Enel stepped further into the cave, his sharp gaze scanning the space. The air inside was thick with an energy unlike anything he had felt before. It wasn’t just the absence of death—it was history itself lingering in the walls. The scent of damp stone mixed with sothing else, sothing old yet untouched by ti.
The walls, though lined with thin strips of magic, still bore the weight of an ancient presence. There were no signs of recent habitation, yet the air wasn’t stale. Soone—or sothing—had ensured this place remained preserved.
Naamah moved ahead, her steps unhurried but precise.
"This place..." Enel murmured, running his fingers along the carved stone, feeling the faint hum of preserved essence. "Why bring here?"
Naamah glanced back at him, her expression unreadable. "Because you need to understand who you’re up against. Or at least what they are capable of doing?"
She raised her hand, and the cave reacted—dim lines of light snaked through the walls, revealing long-forgotten markings. Symbols of a language older than most civilizations, glowing softly like embers refusing to die.
"This was once the refuge of those who opposed them," she continued. "The last remnants of a people who sought to expose the Sisters of Fate for what they truly were. Before they were wiped out."
Enel exhaled, his gaze narrowing. He could feel the lingering despair in the air, the echoes of voices long since silenced.
"And yet, here we are," he said, tilting his head slightly. "Their knowledge didn’t save them."
Naamah’s lips pressed into a thin line. "No, it didn’t."
She walked deeper into the cave, stopping before a flat slab of stone—an altar, aged but intact. A faint golden thread of energy still pulsed from its surface.
"But it can save you."
Enel’s eyes flickered with interest as he stepped closer. "Go on."
Naamah placed a hand on the altar, and the golden energy pulsed brighter, as if recognizing her presence. The air shifted around them, growing denser with unseen power.
"The Sisters of Fate aren’t gods," she stated. "They weren’t ant to control fate. And because of that, they have a weakness."
Enel smirked slightly. "And you just happen to know it?"
Naamah t his gaze. "Would I have survived this long if I didn’t? But exploring it is not so easy."
For the first ti since stepping into the cave, Enel truly looked at her. He had always known she was powerful, but there was sothing else now.
A knowledge that had kept her alive despite the wrath of so of the most ancient beings in existence.
He crossed his arms. "Then tell . What’s their weakness?"
Naamah’s voice was steady, but there was an unmistakable weight behind her words.
"I cant say... it is forbidden. Then again, telling you now will do no good."
Enel, having tasted the kind of knowledge she had understood what was happening.
Naamah did not want him to dispose of her just yet. At least this way, the curiosity of the knowledge she had against the fates woukd keep her around.
"...Facing the Fates now would be foolishness," she stated, turning her gaze to Enel. "They are not as simple as the primordial beasts you’ve fought until now. Their power is deeply rooted, not just in skill or strength, but in existence itself."
She took a slow step forward, her expression unreadable. "On their ho turf, their artifacts alone could end worlds, and that is before we even consider what they carry on their person." Her eyes glead slightly in the dim light. "There is also ghe fact that each of them has been bathed in fate’s essence, their very being woven into the fabric of reality."
Enel listened in silence, his arms crossed. He could hear the warning in her tone, but it didn’t deter him—it only made him more curious.
Naamah sighed. "This is not sothing to take lightly. Unless you have a way to even the playing field, you will not get far."
Enel raised an eyebrow. "And what do you an by that?"
She didn’t answer imdiately. Instead, she smiled—a small, knowing curve of her lips that sent a sharp realization through him.
Enel’s gaze sharpened. She’s referring to Solomon.
A side-smile ford on his face as he exhaled. "Now I see why you saved ." His voice carried an amused edge. "It’s not you’re interested in... it’s my backer."
Naamah did not deny it. She simply t his gaze, her silence a confirmation.
Enel’s smirk faded as he straightened. "Then my answer is no."
Naamah sighed, though she didn’t seem surprised by his refusal. She knew that Solomon was in this space of the fate nexuses but she did not know where.
This why she needed Enel.
Coincidentally, Enel wanted to get back at the fates for all theg had done to him.
It only made sense, that they made a team.
Without another word, she turned toward a nearby wall. With a single motion, she placed her hand against it, pressing her palm into the stone.
Ancient runes lit up beneath her touch. The stone trembled slightly, then shifted, parting to reveal a hidden passageway.
The scent of dicine drifted out imdiately, the strong herbal aroma mixing with the cool air of the cave.
Before Enel could even take a step forward, movent flashed in the dim light.
"Allison—"
He barely had ti to react before she rushed toward him from the newly revealed chamber, her arms wrapping around him tightly. She dove into his embrace, her body warm against his as she buried her face in his chest.
"I missed you," she murmured, her voice filled with relief. "What took you so long?"
Enel blinked in surprise. He hadn’t been gone that long, had he?
As if reading his thoughts, Naamah’s voice ca from nearby.
"Ti moves differently from Nexus to Nexus," she said simply before stepping into the chamber.
Enel looked down at Allison, still clinging to him, before letting out a small breath. He held her for a mont, then gently pulled away, guiding her forward as he followed Naamah inside.
The room beyond was nothing like the cold stone corridors they had passed through. It was vast, decorated in a way that suggested wealth and status. The walls were adorned with fine carvings, and the air, despite the scent of dicine, carried an almost royal presence.
At the center of the room was a massive bed, its fra carved with intricate details. And lying upon it, wrapped almost entirely in bandages, was a figure.
Enel narrowed his eyes, stepping closer. The face, though partially obscured, was still visible.
He did not recognize her.
Naamah approached the bedside, her voice softer now.
"This is my sister," she said, reaching out gently toward the bandaged figure. "Your aunt... Durgia."
Enel’s expression hardened.
He had never t Durgia before, but the na was not unfamiliar. She was one of the Sisters of Eve. The very sa woman who had lost her skin to the Tree of Knowledge.
Naamah continued, her voice laced with sothing unreadable.
"We were stabbed in the back by the Fates." She exhaled slowly, shaking her head. "The casualties were..." Her words trailed off for a mont.
Then, finally, she sighed.
"We lost our sister... Lamashtu."
Enel’s eyes widened slightly.
Lamashtu.
The na rang through his mind like a bell. He still rembered her.
After all, he had her on the sa night as Naamah.
But More than that, she was anything but weak...
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