The morning light barely made it through the mansion's high windows, a weak, gray light that did nothing to warm Sara Vistro. She hadn't slept. The silence of the night was filled with her own worrying thoughts, each hour dragging on. Her father's words kept repeating in her head until they turned into a scary truth.
There was only one place in the Luminaris Kingdom that was truly, strangely quiet.
The Abyssal Cells.
The thought made her sick. She knew the stories. Every noble child in the Luminaris Kingdoms learned about the Abyssal Cells as a warning against treason. It was a place where the Null-Stone breathed for you, sucking away your mana until you were spiritually dried up. Even the most talented were said to fear the silence there. Sending Edward there—a boy who had never even felt his own mana, a child with no spiritual awareness—wasn't a punishment. It was a slow way to kill his mind.
Sara moved quickly, desperately. She ignored her maids and dressed herself in a plain blue travel cloak. Her heart pounded in her chest. She had to see him. She had to know if he was still sane inside or if the darkness had already taken her brother.
The entrance to the Abyssal Cells was in the shadow of the mansion's North Tower, a heavy iron door set into the side of a rocky hill. It looked more like a monster's mouth than a doorway.
As Sara got closer, the gravel crunching under her boots, two figures stepped out of the shadows. They were knights from the Marquis's personal guard, covered in dark, black armor. They held their weapons crossed in front of the doorway
"Lady Sara," the knight on the left said, his voice muffled by his helmet. "The Lord Marquis has completely closed off this area. No one can enter or leave."
"Move," Sara said, her voice shaky but firm. "I'm his daughter. I have the right to check on my brother."
"With respect, my lady, the Marquis's word is law," the second guard replied. "Even for you. Letting you in would anger the Lord. Go back to the mansion."
"My brother is just a fifteen year-old kid with no mana!" Sara shouted, her composure breaking. "He can't survive the Null-Stone for even one night, let alone a month! Do you want to be responsible for the death of a Vistro child?"
The guards didn't move. They were experienced fighters, cultivating at the peak of the apprentice stage, and her? She was a Middle-level Apprentice, who just inscribed her Fifth Circle only a month ago, and the effort had left her bedridden for days. The guards were also skilled with the sword, not even needing mana to overpower her. Sara was simply weaker. In a real fight, she wouldn't stand a chance.
But Sara had something they didn't: the protection of her family. The guards knew they couldn't hurt her. Harming the Marquis's daughter would be courting death.
"I said… move!"
Sara raised her hands. She couldn't do advanced magic. So, instead, she focused, feeling the mana inside her. She used a basic wind spell.
"Move aside!"
A sudden burst of air shot from her hands. It wasn't strong enough to break their armor, but it surprised the knights. The fact that a kind lady used magic made them stumble. The air hit their chests, moving their heavy boots just enough to break their stance.
"My lady! You mustn't!" one guard yelled, reaching for his sword but stopping. He couldn't hurt her. He could only watch as she ran past and toward the iron door.
Sara didn't look back. She opened the door and went into the darkness of the stairs.
With that, the air changed instantly. The deeper she went, the heavier the world felt. The Abyssal Cells were built with Null-Stone, and the magic was so strong that Sara felt her own power weakening. Her mana felt like trying to move through thick, freezing honey.
As she went down the winding stairs, the extent of the cruelty hit her. Each step was further from the sun, further from hope. She thought of Edward, small and quiet, sitting in this complete emptiness.
'How long has he been here?' she wondered, starting to cry. 'Four hours? Ten?' She imagined him curled up in a corner, his eyes empty, his spirit broken by the silence. She imagined him calling for her, his voice getting weaker until it disappeared. She felt guilty, like a weight on her chest. She was the older sister. It was her job to protect him, and she had failed. She had let their father treat her own brother like a criminal.
"I'm coming, Edward," she whispered, her tears blurring her vision. "I'm coming."
The corridors at the bottom were dark and confusing. The stone walls were wet, and the only sound was the distant dripping of water—a sound that, in the silence, sounded like a ticking clock.
Finally, she reached the lowest level. Cell Number One.
The heavy iron bar on the door screeched as it opened. Sara's hands shook so much she almost dropped the lantern she had grabbed from the wall. The door opened, letting a bit of light into the darkness.
Standing there, she was a young woman with long brown hair and eyes wide with shock.
She looked at the cell. She saw the dirt on the floor, the cold stone bench, and the lack of anything comfortable. Then, she saw the figure in the middle of the room.
She saw the gray marks on Edward's skin—the dark stuff that had come out of his pores. To her, it looked like dirt and rot. He looked like a corpse left out in the rain.
She looked at her little brother sitting in the dark, and her heart broke.
"Edward?" she whispered, her voice trembling, so quiet it seemed to disappear into the darkness.
Edward didn't move. He sat still, his back straight. He kept his head down, his chin near his chest.
"Edward! Oh, gods… what has he done to you?"
It was too much. Sara rushed forward, her skirts dragging in the dirt. She dropped to her knees, forgetting her noble upbringing. She reached out, touching his shoulders. She felt his cold skin, and her voice rose in despair.
"Edward! Talk to me! Please! Say something!"
She cried, the sounds echoing off the walls. Her tears falling on the floor.
"EDWARD!"
Her voice echoed through the Abyssal Cells, a cry of such pain that it would have broken anyone. It was the sound of a sister seeing her brother in such a place.