Chapter 34: Chapter 34 – The Pact Beyond the Abyss

Darkness.

Endless darkness.

No stars.

No sky.

No ground.

No sound.

Nothing existed within the endless void except Eternia... and it.

She couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t think.

Couldn’t move.

Her entire body had frozen.

Not because of mana pressure.

Not because of killing intent.

No—

This feeling existed beyond both.

Primal fear.

The kind engraved into the soul itself.

The kind of terror prey felt before ancient predators.

The kind that ignored logic entirely.

Her eyes stared upward, trembling.

And what stared back—

Should not exist.

Countless eyes.

Millions.

No—

Far more.

Endless eyes opened and closed across impossible flesh that twisted through dimensions her mind couldn’t properly process.

Whenever she tried focusing on its form, her vision distorted.

Its body existed and didn’t exist.

Near yet infinitely far.

Large enough to swallow worlds.

Small enough to stand beside her.

Reality itself seemed to reject its existence.

And yet—

Its eyes looked only at her. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Only Eternia.

Only Shatter.

Only the girl standing frozen inside the abyss.

"...My apostle."

The voice echoed again.

Not through air.

Not through sound.

It resonated directly through existence itself.

The moment the words reached her—

The entire void trembled.

BOOOOOOM.

Eternia’s knees nearly buckled.

Her soul screamed danger.

Run.

Escape.

Hide.

Fight.

Anything.

But there was nowhere to go.

No direction.

No escape.

Only it.

Then—

Another voice echoed.

Deep.

Ancient.

Cold.

Yet strangely calm.

"It is time for a formal pact."

The words spread throughout the endless darkness.

And suddenly—

Eternia moved.

Her body unlocked instantly.

Air flooded back into her lungs.

Her heart slammed violently inside her chest.

She immediately staggered backward.

"What... what are you?!"

No answer came.

Only silence.

Then—

The entity moved.

No.

Not moved.

Movement implied physical action.

This thing simply became closer.

One moment it existed beyond the horizon.

The next—

Its countless eyes filled the void above her.

Eternia’s body trembled instinctively.

"...Pacts exist in many forms."

The deep voice echoed calmly.

"Some trade lifespan."

"Some trade memories."

"Some trade power."

"Others exchange knowledge."

Its countless eyes narrowed.

"But what I offer..."

Silence.

"...is a Soul Pact."

The words themselves carried weight.

Ancient weight.

Dangerous weight.

Eternia instinctively understood one thing immediately.

This was not normal magic.

Not contracts.

Not summoning.

Not Ancient Magic.

Something far older.

Far deeper.

Something fundamental.

The creature continued.

"You will lend your body to me whenever I ask."

Silence.

"You shall become my vessel."

Eternia’s pupils shrank.

Vessel?

Her body?

Her mind immediately screamed danger.

No.

Absolutely not.

The entity continued calmly.

"In exchange..."

The void trembled.

Countless eyes glowed.

"I will only takeover for 15 minutes and I vow not to harm those you call allies."

Silence.

"And I shall allow you access to my Primordial Magic."

BOOM.

The words struck Eternia harder than any spell.

Primordial Magic.

Not Ancient Magic.

Not Circle Magic.

Something else.

Something beyond them.

And suddenly—

Understanding hit her.

Adapt.

The crown.

The evolution.

The impossible healing.

The way her body adjusted instantly against Etherius’s darkness.

The spell.

That ridiculous spell.

The grimoire.

The voice.

Everything connected instantly.

"...You."

Her voice became quiet.

The entity stared.

Eternia’s eyes widened slowly.

"...Adapt..."

Silence.

"...That magic belongs to you."

For the first time—

The entity laughed.

Or at least—

She thought it laughed.

Reality twisted.

The void distorted.

Thousands of eyes closed simultaneously.

"Very good."

"You noticed."

Eternia’s chest tightened.

Of course.

Of course it belonged to this thing.

No wonder the spell felt impossible.

No wonder she had never heard of it before.

No wonder even Ancient Magic felt primitive beside it.

Because it wasn’t Ancient Magic.

It came from this.

And that realization terrified her.

Because if Adapt—

That ridiculous ability—

Was merely one spell...

Then what exactly was Primordial Magic?

Her mind immediately remembered the Minotaur battle.

Her healing.

The crown.

The spikes.

The adaptation.

The impossible evolution.

Just one spell had already overturned common sense.

What about hundreds?

Thousands?

Her thoughts froze.

No.

Focus.

Power wasn’t important.

The deal was.

Eternia slowly looked upward.

Then narrowed her eyes.

"...And if I refuse?"

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Then—

The void shook.

Not violently.

Not dramatically.

Just—

Shook.

As if existence itself trembled slightly.

And Eternia instantly understood something horrifying.

This thing wasn’t angry.

Not even remotely.

This reaction was casual.

Accidental.

Like someone tapping a finger against a table.

Yet entire dimensions shook.

CRAAAAACK.

Dark fractures appeared throughout endless space.

Reality itself split.

Eternia froze.

Then—

The voice returned.

No emotion.

No anger.

No hatred.

Only certainty.

"I was not asking."

Silence.

"This is an order."

BOOOOOOOM.

Killing intent exploded.

No—

Not killing intent.

Existence itself rejected her.

For one horrifying moment Eternia felt her soul being crushed beneath something infinitely larger than herself.

Her knees slammed into nothingness.

Blood spilled from her mouth.

Her vision darkened.

Pain.

Absolute pain.

She couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t think.

Couldn’t move.

This pressure—