The PTV arrived with an uncanny precision of the time. Asteria was told to be ready by twelve sharp — she didn't think it was supposed to be taken literally. At the second the clock struck twelve, the sleek, armoured vehicle was outside, pulled to the curb and ready.
Asteria stood waiting, draped in a gown of onyx silk that felt like cool liquid against her skin. It pooled at her ankles in ripples of dark light, absorbing the light from the sun above.
Thankfully, despite her upbringing, she wasn't without a fashion sense. She had accessorised herself with a vanity of variety of gold. A sleek golden chain around her waist, simple bands on her fingers and subtle filgeree along her wrists. This was, of course, the [Might of Gold].
'It's not exactly what this echo is intended for but it'll do the job, I suppose.' She hummed, adjusting the weight on her feet.
'Well isn't that fancy? To the second, too.' Asteria sighed, not expecting this kind of treatment. 'They clearly don't do anything half-assed.'
As the door to the PTV hissed open, Asteria's cloudy eyes met another, the dark, knowing gaze whe both expected and dreaded. Seishan sat in the plush interior, looking like an exotic statue of marble dressed in red silk.
"I'm glad you didn't run away at the last moment, it would've caused some unsavoury problems between us, and that's not what we want, is it now?" Her voice purred, a subtle warning to the newcomer.
"Preferably not, but what can you do?" Asteria smiled and replied, hoping to end this ludicrous battle of hidden threats before it even began.
***
In an uncomfortably long drive and a plethora of checkpoints and security — the Princesses of Song arrived at the Song Clan's complex within the waking world of the NQSC.
Seishan led her to the entry of the complex. When the doors opened, Asteria was greeted by a sea of banners and a gallery of eyes. Personnel, from the awakened to mundane, stood like statues along the halls. Their stares were heavy, laden with judgement and curiosity. They watched their Princess — Seishan — with reverence; but they watched the Queen of Nightmare as if they were watching a stray cat enter their territory.
Asteria kept her chin high, her strides mimicking the confident grace of her guide. "You'll get used to the ogling eventually," Seishan whispered, her amusement plainly obvious.
"Haha.. I hope so." Asteria muttered, her discomfort pricking at her skin despite her mask of indifference. "Will a Saint transport us to Ravenheart?"
Seishan's ears perked up at the question, eyebrows slightly raised.
"A Saint? Oh, no. There's no need for that."
'Huh? How are we getting there then...?'
The answer she wondered came as they entered a massive elevator at the rear of the complex. The descent was long — uncomfortably so. The hum of modern machinery was the only sound as they plummeted deep into the surface of the waking world. When the doors slid open, Asteria's breath hitched.
Asteria soon noticed what incredibe secret had to be buried deep below the surface.
Dozens of Awakened and even Masters were down here with her, all wearing suits of armour with confident gazes and attending to important tasks without even sparing a glance at the two princesses like it was a regular occurrence; which to be honest, it probably was.
That wasn't what caught her gaze the most. Asteria didn't care about the people, the area or even how far down they were beneath the surface.
In the vast chasm of this room, there was a tear in reality itself.
If that was the cause of the freezing temperatures — of ice hardening and dissolving within the room, she didn't know. But all Asteria knew was that wasn't normal — no, it wasn't human at all.
"What. Is. That." The Queen of Nightmare nearly fumbled with her words, jaw practically on the floor in shock.
"This... is how we're getting to Ravenheart, see?" Seishan pointed innocently at the fissure, as if everything was normal.
The tear was hundreds of metres tall and positioned in the centre of the chasm, it was a rift of inpenetrable cold with a raging snowstorm inside.
A magnificent black palace could be vaguely seen in the windy, billowing snow; as well as the daunting mountain it was built upon.
That was Ravenheart.
The clouds of snow and ice that escaped the gate instantly melted, pooling at the bottom of the rift before bubbling and evaporating like nothing happened.
'Hah. What did I get myself into?'
"It's beautiful right?" The woman next to Asteria sighed. "I can't help but stare at it. Mother truly is brilliant!"
"Ki Song did this?" Asteria's shock doubled, penetrating even her deepest ambitions of building her strength.
Seishan hummed in lieu of a response; but that was all Asteria needed to understand the situation.
'Who the hell is she? Actually don't tell me, I don't want to know... what a cool aspect ability... transporting between worlds.' Asteria's eyes were opened to a whole new realm of possibilities and differences between aspects.
Seishan didn't wait for Asteria to finish her existential crisis. She grabbed her wrist and hauled her towards the tear.
"Wait–!"
After being dragged through the rift — literally, by Seishan — The Princesses found themselves in the bitter, cold mountainous range of Ravenheart, positioned in a snowstorm in front of the Palace that was seen through the reflection of the gate.
Asteria turned, shivering instantly, teeth clattering so hard it was painful. She faced Seishan, who was wearing far less than she was, yet seemingly unbothered. "Are you... not... cold?"
Seishan shrugged, her hair whipped around by the gale. "I got used to it. I practically grew up here, after all." She stopped walking, and laughed to herself, turning into a low chuckle. "I forgot my manners. Welcome to Ravenheart, sister!"
***
The pair walked through the tundras of Ravenheart for a while before finally making it to the gates of the palace. The palace itself was grander and infinitely more terrifying than the one Asteria had claimed as her own.
This palace was made out of sharp obsidian, featuring structures carved into its surface — vents that spiral throughout the walls. Asteria had once heard that Ravenheart was once situated very closely to a volcano; whether or not it was still active was not her problem.
There were no nightmare creatures around, at least Asteria didn't think so given how nobody paid mind to the abominations walking around pulling caravans or the unnatural walking of what appeared to be soldiers guarding them.
'Weird, very weird... Is this also some kind of aspect ability? Today has been a festival for learning, it seems.'
Looking at her surroundings, Asteria gave a silent sigh. Her sigh unfortunately did not avoid Seishan's attention.
"Why the long face? You're coming to see your family today."
"That," Asteria mumbled under he being breath, "is exactly the problem."
They passed the outer gates, the obsidian walls swallowing the light. The interior of the palace was even colder. They descended into the depths of the citadel, passing gate after gate of reinforced steel and stone..
"How far do we need to go? This is quite miserable. I hope you provide me with some memories to stay warm." Asteria scoffed, trying to lighten the mood.
Seishan however, missed that cue entirely and took her seriously. "If it's that much of a problem, we can arrange that."
Until finally, they reached a final gate that led into an even greater and grander chamber than one could imagine, ivory and jade lining the walls, a flawless kind of beauty you'd only see in artwork.
A cold light was illuminating the pale stone from above, brightening a stone throne at the end of the chamber. And on this throne was a breathtakingly beautiful woman.
A red gown was spilling down the dais' steps, and her skin was as pale as a corpse; her hair was like a stream of bountiful darkness.
A faint smile was playing on the woman's lips, a mesmerising smile that reached her wondrous eyes–
'Am I really getting seduced by her? Spell she's... Snap out of it.' Asteria chided herself, quickly shaking her head to focus once more. 'I didn't know I swung that way... damn awakened and being so...'
Two youths were standing on the side of the throne, a boy and a girl — staring into the distance with lifeless, dead eyes.
Of course they were lifeless, there were swords piercing their chests and pinning them to the walls next to the throne.
None of them were alive. Not even the woman on the throne.
Yet Asteria could feel the weighted presence that she had only ever felt once before. They were undoubtedly living despite not having a beating heart.
'That's definitely not a Saint... Ah shit.. I really messed up big time.' Asteria swallowed, gulping hard at the swift realisation that she could not overpower her in a battle of strength — even if she were to somehow transcend tomorrow.
The dead woman on the throne turned her head slightly, turning her gaze towards Asteria; inadvertently making her whole body shiver.
This was the Queen of Worms — the Matriarch of the Great Clan of Song.
Seishan quickly kneeled and spoke with a grin, "Greetings, Mother." before rising to her feet once more.
'Uh... do I also do that? How does this work?'
Ki Song did not speak — the woman on the throne's lips stayed shut. Instead, the girl on her right began speaking.
"Queen of Nightmare. I've been far too curious to meet you." The voice was a hollow, perfect echo coming from a puppet who had its strings cut.
"Ah, so you've heard of me?" The Queen of Nightmare whispered, stumbling over her own thoughts. "I'm honoured, your Majes–"
"Mother," the puppet corrected.
"Huh?"
Seishan sighed, "Asteria... you're forgetting something."
"Mother..." The world felt foreign coming from Asteria's mouth but it didn't feel wrong to say.
"Yes, that's right, my daughter." The woman on the throne finally spoke, revealing a tantalising smile towards her newly adopted daughter of Song. "I heard you've been quite the saviour as of late?"
"Haha, you think too highly of me, Mother." Asteria replied, unsure where the conversation was leaving; her mind was spinning, spiraling with questions.
'This is a Supreme. Humanity has only been known to have conquered the third nightmare... and you're telling me some have done the fourth? Does that mean Anvil is also...'
"Don't sell yourself short, I heard you conquered a second nightmare alone, rescued little Nephie from the dream realm and even brought back another bunch from..." Ki Song's words trailed off before becoming infinitely sharper. "...Your citadel."
"That is correct, I don't need to bore you with the details right?" Asteria asked, hoping for the best.
"You do not, though I am curious... Where is it?" The animated corpse unhurriedly asked.
Asteria gritted her teeth, biting the bullet for how much information she will have to spill for her safety. "In a desert, an endless, vast and scorching hot desert."
"Anything else?"
"Yes, in fact." Asteria gestured a triangle with her hands, "A very, very, very large pyramid in the distance. I wouldn't recommend going there, to be honest. It's terrifying to look at."
"The Tomb of Ariel." The woman whispered, almost inaudible — like it wasn't meant for her ears. The puppets waved their hands in unison before speaking at the same time. "Shan, do lead her to her room and give her the run down. I have much to think about."
Seishan nodded before swiftly turning on her heel and turning around, telling Asteria to follow behind. "I've not seen her that lost in thought for a while. How'd you do it?"
"Maybe I'm awesome, absolutely amazing, perhaps?"
The walk back through the obsidian halls felt different. The initial terror of being in the presence of a Supreme — a literal goddess of the current age — had settled, washed into a cold adrenaline.
Asteria followed Seishan, the hem of her onyx dress swishing against the dark stone, her [Might of Gold] accessories reminding her that she was still anchored to her own power, however small it seemed here.
"You have a strange definition of awesome, sister." Seishan remarked, her voice echoing along the empty hall. "Most people who make mother go that silent end up as one of her puppets."
"I prefer the term authentic, Asteria countered, though her heart was still thumping against her ribs like a bird in a cage. "I'm guessing my Citadel won't exactly be a tourist spot then."
Seishan stopped at a set of massive doors carved from a single slab of black jade. "It seems to be a sore spot for Mother, a dangerous one, at that."
She pushed the doors open, revealing a suite that took Asteria's breath away.
Her room was nothing like the cramped dorm in the academy or the cold stairs and rugged housing of the outskirts. It was a palace.
Unfortunately Asteria already had one palace.
The floors were covered in thick white furs, of creatures she didn't know the names of. A fireplace the size of a small car roared with flames that gave off a warm heat without any smoke. There were large mosaic windows that offered a panoramic view of the snowy peaks of Ravenheart.
"Your new home, I hope you like the room." Seishan announced, gesturing to the embodiment of opulence called a bedroom. "The run down is simple... I suppose. You're a Princess of Song now, at least look the part. You have access to our facilities like training grounds and anything else you desire. You will be assigned a personal retinue of Guards — mostly for show, though they serve as good messengers."
Asteria walked to the window, watching the stiff-legged march of the soldiers in the courtyard below. "And the training? I assume I'm not just here to look pretty."
Seishan's smile turned sharp, almost predatory. "Mother wants you to become a Saint as soon as possible. She sees something promising in you. Over the next few months, You will spar with our trainers until you can't stand, and then you will spar again. You will learn basic politics and our standing, too."
Asteria turned away from the window, her violet eyes meeting Seishan's dark ones. "My citadel? Besides, I can't anchor here and I can't take anyone there either."
"That's easy enough to solve. If you need to return, someone can take you back to the waking world — in which you'd head to our complex and enter the dream gate, the same way we got here. If you don't like it, become a Saint." Seishan said, her tone softening a fraction into a light-hearted joke before turning serious once more. "Remember, the moment you accepted our offer you became an investment for her. Don't make her regret it."
Asteria sat on the edge of the massive bed, the furs sinking beneath her. The weight of the world felt heavy, but for the first time, she had walls around her that weren't made of sand or secrets.
"I don't plan on being a pawn for long," Asteria murmured.
Seishan laughed, a rich, genuine sound as she headed for the door. "Good! Good. You'd be boring if you didn't have any aspirations. Get some rest, your first lessons start tomorrow. And Asteria?"
"Hmm?"
"Try not to die in your sleep, it wouldn't be the first time someone has here."
As the jade doors clicked shut, Asteria sat in the firelight. She looked at her hands — pale, trembling slightly, but filled with a new, dark potential.
She was a daughter of Song. She was a Princess of a clan filled with dead puppets.
She lay back into the furs, staring at the ceiling. 'Tomb of Ariel... Supremes...'The names swirled in her head like the snowstorm outside.
'Well,' she thought, closing her eyes as the heat of the flames finally began to thaw her bones. 'I think I underestimated them. Saints? are you kidding? Of course they'd have secrets like this — damn legacies.'