The rumble had been going for many minutes now.

Atticus sat still with the hundred Ensim, his mother, and his cousin, all of them staring up at the quaking ceiling. The God of Man had begun his battle above, and now they waited for their opening.

The barrier surrounding the sanctum was supposed to be fueled by an endless supply of primordial will. Their chance, when it came, would be brief.

Atticus had seen his mother say a silent prayer when the battle began, but he kept quiet. He imagined the woman, despite all her bravado, cared deeply for her husband and son.

He had seen the way she looked at them. If it had been within her authority, if she had truly been given the choice, his cousin would have been Solvath’s successor, not him.

His cousin, though, showed nothing through his expressionless mask. Atticus couldn’t help but think he might have been a better match for Ember than Caldor. They seemed so alike that he reminded him of her. She had always loved carrying the weight of the family on her shoulders too, as though the rest of them were decorative furniture.

He had gotten the chance to interact with his cousin, only to realize they had absolutely nothing to talk about.

Every attempt at starting a conversation was met with a monotone, blunt response. Atticus found it ironic that he was the one trying to carry a conversation. Him. Of all people.

His mother’s eyes lit up, and he snapped out of his thoughts.

"Now."

She rose.

They all rose with her, watching as the air around them began to distort.

Then darkness swallowed every eye.

The next time Atticus opened his eyes, he stood in the middle of a brightly lit room. The walls were stone, as though the chamber had been carved directly into a mountain. Aside from them, it was entirely empty.

The ground and walls trembled occasionally. Shouts rippled from outside. The air felt heavy. Tense.

Atticus had felt something like this before.

War.

They had made it.

The hundred pairs of eyes turned toward him, including his mother and cousin, and Atticus realized it was his turn.

He reached out, trying to sense Solvath’s power. A pull. A force. Anything. He found one. His gaze lowered to the floor.

"It’s below."

He couldn’t help but marvel at his mother’s ingenuity. She had barely an image and even less in the way of coordinates to work with, yet she had still brought them to the correct building.

Ilyshkara nodded.

"How far?"

Atticus focused on the sensation for a moment.

"About a kilometer down."

Ilyshkara closed her eyes. Atticus realized she was communicating with the elements when he felt them stir around her.

He missed this power. Elemental control. Unfortunately, it was more his mother’s path than his own. One could only become one star, not two. Judgment Flame. That was his path. Elemental control belonged to his mother.

Ilyshkara opened her eyes a moment later.

"We move quietly and avoid discovery. Atticus, stay with me. Tell me if we’re getting closer to it or farther."

Atticus nodded.

"The rest of you maintain a tight formation behind us. Stay alert." 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

The Ensim struck their chests in unison and bowed. Atticus’ gaze lingered on his mother. Right now, she seemed less like a mother and more like a general. Confident. Regal. Certain.

He supposed this was how she had always been.

"Let’s go."

They began moving.

Ilyshkara led them as though she had walked these halls a hundred times before. They passed through a door and descended a series of stairs that looked as though they had been carved directly from the mountain itself.

The closer they got to the bottom, to Solvath’s fragment, the more his thoughts spiraled. Truthfully, Atticus wasn’t certain what he was going to do once he absorbed the final fragment.

There were too many unknowns. First was Solvath himself. What if the first thing he did upon reviving was turn on his vessel? Then there was Asmerion, a Primordial Star Atticus still wasn’t sure he should trust.

Yet, given the current circumstances, he was basically trusting him. He marched toward the final fragment with the Star Killer in hand, intending to absorb it. Unfortunately, there was no alternative.

Despite how deep they were underground, the tremors from the battle above still reached them. Eventually, they entered a hallway.

Multiple doors lined the corridor, accompanied by piercing screams that echoed through the stone passage.

Atticus’ hand moved to his katana as a golden-cloaked man stepped out of one of the rooms.

His mother immediately shot him a look and shook her head. She gave the others the same signal. Only then did Atticus notice the blanket of distortion shrouding them.

A barrier.

Avoid being noticed, he reminded himself.

They waited for the man to disappear back into the room before continuing. As they passed, Atticus finally saw the source of the screams.

People. Men and women bound in chains like livestock. Battered. Bloodied. The Elysion were torturing them.

Spies, enemies, offenders. Whatever the reason, it hardly mattered. Atticus took his gaze away. They didn’t matter.

Focus.

They reached the final door and were about to pass it when Atticus suddenly stopped. His eyes locked onto the room. A man was bound to a chair. Black blood speckled with stars seeped from countless wounds across his body.

Beside him, an Elysion operative hummed quietly to himself while selecting another torture instrument.

Atticus’ eyes never left the prisoner.

"Atticus?"

Ilyshkara frowned as she noticed the slight tremor in his gaze. The tremor disappeared. Atticus reached for his katana and vanished.

He appeared before the prisoner. The Elysion operative split cleanly in half, both pieces collapsing to the floor with muted thuds.

"What the—"

Ilyshkara reacted instantly, erecting another barrier around the room to ensure they wouldn’t be detected. Then she turned toward Atticus, and froze.

Murderous intent rolled off him in waves, chilling the room.

"Atticus, what in the stars is going on?"

Atticus didn’t answer. His eyes remained fixed on the prisoner.

"Who are you?"

A formless force lifted the man’s chin. Their eyes met. The man’s gaze was hollow, empty and lifeless. He had lost his mind.

A spike of rage shot through Atticus.

"Honey."

A firm hand settled on his shoulder, and Atticus turned. His mother stared back with a steady look.

"What’s going on?" Her gaze flicked toward the broken man. "Do you know him? Was he a friend?"

A friend. The very word disgusted him. Still, Atticus exhaled slowly and forced himself to calm down. His cousin and the others were staring at him now. He could feel the questions hanging in the air.

A moment later, he asked,

"Who’s he?"

Ilyshkara gave him a look that clearly said she had asked first. But Atticus held her gaze. Eventually, she relented. She studied the prisoner for a moment before gesturing toward one of her Ensim.

A rather short woman stepped forward.

She paid her respects before thoroughly examining the man. She traced the contours of his face, inspected his body for markings, and checked for tattoos.

Eventually, she rose.

"He’s part of the Kas, Supreme. Captured during a mission a few decades ago. He’s been missing ever since."

She paused briefly.

"His name is Kosham."

Atticus frowned.

"What is the Kas?"

"They’re elite soldiers loyal only to Asmerion," Ilyshkara explained. "They handle important tasks concerning the sanctum as a whole. Now answer my question, honey. How do you know him?"

Atticus heard the words, but they simply didn’t seem to register. Kas. Soldiers of Asmerion. Then that meant... it meant—

Atticus slowly clenched his fists.

"He lied."

"Lied?" Ilyshkara frowned. "...Who lied?"

"Asmerion."

Atticus stared at the battered man.

"This man... he was the one who killed me on Earth."