The Celestial Forge

By: Schin Ka’Tharos

CHAPTER 9

(Part 1)

To remain unmoving.

I made my way through the garden and once again found myself standing in the glow of the Falling Jade tree. While not the only tree with sacred fruit in the gardens and certainly not the rarest, its properties were exactly what I needed.

The fruit of Falling Jade Tree is highly sought after throughout the five continents. All four branches of the Blacksmith Guild prize it for its many applications, even the Artificers have their uses for it. However, the fruits most simple and straightforward use, the one most Forgers seek it out for, is its innate ability to exponentially reduce the time it takes to assimilate and process Celestial Rain.

From my robes I pulled out the small folded cloth that I had taken with me from the tower and unfolded it to reveal the piece of Celestial Rain that Uncle had brought out from the necklace. I was eager to consume it to finally increase my Magus advancement and truly start down my path. It had taken me years just to advance from the 1st Apprentice to the 2nd Apprentice and I had been stuck there for over six years without coming close to the next advancement. I had hoped that this might take me all the way past the 5th Apprentice and into the Disciple stage despite how small it was. I had heard of Forgers even skipping the Disciple stageventirely upon eating a high enough tiered Celestial Rain. While I tried to control my rising hopes, I knew that anything my grandfather had given me would be remarkable.

Stolen novel; please report.

I plucked the largest Falling Jade Fruit that I could find and sat down, one hand glowed a slight green from the fruit, the other a golden radiance from the Rain.

First I ate the fruit. Once a Falling Jade fruit is plucked from the tree its potency slowly decays unless specific measures are taken to preserve it. A few minutes wouldn’t make much of a difference but I wanted to make sure I got all the benefit from it that I could. Like taking a drink from a mountain spring, the fruit chilled my mouth and sent a refreshing sensation trickling throughout my body.

I held up the Celestial Rain and realized it was smaller than I had originally thought. It amazed me how such a small amount could hold such power and potential. I activated my natural flame and started soulfourging according to the Heart of the Five Foundations, the technique my grandfather had taught me specifically for assimilating Celestial Rain.

Then, I ate the small piece of the heavenly manna in its entirety.

At first I felt no change but as the manna settled within me a deep pool of essence burst to life. I began soulforging the essence immediately. If you consume celestial rain without soulforging it in some manner you will be consumed by it, and both body and soul will be obliterated.

I have spoken to many Elders and Forgers of all ranks over the years and each one had different experiences in assimilating Celestial Rain. For me in that garden, it was like trying to wrestle a water drake in the middle of a tsunami. It is my belief that this was in part due to the purity of the Celestial Rain that I consumed, the potency of the Falling Jade fruit, and the state of my will and desires. Depending on many factors, for most, assimilation takes months if not years to complete in full, albeit usually gaining around a third of the manna shards potential within the first few hours.

I was not on that path. The celestial essence ravaged me and melded into me at an unmanageable rate. Within the first moments I went from 2nd to 5th Apprentice, my soulcores shell hardening and gaining three new layers and my final three flowline systems in my body opened up. I frantically soulforged the Heart of the Five Foundations now through all five flowlines. I forged the essence through a series of tempering and quenching then folded it into a web and then pushed them throughout my body's now fully opened system. I began to feel a semblance of control over the assimilation and began approaching 1st Disciple at a fast pace.

A chorus of feral screams tore through the quiet in the garden and I instantly recognized my blunder.

Next Chapter...

Chapter 9: To Remain Unmoving (Part 2)