The Church Of Aren

The last week passed in a haze of restless boredom and gnawing anxiety.

I spent most of it wandering Cain's mansion, drifting from room to room like an annoying ghost. His library became my escape not because I had a sudden love for reading, but because flipping through random books kept my hands busy and my mind distracted. I read probably close to 50 books over the span of the last week, from ancient texts about the first elites to military strategies, and even slogged through some old imperial law books. Not that any of it mattered. 

When I wasn't burying myself in books, I was bothering the servants. Doran grew increasingly exasperated as I followed him around, asking pointless questions just to piss him off. Marta actually threatened to throw a pan at my head when I kept sneaking into the kitchen under the excuse of "needing a snack to fuel my extensive studies." Harkin, the cook, did not put up with my shenanigans at all and chased me out of the kitchen after I "accidentally" knocked over a tray of spices. 

Buzz kills all of them.

But no matter how much I tried to distract myself, the inevitable still loomed over me.

The morning of my sixteenth birthday, I awoke to an unusual silence. No sarcastic remarks from Doran, no Marta yelling at me to "make myself useful for once." That nagging witch. After choking down a quick breakfast, I finally heard the muffled sound of carriage wheels outside the front doors.

Cain was waiting for me.

I stepped outside to find him leaning casually against an elegant black carriage, arms crossed as he watched me with that ever-present smirk. He was dressed in his usual crisp, dark uniform, black robe flowing in the wind, and his almost golden blonde hair catching the early morning light. That blonde haired prick. 

"Right on time, thanks for not making me drag you out," he says smoothly, pushing off the carriage as he throws his arm around me, guiding me towards the open carriage door. "Happy birthday, Ayato my man. Are you excited? I know I am."

I roll my eyes. "Oh, I'm so thrilled. Can't think of a better way to celebrate than potentially getting enslaved to the Empire for the rest of my life."

Cain chuckled. "Well, you're lucky your birthday falls on the first of the month. If it didn't, we would've had to wait for the next ceremony." He gave me a pointed and pained look. "And something tells me you wouldn't have handled that anticipation well." 

I crossed my arms in mock offense. "You say that like I wasn't handling it perfectly fine."

Cain just laughed and gestured to the carriage. "Come on, come on. Time to head out Lont is a huge city you know, its going to take about an hour to get there and the church is expecting us."

The carriage finally rattled to a slow stop, the wheels crunching against the stone-paved road. I peered out the window, my breath hitching at the sight before me. 

The Imperial Church of Aren.

It loomed in the very heart of Lont, a colossal structure of black and white marble, its sheer size designed to make anyone who approached feel small. The polished stone gleamed beneath the mid-morning sun, streaks of obsidian running like veins through its otherwise pristine walls. But it wasn't the grandeur of the church that sent a chill down my spine; it was the symbol that crowned it.

Coiling around the top of the church's dome, an enormous sculpted snake stretched across the structure, its marble fangs bared, its scaled body wrapped protectively around the holy site. The mark of the Empire. A reminder of who truly held power here.

Cain glanced at me, then winked conspiratorially . "You look like you're about to pass out. Try to stay conscious at least until the ritual, yeah? It would be embarrassing if I had to carry you in."

"Oh please, if I was going to faint, it would've been when I realized I had to spend an hour in a carriage with you." I retort with heat. 

Cain chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. "Glad to see your sense of humor is still intact."

I let my gaze drift back to the towering church, my stomach twisting. "I've never been this deep in the city before," I admitted. "When I was stealing, I mostly stuck to the outskirts. Some of the richer districts, too, but nothing like this." I gestured vaguely at the massive structure before us. "Didn't exactly have a reason to wander this far in with this much Imperial presence."

Cain hummed, exiting the carriage. "Well, now you do." Cain stepped out of the carriage, stretching like this was just another ordinary day. He glanced at me over his shoulder. "Come on, Ayato. No use in stalling now; it's time to meet your destiny."

Even without stepping inside the Church, I could already feel the weight of the place. The aura of something ancient, something oppressive, something otherworldly. Figures in flowing black robes stood at the entrance: Inquisitors. Their faces were hidden beneath deep hoods, but I knew their gazes were sharp beneath the shadows. They were the ones who would oversee the Rite of Manifestation.

I swallowed nervously, my fingers clenching involuntarily at my sides. The moment I stepped inside that church, there was no turning back. 

As I exit the carriage, I say softly, 

"Let's see if destiny has a sense of humor as well."