The Celestial Forge
By: Schin Ka’Tharos
CHAPTER 7
(Part 1)
Often the truth holds a darkness, while sometimes in darkness you can find truth.
~
Uncle handed me the object and I began to wonder if it was indeed a box at all. There were no seams or openings and the surface on all sides was so smooth I found it hard to grasp.
“Your grandfather told me he provided you what was needed to open this.”
I immediately thought of the necklace grandfather had given me, I pulled it out and held it up with an expectant look at my uncle. A small smile played at the corners of his mouth. He held out his hand and I placed the dull yellow necklace in his palm.
“I'm sorry, I was unclear.” he said as he looked down into his hand. “Your grandfather said he taught you a technique that you can use to open the box when the time came. This, this here is something else...” He trailed off and got lost in his thoughts for a moment before his gaze fell back to me..
“But first, the technique” and it was his turn to stare expectantly.
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My grandfather had taught me a handful of Forger techniques while under his tutelage. Each of them were varied in purpose and had all struck me as unremarkable or obscure. The only one that I guessed could have any application for opening the object that I held was the Ten Skys Armament.
I began to SoulForge what little essence I could manage and my eyes lit up in a yellow glow like two candles flickering to life as I ignited the Natural Flame within me. I split my will into two parts, one half, the part connected to my soul, I strengthened into a form not unlike an anvil. I opened my essence to the Natural Flame and with the other part of my will I formed and shaped the Celestial essence which I had stored within me, hammering the essence against my hardened will of the soul.
Fatigue of my will set in immediately as I forged the burning Celestial essence within me into a decagon shape. Celestial essence was exponentially easier to shape than Arcane essence but I still found it difficult. I pushed against the Natural flame, trying to keep it under control and stopping it from consuming the essence completely, instead using it help the forging process. I then built upon the simple decagon shape increasing my mental efforts until I added tetrahedron layers upon the original form. The newly forged essence spun wildly within me and it took all my effort to hold its structure for a half second before I poured it into the thin purple item in my hands.
The Ten Skys Armament technique grew with the level of the Forger and would increase in complexity and intricacies and demand a higher level of control and skill the more I advanced. It was the most complicated technique I knew and even this iteration of its Forging patterns had worn my will down nearly completely and stretched my current limits.
When the technique entered the box the top opened like a flower in bloom. Within the box side by side lay two crescent moon shaped half rings both a little too big to be bracelets. They faced each other and together formed a shape like an oval on its side which had been pinched in its middle. One was bone white speckled with light blue and silver lights and the other was a red so dark it seemed like black ink with an odd crimson sheen when light caught it at the right angle.
I had no idea what the two items were but I could feel their significance weigh heavy in the air. I went to pick them up but when I touched the light colored one I realized it was broken in half right through its middle like it was snapped like a twig. I inspected its red twin and it seemed to be intact.
Uncle picked up the broken pieces of the white crescent. “I had feared this.”
Next Chapter...
Chapter 7: Often The Truth Holds A Darkness (Part 2)