Shadow of the Abyss

Altair threw a fist, anger writhing across his eyes, seething with nearly tangible hate. He glared when a strong hand clamped down on his wrist. He flinched, snapping a hateful look at Damaris.

"Calm down and listen," Damaris said, releasing the boy.

Lilith smiled thinly, "How you look so much like my Sene. Even your rage is as delicious." she shook her head, signaling for Damaris and Eroma to leave. They did without a word, leaving the two to talk.

"Why?" Altair asked at last with an acrid taste on his tongue. "Why did you have to kill her?"

"It was your mother who decided to have you. I only set the parameters," Lilith explained, her voice calm and measured. She created a chair for both of them to sit in. She took her seat and gestured for Altair to join. She began when he finally allowed sanity to return. "It was your mother who went against her nature, creating you."

"Liar," he hissed. "You were jealous."

Lilith didn't disagree. "True. But Tenebrae's death has nothing to do with that. If anything, it was done out of necessity." She paused, thinking. "How much do you know about the One and the All?"

Altair brows beetled.

"The One and the All are the nexus of all things and their end. There is I, and then there is the All-father."

"Odin?"

Lilith broke into laughter. "Don't insult him. Odin, that rabid pest, obtained the name 'Allfather' when he lost his left eye trying to peer at the Alpha and Omega and paid the price for the knowledge he obtained. Of the infinite things, he gleamed at once. The only thing he could pronounce became one word. Allfather.

And so he took the moniker."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"The One is such a being that even at your peak, you'll never truly understand him," Lilith said. Let me ask you: Why do you think I created the Night?"

That stunned the young man. It seemed such a ridiculous question that he'd never considered it before. Why does the Night exist?

"I… I can't imagine." Altair said.

"I know. Unlike my brother, the One, I don't have perfect control of my power in a sense that can be understood by those like you who reside in what 'we' consider a lower realm. The Abyss is the Nexus of all Chaos." Lilith halted her words, glancing to the corner of the room where Arsene materialized. She frowned, banishing him away with a wave of her palm. She didn't want to see him right now.

"What does that have to do with Mother?" Altair said antsy.

"Not so much your mother but you," Lilith said, smiling again.

"Me?" he pointed to himself.

"The Vale. Ahhh, now that is quite a look. Yes, the Vale. The Night was woven into creation to shield the Vale. It was 'one' of the largest fragments of my true body's power, a detriment to the concept of creation."

Altair gaped. "The Vale is a Fragment?"

"When you look down at your shadow… is it not just a mere fragment of our bodies?" Lilith pointed at the Young Emperor. You, Altair Blackwood, are the Shadow of the Abyss. The reason I told Tenebrae not to conceive a child was that it gave the Vale a way to be reborn. Nullifying the meaning of existence. Now, here you are, with sentience at that."

"So…So Mother really died… creating me."

"Yes. All she had to do was abort. And she'd be alive."

"But you can save her, right?" Altair looked at Lilith, who seemed as cold as an icy sun.

"And why would I do that? Tenebrae is no ally of mine. She's the woman who ran to my husband's bed. And like an idiot, my Sene slept with her."

'What type of toxic relationship…' Altair shook his head, dismissing his inner thoughts. "What can I do to—"

"Nothing, boy," Lilith snapped, cutting him short. "It's well within my rights to revive Tenebrae to her peak, but I will do no such thing. I will relish in her death for what she did having you."

Altair tasted blood, biting his lip. "Then why am I alive? Are you just going to torture me? Break me?"

"So my Sene can hate me?" The Empress shook her head, releasing a bitter sigh. "You look like my Sene. I could never kill you. But I can't simply allow this… transgression to go on. I will not banish you from my land. But I will watch you suffer.

Tenebrae will die. It's only a matter of time."

"You're being petty!"

Lilith slapped him. Despite being only a soul, it dazed the boy as if his real body had felt the blow. "Yes, I am. But if there is someone to blame, then blame your father and his rancid seed for creating you to spite me. How'd you like it if Syris or Reina came back pregnant with someone else's kid? You'd kill them outright. Be grateful I don't."

At the sight of the tears rising across the rim of Altair's eyes, Lilith's anger subsided. He looked shattered. The sight of him made her bite her lip.

'Curse that bastard… and all his cute ass babies.' She thought. Releasing a deep breath, "But merely to watch you suffer… I can give you a hint on how to save Tenebrae. You'll fail, but watching you fail will be all the more sweet."

Altair looked up at her. "Really!"

For a moment, Lilith nearly forgot he was a man. He looked so much like her Vesyrn. She half smiled. "Hmmm." She nodded. " The Outer Gods, Regiments of the Vale. They might have an idea on how to keep your beloved mother alive."

"Outer Gods? I heard of them."

"Hmmm. They were a by-product of your Vale Qi and my Abyssal Qi merging. When you awaken, you're Vale Bloodline, you will realize. You can leave now. "

Before Altair could express anything, he vanished, leaving Lilith to sigh.

"I do hope he fails," she muttered to herself.

"So you weren't lying?" Arsene asked, sauntering into her chambers. His lips arched high.

"You were listening. How Rude. And stop smiling like a damn fool. I did say I hope Altair's fails." She snorted, folding her arms across her chest.

"You know he's hella cute. Do you want to see some baby pictures?" Arsene asked, waving palm-creating a photobook. "I have all the pictures."

"Piss off. I'm still angry."

"I may have also added chibi pictures of Ves and Iza. Shall we see if we can spot the difference? You are Altair's grandmother, you know. "

Lilith froze. "Holy shit! I am. Fuck. Damn, you, Sene!"

Arsene grinned.

***

The moment Altair opened his eyes within his Cultivation Cave, he was greeted by an odd sight. Nestled in Morrigan's lap, the young woman had a pair of rabbit ears on her head as she stared down with a flushed expression.

He stared, opening his mouth wide in shock. "Two gifts in one day. Are… are you trying to seduce me?" Altair asked, startled.

Morrigan turned even redder. She'd never felt more embarrassed in all her life. She chewed her lip. "Do…Do…Do you like it?" she asked demurely.

The young man resisted the urge to laugh. "Yes. But you know rabbit ears are supposed to come with a costume?"

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Morrigan made a strange face. "You…" She shook her head before beads of mana danced across her flesh. Before Altair eyes, he watched as Morrigan was wrapped in a rabbit costume.

He exploded into laughter. "I'm not fucking a rabbit. Oh my God. Hahaha! When I say rabbit outfit, that's not what I meant. I'm not a furry."

Morrigan tilted her rabbit head. "What's a F—"

"Let me show you." He took out pen and paper from his ring and began drawing a distinctive image of Morrigan with rabbit ears and the correct uniform.

She blushed when she saw the lewd image. "I-I-I can't wear something like that!" She exclaimed, losing the rabbit outfit. "That… That's too embarrassing."

"More embarrassing than being naked?"

"Yes! One hundred percent!" Morrigan expressed, clutching her face. "Gods, what's wrong with you? You mortals come up with such shameless things!"

Altair tilted his head. "Now I'm curious. Exactly how much experience do you have, Mor? You're more cute than I thought."

Morrigan's expression soured. "I don't want to talk about that."

"Ah," he said, catching on. "Then I'll drop the issue. But I must say you do look cute. Ten points for effort."

Perhaps it was his imagination, but Altair swore he saw a thin smile rise across her lips. He couldn't imagine anyone, a woman, not smiling when someone told them they were cute.

"I'm guessing the Goddess of Rot contacted you," Altair figured.

Morrigan tilted her head. "No. Is there a reason she should have?"

That surprised Altair even more. He never would have thought Morrigan would have taken the initiative to seduce him without Azura forcing her hand more than she already was.

"Yes. I just saw her. I'm sure she'll contact you soon. Just play along. Things have gotten a little more complicated."

Morrigan frowned. "What happened."

"I can't tell you. I need your genuine reaction before the Goddess of Rot and The First Murderer," Altair said, sitting up. In a bright mood, he gave his bones a stretch and kissed her cheek.

Morrigan looked nonplus. "What was that for? I thought I failed."

"You did. But it's progress. You'll find out later. Now, shall we train?" he asked, his fist tightening with a newfound determination and path.