The Silver Grimoire was an ethereal tome, bound in solid black. Its surface is smooth yet textured like worn leather. Silver accents framed the edges of the cover formed an ornate pattern. The book's centerpiece: a luminous silver crescent moon embedded in the cover.

  Its pages shimmered with a translucent indigo hue, ever-shifting like the colors of an aurora dancing across the night sky. Scattered across the endless pages were tiny, radiant stars, each aligning into delicate constellations that seemed to shift and breathe with every turn.

  The only word Aria could think to describe it in that moment was beautiful.

  ...

  In an age long before civilization, the Eldritch reigned supreme over the Earth. Humanity, weak and powerless, was little more than prey. They had no means to fight back, no weapons strong enough to harm their oppressors. One by one, they were hunted to the brink of extinction.

  Fate soon shifted when a pair of twin brothers stumbled upon an ancient tome. A single book, filled with knowledge beyond mortal comprehension, also held the secret to wielding magic. With its teachings, they could turn the tide against the Eldritch, finally giving humanity a fighting chance.

  Understanding such power should not belong to a single person, the brothers split the book amongst the two of them. One half became a book as bright as the sun itself, known as the Golden Grimoire. Its counterpart, a book of shadow with pages as black as the night sky, the Silver Grimoire.

  Wielding the twin books of legend, the brothers shared the gift of magic with humanity. With newfound power, they united mankind and sealed away the Eldritch horrors that had once ruled the earth. For the first time in history, peace reigned.

  The Silver Grimoire, corrupted by greed, weaponized the very horrors he had once fought and sought dominion over the earth. Driven by ambition, and perhaps envy toward his brother, the Silver Grimoire unleashed those nightmares once more, leading a rebellion against his sibling.

  This dark uprising became known as The Calamity. The war was long and brutal, a relentless clash of light against endless night. In the end, the Golden Grimoire, alongside their original companions, succeeded in banishing both the Silver Grimoire and the Eldritch forever.

  As time passed, the brothers’ story faded, until it was all but a tale.

  Aria found it ironic that she was being saved by the Silver Grimoire, the very thing her homeland feared most. Easenna had been ravaged by Albion under the belief that her people had brought the Eldritch back a decade ago. Waging a long and violent conflict against her people. Now, standing before her was the very book said to have once doomed the world.

  A book like the night sky. Eyes the color of a blood moon…

  The memory hit her suddenly. Recalling the story her father had told her as a child.

  12 years ago…

  “Why did the Silver Grimoire wage war against his brother?” Aria asked her dad.

  She was around seven years old when she first heard that story. All children in the nation had heard it since it was integral to their history. Easenna’s founder, Selene, had been one of the original companions of the brothers and later went on to establish Easenna.

  Her father smiled, amused by his daughter's question. Like Aria, he had their family’s famous navy blue hair. Nicolos had light gray eyes, and a neatly trimmed beard. As the patriarch of the nation's strongest family, he bore the responsibility of educating all his children on their history. However, Aria’s question was a difficult one.

  “I’m not sure!” he said with a bright smile before pondering the complex question.

  It was an age-old mystery that had stumped even the most brilliant religious scholars. Some speculated that he acted out of hubris; others believed jealousy of his brother drove him. A few cultists even claimed his views were justified and that the Eldritch were the rightful rulers of the planet. Of course he wasn’t going to tell his daughter that.

  Nicholas hummed thoughtfully before affectionately ruffling her hair. “I’d like to think he had a reason for what he did. No one would turn against their family and cause that kind of destruction without one.”

  Ardna rushed at Espoir, aiming to bisect him. His book vanished from his hands as he dodged the slash. Drawing a gun, Espoir fired at the Eldritch as it closed the distance across the room.

  “...Oh,” Espoir muttered, realizing his mistake as the bullets had no effect on the creature. A series of jagged appendages and human-like teeth descended upon him. Throwing up a barrier, Espoir was hurled across the room. The attack shattered his shield and slashed through both his arms.

  I need to keep it away from the girl. After that, I should be able to purify it, he thought quickly.

  Forming a finger gun, Espoir cast his spell, [Ignite], against the creature. It instinctively shielded itself with a shimmering aura, rendering the explosion useless.

  As the creature began crawling toward him, a series of tendrils rose, ready to strike. A relentless barrage of stabs and slashes tore into the church wall. Despite its inhuman nature, the Eldritch clearly recognized the Silver Grimoire as a threat.

  Dashing to the side, Espoir slammed his palm onto the cathedral floor. A wall of stone surged upward, blocking the initial assault.

  “Accelerate!” Espoir’s body glowed green as the spell activated, boosting his speed. He dashed toward the nearby wall, narrowly dodging most of the slashes and avoiding impalement.

  His toxin acts similarly to mercury poisoning. It also inhibits the victim’s ability to use aura. If I didn’t have my Grimoire active, this would be a lot more dangerous.

  Leaping off the wall, Espoir tucked into a roll, landing smoothly at the center of the altar. Behind him, the wall crumbled under the relentless onslaught of attacks.

  As planned, the Eldritch was ignoring Aria in favor of him. Espoir needed to find the creature’s core. Once he did, he could seal it.

  Rushing toward the Grimoire user, the Eldritch twisted into an ungodly mass of spiked tendrils, an endless spiral of ribbed teeth forming around the mouths lining its grotesque body. The creature seemed prepared to end him.

  “Flare.”

  A red-orange triangle blazed to life on the back of Espoir’s hand [??]. Extending his palm, he launched a crescent blade of fire at the Eldritch. The flames carved through the creature, bisecting it with ease before arcing upward and dissipating.

  The Eldritch let out a distorted, ear-piercing screech as it retaliated with a frenzy of spiked tendrils. It was healing itself, but Espoir could tell the core had been damaged for a moment. This was his opening.

  Rematerializing his Grimoire, the pages began to flip wildly as he rushed forward. Espoir plunged the book into the creature’s center. His eyes widened as he sensed it. The creatures magic core.

  A nearly blinding burst of white light filled the room. The creature let out one final, anguished cry before disintegrating into the brilliance. Aria turned away, shielding her eyes as the radiant glow flooded the cathedral. A beam of light shot directly into the night sky, piercing the darkness.

  As the glow faded, Aria watched as the remnants of the Eldritch dissolved into Espoir’s book, streaming inward into the book in a trail of stardust. Espoir let out a heavy sigh of relief. Laying on the floor nearby was Damien Blackwell, alongside the two acolytes Ardna had consumed.

  Glancing at his Grimoire, Espoir noticed the Eldritch was now sealed within its pages; its twisted form immortalized as a constellation.

  At least I sealed it before things got out of hand. He stared at the page, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “So that’s the great Lord Ardna this guy worshiped… Only a face a mother could love.”

  Picking himself up, Espoir walked over to Aria. She was doing everything she could to keep from blacking out from exhaustion and pain.

  “Hold still for a moment.”

  The Grimoire’s pages flipped rapidly, and a soft white glow spread over Aria’s wounds. Closing the book, Espoir let it dematerialize.

  “That should help,” he said.

  Almost immediately, Aria felt a wave of relief wash over her. For the first time in weeks, she could breathe easily, her vision cleared, and even the constant pain dulled significantly.

  “What did you do to me?” she asked, her voice steadier than she expected.

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  Espoir shrugged. “Part of that Eldritch’s ability was producing a toxin. I’m guessing Blackwell used it to keep you weak. Otherwise, you probably would’ve taken him out with ease. Grimoire users like him channel an Eldritch’s power into themselves, so I just... removed the toxin from you.” He flashed a small, self-satisfied grin. “Pretty neat, right?”

  I don’t understand him. What could he possibly gain by doing all this for someone he just met?

  Aria looked at him, her expression caught between curiosity and confusion. Why would the Silver Grimoire of all things want to help me? The very being responsible for destroying the world thousands of years ago was standing before her, smiling and speaking so candidly.

  Turning her gaze toward the bastard priest, Aria began to walk toward him. Ignoring the sharp pain searing through her legs, she was ready to kill him. After everything he had put Mary and her through, she wanted to end him right then and there. Her arm pulsed with a teal aura as Aria prepared to kill him.

  But before she could strike, her thoughts shifted to something far more important. “Mary!”

  The fury burning inside her instantly gave way to fear. Without hesitation, Aria turned and ran toward the catacombs.

  Please be alive! Please be alive! Please be alive!

  “Why do you want to follow me?” Aria asked, stunned.

  Mary, a young girl around Aria’s age, offered a kind smile as she gazed at the shifting scenery of the moving train. Her warm brown hair was tied in a ponytail draped over her shoulder, and her hazel eyes reflected a quiet determination.

  The two were on their way to the capital, ready to officially begin their service in the military. Aria had passed the military academy at an accelerated rate. Now fourteen, she was determined to fight for her nation. Yet, deep down, she knew her true motivation: she was doing it for her family’s sake.

  She glanced at Mary in confusion, fully aware that Mary’s loyalty extended beyond just her, it was to the entire Corvo family. She could have stayed back in their home yet she was determined to come with her.

  Mary paused, considering the question for a moment before responding.

  “I’m following you because I care, obviously!” she said with a bright smile. “You promised we’d be friends for life, ever since the day my mom told me I’d be sworn to you. So if Lady Aria is going to fight in a war, I want to stay by your side, until the very end right?”

  Rushing through the cells, she called Mary’s name over and over, desperation lacing every breath. Deeper into the corridor, she finally heard a weak, trembling response.

  “L-Lady Aria?”

  Aria threw open the cell door and froze. The sight before her chilled her to the core.

  Mary, the girl who had always been by her side, lay crumpled in the corner. Her dark hair was matted and tangled, her clothes torn and tattered. She was missing both her legs, having been savagely ripped away. Deep, jagged slashes marred her once-bright brown eyes, leaving behind only hollow, sightless wounds.

  “Mary…”

  Her handmaid. Her sister in all but blood. The girl who had followed her into battle, into war, now lay broken, mutilated, destroyed.

  A visceral scream tore from Aria’s throat as she collapsed beside her, wrapping Mary in a desperate, trembling embrace.

  “My Lady… I’m… I’m so sorry,” Mary rasped, her voice weak and broken.

  Through a torrent of tears, Aria clutched Mary’s head gently, as if trying to piece her back together with her touch alone.

  “Why on Earth are you apologizing!?” Aria’s voice cracked, raw with guilt. It’s my fault she ended up like this. She went to war because of me! She got captured because of me!

  She’s dying because of me

  But Mary gave her a faint, fragile smile. “I thought… I’d never get to see you again,” she croaked, her voice barely a whisper. “Although… I-I wish you didn’t have to see me like this.”

  She knew how horrifying the sight must be; how it would scar Aria forever.

  “Nonsense!” Aria choked back a sob, tightening her hold. “I… I thought I wouldn’t see you again.”

  Mary’s breath trembled as she fought to stay conscious. “How… how did you get here? What about that priest?”

  Aria squeezed Mary’s hand gently, trying to offer any comfort she could. “I was saved,” Aria whispered, her voice thick with sorrow as she quickly summarized what had happened.

  Mary blinked slowly, exhaustion heavy on her battered frame. “I see… To think that we, the ones they called demons, blamed for the rise of the Eldritch, would end up being saved by the Silver Grimoire.” If it didn’t hurt to breathe, she might have laughed at the cruel irony. Instead, her lips curled into the faintest ghost of a smile. “I’m… I’m glad you didn’t have to suffer like I did…”

  “Mary…” Aria’s voice cracked, but Mary forced herself to smile, if only for Aria’s sake.

  “I’m sorry, Aria. If only I had been stronger… If you hadn’t felt the need to surrender yourself for all of us… maybe none of this would’ve happened.”

  Aria shook her head fiercely, her voice dropping to a pained whisper. “It was my choice! I’m the one who’s sorry. You shouldn’t have had to follow me into this hell.”

  The guilt clawed at her, relentless and suffocating. From the moment Mary had been captured alongside her, Aria had carried the crushing weight of responsibility. If only it had been me instead… Maybe she wouldn’t have suffered like this.

  Mary shook her head weakly. Even without her sight, she could feel the weight of Aria’s guilt pressing down on the room like a storm. “I swore to serve you and your family,” Mary whispered, her voice fragile but steady. “But even beyond that… I don’t regret a single moment spent with you.”

  Her breathing grew shallower with every word, her body trembling as if it was slipping further away. “I’m happy… so happy I got to be by your side… one last time.” Aria sat frozen, her hand gripping Mary’s tighter as panic clawed at her chest. She had comforted dying soldiers before. But this… this was different. How was she supposed to say goodbye to Mary? Her best friend. Her sister in everything but name.

  It was cruel. Unbearably cruel.

  Why does she have to die because of my decisions?!

  “I-I’m scared, Lady Aria…” Mary’s voice broke, thin and fragile like cracked glass. Red tears streamed down her cheeks, each one carving a fresh wound into Aria’s heart. Her body trembled violently in Aria’s arms, clinging to what little strength she had left.

  “I don’t want to die!” She sobbed. “I just want to wake up and be back in Easenna! With you, my mom, all of your siblings… I wish I could see my parents again. I want everything to go back to how it was before the war. Everyone smiling… like they used to.”

  Aria’s chest caved under the weight of those words. The life they both lost. The life she couldn’t protect. “I-I want that too!” Aria sobbed, clutching her best friend tighter, as if sheer will alone could hold Mary here, could defy the inevitable.

  Standing outside the cell, Espoir let out a long, tired sigh as he leaned against the cold stone wall. He had freed the other prisoners on his way out. Part of him couldn’t help but hope they’d find that bastard and finish what he hadn’t. Part of him wanted to go back and finish the job himself. He had transmuted Damien’s arms to the floor.

  “Eldritch don’t twist a grimoire user’s mind like that…” His voice was low, bitter, as if the truth left a foul taste behind. “All the pain and suffering Damien Blackwell caused was his own choice.”

  Espoir stared up at the night-like pages of the Silver Grimoire, its emptiness offering no comfort. He shook his head ruefully, a hollow chuckle escaping his lips. “We truly are the worst…”

  Meanwhile, Aria held Mary close, comforting her through her final moments. Unseen by either of them, Espoir stood quietly in the hall, using his Grimoire to ease Mary’s pain from afar.

  Mary passed away in Aria’s arms some time later, her features softened by a peaceful, almost serene smile.

  The hours that followed blurred into nothingness. Blackwell had escaped their grasp once again. Aria ended up burying Mary on a quiet hill overlooking Ashmore, just beyond the city’s reach. Bringing her back to Easenna was impossible, and leaving her in that cursed place was unthinkable. Espoir helped in silence. Whether it was pity or something deeper, Aria didn’t know. She still had questions about him and the Silver Grimoire.

  In the end, Aria doesn’t recall what happened much after the burial, just that she passed out sometime that night.

  Damien Blackwell clutched at his wounds, staggering up the narrow stairs to the top of the belltower. Every step was agony, each breath a struggle. Below, the angry roar of the crowd echoed through the city streets. A mob of furious citizens, their voices raw with the thirst for vengeance.

  Every act of magic he had performed in Ashmore had crumbled the moment the Silver Grimoire user sealed his power. The illusion of divinity was shattered.

  Worst of all, the Silver Grimoire had freed his prisoners. Now, there was no sanctuary left for him in Ashmore. His influence was broken, his followers scattered. All that remained was the bitter truth: He had to escape..

  “Damn it!” he growled as he scaled the staircase. His best hope was to let the crowd believe he had escaped and then sneak out of the city. With any luck, he might be able to reach a new country and start again.

  “Yes, I still have enough funds to start a life somewhere else. Maybe in the mountains of Aeva or on the beaches of the Southern Isles.” He would start anew. He might even be able to build up enough forces to get revenge on the Silver Grimoire.

  “What a waste.”

  Looking toward the source of the voice, a man wearing a black cloak sat beneath the bell. Damien Blackwells eyes widened in disbelief. “I-impossible how are you...”

  “To think you’d squander your talents, and that Grimoire, on such pointless desires.” The man said in a mocking tone.

  “My plans were fine! It was the Silver Grimoire that ruined everything!” Damien snapped.

  The figure drew a small pistol and fired, the shot striking Blackwell in the shoulder. “Wait! I can still be useful to you!” Blackwell cried out, stumbling back in pain. He teetered dangerously, just centimeters from falling hundreds of meters onto the streets below.

  “It’s over, Blackwell. Your control over the city is gone. The citizens want your blood for what you did to them,” the voice sneered. “You tried to fuel your Grimoire with an entire city, how greedy.” The man mocked him, leaning casually on the bell tower wall.

  “The plan was working fine! It wasn’t until the Silver Grimoire showed up that everything fell apart! I… I can still find you suitable candidates!”

  As the sound of a furious mob echoed through the stairwell, Damien knew his time was running out.

  “They know you’re here. I’d kill you myself, but why deprive them of the satisfaction? La Maison sends their regards.” The figure smirked and tossed the gun at Damien’s feet. “Maybe you can pray to that ‘god’ of yours for salvation.”

  Damien lunged for the weapon, ready to retaliate, only to realize he was alone. The voices were closing in fast, and the weight of inevitability crushed him. There was no escape. Damien looked at the gun for a moment, aware of his fate.

  That morning, the citizens of Ashmore discovered their priest had taken his own life. He threw himself from the church tower, denying justice at the last possible moment.