Abyssal Awakening

Chapter 250: Apostles

Alice was put in a difficult position.

It was one case to perform the experiments herself but another for someone else to conduct it on her.

Could she trust her body over to someone else?

Could she go through what had haunted her throughout the 10 years?

Just the thought alone made Alice's heart pound against her chest in anxiousness. She trusts Allura and Kaden.

But that was also the case for her father and brothers. Yet in the end, she was chained up and collared against her will.

What if she were to lose consciousness halfway through the experiment just to find out that another collar has been placed against her neck?

Subconsciously, Alice raised her hand against her neck. She has grown accustomed to the lack of weight against her neck. But the phantom pain of the collar forever haunted her.

Even now, she could feel its sting, the biting cold metal pressing against her skin.

Biting her lips, Alice began to scratch away at her neck as her breathing began to speed up. Flashes of different experiments appeared in her mind, each one more gruesome than the last.

Tubes being inserted into her veins, her organs being replaced with bestial parts. Blood that would make her grow gills and suffocate from the air.

Overwhelmed by the sights before her, Alice shut her eyes but the sounds of the machinery continued to howl into her ears.

A sudden touch against her wrist caused Alice to jolt back in panic as her eyes betrayed the fear hidden within.

But this contact snapped her out of her stupor as she looked down and saw blood on her fingertips.

Allura had grabbed her wrist in an attempt to stop her.

Panting heavily, Alice could see the concern in Allura, Kaden and Nalem's eyes as all three had stood up and stopped her before she injured herself further.

None of them had expected such a reaction from Alice.

"Sorry can I have a moment to think about it?" Alice forced a smile while using her Sigil to stop the bleeding.

Without waiting for their reply, Alice stepped away while Allura wanted to stop her.

However, Kaden grabbed Allura and shook his head.

"Let me. I'm the one who proposed the question so it's only right for me to apologise to her."

Hesitating for a moment, Allura nodded her head as Kaden stepped away from the table.

Following the path that Alice took, Kaden realised that Alice had made her way to the highest floor of the library.

Seeing her stand silently by the window while hugging her own arms, Kaden couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl.

Everyone had a past they don't want to share. Whether it be Alice, Allura or himself, revisiting old memories are haunting at times.

"How are you feeling?" Kaden asked hesitantly as he stood next to her.

"Pretty sh*tty." Alice admitted bluntly. Even now, she couldn't quite shake off the fear of having other people experiment on her.

"Sorry about that. Seems like I got a little carried away with wanting to help you figure out the fire." He apologised while looking out at the city.

"It's fine. It's just me overreacting because of my own past. It's nothing to do with you guys. If it wasn't for my past, I wouldn't hesitate since I trust you and Allura."

"Hou~ For you to trust us so much despite this being our first day meeting is quite an honour." Kaden smiled, causing Alice to pause before sighing out in annoyance.

"Do we have to play mind games while I'm feeling sh*tty?"

"Sorry sorry. But alright, I'll do you a favour and stop playing around with you. I have a guess on where you came from. Well… Where is not quite the right word but rather when. Isn't that right?" Kaden held a finger to his lips as Alice raised her hand in surrender.

"When did you have this guess?"

"Quite a while ago. You own a feather with my power, don't you? It's 'dead' but it still has traces of power that can be linked back to me. Considering the fact that we've only met for a day, it was rather strange.

"Then you showed powers that mimicked Lua's Authority. Once you did that, obviously I had a few guesses of my own." Kaden shrugged.

Realising that the feather was what gave her away the most, Alice couldn't help but sigh.

'Sabotaged by Kaden in both worlds.'

"So what now? Are you going to tell the others?"

"Nope. It'll just be a secret between me and you. You're simply a strange gal who doesn't know how you got here." Kaden chuckled, causing Alice to smile.

"There you go. You're smiling again."

"Tsk. So any thoughts now that you've guessed 'when' I came from?" Alice clicked her tongue.

"A few but I'm guessing there are things you don't want to tell me."

'Yeah like how Ayr is no longer around.' Alice thought to herself but didn't dare to vocalize her thoughts.

"Well I figured a few things out already like how Lua is your esteemed mother. But knowing her, I'm surprised you don't know more about the world. Did she not take you travelling?" Kaden asked curiously as Allura wasn't one to sit around in one place unless it's Ayr.

And even then, she enjoyed the missions that has her venturing outside.

"I mean… I call her mother but she's not my biological mother. She simply picked me up and took me in after I was thrown into the Abyss." Alice shrugged.

"I see… What is Lua like in the future?"

"Not much different from now. Though I suppose she's a lot calmer. Not as loud nor enthusiastic I suppose. Surprisingly less violent and instead of cake, she seems to be addicted to smoking instead." Alice replied after taking a moment to think about the differences between the two Alluras.

"Smoking you say… Who would've thought? But I'm getting carried away." Kaden smiled.

He wanted to see what Allura was like in the future with how Alice was describing her but seeing as how Alice hasn't mentioned him yet, he figured he was probably not around.

'What a shame.' He thought with a bitter smile.

Looking at Kaden, Alice could practically read his thoughts as it was printed onto his expression. Debating for a moment, Alice opened her mouth.

"You were there too. You're a lot different as well. Honestly, Allura might have taken me in, but you were the one who freed me from my captivity." She admitted, surprising Kaden as a bright smile appeared on his face.

"You brat. Why didn't you say so earlier. And here I thought I died an early death." Kaden grinned, ruffling Alice's hair while she frowned in displeasure.

"Wait… If I'm still around, then… Actually, never mind. It'll be best that I don't know anything." He shook his head. He wanted to ask about Alice's 'father' but didn't want to know the answer.

As for Alice, she simply thought 'weirdo' before looking back at the city.

Even though they were joking around, Alice's mind was still on his question earlier. If she wanted Nalem to experiment on her to see if they could find out more about her fire.

"The experiment. What do you need from me? I just want to know how far you want to go." Alice asked while tightening her grip around her arm.

Seeing this, Kaden decided to be honest.

"If you wish to do it, it'll just be small samples of your blood. We don't need to do anything to your body. If Nalem still can't figure out the origin through your blood, there will be no need for further experimentation.

"You see, Nalem is a little special. Even though he doesn't possess an Authority like me and Lua, since Master can only designate two of us, his Sigils work in a way that helps him compile knowledge and cross reference everything he's seen. Even now, he has his own familiars across the entire Abyss, receiving information for him." Kaden smiled.

"So if he is unable to determine a source after experimenting with samples of your blood, it's probably best to request an audience with my Master."

Contemplating for a moment, Alice nodded her head.

"If it's just samples of my blood then it's fine. I just don't want anything to do with poking and prodding my body." She sighed while rubbing her neck. But this time, she didn't scratch.

"Do you want to spend a bit more time up here? It'll be harder to speak openly once we rejoin the others." Kaden asked, offering to answer any questions that may be on Alice's mind.

"Your Authority. What kind of Apostles are you and Allura? She's told me about the Apostles belonging to the surface Gods. War, Famine, Preservation, Protection, Immortality and Spirituality. What are the titles belonging to you and Allura?" Alice asked curiously.

This had been on her mind for a while now and she wanted to know what kind of powers they wielded. And more specifically in Allura's case, what kind of power she was trying to emulate.

"You have to think of it this way. Apostles are… Roles given to the chosen ones. Roles that embody a portion of the Divinity wielded by the Gods/Goddesses. Already, I can imagine that War and Famine belong to the Eclipse right? Preservation and Protection to the Sun and the last two are for the Moon.

"For the Abyss, and more specifically for Master, I suppose you have to think about what kind of powers she wields. Lua's Authority is that of Severance. Her power allows her to isolate a target and strike at their core or at least, that's what she uses it for. Meaning Sigil abilities and external assistance will be severed temporarily." Kaden chuckled.

"A more practical use of her power other than violence would be to isolate an entire space, making it almost impossible for people to interfere. She can also tamper with the different layers of the Abyss and travel between them rather easily.

"As for me… Well I'm the opposite. My Authority is that of… Corruption. In that sense, you can say mine is the power to connect the surface and Abyss. But that's simply practicality. In terms of combat… Let's just say it's a little unpleasant and I'd rather not use it if possible." He smiled bitterly while Alice was silent.

The Eclipse has War and Famine.

The Sun has Preservation and Protection.

The Moon has Immortality and Spirituality.

And the Abyss? Severance and Corruption.