My Talent's Name Is Generator Chapter 805 Bound By Blood

Theras's wings tucked away behind his back as he came down, his boots meeting the rocky ground with a gentle touch that clashed sharply against the power that had hurled him away just seconds before. The glowing symbols encircling the room faded bit by bit, their job done, leaving only the heavy strain hanging in the atmosphere. He avoided looking my way. All his focus stayed locked on the shape next to me, his stare firm and unwavering, like he was verifying a truth he never thought could be real.

Several heartbeats passed without a word from him.

"Who are you?" he finally questioned.

His tone stayed even, yet I sensed the strain lurking underneath.

The dark silhouette didn't reply right away. It stayed still, its shape made purely of shadows, soaking up the dim light around without giving any back. Then, gradually, it lifted its arm and pressed a palm to its torso.

The outer layer of its form split open.

A slender fissure extended from where it touched, forking out over its figure like a crack in brittle stone. The blackness didn't burst apart with force. Rather, it stripped off in thin sheets, breaking into tiny specks that faded into the nearby air.

Standing there was a man.

He positioned himself with effortless poise.

He looked about thirty-something, his stance laid-back, nearly casual, in a setting where everything else felt rigid. Silver locks draped freely down to his shoulders, shimmering softly in the room's weak glow, and his eyes shone with a gentle, constant azure light. Assurance radiated from him, but not the stiff sort from power. Black garments draped his frame, his palms clasped behind.

A subtle, mischievous grin played on his lips as he eyed Theras straight on.

"Long time no see, brother."

'Brother.'

My thoughts froze, struggling to connect the word I'd just caught with all I'd assumed up to that point. I'd been dead sure about who he was from the instant he showed up. Those bindings alone proved it. They were impossible to mistake. I could spot them still, dimly overlaid under the world's fabric. Endless links reached out from him in all angles, reaching past what I could sense, disappearing into far-off places outside this chamber or this world. They didn't hold him captive. They sprang from him.

This was the Chained Fallen. The entity I'd wrongly taken for Theras.

Yet—

Brother?

The idea wouldn't click neatly in my head. If this creature was truly his kin, their shared past ran much deeper than captivity or rivalry. And those images from the tome. Why had they shown me scenes of Theras, not the Fallen?

My eyes turned to Theras.

For the first time since arriving, his calm broke.

His crimson orbs expanded, the spinning dark X inside freezing suddenly as his energy wavered wildly about him. It didn't burst out, but it grew unsteady, rising and falling in irregular beats that exposed an emotion I'd never witnessed in him.

Stunned disbelief.

His stare fixed on the silver-haired man's features, probing with a fervor edging toward denial, as if waiting for the sight to dissolve into a trick.

It held firm.

The silver-haired man just remained there, serene and at ease.

Theras's face contorted.

The surprise morphed into something much grimmer.

His fangs ground together, his chin locking as his energy flared once more, this round driven by feeling instead of control.

"Brother?" he echoed, his tone deep and cutting, every syllable pushed past bottled rage. "You lost the right to that name, you betrayer."

The silver-haired man's grin broadened a touch.

No fury marked his look. No sorrow.

Just delight.

"Easy there," he replied offhandedly, his voice nearly teasing. "It's been ages since we crossed paths. The very least is a warm embrace for your big brother."

The phrasing sounded breezy, but the gravity it carried was immense.

Theras's wings twitched at his rear, the space nearby warping as his energy swelled against the taunt. His scarlet eyes blazed with raw enmity now, the hold he'd kept before swapped for a far more intimate grudge.

"Amun," he uttered, his words turning icier than prior. "Remember my vow."

The title sank into my thoughts.

Amun.

"I will wipe you out completely."

And from Theras's look, I could tell the warning held real weight. No bluff in his delivery, no bid for fear. He declared it with the hushed assurance of one who'd already pictured the deed and embraced its certainty.

The bound fallen, Amun, lifted his other hand to rub his temple lightly, like they were chatting over minor matters instead of vows of annihilation.

"I can't quite remember how much time has passed since you swore that," Amun noted breezily. "Yet here I stand, thriving. Actually, I'd claim I've gotten better. Even more striking than you now. You seem aged, brother."

The jibe was mild, nearly fond.

This round, Theras held back his response.

His energy, raging seconds prior, dropped to utter quiet. His wings drew in behind slowly, their motion precise and intentional, like he'd willfully tamped down the feelings bubbling up.

He scanned the chamber next, his crimson gaze dissecting the build with fresh sharpness. A subtle dark wave emanated from his form, sweeping over the floor, the columns, and the very atmosphere.

"This is your handiwork, then," he remarked. He lifted his arm and examined his open hand. Without pause, he curled his digits. His hand crumbled.

It fragmented into tiny dark grains, scattering like ash into the breeze before piecing back together precisely as before. He observed it steadily, probing the essence of his being.

"Ah," he murmured gently. "So I'm just a projection formed from a bit of my essence."

A slight smirk formed on his lips.

"Fine by me."

His eyes rose again to Amun.

"Guess you have gotten stronger, after all."

For the first instance since showing up, Amun's smirk dimmed a fraction. He kept his poise, but the easy mirth tempered, giving way to a more cautious air.

Theras turned his focus. His scarlet eyes drifted from Amun over to me. I felt that scrutiny hit like a load right away.

"Let me venture a guess," he stated. "He's the one you're grooming to take your spot."

He tsked and shook his head deliberately.

"So much for those unyielding principles of yours. You're still holding onto that fantasy, huh? Amun, you're such a fool."

Amun's grin reemerged.

It came softer this time, yet sincere.

"Perhaps," he conceded. "But I find joy in my path. Can you claim the same?"

Theras regarded him for a few beats, his face a mask.

Then he shook his head.

"No point throwing words at you," he said evenly. "I'm sure the true me has a few of your projections in hand. And you can picture what he's doing to them."

He let out a quiet laugh.

The noise held zero joy.

"Show me your new power."

He extended his arm and flicked it ahead.

The world bent.

Amun disappeared from my side and materialized right before Theras, the shift happening without any sign of movement. It mirrored the unavoidable pull Theras had used on me earlier.

"You sell me short, brother," Amun answered steadily. He pressed his palms flat.

And struck them once.

The noise came faint. But the impact struck fast.

Three additional forms materialized near Theras. They were flawless copies of Theras. Every one gripped a blade.

Not simple tools. The very blade I'd glimpsed lodged at the mountaintop in the image. Their edges gleamed dark, etched by the lone silver streak along their core, their aura bearing a gravity beyond mere matter.

Theras caught sight of them and his features grew stormy.