Chapter 55: Possession

  The cultists were back in their house, sitting together in the living area on the first floor. They had offered Cale one of the rooms that were still unoccupied, but he had politely rejected the offer, since he had decided it was necessary to make immediate contact with his higher-ups. So, he was already on his way back toward Varnathi. Marie had been skeptical about letting him go so soon after the audience, but when he said his goodbyes, Lord Igrath had still been present before retreating into his forge. And he had agreed, that it was a good idea, so Marie couldn’t quite voice her complaints anymore.

  At least everyone else was present now. Garron had prepared some evening snacks for them, and they were sitting on armchairs around the fireplace.

  “What do you think, guys? Isn’t this life so much better than what we lived only last week? Didn’t I promise you everything would get better?!” Sevrin said while eating some honeyed root sticks.

  “I… I like the house… and my new room,” Tristan agreed.

  “Yea, but that everything turned out like this isn’t quite our merit,” Marie said while grabbing one of the roots Garron had placed on a small table between them.

  “Marie, can you please stop seeing everything so negatively?!” Sevrin snapped at her.

  And there it was. The anger inside her that always rose when she spoke with Sevrin in the last weeks. But today was different. It wasn’t only her anger now. She was also some sort of watcher from the outside, who could see her own feelings like strange animals inside a zoo.

  “Do you think it’s true? Did the Princess really take over Tiara?” Marlon chimed in. “I mean… you guys said yesterday it was all fine and… how did she even do it?”

  Sevrin turned toward him with a grin. “Of course it’s true! Why would she lie!”

  “No, she wouldn’t,” Sharen agreed. “It would make no sense. But really… I can’t imagine how she did it.”

  “Maybe she just burned it down? I mean, if there’s no resistance anymore…” Tristan suggested.

  Marie slowly chewed on the honey root stick. It reminded her of her childhood. The biggest surprise here wasn’t even that the Princess had included honey in the supplies—but that Garron knew how to make these sticks. Today Marie had made a list of everything they already had, and she was truly surprised by what the Princess had bought in Tiara yesterday, after going shopping alone.

  But besides all of it, they only had supplies for a few days, at least unless they hunted or fished here. Still, the task the Princess had given her meant she would have a chance to talk with her tomorrow alone, or at least she hoped so.

  The others continued their discussion about what had happened and how the Princess had taken over Tiara. Marie bit into the root again and tasted something else… cinnamon? She needed to ask Garron later. Slowly chewing something sweet helped her sort her thoughts.

  And since everyone was present, she needed to finally address the big crystal mammoth in the room. She pulled her focus away from the root stick, only to realize the conversation had shifted again.

  “No, definitely not. Her apprentice isn’t human!” Sharen said while looking at Marlon.

  Sevrin grinned wide. “Ohhh, has little Marlon fallen in love?”

  Marlon turned completely beet red. “No! Of course not! Why would you think that!”

  Sharen grinned. “I saw how you looked at her.”

  Garron placed one heavy hand on Marlon’s shoulder. The big man rarely spoke unless it was to the twins, but every now and then he joined the teasing with surprising enthusiasm.

  “Marlon, it’s no problem if you’ve fallen in love,” he said, voice low and amused. “If you want advice, I was always good with women…”

  Marlon groaned loudly. “Why are all of you teaming up against me!” His eyes landed on Marie like a drowning man clinging to floating wood. “Marrrieee, say something! I would never—never—do something like that!”

  Marie chewed once more on her honeyed root stick. The cinnamon warmed her tongue. “He is right. Leave him alone for now.” She straightened a little. “There is something else anyway. Something more important. Since everyone is here and we had no chance at breakfast, we should talk about it now.”

  The expression on Sevrin’s face fell instantly. “Marie, do not ruin our evening,” he said, his tone turning completely cold.

  “Me?” Marie said back. “You mean the fact that you’ll get us all killed if nothing changes is ruining our evening?”

  The light mood in the room collapsed immediately into tension. The others looked at both of them, uncertain what was happening. Everyone knew about the tension between Marie and Sevrin in the last weeks, and many suspected that the two of them had been more than friends once, since they always quarreled like an old couple and always somehow made up again. But this was different. This was something deeper and darker.

  Sevrin stood up. “Why can’t you just accept that I’m the reason we’re thriving. I’m the reason everything’s getting better for us, for everyone here. Didn’t you sleep inside this huge mansion tonight in your own room? After I found you in the dirt of the streets? Didn’t I find every one of you like rats?”

  Marie also rose. Her anger was there as always, but today it felt strange, because she was also watching her anger from outside herself, as if her emotions were strange animals locked behind glass. “So that is how you see us,” she said quietly. “As rats.”

  “No, no, no,” Sevrin shouted. “Why are you like this? Why? You don’t know what I’ve sacrificed for all of you!”

  “So why not tell everyone here,” Marie answered, “that you’re no [Acolyte]. Why keep it a secret that you changed your subclass?”

  His expression twisted as if something inside him snapped. “Why, why do you always nag about me. Why can’t you just go along with me, why do you have to ask, why do…” His voice cracked while his eyes grew wild and unfocused. His gaze turned crazed, and in the same moment mana gathered around Sevrin’s fingers. It happened faster than when he normally cast his signature spell, [Fireball].

  “Sevrin, stop!” Sharen screamed. Garron was already moving, ready to jump on him. Marlon and Tristan looked confused and surprised, unable to understand what was suddenly happening.

  And for Marie, time slowed down as she faintly thought; So, you really want to go this way…

  She reached inside herself and activated one of her new class skills.

  [Hex of the Black Thread]

  (Counter / Cancel Hex)

  Pulls a thin, invisible filament of the Abyss between the caster and an attack.

  Effect:

  ? Cancels or redirects one incoming attack, both physical or magical.

  ? Perfect timing absorbs and corrupts part of the attack, releasing it as Abyssal (Void) damage known as Abyssal Recoil.

  ? Even with imperfect timing, reduces most damage significantly.

  ? Temporarily slows perception around the caster, improving reaction accuracy.

  “A single strand of abyssal silence slips between moments, and the strike unravels before it can land.”

  Sevrin extended his finger toward her. His mouth moved in a whisper.

  “[Crownfire Lash].”

  A thin crown of distorted, pale light flickered above his head. The air around his hand cracked and warped. A whip of dark, violent flame shot toward her, its shape trembling like something alive and furious.

  She watched the whip coming closer. And, you really just made a show yesterday? How could I not see this…

  Time flowed normally again. And the lash struck her hex. It curled around it and tried to grip her. It hissed as if burned by invisible fire. Then the hex swallowed it completely, dissolving the attack like ink fading into water.

  Sevrin’s eyes widened. He came back to himself for a single heartbeat, horrified and confused. But it was too late. The Abyssal Recoil snapped back at him.

  His outstretched finger flickered once, became transparent, and vanished as if erased from the world. He screamed, a raw and startled sound. And at that same moment Garron reached him and slammed him to the ground with his full weight. The impact shook the floor and sent chairs tumbling. Tristan yelped. Sharen covered her mouth with both hands. And Marlon sat there with an open mouth, ready to say something, but no words came out.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Marie stood perfectly still, the last traces of abyssal thread fading around her like drifting dust. While Sevrin lay pinned under Garron, staring at the place where his finger had been, his breath coming in sharp, broken gasps.

  She watched how Sevrin struggled beneath Garron’s weight, ready to react if he tried anything else to attack her or the others. But after a short while he stopped resisting. His eyes looked normal again, only reflecting the pain of his missing finger.

  Marie walked toward Garron and Sevrin and squatted down beside them. She poked Sevrin’s forehead with her finger. “You really wanted to kill me, didn’t you? And here I was, thinking over all your nonsense that I should kill you one day because you would be our ruin, but I couldn’t. How silly of me…”

  Garron, still holding Sevrin to the ground, growled quietly. “No one will be killed today, kids.”

  “No, I guess not,” Marie agreed. She poked Sevrin again. “But you can see it yourself. We truly have a problem here. So please make it easier for us and tell us what went wrong in your strange head.”

  Inside, she felt a heaviness she didn’t quite understand. Even with her emotions muted, the fact that Sevrin had truly tried to kill her had shocked her. After all the time they had spent together, after all the things they had survived, after everything… how had it come to this? Why had he been so secretive about his subclass? Normally he would be the first to boast in front of the others, always telling them how amazing he was. So, when had it changed? It was when… Oh… Ohhhh… Oh no. Fuck.

  It was right after the first time he had practiced a summoning ritual out of his book. It had been a test run for their later goal to summon the Princess of the Abyss. Also, it had been a failure, at least they’d assumed it, since nothing had happened. But Sevrin had stayed afterwards for days on the failed ritual circle to study it and find the failures. Since his behavior had only changed subtly at first and had gotten worse in the last months, Marie had never made a connection until now. No… is this even possible? But that would at least explain why he never mentioned it or why he never used one of his new skills. Oh Sevrin, you damn fool…

  “You lied this morning. It wasn’t a class change.” She poked him again.

  “Marie, please, can you stop… I…” he pressed out between his teeth. “I can’t say it, alright? I just can’t. But I did it for you. For all of you.”

  The others were meanwhile gathering around Sevrin and Garron.

  “You did what…?” Sharen looked down at him.

  And Marie stated the obvious now. “He is possessed. He made a contract.”

  “He did fucking what?” Sharen snapped toward Marie in surprise, while Sevrin tried to look away.

  Marie stood up and looked at the others instead of Sevrin. “Yes, it is my fault I did not realize earlier… but it all makes sense now…”

  Meanwhile Sevrin twitched under Garron. “No, I didn’t…”

  Marie looked down toward him again. “Just shut up, ok, you idiot? Really… tell me, how does it affect you? Is it a soul contract? Are you surrendering your soul for this nonsense? What do you really gain from it?”

  But Sevrin did not answer. He just tried to look away.

  Marie went to the others again. “Ok, first of all, I wanted to speak with you about all of this because I gained a new class yesterday, and this morning I realized the whole thing with Sevrin would fit if he also had a new class. So, I confronted him before breakfast and he confirmed it when I asked him directly if he was not an [Acolyte] anymore. I wanted to speak with all of you at breakfast, but then the Princess had a…” she paused a moment, “…a sparring with Lord Igrath.”

  The others all looked surprised.

  “You have a new class, Marie? Did you finally advance toward the cultist witch classes like you wanted?” Sharen asked excitedly.

  But Marie shook her head. “No. I got a class evolution.”

  “Wait, you got a class evolution, for real? How is that even possible?” Tristan asked.

  “Ehm… yes. I’ll tell you later about it. It is because of the Princess, and I thought maybe you got something as well…?”

  “No, I didn't,” Sharen said.

  “I didn't either, but our classes are already more special…” Tristan said while looking at Sharen, who nodded.

  “I’m still a mere Acolyte,” Marlon added.

  And Garron muttered over Sevrin, “Still the same.”

  “Oh well… but it is more important that we think about how to handle Sevrin. While Garron is lying on him, we don’t know if he will snap again the moment Garron gets off him.” She sighed and looked at the others. “I know it is late, but someone should maybe fetch the Princess. A possession is dangerous for all of us, because we don’t know whom we are dealing with, and it also undermines her since she’s not aware of this.”

  “But when she threw us out of her mansion, I really got the feeling she wanted no interruptions anymore today…” Tristan murmured.

  “We could fetch Lord Igrath and he could fetch her if necessary…” Sharen suggested.

  Marie nodded slowly. “Let’s do this then. I’d go, but I think I should stay here in case Sevrin tries something funny again.”

  “I’ll go,” Sharen said and nodded.

  Meanwhile Sevrin laughed under Garron. “Thanks for nothing, guys. Is that how you thank me for pulling you all out of the gutter? You ungrateful lot.”

  And Marie suppressed the urge to kick him in the face. “Then hurry, Sharen, before I kill him for real.”

  Sharen nodded and went out to fetch Lord Igrath.

  The others sat down again on the armchairs while Garron turned Sevrin’s hands behind his back, and with Marie’s help they tied him up with a rope taken from one of the curtains. Sevrin protested again and again, appealed to their friendship, tried to threaten them, and then tried to get pity since the bad Marie had maliciously amputated his finger. But he didn’t try anything funny again, because he was fully aware that both Marie and Garron were watching him.

  If I hadn’t gotten my class evolution yesterday, he really would have killed me… or? Marie thought while watching him. I wonder if he’s even aware of this. Probably not. And on the other hand, if I had not gotten it, I would not have confronted him today… so yes. It still feels strange that a class can really affect your feelings. But at least I understand now why it’s said that rare class evolutions affect the people who receive them.

  Marie still felt like herself, and somehow, she didn’t. Sure, it had only been one day, but she could already see how it would affect her in the future, once she stopped clinging to her former self. She knew she could hold onto it, but it would become harder and harder. And her class description hadn’t given her much hope about keeping her identity, since the words of the gods were always foreboding…

  ???

  [Handmaiden of the Abyss (Cultist Witch)]

  Rarity: Rare

  Class Type: Hexcraft / Silence / Vessel

  Source: Forged by your descent into the Abyss and sealed when you chose to awaken its Princess, leaving no path except the Abyss offers.

  Class Description:

  You are no longer merely a cultist. You are the Handmaiden, a chosen vessel of the Princess of the Abyss, the sovereign of silence and devouring shadow. Where others speak, you command. Where others cast, you unmake.

  Your identity has been offered to the Abyss, and in return, the Abyss has placed its will within you. You act as the Princess’s hand, voice, and shadow in the mortal world. Your presence suppresses noise, weakens certainty, and bends the minds of those around you. Through hexcraft, you weave fragments of void into curses that disrupt thought, unravel intent, and dissolve attacks before they reach you.

  Yet even as your former self fades, the Abyss does not leave you empty. From the void you serve, a new identity will one day take shape quietly and inexorably, born not of who you were, but of what you have become. With every step you take, you tread deeper into the shadowed path laid before you. The Abyss called for you, and you answered, and in that answer lies the truth: you are not simply losing yourself. You are becoming something else.

  Passive Class Skills:

  [Whisperborne Presence] (Passive)

  The air around you carries the faint hush of the Abyss.

  Effects:

  ? Slightly reduces ambient noise within a small radius.

  ? Enemies near you hesitate more often; their first instinct is doubt.

  ? Allies feel calmer and more focused, resisting panic and noise-based disruption.

  [Abyssal Memory Hunger] (Passive)

  The void within you gnaws on forgotten thoughts.

  Effects:

  ? Small MP or energy regeneration when foes suffer debuffs.

  ? Hexes that erode mind or will grant minor self-restoration.

  ? Rare chance to gain a short Insight buff after defeating an enemy.

  [Abyssal Timefold] (Passive)

  Between one heartbeat and the next, you step into the seam of untime.

  Effect:

  ? When hit or about to be hit, the world slows for an instant around you.

  ? Gain a brief precision buff for counter-hexes.

  ? Very high synergy with counter and cancel skills.

  [Dissonance of the Vessel] (Passive)

  The body was shaped to be a vessel. Refusal creates friction.

  This triggers whenever the Handmaiden resists the Abyss’s influence, denies an internal directive, suppresses void-aligned emotions, or tries to act from her old identity instead of her bestowed purpose. The system recognizes this as a conflict between Class Function and User Intent and imposes stabilizing pressure until alignment is restored.

  Effect:

  ? Mild, persistent debuff to Stability or Mental Clarity until she embraces an Abyss-aligned action again.

  ? Hex cooldowns slightly increased.

  ? Rare chance of a brief self-inflicted Silence, making you unable to cast hexes for a brief time.

  Active Class Skills:

  [Hex of the Unspoken Oath]

  Skill Level: 10

  Type: Class Special Hex (Unique)

  (Command, Silence, Directive)

  A command that is never spoken forces itself into the target’s will and shapes their next action.

  Effect:

  Choose one target, enemy or ally. The hex forces an unspoken directive such as: “Stop.” “Advance.” “Hide.” “Fall.” “See.”

  Against an Enemy:

  ? High chance of forced hesitation or obedience.

  ? Even on resistance, the target loses composure and coordination.

  ? Brief disruption of focus, making follow-up attacks easier.

  On an Ally:

  ? Grants a burst of clarity and precision.

  ? Improves reaction speed with void-enhanced reflexes.

  ? Helps ignore distractions and mental interference.

  “A single word never spoken, carried in the hush of the Abyss, becomes law in the mind of the chosen.”

  [Hex of the Black Thread]

  Skill Level: 10

  Type: Counter / Cancel Hex

  (Defense, Unmaking, Reaction)

  Pulls a thin, invisible filament of the Abyss between the caster and an attack.

  Effect:

  ? Cancels or redirects one incoming attack, both physical or magical.

  ? Perfect timing absorbs and corrupts part of the attack, releasing it as Abyssal (Void) damage known as Abyssal Recoil.

  ? Even with imperfect timing, reduces most damage significantly.

  ? Temporarily slows perception around the caster, improving reaction accuracy.

  “A single strand of abyssal silence slips between moments, and the strike unravels before it can land.”

  [Hex of Silent Ruin]

  Skill Level: 20

  Type: Active Hex

  (Mind Erosion, Whispered Corruption)

  A whispered curse slips into the target’s thoughts and slowly eats away at the structure of their mind.

  Effect:

  ? Inflicts Mind Rot, causing gradual erosion of concentration and coherence.

  ? Reduces accuracy or spell potency for a short duration.

  ? If the target is already cursed, this hex deals bonus damage.

  ? Can disrupt rituals or complex spellcasting by breaking mental flow.

  “She whispers a quiet, shapeless curse that gnaws at the structure of thought.”