Perdition. Of all the Principles, it was the only one that was not natural to the world. In other words, an outside influence brought it into this world. Perdition, and its Avatar Perdita, the Lost, was, to put it simply, the fear that comes with the feeling of joy as a great hope -- a wish -- comes closer and closer to fruition. It was the terror of the thought that so close to the goal one might fail and everything would have been for naught. Perdition was the Principle that ensured that all such hopes come up in vain.

It came into this world with the Principle of Hope, which was the antithesis of Perdition, but Hope, and its Pillar, was lost.

Back in those days, thousands of years ago, stories like these were tired of being told over and over again; the philosophy of pessimism was strong amongst the Humans who only believed in might and power above all. Before Humanity was separated from the other races via the Realmbarrier, they found themselves inferior in almost every way to the other races, and could only make it up through the might of the sword, and unlocking the secrets of the soul.

Ain had never stopped searching for Hope and the lost Pillar. That is why he went so far into the Exo Planes, slaughtered so many Absolute Domains, and sacrificed so many friends for. It could be said that many of the tragedies that happened in those days were somehow, mostly indirectly, related to Ain.

Ain knew this, but to hear the words from Perdition itself, that he was the cause of Exia's downfall -- his best friend -- it was more than he could take. He wondered if he still belonged in this world. If all he did was further the cause of Perdition, unknowingly, then perhaps the true obstacle to peace was none other than himself.

And while he thought about it, more than well halfway into the realm of death, his heart would not let him rest in peace. Not now. Not anymore. Not ever again.

A thousand years ago, as he was about to reach the pinnacle of the Sword, Ain reflected on his path, and his inability to grasp the final secrets. At that point, he was a bitter, jaded, eternally young man with a lifespan that could only be ended by his own hand. In fact, at that point in his life, extremely far from the Pillars of Creation, he thought about doing exactly that.

He had lost his first and only love, his best friend betrayed him for the Edict, and he could not find Hope. It was his fault, because of the fires in his heart; his desire for power, his desire for fame and glory, his need for attention and his eagerness for violence. Over time, his regrets built up, and when he was at the weakest, Perdition struck. He realized, that in that life, he would never find Hope. In that life, all that was left for him was War, and he would be forced to slaughter old friends -- once his brothers in arms -- and for what?

That is what Perdition was. That feeling of dread; hopefulness while hopeless; joy while on the precipice of defeat.

What nearly killed Ain and destroyed his organs wasn't a physical force. It was despair and ennui. His organs, under the influence of Perdition, just became too pointless to exist -- too hopeless to function.

So when he woke up, he was actually fairly surprised to be alive in the first place. He felt terrible, physically and mentally, but alive.

When he tried to move his body, first, he realized that he could move his left arm again. In fact, he could feel the circuits alive again as well - the half of his body that was burned out by the Lightning was not only operating at maximum capacity, but it was actually connected to Excidium, the Cosmos of Annihilation. A Cosmos is a group or category of Principles.

Upon feeling this connection, he instantly knew what brought him back to life.

Second, he felt he was trapped, and his motion caused a gasp, a yelp, and then a faint giggle. On his left was Senon, covered in white sheets up to her shoulders, which were bare of any clothes. On his right, likewise undressed was Latela. They were both in various states of waking up and, most surprisingly, it wasn't Latela that seemed angry; Senon's expression was the one that twisted into scornful fury. Latela seemed pleased on the other hand.

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"Next time, you should just die!" Senon hissed at him, pulled at the sheets to cover herself more, almost entirely exposing Latela in the process.

Latela pulled on the sheets playfully. "You are quite muscular," she chirped happily, a daring glimmer in her eyes.

"Jerk!" Senon added, looking away from Ain. Her cheeks were almost entirely red.

First of all, Ain did not have the faintest clue why they were in his bed. Second of all, why were they in his bed? He almost died. He couldn't rest like this -- there wasn't enough space. It was a small bed, by the looks of it -- and the feel of their breasts (and Senon's ribs) pressed against him.

Third of all, where the hell was he? These weren't the Chaos Planes. That ceiling above his head, with the intricate details and House Tapestries was too normal. The furniture was also sensible and made of sensible materials, like oak and iron and gold.

"You wouldn't wake up for days, and Senon was desperate to see you recover, so I told her that she could transfer her lifeforce to you if she lay naked next to you."

That is ridiculous, Ain thought. No one would believe that.

However, when Ain glanced at Senon, she seemed pleased and embarrassed of her achievement. Her lifeforce, surely she thought, must've been the stuff of legends, because she brought Ain back from death, considering the state he was in.

She was easy to read. Far too easy. As a warrior, one focusing on the art of drawing the sword, she was unreadable and enigmatic. As a girl, she was the opposite.

"Where are we?" Ain asked, avoiding the topic as best he could, and trying not to move. He even mentally focused inwards to still his heartbeat, just in case.

"Gramr'ial," Latela said. "It is currently under human occupation. Maybe you have some friends here."

"The Demon Realm, huh?" Ain murmured.

"You sound surprised," Latela said. "But no, really, do you have friends here? We are under... house arrest."

Senon was quiet, still, no doubt, lost in her vain thoughts of how she could finally be useful to her Master.

"Afraid not. Where are Def and Troma?"

"Troma is working as the manager of the Central Bank. Def is leading the Reeves, temporarily, at the rank of Knight Banneret."

Ain blinked. Troma he could understand, but Def!? Knight Banneret?! "Who's Knight?"

"The Lady of Gramr'ial's Knight."

But he wasn't even a Squire. Or a normal Knight. How could he become a Knight Banneret? This didn't make any sense.

"Well, someone whom I shall not name promised that he would speak to the humans on our behalf and never did. Instead, he was brought to the humans more than half-dead, and surrendered into their captivity, or, should I say 'care'. The latter of which was entrusted to me, as I was already their prisoner," Latela explained. "Just so you know, Ain, I trusted you. I came here because I was certain you would come. I am disappointed."

Ain sighed. "Just tell me one thing before we continue."

"What is it?"

"How much time passed between when I left and today?"

"Three months."

That explained everything.

His plan was to leave Senon with an Idol of Desolation, and by the time he was done with the humans, she and the others he sent to the Planes would've returned by then. Instead, he was stuck in Desolation for who knows how long.

"Well, Latela, you have my apologies. I will try to fix this," he said.

"Not going to make excuses? Interesting," she said, pursing her lips. "You are quite an enigma of a man."

"Thank you," Ain said. "Now get out of my bed. Both of you."

Latela smirked and did as asked. Ain tried not to stare at her. Not that he really cared. In his time, Ain had seen such legendary beauties that could make a man's heart stop -- and he didn't care about them either. Senon, on the other hand, seemed hurt. But she didn't question it.

By the time they both managed to scramble out of bed, Ain seemed like he was asleep.

Unknown to them, Ain was in deep meditation. He took his mental construct to the core of his being, within his source, and he mentally called out to his sword, Avarice.

Report the status of your Awakening.

The reply came almost immediately: Fully awakened. Pattern Displacement active. Fourth Soul Integration at 14%. Reason for Awakening: Non-Self Mode.

Return to sleep mode.

Acknowledged.

Somewhere in the city, where his sword was stored, the guards felt the gaze of a terrible presence vanish. They weren't even aware of its existence until they felt its sudden absence. Later that evening, when they were off duty, they would celebrate in the tavern, and call rounds for everyone until late into the morning. When asked why they did this, they'd reply that they simply felt happy to still be alive, but could not explain why they felt this way. As if they avoided an unspeakable tragedy.