Thalrune dipped the needle into the vial of ink and drew the runes down Arinthal's back. Both sat in the center of the cave, within an ancient magical array set up to prevent velori from leaking out, as Thalrune had said earlier. Aicanor stood at the entrance of the cave, making sure he detected any intruders.
Arinthal sat naked in front of Thalrune, letting the aviari draw the runes along his arms, across his chest, and down his back. He even drew a small glyph on his forehead.
"The Arcane Circuit is an artifact as old as the velori itself. It grants power, but there's a cost. The darkness in your body has corrupted half of your soul, and for the circuit to work, you must excise half of your soul. Are you sure you want to do this?" Thalrune asked.
Arinthal sighed quietly and nodded. He had thought enough, and at that moment, all he needed was strength. True strength.
"Well then. The tattoo is finished. It's time for the ritual," Thalrune said as he stood up, clearing his equipment.
"Lay in the circle," he ordered Arinthal, who crawled into the circle at the center of the ground and lay in it.
Thalrune stood over him and started to recite a spell:
"Voryndis, sylthare, maelthas vi!
Zorath kebh, duskara ni,
Ethir en drakthul, Ythorin sai!
Thalimara keth, Zoreth vi,
Vyrthok nar, Ygdris kai!"
Blue liquid seeped out of the array, engulfing Arinthal. Instantly, he felt trapped in the liquid, which made him float a few meters above the ground. The cave breathed. It wasn't a metaphor; quite literally, he started to hear voices calling out to him in a language he couldn't comprehend. The air was alive with an otherworldly energy, the flickering torches casting eerie shadows on the walls as Arinthal's body lay suspended in mid-air. The sigils etched into the floor seemed to pulse with a dark power, as if they were hungry for the sacrifice that was about to be made.
Behind Arinthal, Thalrune released his wings, his feathers a mottled mix of brown and gray folded against his back like a dark, leathery cloak. He locked eyes with Arinthal, who immediately understood his intentions. With a nod, he agreed to Thalrune's silent condition. He had always felt different, as if there was something inside him waiting to be unleashed—a spark of power he couldn't quite grasp, no matter how hard he tried. And he was willing to pay any price for that power, to unlock the secrets of the universe and bend reality to his will.
Thalrune started chanting the spell again, and this time it was chaotic. A surge of energy rushed from the sigils and encased itself around Arinthal, proceeding to draw a white glow from the elf. Suddenly, every part of his body began to flood with an insane amount of pain. Every nerve in his body was suffering, making him scream in agony. The sound echoed through the walls of the caves with so much force that Thalrune could see the sound waves traveling. After a while, a giant blue orb seeped out of Arinthal's body and left the elf's body on the ground, lifeless.
A dark crown, no bigger than a human head, appeared above the orb, absorbing the energy until it gradually shrunk to about half of its size. Thalrune at this point was almost on the verge of collapse. Using the energy resulting from the absorption to heal his wings and using his own magic to prevent the crown's power from erupting was tiring enough to make even a master of the mystic arts collapse out of exhaustion. Finally, his knees gave way and he fell on the stone-cold floor.
The remnants of the orb flew back into Arinthal, but this time the runes on his body lit up along with his eyes when he opened them. Aicanor's eyes narrowed as he looked at this new Arinthal, a sharp contrast to the elf he had known for two days. Glowing hair, eyes as white as a god's essence, and runes glowing all over his body. The power seeping through his velori reserves was enough to go on par with a god. The rocks rumbled, the wind roared, the heat increased, and a ringing sound pierced Aicanor's ears.
Arinthal took a cursory look at Thalrune before releasing the immense power he was radiating.
"Do you have something to say to me, Thalrune? ," he said to the aviari who was sprawled on the ground like a rag doll.
"Arinthal, I... I'm sorry," Thalrune managed to say as Aicanor helped him up.
"Why did you do that?" he asked, his throat aching from anger and the pain of betrayal
"I wanted to use you and control the other half of your soul, but I can see my fault now. You healed me, and I proceeded to betray you," Thalrune confessed with crestfallen eyes.
"And why are you telling me that now? Is it because you failed or because I now control you?" Arinthal asked, a twisted expression on his face.
"What do you mean by that?" Aicanor's eyes flashed with panic.
"He tried to steal my soul. His plans backfired because he underestimated the strength of an Eldridan royal, wild magic or not. Our souls collided, and now he's practically my slave," Arinthal said, so darkly that a shiver was sent down Aicanor's spine.
Behind Arinthal, a sight escaped their gazes. The elven prince's shadow split into two, one half escaping to a place one could only wonder.