Remy found himself sinking into an endless ocean, dragged deeper and deeper as the weight of the water pressed in on all sides. No matter how hard he struggled, his body refused to answer—strength had abandoned him.
At last, he stopped fighting.
So this is it… The end. All that talk about getting stronger… just wishful thinking.
"Remy… Remy!" A voice called out, faint, muffled, as though from another world. It never reached him. He kept falling, face tilted upward as crimson light bled through the rippling waves above. The sun's amber glittered crimson, its glow swallowed by the deep.
When he struck the ocean floor with a dull thud, the last of his breath escaped. His eyes fluttered shut, heavy with surrender, as he slipped into a dark and endless slumber.
Cough! Cough!
Bloody hell, where is this smoke coming from?
Remy's eyes widened as the strong smell of frankincense and myrrh punched his nose. A sudden wisp of palo santo surged through his lungs, snapping him awake. His gaze sharpened, his mind returning to him.
"Ahhhhh!"
His voice echoed, raw and guttural, as a second wind filled him. Then came his cry—a declaration, a curse, a hymn:
"Born to pain,
I grew to be slain…
What fate for a child with no name?"
A low pulsing light glistened from his eyes. One glow shone green, alive, and vibrant. The other was no light at all—only a deeper, devouring black.
"You have risen, nestling born from decay," a voice intoned. "Rise and see the world for what it is."
Then it appeared—first as a shadow dancing through the air. Its wings beat a rhythm Remy had always known. The sound thundered:
Duum… Dadam… Duum… Dadam.
The raven descended, solemn and sure, and settled upon his shoulder.
Its head tilted. Its voice rasped, cold yet familiar:
"I have been calling… but you never listened."
"You called… you." Remy's hands trembled violently. "I've been calling for so long. When I found my mother gone—where were you? And now you appear… only now?"
The raven's eyes glinted. It beat its wings once, voice rasping, ancient yet familiar.
"Oh, I tried. But you could not hear me—you could not see. You were still blind to the world. But not anymore. Look…"
The vision shattered. Remy was back—back where he had been. Horror struck him. Half his body was rotting, eaten away by the creature's touch. Flesh gone, only bone remained.
"You wanted your affinity, didn't you?" The raven croaked, swirling through the air and scattering the moths. "Then hear me: you are the dark that devours."
From Remy's hand, a shadow coiled—at first light as smoke, then thickening, hardening, until it became solid. A dagger, black as night, pulsed in his grip. It felt… familiar, as though it had always been waiting.
With his good hand, he slashed upward. The blade carved across the creature's face. It shrieked, a piercing, bone-splitting cry, clutching at its ruined features with skeletal hands.
At last, Remy saw it for what it truly was. A parasite. A liar. A thing that conjured what you most longed for, weaving illusions to lure and capture its prey.
"Aim for the glowing heart!" the raven commanded.
Without hesitation, Remy surged forward, driving the shadow dagger into the creature's chest.
The creature cried out, its form twisting before reverting into Remy's mother.
"My so…n… you killed me…" It gasped, then collapsed to the ground, unmoving.
Remy staggered back, leaving the dagger buried in its chest.
"Huuu… huuuu… What have I done?" He panted, chest heaving.
Raven's a voice rasped into his ears.
"What you had to… remember this was true. If it was not them, then it was you. Mercy… mercy? It had always been for the strong. If you were weak, you were always the victim."
Remy's eyes hardened again.
He looked down at himself—his body was whole. No rot. No corruption. The creature's corpse had vanished. Only the dagger remained, quivering in the ground.
"It was time for you to go back," Raven whispered, landing lightly upon his shoulder. "Any longer here, and you would have become one of us."
As Raven perched, the world spun. Remy felt himself being pulled, faster and faster—twisted, dragged, and turned inside out until finally—he fell.
Cough! Cough!
He gagged, air burning his throat as he woke.
"Take the incense away from him—you're choking him, Kat!" a familiar voice rang out.
Remy fluttered his eyelids, still struggling to focus. His vision was blurred, shapes bleeding into one another.
"Remy, are you okay?" Kat's voice quivered, her eyes locked on his every movement.
"Remy! Remy!" She called again, desperate.
"Calm yourself, Kat. He's fine—can't you see? He's waking," another voice interrupted.
As Remy's sight cleared, he finally saw Tear. The man looked worn—sigils and runes glowed faintly across the walls, pulsing with protective energy. A small scar throbbed just beneath Tear's eye, and parts of his clothing were torn, as though he had fought tooth and nail to keep Remy safe.
"Tear… are you—"
"How does it feel to be a Bound?" Tear asked, tilting his head to the side, his expression unreadable.
"Well, it's… strange. I don't really understand what's happening," Remy muttered, pushing himself upright. "But… I think I can see lizards crawling on the walls. Except—they're not really lizards. It's hard to explain."
Tear straightened, his voice calm but with a hint of sorrow. "Those are Siols. You'll see more of them from now on. That's what you couldn't see till now—you can see the world as a Mystic now."
"Do pre-tell, what is your affinity?" Tear asked, eyes gleaming with childish wonder.
"Ha… I… I think it's darkness… control of shadow," Remy muttered, staring at his hands as a dark smoke began to swirl around them.
"Ohhh… mmm… you know; I've never seen someone who walks the shadows. Show me," Tear beckoned, leaning forward with anticipation.
The shadow writhing in Remy's palms thickened, coiling into form. Slowly, it hardened into a blade, its edge gleaming silver while its core pulsed with black. The hilt was jagged—bone-like, unsettling in its grip.
"Put that down!" Tear's smile vanished. His face hardened as he roared, suddenly shoving the other children aside. His body coiled his grip tightened at their arms.
To be continued...….