The atmosphere grew quiet again. For most of the children, Atem's turn stirred more curiosity than expectation. Those who knew about his health problems seemed almost worried on his behalf.
Athena gave him a thumbs-up. "Just do it. Don't think too much."
Atem nodded once, keeping his eyes on the mirror.
Elder Kiros lowered the bronze instrument to a comfortable height.
"Your body has always been delicate. Although the mirror is not dangerous, some children experience discomfort when their Inner Sun is unstable. If you wish to step back, I will not blame you."
Atem looked briefly at his hand, then at the mirror, and finally at Kiros. "I will proceed."
The elder inclined his head. "Very well. Touch the mirror when you feel ready."
Atem drew in a quiet breath, raised his hand, and placed his palm against the back of the mirror.
Nothing responded. The mirror remained still and quiet, almost indifferent.
"What are we waiting for? He's certainly a barren grade," one of the boys with a Spirit Grade scoffed.
Barren Grade is often described as having no Inner Sun at all, yet that isn't entirely true. They do possess one, but it is so faint and unstable that the mirror cannot draw out even the smallest trace of its light.
Athena turned toward him with a sharp glare. "Say that again and you'll force my hand. Hmph."
The boy looked away, though his eyes still held that same mocking light.
Elder Kiros watched the mirror with a calm expression, though a faint crease of worry had formed between his brows.
Atem didn't pull his hand back or shift his stance. He was hoping—at least—for some light, any light.
A thin spark suddenly appeared deep within the mirror. It formed so quietly that most of the children didn't notice it at first.
A single point began to gather in the center.
Huh?
A sharp pain carved through Atem's skull before the spark could fully take shape, spreading outward as if something deep within his mind had been struck.
He reached up instinctively, tightening his fingers against his brow, yet the world was already beginning to blur around him.
Athena stepped forward instantly. "Atem!"
He didn't hear her as he collapsed, falling before her hand even reached him.
Athena bent down to help, but Elder Kiros lifted a hand, stopping her with a slight shake of his head, though his eyes remained on Atem with a hint of concern.
She frowned in confusion. "Why would—"
Kiros inclined his head toward the back of the courtyard. "Look behind you."
Athena turned—and her expression froze.
Marek had already crossed the courtyard. His footsteps were almost soundless, and he reached Atem in seconds.
Without a word, he lifted the boy from the ground, then turned and walked off with Atem in his arms, ignoring everyone around him—even Kiros, the head priest.
---
Atem opened his eyes to a darkness so complete that it felt as though the world had been stripped of all shape.
He could see nothing until he lowered his gaze to his hands and realized, with a quiet shock, that he stood in his current body.
This wasn't the faint soul-image he had appeared in during his earlier dreams. This was his real form—his nine-year-old body.
He touched his chest and muttered, "The pendant isn't here…"
He stood in silence for a while, unsure of where he had been placed, and the emptiness around him offered no clue or direction.
With nothing else to guide him, Atem decided to walk.
Time stretched without measure as he moved forward, and the darkness neither deepened nor lifted.
Eventually, after what felt like an entire night without stars, a faint radiance appeared in the distance. Atem's eyes lit up, and he made his way toward it with quiet anticipation.
The light did not brighten as he approached. It remained the same—distant yet steady—but as he drew closer, the shape became clearer. It wasn't a lantern, nor an opening.
It was the ancient eye—floating in the darkness as though it had always belonged there, its surface divided between a quiet, muted gray and a soft gold.
Atem looked at it with a relieved expression. "So you're here too…"
Nine years in Duat had been enough for him to understand that this world was far more vast than anything he had known. It was a place where immortal life was not a myth, but a clear path for those who could walk it.
Everything here revolved around Ka.
According to Asha, Duat was the origin—the first world formed when the dormant sea of Nun finally awakened.
The Nun had existed without shape or life; it simply was.
At some point in the immeasurable and unknown ages, something awakened inside Nun—something so pure and unprecedented: life.
It was Ra.
Although only a few legends mentioned him, most believed he was the first living being, existing even before the world itself.
His presence alone disturbed the endless calm, and suddenly movement formed where no movement had existed before.
The first current emerged in that silent, eternal sea. The wave grew stronger, forming the essence now known as Ka. It was not something Ra created consciously—his presence alone caused the stillness to break.
In time, eight more beings emerged from the awakened ocean. Together, the nine became known as the Primordials.
These beings roamed the Nun for countless ages, until a new creation began to form.
It was Duat. Some said it took three hundred billion years for Duat to form after the emergence of the Primordials.
In Duat, life flourished, for nothing perished—nothing was separate from the source.
Later ages saw new beings and new worlds forming around Duat like distant branches. War and upheaval eventually pushed many of those worlds far from the source, until Ka could no longer reach them.
Atem raised his eyes to the floating eye before him.
"That being… the one connected to this eye… must be very powerful."
His disappointment at learning he could not cultivate had been heavy, but the moment he remembered the eye that had fused with him, a faint hope stirred. If he understood this thing—if he found a way to use it—perhaps his path wasn't closed after all.
He stepped closer.
The eye hovered silently, one half glowing with a golden hue and the other half gray. Atem studied the border between the two halves.
"It's… a clock."
His heartbeat quickened. "When I saw you in the temple, you were completely gray. Now half of you is gold…"
His eyes flickered with realization.
"So you're recovering… preparing for something."
"Is this a blessing… or something I should fear? And what will happen once you awaken completely?"