As so ti passed, the events that had just happened started to settle.
Mori could've let it go, but he didn't care enough to worry about Maël's feelings.
"Who was that?" he asked.
Jax.
"Yeah, you did ntion that earlier. So what, did I steal you from him?"
"To steal , you would have to voluntarily choose to take from soone, but I'm the one who got into you by force. You tell who stole who. Poor Aura."
"At least Aura won't act like this guy. You have weird taste, but I guess your choices are limited down here. By the way, what's the na of this place?"
Everyone calls it differently depending where they're from. It doesn't matter much, call it whatever you want.
"Alright."
Ti was weird. The sun wasn't moving in the sky, and there was no clouds.
The perpetual eclipse made it hard to know how much ti passed, sotis tricking Mori's brain subconsciously.
It felt like he still just arrived, but it must've been hours, now.
He got up, and got his hand through the hole in the ground, between the rocks.
"Get out?" he asked.
Quickly, a stormy brand took over his body, getting him through this hole she got him into.
Nothing changed, the sa old plains.
He got his hand up, in front of him, and chains pierced through the ground going up.
He grabbed them and swirled them around his body, dissimulating them under his clothes.
Why don't you use those chains on , huh?
"Why don't you ask Jax to do it?"
Mori couldn't hear her thoughts, but could feel the coldness coming from them, which drew a faint smile on his face.
He was walking in a random direction, the scenery forever repetitive.
"Why is there so many bodies lying around? So of them barely even look human anymore."
So of them aren't human. Anyone can end up in here. But most of those you see mostly just gave up.
Those 'corpses' were lying around, sotis easy to miss and at other tis watching him walk by.
Their bodies oftentis deford. One of them almost looked fused into the dead tree it was resting against.
Body parts were missing, and looked different from what they should have. They were turning into those eldritch creatures Mori harvested.
"Ti is slower in here than out there, isn't it?"
There was a brief pause before Maël answered.
Indeed. How did you know?
Mori chuckled.
"Of course it is. This place is perfect for harvesting, it would take less ti than it ever would outside. Especially since I'm already in here.
Fast? No. Around the sa ti. But it will yield better results.
"If ti is slower I can spend more ti harvesting while not much ti has passed outside." Find more chapters on m_v l|e-
She chuckled. He could hear it. She was laughing.
He hated that laugh, but it's not like he could've shut her up.
Ah. Okay. Whether I spend 5 minutes out here or the equivalent of 5 minutes outside, but here, it will be the sa thing. Makes sense.
Mori had a small laugh at himself for going over sothing this basic.
Better results sounded like a good enough incentive to start harvesting.
However, he quickly reminded himself that wasn't his main goal.
"How do we do this?" asked Mori.
Find the hex you've set into her brand, make it resonate through here, and we'll pierce the veil wherever that is.
How the fuck does soone do that?
"Well, a good thing is that we're not rushed for ti. I'd like to find sowhere to rest at eventually, but the only place that stands out is those mountains further."
Through his voice, she spoke back.
"You're not the only one who thinks that way. It will cause us more problems than it would solve, and it's not more comfortable."
Mori sighed and simply sat down on the dried soil.
He rubbed his eyes and massaged his forehead.
He let himself fall backward, using his single arm as a pillow, while he looked directly up.
Watching an eclipse was ill advised, but his eyes felt perfectly fine.
He closed his eyes for a mont, and without realizing it, fell into a slumber while pondering his options.
Through the sleep's veil a voice pierced through, reaching Mori as he was going through a dreamless rest.
Pulled out, like a fish out of the sea, he opened his eyes and sat upright.
Sitting a little further was an old man.
He was smiling while watching him wake up.
Surprise took over Mori, but no alarm rang in his head.
Maël also wasn't talking, which lead him to believe this man wasn't dangerous.
"Do you just enjoy watching people sleep?" asked Mori.
The old man laughed, while rubbing his beard.
He wore a black robe, most of it looking like rags used by ti. So parts had work done, trying to fix it, yet it still was in a poor state.
Besides the pale skin and white hair every older person had, nothing really stood out from him, besides his smile.
It was the first being he saw smile, not counting Jax's.
"It's not every day a sovereign cos around..."
His voice was shaky, and trembled slightly, yet felt reliable.
It was as if every word was weighted ntally before being spoken.
"You know of other sovereigns who've co here?" asked Mori.
"There's been a few... I believe you've already t Jax. He was one."
Mori's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"
"Oh yes."
"How about Maël?"
"Is she causing you trouble? She wasn't a sovereign, no..."
"She is. But she's proven herself useful so far," said Mori.
"Well, at least there's that..."
"Why are you here?" asked Mori.
The old man was pensive for a mont, but eventually found his answer.
"It's like watching a still lake for weeks until, one day, you notice a ripple. It's only natural to be curious about those things."
"What if I was dangerous?" asked Mori.
"Well, I don't think that would change much... Rember, I'm here too. This isn't exactly paradise, is it?"
Mori was surprised, but nodded. The old man was right.
This place wasn't for 'good' people.
"So this is where I'll end up? Like Jax?" asked Mori.
"The chances are high, yes. People like you tend to end up here."
"People like ?"
The old man's tone was friendly, calm and serene, yet the words he spoke were sharp and pointy.
"Don't take it personally. Sovereigns that get their strength from this place don't usually end up anywhere else. I'm only going on a wild run, here, but I would guess by now you've already caused your load of pain out there."
The old man raised both hands up, still smiling.
"Nobody in here is better than anyone else. Don't worry. However, if there's still a chance for you, maybe you should change your ways."
Mori's surprised look turned into a cold stare.
"I don't plan on changing anything. I'll kill every last human."
"Ah. Suicide?"
"What?"
"At the end, you'll be the last remaining human. Will you kill yourself then?" he asked.
Mori was surprised by the question, before the man made another comnt.
"That must be why Maël seems to like you."
"I'd rather you keep my na out of your mouth," said Maël through Mori's mouth.
The old man raised both arms again.
"There there, it was just a guess, didn't know it would strike close to the target."
"What did you an? Why do you think she likes ?" asked Mori, ignoring Maël.
"Her motivations have been the sa as yours. That's most likely why she isn't hostile to you. Good for your mind and your body," he said.
Maël's brand started taking over Mori's body, as the man slowly got up with his palms facing Mori again, seemingly backing up.
"There there, I'm going. Good eting you, young man. No need to get so worked up, Maël."
The old man started walking away, stopped by Mori's words.
"What's your na?" he asked.
The old man turned around, smiling.
"Heh. Just call anything you want. That's what everyone does. Was good eting you, Mori."
The man turned around, leaving without saying another word.
Mori lied on his back again, staring at the eclipse.
"I should've asked him to help find that hex on Aura's neck."
"He's not as nice as you think. Regardless of nice, he wouldn't be able to help, anyway."
"Do you know anyone who could?" asked Mori.
"Yeah, I know soone who would most likely be able to make this happen," replied Maël through his voice.
"Great. I guess I'll rest so more, and whenever I co back to, we could find that person."
Mori could feel his energy replenishing, it didn't require intense concentration.
He felt it through his body. He had gotten so used to having no cursed energy, that now that it was there the contrast struck him like day and night.
Resting only ant accumulating more cursed energy, which wasn't a bad thing.
"So, who will we be looking for?" asked Mori.
"Jax."
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