Abyssal Awakening

Leaving the city, Albert gave it one last glance before walking away. He noticed the Doctor waiting for him.

"Welcome back young master, seems like you had a rather fruitful scouting. Was there any information I should know about?" The Doctor asked with a slight gleam in his eyes.

Giving the Doctor a glance, Albert shook his head.

"I haven't found that monster yet. Though there seems to be a strange person living in the capital whose power doesn't belong to any of the main three. She doesn't have a soul either. We'll continue scouting tomorrow." Albert replied before continuing towards the camp.

Eryn was a little surprised that he didn't share anything with the Doctor but held her silence.

Your adventure continues at mvl

"I see, that matches what I found at the site of the battle. Two Lord level beings were taken care of by this person."

"Alright, keep me posted on what you find." Albert nodded, not wanting to spend more time around the Doctor.

Upon arriving back in his tent, Albert noticed Eryn blocking the sound from leaving the space, allowing the two of them to talk in private. Her skills revolve around the perception of space after all. Whether that be the space the 'soul' inhibits or a room, she could control it to a certain extent.

"I thought the two of you were looking for this monster of yours. I'm guessing you'd rather not let her fall into the Doctors hands now that your sister is still in there." Eryn asked, sitting down on a chair.

"It's as you say master. The Doctor is someone who only cares about results and experimentation. Out of everyone who… dealt with the monster, he was always the most eager. But if my sister is still in there, I can't let him know that we've found her." Albert frowned.

If the Doctor was to find out that his sister's soul still lives, there's no doubt that he'd want to find out more. Meaning, Alice will undergo even more rigorous testing than in the past.

If it's the monster, he doesn't care. But if the target was his sister, then he couldn't let that slide.

"I didn't want to involve myself too much in this. But I have to ask, what kind of monster is she? Setting aside the curious case of having three souls in one body, her soul was… abnormal.

"Young in age but abnormal in strength and everything else. It's a completely different breed or type of soul from the usual. Artificial in nature yet capable of growth and adaptation. It's the first time I've come across something like this." Eryn closed her eyes and recalled the shape of Alice's soul.

Even though she's a Lord level being, it still sent a chill down in her spine.

She'd seen Artificial 'souls' before but none of them were capable of growth to this extent. Whoever the creator of this 'soul' is, they're trying to make something that'll surpass the limit of mortals.

"I don't know. That thing appeared out of nowhere during my sister's birthday and ate her. It took over the body and wore her skin, absorbed her memories and tried to act as though nothing was wrong. But there's always this bloodthirst around her that she can't hide.

"Her desires of blood and flesh are clearly that of a monster. We… tried to figure out her origins but failed. The only thing we found out was the unique properties of her blood." Albert explained, hesitating at certain points and decided not to reveal everything.

The best lies are ones that have some truth sprinkled in them.

"I'm guessing that Doctor will want to find out more rather than caring about your sister." Eryn sighed.

"Mnm."

Silence filled the tent but soon, Eryn opened her mouth.

"I'll do you a favour. Not because I'm your master or because I owe your family a big debt. But as someone who also lost a sibling and never got a chance to get them back. See if you can lure her out of the city. I'll isolate a space and we can proceed from there."

Hearing this, Albert widened his eyes before nodding his head in excitement. If his master was giving him a hand then it'll be much easier to pull this off!

All that he needs to do now is to find a way to lure Alice out of there. Considering what they've done to her during the 10 years they locked her up, it won't be too difficult.

###

"So you're saying Albert is beginning to show more signs of hesitation?" A woman's voice could be heard as the Doctor nodded his head.

He was currently standing in front of a mirror and a veiled woman could be seen in the reflection.

"During the scouting, he was clearly disturbed by something yet he never mentioned it. I believe he may have come across dear Alice and thought his sister was still in there." He reported with a light chuckle.

The woman in the reflection waved her fan back and forth for a moment before clapping it shut.

"Let him do what he wants. The more they think they're in control, the easier it is to predict what he wants to do. However, I am rather interested in this… strange being that both of you found traces of. Take some samples back with you." She ordered as the Doctor nodded his head.

The surface of the mirror rippled momentarily before turning back to normal.

Walking over and sitting on his seat, the Doctor curved his lips up into a grin.

Albert definitely came across Alice. If he didn't, there wouldn't be the sign of hesitation in his eyes. The habits of the young master was clear to him.

The way he would play with his fingers, how he would try to show more confidence than usual all in a futile attempt to disguise what he found.

But the fact that Albert chose to hide this meant that there was more to it than it seemed. If it was just the beast, he wouldn't even turn his head to look at her.

'If he's hiding it then… it must mean he believes his sister might still be in there, somewhere.' The Doctor rubbed his chin.

If that was indeed the case then this brings in the topic of souls and consciousness. How did the original Alice survive? How long has she been in there? Was she ever in control?

He recalled the countless experiments he's done on young Alice. The anger, the killing intent, the raw hatred in her eyes and the bloodthirst. There's been moments where she would fight back, moments where she would break down and cry as though the fighting spirit never existed inside her.

But if the original Alice still lives…

It would make sense that the two were switching out at certain moments.

And if that was the truth, was the young lady ever present when Albert was around? If so, what kind of hatred would she feel for her brother that ordered them to continue with a cold look in his eyes? The disgust he felt towards a monster that was actually his sister?

"Pft! AHAHAHAH!!!" Letting out a laugh, the Doctor couldn't wait to see this reunion. A small entertainment before recapturing Alice for more experiments.

However, there was one thing that he wished more than anything. And that was for the young master to show traitorous actions against the family that puts it in harms way. If he does, then it gives him the permission to treat Albert as an outsider.

Once that happens… What kind of beast could he turn Albert into? The members of the Zenia main family have all been reinforced and enhanced by the best Abyss Bloods they could get their hands on. To reinforce their physical bodies to the limit.

If he was to turn that kind of being into beast, how far could he push it? Could HE be the one to make a being similar to Alice?

Ah~ he wanted to find out immediately.

###

After the first day of giving out cures, Alice had found a rhythm to things. Muscle memory in essence.

She was able to go through the motions quickly without even thinking much and give the correct responses and procedure. Compared to the first day, everything was going at twice the pace now.

Even Caera was surprised as she noticed Alice's improvement when it came to controlling her energy and Sigils.

The efficiency increased and same with the speed.

A flow state of sorts where everything was given a boost simply due to her focus.

Even the people outside were surprised as they expected to wait a long time but that was not the case at all.

Upon entering the tent, they would see the focus gaze of Alice telling them to sit down in front of her.

In one swift motion and one instance of pain, she would be able tell you your options. Whether that be Bloodline Release or Berserker.

Once you answer, the operation begins and finishes before you even know what happened and she'll call in the next person.

Caera would then give them a sheet detailing what they need to focus on and the risks of their new form for them to read.

The atmosphere was akin to a perfect working machine.

Once lunch time hit, Alice called for a break as she wiped away the sweat.

Now that she had gotten used to things, the process should be done within half a week maybe even more.

Letting Caera know that she was going to get something to eat, Alice left the tent and made her way to the marketplace.

Since Alyss enjoyed the skewers yesterday, Alice had made sure to ask Selen where she bought them last night and made her way to the store.

While she was queuing up, a figure appeared in her peripherals. A face that she couldn't forget, a conductor of her torture and someone whom she used to look for seeking help only to receive cold disdain.

Albert Zenia!