Omniphage of Apathy

Vastarael heard the sounds of hundreds of creatures heading towards him.

"So he saw me, huh? Too bad. I wanted him to come instead. Oh well..."

He was back to the spire, which was almost erect. The city was repairing itself and it was a few minutes left until morning.

Ever since he came to Spheraphase, he was always affected by the concept of time. Even after staying in it for thirteen years, he still had trouble with it. It took years for him to adjust to it.

Right now, only thirty minutes left until sunrise.

"My Betrothed?"

Vastarael turned toward Adelasta as a faint stirring caught his attention. She was attempting to sit up, her breaths shallow and labored. Her fair skin, though less pale than before, was still far from healthy. Despite his efforts, her body resisted the healing process. Her crimson hair clung to her damp forehead and her orange eyes, though sharp, betrayed her lingering weakness.

"Adelasta," Vastarael said softly, kneeling beside her. "I need you to accept me as your Betrothed."

Her head snapped toward him, her orange eyes wide with shock.

"What? What nonsense are you saying now?"

"Your body and soul are rejecting my healing because of our Reversal Ascension. When we were betrothed, it tied our essences together. I accepted the bond but you... you didn't."

"..."

"That's why your body is fighting me. I'm healing you by force, but it's slow. Too slow. If you don't accept me, you'll stay like this and we don't have time for that."

Adelasta's lips pressed into a thin line and she shook her head faintly.

"You're blaming me for this? It's ridiculous. I never asked for this arrangement. Why should I—"

"Because," Vastarael interrupted, his voice firmer now, "if you don't, you'll die. And the god out there? He'll find us. When he does, I can't guarantee I'll be able to protect you. Not like this."

Adelasta's mouth opened but no words came out. Her cold demeanor faltered as her mind grappled with the weight of his words. She turned her gaze away from him, staring at the faintly glowing runes on the walls of their temporary shelter.

"Why should I accept something I never wanted in the first place?" she murmured, her voice softer now, almost vulnerable.

"Because right now, it's the only thing keeping you alive," Vastarael replied. He leaned closer, his golden eyes glowing faintly in the dim light of the crumbling spire.

"Do you think I want this either? To force you into something like this? But this isn't about us. It's about survival. If you don't trust me, fine. But trust that I'm doing everything I can to save you, Adelasta."

Her orange eyes flicked back to him and for a moment, the frost in her gaze melted slightly.

"You're asking me to change everything," she said quietly, her voice trembling with an unfamiliar emotion. "To be connected to you."

"I'm asking you to live," Vastarael countered. "If you accept me as your Betrothed, your essence will stop resisting mine. I'll be able to heal you properly and... we'll have a chance. But without your acceptance..."

Adelasta looked down at her trembling hands. Her pride and instincts warred within her, but the truth was undeniable—her body was failing and time was slipping away. She clenched her fists, then closed her eyes tightly.

"Fine," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I accept. I, Adelasta Viaca, accept you as my Betrothed."

A faint, golden shimmer surrounded her as their bond solidified for the first time. Vastarael's essence surged into her and the resistance he had been fighting melted away. He placed his hands gently over her injuries, blue light enveloping them both as he worked swiftly to heal what had been impossible moments ago.

"Thank you," Vastarael murmured, his voice low but filled with relief. He glanced at her, his golden eyes meeting hers. "Just hold on a little longer, Adelasta. We'll get through this. Together."

Adelasta said nothing, but for the first time, her cold, emotionless gaze wavered.

"I want you to stay right here."

Adelasta blinked, her orange eyes wide as Vastarael adjusted the last of the runes surrounding her.

"What?"

"I want you to stay right here," he repeated softly.

Her gaze narrowed, the gears in her mind turning quickly. So all of this...

"Wait," she said, her voice colder than usual. "You tricked me."

Vastarael paused, giving her a sheepish smile. "Well… not entirely. I did need you to accept me to heal you properly. And you're alive now, aren't you?"

Her expression hardened, frustration simmering just beneath the surface. "You had no intention of taking me with you. You only wanted me strong enough to stay out of your way."

Vastarael knelt before her, his expression softening as he held her gaze.

"Adelasta, listen to me. If you come with me like this, you'll slow us both down. You're still healing, and your arm..." His eyes flickered to her now-functional but visibly sore arm. "It might work, but the pain will be a problem. If you fight in this state, we'll both die."

Her lips parted, a sharp retort forming, but he raised a hand, cutting her off gently.

"I don't have time to argue. I'm the only one who can keep that god distracted until sunrise. You'll be safer here, hidden in these Concealment Runes. If any monsters find you, you're strong enough now to buy yourself time. Don't fight them and just survive. That's all I ask."

Adelasta glared at him, her frustration evident.

"You're not as clever as you think. If you think I'll just sit here while you—"

"Adelasta," he interrupted, his tone unexpectedly light, "you should focus on resting. Being angry doesn't suit you, you know."

Her scowl deepened. "You're insufferable. Why did I accept this..."

Vastarael chuckled softly, "I get that a lot. But you're really cute when you're mad, My Betrothed."

Adelasta froze, her expression utterly stunned as his words registered. Her pale cheeks bloomed with color, a faint pink dusting her usually cold and emotionless face.

"What... what did you just say?" D

S whe stammered, completely caught off guard.

Vastarael rose smoothly to his feet, his white cloak fluttering slightly as he turned away.

"You heard me," he said with a grin over his shoulder, his golden eyes sparkling mischievously. "Try not to miss me too much. Stay alive, My Betrothed."

Before she could respond, Vastarael stepped into the darkness beyond the spire. He moved with the silent grace of a predator, vanishing into the shadows as though he had never been there.

Adelasta sat in stunned silence, her heart pounding inexplicably in her chest. Her fingers curled tightly around the sapphire glass she was still holding.

"Damn you..."

°°°°°°

"Oh. So you decided to show up, huh? Very good, Prince of Anqerise. Tell me, did you give up and decide to die?"

Vastarael took a good look at the god and sighed.

'Yup. I can't even injure this guy.'

He looked like a man in this thirties, wearing a white suit and a golden cloak, every step he took in the ruiner street turned molten. Beside him were hundreds of serpent like creatures and the long limbed grey humanoids.

"I must say, you're smart. Escaping my monsters, thinking that you're buying time. This is a Tenth Star Barrier, Vastarael. Only your father can break it—oh? He's in another continent. Even if he tries to make it in time, you'll be dead."

Vastarael sighed again, summoning his glaive.

"You know, it's polite to introduce yourself. You go on and on and you don't even introduce yourself. And here I thought... actually, never mind that. I'll just get straight to the point."

The god narrowed his eyes. He didn't like his attitude at all. He expected him to be scared or beg for his life but he was...

Confident?

"I must be glad, really. If you decided to kill us without enjoying it, it would have been a disaster. Instead, you hunted us down like prey. I must thank you for that."

The god's molten steps hissed against the charred remains of the city as he tilted his head, his golden eyes narrowing.

"You should choose your words carefully, boy. Mockery doesn't suit the condemned."

Vastarael rolled his shoulders, spinning the double-bladed glaive in his hands with practiced ease. He didn't flinch, didn't hesitate. Instead, he smirked. A quiet, defiant expression that made the god's brow twitch in irritation.

"Condemned? That's an interesting choice of words. I thought I was more of an inconvenience to you. After all, you've gone to all this effort just to corner me. A divine child."

The god's serpentine creatures hissed, their fanged maws dripping with venom as they coiled closer but Vastarael held his ground. He twirled the glaive again and casually leaned it against his shoulder, his body language relaxed.

"You want to know what I'm really thinking? I'm thinking you're not half as terrifying as you want me to believe. If you were, you wouldn't need all of this—" He gestured broadly at the barrier, the army of monsters and the scorched city around them. "You're overcompensating. A god hunting a teenager with this much effort? Kind of pathetic, don't you think?"

The god's jaw tightened, the molten ground beneath his feet bubbling furiously. His golden cloak shimmered, the edges flaring with energy.

"Careful, Vastarael," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "You're treading on thin ice."

"Am I?" Vastarael asked, feigning innocence as he tapped his glaive against the ground. Sparks flickered where the blade met the cracked asphalt. "Or am I right? You're just another god who got bored and decided to flex your power. But here's the thing. You chose the wrong prey."

The god's lip curled in disdain, his anger barely restrained.

"Wrong prey?" He echoed mockingly. "You don't seem to understand the gravity of your situation. I've destroyed entire civilizations for less than this insolence."

Vastarael shrugged, his tone dismissive. "Maybe. But those civilizations didn't talk back, did they? You're wasting your time with me. You think you've won because you've trapped me here. But here's the truth. You're just a distraction."

The god stilled, his molten steps halting. His serpentine creatures hissed uncertainly, sensing a shift in the air.

"What did you say?" the god demanded, his voice sharp.

"You heard me," Vastarael replied smoothly, his golden eyes glinting with a confidence that sent a ripple of unease through the creatures surrounding them. "While you've been strutting around like you've already won, you've overlooked something important. You're playing your game but... I've been playing mine."

The god's face twisted in fury, his power flaring, but Vastarael didn't falter. His smirk softened into something colder, sharper.

"Thanks for the warm-up," Vastarael said quietly, his tone almost mocking. "Now, let's see if you can actually keep up."

He tapped the glaive once again against the asphalt, causing a massive earthquake. All the monsters stumbled as runes began to appear around them on a massive radius.

"Ten minutes until sunrise and that's when the mass reconstruction begins. Let's fight, fire freak!"

In an instant, water waves burst from nowhere.