Chapter 65: The Between-Space

As if sensing his internal struggle and his strong will to protect Nora, something stirred inside him. His vision blurred, and the world went blank for a moment as his consciousness drifted apart into somewhere unknown, somewhere he couldn’t even sense his own presence. His mana began to drift away from his very core, spilling out into the unknown void until none of it was left. Unusually, though, he didn’t die. Normally, when a person exhausted all their mana, their consciousness should have been destroyed along with it. But none of that happened to him.

Floating freely in the void, like a piece of paper caught in the wind, he drifted lower and lower, as though drowning endlessly in some bottomless sea.

"Where am I? What is this place?"

He muttered the words under his breath, staring around into the darkness, unable to see anything at all, which made it even more difficult to figure out exactly where he was.

Questions flooded his mind restlessly, an undeniable nervousness settling over him.

"Am I dead? Did I get killed by one of the devils’ attacks? Or did I fall into some kind of illusion cast by them?"

He didn’t know. There was no one here to answer his questions in this forgotten void.

Just as he began to feel like there was no hope of returning, a pair of giant azure eyes suddenly tore through the void above him, gleaming as they fixed directly on him. Neo felt an overwhelming, calamitous presence looming over him, its gaze locked entirely onto his own.

His entire soul seemed to quiver and shake beneath the sheer intensity of that presence, even though there was nothing else visible besides those glowing eyes.

"Quite disappointing."

A cryptic voice suddenly echoed through the void, resonating as though its owner has the sole authority over this entire realm.

Neo felt his very existence tremble at the sound of it, but the sudden insult still annoyed him enough that he couldn’t help but snap back, even as his own words seemed to vibrate through his soul.

"What the hell?! Who the hell are you to comment on me?! Are you the one who pulled me here?! Are you one of those damn devils?!"

"Stubborn, and immature as well."

Anger flared inside Neo, and he glared openly toward the eyes.

"Show some respect, boy. I am your ancestor, and the very creator of the Dravens. The name you carry was given by me."

Neo’s eyes widened in surprise at the words, though his expression settled back almost as quickly as it had shifted.

"Huh... You don’t look all that shocked. Were you already expecting to meet me?"

"Not particularly. I’m not the least bit interested in meeting some old man meddling in someone else’s era. Sigh... It would have been nice if I could have met some beautiful goddess instead of you."

A look of clear disapproval crossed through the void as the eyes narrowed, seemingly frustrated by his flippant response.

"You are such a troublesome youth. But what else should I expect from my own descendant? And yet, you carry the bloodline of the Dravens, a lineage burdened with immense power and responsibility. Your ancestors, myself included, have always guided our descendants, albeit from afar. It seems now the time has come for a more direct intervention."

"You stand at a precipice, young one. Your mana has been depleted, yes, but your spirit, your will to protect, resonated deeply with the very essence of what it means to be a Draven. That is why you now stand here, in this between-space."

"Between-space? So I’m not dead, then? And what’s all this about guiding descendants? You just show up when I’m at my weakest and start lecturing me about it?"

The cryptic voice let out a low chuckle, the sound reverberating through the void like distant thunder.

"Impertinent as ever. No, you are not dead. Not yet. This ’between-space,’ as you call it, is a realm accessible only to those who push the very limits of their being, who touch the edge of oblivion and manage to pull themselves back. As for guiding our descendants, our influence is subtle, woven into the very fabric of your being. It manifests as instinct, as innate understanding, as the sudden surge of power that arrives when all seems lost. But sometimes, when the stakes are dire enough, a more direct communion becomes necessary. And make no mistake, young Draven, the stakes are indeed dire. Your world, your Nora, everything you hold dear, teeters on the very brink. Your current strength, though admirable, is insufficient for the trials that lie ahead. What you require is a re-awakening."

"A re-awakening? What exactly does that entail? Are you about to hand me some kind of power-up, or is this just another cryptic lecture about my potential?"

He crossed his arms, despite the entirely non-physical nature of his current form, a gesture of defiance that seemed to genuinely amuse the giant eyes watching him.

"Patience, troublesome youth. A power-up, as you so crudely put it, would be a gross oversimplification. What awaits you is a reconnection, a deeper understanding of the power already residing within you, dormant and untapped. The bloodline of the Dravens is not merely a lineage. It is a conduit, a vessel for immense cosmic energy. This re-awakening will strip away the limitations you have unknowingly placed upon yourself, allowing you to access the true potential of your heritage. It will be arduous. It will be painful. But it will forge you into something far greater than you currently comprehend. You will not simply gain power. You will become power itself, a true bastion against the encroaching darkness."

"So, what will you choose, then, young Draven? Will you embrace this arduous path, or will you succumb to your current limitations, risking everything and everyone you seek to protect?"

The azure eyes seemed to intensify, boring straight into Neo’s very essence. The void around him grew heavier, as though awaiting his answer.

Neo, despite his earlier annoyance, felt the true gravity of the moment settle over him. He thought of Nora, her innocent face, her quiet, unwavering trust. He thought of the terror he’d felt believing he’d nearly lost her, the crushing helplessness of his own limited power.

A fire ignited within him, a resolve burning brighter than any star.

"I choose the arduous path. I will embrace this re-awakening. I won’t stand by and watch everything I care about be destroyed. I wasn’t born into this world just to lose everything. Show me what I need to do."

His voice rang firm, resonating with a newfound determination.

A faint, almost imperceptible smile seemed to form around the edges of the giant azure eyes, and the cryptic voice, now carrying a distinct note of satisfaction, echoed once more through the vast emptiness.

"Excellent, young Draven. Your spirit is truly worthy of the blood flowing within you. Your new path begins from this moment onward. Prepare yourself, for the journey ahead will test the very limits of your being."

Suddenly, an overwhelming flood of information poured into his consciousness, his very spirit igniting with an unfamiliar, foreign energy.

An indescribable pain tore through his soul, so intense he couldn’t even open his mouth to scream. It felt as though billions of spikes were continuously thrusting through him, as his very existence began to shift and change beneath the weight of it.

After what felt like hours, the flood of knowledge finally settled, fully absorbed into him. Then, a spark of blue light began swirling around his ethereal form within the void, coiling steadily around its center like a moon orbiting the earth.

As the spark continued circling, a blue flame ignited just above it, resting at the very center of his ethereal body. It didn’t burn within his body, but rather resided deep within his very soul, burning with a fierce energy that somehow felt entirely familiar, entirely his own.

Suddenly, the void began to scatter apart, like fragments of a shattered picture, the giant azure eyes blurring slowly out of focus.

"I hope you will be able to achieve what we could not, even after centuries. Take care of yourself, Neo Draven, Heir to the sky and the earth."