"Show me what you have, Jingliu!" Terminus's voice boomed, setting the stars themselves aquiver. She surged upward, the cosmic dusts sparked and spiraled at her feet, propelling her into the celestial ballet of combat.

Jingliu, gripping her lightsword of frost, braced for the onslaught, her stance solid yet adaptable. The readiness in her eyes was palpable, but even that did little to prepare her for the Aeon's swiftness. Terminus descended like a comet, her form a blur aiming directly at Jingliu's core.

In an instant, Jingliu's Moonlit Guardian manifested, a dome of lunar energy seeking to shield her from the impending strike. The barrier, once unbroken against formidable foes, stood little chance; it shattered upon Terminus's contact, a foot alone carrying the force of a celestial storm.

The impact sent Jingliu hurtling backward, a ragdoll caught in the wake of a cosmic tempest, her body slamming against the rugged face of a rock. A cough splattered blood against the stone—a stark crimson against the abyssal backdrop.

Terminus, upon witnessing the result of her own might, grimaced with a tinge of regret. "Oh, I didn't expect that to actually hurt you. My apologies on that, eheh~" Her voice, sheepish yet tinged with the gravity of her oversight, fluttered across the expanse.

Gritting her teeth, Jingliu pushed herself up, using her lightsword to steady her stance. Blood smeared across her mouth served as a testament to her resolve, wiped away with a defiant gesture.

"Good, your will to live is strong," Terminus observed, admiration lacing her words as she witnessed the unwavering determination shining through Jingliu's eyes.

Harnessing her affinity for the moon, Jingliu summoned a cloak of healing energy, wrapping herself in a luminous veil that mended flesh and bone. The lunar energy, both her balm and armor, rejuvenated her spirit, embodying the resilience that had carried her through countless perils.

"To use the moon to heal yourself and your soul as your shield. A double-edged sword, but it is rather effective," Terminus commented, analyzing the dual nature of Jingliu's powers.

"I've faced death more times than I can count," Jingliu replied, her voice steady, "and each time, I've learned to harness my abilities more efficiently, creating techniques that leverage my full potential." Her guardian, now in its humanoid form, stood sentinel beside her, a silent vow to protect.

Terminus' grin, both exhilarating and daunting, promised a challenge that Jingliu had never before encountered. "Life and death, I see. Well then, I will show you the full potential of the Dark Moon."

"Dark Moon?" Jingliu echoed, the term alien yet filled with an ominous power that resonated with the very depths of her being.

"Let me demonstrate. Watch me," Terminus instructed, her arm lifting heavenward, cloaked in an amethyst energy that pulsed with a darkness deeper than the hue of twilight.

The dark moon that hung behind her ceased its celestial pulse, casting an ominous stillness over the realm. Jingliu, caught between awe and trepidation, watched as the Aeon became one with the cosmic entity.

Power burgeoned from the moon, resonating with Terminus and rippling outwards to envelop Jingliu, who clutched at her chest, feeling a void swelling within her—a presence growing, demanding acknowledgment.

Terminus's grin morphed into a knowing smirk as the moon began its reverse rotation. A secondary eclipse took shape, layering darkness upon darkness, a phenomenon that muted even the inherent blackness of the celestial body.

"The moon, as it eclipses, manifests in your form of vengeance, and the deeper the animus, the more devastating the attack," Terminus explained, her voice resonating with the authority of creation itself. The world trembled, the very atoms vibrating in response to the Aeon's release of power.

Jingliu found herself forced to kneel by the overwhelming pressure, a tangible reminder of her mortality. Yet amidst the maelstrom, a transformation within her sparked—a revelation not anticipated even by Terminus.

"She unlocked it, this early?" Terminus marveled inwardly as she observed the change overtaking Jingliu.

Jingliu's weapon morphed, her lightsword transmuting into a greatsword imbued with the dark blue of the deepest ocean, its core aglow with a lunar hue that bordered on the ethereal. The sword now seemed a vessel for the abyss, a conduit for the power of the Dark Moon itself.

"What is this? Is this the Dark Moon you spoke of?" Jingliu's voice wavered between astonishment and apprehension. The initial pain of transformation had given way to a potent force coursing through her veins, a power she had never before felt.

Terminus, observing the enchanted blade and the woman who wielded it, felt a cocktail of emotions stir within her. "Well, that was rather anticlimactic, I must say. But it means I can expedite your training," she noted, a mix of pride and perplexity coloring her tone.

"Is it possible she is compatible with Finality? No, it cannot be just her encounters with death..." Terminus pondered, her gaze drifting across the realm, now dimmed yet still scattered with shards of reality.

Terminus' eyes, once reflecting the cosmos, shifted, heralding a change that swept through her alone. She found herself in the presence of the one who watched, patient and still. Terminus, a being of immense power herself, felt a tremble in her hand, a rare sign of her own trepidation, which the deity acknowledged with a silent nod.

Standing alone in a space removed from time, she beheld him—the Void Emperor, whose very presence was an echo of the beginning and the end.

He faced her, his gaze devoid of emotion, a mirror to the abyss itself. Terminus, with a tremor in her gesture, acknowledged his nod. "It has begun," he stated simply, a decree that echoed with the weight of inevitability.

Terminus' eyes widened in alarm. "Isn't that too early? He was supposed to meet Long before that happens!" she exclaimed, her voice betraying her concern over a prophecy seemingly derailed.

The Void Emperor's response was a silent nod as he extended his hand, conjuring an orb that shimmered with memory and potential. Terminus recognized it with a start. "Isn't that his Phantom Bubble?" she questioned, pointing at the orb of memories, its power rivaling that of the Aeon Fuli, a force that dwarfed the comprehension of their Emanators.

"I taught him of the Abyss, and he has been led astray, believing in understanding where, in truth, he has regressed," the Emperor revealed, his presence causing reality to thin, a void spreading like a shadow over creation.

Terminus, poised to speak, found herself silenced by a gesture from the deity. "In this realm, untouchable by all, time is formless beyond idea. Your student, the fated one, will not be disturbed." His assurance was a balm to her sudden fear, her hand instinctively seeking the comfort of her chest as she sighed in relief.

The Void Emperor's casual display of power was unnerving. Aeons might conjure stars with a thought, but he could weave universes from the void, underscoring the chasm between their might.

"Though, I must admit fault for these occurrences," the Void Emperor confessed, causing Terminus to blink rapidly, surprised by the admission of a fault from such a being.

Her thoughts raced to the Great Ones, anomalies within the tapestry of reality. "The Great Ones, you were supposed to exterminate them, but they lingered, infesting the realm... what is your plan?" she asked boldly.

"To watch him grow. To watch her meet him," the deity replied, his words a puzzle with pieces yet to be placed.

"Do you mean to use this blunder as a blessing in disguise?" Terminus queried, her insight cutting through the usual divine ambiguity.

"Yes. Opportunity arises, and I wish to seize it," the Emperor affirmed, the bubble in his grasp beginning to pulse erratically.

Terminus frowned, her thoughts adrift on the implications. "What happened in the dream?" she pressed, only for the answer to instill in her a fear unmatched by anything in recent memory.

" . . . . . "

"Terminus?" Jingliu's voice pulled her back from the edge of the abyss, back to the realm where the Nighthilt Sovereign awaited her guidance.

Regaining her composure, Terminus offered a forced smile, concealing the gravity of her astral encounter. "I'm sorry, I was in a trance with reality. It will happen again in the future," she half-lied, half-truthed.

Jingliu, sensing the Aeon's evasion yet prioritizing her pressing need for mastery, refocused. "Shall we continue with the 'Dark Moon'?" Her voice carried a determination that mirrored the depth of her quest for power.

Terminus nodded, the corners of her mouth lifting in a mix of amusement and respect. "Such eagerness. Then brace yourself, young lady!" Her term of endearment was a nod to the temporal chasm between them; to Terminus, Jingliu's life was but a moment, yet a moment brimming with potential.

---

In the expanse of timelessness, where the shards of reality danced to the rhythm of the cosmos, Jingliu stood lost in thought. The stark realm of life and death, illuminated by the fractured light of Finality, had become her proving ground, her sanctuary.

Time, as Jingliu had come to understand it, held little meaning in the realm. It stretched and compressed, leaving her to wonder how many years had passed since she first set foot here. Had it been moments or millennia since she'd last seen the realm of the living? These thoughts lingered like specters at the edge of her consciousness as she trained under Terminus's tutelage.

"Jingliu! You need to get used to time distortion or else it'll be hard for you to meet with the other Aeons." Terminus's voice sliced through her contemplation, grounding her to the present—or what passed for the present in this place beyond time.

That's right. She had been training relentlessly, submerged in a deluge of knowledge and power bestowed by Terminus. With every star she cleaved, every celestial technique she mastered, Jingliu's desire only swelled—to wield her newfound might in defense of him, to be his shield as he had been hers.

"You've grown so much. I am deeply proud of you," Terminus expressed, affection coloring her voice as she stroked Sora, the cosmic cat that had made its first appearance during their initial encounter. Sora, with its fur shimmering like a swath of the night sky, purred under the Aeon's touch.

Sora, Jingliu mused, was a celestial entity, a divine pet with a sentience that transcended mortal understanding. As it leaped from Terminus' embrace and approached Jingliu, she knelt to receive it, the creature's innocence a stark contrast to the backdrop of war and power plays. She couldn't help but recall Y/N's ban on her owning a pet, likely out of a playful jealousy for her affections. The thought brought a nostalgic smile to her lips.

"I recognize that smile of yours, young lady," Terminus chided playfully, her observation pulling Jingliu back to their shared reality. A blush betrayed Jingliu's emotions, even as she tried to scoff it away.

In Jingliu's eyes, Terminus' presence was a beacon of kindness in the vastness of the universe, her stature as the epitome of order and ideas standing in stark contrast to her nurturing demeanor.

In Terminus' eyes, Jingliu was more than a student; she was a beacon of potential in a universe that often spun into chaos.

As Sora nuzzled against Jingliu's legs, she crouched to caress its otherworldly fur, eliciting a rumbling purr from the feline. Terminus observed the serene tableau, a soft smile gracing her lips, the peace of the moment transcending the chaos of the fragmented reality around them.

Terminus's gaze wandered, taking in the fractured shards of reality. The times were tumultuous, her responsibilities vast, extending from sentinel duties to prophecy's edge. Prophecies—mere threads of potential to some—yet they wove the fabric of destinies, guides that many sought to unravel only to find themselves ensnared by the very fate they attempted to evade.

Yet, what the Void Emperor had unveiled stood apart from any known tale or portent. The revelation, its implications staggering, promised to reshape the narrative of existence itself, affecting all, even the Aeons.

Her thoughts ventured to Y/N, his journey observed from afar since his emergence from the ruins. She had only glimpsed his journey from afar, his mastery over his soul to forge a corporeal form, a phantom made flesh. His potential was a thing of raw, untamed power, and like the others, she had watched, waited, and judged his place in the cosmic design.

The excitement mingled with fear—fear of what Y/N might do with his burgeoning powers, fear that he might unmake their very world. Yet, his mortal constraints had curbed the full manifestation of his capabilities, leaving a reservoir of untapped possibility.

"Hopefully, you will understand after this," Terminus whispered to herself, conjuring a mirror, Terminus peered into her own reflection—a face she knew yet somehow didn't recognize. "Urgh, why am I having an identity crisis?" she lamented, her unique circumstance among the Aeons now shared by another.

As the mirror dissolved, Terminus's attention returned to Jingliu, who had taken to scratching Sora's chin, the celestial feline now draped comfortably over her shoulders. It was time, Terminus decided.

A smile crossed Terminus' face, a decision made. "Maybe it's time to test her after all her training." There was a sense of deja vu in this thought, a remembrance of a past role—a teacher looking upon her student with pride and anticipation for the trials ahead.

End of Chapter

A/N: Short chapter for today, but the next one will be long. Don't forget to vote or comment to show your support. Thank you!