Nimue's POV

𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘬

I awake to the sound, feeling solace at the resonation this time. 'I need to get to the castle', I think to myself. Ignoring the state that my hair is in and throwing on nearby clothes along my bed. Looking towards the sword, I notice it glimmering against the sun as it seemingly comes from its slumbered state. Floating just behind me as I sneak from the house to not wake up Jackson.

𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘮

An explosion like the night before, directing me to the tomb that Chris still resides in.

'Listen and observe' The sword chimes out, floating into my grasp as I walk past the village centre.

"How many times...how many times have I swung this blade." I hear Chris huff under his breath as some sort of liquid drips down to the stone floor.

𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘮, it shakes the floor once again.

'Hurry up' Aegis notices my slowed pace, flowing from my hand and encouraging me to speed up.

Coming face to face with the pack doors I quickly open them, only to feel a lighter push than usual. "Where are you going Nimue?" A small figure pops her head from behind it, Melanie.

"I'm heading into the underworld..." I linger on with my words.

"Past that door!?"

"That's where you wanted to go right? Yue's in the palace right now, I'm sorry you had to be alone for the night" I hold out my hand to her as she gratefully takes it with a smile past her ginger hair. "Is that why you're awake so early?" I ask her.

"Hmmhm" She sounds out with a bit of sadness, not having her mate return to her.

"We'll go see the castle first, how about that!?" I excitedly tell her, "That way we can tell them all what's inside and spoil their fun!" I laugh out as a joke which only brightens her smile.

"Sure!" She begins to pull me along as we head towards the portal, occasionally looking back at the sword but not asking me about it.

She stops just before entering, shaking almost. "What's wrong?" I ask with concern.

"Cerberus" She worriedly comments, taking a tighter grasp of my hand.

"Don't worry about him, let's just go. You trust me right?" I lean down to her height, meeting eye contact.

"Of course" She nods, allowing me to take her through.

The immediate change in temperature still affects my skin as bumps form along my arm. I walk backwards to gaze at Cerberus, looking back at me with a stern look. His once held high centre head, now lowered to the ground and met with mine equally. No words were said, he just simply let us go past this time feeling slightly off but I don't think too hard about it.

'Hurry' Aegis speeds me up again, power walking up the pathway as Melanie begins to fall behind now.

"C'mon" I sound to her, putting more strength in my grasp to pull her ahead of me.

"Thanks..." She murmurs with gratitude, jogging to keep up with me.

Reaching the top I glance towards the door before looking back at the palace, 'I want to check on Arthur' I think to myself.

'Concentrate' Aegis whispers through my head while sliding back into my hand with the lines gliding back up my arm, forcing my eyes to close with a tightened force. My head feels directed, like two hands covering my ears as my senses are cut off. Pointing my eyes in the direction of Arthur's room. The outline of his figure highlighted, tossing over on his injured side without worry.

'Thanks' I sigh out with relief before heading to the door.

"What were you doing?" Melanie asks.

"Just thinking about Arthur, he got hurt the last time we went in here. It's safe now though so don't worry about it!" I respond to her.

"Oh, okay. Yue's sleeping in there too right?" She asks with a bit of a whimper.

"In a different room, yeah she's in there." I take one last glance at the palace before heading back through Avalon.

The golden aurora within the sky still lighting up as a false sun while we make our way back through the shattered maze. "Was this even here before?" I crouch down, looking at claw marks that look like they were trailing behind something.

"They're big" Melanie makes a valid point.

"Yeah...they are. But nobody else has came through here, so it had to of been at the same time we were going through?" I question to myself, dusting my ankles off before continuing on.

-

"Woah" Melanie walks into through the passage from where The Spirit broke through.

"I know right?" I mimic her expression as we make our way around the centre stairs from where Aegis was planted.

"We're going in that!?" Melanie points towards the castle, running across the risen bridge and to the front door without me even answering her.

"Hey hold on, let's do it together!" I yell, trying to catch up to her.

"Hurry up!" She excitedly calls out while basically throwing herself against the closed door.

"Yeah yeah I know, I'm the slow one now huh?" I laugh while placing my hand against it. "Ready?" I turn to her as we both press it open.

The floor a dark reflective marble, pillars lined up to the high ceiling as a purple flamed chandelier dangles from it. The walls lined with various drawings and glyphic writing as if trying to speak themselves. The extensive hallways that root from the centre of the room, bending and twisting left and right to create its own illusion of being infinite.

"Where to now?" I ask Aegis.

"Follow me" She floats just in front of me, pointing like an arrow to guide me.

"Melanie, I'm heading this way. Want to split up and meet back here later?" I ask her.

"You trust me to?" She says with a confused look.

"Why wouldn't I? Does Yue not let you wander on your own?"

"...She's always worrying about me. Trying to protect me cause I'm frail...I'm tired of it" Her face scrunches up with a little annoyance.

"Well take this as your opportunity to show her you can protect yourself! I'll see you back here in a bit, take care" I wave off to her as we both take opposite ends of the dark castle, her echoed steps gradually becoming fainter by the second with the growing distance.

-

Left...right...right...left...I've lost how many times I've turned, how many stairs I've gone up and down. "Are we not there yet?" I question, tilting my head to the sword but not receiving a response.

We descend another stair case, this one seeming different from the others. Like a weight being applied to my shoulders. "There's something wrong here...".

"This is the dungeon, the things that were kept here were either meant to die here or were never meant to leave here." She responds.

"So why are we heading down here?"

"There's an item here that can help us"

"Oh really? I can't imagine the things this castle has stored, so many memories and-" I pause myself from speaking as we pass an open door. A gentle breeze tugging on my skin and pulling me towards it. I look back at Aegis, continuing to float forward without me.

I place my hand on the knob, pushing the door in but something behind is blocking me. I push harder, forcing whatever it is to tumble back and fall down.

It isn't immediate. It wasn't subtle or anything, but it was like I couldn't process what I was seeing. A tower of bodies, planted in the corner like some sort of decoration. The blood from them still radiating with heat, pooling from them with the grace of a river. There's cursed zones that summon hurricanes...heat waves...deserts...but this one, the ability to trap the concept of time. Such a simple concept, turned into something of nightmares...

Aegis' voice whispers from behind me, "This place was used for testing, out of view from the other people." She explains.

"What sort of testing?"

She lowers to the floor as ripples form from the hilt to signify the releasing pressure around her. "Human testing" She coldly gazes back at me, floating back up to full height. "We're close" She returns to the hallway for me to join. Closing the door behind me.

"This is it" She shoves the sword deep into the floor, cracking a seal and twisting like a key for the wall to split, revealing another grand door behind it. "I'm going to need you to close your eyes"

"How come?" I place my hand on the door, prepared to listen to her but I wanted a little validation.

"The thing behind this door...I-can't explain it. Not fully. The item is in the room from what I remember, but there's something that guards it. I just need you to close your eyes." She floats up to me, meeting eyes with me.

"This once, alright?" I put my trust in her, opening the metallic door with my hand folded over my eyes.

A piercing cold chill slides along my arms, nearly frosting up my skin with the second of touch.

𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘱

"W-" I open my mouth to speak but I feel an overwhelming urge to silence myself.

𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘱, the stomp sounds louder this time.

𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘱, like something big...very big.

"You are here. Why?" A voice as deep as an abyss calls out, shaking my whole body.

"I-" I try to speak once again but I feel Aegis place herself against my lips.

"Oh how long it's been since I've seen that shadowed glow." He audibly smiles. "So. What do you want?"

"I-do-n't know" My shaky breath releases.

"I see. Is that all?"

"Wha-t?" The ice feels like it's climbing up my throat.

"I applaud the effort.' He continues the conversation as if speaking to someone else entirely.

"Who are yo-u speaki-ng to?" I try to ask.

"She is still within the castle. I do not know where. Hiding from the sun perhaps?"

I embrace the darkness of my vision, instead focusing on the voices in the room.

"Do you truly believe this to be the era? Perhaps this time."

"####" I hear it...another voice.

I feel a pressure build up in front of me as a large exhale brushes past me. "Why are you staying within the sword? If that's the case then Kindreds can manifest themselves. Right? I've seen Saint do it."

"####" There's someone else in this room...

"That is true. So that's why she won't look at me? How many lost their lives to me? Oh how many years I've lived...how many did I petrify? The eyes of the gorgon. Quite the catch. Wasn't it?" He laughs, thudding the room with his stomps.

"####"

"I'm the monster!? I was there from the beginning. I've seen everything done by everyone. I've always been here. Nobody. Even. Knew. Nobody except you."

"####"

"Tell me one last thing. How much of this...how many lifetimes...how many infinite possibilities did you read ahead for this every era?"

"####"

"Aegis it is. Enjoy your endeavours" A subtle crackling sound goes through my ears, flowing through the air around me like paper to a fire.

𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘱, I instinctively open my eyes out of fear as I drop to my ass. Quickly kicking myself back to my feet before looking at what's truly in front of me. A hollow shell of what's left of the figure, disintegrating before my eyes as the pieces fly through the doorway and out into the world.

"Grab it" Aegis brings my attention to the shining piece in the middle of its chest. I place my hand against the soft scales, pulling it out and causing the rest of the body to fall into dust.

"It's a shard? From the mirror...? But how'd it end up all the way down here?" I twist it in my hand, seeing the inscription on the back of it. The Friend.

Aegis breaks my dazed out state as I read it over and over again, "Let's head back, that's another one down."

"How'd you know he was down here?"

"I helped put him down here in the first place, the beast broke away from the mirror time ago. But he was not a shade. It simply entrusted itself to the one who fit worthy.

"I see" I lie, not understanding the true depth of how his mirror was constructed. It's almost like somewhere down the line...someone hasn't told us the full truth of this thing.