[POV: Abraxes]
"Sunsinger was one of the fifty Enlightened of the First Generation. He was a bit of a nomad, according to historians. But he was known for two things," Nero's body raises two fingers, another cigarette already in his mouth. "The slaying of a Calamity. And the creation of the first ever Sorcery. Sunsinging."
"What's a Sorcery?" I ask, feeling confused.
For Mercury's like me, information regarding the Enlightened is told to us through word of mouth. It has to be, simply because we have no other way of storing information. Some things get lost over time, and some are misinterpreted. But we still know enough to not be entirely overwhelmed when we go through the Ceremony.
Except…I am beginning to understand that my people were lied to. That not everything was truly told to us. Because this Sorcery sounds not only prestigious, but powerful. It is important. I can tell it by the reverence I hear in Nero's voice. It is important enough that it was immortalised with one of the first Primes to walk the world.
It is important enough that no Mercury in the Plumeria knows of such a power.
'It's another way to control and limit our strength.' The realisation is enough to ignite the smouldering embers dwelling within me.
"Don't go getting angry kid." Nero tells me, hearing my irate thoughts. "Even among the higher Alloys, Sorcery is not just something that anyone can learn."
"Yes, but they know of it, do they not?" I ask scathingly.
Nero seems to hesitate, before he sighs, a column of smoke leaving his lips. Finally, he nods. "Yeah, they know."
I am boiling with anger at the admission. I am tempted to take it out on the Aureate and Silvers back in the room. But I temper it. Right now, they are weak and defenceless. Whilst it would be easy to end their miserable lives. I would only be emulating them.
The thought is disgusting enough to stop me.
"Talk. Now." I tell Nero's body. I want to know what is so great about this Sorcery that it is kept away from us Mercury's.
"Sorcery…is an art form, you could say. It's created through vast amounts of Sacral Essence and the ingenuity of an Enlightened. It's different for every person who creates one, but they all serve the same purpose."
"Which is?" I ask, glaring at the man as he takes a break to smoke.
"Give me a minute kid! You're like a tripwire. I need time to think here. One wrong word and you're going to go boom!" Nero complains. I am unsure if I should take it as a compliment or be offended.
"Alright, well, it all starts with the Impetus Talent of an Enlightened. From the first Axion Core to the sixth, your unlocking abilities that allow you to do something different and new. Each is like a separate piece. Once you have all of them, your Impetus Talent is complete. It becomes whole. You still with me?" I nod along, showing my understanding.
"Good. Once an Enlightened reaches that complete state with their Impetus Talent. They are capable of…let's say, reproducing, the entire whole to be learnt and wielded by others. It's almost like a guide for other Enlightened to follow."
"…Are you telling me there is a way for others to do what I can?" I ask, raising a brow. "Actually, no, that's not important. Are you telling me this has been a thing since the First Generation and not a single Mercury has known about it?"
"If it helps, only a rare few are capable of learning Sorcery. The Affinities of an Enlightened have to be an almost direct replica of the creators. Otherwise, it cannot be learnt."
"No…that has definitely not helped." I tell him. I am boiling with rage. Simmering with it really. But I think this information has broken me. Because through it all, I am calm. Not just calm but composed.
"You told me before, that you saw me becoming the hope of humanity. That I would become some symbol to save everyone. No matter their Alloy. But…after hearing this, I think I have decided on something."
Nero watches me wearily. But I am calm. I am so calm that it is frustrating. But I am still calm.
"No matter their Alloy. No matter their strength. No matter their prestige or name. If they knew about this. If they forbid this knowledge from being known to the Mercury's…I am going to murder them. I am going to look over their corpse and I am going to laugh at them."
I turn to him with a smile that is too calm. A smile that hides my burning desire for not just vengeance but justice.
"I am going to laugh at them as they laugh at us. I will call them a rat for they are the true rodents. So many love stories ended. So many families torn apart. So many lives could have been saved. All for what? Because they do not want us having any strength?"
"Abraxes…you have to understand. The higher Alloys may know of Sorcery. But there are only a few hundred which exist. They are difficult to learn, and even harder to master. Many of them are kept within Guilds or Houses to grant them an advantage against other Enlightened."
'Ah, I understand now.' The answer is so obvious I almost feel a fool for not seeing it sooner.
"I thought the true enemy was the Fallen Spawn?" I respond with contempt. "You say they are locked away to grant advantages against other Enlightened, and I ask you why. Our entire world is slowly coming to an end, and they are not being taught to any who can learn?"
Nero opens his mouth, but I cut him off before he can say anything.
"Spare me your false platitudes. They will not work. Because I already know the true reason. This has nothing to do with advantages against other Enlightened. It is but an afterthought." Nero looks away from me and I know that I am right.
"These Sorcery's are being hoarded. They are kept secret and away from the public eye because of the political power they hold. I am right, aren't I? Tell me. Enlighten me. How many marriages, this year alone, were influenced solely by the Sorcery of a House?"
He doesn't respond. So, I push just a little more.
"Tell me, Nero. Was it five. Maybe ten. Over twenty? Answer. Me."
"One-hundred and twelve."
I almost laugh at the answer I am given. Instead, I allow a bitter smile to play on my lips.
"One-hundred and twelve. I wonder how many of those Sorcery's could have been taught to others. Don't you wonder too, Nero? Don't you wonder just how many lives could have been saved. How much stronger humanity would be as a whole. If such things were not kept from us?"
"Of course I do!" He turns to me with a crazed look in his eyes. His teeth are gritted together. The metal railing beneath his palm is bent and squished together.
"I am not blind to the injustice of this world Abraxes. I have lived it. I have seen more than you could imagine! I know…" He stops for a moment. I watch him take a deep breath. "…I saved you, because you have the potential to bring this world to heel. Because you have the potential to make them listen."
He places his palms on my shoulder and looks me dead in the eye, keeping me rooted.
"I agree with you. Because this world is bullshit. Sorcery, and how the Houses treat such power, is bullshit. The discrimination which runs our world is bullshit. I know that. We both do. I would love nothing more, than to put each and every single one of them to the sword."
His grip on my shoulders tightens. I can see honesty shining in his eyes. I can hear it in his voice.
"But humanity can not afford it. We are on the brink of a second Collapse, and we need all the strength and power we can get. I understand your anger. I empathize with your pain. But we need to be more. More than our emotions. More than our Alloys. More than the Aureate."
I hate it. I hate their words, but I am beginning to understand them. Not just their words. But their spirit. Their motivation. I hate it, because it is working.
"Abraxes, our time is short. Tomorrow, Ασία will be here. So, I need you to understand. Truly, understand. Because one day, you will become a symbol. Willing or not, the world will view you differently to any Alloy that came before us. You will hold power. True, unequal power, and you will have to be ready for it."
The air around is slowly beginning to vibrate. There is power to their words. But they do not see it. Their attention is entirely focused on me.
"Strength rules all. That is the truth of our world. It has been since the dawn of humanity, and it will be so till its dusk. I know you understand this. But you are different. Because you are no longer made up of one, singular, Alloy. Look within you. Look at your Eidos."
They move one of their hands off my shoulder and point one of their fingers directly at the centre of my chest.
"Mercury. Zinc. Copper. Silver, and Aureate. Already, you hold a small part of them all. Already, you have become a bridge between them. Soon, your truth will be revealed. Soon, you will grow to no longer be ignored. Soon, you will become a legend. A Mercury who rose to stand above even the Aureate. Who reached Enlightenment above the gilded ones."
They look at me now. Their eyes are begging for me to agree. To become what they know that I can become. I try to speak. But my mouth is too dry. A part of me wants to agree. Because I know, they speak the truth.
But…
"I'm sorry."
I careful push their hands off my shoulders and look away. Because whilst I do believe in their words. I do not believe in humanity. I do not believe in the Alloys. I do not believe in the Aureate's.
"But I do not see the same hope within humanity as you do."