Shards of Felwyn

Abyss

Death clutched Cosmo's throat as he rasped, a short gasp of air reaching his lungs before being pushed out. It was all he could do to breathe, to continue thinking, but something continued to anchor him to life. The thought, the curiosity to its answer pulled Cosmo towards consciousness as he began to awake to a feeling that he had grown familiar with. The presence of a god. He thought to himself and smiled, hoping to be atop Paladin's Peak alongside Tatiova, her benevolent aura soothing him as the cool mountain air whipped past his tunic. Hope in his heart soared and he opened his eyes.

The dark tunnel of brick he lay slumped against the wall of was midnight black, illuminated only by an ancient candle which dripped to the mucky floor from a rusted sconce. Moss and vegetation had consumed the area, splitting the bricks in twain and almost collapsing the entire tunnel, further to his right. His mind ached as his eyes adjusted to see a man who knelt next to him, tending his wounds. Cosmo would have jumped twelve feet backwards had he been able to. A nauseating headache ravaged his skull, keeping him from moving at all.

"Wh... who are-" He coughed his lungs complaining at the faintest breath.

"Stop. Your insides have been damaged greatly. I must ensure your life is not lost now." The man held his gaze, and Cosmo was able to get a good look at the man who now began prodding at his ribs, which he was almost certain were broken.

The male's hair was ashen, despite him showing no signs of age and, when he had looked at Cosmo, his eyes had gleamed a deep ruby. What set him further aside from the typical human appearance the boy had expected, the man's skin was as grey as the blubber of a seal and his ears came to a point near the back of his head, like an elfs. He was robed in loose black clothing that obscured most of his skin and bore no weapons, as far as Cosmo could see.

"You asked for my name." The man muttered, and his voice affected Cosmo as though it was the first time he had ever felt sadness, as though the very idea of melancholy had fluttered through the air in his speech and coated the room in its sorrow.

The only thing that pulled him from the voice's incredible effects was the glow of runic symbols over the man's hand, the vermillion gleaming growing in strength, and then slowly dissipating as the energy flowed into Cosmo. A sound like stretching rubber and splintering wood rose to his ears as the muscles and bones underneath his skin were pried, torn, rearranged, and then put back together. The pain was unspeakable, pushing Cosmo to the edge of consciousness. After the spell had run its course, euphoria rushed to his brain, the left half of his torso never having felt better in his life. He opened his eyes with a start, just as the man began to speak once more.

"I am Sorell." The god looked up from Cosmo's wounds again to find his expression filled with confusion and awe. "Your bout with Galdernad attracted my attention. When I had arrived, you had already been defeated. For a halfgod, you truly are brave... or just incredibly stupid." Cosmo opened his mouth to disagree, but pain flared in his throat and interrupted him. For a curious soul such as himself, not being able to talk was almost as debilitating as losing a limb.

"I'm sensing you wish to know why I decided to save you." He looked up at Cosmo as he adjusted his position around his body, looking at his right thigh where a bloody chunk of rock had embedded itself in his skin. He winced and looked away, nodding.

"For starters, Arlinn would have my head if he knew I had had the opportunity to save you and passed it up." His hands glowed crimson and the pain returned, the horrifying noises coming from his own body making his skin crawl. The rock had removed itself cleanly, and the wound was no more than a purple splotch on Cosmo's skin. "But more importantly," He looked up at the boy and held his gaze again, his eye contact alone powerful enough for him to feel it. "I think you made the right decision. To leave with the Omen. I think you are powerful enough to bring about Cynderad's death. I wish to restore you so that you may achieve victory." A pause filled the eerie cavern.