ALIZEH JIGEN!

It seemed like just yesterday when I arrived in this dungeon, and I couldn't even lay a finger on him. He was like a wall that towered above every single aspect of me but today, I managed to climb a little bit of that wall. We lay in the grass of the field as the breeze softly brushed against our skins finally taking a proper break since we started our sparing sessions. He finally breaks the silence saying, "...you've improved a lot since I first saw you kid, I know I was taking it easy on you by using only my left hand and little to no movement, but I never thought you'd actually succeed in disarming me. You should be proud because, in my entire life, I've only been disarmed twice, and you were the second person. I think you're worthy and I can finally tell you everything..." 

I immediately sat upright and asked him what he meant by everything, and that is when he said to me, "...I am Alizeh Jigen. I am a legendary celestial blacksmith and Pankratos, wielder of the eight-point star grimoire of swords, and the contractor of the wind spirit Ninurta. As for why I ended up here, after years of forging weapons of legendary grade I decided to pour my soul into forging the weapon that would be my greatest masterpiece, so I did research on how to fuse both divine and demonic power together so I could forge the greatest sword which held both divine and demonic properties. The result of that experiment was the dual blades, kókkinos daímonas and lefkós ángelos. I couldn't put both powers into one sword like I had hoped but I succeeded in making it so one would be able to use both powers simultaneously for a short time through synchronization using the twin blades. All that was left for the swords' completion was to infuse divine and demonic power into them. I infused my own divine power into the holy sword, so it could absorb the divine power in its wielder or the power in the atmosphere if the wielder did not possess divine power and all that was left was to infuse the demonic blade with demonic power, but I had no one to do that..."

He pauses for a short time, taking in a deep breath, as if he would rather not continue his narration, but he continues after a few deep breaths, saying, "...experiments involving the combination of divine and demonic powers were forbidden in the celestial realm, but I ignored this law and went through with my word with the obsession of creating the greatest weapon that I would ever make in my life. Eventually, the Holy Knight Order which answers directly to the celestial king paid me a visit to arrest me. I stood trial in front of the king who then passed the verdict he received from the Almighty God. For the sin of going against the laws, I was sentenced to a life imprisonment, and I was sealed here forever, but there was a condition under which I would be set free, and it was that, in the distant future, when the one destined to bring change to the seven realms appeared before me and I swear to serve them, only then would I ever regain freedom from this place. Only the destined one can enter this place, so I knew the very moment you stepped in here that you're the destined one, but I wanted to test you to make sure you are worthy of serving and that is why I proposed a spar on our first meeting. When I deemed it that you had potential, I decide to help build up your strength to a point where I would feel proud standing by your side."

I don't say anything about the story he just told me, and the place stays quiet for about two to three minutes, then I finally break the almost eternal silence by asking him how we're going to get out of here. He then tells me that we need to form a contract or in other words, a pact. He was now essentially like a spirit rather than a celestial and according to the verdict passed on to him, he had to form one with me to prove that he has accepted to serve me. I don't waste any more time and ask him to proceed with the pact. He goes ahead to draw a magic circle using a stick he found in the grass, then he asks me to sit in the middle, and concentrate my mana and pass it through the circle starting from where I was sitting. Since I had been practicing meditation for as long as I could remember, it wasn't difficult to infuse my mana into the circle, but the problem came after activating the circle. I had to create a chain of mana that will link my soul to his. Spells that directly involved the soul has always been the hardest and trickiest to pull off since ancient times, but I had to succeed on my first try, otherwise, a lot of things could go wrong really quick.

I focus my all on trying to define my soul into a definite shape so I could successfully create the chain, and also visualize AJ's soul and connect the chain to it. After some time, I realize that I've been plunged into a deep void which was boundless. I float around in this void for a long time, then I finally see a light so I try to move towards it, but I couldn't even move a muscle. I keep on trying, just focusing on the small light, then out of the blue, it appears before me. It had a kind of golden glow to it. As I was trying to figure out what it was, it starts to bend and twist as if it's alive, then I realize it's gradually taking the form of a human and that is when it hit me that, it might be my soul, and it's just responding to my desire to mold it. With that thought in mind, I try to focus and imagine it with a definite shape of myself since that will be the easiest to manipulate. After considerable mental effort, I manage to form a silhouette of myself using that light, then I attach the magic chain to the arm, and try a link with AJ. According to him, I just have to think about him, then he will appear in my soul's realm by also thinking of reaching me whilst meditating right opposite me.

Just like he said, when I concentrated and imagined that he was right before me, he really appeared before me, and we attached the other end on the chain to the materialization of his soul that came to me. Immediately it was attached to his soul, there was a surge in the magic power. After the surge, I could feel his presence more vividly withing my mind and within me. I could also feel his enormous power and potential. I finally return to reality to see him gone, and before me suspending in the air was a grimoire. It wasn't like any I've seen so far. It had a metallic Sacramento green colour, with Vanta black running along the edges with eight swords overlapping to form an eight-point star which represents life and wisdom in the center of the cover on both sides. The background of the cover when you look closer, had a lot of blades overlapping each other, giving the cover a rough feel and look. It was neatly locked and was in perfect condition.

As much as I was amazed by the grimoire, I had to find Aj so we could get out of here. I tried calling out his name and looking around all the spots he would normally be at, but he was nowhere to be found. Eventually, I decided to take a rest and examine the grimoire. A grimoire was something given to every person who has a mana core. It helps on access magic easily, and easily cast spells that would have taken months or years in a couple of seconds. It was like the embodiment of one's soul or power, so it is not something you leave just lying around. Every single grimoire owner cherished it like their own soul. I haven't gotten a grimoire of my own since I'm not of age, but I've seen my mother's and her guards' grimoire several times. Since it is something that is directly linked with your souls, it disappears upon death, unless you go through a very complicated spell to transfer it to someone else, but it had never happened in history, so it was basically just a theory. 

Since AJ was nowhere to be found, I presumed he was either the grimoire itself or he was sealed in it. As I was inspecting the grimoire, a small needle on the lock of the grimoire pricks my finger, drawing a little blood on to it. I quickly withdraw my finger and suck on it in attempt to stop the bleeding, then the star in the middle of the grimoire suddenly starts spinning, and the swords that were the design of the cover starts to rearrange as it floats into the air, then the lock comes undone. The pages flip violently, then it suddenly stops at a page, and blood that was on the lock drops on to the page, and the magic circle covering both pages to the left and right comes alive, and a creature that looked like a miniature AJ with wings is summoned. "...AJ?" I ask hesitantly and he responds with a nod, and a bow in midair. He was about the size of my palm not and looked almost like a fairy or spirit from a book.

Apparently, he took the form because, he was not close to a noble spirit than a celestial but he still celestial traits and that is why he looked like he did. After the conversation about his appearance ended, he told me that I will now be the new owner of the grimoire and I will be able to use his magic. He doesn't say anything more than that but, rather says we should get out of here because he has waited too long to feel the outside air once again. He snaps his fingers, and we're finally back to where I found the twin swords, but the monument I saw along with the swords had disappeared.