The air trembled under the pressure this being exuded.
Icard kept his gaze fixed on him.
This was Aksalep.
His form burned red, layered in natural-looking armor plating that wrapped around his body like a living shell.
His eyes glowed a blinding white, and his expression--light, almost amused--felt disturbingly out of place.
Beings like him were known as Heralds, and they were really powerful.
His purpose here was to introduce the Celestial Event.
Aksalep sounded mused by the view below him. He scoffed.
"You all seem like the cattle you are - helpless, pathetic" he began condescendingly. "This Era of Reckoning will definitely consume all of you"
'He began this way last time' Icard said in his thoughts. 'This guy is gonna be a pain'
"Now pay close attention" he continued. "Vokus, the Astral Calamity has wandered to this region of your galaxy. And so, your planet falls in his path"
"This means that a Celestial Event is about to take place on this planet. The Celestials shall however, bestow upon you the means to survive this Astral Calamity"
"Something is up there!"
"Astral Calamity?"
"What is that?"
Susurrations ensued.
Of all the people hearing Aksalep, only Icard truly understood what he was saying. The rest murmured, a great confusion sweeping through the crowd looking up at him.
Aksalep of course, wouldn't care if they understood him or not. He simply continued.
"Here" he said. "I have brought those means with me". Then he waved his right hand and like stars, numerous lights shone brightly in the sky.
Then he waved his hand again and those lights descended to random places, hovering just close enough that anyone could touch them.
"The Spacekeeper awaits you in the space within the orbs before you. There you shall be directed to your various keepers"
"They shall ensure you are properly introduced, tested and if you pass those tests, you shall be chosen as their incarnations"
Aksalep had concluded his speech. Then, he scoffed again.
"I see no use in this however. Your kind is far too useless to be given a chance like this" he said as he ascended over the circle he had come through then disappeared.
The orbs had descended and hovered within reach. There were orbs of different colours floating before everyone.
At first, they would all be cautious since they had no idea of what it was that had just happened.
Aksalep had come and gone too quickly for anyone to process anything.
"Did you see that? Something was flying up there!" Eric said.
"I'm scared. What was it saying? What are all these things? What do we do?" Another lady from their group said.
Of course, they would be confused. In his first turn, Icard was really confused as well and hesitated.
But now, that wasn't the case. Before Icard, a familiar orb floated before him. It was white, with a certain aura about it.
"Erient" he muttered. "I'm coming again"
All they had to do was touch the orb to enter the Keepers space. Icard reached out for the orb intentionally.
"Hey! Don't do it! You don't know what that is!" one of the other guys in their group warned but Icard ignored him completely and touched it.
And in a split second, he reappeared somewhere else.
A gigantic waiting hall. Icard didn't stare around in awe at the large structures and pillars around.
His eyes landed straight on the giant, seated behind a desk. He seemed busy with paperwork and barely paid Icard any attention at first.
'The Spacekeeper' Icard thought to himself.
It took a while before he finally spoke.
"Hmm. You came in first" the giant said.
Icard didn't reply. He waited for the directions the Spacekeeper was meant to give.
He looked at the ground where he stood. There was a faint glow coming from below him - he was being analysed.
The brightness of the glow increased gradually until it stopped, barely brighter than a torchlight.
Then, he remained standing for a while longer while the Spacekeeper did a few things.
"You have been selected" the Spacekeeper said dryly. "Hmm. You have quite the potential to be chosen by Erient"
This was the exact same thing he had told in his first turn.
"I shall now send you to the Frost Tower" he said and then, Icard disappeared.
When he reappeared, it was in that same place. Dark, cold and gloomily lit, with a white fog swirling about and an ice tower standing before him.
As he exhaled, mist escaped his mouth. It was really cold at the moment, unlike the last time he was here before he regressed.
It was enough to make him shiver but he had already passed through worse. His mental fortitude was strong enough for this.
Now, he had come as a regressor just as he agreed with Erient. Erient had also told him he would be waiting at the base of the tower.
The question was; would Erient here know of this. Icard wondered if Erient would also remember. He really hoped so.
He looked at the top of the tower. No one was there. He squinted his eyes.
Then he looked around him, searching. There weren't a lot of places Erient normally stood. But he wasn't at any of those places.
Icard approached the tower. But as he did, the cold intensified instantly, biting deep enough to halt him in his tracks.
"Ha. I really lost everything, didn't I?" he muttered, staring at his hands. This was something he casually approached prior to his regression.
"Hey! Erient!" He called out and yet, no one answered. "Damn it. The Keepers are meant to be here. Where the hell did he go?"
"The Keeper is right here" a voice replied to him calmly.
But this was an unfamiliar voice however. One that made Icard anxious immediately.
The voice came from behind him and when he looked, no one was there.
'What?' he questioned in his thoughts, very much puzzled. He searched around with his eyes.
"This is quite disturbing. I'm sure you are human but, how are you already familiar with that name. You call it out as though you've known him before now, which is unexplainable" the voice said.
It was feminine, nothing Icard had ever heard before. Also, it sounded from everywhere and so he couldn't pinpoint where exactly it was coming from.
Icard was on high guard.
"Where are you?" he asked.
"A prospective incarnation asking questions before getting selected. Aren't you a bit--impudent"
'Damn it. Who the hell is this? Did I enter the wrong space? But that's impossible. This is the Frost Tower!'
"Heh. If you want to know, you should at least talk to me face to face" Icard replied with a tense smile.
The voice hummed then.
"Normally, a test goes about however the keeper wishes. I could even choose to kill you, but you seem quite interesting, Icard"
Mentioning his name made Icard even more alarmed.
"You know me?"
"Yes. I do"
He could suddenly make out the direction the voice was coming from. It was from above the tower.
Icard looked up immediately and focused his eyes on the person standing there.
"You're not Erient" Icard said, backing away from the tower.
"No, I am not" she replied.
The form before him wasn't made of darkness that bent space. She had a fully materialized form.
Ice blue skin, grey robes, long white hair and eyes that glowed blue.
From her form, Icard could guess she wasn't on the rank of a Celestial like Erient. Perhaps, a Herald like Aksalep?
Icard had to be careful.
"Who are you? Why are you here? I had a contract with Erient and he told me he would be waiting for me at the base of the tower. Not some other person"
She hummed again.
"Truuueee" she said. "But you should know Erient has surpassed the ranks of Keeper. Thanks to you, of course" she explained.
"Right now, he cannot exist here and so, he left me in charge, to wait for you"
Icard thought about it for a second and it made sense to him actually.
He should have expected something like this.
'But doesn't this mean Erient didn't regress himself?' Icard thought upon realisation.
But then--
"Now" she said, then vanished from sight. Icard didn't have the time to think.
She suddenly reappeared behind him and before he could turn around, she stabbed him with an ice shard, thrusting him through with it.
Icard was beyond shocked. More shocked than pained from the stabbing as cold flooded his body.
"How about we play a little bit" she whispered mischievously.