Another minute passed.
Nero collapsed.
An avatar returned to being a pure human once more, his spirit charred at the edges.
"You nearly broke yourself," A dominant voice said. Not with concern. With the tone of someone noting a crack in a tool they intended to keep using.
Nero opened his eyes. Looking around, his face twisted into one of confusion.
Where am I? Nero thought.
Looking around Nero was astonished. A flawless sky of pale white-gold stretched endlessly overhead, empty of clouds, stars, or sun but still filled with light all the same. The ground below was smooth and colourless, neither stone nor sand, reflecting just enough brightness to erase shadows without blinding the eye. There was no wind, no heat, no sound beyond the quiet certainty that this place would not change.
"You should have known combining with me would have killed you had you stayed conscious a second longer," the figure said.
Nero now focused on the figure in front of him and his eyes widened. The figure was tall and human in shape, but impossibly precise, as if every proportion had been measured and approved. Their skin held a soft, sunlit tone, smooth and unmarked, with no shadow settling fully upon it. Light traced their form constantly, outlining them with quiet clarity rather than brilliance.
Their face was calm and symmetrical - neither kind nor cruel - eyes glowing pale gold without pupils or reflection. When they looked at something, it felt illuminated rather than seen. Behind their head hovered a perfect solar disk, its thin rays extending outward like deliberate lines, some ending in the faint suggestion of open hands.
They did not radiate heat or pressure. The air around them simply stilled, as though movement had lost its purpose. This was not a god imitating humanity—but a form of godhood the world could tolerate. Aten, Divine order given form.
"Aten…Why me…Why choose me." Nero whispered. "Do you know how much suffering you caused me. How much pain I've been through because of you. This curse is nothing but a burden for me to carry for the rest of my life."
"To be chosen is a gift. Something to be cherished and nurtured. You should be grateful for your power."
Aten took another look at Nero.
"Your posture is incorrect".
Aten paused for a second.
"Fall".
Nero instantly felt his body comply with the command as if it was an instinct as primal as eating or sleeping. He was sent to his knees, prostrating in reverence to Aten.
"Much better," mused Aten
"Why did you bring me here Aten, at least tell me that much," asked Nero.
"As my avatar, your current state is unacceptable. That's all I wanted to say." Aten said bluntly. "Your body and your god are not yet aligned. Every time you merge without control you burn something that doesn't grow back. Stabilise. Or you will break in ways that cannot be repaired."
Nero, looking up saw little emotion on Aten's face. What he saw was the face of a king ordering his subject.
"You didn't answer my first question. Why me…out of everyone why me." Nero said his voice shaking.
Aten looked at him for a long time. Long enough that Nero thought he might actually answer. Long enough that the silence became its own kind of response.
"Begone" Aten commanded.
A hole opened up underneath Nero sending him tumbling out of the domain. The domain along with Aten disappeared from Nero's view as he fell through the void.
Damn you Aten. I didn't choose you. Nero thought as he fell. You chose me.
When Nero awoke, he realised that something was very wrong. Aten's words of warning echoed in his mind.
Something was broken.
But Astrea was still out there. Whatever was broken would have to wait.