Strange, twisted symbols decorated the ground, drawn in a mixture of saliva, blood and the last few drops of ink in a small pen. The demonic script circled around a small, eerie fire lit in the centre of the area, barely illuminating the tiny space in the infinite darkness. Stepping around this ritual’s edge, muttering to himself, was Arkay, trying to work out what he had done wrong.
It as supposed to have been simple. Well, simple enough for a former deity like Arkay. He had planned to do a ritual to temporarily bind the minds of himself and his fellow Decaylings together. The hope was to temporarily make them one being, which would satisfy the condition of them being alone.
Everything had seemed to have worked. Retvik and Litvir both said they were willing. Well, after a brief little chat. Litvir hadn’t been happy with the idea at all, but as soon as he heard the words “temporary” and “no meaningful side-effects”, he was instantly on board with Arkay’s plan. Arkay had talked them through the process, step by step. They had worked alongside him, every step of the way.
Then, suddenly, as Arkay whispered the last three words of the ritual, something happened. Everything went dark. For the shortest of moments. When things lit up again, when the spirit fire by Arkay’s feet reignited itself… both Retvik and Litvir were gone.
Vanished.
Completely missing.
Arkay was completely alone. He had accidentally satisfied the conditions of the trial, yet was still standing there, drifting on a platform in vast, desolate space. Nothing but darkness surrounded him.
With a sigh, Arkay kicked at the ground, smearing the blood-written letters, wiping away their meaning and significance, before throwing himself in a heap on the ground. He desperately wanted to cry and scream, but Arkay knew that, deep down, it wouldn’t help at all.
It wasn’t death that Arkay was worried about. Theoretically, he could survive out here, on his own, for millions of years. What Arkay was truly worried about was an eternity of loneliness. He’d been alone before, for a long time. He was desperate to not have to do that again. But what could he do, out here, all on his own, the next closest physical location being a hive of angry corruption, with literally nothing else nearby for millions of light years.
Realising there was very little he could do, Arkay sat down by the fire, gazing into it before closing his eyes. Maybe a long sleep would-
“Are you tired, little one?”
Arkay glanced upwards. Something… huge… was talking to him.
“No, just alone and lost.”
“Well, I must apologise, you were not meant to be alone.”
For a moment, everything flashed white again. The light was too much for Arkay, so he closed his eyes, not sure what was happening. When he finally opened them again, he found himself in a small, plastic cell, surrounded by vaguely familiar faces. It took a little too long for Arkay to work out what was going on.
“Arkay, are you alright?” Galyn asked, a look of genuine concern on his face. “We thought we had lost you for a moment!”
“What happened?” Arkay asked, rubbing his eyes. “Where are Retvik and Litvir?”
“They are recuperating, as you should be doing as well.”
“But…” Arkay found himself yawning. “What… actually happened?”
Galyn paused, then glanced at the much larger Decay Lord standing next to him. “You… passed your trial. But we accidentally… did not pick you up, because the Decay Lord scanners detected you as a Life Goddess and not a… Decayling…”
“Ah… I see…” Arkay paused. “I’m gonna sleep now, if that’s alright.”
“Good idea…” the Decay Lord smiled from behind the glass. “You have a big day tomorrow…”