"A god?" My heart dropped. The world waved a bit.
"The god of Numen, Fey to be exact."
Coming back to my senses, I think of the gods. 'I never heard of the God of Numen.' I thought.
"Numen?" The question left my lips.
"Yes, Numen. You can kind of think of it like magic; it's what flows through all life. It's what flows through you at this very moment. Well, small amounts of it, otherwise you would die."
I let these words process through my head.
"How come I never heard of you, or even heard of Numen?"
As I looked up at the sky, she answered, "Yes, it seemed like most of the world hadn't. The world seems to have forgotten about me. How mean."
'Was she pouting?' I thought to myself. 'It sounds like she is pouting.'
"As for the numen part, you may have never heard of it, but you most definitely seen it."
"I have?" Still not looking away from the sky, where it was pitch black, and the only lights that shone through this place were the shooting stars. She answered me.
"Of course you have, it's why you are here, no? That veil that entrapped you. That's Numen. In fact, this place is made by Numen."
"The veil? This place? They're made by Numen?"
"Right. Right now, you are in a place called the sanctuary, it's a place that connects me to people, the same way that you are connected to the gods when you pray to them."
As I processed what they were telling me, the following few words left my lips: "Wait, if that's the case, can you take down the veil?"
She laughed, "Yeah, sorry, I can't do that."
"Aren't you the God of Numen? You have control over it. What type of god are you if—"
Before I could continue with my sentence, the world shook, and I fell to my knees, feeling an intense pressure. Finding it hard to breathe, I gasp for air, holding on to the altar for stability. The waves of the world started to crash into each other, and the stars shot faster across the sky.
'What is this?' I thought.
As the world finally came to a calm once again, I could breathe.
"Please do keep in mind I am a god, show some respect." I don't say anything, "Just because I am the God of Numen, it does not mean I can do with it as I please. It only means I created it. I could help you bring down the veil, that would come at a cost."
As I got up from the floor, I began to feel a ball form in my throat. "What would that be?"
The hums of the abyss filled the silence before she broke it. "Form a pact with me."
"A pact?" I questioned.
"You know, every god has one, form one with me." She replied. "Form a pact with me."
"Becoming hesitant, I asked, "What would I have to do?"
"Pouring blood on the altar, offer something to me, a will, a thing, something of importance. Once you do, I will grant you power, the ability to use Numen."
I look over at the altar, "Is that what this means?"
"Yes."
"What do you mean by 'something of importance'? Who decides that?" I walked toward the altar to examine it.
"You do—well, your heart." She replied.
"So if I decided something is important, then I can offer that?"
She tsked, before answering, "It doesn't work like that, your heart has to decide if it's important."
I think over what this pact entailed. 'A thing of importance? At that point, I was signing my life over to them, wasn't I? To give my will is to give up my future; to give something of importance is to give up something I could not live without. Beyond that, what if the person I wasn't talking to wasn't a real god, but a fake one?
I looked back up to the sky, and she waited silently for my answer.
'The gods always warned us of false gods, but I never thought I would encounter one. Still, to be able to do this, would they really be a false god? I don't think that mattered right now. We needed to get out of the academy, and right now, this seemed to be the only way, but to make such an offering, I am really willing to do such a thing?'
Debating on the consequences of the pact, I looked back at the altar. I thought of the reason I survived for so long, the reason I was willing to go through all of this. It was all for my mother. I wanted to see her once again, and I will, but making such a sacrifice would not be worth it to me. I was going to find another way out.
"No, I am fine."
The god takes a minute to reply, "No?"
"No, I am not willing to make a sacrifice."
She laughed, "I don't think you know the danger of your situation, you don't really have an option."
Gritting my teeth, I don't change my mind, "I'll find another way."
"You won't." This being her last words, the sanctuary started to fall apart, and I fell through it. As I screamed, I woke up to find myself in the cafeteria instead of outside.
"Calm down, calm down." Ael peered over me as I lay on the ground.