Noah's world collapsed into darkness.
It wasn't the kind of darkness found in an unlit room or the shadowed corners of the Academy this was absolute emptiness without floor, walls or air. There was no sound, gravity or sensation of his body, only an endless and void abyss stretching in every direction.
His chest tightened. He floated, weightless but at the same time his limbs were heavy and refused to move, his breath felt distant, as though he was sinking deeper into the darkness. For a moment, he thought he had died.
Then, out of the silence, something moved. Not something he could see, it was different just an instinct, a presence that was so massive, so ancient that it made his skin crawl. And a voice, this time deep and resonant, rumbled through the abyss.
"Unworthy."
Noah gasped, his heart slamming against his ribs, his instincts screamed at him to run, to fight, to do anything but he stayed frozen in place as his body refused to move. His vision flickered and the darkness around him shifted swirling into vague phantom-like shapes. He Tried to breathe but he couldn't. Panic scratched at his mind, but he shoved it down this didn't feel like a death sentence but something far from reality.
Then the System chimed.
Ding!
[ Warning! You have been pulled into an Abyssal Trial.]
[Analyzing…]
Noah's thoughts stumbled over themselves. 'Abyssal Trial?' for all his 17 years he had never heard of that before even at the Academy. Before he could process it, more prompts flooded his vision.
[Abyssal Trial: Initiated by high-tier Abyssal Beasts to judge potential hosts.]
[Failure results in complete rejection.]
[Warning! No recorded cases of survival.]
Noah's pulse spiked. 'No survivors? That's a terrible thing to read mid-trial.' His breathing quickened, but he forced himself to calm down. He didn't have time to freak out. He needed to understand what was happening. 'Why was this happening?' He had learned and knew that beasts didn't do this, Even the strongest, rarest creatures didn't have the power to pull people into some kind of mind-space trial.
Noah's breath stalled as he saw Abyssal Raven. It wasn't rejecting him in the real world anymore it had brought him here.
His surroundings shifted and the black mist curled and twisted, forming ghostly figures that were shadows of people, their faces contorted in expressions of agony, rage, and despair.
Noah stepped back instinctively, his feet touched the solid ground for the first time since arriving in this void. The figures turned toward him their eyes glowed, but we're hollow and empty.
He tensed as thin sweat flowed down his head, Then, they all whispered at once,
"You should not be here."
"This path is cursed."
"We failed and so will you."
A chill crawled down Noah's spine, he wasn't just afraid of standing in the abyss that he had never heard of but also in the presence of those who had tried before to search for truth, those who he had seen their list in the Forbidden Library. All were beast tamers that tried and failed, failed so badly that they had been erased.
The mist thickened and their whispers grew louder, overlapping and clawing at his thoughts.
"Submit."
"Give in."
"There is no winning."
Noah gritted his teeth, he hated mind games. His pulse steadied as he forced himself to think, 'Is this an illusion? A psychological attack? Or is it real?'
He let out a sigh, ' it doesn't matter, whether real or not.' He refused to be like them. His pulse steadied and the fear burned away. The moment he stopped fearing the abyss, the mist shifted and the whispers faded, then a deep, slow exhale filled the void. It wasn't a normal human breath, it was deep and unnatural. Immediately the darkness moved and figure descended from above, its massive form blocking out the little dim light that was there. It was the Abyssal Raven but not the small, newborn hatchling from before this was its true form. Its wings stretched infinitely, covering the abyss,A Its feathers shimmered like liquid shadows, shifting between physical and ethereal.
Noah's throat went dry, his eyes opened wide in disbelief, it wasn't a newborn here it was its true form. Its golden eyes, now blazing with unrestrained power, locked onto him. Noah turned searching for an escape route but their was non. His body felt ten times heavier, like gravity had increased, but he refused to fall to his knees., he clenched his fistsready to defend himself.
And for the first time, the Raven spoke with clarity. "Prove your worth." Before he could react it attacked without a warning. The air cracked as it moved faster , its talons slashing through the void toward him.
Noah's instincts kicked in, he shifted aside, barely dodging the attack and shockwaves followed splitting the ground where he had been standing.
He rolled, his heartbeat hammering. His instincts screamed at him to move, but his mind raced. It was clear to him that he couldn't win a physical fight against something this massive, this powerful. He had no weapons or advantages, it was a trial of will and that meant if he lost himself here and he give into fear he would never wake up again.
As if the first attack wasn't enough while Noah was still thinking, the Raven's wings beat once, sending another crushing wave of force through the abyss. Noah braced himself, his arms crossed as the impact hit him like a tidal wave, he staggered but didn't fall. The Raven let out a sharp, piercing cry, not in frustration, but in acknowledgment.
Noah lifted his head breathing heavily, Then he did something insane, instead of running he stepped forward one step and then another.
The Abyssal Raven's golden eyes narrowed.
Noah smirked, wiping blood from his lip. "You want me to prove myself?" His breath was ragged, but his voice was steady. "Fine. But let's get one thing straight…" He shifted his shoulders, looking directly into the Raven's eyes, unshaken. " I don't bow."
For a moment, silence filled the Abyss. Then the Raven laughed, It wasn't a sound. It was a feeling, an overwhelming pulse of emotion that filled the abyss. Which Noah sensed to be something closer to respect.
Noah's body burned as the surrounding darkness coiled around him, surging into his skin. His vision blurred and his mind split between his own existence and something… larger.
Then the System reacted instantly.
Ding!
[Warning! Unstable Contract Forming…]
[ERROR…ERROR…]
[New Contract Type Identified: Abyssal Pact – Coexistence Between Equals.]
Noah's eyes widened and before he could process it the prompt he was yanked backward as the abyss collapsed and reality came rushing back.
…
Noah gasped for air as his body jerked violently, his limbs trembling as reality rushed back.
Thud!
His body hit the floor, the scent of burnt parchment, dust, and old books flooded his senses. He wasn't in the void anymore, he was back in the library alive. His fingers dug into the stone, steadying himself as he fought to stay upright.
Beside him, something moved, he turned, still catching his breath. The Abyssal Raven was still there. Not rejecting him, it was not resisting but not submitting, either. It was not fully tamed, either and Noah felt that the connection wasn't one of master and beast, It was exactly Coexistence.
Before he could even process what that meant, a sound echoed, boots on stone floor and sharp sound echoed from the entrance, loud and organized footsteps. Noah caught his breath as shadows marched toward the entrance, the Academy's security forces had arrived.
Noah's body tensed, he wasn't ready to handle this, the Abyssal Raven let out a low, amused chirp that made Noah groan. "Oh, shut up!"