Volume 01 - Epilogue

/// Agrona Vritra ///

A pair of brown eyes looked at me, dead in the eye. Expression as neutral as it could get, an air of detachment, like he deemed everything mundane and below his stature.

I looked down, not offended at all at the man's behavior.

He sat across me with his legs crossed and fingers interlinked. Brown hair neatly combed back with a single strand falling over his right eyebrow.

My back left the support of the chair I was sitting in. My eyes caught gaze of the sovereign's quarrel in front of me. Mutiple pieces were spread everywhere. Strikers, sentries, shields, casters, instillers.

Like a carefully woven cobweb, simplistic and naive to the naked eye but an endless number of traps and trepidations behind every move. A counter for every move. A trap set for every piece. Feints and direct assaults.

I subtle excitement rose in my heart. How much time has it been since I last felt this kind of challenge? The intellect was mind numbing. In all my years, I have never felt like this. Being outplayed at every turn.

My hand travelled towards a black shield and moved it to the right square after two diagonal spaces, defending my sentry from a pincer attack. Resting my head on my knuckles, I looked at him.

His face was as stoic as the first day he arrived here. With a quick glance over the board, he picked up a striker and moved it 3 squares. As I was about to see what kind of move he had played, he rested his back against the chair for the first time since we started playing.

"Checkmate", he said and looked at my sentry. Following his gaze, I looked at the pieces. He was right. All possible exits and any defenses had already been breached. Without me knowing he had sent some to surround the more powerful pieces and breached my defenses from the inside.

"Excellent", I spoke out loud, satisfied at my own loss. It was a well-deserved victory for him.

"You shouldn't take every good decision. Sometimes, the key to a true win is take a bad decision to secure a good outcome in the long run", he spoke in his usual mocking tone.

"You are first lesser to talk to me like that", I spoke, amused at his comment.

"You flatter me, High Sovereign", he spoke and took a sip from the tea in front of him. A mild frustration welled up in the pit of my very being. He always had a way to get on my nerves, but then again, the sheer intellect always amused me. Just because of that I always forgave whatever he said.

(A/n Agrona is sapio-sexual)

Suddenly, frantic clamors boomed outside. The sound of metal armors clanged, evident that one of the guards had something urgent to report. The double doors opened, and a figure stepped inside.

Cadell. My right hand man.

He walked in, his hands tucked behind his back. Once he was inside the doors behind him closed with a subtle click.  He walked a bit closer and the took a knee. One hand over his knee and the other over his chest, as he bowed his head deeply.

"Rise, Cadell", I said, and he got up. His gaze flicked from me to my guest for a fraction of a second and then came back to meet mine.

"High Sovereign", he started the conversation formally, "the test subject has arrived", he finished his sentence and then looked at the brown-haired man again.

Excitement bubbled inside me. Quickly standing up, I motioned for the man to follow behind me. Cadell left way as he moved to the side. Storming through the multiple doors of Taegrin Caelum, I made my way towards the stairs that led to the underground laboratory and Obsidian Vault.

We climbed down a series of narrow, winding stairs and into a roughly hewn tunnel. At its end, we entered a chamber carved out of smooth, rippling black stone that glinted with a purple sheen, almost as if it were giving off its own internal light.

The researchers were already there.

Clad in their research armor, they all were busy, tinkering with whatever instruments were present there. A light purple hue illuminated the whole antechamber, bathing it in the glow of the experiment. I walked silently towards the pulsating cylinders.

Some of the researchers saw me but I placed a finger on my lip, telling them to shut up.

It was happening. The anchor that had gave me the most troubles. A variable that was all I needed.

Walking closer to the machinery, I saw multiple tubes and wires attached to a new-born basilisk. Its chest was stationary, not showing any movement. No sign of breath. No life. No soul. A perfect vessel. Its serpentine body was coiled in a V-Shape with its small, barely visible wing tucked at the either side.

I looked up, and the researchers paved way for me. Walking closer, I placed my hand on an orb. My mind went blank a split second. Aether comported, the miniscule drop of insight into the edict of fate reacted. Once again, the familiar sensation of being removed from my physical body invaded me.

My eyes opened and I saw it once again.

A broken soul with a tattered heart. Too unsteady to be mended again. No purpose, no determination to live on.

An empty husk of a man.

The threads of fate around him, the ones that never bent or submitted to me weakened. As almost if they would break any second. Using the power from my insight, I once again tried to pull the strings of fate. Break his old ones and reattach new strings. One that I would weave for him.

The strings rattled and then finally broke, too weak to handle the onslaught. The man's body went limp, his soul already leaving his body. His soul was strong... indomitable. Using every fraction of strength, I grabbed it, tying it in new threads of fate. Weaving them slowly and painfully. Reattaching every severed link and severing the old ones.

Minutes trickled by as I continued the process.

A tug on my consciousness brought me out of my closed eye manipulation. My breath was shallow, strained. My whole body felt like it would consume itself. Like a heavy, sludgy mass was placed over my whole body.

Sudden gasps made my head turn backwards as I saw everyone looking in a particular direction.

A smirk formed over my face as I saw the brown-haired man bring the infantile body of the basilisk to me. His eyes shot wide open, seeing me and then at the man in a rapid succession.

"The pieces are in place. It's time to begin the game of ch- Sovreign's quarrel", he said and handed me the young basilisk.

His intelligent eyes looked at me, as if to asking my entire existence. His body was shaking, primal fear evident in his eyes.

"Welcome to the land of living", I said as his eyes widened a fraction of an inch, "King Grey".

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(A/n AAAND CUTTTTT.

That's it for [ Volume 1 ]. A few surprises in this epilogue. And yeah, it's short since it's epilogue. I mean prologue was 800 words, lol.

Anyways, see ya all in [ Volume 2 ].