Aries

Aries POV: Lyra

I looked into that shimmering eyes. "You are an Ecthos. One of the Ecthos who can walk freely."

He laughed. "Not just an Ecthos, Aries. I am not just what Cosmos tell you I am. I was one of the Ecthos who lived in the universe which did not have its current two rulers. When I was your age, my leader was not Cosmos and Chaos. And Ecthos were not the only race of power. I was one of the four who put Cosmos and Chaos on the throne they sit on. I was once called the Kingmaker."

Did I just not admit not knowing everything as Polaris? I knew Polaris had powers over Qamar, but I never knew he had powers even over Cosmos and Chaos. Just how old was he?

"That throne they sit on," he said. "Is not made of happiness and peace. But by death and gory. It is made of aether. That was the reason why even though I am not the Fate-Writer of this part of the universe, I help those who write it. No one could know the universe better than the ones who lived before Cosmos. Fate-writers, they... let's say that there are many possible future outcomes and the Fate-writers choose the best for that situation and for the future and solidify that. As a controller of time, I, like Qamar, do know what are the possible fates, but I never solidify it like him."

There was a reason why I was called the First Warrior. Why I had an elite army under my control. But it did seem that Cosmos kept secrets from me.

"What was the universe before Cosmos and Chaos?" I asked, unable to keep the wonder from my voice. "How was it?"

"Different," he said with a shrug. "I do know how those Soul-Bounds come to existence."

My eyes nearly popped. "You do?"

He nodded calmly. "Not a tale for today, Aries."

I shook my head and sat on the damp ground. "I thought Cosmos was giving these bonds."

"She does," Polaris said. "But not for everyone. She can give Soul-Bounds only to those souls who have tasted death."

My shoulders further slumped. "Not the Warriors then."

What was I hoping? A Soul-Bound? After what happened to Ursa, we Warriors said we would not take a consort. But if we did find a Soul-Bound, who are we to deny the gift the universe gave us? But which ones would we be paired with?

He chuckled. "There is a reason why you guys are called the first-generation stars. It's not because she created you first. It is because the first-generation stars and pulsars carry the essence of the universe before she sat on her throne. That is why she cannot control you as she can control the quasars and the other stars."

I suspected something along those lines, but never that. I had always known that Cosmos could not control us the way she did other stars. It was out of respect we listened to her.

"Ursa knew the truth behind," he said with a faint smile. "She knew everything and much more than what I knew. Perhaps knowing too much is dangerous."

"Could be," I managed to say.

While Ursa may have been his consort in the past, to us Warriors, she was family. When the numbers from fifteen dwindled to fourteen, we were distraught. When Ophiucus further fell into a deep slumber, many lost the control of our sanity. The final straw was Ursa.

"Are the others connected to you now?" he asked.

I gave him a small nod. When anyone one of us were talking to a higher authority, we stayed connected.

"Good," he said. "I really hate repeating myself to everyone. Gets boring when you say the same thing twelve times."

I chuckled. "True that."