Ivo and Armand led Solomon through the building's front entrance, the heavy door creaking as it swung shut behind them.
From the outside, one would think the building was occupied and full of life and activity. But as they stepped inside, the truth was revealed.
The building was empty, with no sign of the life it's happy exterior had suggested. As they walked, their footsteps echoed in the hollow space, bouncing off the bare walls as they made their way deeper into the building.
The two best friends guided Solomon to the basent where they opened the door to a narrow staircase. They entered, the air growing colder the deeper they descended into the building's underground levels.
The stairs seed to stretch endlessly, winding deeper and deeper into the earth until they reached a long corridor at the bottom.
Ivo and Armand led the way down the corridor until they reached a closed door. The door was made of thick iron, its surface designed by beautiful and delicate runes that seed to pulse faintly with its own light in the near total darkness.
At the center of the door was a thick, gnarly tree. The progenitor's symbol.
The vampires' eyes glowed a bright red as they inspected it.
Solomon paused for a mont, his eyes scanning the runes. He chuckled softly, marveling at the craftsmanship. "A progenitor lock." He muttered, almost to himself. "I should have known."
Ivo, catching his expression, smirked. "Impressive, isn't it?" he asked, his amusent evident to all.
"Yuri's lucky." Solomon nodded, though his mind was racing. "Not many Counts own progenitor locks and she got hers for free." He admitted, his voice betraying a touch of envy.
"I doubt it's free." Ivo smirked. "I won't be surprised if Itachi cos one day and asks for his lock back. Why would he throw away sothing as valuable as a progenitor lock?"
"He won't." Armand stepped forward, his hand resting on the door's surface. "This lock is so secure that only three people in the city can open it. Yuri, Ivo, and myself. When we add you, it'll be four. Isn't that amazing?"
Solomon scoffed inwardly, keeping his expression neutral.
Four, indeed. He thought to himself, knowing fully well that there was another vampire in the city who could open the lock, whether he was attuned to it or not.
Ezra Matten. The vampire who had stolen what was rightfully his and had beco a prince instead of him. But he kept that knowledge to himself, impatiently gesturing for them to continue.
"Let's get on with it." He said, his voice clipped with impatience.
Ivo and Armand exchanged a brief glance of amusent before Ivo turned back to the door.
"Alright. The process is quite simple." Ivo explained. "The lock requires your touch to attune to you. It will take a few monts and during that ti, you won't be able to remove your hand from its surface."
"But don't worry. You'll be safe from all forms of attack as the attunent takes place. When the process is complete, you'll be added to those who can open it."
"I'll begin the process." Ivo nodded and placed his hand on the door.
The door humd faintly, the sound a bit loud in the corridor. It began to glow with a soft golden light, illuminating the place.
The runes on its surface seed to co alive, pulsing rhythmically as if it was now a beating heart. Solomon watched Ivo intensely for any sign of an unexpected occurrence but Ivo's expression was calm.
After a few seconds, Ivo removed his hand, and the door continued to glow, waiting for the next touch.
"Your turn." Ivo said, stepping aside to make room for Solomon. "Or are you scared?"
"What nonsense are you spewing?" Solomon paused, a frown on his face.
"Oh yeah." Ivo raised a finger. "A piece of advice. Whatever happens, do not draw attention."
"What?" He asked in confusion.
"You'll see." Ivo gave him a cryptic and superior grin.
Solomon turned away from the man and stepped forward, facing the door. He was closer to owning the Ascension well than he'd ever been. Whatever would happen, he was ready for it.
He steeled himself and approached the lock, his vitality surging inside of him like a storm. Despite the calm deanor he was projecting, he was not calm inside. He was feeling a mix of fear, nervousness, excitent and anticipation all rolled into a ball and stuck into his chest.
He slowly reached out and placed his hand on the cold tal surface of the door. The golden glow grew brighter, before shifting to a bright red as the lock began to attune to Solomon's presence.
"Is that it?" He frowned. "I'm not feeling any-"
The world disappeared in an instant, replayed by a darkness where the illusion of light played at the edge of his peripheral vision. He blinked and then closed his eyes but the light remained. He felt the strange sensation that had washed over him, knowing that he was sowhere else and at the sa ti, in the sa place he had been.
Then, everything changed.
An imaginably vast and ancient being appeared as if it had always been there, waiting at the very edge of his consciousness.
He felt the being breathe and his mind unraveled a little. Each inhale was like the rivers of ti, flowing in reverse, walking back in the way it had co. Each exhale was like a stamp in the parchnt of all that had been and all that would co to be. A fate set in stone, a destiny rewritten.
For a mont, Solomon felt tears of blood running down his cheeks at the beauty of it all. No words could express what he was seeing. No paintings could render it into sothing tangible.
It was exhilarating and terrifying at the sa ti.
His vitality surged within him like a dog eting its master. His five rings echoed of it's power.
This... was the guardian of everything.
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