Kieran's previous endeavor was a tireso and grueling affair, but it bore imdiate fruits.
The Fla's corruption had not dissipated or disappeared. Still, its overwhelming influence had been subdued, or more precisely, t with an opposing but equal force to neutralize its nefarious impact.
The mordant voices that had compelled Kieran to crave heinous things were growing distorted and distant, but they warred against that muting force, retaliating out of sheer terrified defiance.
The Fla grieved when it felt its tainting dominion over Kieran's thoughts and actions being challenged by its parallel. Against a pitiful opponent, the Fla was unperturbed and disinterested, but against an adversary of matching might, it felt unique despair.
It could not tolerate suffering a loss. It drove the Fla mad, madder than it was slowly driving Kieran. The thing was a sore, whiny loser that waged reprehensible sedition.
Tyrannical might that approached a titanic depth threatened to sink Kieran's soul into an infernal abyss. But the Fla was denied that vindictive satisfaction, not by the mystical energy saturating Kieran's Realm of Self, but by the actual titanic weight that secured Kieran's soul in place.
It was a burden, but it was also Kieran's saving grace.
Without the Anchor's absolute placent… the Fla would have succeeded in attempts to raze mutually assured destruction.
'You're a naughty and petulant thing, aren't you? Are you throwing a childish tantrum because I am no longer your toy? Well… Fla, I can't hear you from over there.'
The tables subtly turning in Kieran's favor was a delightful situation. He didn't squander the opportunity to taunt the Fla in an equally scathing tone.
The vestiges of corruption buzzed with malice, bloodlust, and every bit of vile emotion the Fla had consud and cultivated over perhaps countless years.
'Aw, boohoo. Cry about it. The court's in my favor now, you damned thing. I make the rules!'
Of course, the tables hadn't actually turned in Kieran's favor. His crude defense had only bore fruit against the Fla's currently pitiful state. But in his current condition, Kieran did not have the ans or ti to repeatedly accumulate massive amounts of mystical essence.
Thus, he changed his approach altogether, doing sothing experintal, foolish, and potentially harmful. At one point, the consequences of his experint far outweighed the imaginable gains.
'Let's call it a leap of faith… for the faithless.'
Kieran had not been given any concrete evidence that true Gods existed, and because of that, he doubted their existence. That wasn't his fault; he was a skeptic by nature. Until proven, he rarely trusted in anything.
That much was confird through his developing relationship with his teammates. They weren't the strongest or the most talented, but they had stuck by his side, and that was imnsely more valuable than raw talent.
Raw talent tended to be the focus of poaching.
Of course, betrayals could happen—that wasn't off the table, but Kieran exhorted himself not to dwell on those thoughts. Allowing thoughts like those to fester could ultimately lead to him ruining what he had begun to build.
Nevertheless, Kieran had pressed on with his endeavor. And by the grace of sothing… he had succeeded by a hair's breadth.
That success, however, was primarily due to Cardinal Weiss' lack of presence during the last few weeks. He was usually attentive, but Kieran reckoned that Weiss' continued absence ant he was not on the temple grounds above the Stone Hold.
Repairing his Mystic Gate to its full glory was a moot option. So, Kieran had opted to break it down to its elental parts and reconfigure it in another shape—the shape of the Fifth Syllable—aning Equality.
As Kieran had learned through trial, error, and utilization, the Fifth Supre Letter—
Equality—aid to attain balance in all it partook. That's why Kieran gained a sense of ntal equilibrium whenever the Syllable was stimulated, and it was long-lasting, offering a serene environnt.
If not for its long-lasting effects, Kieran would have despaired. The grand form of this Supre Lettering consud an oceanic amount of mystical essence.
Luckily, only the arousal of Equality consud that much mystical essence. The giant symbol found its equilibrium not long after, entering a passive state where it radiated a continual harmonic tune.
Like Kieran had assud, the Fla did not appreciate the presence of this mystic might. It recoiled and avoided it with unnerved caution, which was strange considering the Supre Lettering was rarely used as a weapon.
But… it was a subli defense.
With his Mystic Gate taking on the crude appearance of Equality, Kieran felt poised to overwhelm, subdue, and contain the Fla.
After all, Hekaina had accomplished sothing similar, sealing the weakened Argexes through the use of Supre Lettering. And in light of that feat, Kieran could maybe achieve sothing similar. With the help of that mystical might, what was once malignant grew uncharacteristically benign.
'So I was sabotaged. Is that right, you repulsive thing? By you and the Trial… or maybe you two are one and the sa. Regardless, your weakness has been exposed. You fear the Mystic Gate, and maybe I don't need blood. Maybe the Gate is enough.'
Previously, Kieran had interacted and bargained with the Fla from a clear position of inferiority. He needed the Fla, but the vile thing only wanted Kieran. But now, his needs had changed, ruling the Fla out of the equation.
Needless to say, his primary focus was to continue shoring up the weakness of the grand Fifth Syllable floating in his Realm of Self.
A drastic shift from the Fla to mysticism took place. And Kieran could tell from the noxious emotions oozing out to tentatively assail the mystic might to no avail.
'Poor little Fla, you're like a caged feral beast. You want to erupt in outrage, but there's nowhere for you to go. Serves you right. You should have struck a deal. I'm quite fair, you know? Your loss.'
It was Kieran's turn to beco the mordant voice, fonting the Fla's captive ire. How the tables had turned.
During this ti, Kieran spent many monts considering what to do with the Fla and how it related to overcoming the Trial.
From what Kieran gathered, there was no single correct thod to overco the Trial, and any progress in his subclass was graciously welcod.
'I just need to survive without becoming Broken, right? Is that the clearing condition of this Trial?'
It sounded plausible, but Kieran didn't know.
Dying felt pretty impossible with the presence of this bizarre Fla. Cardinal Weiss was a pri example of how this fla overrode Death's authority. No… it was more fitting to say it consud that authority.
Was there an authority higher than Death, though? It was absolute and ca for all. There was no escaping it, yet… these fanatics continued defying death through this Fla's twisted grace.
For as long as reasonably possible, Kieran ignored but also tornted the Fla. His subsequent weeks and months were spent reinforcing the Symbol of Equality with newly extracted pieces of his disparate soul.
When not tampering with the Supre Letter, Kieran felt at peace swinging his tapered, steel longsword. His movents were becoming sharper, filled with lucid savagery. It was not the Fla that called for this savagery; Kieran desired it.
It was the only style of battle he knew; it was ingrained in him. The Fla hadn't influenced this part of him because it was uncalled for.
However, beneath that savagery was a sober and keen mind.
All things considered, Kieran felt the trial was finally going good. Well, until it wasn't.
The second Culling of the Voiceless was upon him, and he could feel the Fla burn with glee.
The starved Fla was about to be served a sumptuous al!
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