In Pursuit of the Universe

The fabric of the cosmos trembled. The threads of fate—woven since the dawn of creation—began to fray.

A fracture formed, silent yet deafening. What was once immutable began to twist, unraveling at the edges. A presence stirred within the breach, observing. Watching.

"Let the stray thread be woven into the tapestry. Let it move, let it struggle, let it seek. In the end, the loom is ours to weave."

The air was thick with the scent of stagnation and frost, the very essence of a world frozen in despair. Elias opened his eyes to an expanse of endless ice filled with fractured spires rising high above the ground. Silence was spread everywhere except from the distant groan of shifting glaciers.

He was in bare clothes yet felt warm as if something had enveloped his entire body, protecting him from the chilling winds.

"Where am I" asked Elias. No answer came. His mind was foggy, the memories of his life fractured into fragments – a peaceful life, a sense of purpose, warmth, and love – but everything else slipped through his grasp, as if his mind was too afraid to recall the full picture.

While he was getting up, a gust of wind cut through the silence, carrying a whisper that was not his own as words mysteriously formed in front of his eyes, seemingly out of nowhere.

[ System initializing… ]

"System?" Elias whispered, staring at the glowing words. "Wha-what?"

There was a pause – a silence too deliberate to be natural. Then, as if the very world had chosen to answer, the words shifted.

[ Objective: You must ascend to the top and deliver justice. ]

"Huh. What do you mean? Ascend? And what are you anyways?" he muttered under his breath.

There was no reply for a short while before a metallic chime was heard that reverberated through his head.

[ Irrelevant. I only exist to assist. ]

"Assist me? Why?"

[ Your path has been set. My purpose is to ensure its fulfillment. ]

Elias clenched his fists. "What path? Who decided it?"

[ You will understand in time. ]

"No. I want to understand right now." His voice was rising as frustration started seeping in.

"What about… my memories. Who am I? I don't remember anything besides my name. It's all… it's all jumbled up."

[ Understanding is a burden you are not yet prepared to bear. It is better you learn as you ascend. ]

Elias exhaled, biting down his unease. He wanted answers, but whatever this System was, it would only speak in riddles, refusing to directly provide him with answers. Besides, something told him it would not waver.

"System?" His voice cracked, the word barely leaving his lips. No response. Just the cold, lifeless glow of blue floating text. He clenched his fist. Fragments of memories – faces, places, a life – should have been there, but his mind was barren. Empty.

A wave of nausea churned in his gut. How could he trust something which suddenly popped out in front of him seemingly out of nowhere? Something that offered no proof that it even had his best interests in mind? Just some floating text, urging him to keep moving forward. What if it was lying? What if it had placed him there?

A bitter laugh slipped past his lips, hollow and humorless. "Does it even matter?", he thought to himself. There was nothing else there. Just the vast, desolate wasteland. His nails dug into his palms as his shoulders slumped in quiet surrender. If he questioned it any further, he would break.

Elias exhaled. Fine. Whether it was a trick, a lifeline, or something far worse, it was the only thing speaking to him in this forsaken place, and the only thing he could cling onto.

He pushed himself to his feet, though his legs wobbled from the effort. The silence was heavy and oppressive. Slowly, began his walk. Each step was hesitant, ice cracking slightly underfoot.

As he trudged forward, he saw the first signs or life – or what once might have been life. Frozen figures, twisted in agony, encased in the ice beneath his feet. Their faces contorted, mouths open in silent screams and their eyes wide open with eternal despair. Each one was locked in an unnatural pose with their limbs bent and broken in intricate ways

As he moved forward, he came across another person frozen in ice. He was to continue forward when something struck his mind. He got a sense of déjà vu. He felt as if he had seen that man somewhere. He tried to recall but it slipped just out of his reach.

"Where am I?" he asked in despair.

[ You tread upon Cocytus, the frozen river where traitors dwell. The Ninth Circle of Hell, reserved for the worst of the damned. And at the center lies the damned Devil. ]

Elias' breath hitched at those words. The Devil-trapped here?

A shiver ran down his spine. He clenched his hands as panic clawed at his thoughts. "What does that mean? Is he still here?"

The System remained silent.

Elias took a step back, his heart pounding. "Tell me. Is he awake? Is he watching?"

…

Nothing. No response. Only the sound of the wind whistling through the ruins.

He turned sharply, half expecting to see something lurking behind him. But there was only the endless white, stretching infinitely.

"I'm not going anywhere." His voice was firm, but his feet remained rooted. "You hear me? I'm not taking another step till you answer my questions."

[ You are quite close to the center. It is better to confirm it yourself. ]

Elias' curiosity warred with his fear. Slowly and cautiously, his gaze shifted towards the horizon. The mist swirled and parted, revealing the heart of the wasteland which was…

Empty?

Elias exhaled. "He's not here?" A wave of relief washed over him, but it was also tainted with confusion. "Then where is He?"

The System did not answer.

The weight of silence pressed on him as he moved forward with cautious steps. The ice beneath made a cracking sound with each movement. The closer he got, the more unnatural the air felt – thick and heavy.

The ice was broken, cracked, and hollowed out, as though something enormous had once been there – but no longer. The jagged cavity where the Devil was supposed to be imprisoned lay empty, the frozen chains that had once bound him lay shattered across the ground.

Amid the scattered remnants of shattered chains, his eyes landed on an unusual object half-buried in ice: a small, ornate dagger with a hilt shaped like twisting thorns. It glimmered faintly. Curiosity gnawed at Elias, but he couldn't make head or tail of its purpose. "What is it?", Elias asked.

[ The Vinctarum. Forged from the frozen tears and seething wrath of the Devil, it is a dagger steeped in torment and defiance, a fragment of defiance against the divine. ]

"Hm. Well let's keep it aside for later."

Elias pushed forward, leaving the hollowed heart of Hell behind. Venturing deeper, the icy winds howled like screeching souls, sending shivers down his spine. In the distance, barely visible through the mist, he spotted a narrow, dark passage carved into the ice – a jagged slit in the frozen wall that seemed to lead into complete, suffocating darkness.

He noticed a shadow stirred at the entrance. His stomach twisted with unease. There, standing at the entrance of the passage was a still figure cloaked in shadow. The System chimed softly, coldly:

[ Gatekeeper of the Ninth Circle: Proceed with caution. ]

Elias swallowed hard, his eyes narrowing. Spotting a jagged spine of ice jutting from the frozen ground, Elias crouched behind it as a cover.

The gatekeeper's presence was oppressive. It was different from all the other frozen souls he had passed – alive, malevolent, and waiting. Behind the gatekeeper, the passageway yawned open, a narrow maw that led into an endless abyss of darkness. From this distance, Elias couldn't make out a face – only the sensation that he was being watched.

"Wha-what is that?" he whispered.

[ To ascend, you must enter the passage. ]

The words did nothing to ease his confusion. His mind was racing with questions. His fingers twitched near the hilt of the dagger, though he wasn't even sure why he reached for it.

Then, in the distance, he spotted movement.

Another silhouette stood at the edges of the abyss, distant yet undeniably real. Elias' breath hitched. It was too far away to make out clearly, but it seemed to stand tall, with an almost regal bearing.

Someone else?

His hearted pounded against his chest as he turned to the System again, demanding answers. "Who is that?"

No response.

He exhaled sharply, panic gnawing at him. This was wrong. Everything about this was wrong. He didn't belong there – none of this made sense. His grip on reason was slipping, and with it, his resolve. His body screamed at him to run, to escape this nightmare before it swallowed him whole.

So he ran.

The crunch of frost beneath his boots shattered the stillness. He didn't look back. He didn't need to. Because the Gatekeeper had already seen him.

"You tread upon the grave of a kingdom that defied the divine… Tell me, will you share their fate?"

Elias froze mid-step. A kingdom that defied the divine? What did that mean? His mind grew curious, but survival screamed louder. He clenched his fists and turned to flee.

But before he could take another step, a sharp, howling wind split the air – a blade. It was impossibly long, its hilt adorned with ominous carvings that twisted and spiraled like dark vines.

He dove to the side, narrowly avoiding the deadly arc of the sword, which embedded itself into the ice with a loud thud, sending shards of frozen ground flying in all directions. However, it did not remain stuck. Instead, with an eerie, unnatural pull, it wrenched itself free from the shattered ground and soared back through the air. It returned back to the Gatekeeper's hand, settling into his hand with a deafening clang.

Elias scrambled to his feet as the gatekeeper surged forward, unleashing a flurry of strikes with his massive sword. Elias' heart plummeted as he was barely able to dodge the first blow. The blade whistled past him with deadly precision. Panic surged through him as he sprinted away into the shadows of the icy wasteland.

He ducked behind a massive ice formation, hoping to lay hidden. The Gatekeeper's ominous silhouette loomed closer, the sound of heavy footfalls echoing in the stillness.

As Elias pressed against the cold surface, his breath quickened, panic surging through him. "What… am I supposed to do?" he muttered.

The Gatekeeper's heavy footfalls drew nearer, the air around him thickening, pressing against his chest. Each echo sent a shiver down his spine, reminding him of the impeding danger.

"System!" he gasped desperately, "Wha-what do I have to do?"

The System chimed coldly as words formed in the air before him.

[ Objective: Deliver Justice. ]

Elias hopelessly stared at the System's response. Justice? Me? How? His mind was flooded with questions. "What about the dagger? Can I use it?"

The response came immediately:

[ You do not meet the requirements to wield Vinctarum. ]

"WHY??", screamed Elias, but got no response. Panic ensued as he clutched the dagger away. He had nothing else to use. Desperately, he hurled the dagger towards the Gatekeeper, hoping it might buy him even a moment's chance. The blade spun through the cold air and struck the Gatekeeper. But he barely flinched. The dagger bounced off of his armored shoulder and embedded itself in the ice nearby.

The Gatekeeper's gaze temporarily shifted to the dagger. "How does a mortal possess this sacred artifact?" it said. However, Elias took advantage of the Gatekeeper's inattentiveness and with all his might, rushed towards the passageway in hopes of escaping without having to fight. However, the Gatekeeper grabbed his long sword and with a powerful swipe, came after Elias.

Elias' muscles tensed, his heart beating out of his chest and his feet slipping across the ice. The Gatekeeper's heavy footsteps thundered behind him. Elias took a look back and his stomach dropped. The Gatekeeper was gaining on him. He narrowly dodged the Gatekeeper's sword as it came crashing down with a force, shattering the ice, which sent shards flying in all directions.

"Faster… just… FASTER!!" he urged himself. He zigzagged between pillars of ice in a desperate attempt to stay out of the Gatekeeper's line of sight. He slipped again and stumbled, falling head-first onto the icy-cold ground.

Before he could even attempt to get up, a strike came down – a savage, unforgiving slice. Elias gasped. A sharp, searing pain exploded through Elias' body as his right arm was severed, the limb spinning away into the frost. His scream ripped through the frozen wasteland. His clenched his jaws in excruciating pain as blood gushed in violent spurts, staining the white ground with deep crimson. His mind reeled, struggling to comprehend what had just happened.

He gasped, his vision blurring, cold creeping into his bones. His body trembled violently, his breath coming in short, uneven bursts.

A shadow loomed over him.

"You fate shall mirror the castle's ruin."

The Gatekeeper's massive sword rose high above Elias as its jagged edge reflected the light of the ninth circle.

[ Danger: Judgement nears. Survival probability – negligible. ]

Elias could only watch, helpless, as the blade came down. The abyss yawned wide, eager to claim him.