Abyssal Awakening

"I refuse." Zal-Ka'Rith spoke plainly with a smile, surprising Alice.

For someone on the pursuit of knowledge with such interest in her, she had expected him to accept.

If information was the thing he was after, surely standing by her will get him what he wants the most.

"Seems like my refusal was not what you expected to hear from me. While the proposition and potential you have offered indeed intrigue me, I can observe just fine by doing nothing. And there's a stark difference between not minding what happens to my race of Outer Gods and directly being involved with their downfall." Zal-Ka'Rith chuckled.

"Aren't you being involved by simply giving me clues?" Alice furrowed her brows.

"That's a little different. Let me rephrase it like this for you. Do you blame Velouria for your creation? That Nyer fellow seemed to have modelled you after her to some extent after all." He asked as Alice shook her head.

"Of course not."

"Then there's your answer. The clues I gave you are akin to Velouria's existence. A fundamental part and foundation to your creation yet not exactly directly involved. Whereas forming an alliance with you will be like me giving Nyer a hand in creating your blueprints." Zal-Ka'Rith explained.

"So no matter what I say or offer, you won't help?"

"Precisely. But I will be observing with keen interest." She chuckled, standing up properly.

"This girl that I'm borrowing for the moment, I'll have her journey with you. If you give me information I deign interesting enough, I will share with you the knowledge that I hold. Think of her as a. . . method of contacting me.

"And let's not forget, the information I hold does include how to deal with Eldritch energy and even helping out that boy with his. . . Hunger. He's holding on well for now but for how long?" She reminded with a grin.

Hearing this, Alice frowned in displeasure.

"So you don't want to form an alliance but you want to tag along? Aren't you a little fickle? And doesn't this count as intervening directly to change the outcome?" Alice folded her arms.

"Observing from front row seats doesn't count now does it? And giving information on how to save a life doesn't count as directly being involved with the downfall of my race. If I were to have this girl perform medical treatment on someone who just so happens to have Eldritch energy, someone who just so happens to grow very strong with this energy, someone who just so happens to end my race, it's not direct involvement is it?" She reasoned as Alice's smile twitched.

"What kind of backwards logic is this??"

[I told you Alice, their thoughts are fundamentally different from ours.] Cayla sighed seeing her master get tugged around like this.

"Not at all. Of course you may certain try to kill this girl if you want but I'd rather you didn't. Though she is not my icon, I'm rather fond of her."

Without giving Alice a chance to respond, Zal-Ka'Rith closed his eyes as his aura disappeared.

Once more, it returned back to the woman that they were talking to before.

"Was your discussion with my Lord a pleasant one?" She asked with a gentle smile.

"About as pleasant as it can get with an Outer God. I'm guessing you're gonna be following us whether we like it or not then?" Alice asked while rolling her eye.

"It's my Lord's orders after all. I will follow it with all my heart. Ah, he has mentioned that there may have been some. . . Disagreements between the two of you so I hope you don't kill me for that." She held her hands together, causing Alice to let out a groan.

It wasn't exactly what she had hoped for but she had to admit that having a contact point between them might be good.

Information for information after all.

"Ask him how the exchange will go. Do I have to actively give him information or will he trade once he see's something he's interested in?" She wanted him to clarify after all.

Tilting her head with her finger on her chin, the woman paused briefly as the strands of energy around her trembled before stopping.

"My Lord has said that he'll simply observe and answer when he feels the need to. Of course, you can ask early if you wish and he'll calculate if the exchange is equal." She smiled.

"Tch, stingy. And please, clean up the blood and smell on your body. The Kids in the caravan wouldn't enjoy the sight." Alice reminded as the woman nodded her head with a slight bow.

"Are you sure about this?" Jin whispered, giving the woman behind them a glance.

"Hell no. But it's the best clue on how to deal with this Eldritch Energy crap. Having an insider will speed up the process a lot." Alice sighed.

"But wouldn't that give them your information as well?"

"Possibly. But there's also too much of my own past that I don't know of myself. If they can find out then so be it. He even managed to dig up memories I didn't even know I had." Alice pointed at her own head.

The memories, if that was accurate, of her time as part of the V series of clones was unfamiliar to her. If each clone had died, she shouldn't have retained these memories yet somehow Zal-Ka'Rith was able to dig into them.

She wasn't sure what else he could find but it could give her a full picture as to what Nyer was aiming to get from all of this.

The two of them glanced back once more at the Nun who was following behind them gracefully.

There was not a single trace of blood or stench left anymore.

If they didn't know any better, they'd think she was harmless.

Yet the moment these thoughts graced their minds, they recalled the horrifying displays they saw on the way in and shivered.

Such a terrifying 'talent' hidden behind that graceful smile.

"Right, you got a name? If you're travelling with us, might as well know who you are." Alice paused.

"This humble one is known as Isolde." Isolde introduced herself simply with a light bow.

Seeing that she wasn't going to say anything else, Alice shrugged and the three made their way back to the caravan.

Thinking about it for a moment, Alice decided to fabricate a story.

Something along the lines of running into her when exploring a nearby tunnel and they just so happen to be going the same direction.

After explaining things to the caravan lead, Alice decided to pay for her food since she'll be travelling with them.

Sitting by her tent while looking at Jin and Isolde, Alice couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.

Out of everyone she's travelled with, this is probably the strangest group!

A cult vessel turned Eldritch Vessel and the favoured devotee of an Outer God.

[Honestly, it's not that different if you really think about it. Ria also used to be a Cult Vessel, same with Luke, Selen is an experiment by the Zenia family with ties to the Old Lords. Egil is a warrior turned hybrid due to circumstances. If you really dig deep, I don't think we ever had a 'normal' group while travelling. Anyone who's remotely normal either change or leave.] Cayla mused as Alice paused before agreeing.

'Do you think we'll ever get normal people?'

[Do you think you'll ever stop drinking?]

'No.'

[There's your answer. Our path is not one from normality. Even if it was at one point, it's long gone.] Cayla shrugged.

Only insane people can join Alice on this journey. Normal people have long left and are no longer in sight.

'Pft that's fair.' Alice smiled.

While her journey and 'freedom' may not have been what she originally expected while contained within that white room, she wouldn't trade it for anything.

###

". . ."

". . ."

"What's wrong ya little sh*t? Having doubt?" Rosalyn smirked as the three of them stood on a hill.

"I wouldn't necessary say that doubt is the right word. Rather concerns about the power of my supposed target." Ria's smile twitched seeing the scene in front of her.

In the distance, a colossal storm dominated the landscape, a warning for those that wanted to approach.

It felt as though the realm itself was collapsing in this maelstrom of lightning and destruction with thunder roaring every so often. A spiral of clouds and electricity descended, forming a strange tree of sorts.

Veins of lightning that acted as the branches seemed frozen in time, expanding yet retracting. A pulse of violet and rose hues, glows that filtered through the clouds.

The skies churned and the earth trembled.

This was the supposed nest of the Sky Sovereign.

Despite being so far away, Ria could already feel the static electricity running through her skin as a chill ran down her spine.

To think a six star beast could cause this kind of phenomenon, truly deserving of its title as Sovereign.

"Honestly you're in luck you know that right? To make a nest like this, the beast must be close to death. It's trying to warn people off by threatening them with a boundary where it can use its power to the max." Rosalyn whistled with a grin.

"You call that lucky???" Ria shouted, pointing at a beast in the distance.

It seemed rather strong with a bulky body but the moment it approached, countless strikes of lightning crashed down, erasing it in an instant.

"I said the beast was near death not that it can't kill you. Even a near death sovereign can kill random bozo's 20 times before they even approach. Good luck~" Rosalyn shrugged, waving her parasol as blood surged around her.

Watching Rosalyn disappear, Ria let out a deep sigh and glanced back at the maelstrom painting the horizon with the colours of death and fear.