A cozy room was bathed in the flickering light of a crackling fire. Shadows danced across the walls as he sat, lost in thought.
"You know?"
"No. I don't."
"How come?"
"What do you mean?"
"You've faced rogue Sparks, defeated cosmic threats, even bested Him... and you still don't know?"
"No, I don't."
A faint sound of footsteps approached. His gaze darted to the door as the warmth of the flames fell across his face, a cold prickle running along his cheek. Then, a knock.
"Come in." E.K.'s voice was quiet, almost reluctant.
The door opened with a slow, creaking groan, and a familiar yet unwelcome presence entered. Stella Kosa stood there, saluting before stepping forward.
"Hello, Kosa. Is there a problem?"
"Yes, sir... there is."
A weary sigh escaped him. "I let go of my position, Kosa. What do you need me for now?" His gaze remained fixed on the flames, his hood shadowing his face. "What has happened this time?"
"Agriel sent me, sir."
The name made him look up, meeting Kosa's eyes. "Agriel?"
Kosa nodded, but his eyes seemed tense, as though meeting E.K.'s purple gaze unnerved him.
"Why?"
"I don't know, sir, but he was tense and demanded to see you immediately."
Tch. "No choice now, do I?" He glanced to the corner of his vision.
"Please don't go," a faint voice whispered.
Ignoring it, he rose to his feet. "Looks like we'll have to hurry, then." Quickly, he glanced back at the fire.
"Sir?" Kosa asked.
"Sorry." They left at once.
"So what is it about?"
Kosa shrugged. "He didn't say."
"Hmm, not unusual." They moved quickly through the dimly lit halls, Kosa's footsteps echoing, while the other moved in utter silence.
"Well, I bet it can't be that bad, now can it?" Kosa chuckled, though it was brief and nervous.
"What was his demeanor? What was he like?" The question caught Kosa off guard.
"What do you mean, sir?"
He sighed. "Was he sad, happy, emotionless? How did he seem when he asked for me?"
Kosa hesitated, unsure why this mattered. "He looked pale and... sad, like he had bad ne–" Before he could finish, he vanished in an instant.
E.K. crossed the structure instantly.
Agriel is never sad, he thought, tension twisting in his gut. I should walk; he might be here, and I need to remain professional. We can't have another speech about 'that it seems like you need to go somewhere, and thus you seem sloppy,' from dear Lord Kek.
E.K. passed through countless corridors and hallways.
If Agriel's sent, then it's serious. Normally, Dehmian or Ohan would come. What could it be?
A cold tingling ran across his face. Yes, it's serious. He shook his head. Not now.
"Why?"
He ignored it, quickening his pace.
"Damn it, why did we make this structure so enormous?"
He finally approached the briefing room, moving swiftly through the doors.
"Agriel? Agr-."
Agriel wore a somber expression, yet he still saluted.
"Hello Sir E.K., I bear a message from Lord Kek... regarding a rogue Spark."
"Lord Kek sent you?" E.K. grew worried; Kek never sent a direct message via Agriel. It was always Dehmian who did it, but Dehmian was not the fastest.
"What is it?" he asked, urgency sharp in his voice.
Agriel was visibly saddened—a rare sight. He struggled to speak, words caught in his throat. E.K. stepped closer.
Agriel swallowed, his voice shaky. "L-Lord Kek requests your return."
Unsatisfied, E.K. grew tense; the air crackled around him, his presence intensifying. "Agriel." His voice cut through the tension. "I order you to tell me." Agriel nodded, like a child responding to a parent.
"Lord Kek has... has asked for your immediate return to the Custodes Dei. To assume the position of Nova and hunt down the rogue Spark. He will not take no for an answer. If you refuse, he will force your compliance by removing your free will."
E.K. remained still, a frown deepening. "Which Spark? I made sure there were no threats left."
"Walker of the Lightless. He appeared after you'd left." E.K. began pacing around the room.
"You know I resigned as Nova, don't you?" Agriel nodded. "And if you know, then Kek knows. Everyone knows that once you're no longer Nova, two others must hold the rank before you can return." He paused, glancing back at Agriel. "So why does the almighty Kek want me back? Ytoia's Nova now. Can't he handle it?"
Agriel's expression shifted from sadness to fear. E.K. noticed. "What?"
"Uh... Y... Ytoia..." Agriel's voice wavered as he tried to steady himself.
"Speak."
"Sir... Ytoia, along with three Altus Stella and two Stella who went to hunt down Walker of the Lightless... didn't all make it back."
E.K. stopped pacing, locking eyes with Agriel. Dread settled over Agriel, and he started to tremble. E.K. spoke, his voice low but heavy, "What do you mean by 'not fully'?"
Agriel gulped, his body tense with fear. "W-Well... two of the Stella were killed... and... Alpha, one of the Altus Stella..." He trailed off as E.K. approached. Agriel became visibly more nervous. "And...?"
"Chronos and Omega survived, but... Ytoia is missing in action," Agriel blurted, words spilling out in haste.
E.K. stopped in his tracks. "Where is Kek?"
"Main command center... in the Hortus Dei."
Without another word, E.K. vanished. Agriel sank to his knees, breath heavy and face pale with tension.
"Damn it, Agriel... He wouldn't hurt you," he whispered, ashamed.
---
E.K. crossed the infinite expanse between his private quarters and the main command center in an instant. Before he arrived, he reined in his aura, calming his energy. He reappeared outside the towering Yllian doors of the command center. He looked around; the place was unchanged, despite how long he'd been away. Custodes bustled around. He allowed himself a small, rare smile—but it faded quickly.
"A lot of new faces... so many new faces..." he murmured somberly to himself.
"Yes, there are; you may know why..." The voice slithered in, words curling around E.K.'s neck like invisible hands, breath warm against his ear. "It wasn't my fault"
E.K.'s pulse quickened, his skin prickling. Sweat beaded on his forehead as his breath quickened, his mind raced to stave off the memory.
Suddenly, a custode collided with him, snapping him from the depths of his thoughts.
"Sorry, sir, I didn't see you—" The custode's words faltered as he looked up, his eyes widening in disbelief. "Y-you... you are The Eternal Knight?"
The custode practically bounced on his heels, joy and awe in his every breath. But E.K. wasn'tin the mood for admiration.
"Yes, I am," he muttered, offering his signature with an abrupt motion. "Now go on." His gaze sharpened, pushing the custode away with a silent command.
The young custode nods, barely containing his excitement as he turned and shuffled off, eyes glued to the signature. E.K. barely notices; his mind was elsewhere. He had a goal, a task, and he knew where he has to go.
As he moved through the hallways, each step felt heavier. The walls seemed to watch him, each shadow whispering his past. He was no longer the Nova. That weight had been cast aside, but still, the echoes of what he once was followed him
He reached the command center, where two custodes, ranked fulgor by the looks of it, stood guard. Their eyes locked onto him, then immediately darted away as he looked back at them and drew near. E.K. didn't pause, didn't acknowledge their discomfort. He simply walks past, through the doors.
In an instant, the very air shifted—thickened, as if reality itself had paused to acknowledge his presence. His boots hit the floor, but the sound was swallowed by an unseen weight, an oppressive stillness that clung to the room.
Seated at the end of the table, where the Nova is supposed to sit, was Kek—silent, unmoving. His presence wasn't felt, it was known. The space around him bent, folded, as if the concept of the room had reshaped itself to fit him. The walls didn't just exist; they trembled.
E.K. froze.
His mind recoiled, instinctively bracing for something—anything—but nothing prepared him for this; he had only met Kek in person a few times, and still every time he gets this feeling. He wasn't facing a god, or even a force. He was facing the foundation of all things. The first concept. And before it, he was nothing—less than nothing.
His heart skipped a beat, then stopped. His power, his infinite adaptability, stils as if it has met its limit. Kek didn't move. He didn't have to. The pressure was suffocating, not from force, but from truth—a truth that left E.K. feeling like a fleeting thought in a timeless mind.
Then, in an instant, the pressure ebbed. But it had been felt in every fiber of his being.
He stepped forward, his mind still reeling. As he walked deeper into the room, his eyes found the seated figures. Stella, Stella Inferior, and Cometa—members of the highest order—sitting in quiet solemnity. The air was thick with expectation, with an undercurrent of dread.
Kek's gaze snapped to him, sharp and observant. A moment of silence passed before Kek stood, the weight of his every movement bending everything itself. His golden crown gleamed, and his robes shifted through an endless spectrum of colors, as if they contained every possible thing.
As Kek walked towards E.K., dozens of eyes followed.
He smiled—a smile that could not be mistaken for anything but pure joy—and moved further towards E.K.
"Well, well, look who's here!" Kek's voice is almost cheerful, too bright for the solemnity of the room.
E.K. couldn't surpress a small sigh. "Hello, sir. Good to see you."
Kek, oblivious to the coldness in E.K.'s tone, pulled him into a hug. E.K. stiffened but allows it, unwilling to resist the inevitable
He is way too happy, considering he threatened to remove my free will. E.K. thought, somewhat annoyed by it.
"Come, come," Kek insisted, waving toward the Nova chair. "We have much to discuss."
E.K. sank into the seat, the weight of the moment pressing against his shoulders.
He then immediately started to speak.
"Sir Kek, I've already told Agriel... I don't think this is a good idea. I resigned as Nova."
Kek just smiled. "You will go Eternal Knight."
E.K. opened his mouth to protest, but the words got caught in his throat. It is pointless. Kek had spoken. He just nodded.
The room was silent, every eye trained on E.K. Their gazes burned with curiosity, fear, and a strange mix of hope. E.K. was not just a figure of legend to them. He was a symbol, a myth come to life. The one who had kept rogue sparks in check. The one who had faced the Black Sun, outrun the collapse of time, and defeated Heliterna.
E.K. snapped his fingers as these prying eyes got annoying, and they all darted away.
But now, they whispered, as though the very presence of The Eternal Knight made them feel alive again.
"Didn't he stop the Black Sun?" one mutters.
"I heard he outran the collapse of time itself."
"Don't forget that he beat Heliterna in combat."
Their voices blend together, each murmured adding weight to the room. Until Kek raised a hand, demanding silence.
"Enough," he said, his voice cutting through the noise. "The Eternal Knight will hunt down the rogue spark known as Walker of the Lightless. The current Nova failed to bring him in."
E.K. felt the same bitter feeling he got when Agriel told him that Ytoia did not return.
Kek's eyes turn to E.K., soft but unwavering. "Anything you'd like to add, dear Eternal Knight?"
E.K.'s jaw tightened, but he answered simply, "No."
Kek's eyes lit up with something akin to satisfaction. The room waited, breathless, as the situation turned from speculative to real. The hunt for Walker of the Lightless would begin.
"We don't know much about him," Kek began, pacing slowly, his expression unreadable. "All we know is that he erases. And that he's hiding somewhere within Desolace. Beyond that, our knowledge is limited."
E.K. looked up sharply. "Desolace? As in that supposed 'haven'? Most beings wouldn't go near it, let alone seek refuge there. The place swallows souls." His voice held a mix of skepticism and caution. "Why would he hide in a realm like that?"
Kek paused, meeting E.K.'s gaze. "I do not know. But if rumors are true, something about Desolace draws him—or perhaps protects him."
E.K. could feel the eyes on him, every word making the pressure heavier. But something flickered inside him.
"I know that you know what he can do, Kek. I know... but I guess you do not want to tell us."
The voice in the back of his mind was quiet, almost inaudible, but it had never been more present.
"Send Pzeo, or Steronu," E.K. thought bitterly. Send Pzeo, The Angel of Freewill, or Steronu, the Angel of Power. They could end this in an instant, but no. You wouldn't want that, would you, Kek?
Kek turned to E.K. he smiled, his focus sharp. "You will go. You will end it."
The eyes of everyone in the room lit up, hoping that the legendary Nova could defeat this threat, which had taken some of their fellow custodes from them.
The voices in the room started to murmur again, the hope rising with every word. They were counting on him. Again.
And E.K. wasn't sure if it was hope or something darker that churned inside him. The faces blurred as his thoughts drifted.
"Last time, they counted on me," he muttered, barely audible, his mind lost in the weight of the past.
A soft touch on his shoulder snapped him back. A voice, familiar and warm, whispered, "It will be okay."
E.K. felt the embrace, a fleeting comfort that didn't quite touch the hollow in his chest. He didn't want comfort. He wanted peace.
Kek continued speaking, but E.K. wasn't listening anymore. His mind was elsewhere—on the faces, the memories, the missions, the moments of joy.
He sighs.
"So, is that clear?" Kek asked, his voice cutting through the fog of E.K.'s thoughts.
The custodes stood, responding in unison, "Yes."
With a final glance at E.K., they filed out, their footsteps echoing in the silence.
Kek turned back to E.K., his expression shifting to something that almost seemed... warm.
"You'll be deployed in 3..."
E.K. blinked, snapping out of his stupor. "Wait, what?! Just like that?"
"2..." Kek continued, his smile never wavering.
"No, Kek! I can go by myself! Let me—"
"1..." Kek raised a finger, his voice light. "Oh, and don't destroy the orb, please."
With a snap of his fingers, E.K. vanished, leaving the command center in stillness, his fate sealed.
---