Chapter 35: The One Beneath Aetheris

The ground split open.

Not cracked.

Not shattered.

Split.

As though the world itself had been cut apart by an invisible blade.

The courtyard of Aetheris Academy disappeared beneath a widening abyss.

Stone platforms broke apart and fell into the darkness.

Ancient pillars collapsed.

Magical formations flickered wildly before being swallowed by the void below.

Students and professors screamed as the academy’s remaining structures trembled.

"EVERYONE, MOVE!"

Leon shouted.

He grabbed Mira’s arm and pulled her away from the widening fissure.

Elena immediately raised both hands.

"Barrier!"

A massive translucent wall erupted from the ground.

BOOOOM!

The barrier caught several falling students and pushed them toward solid ground.

Lucien moved alongside her.

"Don’t waste your mana!"

"I know!"

Elena gritted her teeth.

"The academy is collapsing!"

Lucien looked beneath them.

"No."

His expression darkened.

"The academy isn’t collapsing."

Elena stared at him.

"Then what is happening?"

Lucien slowly shook his head.

"The academy is being opened."

A deep vibration passed through the air.

Everyone froze.

THOOM.

The sound wasn’t coming from the sky.

It was coming from below.

THOOM.

Another heartbeat.

Kael stood near the edge of the enormous fissure.

Pi clung tightly to his shoulder.

The little creature’s fur—or rather, scales—stood on end.

Its golden and black eyes stared into the darkness.

"Pi..."

Kael swallowed.

"You see it?"

Pi nodded.

Kael looked down.

At first, he saw nothing.

Then—

Two enormous points of light appeared far beneath them.

Not eyes.

At least, not ordinary eyes.

They were too large.

Too distant.

And yet—

they were looking directly at him.

Kael’s body went rigid.

The System appeared.

[WARNING.]

[Host has established visual contact with an unidentified existence.]

[Identification attempt...]

[Failed.]

[Secondary attempt...]

[Failed.]

[Tertiary attempt...]

[The System has stopped attempting identification.]

Kael’s eyebrow twitched.

"That’s reassuring."

The System responded.

[It is not.]

"...You could’ve lied."

[The System does not possess sufficient emotional investment in the Host’s survival to lie.]

Kael stared at the window.

"You’re getting worse."

[Correct.]

A faint smile appeared on Kael’s face.

For some reason, that ridiculous exchange made the situation feel slightly less terrifying.

Then the thing below moved.

The enormous lights disappeared.

For one second—

nothing happened.

Then—

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

A shockwave exploded from beneath Aetheris.

Kael was throw backward.

Pi flew from his shoulder.

"Pi!"

Kael reached for him.

Before Pi could fall—

Leon caught him.

"Got him!"

"Thanks."

Leon tossed Pi back.

Kael caught the creature against his chest.

Pi immediately buried its face into Kael’s coat.

Kael looked at Leon.

"You okay?"

Leon nodded.

"Mostly."

Mira landed beside them.

"That’s reassuring."

Kael looked at her.

"You’ve been spending too much time with me."

"I blame you."

Elena approached.

Her breathing was heavier now.

"Everyone is safe."

Kael glanced around.

Second stood several meters away, staring into the abyss.

Third was beside him.

Lucien remained near the edge.

The strange black-haired boy stood completely still.

Almost everyone had moved away from the fissure.

Everyone except Fourth.

The ancient entity hovered above the broken academy.

Its enormous body had become strangely motionless.

Kael looked at it.

"Fourth."

The entity didn’t respond.

"Fourth."

Its crimson eyes slowly shifted toward him.

"DO NOT GO BELOW."

Kael blinked.

That was the first direct instruction Fourth had given him.

Naturally—

Kael immediately became suspicious.

"Why?"

"BECAUSE YOU HAVE ALREADY BEEN THERE."

Kael’s expression changed.

"What?"

Fourth’s voice rolled across the academy.

"YOU HAVE STOOD BEFORE WHAT LIES BELOW."

Kael stared into the darkness.

"I’ve never been here."

"You have."

"I would’ve remembered."

Fourth’s enormous eyes narrowed.

"NO."

Kael felt a chill.

"YOU WOULD HAVE REMEMBERED THAT YOU WERE HERE."

Silence.

Mira looked between them.

"What does that mean?"

Fourth didn’t answer.

The black-haired boy did.

"It means the memory was removed."

Kael turned toward him.

"By who?"

The boy’s eyes shifted toward Kael.

"By you."

Kael’s expression hardened.

"Again with that."

"You really don’t remember."

"No."

"Then you’re lucky."

Kael frowned.

"How is forgetting everything supposed to be lucky?"

The boy’s expression became strangely serious.

"Because remembering everything would have killed you."

Nobody spoke.

Kael stared at him.

"Explain."

"I can’t."

"Why?"

"Because you made another rule."

Kael sighed.

"Of course I did."

The boy smiled faintly.

"You were very paranoid."

"Apparently I had good reasons."

"You did."

Kael crossed his arms.

"So what happens if I go down there?"

The boy looked toward the abyss.

"You remember."

Kael’s eyes narrowed.

"And?"

"You won’t like what you remember."

Leon stepped forward.

"Then we’re not letting him go alone."

Kael looked at him.

"Leon—"

"No."

Leon shook his head.

"You’ve dragged us into enough impossible situations already."

Kael raised an eyebrow.

"That sounds suspiciously like friendship."

Leon smiled.

"Maybe."

Mira sighed.

"He’s right."

Elena stepped beside them.

"I’m going too."

Kael looked at her.

"You don’t have to."

"I know."

She tightened her grip on her staff.

"I’m still going."

Lucien adjusted his glasses.

"And unfortunately, I have several unanswered questions."

Kael looked at the group.

"You people have terrible survival instincts."

Mira smiled.

"We learned from you."

Kael sighed.

"Fair."

Second suddenly spoke.

"You’re making a mistake."

Everyone turned.

Second was staring at Kael.

"You cannot bring everyone below."

Kael frowned.

"Why?"

"Because the place beneath Aetheris doesn’t follow the same rules as this world."

Third nodded.

"The deeper you go, the less certain your identities become."

Elena looked at him.

"What does that mean?"

Third answered calmly.

"You may forget who you are."

Kael’s expression darkened.

"That’s not happening."

Second looked directly at him.

"You said that before."

Kael froze.

Before.

Again.

The word struck something inside him.

A flash.

A corridor.

Kael walking through endless darkness.

Leon wasn’t there.

Elena wasn’t there.

Mira wasn’t there.

No one was there.

Only him.

And a voice.

"You can’t take them with you."

Young Kael had answered—

"Then I’ll come back for them."

The memory vanished.

Kael’s breathing became uneven.

Pi looked up.

"Everyone."

Kael looked at him.

Pi pointed toward the abyss.

"Save."

The word was barely audible.

But Kael understood.

Everyone.

His promise.

His expression changed.

"So that’s what it was."

The black-haired boy looked at him.

"What?"

Kael stared downward.

"I promised to save everyone."

The boy shook his head.

"No."

Kael looked at him.

"You just said—"

"You remembered the shape of the promise."

The boy’s voice became quieter.

"Not the promise itself."

Kael frowned.

"What am I missing?"

The boy looked toward Pi.

"The word ’everyone’ wasn’t the promise."

Pi’s eyes widened.

The boy continued.

"It was the consequence."

Kael felt a chill.

"What does that mean?"

Before the boy could answer—

The abyss moved.

Something massive struck the underside of Aetheris.

BOOOOOOM!

The academy rose several meters into the air.

Everyone screamed.

Kael stumbled.

A gigantic structure began emerging from beneath the academy.

At first, Kael thought it was a tower.

Then he realized—

it was a hand.

A stone-like hand larger than the central academy building pushed through the darkness.

Ancient black markings covered its surface.

Mira stared.

"That’s..."

Lucien finished.

"A seal."

The hand wasn’t reaching for them.

It was pushing against something.

Trying to escape.

Kael stared.

"Something is holding it down."

Fourth suddenly spoke.

"YES."

Kael looked at him.

"What?"

"THE THING BELOW IS NOT THE PRISONER."

Kael’s eyes widened.

"Then what is?"

Fourth turned toward the abyss.

"The prison."

Silence.

Kael’s stomach dropped.

The enormous hand continued rising.

More of its arm emerged.

Then—

A chain.

A gigantic silver chain wrapped around the arm.

Then another.

And another.

Hundreds of chains.

Thousands.

Each chain was covered with glowing symbols.

Mira’s eyes widened.

"Those are containment runes."

Lucien shook his head.

"No."

He stepped closer.

"They’re older than containment magic."

"What are they?"

Lucien stared.

"Rules."

Kael looked at him.

"Rules?"

"Not magical rules."

Lucien’s voice trembled.

"Existential ones."

Kael looked back at the chains.

One of them snapped.

CRACK.

Everyone froze.

Another broke.

CRACK.

Then another.

CRACK.

The black-haired boy stepped backward.

For the first time—

fear appeared in his eyes.

"That’s not supposed to happen."

Kael looked at him.

"What isn’t?"

"The chains."

Another chain broke.

Then another.

The entire underground structure shook.

Kael’s System appeared.

[WARNING.]

[Containment structure failure detected.]

[Remaining stability: 72%]

[71%]

[70%]

[69%]

Kael stared.

"Can we stop it?"

Lucien shook his head.

"Those chains aren’t holding it."

"Then what are they doing?"

Lucien looked at Kael.

"They’re holding reality together."

Kael’s expression became blank.

"...I preferred it when the problem was just a giant monster."

Mira nodded.

"Same."

Leon raised his sword.

"What happens if the chains break?"

Nobody answered.

That was answer enough.

Then—

a voice came from below.

Not loud.

Not powerful.

Almost gentle.

"Kael."

Everyone froze.

Kael’s blood ran cold.

The voice sounded familiar.

Too familiar

It sounded like—

him.

"Kael."

The voice called again.

Pi began trembling.

Kael slowly stepped toward the edge.

Elena grabbed his arm.

"Don’t."

Kael stopped.

The voice came again.

"Come home."

Pi suddenly screamed.

"PI!"

The little creature’s body glowed.

A strange symbol appeared across its forehead.

The same crown.

The eye.

The broken chain.

The quill.

Kael stared.

"Pi?"

Pi’s body began shaking violently.

Then—

a second symbol appeared.

One Kael had never seen before.

A circle.

Inside it—

four points.

Fourth suddenly recoiled.

"NO."

Kael looked at it.

"What?"

The ancient entity’s voice became almost frantic.

"THE FIFTH."

Silence.

Second’s face went pale.

Third took several steps backward.

Even the black-haired boy stopped smiling.

Kael looked between them.

"What’s the Fifth?"

Nobody answered.

Kael’s eyes narrowed.

"What’s the Fifth?"

Fourth finally spoke.

"The one that should never have existed."

A deep sound came from beneath the academy.

Not a heartbeat this time.

A laugh.

Quiet.

Almost amused.

Then a voice emerged from the darkness.

"Should never have existed?"

The chains began snapping.

One after another.

"Yet here I am."

The abyss beneath Aetheris illuminated.

Kael finally saw it.

A colossal figure sat at the bottom of the ancient chamber.

Its boy was wrapped in broken chains.

Its face was hidden behind a cracked white mask.

Its eyes—

were identical to Kael’s.

Not blue.

Not gold.

Not black.

They were completely white.

The figure slowly lifted its head

And smiled.

Kael couldn’t move.

The masked figure looked directly at him.

Then—

it spoke.

"You’re late."

Kael’s heart stopped.

The figure tilted its head.

"You promised you’d return sooner."

Kael’s vision blurred.

A memory exploded inside his mind.

Not a fragment.

Not a glimpse.

A complete scene.

A younger Kael stood before this very creature.

No academy.

No world.

No story.

Just darkness.

The masked figure had been chained.

Kael had been standing outside the prison.

And in his hand—

was the silver key.

Young Kael had looked at the imprisoned figure.

"I’ll come back."

The figure had smiled.

"You always say that."

Young Kael shook his head.

"This time I mean it."

"Why?"

Young Kael looked toward the endless darkness beyond them.

"Because everyone deserves another ending."

The memory shattered.

Kael staggered.

The silver key suddenly appeared in his hand.

Everyone stared.

Elena’s eyes widened.

"Where did that come from?"

Kael looked down.

He was holding it.

The same silver key from his memory.

The System immediately reacted.

[Unique Item detected.]

[Item Name: Unknown.]

[Classification: Return Key.]

[Ownership: Host.]

[Origin: Before the Current Story.]

[Function: Opens one sealed existence.]

[Warning.]

[Opening the seal may permanently alter the current worldline.]

Kael stared at the key.

The masked figure below smiled.

"Now."

The remaining chains trembled.

"Open the door."

Kael looked at the key.

Then at the imprisoned being.

Then at his friends.

Leon.

Mira.

Elena.

Lucien.

Second.

Third.

Pi.

His fingers tightened around the key.

He finally understood something.

The reason he had returned wasn’t simply to survive.

It wasn’t even simply to save everyone.

There had been something before all of that.

Someone.

Something.

A promise.

And whatever was beneath Aetheris—

Kael had made that promise to it.

The System displayed one final notification.

[Hidden Mission Unlocked.]

THE SECOND PROMISE

Objective: Remember who you promised to save.

Secondary Objective: Decide whether the promise should still be kept.

Reward: Unknown.

Failure: Unknown.

Warning:

The Host may not like the answer.

Kael stared at the message.

Then he smiled.

A tired, almost reckless smile.

"Of course."

Leon looked at him.

"What?"

Kael closed his fingers around the silver key.

"I finally remember something."

The masked figure below waited.

Kael looked into its white eyes.

"I made a promise."

The figure smiled wider.

"And?"

Kael stepped toward the abyss.

"I haven’t decided whether I’m keeping it."

For the first time—

the masked figure laughed.

And beneath Aetheris—

the final chain broke.

CRAAAAACK!

The entire academy went dark.

And something ancient—

something that had been waiting for Kael long before he ever became Kael Veyron—

stood up.