The Evernon Saga - The Journey Of Ascension, A Struggle For Godhood.

(Day 2 - around noon)

On a high-up roof somewhere in the Capital...

"I'm not sure how, or why I can do it, but I helped them 'pass on' by burning them," explained William, "That's what they claimed, at least."

Struck with such a monumental piece of information, Aiden seemed to stumble and fall over himself, overcome with astonishment.

He laid on his back, gazing at the still-blue sky, a ray of hope penetrating his heart.

"That's...amazing!" cheered Aiden, "This means that you can eventually help most, if not all of them pass on properly, and I'll eventually have peace!"

Scowling, William held his chin as he pondered the matter, a flaw in that theory tugging at his mind.

"I don't think that will be possible. When I burned them, it felt more like I was forcefully destroying them," commented William, "Frankly, I don't like the idea of that at all."

"Destroying them?! That's another issue entirely, and quite an unpleasant one, at that."

"Indeed. If I'm going to help them pass on, I would prefer to make it as painless as possible."

But...how?

William's mind wrestled with the growing tide of mystery in his head, as he pushed it down, deep into the depths of his consciousness. There were too many questions that lacked answers. He would not let them submerge and drown him in careless overthinking.

***

After resting, chatting for a while and entering a calmer, more relaxed state, Aiden managed to take his Eyes of the Dead back from William. Aiden's grey eyes, which had been still and normal for a short time, were once again ever-changing, shifting pools.

On the bright side, there were much fewer spirits being reflected in his eyes, as none of them dared to come within 50 meters of William, forming a dome of, quite literally, soulless air around him. Therefore, the pressure that Aiden had to bear was slightly reduced.

Aiden suggested climbing down from the roof to avoid being spotted and questioned after the previous commotion they caused.

Whenever Mana, be it ambient or Personal Mana, is used, a slight disturbance in the air is created. This can only be sensed by those who can sense Mana. However, the Capital is full of formidable individuals, and the slight disturbance in the ambient Mana caused by William's use of his Mana could alarm or annoy the people living under the roof they were sitting on.

Incurring a thought such as, 'Why is someone using Mana on my roof?', could end up leading to a disastrous situation if they were to offend someone with a short temper and no morals. Therefore, they eventually decided to sit on one of the crates in the initial alleyway they had entered.

"I meant to ask you this before, but we had gotten sidetracked," began William, "How did you find out that I can use Mana?"

Aiden paused briefly, before chuckling.

"As you would have seen, ghosts usually sit everywhere, and on everyone. However, there were none on you. Any ghost that wandered close to you would immediately fly away, screaming 'Strange Mana!'"

William laughed self-deprecatingly.

"That definitely wasn't the case when I was affected by the weight of your Eyes of the Dead, they attacked me like a swarm of bees."

"Impossible! They've never directly harmed me before!"

After a brief moment of thought, William's eyes lit up.

"It might be because you're the owner of the ability," suggested William.

"That could indeed be the case."

Out of the blue, an epiphany was born in William's mind.

"Aiden! What if...you were to use this ability offensively? Have you ever given it any thought? You could render someone completely helpless in battle if you can train yourself to transfer it with a single touch!"

Aiden pondered William's words for a second, before holding his head in his hands, groaning.

"All my years of learning, wasted..."

William snickered.

"Aiden, how do you know so much about Natural Passives?"

Aiden seemed to hesitate before replying, biting his lower lip gently while in deep thought, before wincing. He had bitten down into the wound on his lower lip that he had unwittingly inflicted on himself earlier, amidst his frustration.

"One moment."

Aiden reached into a pocket on the inside of his coat, close to his body, and produced a small vial roughly the size of a thumb. Clear, crimson liquid swished around inside it.

Uncorking the vial, he took a sip, consuming around a quarter of it. A pleasant, slightly sweet aroma wafted into William's nose.

At a rate discernible to the n.a.k.e.d eye, Aiden's wounded lip flushed red in a small area around it, as skin grew, and flesh regenerated. The wound closed within 3 seconds, Aiden's lower lip now back to its unharmed, full, pink state. Replacing the vial into one of the secret pockets in his coat, Aiden smirked at William, eager to witness his reaction.

William was dumbfounded yet simultaneously fascinated, unintentionally staring at Aiden's lips with an unprecedented intensity.

Aiden noticed his gaze, an eyebrow rising and a grin appearing on his face.

"My my, for you pay such attention to my lips, what are your intentions, William?"

"I don't have any! I was just amazed, is all!"

"Amazed by my lips? You certainly are bold, announcing a proclamation such as that. By any chance, have you truly set your sights me?"

Unable to muster the will and strength to respond, William lost yet another battle of words since entering the Capital.

Aiden giggled, deciding that he had teased William enough, for now.

"There is a mage of high standing who was posted here in the Capital. She is originally from the country of Mages, otherwise known as the Wescarian Empire. She was the only one who believed me when I mentioned having a Natural Passive, and I've been consulting her ever since."

"Was she the one who taught you about Natural Passives?"

"Precisely. I'm only telling you this because I trust you, William. Be sure to tell no one else of this, or her. Don't even mention her in passing. If you can agree to that, we can go visit her if you'd like. Although she is known to be quite the eccentric, perhaps you can learn something new about yourself."

"Of course I'll keep her a secret! It will only be dangerous and troublesome for us if either of our secrets are exposed. If she's trustworthy, then I have no complaints. Where can we find her?"

"At the Grand Library. It's the largest library in our Royal Kingdom and is in fact one of its national secrets," whispered Aiden, "Between you and I, it's the only place in Nashya where you can learn magic."

William's eyes widened in shock.

"Magic?!" exclaimed William, "Wouldn't one have to go to the Wescarian Empire to learn magic?"

Aiden leaned closer to William, before delivering a backhanded slap across his face.

"Shhh! Don't shout so loudly, you fool!"

"S-sorry..."

"In any case, I presume that the Grand Library is our next destination, then?"

"All right, let's go," agreed William, nodding and rubbing his cheek.

***

5 minutes by carriage later...

Alighting from the carriage onto a crowded street, William and Aiden came face to face with a drab, unimpressive two-storey bookstore. On a post in front of it, hung a decrepit sign with the word 'Books' on it. The building's wood had long greyed and blackened with time, attributing to how long it had been standing at this very location.

"Come then, let's step inside," said Aiden, leading the way.

Aiden walked up to the front door of the bookstore, running his hands over its wood affectionately.

Gazing wistfully, he ran his eyes up and down every mark, every rut of every grain, and every discolouration on that door. This store was, to him, his second home.

Everything about it just felt like home.

Meanwhile, William stood still, thunderstruck by this worn-out derelict of a building. Nonetheless, when Aiden pulled the door open, he followed silently behind him. His questions would have to wait until they were inside.

A small, simply decorated and cosy room greeted their eyes. The interior was about the size of a large living room, with every wall except for one of the shorter sides having shelf after shelf of books. Tomes of all shapes, sizes, colours, and thickness lined the many shelves and bookcases.

A gruff old man sat at a simple table, messy with books and writing utensils strewn across it seemingly at random. It was hard to find more than just a few free centimetres on the surface of the table.

The old man was dr.a.p.ed in wide, flowing robes that masked the outline of his body. Light purple was the colour that met one's eyes when observing the man's robe while it swished back and forth, as he jotted down words into a blank book at a blinding speed. His hands were little more than a blur, as words painted themselves across the blank landscape of the pages, filling its empty valley with swiftly, yet carefully printed forests.

William took a brief moment to look around the bookstore. The air was somewhat stale and relatively dusty. There were indeed many books present, as well as what seemed to be an extraordinary individual in front of them, though something felt off. He could not, however, place his finger on 'what'.

"Good day! I'm back!" greeted Aiden cheerily.

"Ah! A returning customer! What can I do for you, young lady?" asked the old man, who paused his writing, closing his book and looking up for the first time since William and Aiden's arrival.

His facial expression and smile froze, before settling into a grimace.

"Oh, it's you. Are you here to borrow a book, or to bother the Master again?" inquired the old man, drained of all of the enthusiasm that he previously possessed.

William let out a low, long sigh. He was glad to see that his reaction to Aiden earlier was not abnormal.

He reopened the book he had been writing within and picked up his writing utensil once again. It was a medieval pencil, to be precise. Finely crafted and intricately carved, completely unlike the chunk of charcoal wrapped crudely in leather that Gwen used.

"Good day, sir. My name is William," said William somewhat unsteadily, introducing himself.

"A Nameless, huh? And why are you introducing yourself? You're not getting any discounts, whether I know your name or not," scoffed the old man.

A wave of embarrassment washed over William, carrying him off to a sea of pink, which was the colour of his cheeks at that moment. Yet not half a second after, he noticed something about what the old man had said.

Nameless?

"Cease your ridicule! I brought him here, as it seems that he is like me. He too, is an Aberration," announced Aiden with a smug smile.

The old man paused, his face now consumed by seriousness, closing his book once more and pushing it aside. Placing his writing utensil down, he stood up and walked from his desk on the other side of the room, towards them. As he walked, his hunched-over silhouette and weathered skin seemed to straighten and fill out.

With every step he took, his back straightened, his posture improving. His skin seemed to tighten and travel back in time, his wrinkles evaporating faster than water that had been thrown into a volcano, his pale complexion replaced by a healthy, youthful glow. By the time he reached William and Aiden, he had undergone a metamorphosis.

A tall, young and handsome man stood before them. He was not as young as William and Aiden were, but had the looks of someone in his 20s. He was dressed in the very same robes that he had been wearing as an old man just moments before.

Yet this time, they seemed to suit his current physique, which was the opposite of the aged, 'clothes hanger' body he had before. He stared hard at William's face, almost as if he was trying to read William like one of the books in his store.

Raising his right arm, particles of ambient Mana in the air materialized into points of blue light and gathered around his hand, barricading the door, and creating a nearly invisible, yet solid cube that completely encased the building. No sight, sound or Mana would enter or escape the confines of this cube. Neither William nor Aiden could see or sense this.

"I have taken the appropriate measures. Come, show me what you are capable of. I wish to see if you are worthy of being called an Aberration."

"An Aberration?" asked William, as usual, at a loss.

Aiden placed a hand on William's shoulder, standing very close to him. He leaned forward, his mouth closing in on William's left ear.

"Just gradually release your Aura and show him that you can use your Personal Mana, that's enough," whispered Aiden.

William nodded, as Aiden took a few steps back.

William closed his eyes, standing still and quietly, an air of serenity around him. Slowly, and gradually, his hair began to rustle and move slightly, in the absence of any wind or breeze.

The robed young man's eyes widened. Ambient Mana began to swarm around and form a lens in front of his eyes, as he observed William keenly, his expression turning increasingly serious with every second that passed. He was currently observing the unrestrained existence of, and the flow of Personal Mana within William's body.

A golden glow suffused William's skin and body, as it grew in brightness and intensity.

Suddenly, golden flames erupted from every centimetre of William's skin. His face was creased with effort, as he controlled his flames with as much precision as he was capable of, preventing them from setting the wooden floor and the vulnerable, flammable books alight.

The robed young man commanded the ambient Mana, willing a portion of it to act as a cage for William's Aura, and a shield for the books. To his surprise, his worry was for naught. During William's time with Joseph, he had cultivated his control over his Aura and Personal Mana to a shocking degree. For a beginner at using Mana, at least.

A rippling, writhing cloak of golden flames had engulfed William, its intense heat radiating and being felt by Aiden and the robed young man. The air itself began to heat up rapidly, akin to when an entire bucket of water is thrown onto the rocks in a sauna.

The heat began causing Aiden to feel incredibly uncomfortable, as he shielded his eyes from the blinding glow of William's flames within the dark, dreary interior of the bookstore.

The robed young man's mouth finally fell open, as he decided to test an idea that he had. Mentally taking control of the smaller barrier that he had put up around William, he closed its borders in on him, trying to encroach on his Aura.

A searing pang of pain shot through the head of the robed young man as he cringed, his face creasing up in pain. Its intensity rendered him barely able to keep one eye open, as he immediately commanded the barrier to grow wider, away from William's flames.

"That's enough, you damn monster!" roared the robed young man.

William was taken aback, and offended, as his Aura unintentionally flared from the effect that that sentence had had on his emotions.

A second burning knife of pain buried itself in the head of the robed young man, as he fell to one knee, with a hand desperately clutching his head and hair.

Seeing the suffering he was causing the robed young man, William immediately withdrew his Aura, and rushed to his side. Who immediately stopped him halfway, waving him away with his hand.

"I'm sorry, it wasn't my intention to do you harm!" apologized William remorsefully.

"It's not entirely your fault, as I did something I shouldn't have. In any case, the fact that a human like you exists...completely exceeds my expectations," grumbled the robed young man, massaging his temples as he rose to his feet.

His gaze wandered to a free section of one of the walls, which was not lined with bookshelves, as he snapped his fingers, silently and swiftly chanting an incantation.

The boards of the wall parted and swung towards them like doors, revealing a wooden staircase that led upwards, to the second floor.

"Go, I'll allow you to see my Master. She is likely the only one who wouldn't plot against or try to exterminate a freak like you," declared the robed young man, pointing to the staircase with his thumb.

"Thanks, Puppy!" giggled Aiden, skipping his way towards the door, "Come along, William, let's go!"

The robed young man grunted grumpily in response, scowling slightly.

William paused.

Puppy?

"Aiden, wait a moment," protested William, before turning to the robed young man, "May I ask what your name is?"

The robed young man seemed to ponder for a moment, before beginning to scratch his head, his face overcome with wonder. Consumed by his thoughts, he stood there alone in a world of his own.

"My name, huh?..." he wondered out loud, "How long has it been since I've used it?"

William stood there in shock once more, before Aiden grabbed his right hand, pulling him up the stairs.

"My apologies for troubling you, Nett!"

Recognition dawned upon the robed young man's face, as his expression turned somewhat wistful.

"Yes, that's what it was...Nett..." murmured Nett to himself, spaced out, swimming in memories of times long past.

***

With Aiden pulling William up the cramped, dimly lit staircase, the candles that were lined up along the walls gave off an air of solemnity. They were meticulously arranged, evenly spaced, and of the same size. The candles did not even seem to melt in the slightest.

The staircase itself was winding, leading them higher and higher in a narrow spiral, reaching heights that would logically exceed the height of the building they were in.

However, William seemed to notice none of this, as his mind was flooded with more questions.

I'm a so-called 'Nameless'? What is that?

Nett is a 'Puppy'?

Why couldn't he even remember his own name?

"Aiden, why did you refer to Nett as a 'Puppy'?" inquired William.

"Oh, that? That's a nickname I created for him. He's a puppet, you see," he replied.

"A puppet? But he is a human, like us!"

"While it may seem like it, he isn't. He is a creation, born from a school of magic known as Puppetry," explained Aiden, before looking up and spotting a ray of white light piercing through the darkness of the staircase, "Putting that aside, we have arrived."

As they neared the top of the staircase, a doorway composed of pure light came into view.

Without a shred of hesitation, Aiden maintained his running pace, pulling William by the hand with him into the light. The latter had to shield his eyes from the blinding radiance of the doorway, as he felt a peculiar sensation pass over every centimetre of his body from head to toe. A gentle wave of warmth accompanied the light as it flowed across his skin, scanning him thoroughly, a fact he was ignorant of.

They had entered the Grand Library.

As the light that battered their eyes died down, William had been pulled by Aiden into what seemed to be an entirely separate world.

If four large, modern-day warehouses were combined into one, they might reach half the size and height of the Grand Library, whose size was hard to describe. Gargantuan bookshelves exceeding 100 metres in height surrounded and towered over them, as the furthest bookshelf they could see in the distance appeared to be of deceptively normal size. However, William could guess that it was because it was incredibly far away.

Looking around, William was astounded, his astonishment affecting him so deeply that his ability to produce sound was lost to the vastness of the room. The room itself was brightly lit, even though no sources of light were visible or present.

Although the Capital is a place with many sights to see and experiences to be had, most of them having shocked William speechless, none of them came close to impacting him how the Grand Library had. His knees wobbled, as he dropped down onto them, staring off into space, glancing around them. These bookshelves which stood far, far taller than any regular building he saw, were breathtakingly beautiful. Just one of them held tens of thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of books.

And that was just one bookshelf, of the countless that filled the massive hall, creating a labyrinth of seemingly endless alleyways and paths that led to everywhere, and nowhere.

Aiden flicked William's forehead, causing him to wince and freeing him from his stupor.

"On your feet, William. This is no time to be proposing," laughed Aiden, as a blue circle of light appeared on the ground, a few metres in front of them.

Aiden gestured with his head that William should follow, and walked towards the blue circle. As they stood in front of it, its features intrigued William. A glowing ring of blue light could be seen on the stone floor, rife with circular lines of symbols that moved in set motions, with some moving clockwise and others counterclockwise. William's eyes were glued to the mesmerizing patterns of the symbols, as they thrummed with power.

The constant droning pierced the all-encompassing silence and tranquillity around them, as the humming intensified in volume and intensity, the air around the ring and the ground beneath their feet vibrating with it.

"This is a magic circle, it's safe so there's no need to be afraid," reassured Aiden, "It's going to bring us to her."

Nodding, William walked forwards, standing next to Aiden on the magic circle, which was about 2 metres in diameter.

The magic circle lit up, and they vanished from where they were standing.

***

An instant later...

William and Aiden reappeared on a carpeted ground, in a warmly lit room. Facing them was a study of some kind, as scrolls and tomes were arranged neatly on shelves or stacked meticulously on tables and other surfaces, the complete opposite of Nett's bookstore.

A woman was behind a large desk that stood in front of them, one that was masterfully crafted and carved with various motifs and patterns that went across its sides, legs, and edges. The wood of the desk itself resembled mahogany in its colour and appearance, yet seethed with a high concentration of Mana within it, a detail that was impossible for William and Aiden to detect.

She was faced away from them, absorbed in a scroll that radiated a time-worn air. The parchment itself was weathered and had darkened with time, the written text on its surface barely legible. Accompanying the paragraphs of words, were sketches and drawings aplenty that seemed to be linked to a sizeable, detailed sketch in the middle of the parchment. The woman was engrossed with a sketch that depicted a pyramid-shaped object, her face a mere few centimetres away from the parchment.

As she was facing away from them, William and Aiden could not see her face at that moment, only being able to see her loose, azure robes. They were embroidered with four-point stars and never seemed to settle, writhing and moving slightly even as the wearer stood perfectly still.

"Ahem," harrumphed Aiden, clearing his throat to break the silence, "You can stop pretending to be occupied. You teleported us here, to begin with."

The woman winced, realizing that her act had been seen through, turning to face them.

A face of undeniable beauty and gentle features greeted them, with a touch of age that had crept into her appearance over the years, in the form of ever so slight crow's feet and faint lines around her mouth. Superficially, she looked to be a middle-aged, seasoned woman who had seen much. Although the curves of her silhouette did attract William's eyes, he noticed a smoothness behind the way she moved. This 'smoothness' was grace and practised poise.

Even during the simple act of turning to face them, she possessed an otherworldly and elegant air, her bearing rivalling that of an esteemed noblewoman.

An awkward smile danced on her lips, her embarrassment as plain as day. However, after a moment of observing William, her right eyebrow shot up in surprise as a different smile took to the dance floor of her lips. It was the smile of a woman whose curiosity was piqued.

"I, am Amelia Thunderscream, an Archmage from the Wescarian Empire," declared she.

Amelia's expression changed shortly after saying that, staring at William with hungry, half-closed eyes. Her eyes roamed wildly across William's body, seeing not just his physique and outer appearance, but also what lay within, hiding from the eyes of the incapable.

An Archmage, however, was more than capable of seeing into a person's body with a mere glance.

Amelia's tongue ran sensually over her lips, anticipation welling up inside her.