ShadowBound: The Need For Power

After Mabel's message, Lucy, Mystica, and Dove made their way swiftly to Liam's room. This time, there was no walking—Mystica conjured a portal with a flick of her fingers, stepping through it with the others in tow.

The portal opened directly into Liam's room.

They stepped out to find him already awake, seated on the edge of the bed, staring silently at his hand.

All three of them stopped in their tracks.

Mabel, who had been standing quietly near the wall, approached without a sound. "He's been like that for the past few minutes," she said softly.

"Do you think he's okay?" Dove whispered, eyes fixed on Liam.

"I think so," Mystica replied.

"Of course you do, you maternal softie," Dove teased with a smirk.

Mystica rolled her eyes. "How many times must I say this—he's not my son."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. But maybe you should talk to him?" Dove suggested.

Mystica hesitated, then took a cautious step forward. "Liam? It's you, right? No need to be tense. It's just us—Mystica, Dove, and Queen Lucy."

"Remember us?" she added gently, wary that the being who had taken over Liam's body before might still be present.

Liam's eyes lifted, meeting hers—calm, detached, and unmistakably his. "Do you have to talk to me like I'm mentally challenged?"

Relief swept through the room.

"Phew. My boy's still alive and kicking," Dove said with exaggerated relief, catching everyone off guard—except Mabel.

Mystica and Lucy both shot her sharp looks.

"What? Isn't this good news?" Dove said, feigning innocence.

Lucy exhaled quietly and turned back to Liam. "Are you in any pain? Do you feel alright?"

"No pain. Nothing I'm aware of. Honestly… I think this might be the best I've ever felt," Liam said, moving to stand.

But as he rose, a wave of dizziness hit him. He stumbled slightly.

Mystica moved instinctively to catch him, but he raised a hand to stop her. "No need. Just disoriented after lying down so long."

He steadied himself with little effort, his expression unreadable.

Dove squinted. "Hmm? How would you know it's been so long unless you were awake? Were you conscious the whole time, pretending?"

Liam glanced at her with mild amusement. "If you wake up and feel like you've merged with the bed, it's not hard to guess you've been lying in it for days. Also, this isn't my room. Or my clothes."

He glanced toward the window. "And the sun tells me it's noon. Last time I checked the time, it was just past noon."

Dove made a face. "Sheesh. I didn't ask for a full awareness report, show-off."

Liam shrugged and walked over to a bowl of fruit, selecting an apple and taking a bite.

Mystica and Lucy watched him silently, observing every movement.

After a couple of bites, he noticed their continued staring. "Why are you looking at me like I'm a ghost? Especially you, Mystica." His tone was casual, but the edge of curiosity was unmistakable.

Mystica flinched slightly, caught off guard by the edge in Liam's voice. "Well… honestly, I don't think you remember what happened, but after witnessing what you—or whatever was inside you—did, I'm just… being cautious."

Liam took another bite of the apple, then tossed it into the trash without even looking. "That's fair. Aesmirius did seem like a pain in the ass when I saw him too."

The room went still.

All eyes—including Mabel's—snapped to Liam.

"Aesi-what?" Dove asked, blinking.

"Wait, who is that?" Mystica asked, tone calm but firm.

Liam strolled across the room and casually flopped onto a couch, mimicking Dove's earlier posture. "The ancient bastard who lives inside me and hijacked my body a few days ago. Aesmirius."

Mystica's brows furrowed. "You know his name?" she murmured. "Wait… did you two—?"

"No," Liam cut in smoothly. "We didn't chat in my head or anything. I didn't know his name until the day he took control. But I've known he was there for a long time."

"That doesn't make sense," Lucy finally said, her voice sharp with concern. "How could you have known without knowing?"

"I can't explain it properly," Liam replied. "I don't have clear memories or understanding. It's all vague. What I do know is that Aesmirius is some kind of ancient being—godlike, actually. He's lived like thousands of years back. The power he uses is called Aetherion. And that's the force I was granded in the Dark Forest, after defea—"

He paused, remembering Jamak, making him refuse he ever won against the Beast.

"After I survived the trials of the forest." He

The silence that followed was filled with tension. The others processed his words slowly. Liam's gaze drifted to Mabel, the one person he didn't recognize. He tilted his head slightly.

"Should she even be here while I'm saying all this? Because I don't trust her."

Mabel blinked once, clearly offended. 'That's the thanks I get for watching over him?' she thought, her expression tight.

"My apologies for being a nuisance, my Queen," Mabel said evenly. "May I take my leave?"

Lucy, drawn from her thoughts, nodded. "Yes. Thank you for your service. I'll summon you if I need anything further."

With a graceful bow, Mabel vanished into thin air.

Mystica turned back to Liam. "So not only did you survive the Dark Forest—you came out stronger and with an ancient power inside you?"

"Basically."

"And this... Asmir-whatever guy still lives inside you?" Dove asked, mangling the name again.

"Aesmirius," Liam corrected calmly. "And yes."

"And he can just pop out whenever he wants?"

"No," Mystica answered before Liam could. "If that were the case, he would've taken over a long time ago. When Aesmirius emerged, it only lasted about five minutes before Liam's body started breaking down. That tells us he was only able to come out because Liam's gotten stronger since first receiving the power—Aetherion, right?"

"Yeah," Liam confirmed. "And I really hope it doesn't happen again. Being half-aware while your body's being controlled by something else? It's... extremely irritating."

His voice was calm and detached—but the weight behind his words was impossible to miss.

"You said it felt irritating," Lucy spoke at last, her voice calm but measured. "But… were you actually aware of what Aesmirius did while he was in control?"

Liam's gaze shifted to her, then away again as he picked up an orange. He began peeling it slowly, more out of habit than focus.

"Some of it," he replied after a brief pause. "I was getting flashes—memories from Aesmirius's life. That's how I learned his name. And before you ask, no, that's all I know. Just the name."

"As for what he did while using me…" Liam continued, "I saw what he did to Gordon. And to be honest, I was glad. The bastard slammed me into a wall twice. Pretty damn irritating."

"I see," Lucy murmured. "Well, it's good to see you're okay. That's what matters."

"She's right," Mystica added. "Aesmirius's possession caused quite a bit of internal damage, but your body healed perfectly."

"That reminds me..." Liam said, finishing the orange and looking down at his hand. "Did something happen to me while I was out? Because I feel… different. New."

The three women paused, then Dove and Lucy both turned to look at Mystica.

Mystica let out a light sigh and rolled her eyes. "Yes, something happened. Your core went through an Ascension. It broke past the bottleneck you were stuck at. I used a catalyst to help it keep evolving."

She crossed her arms. "So if you feel new, it's because your core ascended to a higher level."

Liam stared at her for a moment, then turned his eyes to his hands.

"You can use Mystsense to confirm it yourself," Mystica said, already activating hers to glance at his core.

Liam closed his eyes and focused inward, activating Mystsense. The last time he checked, he was a low-tier 5-star, his core a dim green. Now, as he scanned it again, he saw a vibrant, bright green—he had advanced to a high-tier 5-star.

"Is it even possible for a core to skip a tier like that?" he asked, still observing it.

"Technically, no. Yours didn't skip mid-tier. It just evolved through it extremely fast," Mystica answered.

"I see," Liam said, deactivating Mystsense and lifting his palm. A miniature sun formed in his hand, radiating intense heat.

'The heat's stronger than before. Way stronger. It feel like combining three of these into one. This feels good. Should I test it?' He thought, eyeing the orb.

Then his gaze shifted to Dove, seated directly across from him.

Dove caught the look instantly. Her eyes darted between Liam's glowing ones and the small sun in his hand. "Hey… you're not thinking what I think you're thinking, right?"

Liam said nothing.

"Hey, brat, I swear—"

Before she could finish, Liam flicked his finger—sending the miniature sun flying straight at her.