The Heartstone Journey II

Book 5 | Ch. 5 - What Goes Around, Comes Around

The room was chillingly cold, its narrowness barely accommodating a dozen people side by side, just like I remembered. The staircase stretched before me, the torches casting an eerie purple glow, and a heavy tension hung in the air. With hesitation, I took my first step, half-expecting the familiar weight of pressure to descend upon me, but to my surprise, it remained absent.

"This is different. Why isn't the pressure bearing down on me like before? It's as if something is about to happen," I muttered, my motivation dwindling. Nonetheless, I continued to climb, cautiously testing each step, prepared for the intensity to escalate without warning. With each subsequent step, I felt a slight resistance, but nothing compared to what I had experienced in the past.

As I reached the fourth step, I involuntarily paused, my body frozen in place. It was at that moment that the voice, silent for a whole year, echoed through the chamber.

"Child, do you desire power? I can grant it to you as you wish, but only if you surrender to me. Cast away your humanity, embrace what is rightfully yours, forsake empathy, and feast upon empowerment."

I gazed upward, straining to see the throne even in the darkness, my goal clear, and my determination unyielding.

"You bring me back to this accursed place after a year, and now you tempt me with this so-called power of yours," I retorted, taking another step to reach the fifth.

"But I refuse to forsake who I am, all for your twisted desires!" I declared, pressing onward to the sixth step.

The pressure intensified, but I stood firm, climbing the seventh and final step, my blood boiling with a renewed resolve, my body and mind synchronized in defiance.

"I will find Hunter, and if I must acquire this power to do so, I shall. But I will do it on my own terms, following my own path!" I proclaimed with unwavering determination.

With a final leap, I planted both feet at the top, reaching the throne under my own volition. I rushed forward, seating myself upon it with a resounding thud. In the blink of an eye, the room plunged into darkness, mirroring my previous encounter. There, floating in front of me, was the book, as if it had been eagerly awaiting my arrival. I reached out, grasping it in my hands, feeling its weight despite its small size.

"Thy Commandments Are Thou Bounded."

That was the title of the book. Wait... Did I write that note for this very moment? What was it trying to convey or hint at?

I inhaled deeply, catching a whiff of the book's scent—an old, musty aroma tinged with a lingering sense of sorrow. It was almost as if the book itself held a story untold. Opening its pages, I discovered a series of guidelines, not quite commandments but more of a tutorial and a set of warnings. As I skimmed through, the words seemed to materialize before my eyes, revealing the knowledge and secrets contained within.

As I delved deeper into the pages of the book, the words etched themselves into my mind, revealing warnings, and promises. The knowledge bestowed upon me seemed both empowering and ominous.

1. "Power that is borrowed will always be redirected in the form of pain."

2. "Vast knowledge will be granted to you upon completion of the contract. Remember, little one, 'Knowledge is power.'"

3. "When in the presence of a god or a higher being, you will instinctively submit and freeze. Resistance will force you to grovel and endure the most excruciating pain known to humankind."

4. "Overuse will lead to undeniable and unstoppable plausibility. Plausibility refers to the interference in external affairs that can easily 'exterminate' the balance."