The arena was a cavern if silence and polished obsidian, lit by the same bitter cold that haunted the rest of Ravenheart. The air was heavy, cold and encompassing Asteria herself as she was silently shivering.
The Queen of Nightmare stood in the centre of the floor, her chest heaving, her iridescent hair was plastered to her forehead with sweat. In her hand she gripped a practice wooden blade — one designed specifically for sparing against the awakened. Across from her, standing with an effortless grace, was Revel.
The Lightslayer.
Among the seven sisters of Song, Revel was perhaps the most unsettling to look at. She was breathtakingly beautiful, almost ensnaring. Her raven-black hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and her eyes — like darkness given from — seemed to drink the minimal light from the room.
She was slender, almost delicate, but the presence she radiated was vast and oppressive. It felt like standing at the base of a tidal wave that froze before crashing into the shore.
Revel moved her wrist, the curved blade that was almost like a tachi traded a lazy, perfect arc through the air.
"Are you getting distracted?" Revel said, her voice even. "The floor isn't going to kill you. I am. Watch my steps. Again!"
"Easier said than done when you're actually trying to murder me — I thought this was a friendly spar." Asteria exhaled, exasperated. "Key word on the friendly!" She gasped, readjusting her stance.
Revel smiled — a thin and sharp line.
Asteria didn't wait for confirmation, she lunged towards the beauty in front of her.
As an ascended warrior of humanity — of Song — Asteria was much faster and stronger than any mundane human could possibly achieve. To an onlooker, she would be a blur of colours. But to Revel, she was... slow.
The Lightslayer didn't even need to move her feet. She simply tilted her head as Asteria's blade whistled past her ear, then brought down the hilt of her blade down in a sharp, punishing strike against Asteria's ribs.
Asteria grunted, stumbling back. The pain was sharp, but the frustration was much worse.
For days — weeks maybe, they had been at this. Every morning, one of the sisters would take her down here and systemically beat her — in a spar, of course. Despite being an ascended that she had fought so hard to achieve, here, among the Princesses of Song, she felt like a child playing with a stick.
The power difference was staggering. Revel was a Transcendent — a living, breathing Saint! The gap between them wasn't a matter of purer essence or finesse or even better memories, it was the fundamental shift in experience and mentality.
Revel challenged the third nightmare, fought thousands of battles and has had years to refine her battle art. She didn't use her sword, she was her sword, every movement was a masterpiece of intent.
'Is this that sword-body state people achieved in those webtoons I read?'
"You're panicking, again." Revel chided, stepping into Asteria's guard. "You're tightening your shoulders and legs. You're trying to muscle through an obvious gap in strength." She gestured to Asteria's feet. "Look, you're as tight as a statue, you aren't going to do anything with that form."
Asteria gritted her teeth, her clouded eyes flashing with anger. Revel was right. She was panicking and fumbling.
Asteria knew she was weak.
So she reached out to something she didn't dare to use in combat.
[Spell Sense].
Her aspect ability, the same one which helped her in her duel with caster despite being difficult to use, the same sense which tethered her to anything involved with the spell: memories, echoes... even carriers of the spell.
Most awakened relied on their eyes and ears. Asteria was listening to, feeling the tapestry of the spell itself — she could feel the presence of the people around her.
But there was something else Asteria has been noticing lately, even if she ignored it and put it off. It was a darker instinct. A hunger that whispered at the back of her mind, the desire to consume the pure — a feeling she only got when facing humans. A desire to consume the uncorrupted essence of the woman in front of her. A terrifying urge, one she's been ignoring and keeping locked behind iron doors, but in the heat of combat, she couldn't keep it stowed away.
Of course, this was her Flaw, and maybe a mix of her attributes that she is Corrupted. Asteria figured it was simply hearing the call of nightmare the awakened talked about when a gate breaks in the waking world — and boy, was she wrong.
Asteria felt like she was understanding herself more; and she wouldn't have gotten this far without these regular and brutal sparring sessions.
Opening her eyes once more, Asteria wasn't looking at Revel anymore, she was searching for the soul behind it.
Revel moved again, catching Asteria momentarily off guard. This time, she didn't hold back as much as before.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
The sound of wood on wood rang through the arena like a funeral bell. Asteria parried, her arms going numb from the sheer force of Revel's strikes. The Lightslayer was going easy, giving pointers with every clash, but the light blows of a Saint were still enough to break Asteria's bones if she slipped.
"Better," Revel murmured as their blades locked. "You're getting better at this. You're actually moving when I hit you! Congratulations!"
"I moved because I'd die if I didn't..." Asteria spat, shoving her meager weight forward.
Revel didn't budge. She was a mountain of darkness. "Fear is a fine teacher, but it makes for a very poor master. Redirect."
With another flick of her wrist, Revel sent Asteria's blade spinning upward. Before Asteria could recover, the cold edge of Revel's blade was resting against her throat.
Asteria froze. She could feel the darkness in Revel's eyes — a vast, lightless ocean. For a split second, she felt that hunger again, the urge to bite at the Saint, to tear into the essence that made her so formidable.
"I concede."
Revel's dark eyes narrowed slightly, as if she sensed the shift in Asteria.
"Interesting." The Saint whispered, her alabaster face inches away from Asteria's. "There's a beast in you, little sister. A very hungry one at that. I suggest you learn how to put it on a leash."
Revel withdrew her blade and threw it to the side in a single fluid motion. The oppressive pressure in the room vanished instantly, leaving Asteria staggering as the sudden return of breath made her head spin.
"Sparring ends for today," Revel announced, her voice returning to its usual reserved melody. "Your instincts are sharp, and your senses are developing faster than I anticipated. But remember this: until you understand how to make the environment your ally, you will always be a step behind."
***
A slow, rhythmic flapping echoed through the obsidian arena.
'What is this weird feeling of déjà vu?'
Asteria turned, wiping a smear of blood from her lower lip with the back of her hand. Her lungs burned and her muscles twitched from the intense strain of holding back a Saint's casual strikes.
The silence of the arena was broken by the sound of footsteps. One by one, the other daughters of Song emerged, forming a terrifyingly beautiful assembly.
Seishan was first — a familiar face. Her stormy grey skin smooth as silk and scarlet lips curved into a proud, mischievous grin.
Beside her was Moonveil, looking ethereal and delicate in a modest dress. Her white hair shimmered under the orange flames, and her eyes held the palace, enchanting glimmer of moonlight.
To their left, Howl — or rather, Lonesome Howl — leaned against a pillar, her handsome face illuminated by a cocky grin. She wss tall and lithe, her toned, tan arms exposed by a sleeveless vest, radiating a barely contained bestial energy that made the air around her feel electric.
Standing near her was Eunbin — Beastmaster. She was tall and mesmerising, her black hair falling like a waterfall on her back and over her dress of carmine fabric. Her dark eyes were full of a frightening willpower, a cold beauty that was irresistibly tantilizing.
Further back stood Hel. She looked petite and strangely innocent in her dark robes, her large, glistening eyes reflecting a calm that looked unnatural. That innocence betrayed by slick drops of blood stained on her hands.
Finally, there was Silence — Silent Stalker. She was so strangely unassuming in her hunting attire that Asteria almost missed her entirely; she seemed to exist as a ghost in plain sight.
Six Transcendent Saints — seven if you include Seishan — who isn't exactly Transcendent — was stuck in the dream realm for far longer than the rest.
All of them were sisters to Asteria now.
"Not bad!" Lonesome Howl called out, whistling in her fingers, voice full of a cocky confidence. "You made Revel move her feet once or twice. Or maybe she tripped over her feet."
"She didnt make me trip," Revel replied without looking back, though a faint smile touched her dark lips. "But she made progress."
Seishan walked forward, her wine-coloured silks rustling softly. She reached out and tripped Asteria's shoulder, her grey fingers cold and warm.
"Enough of the bruises and blood for one day," She began, eyes sparkling. "Revel is right. You've made progress but your time hiding here is over. Mother is tired of keeping her new toy locked away — you."
Asteria felt a chill that had nothing to do with the freezing air of Ravenheart. "What do you mean?"
"It's time for your debut, somehow, right?" Eunbin said, her voice aloof yet regal, drawing Asteria's eyes like a magnet. "Mother is thinking about hosting an event for such an occasion."
Moonveil stepped forward next, her delicate face serene. "It is time for your formal introduction, my dear sister."
Hel tilted her head, eyes fixed on Asteria. "Chaos! So much chaos! Death!" she coughed a few times before continuing, "It's long overdue, you've already been here for three weeks."
'Three weeks? Already?'
Asteria looked at the women surrounding her. They were some of the most powerful beings she's ever encountered — monstrous legends wrapped in silk, leather and moonlight. A year ago she had been a nameless orphan from the outskirts... now she's a centrepiece of global power.
'How time flies, aye?'
Asteria looked at Revel and her sisters, who were watching her with those dark, bottomless eyes.
"Are you ready?" Revel asked, "To finally become one of our sisters?"
The Queen of Nightmare tightened her grip, knuckles going white as they clawed into her palms. "Yeah..." She sighed, "I think I am."
The sisters laughed — a sound that was beautiful, cold and utterly terrifying.
"That's the spirit," Seishan whispered, looping an arm through Asteria's. "Come, let's get you cleaned up. We have people to intimidate."