Re: Timeless Apocalypse-Chapter 46: Enemy(II)

Uriel’s eyes narrowed.

"Are they the ones who sent Lirik? Why are we enemies?"

"No," Enoch grimaced. "They’re probably not responsible for Lirik."

"Like I told you, you’re not enemies. In fact..." Something dark flickered across his gaze. "...Salazar and Celeste are as close to the both of us as the two of us are."

"But something happened to Salazar. I don’t know what, but it changed the way he goes about things, and how he wants to survive."

"He’s cruel and ruthless. As smart and charismatic as you, but as pragmatic and cutthroat as I can be. His spark, too, is ridiculous."

"He can permanently copy up to ten sparks and keep them forever, while also having a sort of rolodex of all sparks he has ever come across."

"He can use these sparks once, for a day or two, then never again."

Uriel’s mouth hung agape.

"And Celeste..." His gaze narrowed. "...I don’t really remember, but I know it’s almost identical to my Lie Eater."

"She wiped a good portion of what I know about her abilities, but I do know she’s the one who taught me most of what I know about my spark."

"Wiped?!" Uriel stared at him in disbelief. "How? Why?"

"I—I really don’t know," Enoch admitted, equally lost. "But she didn’t remove anything else. Only what her abilities can do."

"Eventually I’ll remember, but I’m afraid that by then it’ll be too late."

"I don’t know why, but Salazar wants you dead. Or maybe he needs something that’ll come from your death, something that’ll help her, or her abilities, in some shape or form."

Uriel fell silent.

"He’d kill me just for benefits?" His voice was tight. "Were we not close? Has he succeeded before? Did we have a falling out? Why?"

Enoch didn’t answer.

Silence filled the air.

Uriel’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t push further, noticing the trembling of Enoch’s hands and the rapid depletion of his core.

"What about Lirik? Who sent him? For what? They said they wanted information about you. What could I possibly know that they don’t?"

This time, Enoch hesitated, thinking, unsure how to answer.

"I have no idea. It most likely has to do with the oddities surrounding Persephone, and... the people around her."

TAH!

Enoch’s body spasmed violently, his core tightening as his chest flared with sudden heat. Droplets of boiling blood spilled from his lips as he coughed hard.

Seeing he was about to reach his limit, Uriel moved quickly.

His thoughts spun, compiling everything he wanted to know and everything he needed to know, crossing off questions until only one remained.

"Last question," he blurted. "Why did you send me into the Death Trial? What was the goal? Why?"

Veins erupted across Enoch’s skin as the entire house trembled, his Lie Eaters bearing the brunt of an outer force Uriel couldn’t sense, but could feel.

It was like a spectral weight embodying all things, hanging above him, reaching down to crush him bit by bit.

It felt as though the world itself was shrinking, coiling around his throat, trying to kill him.

"Like I said, we both have more than one Spark, each with extremely potent abilities," Enoch forced out. "You, in particular—amongst your sparks—have one that allows you to comprehend and master things extremely quickly."

"No," he corrected himself, voice breaking. "It allows you to comprehend and master things in a blink."

"You won’t be able to awaken it for a long time, time we don’t have. And I needed to speed up your growth."

"You told me that—" He doubled over, vomiting blood. "—if you face death, your sparks will all momentarily awaken and help you."

"Your Sparks will then return to dormancy, but you’ll keep the growth and mastery speed related to whatever they affected."

"Meaning that from now on, your arcane studies will be fulgurous."

"That’s what I wanted," he gasped. "To speed up what would’ve taken years."

"As for me... I needed to form my Class."

PAH!

The house shook violently as all of Enoch’s Lie Eaters shattered, the surrounding aether reverting to neutral atmospheric flows.

Like a taut rubber band snapping loose, a torrent of force slammed into him. His core rattled, organs trembling as he was flung from his chair and crashed to his knees.

His core shrank by the second, his body vomiting blood as though it contained a sea of it.

He was dying.

Uriel’s eyes widened as he rushed forward.

His hand slammed onto Enoch’s abdomen as he tried to forcibly stabilise the collapsing core. His jaw locked as the sheer instability spilled into him, throwing his own core into chaos.

It was so violent that, for perhaps the first time in his life, he felt his control over aether falter, even if only briefly.

Then an idea struck him.

Forcefully, he resonated his core with Enoch’s, creating a loop through their natal aether, reinforced by the atmospheric aether around them.

Instantly, Enoch’s vomiting stopped as the burden split between them.

The difference was simple.

Uriel’s core was gigantic, packed with so much aether it could flood a city with his natal essence.

It was also impossibly sturdy. Even the chaotic backlash tearing through Enoch barely managed to bruise it.

It hurt. It truly did. But his core held.

WHOOOSH!

Blood streamed from Uriel’s nose as he steadied Enoch’s core, preventing it from collapsing inward.

’...!’

Exhausted, drenched in sweat, hands trembling, he staggered back and collapsed, gasping for breath.

"What... the hell was that?" he muttered.

No answer came. Enoch had passed out.

PAH!

His body toppled sideways, collapsing onto the floor of Ayah’s living room. Uriel’s expression tightened.

’Did he really put his life on the line just to reassure me? Why the hell would—’

He stopped himself, took a slow breath. A few moments passed before he recovered, mostly.

Standing, he tried to lift Enoch, only to realise he didn’t have the strength.

Running a hand through his damp hair, slicking it back, he surveyed the situation with a grimace.

’Fate really loves to humiliate me, doesn’t it?’