'Trust myself? Of course I do! If I don't believe in myself, then who else will? Sure I haven't been in the best shape for some time now. But I am better. My dreams are slowly leading me somewhere. I don't know if I can fully trust 'them', but I do trust me!'
Kharon smiled at Philip before continuing up the stairs. He heard Philip's footsteps getting further away as he reached the top floor. Opening the door, he flinched back as he saw Zack quietly sitting with his legs on the desk. He immediately sprung up as he noticed Kharon walking in.
"Hey boss. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be resting? It's quite late and we have our meeting tomorrow. We need you at your best!"
"I could say the same to you. Why did you come to the Sanctum? Are you in trouble?"
"No, no! Nothing like that. I just received a message from Philip telling me to check in with you. I am guessing you had a few more visions while I was gone?"
"Yes. But they weren't serious. Speaking of visions, I wanted to tell you and Freya something... But seeing as she isn't here, I will fill her in tomorrow during the meeting. Have a look at these files. They contain the descriptions of the cursed constructs I found in the mausoleum."
Kharon handed him the documents before walking towards his seat. As he sat down, he watched as Zack's eyes zoomed past the lines of writing in seconds. He put down the files as he said, "They really are cursed... I don't think I have come around mystic constructs with such dangerous drawbacks. I know some of them are tier 3, but those drawbacks are disproportionate.. You definitely aren't using the Mirrored Shard. Ever."
"Obviously not. My mind is already fractured enough as it is. I don't need it to be broken even more. But I also want to tell you that I got my tier 3 ritual. Preparations start tomorrow. It may take weeks or even months before I ascend though."
Zack shook his head as he answered, "With your luck, it will take a month at most. I mean you found twenty mystic constructs and got your ritual formula without getting a scratch on you. I doubt a small, silly ritual will hold you down for long."
Kharon smiled faintly as he scratched the back of his head. His eyes fell on the files as he picked them up and placed them at the center of the table which suddenly lit up. The documents began to fall through into the white light as they vanished.
"What did you just do?"
"I stored the documents. We can easily access them like this..."
Kharon snapped his fingers as several holographic images popped up. He reached out as they fell towards him and began rotating between different files. Zack watched this in amusement as he asked, "Only one person can read them. How does this-"
Another set of holographic files were formed as they flew towards Zack. As he watched this, a screen appeared at the center of the table. On it was the first file of the documents.
"Cursed Construct #1 Space Bangle.
Tier 4 - Cosmos
Appearance:..."
The image quickly vanished as Zack whistled. He looked at his copy before raising his hands up.
"I surrender. You are always ten steps ahead of me, aren't you boss? No need to humble me anymore, I will do that myself... Can you explain to me what your ritual entails? I need to know how I can help."
The two had a brief conversation before Kharon stood up. He nodded towards the slowly vanishing Zack before leaving the room.
'Zack knows the Eclipsed Hollows the most out of any of us. There is also the fact that he must know quite a few people. With his help and reputation, the civilians are more likely to believe me. However something is still missing... I haven't planned the location of my performance. How am I so stupid! I can do better than this!'
Kharon raised his hands as he tapped his face several times. He walked into his room as his gaze fell on the window. He walked towards it as he studied the celestial swarm overhead. The black sun slowly flew through the sky as Kharon closed his drapes.
As he sat at his desk, he stared blankly at his pale hands. His cold, grey eyes carefully scrutinised every detail as he clenched his fists. He pulled out a white, blank piece of paper as he picked up his pen. His hands began to quickly glide above the paper with masterful strokes.
'I can create a rough plan for tomorrow. I trust that Philip will definitely come up with something great... but I need to do something. I can't rely on others to do my work. This is my ritual after all. Gaining recognition wouldn't be hard. But trust and credibility are the most important.'
The pen rhythmically tapped the desk as Kharon pondered over the issue. His grey eyes seemed to stare straight through the walls as he looked at something beyond.
'Stars... celestial bodies of great mass and power. But objects of belief. In this case, wishes... I could use that to my advantage. People believe most when magic and miracles are involved. So if I manage to present myself as multiple people who believe in a God...'
Kharon stood up as he pulled his drapes apart and opened his window. He jumped out as he began to float. His eyes fell once again on the stars as he flew up towards them. He ascended higher and higher until the mansion looked like a tiny square.
'This is the point of view of the stars. And the Gods... Celestial bodies. What does it mean to become a God? Gaining overwhelming power? Becoming untouchable? Receiving divine knowledge from the Astral Realm itself? So many questions... and no answers. I can feel myself slowly unravelling. Whoever I was warned against is definitely stirring in his slumber.'
Kharon took in a deep breath before slowly exhaling. He began to descend when he saw a sudden flash of light.
...
"This war wouldn't solve anything! It will only lead to the loss of lives. Countless lives. The human population has already declined enough. Don't you think that-"
"That ### from you ###. ### return ### ###"
Kharon was looking down at a winged man. The wings were pitch black and contained a plethora of strange symbols. The man was knelt on one knee as he bowed his head before standing up. No sound was produced as he walked out of the wide, dark room.
'That definitely wasn't me. As usual the face was covered with fog and seemed to be blurred. As if partially wiped away by something. But who is this? Who am I right now...? Could it be 'Him'? I can't sense anything from myself... him... whoever. But his strength is undeniable. Maybe he is a demi-god of mysteries. Like the spider lady...'
"You will understand in due time, Kharon. Space-time is merely a concept. It can be sidestepped once you reach this level. So reach it as quickly as possible and I will do the rest. I will return to my former glory..."
Kharon felt his mind beginning to shut down as everything turned black.
...
Kharon could hear the sound of the wind whistling in his ears. He was surrounded by a cold, slightly pleasant sensation. His body felt quite light and free. The smell of grass quickly growing. As his eyes shot open, Kharon realised that he was falling. He quickly halted his descent as the memories of what just happened flooded his mind.
'He... he spoke to me! Space-time is merely a concept?! I didn't go through any pain... I remember everything that happened? He was a demi-god? He said I should reach tier 1, the level of a demi-god and he would do the rest? My memory is very much intact, yet I can't make sense of it. It always feels like there is something stopping me...'
Flying through his window, Kharon quickly closed it as he switched off the lights. He got onto his bed as he closed his now heavy eyelids. Sleep came over him quickly as he lay still. Above him were two, golden threads. One looked normal as it slowly grew brighter, while the other one was dim and dark. It seemed to sputter occasionally with light before returning to its dark state. And holding these two threads, was an ethereal spider.
...
Kharon was jolted awake by a knock at his door as he heard Philip calling for him.
"I will be there soon! I just woke up."
Jumping out of his still well-made bed, Kharon had a quick shower. He put on casual clothing as he went down the large row of stairs. As he reached the pantry, he took a small loaf of Voidstalk Bread and put a bit of Bloodvine Jam before running up the stairs.
As he took the final bite of his breakfast, he opened the door to the top floor. Standing at their respective seats. Kharon slowly walked towards his seat as he sat down.
"Let us begin."