SoulBound Ch 3: The Aetherions and the Search for Completion!

(More Info about the Soulbound) Beyond the known galaxies, past the clusters of stars and swirling nebulas, there existed a race unlike any

(More Info about the Soulbound) Beyond the known galaxies, past the clusters of stars and swirling nebulas, there existed a race unlike any

(More Info about the Soulbound) Beyond the known galaxies, past the clusters of stars and swirling nebulas, there existed a race unlike any

(More Info about the Soulbound)

Beyond the known galaxies, past the clusters of stars and swirling nebulas, there existed a race unlike any other—the Aetherions. Beings of impossible size and power, their very presence could shift the course of celestial bodies, their movements capable of altering the delicate balance of the universe itself.

Yet, for all their strength, all their vastness, all their godlike dominion over the cosmos, they were born with a singular truth woven into their very essence.

They were incomplete.

Every Aetherion knew this from the moment they came into existence. It was not something they were taught—it was something they felt, deep within their being, an aching hollowness that no amount of time or power could ever fill. Somewhere, out there in the dazzling vastness of the universe, amidst the swirling galaxies and distant stars, existed their Soulbound—their other half.

And without them, they would never be whole.

The Aetherions believed this with absolute certainty. It was not a myth, not a legend, but a fundamental law of their existence. Each of them was tethered to a single soul, a being so small, so fragile compared to their overwhelming enormity, yet infinitely precious.

To find their Soulbound was to reach the pinnacle of their purpose. It was the only thing that could bring them true fulfillment, the only thing that could complete the intricate design of their being.

But the universe was vast. Endlessly vast. And though every Aetherion was born with the instinct to seek, the truth was bitter—many would never find what they were looking for.

Some spent entire lifetimes searching, their existence stretching across the eons as they scoured galaxy after galaxy, following the faintest pull of their instincts. But space was cruel, and time was merciless. Even for beings as great as them, the cosmos was an infinite labyrinth, and their Soulbound—small, delicate, fleeting—could be lost before they were ever found.

There were Aetherions who searched for thousands of lifetimes and never once felt the presence of their other half.

There were those who grew weary, who abandoned the search entirely, choosing instead to exist in the void, hollow and incomplete, convincing themselves that perhaps it was better this way—that perhaps they did not need something so small, so fragile, to define them.

And yet...

There were also those who succeeded.

Few, but not none

***

(KAIDA) 

I grit my teeth, my body trembling under the strain. The planet floated before me, growing larger and larger as I forced myself smaller.

Smaller.

Smaller.

Gods, this sucked.

Sweat slicked my skin, the exertion sending fiery pulses through my limbs as I compressed past anything I'd ever attempted before. Every Aetherion had limits, but I had always prided myself on not having to care about them. Now? Now I was feeling them, and I didn't like it.

The stars above blurred as my focus narrowed to a single thought—just a little more, just a little smaller, just enough.

Then, with a sudden rush, my body breached the planet's atmosphere.

Heat slammed into me like a wall, flames licking at my skin as the friction of my entry ignited around me. The fire coiled over my body, wrapping me in a searing embrace, but it did nothing to ease the discomfort I felt from my forced compression. If anything, it just made everything worse.

I let out a slow, controlled breath. "Well, isn't this just delightful?"

Not that I was worried about burning up—please. I could fly through stars and come out with nothing but a slight tan. But this whole process? The shrinking, the straining, the sheer effort of forcing myself into a size that wouldn't reduce the planet to dust under my weight?

It was annoying.

I had never needed to be this small before. Never wanted to be.

The universe was vast, filled with tiny little things scurrying about their tiny little lives. I'd never cared for them. Never crushed them for fun like some of my kind, but also never found them interesting. I'd always been indifferent—careful only because it was easier than dealing with the inconvenience of wiping out a potential resource.

But now?

Now I was doing all of this—shrinking, straining, suffering—for one of them.

And I wasn't even mad about it.

The fire around me faded as I broke through the last layer of the atmosphere, the cold planetary air rushing in to replace the heat. It whipped against my skin, a sharp contrast that sent an involuntary shiver down my spine.

And then—finally—my body reached its limit.

I could feel it, the undeniable stop, the point where I physically could not shrink any further without risking something... breaking.

I let out a shaky exhale, forcing my muscles to relax.

"This'll have to do," I murmured to myself, voice barely above a whisper.

Gravity caught me like a lover, pulling me downward.

Falling now, fast and inevitable, I stared at the rapidly approaching ground. A quiet thought nestled itself into the back of my mind—

I really hope this is small enough.

Because if it wasn't?

Well.

I'd be making one hell of an entrance.

***

(Somewhere in the planet Below) 

The Worst (or Best?) Day of My Life

"Don't ever come back, you hear?!"

SLAM.

The door to Crumble's Sandwich Haven—which was a garbage name, by the way—shut right in my face. I barely had time to flinch before I heard the deadbolt slide into place.

"Mr. Crumble, come on! I swear, I didn't mean it!" I shouted, knocking on the glass.

Nothing.

I sighed, rubbing a hand down my face before turning away. Fine. Whatever. Not like that job was gonna make me rich, anyway.

The real pain wasn't losing my paycheck—it was knowing that my dear, departed mother was probably rolling around in her grave right now, muttering something like, "Scott, you dumbass, you can't keep a job for more than a week?!"

I dropped onto the nearest bench on the sidewalk and ran my fingers through my already-messy black hair.

"Great job, Scott," I muttered to myself. "Lost another one."

It wasn't my fault. Not really.

That dumbass customer had asked for it. I'd tried—really tried—to keep my cool, to just let it go. But the guy kept running his mouth, acting like I was some pushover. And then, he had the nerve to call me a coward when I told him to leave?

Yeah. No. He earned that punch to the face.

Maybe I could've handled it better. I wasn't the same hot-headed punk I used to be when I was younger, but damn if I didn't still struggle with keeping my temper in check.

I sighed and leaned back against the bench, staring up at the sky.

What now?

And that's when it happened.

A weird bubbling sensation bloomed in my chest, like some kind of warmth spreading through me. It wasn't pain—not like a heart attack or indigestion from a bad sandwich. No, this felt... good. Too good.

Like, "greatest high of my life" good.

My whole body felt weirdly light, like I could float right off the ground. My legs turned to jelly, my fingertips tingled, and—

BOOM.

The earth lurched beneath me.

I yelped as the bench tipped over, sending me crashing onto the sidewalk. Around me, the whole damn city shook like it had just been sucker-punched by God himself.

Buildings trembled. Car alarms blared. Storefront windows rattled violently. People screamed as the pavement split open in jagged cracks, swallowing parking meters and sending debris flying.

I barely managed to roll onto my hands and knees, my pulse hammering in my ears.

"What the hell?!"

Another quake hit, even stronger than the first. A streetlamp toppled over, smashing into the hood of a nearby car. Tires screeched as drivers lost control, their vehicles colliding with each other like a domino effect.

Somewhere in the chaos, I heard someone yelling, "Is it an earthquake?!"

No.

No, this felt different.

I clutched my chest, my fingers digging into my shirt as the warmth inside me pulsed again. The intensity of it faded just a little, but it was still there, like a tether pulling me toward something.

Or...

I gulped down a shaky breath, trying to ignore the lingering buzz running through my body.

"Okay. Okay, what the hell is happening to me?"

And, more importantly—

What the hell was happening to the city?