The Codex

Avea stood beside Dolunay with the Pillar of the Cyntherial moon ignited behind them, with a burning ultram blue. Glowing brightly with those strange symbols almost like scripture along the pillar, flickering as they tried to morph clearly unsure of how to become one. Dolunay's massive body overshadowed her, with a completely stone face. He refused to look down at her, instead directing those cold black eyes to the rest of his fellow galad, as though he were sizing them up for battle. Avea could feel the pulsing current between them from uniting their uri, she might as well have blacked out standing on her floating rock in front of this monster that had brought her mother here. She recalled the movements Dolunay made, they were measured, controlled, and it was almost for a single moment he thought he was alone. Until the mark glowed brightly on his forehead and his uri shot out towards Avea.

She'd sensed Dolunay's Uri coming towards her, and despite her hesitation she could feel her own Uri responding to it. Like calling to like, as if they needed to be together. The moment their uri united, she'd felt that final piece of herself surrender over to Dolunay. Torn out of the deep recesses of her soul, and a numbness that flooded through her was cold and relentless, seeping into every bone. It wasn't until she felt her uri weave with Dolunay's, and she recited that scared oath, that a pulsing spark ignited in her chest, spilling light into her veins.

In that fleeting moment, she became boundless, as if her soul had untethered itself from her consciousness, floating freely among the cosmos that had unfolded infinitely at her fingertips. As soon as their uri had been bonded it settled within her, and now the two of them stood together, galad and claimed, with an existing current of power between them. She'd thought that the bonding of their uri would have left her an empty husk. Instead, her body pulsed with a strange, luminous essence, that seemed to burrow its way inside her.

The claimed of the lunar realms, stood before their designated pillars, each one ablaze with a vivid colored flames that pulsed with ancient power. All the claimed were staring each other down intensely, trying to detect the faintest tremors of vulnerability. But Avea wasn't watching the claimed. Instead, she observed the Galad, each one staring straight ahead, all their eyes were distant, hardened, deliberately avoiding eye contact with the others, as if there was something in each other's gaze they couldn't bear to acknowledge. Avea didn't like the feeling that began to creep up her spine, those same instincts that she'd honed in the Valent that told her that the Galad all knew something that their claimed didn't.

The ebbing fear of what she was about to face gnawed at her, while a fierce, rage tore through her, clashing violently against that fear. These conflicting emotions were caused by the arrogance of her Galad beside her, who had ambushed her, kidnapped her mother and then taken a piece of her Uri. Dolunay however, stood completely impervious, as if none of it weighed on him. All Avea could think was, what was his end game? "Disperse now my fellow luminaries, for tonight we celebrate our newly claimed and mark the beginning of the ascension," the Supreme exclaimed, throwing her arms in triumph. The assembly erupted into a final chorus of cheers, and Avea for the first time could hear the pure joy in their cries. The relief that their long suffering was about to end. "Tonight we shall dance under the lunar nebulas, where we shall witness our claimed complete the sacred dance of the Lunosis ... much luck to all of you" the Supreme said, with her eyes tilting to Avea.

Departing with those final words, she dissolved into the light. The levitating discs above carrying all the spectators simply vanished at the dismissal. Leaving only the Galad and their claimed standing alone on the precipice of oblivion. Despite their floating islands being in perfect alignment, they couldn't have felt further apart.

The Galad followed suit, each placing a hand on their claimed's shoulders. In an instant, a blinding light engulfed them, leaving behind only a lingering glow and the faint echo of their departure. "Ready?" Dolunay asked. "Go to hell" Avea snapped, her eyes staring back at her mother whose eyes hardened seeing Dolunay's taloned claws on Avea's shoulder. "I'll take that as a yes" Dolunay replied, the chasm around them faded and Avea felt herself encased in a cloud of blue smoke.

Her feet hit the ground and this time she felt better prepared, standing firm as Dolunay released her shoulder. Those long talons unfurling one by one, before standing solemnly behind her. "Closing your eyes isn't going to make me disappear" Dolunay spoke from behind her. "And here I was thinking the uri would be good for something," Avea replied. "Do not mock the uri, it is the essence of life here" Dolunay spoke, his tone hard and grating. Avea scoffed slowly opening her eyes, she found herself surrounded by mesmerizing misty clouds swirling in every direction.

She was standing on a circular pillar of pale stone, its surface veined with silver light that shimmered like liquid moonlight. Standing tall amongst the mysterious clouds that swirled around it, as though concealing it from outside eyes. At its crown, an arched gateway unfurled, carved from crystal and etched with runes that pulsed faintly, as though breathing. The arch was impossibly tall, curving with a grace that defied mortal hands, and from it drifted faint motes of luminescence, spiraling down into the mist like falling constellations. The air around the pillar trembled with a low hum, as if the stone itself remembered forgotten songs.

The faint hues of blue in the billowing mist drifted softly around them, it was peaceful and alluring. The beauty and vastness of it all left her breathless, feeling as though she was standing high above everything. "Wait for it" Dolunay spoke softly, as soft as Avea had ever heard the Minotaur speak. Avea reluctantly listened, mainly because she didn't want to turn and face Dolunay. Her galad must have sensed that, because he didn't move any closer towards her. Dolunay just watched Avea who continued staring outwards waiting for whatever was supposed to happen. Impatience started stirring within her, and she was just about to tell Dolunay that there was nothing there.

Until the shimmering mists parted, and then Avea saw it.

A trail of what appeared to be luminous orbs, full and aglow drifting past them, off into the distance. She'd seen many things that she couldn't believe, and this was no different. She was so close to them that if she stood on the edge and reached out her hand she could touch the orbs.

"Where are they going?" she asked, her voice tinged with trepidation as she watched the orbs float past. Dolunay followed her gaze to the distant figures, his expression darkening. "To the Veil," he replied, his voice heavy with disheartenment. "There, they will pass into the universe and illuminate the rest of the cosmos." Bright curiosity flickering in Avea's eyes. "Beautiful" she whispered, seeing them all float past her."Your mother thought so too ... the first time she saw the lumos" Dolunay finally spoke, Avea flinched. "Don't talk to me about my mother" she snarled, her voice sharp with warning. Dolunay ignored that warning coming to stand beside her. "I understand that you believe me to be your enemy ..." Avea didn't let him finish. "You took her and now she's there prisoner!" she sneered, allowing a glimpse of all her anger. Dolunay unleashed a heavy sigh, allowing himself a moment to watch the lumos drift past before the glowing orbs disappeared past the mist shroud.

"She was always clever Araceli, concealing herself in human form to hide her galad markings, forging a prison with her moonstone. I should have seen it coming, but she knew that your uri was too potent. That I'd find you," Dolunay said, something like awe in his voice. "So what are you exactly? The Supreme's sniffer dog?" Avea taunted, her patience wanying. Dolunay still didn't face her, keeping his eyes on the lumos trail, "I don't understand the reference, but I can tell from your tone that it is not honorable." Avea turned away from Dolunay, not wanting the Galad to see her mask of anger and disdain slipping, as tears stung at her eyes.

"Is it true? What they said about my mother being a traitor?" Avea asked, her voice wavering slightly as she spoke. It was as though there was an invisible noose around her neck, that grew tighter every time another lie was exposed. She had to know, "if my mother betrayed all of her people and ran away then she must have had good reason" the words flying out of her mouth before she had a chance to stop it. Tearing streaming down her cheeks, but they were too far up that the tears were wiped away as soon as they fell.

There had to be some semblance left of the women she knew, of the mother that had raised her. "That I cannot say. What I do know is that everything that conspired with the previous galad set off a chain of catastrophic events that unless prevented will unleash an uncontrollable darkness that will leave everything in ruin," Dolunay spoke, like he was reciting the words from memory.

"Does this have something to do with the eighth moon?" Avea asked, caution lacing her question. Dolunay now looked up at her, his black eyes seemed to be burning brightly, the same way streaks of moonlight break through the dark night. "It has everything to do with it," he spoke, his words hushed as though scared something or someone would overhear.

"It is the great mystery of the luminaries," Dolunay said, his words distant and sad. Avea now turned to face him, taking in the blue minotaur's large stature and the twisted horns. As well as those jagged marking that up close looked even more gruesome. She couldn't help but think that the Minotaur seemed starkly out of place standing in this divine sanctum of beauty. If Dolunay was irritated with her staring he didn't say anything, "I believe that at some point during the last ascension ritual one of the galad opened a gateway to the dark realm, a small pocket of the universe where the vad were banished many eons ago by the ancients. It was only because of the sacrifice of the Cyntherial moon and its Galad that the ascension was completed. However, something went wrong as since then our uri has dwindled to scarce amounts. We were desperate to complete the octave so the ascension ritual can rejuvenate the uri to protect the rest of the universe from plunging into darkness."

"You think that's going to happen again? That one of them is going to sabotage the trails?" Avea asked, cringing at the way that her eagerness peaked through. "The question is which one of them did it the first time?" Dolunay asked, his voice hard as steele and his eyes staring into Avea's face so intensely as though he might find answers in her stunned expression. "Why should I believe anything you say?! Avea asked. Dolunay turned his body toward her, and a hidden truth flickered in his stare.

"Because I have just as much to loose."

.........................................................................................................................

A heavy silence fell between them, as if Avea was struggling to bear the weight of Dolunay's words. For the first time, Avea noticed a flicker of panic in his usually unreadable, beady black eyes. "What do you mean you have just as much to lose?" she pressed. Dolunay let out a long, weary sigh, as though an immense burden was pressing against his chest. "The Ancients are losing their connection to the universal plane," he explained, his voice heavy with dread. "They can feel the balance between light and darkness tipping. For eons, I have been tasked by the Ancients to maintain that balance. But if I fail in my mission, the Luminaries will have no choice but to sacrifice their very essence, their uri, to close the rift and restore equilibrium."

Dolunay's voice was rough, like gravel scraping against stone. Avea's gaze lingered on the jagged markings etched into his torso and arms, the very marks that had made the other Galad shun him in disgust. "A moon was lost during the last ascension," he said, his tone firm with determination. "I will not allow our people to perish again because of an unmasked traitor." Avea hated the pang of sympathy that stirred within her. "So they blamed you, exiled you, and then enslaved you... and you're still going to save them?" Avea's words were sharp, edged with a cruelty born of bitterness and self-preservation. She knew they were the words of someone whose heart had grown cold and guarded. Dolunay looked at her, really looked, as if momentarily taken aback by the raw truth in her question.

"We fight, for the light only falters when we do" was his only reply.

The lumos continued to drift past them, as Avea looked closer, she could see their mystical glow now reveal a sickly pallor. As Avea peered closer, she noticed how they moved, slowly and sluggishly, as if burdened by the effort of dragging their large bodies toward some distant destination. Their light, once alluring, now seemed dim and strained, like a fading ember struggling to stay alive.

"What's wrong with them?" she asked, her mind racing to keep up with this new revelation."The Vortex has weakened," Dolunay explained, his tone grave. "As a result, the uri has become sick. Without the uri's strength, the universe will be cursed to eternal darkness."Avea felt a shiver run down her spine. She didn't like the ominous thought that crossed her mind, as she recalled the strange appearance of T'alli's moon out in the Outlands. The way its light had appeared pale and sickly, on the verge of being extinguished.

Avea didn’t trust Dolunay, not for a second. She knew all too well that he might be using her to do the dirty work only to cast her aside when she was no longer useful. But as much as she hated to admit it, his last words to her mother echoed in her mind, haunting her thoughts. "We need to make things right," he had said, and the memory of his voice frayed with desperation, thick with a guilt so profound it seemed to consume him, had stuck with her. She could see it in the way his eyes had darkened, the way his shoulders had sagged as if the weight of his own sins was crushing him.

So Avea simply stood, gazing at the weary lumos. The air around it was heavy and Avea swore she could feel the life inside of them slowly seeping away. She wondered if her mother had lived her entire life with that same ravenous guilt gnawing at her, while Avea had been blissfully ignorant, living in the shadow of secrets she hadn’t even known existed."The Supreme is not going to let my mother go... I know that," Avea said, her voice raw with the truth she had been avoiding. She had spent her entire life surrounded by liars, manipulators, people who wore trust like a costume they could take off when it suited them. The Supreme’s vow of her mother’s freedom meant nothing to her without leverage, without something to force their hand. And if she could turn the tables, maybe even turn the Supreme against Dolunay, then she’d do it without hesitation.

She took a deep breath, steadying herself before she turned to face Dolunay. "What do you want from me?" she demanded, there was a fire in her eyes, a will that had been tempered by survival. Dolunay didn’t flinch. "I need you to find something once lost," he said. Avea let out a frustrated sigh, her patience wearing thin. "Does everyone here speak in riddles?" she muttered under her breath. Dolunay’s eyes snapped to her, sharp and pointed like the edge of a blade. He didn’t say anything, but the look he gave her was enough to silence any further complaints. His attention shifted to the lumos, and as he extended his large, taloned hand, something remarkable happened. An orb of lumos began to float toward them, this orb didn't appear sickly nor sluggish. Its light distinct from the others, darker, more intense, with a subtle undercurrent of something ancient.

"I used the remainder of my uri to hide something very important," Dolunay said, his voice tinged with a gravity that made Avea’s breath catch. Slowly, he reached into the orb, his fingers disappearing into the swirling light before emerging with a small shard. It appeared so small, nestled in the palm of his abnormally large hand. Avea’s eyes widened, recognition dawning on her. "I saw that," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "In the oculus... it showed me..." Her words faltered as her mind raced to remember.

"The codex," Dolunay confirmed, his large blue hands cradling the shard with a reverence that suggested it was far more than just a shard. The shard hummed with power, a steady thrum that Avea could feel in her very bones, as if it were calling out to her. Dolunay’s gaze lifted, locking onto Avea’s with an intensity that held her captive. "I have a way for us to both get our freedom," he paused, as if expecting Avea to interrupt him, to challenge him, but she remained silent. Her focus entirely consumed by the shard in his hand. The power it radiated was intoxicating, like a melody that was perfectly in tune with her own inner rhythm.

"The codex is what remains of Aytigin's sword," Dolunay continued, his voice softening slightly. "It was the blade he used to sever the darkness and break the ties of the Cyntherial moon. Before he disappeared, some of the vortex's uri was infused into this sword, giving it the power of the ancients."Avea’s heart pounded in her chest as she listened, her mind racing with possibilities. The codex was no ordinary relic, it was a weapon of unimaginable power. A key to unraveling the universe, only to bind it to their will. Avea recalled the vision the Oculus had shown her, "eight shards for the eight Galad." She murmured the words aloud, the pieces of the puzzle starting to fall into place. Dolunay nodded eagerly, but she wasn’t so easily swayed. She shook her head, trying to pull herself back to reality. "How does this help me?" she asked bluntly. She wouldn’t risk her life for Dolunay without something in return. Dolunay lifted the Codex, holding it inches from her face. "The Codex is imbued with the uri of all eight moons, including the uri of the Cyntherial moon, which has the power to open gateways throughout the universe," he explained, his voice filled with conviction."A key," Avea murmured, her eyes fixed on the shard of the Codex before her. The reality of it began to sink in. "The pieces of the Codex are scattered across the eight realms. They need to be reunited for this to work."

If Dolunay was right, if the pieces of this codex could be found and reassembled, she would have the leverage she needed to ensure her mother and her could escape. "Finding these codex pieces will set us free?" Avea finally asked, her voice barely more than a whisper. Dolunay nodded, his eyes never leaving hers. Avea felt a surge of unbridled hope rise in her chest. With the key, she and her mother could not only escape but also evade the relentless pursuit of the Luminaries. She squared her shoulders, lifting her chin towards Dolunay. "How do I know you won’t just take the Codex for yourself once I’ve assembled it?" she asked, her voice tinged with skepticism.Dolunay raised an eyebrow at her, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "Are you always this mistrusting?" he asked.

"Only when forming alliances with minotaurs who have abducted my mother and forced me to compete in archaic trials for my freedom," Avea replied. "Fair enough," Dolunay sighed, rubbing his temples as if he were exasperated by her. The gesture was oddly comforting to Avea, a simple, human like mannerism that made him seem slightly less monstrous. "So, where do we start?" Avea asked, her resolve hardening. "We start with the Nova Lunosis," Dolunay explained. "It’s a ceremonial dance that begins the trials and unites the lunar realms."

"And...?" Avea pressed, sensing there was more to the story. "For many Luminaries, it’s a chance to closely observe the newly claimed" Dolunay continued. "Do you think any of the other Galad know where the Codex pieces are?" Avea asked, her mind racing with possibilities. Maybe it would be as easy as snatching it from their greedy hands? "That, I do not know," Dolunay admitted. "But I do know that the Codex pieces want to be together. I was there when Aytigin forged his sword, and as the descendant of the Eighth Moon, it will guide you." He handed the shard of the Codex to her. Avea took the shard, surprised by its lightness. She peered into its glasslike surface, but instead of clarity, it suddenly went dark, reflecting only her own face. "What do you see?" Dolunay asked eagerly, leaning in to catch a glimpse.

Avea stared deeply into the shard of the Codex, her breath catching as an image began to form. A face emerged, sharp and youthful, with dark, twisted horns spiraling from his head and a grayish-purple complexion. "Morpheus," Avea whispered, her voice barely audible. It took her a moment to recognize him. But it was the same look of brooding boredom lingered on his youthful features, a mask he wore even now. "Morpheus?!" Dolunay's voice was sharp, laced with contempt, his expression darkening as if the name itself were poison on his lips. Avea barely registered Dolunay's reaction, her focus locked on the shard. Shadows coiled around Morpheus, thick and sinister, slithering like living tendrils that sought to ensnare him. She frowned, confusion gnawing at her thoughts. Isn’t he supposed to be from the shadow moon? But these shadows weren’t his, they were treacherous and vicious, acting with a malevolence that seemed beyond Morpheus's control. Dolunay loomed over her, craning his neck to peer into the shard, but Avea knew he couldn't see anything. The shard's visions were hers alone. In the image, Morpheus’s wild, frantic eyes darted about as he struggled against the shadowy tendrils, his once bored expression replaced with one of raw fear. He was afraid, truly afraid, and it sent a chill down Avea's spine. "Morpheus... he's in trouble," Avea murmured, more to herself than to Dolunay. He seemed so vulnerable, so... human. The realisation unsettled her. The wielder of shadows, now helpless against the very darkness he was supposed to command.

The shard's vision shifted, and Avea found herself watching Morpheus from behind as he trudged across indigo sand dunes. His back was turned to her, his strange, clawed feet leaving deep footprints in the dark sands. Where was he going? And more importantly, where was the Codex? Avea’s eyes remained glued to the shard, captivated by the scene unfolding within.

Morpheus seemed distant, almost ethereal, as he moved through the barren wasteland. His expression was blank, his face impassive and trance-like as if he were in a dream. Slowly, he knelt and began tracing symbols in the black sands, his fingers moving with deliberate precision. The symbols were strange, unfamiliar, and Avea couldn’t decipher their meaning. But she could sense the power in them, the way they seemed to pulse with a dark energy. Before she could ponder further, the shard flickered and the changed abruptly. Now, Avea saw a circle of the young Galad standing in the night, their hands raised toward the sky. They chanted in unison, their voices low and rhythmic, as a swirling mass formed above them, glistening silver dust, drawn from the surrounding darkness, began to swirl in the air.

Suddenly the shard revealed a mass that resembled a black hole with a jagged split tearing through its center. The images flashed rapidly in the shard, too fast for Avea to fully process.

"What is this...?" Avea whispered, her voice trembling as she tried to make sense of the chaotic visions. Then, a new figure appeared in the shard, a strange, twisted being with shriveled grey skin and glowing eyes. The sight of it made Avea's stomach twist in revulsion, but she couldn't look away. The visions continued to flicker, jumping between Morpheus walking through the dunes, the circle of chanting Galad, and the black hole. The scenes merged, overlapping and intertwining in a nightmarish dance.

Suddenly, a ring of purple fire erupted around the chanting Galad, and in the center of that fiery circle, levitating as if defying gravity, was another shard of the Codex. Avea's heart raced as she realized what she was seeing. The shard in her hand began to thrum with energy, vibrating as though it could feel the presence of its missing piece. It pulsed with a rhythm that matched her quickening heartbeat, calling out to its counterpart. Then, just as quickly as it had begun, the vision faded. The shard in her hand stilled, the energy within it subsiding, and Avea found herself staring at her own reflection in its glassy surface. Her eyes, wide with shock and wonder, stared back at her. "What did you see?" Dolunay's voice cut through the silence, urgent and commanding. He leaned closer, his eyes searching hers for answers."A shard... another piece of the Codex," Avea murmured, her voice tinged with awe. "It's out there, in the dunes... and there’s something else. A black hole?... it’s all connected, but I don’t know how."

Dolunay's expression hardened, the gravity of her words sinking in. "Then we have no time to waste," he said, his voice resolute. "We must find it before anyone else does." Avea nodded, still shaken by what she had seen, but now more determined than ever. The Codex was within reach, and with it, a chance to rescue her mother and escape before this darkness that Dolunay spoke of threatened to consume them all.

"What else did you see?" Dolunay asked, his voice tight with a tension he struggled to mask. His eyes bore into Avea, searching for answers. Avea expression was one of honest uncertainty. "I don't know," she replied, her eyes, sparkled with a deep intrigue that belied her words. "But I know where to start..." As she spoke, a vivid memory surged to the forefront of her mind, Morpheus, haunting her thoughts. He had watched her from his floating island, his eyes sharp with a cautious wariness, as if guarding some dark secret. The way he had lifted his chin, scrutinizing her every move, had left an unsettling impression. "Where is that?" Dolunay pressed, his voice a shade darker, unable to fully hide his anticipation. Avea’s gaze glimmered with a new hope, as she answered

"With the Galad of the Umbratus Moon."