not only was their intelligence extrely high, they almost always held extraordinary strength—far beyond anything he could handle. In his first week in this dented world, he had witnessed a clash between two such living shadows. The battle ended with a large portion of the ruins completely devastated. He had personally seen one of them cast magecraft as well. . .
His frown deepened as he watched the echoes of the past marching by. Albert strolled forward, carefully avoiding the high risk areas—his colossal limbs ticulously maneuvered between the ruined structures of an ancient city. A city that no longer held a na.
“Did you dream anything interesting again?”
Ynixia’s words sowhat surprised him. He chuckled, answering without turning to face the coffin:
“Why do you wanna know? Don’t you always brag about having better dreams than ? Don’t tell you had a boring night this ti.”
She clicked her tongue. “I was just curious. Besides, even my most boring dream is probably still more interesting than yours.”
“Okay,” he shrugged, “so what? It’s just a dream, who really cares.”
She froze completely, unsure on how to respond. Eventually, Soren shook his head and sighed.
“It was just the sa old nightmare. . . Nothing interesting about it.”
“Again?” Her voice sounded slightly worried. “Are you. . . okay?”
He took a mont to answer. “Who the hell knows.”
Nothing made sense to him anymore. The dreams that were recurring could have multiple causes. It might be just as Aelyne was assuming it to be—trauma. But there was also the possibility of fate interfering again. Though, the symbolisms he could analyze from the dreams did not fully point in that direction.
But there was also a third possibility: His new Abstract Rune—Somnium.
Over the past few months, it beca evident to both himself and Biblion that they were accruing far too much corruption. Luckily, because the first two runes, Fairy Witness and Cantor’s Crown, occupied the 3rd and 2nd highest nodes in the Soul Chain, their influence was significantly higher compared to Somnium, which only possessed a Topology of 1. This ant that the corruption it spread was minimal, giving him much more ti to prepare.
The only issue was, acquiring any Materials of Influence in this desolate hellscape was beyond impossible. Not to ntion discovering them to begin with. . . At least with Cantor’s Crown, he was able to find enough information on each item to recreate them easily in [The Faerie Court]. That would have been the case, if not for the fact that Soren was currently stuck in Carcosa.
Every attempt at trying to escape through his Forgotten Rune promptly ended in failure. As if the surrounding space was adamantly against allowing anyone to leave.
He, like everyone else in this dreadful world, was completely trapped. Though, not everything was completely bleak—his connection to Biblion still remained, despite the Faerie Court being inaccessible.
Sensing his silence, Ynixia couldn’t help but sigh. “Forgive for being crass, but what exactly is your goal, Soren?
“On our first eting, I offered an exchange—I wished for your assistance in navigating Carcosa’s ancient lands. In return, I would aid you in any way I can whenever you needed it.”
Soren remained silent, unwilling to answer. Ynixia continued:
“But not only did you accept my offer right away, you never proposed any requests in return. So tell , is there anything you desire? What is it that you hope to achieve by assisting ?”
He finally chuckled. “Nothing.”
“What?”
“I want nothing from you.”
She paused for a mont, letting the dark mist stir quietly. “I don’t believe you. I am certain you have so kind of purpose in mind. Is it not related to those dreams related to your. . . past?”
“Nope,” he shook his head and smiled. “I am only lending you my aid on a passing whim.”
“A whim. . .” Just saying the word left her utterly stunned.
Soren laughed softly as he gazed into the distance. “If you really want to make up a reason, it might be because I enjoy pretending to be a guide. A traveling scribe who wishes to spread the wisdom he obtains to others.”
“Is that supposed to be a joke?”
Soren simply shrugged. “Who really knows. You should focus more on your own goals. Look up ahead,” he pointed into the distance, seeing past the endless fog through his mystical eyes.
“I can already see Hyades Castle from here.”
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