Shin's hand trembled as he took the quill. He knew that once he signed, there would be no going back. But the thought of Katy's lifeless eyes, the memory of her final moments, pushed him forward. He drew a shaky line across his thumb and let the crimson drop fall onto the scroll. The symbol that absorbed his blood pulsed with a dark light, and he felt a strange warmth spread through his veins.

The girl took the scroll and rolled it up with a flourish. "Excellent," she said, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "The pact is sealed. Now, let us begin our journey."

With a snap of her finger, the room plunged into darkness, the only light coming from the myriad of stars that now floated all around him. Shin felt a strange warmth spread through his body, as if he were being bathed in the light of a thousand suns. The girl before him began to change, her body dissolving into a dark essence that writhed and coiled like a serpent made of liquid energy.

Her form grew more and more insubstantial, until she was nothing but a plasmatic wisp, her eyes the only constant in the void that surrounded him. He watched, his breath catching in his throat, as she drew closer to him, the stars seeming to converge on her. Then, with a suddenness that took him by surprise, she was inside him, flowing into his mouth like a river of shadow.

The pain that followed was unlike anything he had ever experienced. It was as if every cell in his body was being rewritten, his very essence redefined. He could feel the power surging through him, a living, breathing entity that demanded his attention and submission. It was like being torn apart from the inside out and then reassembled into something new, something other. He screamed, his voice echoing through the void, a sound that seemed to resonate with the very fabric of reality.

And when the pain culminated, the world came back into focus, Shin looked down at his arm and watched in horror as it grew back, the flesh knitting itself together before his very eyes. The skin that emerged was a deep, unblemished black, and his eyes widened when he saw that his own hair had turned the same color in the light of the stars, cascading down to his shoulders like a shadow come to life. The reflection of the girl's red eyes stared back at him from his own sockets, a stark reminder of the deal he had made.

With a sudden jolt, the chamber disappeared, and he found himself standing in the rain-soaked plaza where Katy had been sacrificed. The rain fell harder now, a cold, driving force that seemed to cleanse the world of its sins. The people of the sector had dispersed, leaving him alone. The rain stung his skin.

The girl, or the entity that had once been the girl, was nowhere to be seen. Instead, her voice whispered in his ear, a ghostly echo in his mind. "The power you now wield is indeed the same wavelight that Devota's disciples harness," she said, the words cold comfort against the howling wind. "But it is no mere exchange. It is the direct line, the source of all my power, and now it flows through your veins."

Shin took a tentative step forward, feeling his new form respond with a grace and agility that defied his former limitations. His senses had become heightened to an unbearable degree. The smell of wet earth and rainwater was a cacophony in his nose, the droplets on his skin a symphony of sensations, each one a note of cold and wetness. He could hear the distant whispers of the city's machinery, the beating hearts of the few creatures that dared to brave the storm. His eyesight was no longer confined to the spectrum of mere mortals; he saw the world in a symphony of colors, each one a thread of power that could be pulled and manipulated.

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Shin looked around the desolate plaza, the rain pounding against the cobblestone as if in mourning. "Where is Katy's body?" he asked, his voice a mix of anger and desperation.

The whispering voice chuckled darkly.

"Ah, the fate of the sacrificed," she said, her words echoing in his mind. "Their bodies are consumed by the guardians or masters, fuel for the constellation's power. It's a grisly process, one that most prefer not to contemplate, Devota absorb only the best part of the soul".

The grief hit him like a tidal wave, drowning out the whispers of power that pulsed through his veins. Katy, gone forever, reduced to nothing more than a meal for a monstrous god. The rain fell harder, as if the heavens themselves were weeping for the injustice. He felt his legs buckle under the weight of his sorrow, the cold, unforgiving cobblestone beneath his knees a cruel reminder of the world's indifference.

Gritting his teeth, Shin forced himself to stand, his eyes burning with a newfound resolve. "What must I do to kill Devota?" he demanded, his voice a thunderclap that echoed through the empty streets. The very air seemed to quiver with the intensity of his question.

The whispering voice grew softer, a gentle caress in his mind. "You are but a cub now, Shin," she said, her words a balm to the storm raging within him. "Your journey is only just beginning. First, you must learn to harness the power that I have bestowed upon you.

Shin nodded, his eyes shining with determination. "I'm ready," he said, his voice steady despite the grief that threatened to swallow him whole. "Teach me."

The girl's voice grew solemn. "From this moment forward, you shall call me 'Master', for I am the one who has granted you this power, and together, we shall bring about the end of the gods," she said, the finality of her words hanging in the air like the toll of a funeral bell.

Shin nodded, the gravity of the situation finally sinking in. "What's the plan, Master?" he asked, his voice a mix of fear and anticipation.

The girl, his new mentor, took a step closer, her shadowy form seeming to expand until it enveloped him. "do you know how to kill a constellation?"

Shin swallowed hard, the gravity of his decision weighing on him. "No," he admitted. "But I'm willing to learn."

The girl's voice continued, "Very well," she said, her voice low and solemn. "To destroy Devota, you must become stronger than she is, in every way. You must gain the faith of her followers, surpass her disciples, and shake the very foundations of her power. Only then can you hope to challenge her."

Shin frowned, his mind racing with questions. "But how can I do that? i am not a god , how i can use faith as power?

Master's chuckle was a soothing balm to his doubt. "The faith of the people is a potent force, my dear pupil," she said, her eyes gleaming with a knowing light. "Even as you stood here, watching your sister's life be taken from her, you had faith in Devota, didn't you?"

Shin's jaw clenched as he thought back to the day, the day he watched Katy's lifeless body be taken away by the guards. "I did," he murmured, the admission leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Exactly," the girl's voice said, a hint of satisfaction in her tone. "You see, the constellations feed on the hope and fear of the people. The more they believe in us, the stronger we become. And when they believe we will spare them, that is when we gain more power, because fear is faith"

Shin felt a cold shiver run down his spine. "But how can I convince them to believe in me?" he asked, the rain continuing its relentless assault on the city.

Master's laugh was light, almost mocking. "Dense, aren't we?"

Her words cut through the rain, a stark contrast to the gentle patter against the ground. "You think the path to power lies in friendship and candy?" she continued, her eyes narrowing slightly. "The world you live in is not one of rainbows and lollipops, Shin. It is a realm of blood and sacrifice, of power and submission. To conquer Devota, you must embody the very essence of fear and despair that she feeds upon."

Master's hand reached out after materializing under the rain and grabbed his chin, forcing him to meet her gaze. "You will show no mercy, offer no quarter," she said, her eyes burning with an intensity that could rival the stars above. "You will trample over the weak and the strong, leaving only ash in your wake. That is how you gain power. That is how you convince the people to believe in you."