Prince of The Abyss

The Inn was packed with people, all drinking like tomorrow wasn’t there. Sena had been really surprised, even more overwhelmed, which he found funny- the Vessel of Fate getting dazed by some drunks. So she had asked to go to bed... while he had stayed a little longer.

Aether sat at the bar counter, laughing as a man wrapped his arm around his shoulder, pulling him towards him, as he took a sip of his drink.

It was nowhere near his first time in an Inn; after all, he had lived in one in Demon of Dread, and one that was worse than this, well morally, it was a lot more complicated, with the whole thing about the alcohol being water and the people just pretending it wasn’t.

But still, what he wanted to say was that he was used to it.

Plus, he was here for one man... the bartender. Because of his experience, he knew that he knew a lot of information, because a lot of the drunk told him everything they knew, even if they shouldn’t have. And he remembered, since he was never drunk himself.

Aether smiled, staring at him, as he played with his drink that he hadn’t even taken a sip of; after all, he wasn’t one who enjoyed alcohol that much, and he was still underage, even if he knew that a lot of kids his age would probably not have wasted a second on it.

The bartender noticed, giving him a side glance, as he continued making drinks. "Is there something wrong with your drink?" His tone was calm, serving one of the other men as he spoke to him, making it seem as if he wasn’t his main priority at the moment.

Aether chuckled, putting the drink back on the table and raising both his hands in the air. "Of course not." He put his arms on the table, alongside his weight, leaning forward. "Just by looking, even to my untrained eye, I can see just how much skill you have." He scoffed. "So how could there be something wrong with the drink?"

The bartender smiled slightly on one side because of his words. "How nice... but I haven’t done anything special, and yet I’m getting all this praise. I wonder why?... and if this praise comes free of cost."

Aether leaned back in his chair, taking off the arm one of the drunks had wrapped around him, and rolled his eyes. "I mean..." He grinned. "Nothing is really free." He lifted his hand, looking at his nails, taking constant glances to look at the man. "And I think my words and praise were quite good, so I deserve a reward."

The man laughed, pouring another drink, before he grabbed Aether’s drink and gave it to another person. Aether just rolled his eyes in annoyance; he wasn’t mad. It had been free, since the mayor had asked to make one for them without any money because they were new, and he wasn’t going to drink it either way, so why not give it away?

After the man finished, for a small time he was free, so he leaned against the counter, resting his elbows on it, and stared at Aether. "I find you amusing, so I’ll take the bait, as bad as it is. What do you want?"

Aether leaned forward, not scared to make eye contact, as for the first time tonight in this bar, his tone turned serious. "The guardian, can you tell me anything about him. I’ve always been interested in them... well, my father has, but he died, and he never got to see one or learn about them. So if you could tell me anything about him, it would be very nice." He smiled softly.

...

Of course everything he had said had been a lie, but at the same time it wasn’t. He, of course, didn’t have a human father that was interested in the Guardians, and in a good way at that. But at the same time, since the voice was technically their fathers, and very interested in Guardians and their deaths, it worked; plus, he had never gotten to kill one, as he was sealed before he could, so he wanted to do it for him.

It was true but also false.

The man’s eyes widened; he hadn’t expected this to be the thing he had wanted to know. He smiled. "Of course, you should have just asked; we aren’t shy of our guardian, the person who guards the whole dark forest and everything around it.

He lifted his hand to count some facts. "He’s one of the oldest, one of the first that was born out of the twelve, but not one of the strongest; in the middle if he had to say." He put one finger down. "He’s known for his ability to hide and camouflage." He put another down. "And he’s very gentle with humans." He put his whole hand down.

"There’s more, but it’s stuff like this."

Aether chuckled. "I see, thank you..."

He got up from his seat. "I’ll be going to my room then." The bartender nodded, waving as he headed to his and Sena’s room.

As he opened the door, he saw thousands of purple strings all over the room. Aether sighed. "Did you get bored with something?" Sena didn’t laugh; she just smiled. "Probably."

Aether ducked under the strings and lay in his bed. "Get some rest, idiot, we’re going to challenge the first guardian tomorrow."

Sena’s eyes widened. "Already?"

Aether rolled his eyes while staring at the ceiling. "Of course? I don’t know about you, but I want to get as much sync as possible this summer, so I can reach Enlightenment and focus on my rank...

...So lights out."

...

...

...

The forest... it was still annoying, just like it had been when they had first come here, and the worse thing... they had already been walking for a heck of a while now, it was almost turning night, which wouldn’t be a problem for him; it was actually a good thing, but for Sena, it wasn’t so he needed to sacrifice the night, the time when he was strongest, for her.

Even though they saw that same sight over and over again, the same trees with nothing else going on, they still continued... because they knew that if they did, they were going to find it... the cavern.

Aether stopped moving, as a smile appeared on his face.

"There..."

Hidden between the countless trees stood the entrance to a cavern.

It wasn’t grand in the sense of towering cliffs or a mouth stretching across the mountainside. But it was still big, bigger than most, which was to be expected when it’s supposed to house a beast that is one of the guardians of the world. Instead, it hid itself amongst the roots of the ancient forest, half-consumed by thick moss and twisting vines that had claimed the stone centuries ago. Massive roots crawled over the rock like the fingers of giants, disappearing into the darkness within, while long curtains of ivy swayed violently whenever another gust of wind tore through the trees.

Darkness stretched beyond the opening.

Even with the daylight behind him, Aether couldn’t see more than a few meters inside before the shadows swallowed everything. Which was pretty weird, but he didn’t think much of it; after all, he wasn’t one to care that much about darkness; he could just ask Sena to stay out, and he would just guide it out.

Cold air drifted out from within, brushing against his face.

"...Well, that’s definitely not ominous."

Sena laughed and looked toward the entrance. Almost as if it was mocking it for living inside a cave

"It lives in there?"

Aether shrugged.

"I hope so."

After all, he really didn’t want to walk another day in the forest to try and find it.

The two took another step forward.

...

But then they heard a sound.

...

Above them.

Resting on top of the cavern, a massive black jaguar stared down at them.

Its body was easily four times the size of a normal one, muscles shifting beneath fur so dark it almost blended into the shadows around it. The grey light reflected softly across its coat, giving it the appearance of polished obsidian rather than fur.

Its long tail hung lazily, moving from side to side with slow, controlled motions.

Two golden eyes watched them without blinking.

Calm.

Patient.

For a long second, nobody moved; after all, the presence of the beast had caught them off guard.

The giant beast simply looked down at them.

Watching.

...’Big cat, big personality, they say...’

Aether looked at Sena with a smile on his face. "Looks like the kitty-cat doesn’t want to take the first step, should we?"

Sena turned to him, dumbfounded. "Why are you speaking as if we’re going to be asking it on a date?"

Aether just stared, not believing what his ears had just heard. "That’s... just forget it, let’s do this."