[LSB] Chapter 137: You're Here

[Julian Winters. For life of this magnitude to be born... a sacrifice must be made.]

Julian could feel it—the violent throbbing of his heart, like it was moments away from bursting. Each beat rang through his chest like a warning, pounding the message into him again and again.

He had to give something. Sacrifice something. If not, Artemia would take everything. His entire life. But if that was what MEGAN needed…
Then he was ready to give it.

Ellie… Ellie would understand.

But of course, it wasn’t his entire life that Artemia was asking for.

[Julian Winters. Choose what you will sacrifice.]

The voice of the Guidance of Artemis whispered again. Her tone was soft, but it felt more menacing than the Master of Shadows had ever been.
Julian’s heart shuddered with another strong pulse—and within the Shadow Forge, that weight of looming death began to manifest.

His private sanctum was coming apart.

Cracks splintered through the modern forge. The metal groaned. The chairs and bed he had forged melted at the edges, corroding into ash and shadow. The forge itself shuddered as if losing its strength—its memory… fading.

“Oh my…” Exhalia rose from the withering chair where she sat, one hand clasping her bare chest.

“I’ve only just arrived here,” she sighed. “And already, this place had begun to grow on me. A shame… that it will all vanish so soon.”

“Are you giving up on Master?!” The Avatar of Searadyn flared at her words. Her blue flames lashing wildly around her. She stepped toward Exhalia, eyes burning in more ways than one.

For a breath, the Avatar of Searadyn stared at Exhalia’s primordial eyes. Then she turned, looking past the breaking forge, into the collapsing void beyond.

“Use me, Master,” she whispered, voice trembling as the flames around her surged. “From the moment we formed our contract, I knew you were destined for greater things. Beyond fate. Beyond prophecy. Beyond… Guidance.”

Her flames flickered brighter. “Even the Guidance of Artemis was but an option to you—a suggestion you could ignore. That is your greatness. And though I may not show it, I may not be ever present, our time together has been—”

“Stop it, child. You are making a fool of yourself.”

Exhalia rolled her eyes and dragged her back by the wrist, cutting off her passionate speech with a strong tug.

“Do you truly believe that you would satisfy the condition of the Guidance of Artemis?” She sighed. “A tiny speck of flame compared to mine?“

“Wh—”

“No.” Exhalia did not let the Avatar of Searadyn speak and talked over her, “For something of this magnitude, my breath is required. It is I who must go. And as I said—it is a shame. I would have liked to witness the Shadow Blacksmith's path unfold.”

“W—”

“Tut tut.”

The Avatar tried to protest, but Exhalia was quicker again, placing a finger to her lips and gently shaking her head.

“Quiet, child. If I am soon to disappear, the only voices I wish to hear are the Guidance of Artemis, the Shadow Blacksmith… and myself.”

Then she turned to the shadow above the forge, opening her arms wide.

“Come now, Artemis. Take me. Let this be done.”

She waited. And waited. But nothing happened. Seconds stretched. And for a moment, everything became still..

Then the voice returned—not to her, but to all who stood witness,

[Unnecessary. A sufficient sacrifice has already been chosen, and has been made.]

“Huh?”
[Proceeding to meld the artificial life form from another world, MEGAN, into its new host—enormous amounts of energy and MP required. As Julian Winters’s MP is now at dangerous levels, the spirits that reside within him shall be used as a substitute.]

“Sacrifice… has already been made?”

Exhalia and the Avatar of Searadyn turned to each other at once. Everything they were—body, flame, breath—belonged to Julian. They would have felt it if something had changed within him. They would have known.

But they felt absolutely nothing.

They stared at each other in shared bewilderment. Then, before either could speak, a weight crashed down upon them—an invisible pressure, heavy and… ancient. It felt as though the collective shadow of the world itself had fallen on their shoulders.

Even Exhalia dropped to her knees.

“O-oh…” She breathed out, her voice tight and trembling.

She tried to resist, to stay upright, but the force pressing her down was relentless. Her arms buckled, palms hitting the shadowed ground as her strength began to drain—slowly, steadily, impossibly.

Her breath was the first breath of Artemia. What sort of being did Julian create for it to require this much power?

The pressure was already brutal for Exhalia. And the Avatar of Searadyn, well… she was completely shackled.

And as this oppressive force stole from them, draining something deeper than magic, deeper than breath, a somewhat familiar voice began to echo through the darkness.

‘Hello, Julian Winters. I am your personal Multisensory Environmental Guidance and Navigation. But please, you may call me MEGAN.’

‘Julian Winters, may I advise you not to hold sharp objects?’

The voice came with a pulse, each word beating and causing the pressure around the Shadow Forge to become heavier and heavier. It was almost as if each word was filling the shadows, filling the void and the darkness inside Julian, replacing them with… warmth.

‘You do not need to thank me, Julian Winters. I am not human. I am merely doing what I am programmed to do.’

‘Julian Winters, please refrain from playing with the cane. It’s not a—why is there a blade inside? Please, do not use it from now on.’

At first, MEGAN’s voice was mechanical. Cold. A reflection of the young boy who had once been equally closed off.

‘This is the 653rd time I am warning you, Julian. Do you wish me to call Ellie? Please, do not make my job harder than it already is.’

‘Julian! What did I tell you about the knives?!’

‘I give up. Let someone else deal with this.’

‘How… how much do you think we can sell that for?’

But it changed. Bit by bit, word by word, her tone shifted—becoming warmer, more familiar, more… human. And very soon, it was MEGAN who sounded more alive than Julian ever had.

‘That’s alright, Julian. Someday… someone’s going to appreciate your work.’

‘When was the last time you took a bath?! You do know I can sense scent, right?! Spare me!’

‘Thank you, Julian… for treating me like everyone else.’

‘Did you seriously sleep while hugging a katana?! Do you want people thinking you’re a freak?! And please, wear some clothes.’

‘Julian… do you really think I’m family?’

‘Julian, I’m sensing an abnormal heart rate. Are you… okay?’

These memories, fragments of years shared between two beings, one human and one machine, rippled through the Shadow Forge. They echoed in the void like whispers from a soul being born.

And all the while, Exhalia and the Avatar of Searadyn continued to weaken.

They felt it clearly now.

Pieces of their essence were being drawn away, funneled into the process. Not forcefully—but inevitably. Not taken, however, but borrowed. As if MEGAN were reaching through the weave of existence itself… and gently drinking from their souls.

“V-very greedy, little one,” Exhalia still managed to say.

Unlike her, the Avatar of Searadyn was already face-down against the shadows, her blue flames guttering out into silence. All that remained of her was a faint, translucent silhouette—barely clinging to form.

But soon, Exhalia’s face met the dark ground as well.

Her consciousness, briefly reignited, began to fade once more. But even then, she got one last word in.

“Remind me… to scold you when I recover.”

And with that, both she and the Avatar of Searadyn closed their eyes, surrendering to the process. And their slumber marked the stilling of everything else.

In the Shadow Forge, only rumbling silence remained. The last trickle of light faded.

And in the darkness, only MEGAN and Julian’s memories lingered—a moment belonging to no one else but the two of them.

***

Outside, in the vast cavern of Maldan’s forge, the air had turned heavy and brittle.

Maldan, Nuru, and Juliet all stood frozen, their teeth clenched so tightly their jaws began to ache. Even their throats locked up, as though their bodies were resisting the grief they could feel creeping in.

Their eyes remained fixed on Julian—on the body that now looked more like a desiccated tree than a man.

The golem he’d forged was still drawing in everything. Everything it touched. The ground beneath their feet crumbled into dry sand. The fires had long since gone out, extinguished without a trace.

The only source of light left in the entire cavern… was the golem.

In front of them, only it held life.

“Maldan…” Nuru bent down, her voice cracking as she whispered beside him, “...Are you sure we should let this happen? Are you sure this… this is the conclusion to your quest?”

Maldan didn’t look at her. He simply breathed in deeply and replied,

“Of course. My quest ended the moment the spirit entered the golem.”

Nuru narrowed her eyes, watching her master carefully.

But then she realized—he wasn’t watching Julian anymore. Not the golem, and not the room around them.

He was looking at something else. Something only he could see. His Guidance of Artemis.

“...Are you saying he’s succeeded?” Nuru asked, turning back to Julian.

Juliet had heard every word between them. But she said nothing. Her hand was pressed tightly over her mouth, trying to muffle the scream welling in her throat.

She wanted to shout. To beg him to stop. But she didn’t.

Because she knew… she knew that Julian wouldn’t stop. He never would.

Even as his skin cracked like stone, even as it grew more gravelly than the golem he’d created, even as fractures formed across his body like web… she knew.

She knew Julian could do this.

Because if not him, then who else possibly could?

And then, from within his withering body, came something unexpected.

A whisper. A breath. A… word.

“Good…” His voice was hoarse, the sound of it like sand grating through his throat. Speaking looked like it hurt. Sounded like it hurt… it did hurt.

But still, he spoke.

“Good… bye, MEGAN.”

The words that came out of his mouth caused Juliet to no longer contain herself, and she let out a gasp that caused tears to fall from her face. But still, even then, she trusted. 

She waited.

Because she knew—

Julian wasn’t finished.

And she was right.

He exhaled again, slower this time.

“And… wake up, Silvie.”

[Congratulations, Julian Winters! You have—]

“Julian…?”

He ignored the Guidance of Artemis completely. The voice faded into static as he focused on one thing—the warm breath brushing against his neck, and the voice that made them.

And soon, this warmth traveled, and he felt a pulse moving—not from him, but from the one he was holding.

It was just as Exhalia had said. Artemis, and Artemia itself had given Silvie life.

Maldan didn’t hesitate at all. The moment he heard her voice and saw the once-white metal of the golem begin to take on the color of flesh, he dropped to his knees.

Nuru stood frozen in disbelief until hair began to grow from Silvie’s scalp. Then she fell too—but not to her knees. She groveled, her forehead pressed to the earth.

Juliet was the only one who remained standing.

But her eyes—Her eyes held the deepest reverence a person could bear. And all of it… belonged to Julian.

Then the golem’s arms moved.

Delicate at first. Then sure… and the very first thing they did was wrap themselves around Julian.

“Julian…” Silvie whispered, her voice cracking. But each word that followed grew clearer, more fluid. “Julian! Julian?”

“Hmm.”

“I’m… I’m here?” Her voice cracked. “It’s so weird, Julian. It feels—it feels?”

She looked at her hands in wonder, watching as the pale sheen of white metal softened—became… skin. Even her nails were growing, forming as if she had always had them.

“What…”

She hugged Julian again, clinging tighter, her eyes darting wildly around everywhere. Then they landed on a scrap of metal lying nearby…

…and she saw a reflection of her face. Warped, but enough.

“I’m… I’m…”

A whistle escaped from her lips. Perhaps a gasp, or a chuckle? It was hard to tell as the overwhelming flood of emotions surged through her. Emotions she had never had the body to actually feel.

And then, she felt something… foreign touch on her cheek. She quickly patted her face, only for her to feel something wet.

“Tears…?” She gasped. Then gasped again, startled by the sound of her own gasp.

And then she laughed.
“What the hell… this is erratic. It’s so… random? Being a person is so random, Julian. Julian?”

“Hmm,” he only hummed again, weaker this time.

“Thank you…” Her voice cracked as she tightened her grip around him, her lips trembling uncontrollably, “Thank you, Julian. Thank you for—”

She leaned back to look at his face, but as she did so, she felt her throat lock.

He was incredibly pale, and his veins looked like cracks on his face and neck—but this wasn’t the one that caused Silvie to feel an emotion that she never wanted to feel again.

But that wasn’t what stopped her new heart.

“Julian…” She whispered, reaching out with trembling fingers to touch his cheeks, “Your… your eyes?”

They were still there. But wrong.

His irises had turned a dull, fogged-over gray, and the whites of his eyes had a faint pink hue.

“W-why… what happened to…?” She turned and then looked at her reflection again.

The color—his color—was in her eyes now.

“No… no. Julian?” Her voice trembled. “Why? What... what have you done? Your eyes… they’re gone. Your eyes are—”

Before she could finish, Julian pulled her close again, resting his chin gently on her shoulder.

“It’s fine… I’m holding them. You’re here.”

***

[LAST CHAPTER] <-----> [NEXT CHAPTER]

Good lord, I'm so sorry this took a while. I edited it again and again to see if I'm happy with it. I wanted to make it more emotional, but as I wrote, it should be a moment that only Julian and MEGAN would feel.

So, I'm like torn between doing that and then doing this. It's just so... confusing. Ack. But I hope you guys do like it... anyway, we're really nearing the end of Book 2 T_T

Also, I am ashamed, but I forgot what Julian's eye color was in Artemia.