Max looked over everyone gathered before him as their vows gave way to roars and cheers that shook the crystal walls of the throne room. More than anything, he wished he could feel his heart racing with the same pride and excitement shining across their faces.
Yet his void heart did not react.
The voices of his people reached him, and he understood the weight of what had just happened, but none of it awakened the emotions that should have been burning inside him. He had witnessed the beginning of a new age for Voidstar, yet the heart within his chest remained silent.
Max slowly closed his eyes and sank into meditation, allowing his endlessly hungry void heart to absorb a thin current of ambient mana from the air. He felt the energy entering his body before disappearing into its depths, leaving behind no warmth, satisfaction or sense of fullness. No matter how much the heart consumed, everything simply vanished as though swallowed by a true void.
