Challenge of Crafting: Completed
For submitting an Apprentice ranked ritual, rewards are maximized.
For reaching temporary enlightenment, and achieving a secondary quest, bonus rewards are maximized.
Rewards:
A Glint of Truth
An invitation to the next Crafting Event in your Sector.
100,000 UC
A choice of the following: Culviation Manual from a Ritualist, Elemental Enlightenment, or Tools that combine your two crafts in a new way.
Mathew looked over his reward choices. He was far more than satisfied with the first three, but a bonus reward ontop? That was fantastic.
There were two he was drawn to. The first reward, with the cultivation manual, was not something he wanted. He looked at rituals as a hobby more than a real path. Contracts were something he was now understanding the full limits of. He also needed the [Trinity Manual]. It is the only way Mathew’s soul won’t collapse on itself. If the new manual put too much strain on his soul, or didn’t help strengthen it, then it was useless.
The tools were intriguing. He assumed The System was referring to his Rituals and Contracts as his ‘crafts’. Mathew had yet to look at Contracts as a craft, but now that he thought about it, it made sense. He would have to look into that mindset further down the road.
As for Elemental Enlightenment, Mathew knew that The System was offering him aid in completely yet another quest. So far he has completed two of his Class Quests, with the Transposition ritual completing the most recent one. The fact he had done two within the World Quest was more than he could have expected.
The road to Student was long. He would need to reach Level 110 before the full requirements were made known to him. That was, unless he acquired the information another way. It was an easy assumption that completing your class quests was part of those requirements.
Yet, was it normal to complete them this fast? Mathew was skeptical. The System was the one who gave him [Doozkora’s Rod]. It was also the same source of many of his accomplishments. Pushing him further and stronger.
“Another question to ask someone with information. Maybe I can twist Gaia’s arm as answers being part of my ‘bonus reward’ for her quest.”
Now Mathew had the ultimate question to ask himself: whether or not he got to choose the element. He had already picked ice and fire as options. Will the third one mesh well with those two choices?
Mathew was stuck, but he didn’t have time to choose. There wasn’t an obvious timer, but he felt as if he was being watched. Someone, or something, observing him. “Is it The System? A God? Doozkora? Gaia?”
He sighed heavily, and selected the Elemental Enlightenment option. As he did so, the room around him faded away.
Mathew found himself floating through space. Stars dotted all around him, moving. It was obvious he was the one actually moving.
Yet Mathew didn’t know where he was going. His speed didn’t seem to increase nor decrease as dots of stars whizzed past him. It actually took him a moment to realize he was in space, breathing and alive.
“Either I’m not here physically, or The System is protecting me.”
Just as with his other two visions, he was not there physically, so that was probably the answer. Mathew then realized he had no clue what sort of Axiom he would get. “Do I even want another one? What if I use this to improve the other four?”
HIs verbal musings went unanswered. Mathew didn’t have time to think on that as a planet came into view. He didn’t have a good way to scale the planet, but he assumed it was larger than Earth. Far larger.
The planet itself was barren. Just filled with green dirt. As Mathew got closer, he realized that the entire face of it was oddly smooth. Flat even.
He entered the planet's atmosphere, and now Mathew was positive. The ground was flat. Yet there were divots in the ground. Gouges where something charged huge ravines into its surface.
There were hundreds of these wounds on the planet. Yet, it was still smooth and flat on top. Mathew paused in the air, thousands of feet above the ground. There was a platform where he floated to. A single prayer mat was there.
Mathew moved to it and kneeled onto it. “Just what are you trying to show me? The scars of a battle? A creature that can shape the earth? Is this my Elemental Enlightenment?”
There was no answer. Mathew looked down at the ground. His eyes were frozen, unable to look away. “No way…”
The markings upon the planet's surface started to form symbols. He could reconize some of them. Not letters or words, but something beyond that.
Mathew felt a heavy presence of order here. As if everything was perfect. Nothing was out of place. It all had a rhyme or reason. It was a contract. A giant planet sized contract.
The symbols held meaning that anyone could understand if they looked at it long enough. Each carving into the planet held both power and precision. They were made with purpose.
All Mathew could gain from his attempt at deciphering the symbols was this was an agreement between two factions. Or perhaps families? Brothers? Sister? Mathew started to dwell too long on that one symbol before he shook his head to refocus.
Whoever made this was a master of contracts. Far from what Mathew could do. This was like comparing Picaso to caveman art. Comparing the sun to a candle light. Mathew’s contracts were but flimsy agreements between friends compared to this.
There was no way Mathew was supposed to read the entire thing in a reasonable amount of time. Yet, the aspect of the area was what he wanted to internalize. There was structure here. Order. Nothing existed without purpose.
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Every marking on the planet, down to the planet itself was done with intention. Mathew wanted to meet the person who created this, to learn from them. However, all he could do was try to scrap together an inkling of an idea.
Then and there, Mathew was going to create a new Axiom. There was a method to his madness. His own Axiom of Enforce resonated with this area. However, only part of it. The parts that were not resonating was what Mathew would take and mimic.
Mathew closed his eyes and focused. For once, he could bring up his own past and history to help him. Years of lawschool and living with parents who worked in law and politics gave him an understanding of laws.
Laws were intended to be the line drawn in the sand where society agreed on what was allowed and now allowed. What you can and can’t do. There was no gray middle ground on ‘well what if’.
Now, there were clauses to those laws to give them shape. To take that straight line and make it dance back and forth over what was black and white.
If Mathew were to take his Enforce Axiom and apply it to his contracts or rituals, what they were physically would be enhanced. That’s what resonated with him here. The planet, the air, the weather, all of it was to improve and protect this contract.
The other side, the intent, the mental and soul side was where Mathew was drawing from. He wasn’t wrong in trying to use that Axiom on his rituals. If anything he was more than right. It was his lack in capabilities that prevented him from using it to it’s full intent.
Glints were just the starting point for the real truths in the universe. Mathew was looking at one here and now. All of the visions he had in the past were small parts of a whole.
Mathew’s mind went to biblical lessons. The Ten Commandments. Growing up in a religious household ensured he was no stranger to this story.
Moses climbed ontop of a mountain, and spoke to God. There, ten laws that all Christians were to follow. There was no gray line. No ‘what if’. The Word of God was all there was. To go against them, was to go against him.
Mathew’s laws would rival those. His own contracts will one day be able to control. To ensure nobody could betray him. The words Mathew wrote would become the scripts followed by those who failed to uphold his rules. Not even himself could go against those rules.
Restricting the flow of power to further Enforce it. Like the nozzle on a hose, Mathew would use his rituals to command mana to his own desires. There would be nothing to stop him once he learned to fully be in control.
Energy that was once flooding through Mathew slowly waned and rushed toward his mind. The power pooled into a larger pool and a new one separately.
He faded back into the room where he had been the last four days, but he didn’t leave yet. There was one more reward to be given to him.
Blue eyes remained closed as Mathew took a deep breath. The smell of ozone filled his nose.
“Hey Boss? I know you’ve been standing there for a minute or so, but the ceiling is gone and replaced with clouds. What kind of rewards did we get?” Agnox’s voice almost disrupted Mathew’s trance, but he stayed focused.
Lightning struck down and blasted Mathew. Electricity flowed through his entire body. Pain was all Mathew could feel. This was not what he was expecting. More visions, or perhaps fruit. Instead, he felt his hair burn to a crisp. His clothes were mostly fine however.
Collapsing to the ground in a heave, Mathew realized every part of his body was in pain. His skin was cherry red, his nails were gone, and he couldn’t hear a thing other than the echo of breathing from his own lungs.
Deeper, Mathew felt a piece of his lightning attach itself to his soul. He was familiar with every ache and pain his soul caused, and a new one did not go unnoticed.
“Fuck!” Mathew cried out, his voice wheezing as his vocal cords were also ruined.
Agnox ran over and pulled out a viscous yellow liquid. He instantly poured it over Mathew’s head and chest. It was a potion for burns. One of the only two brought with them.
Mathew sulked in his wounds. He was exhausted. Mentally, Spirtiually, and now Physically. He wanted nothing but a glass of wine and to sleep. Then he remembered that there was no wine, or any alcohol, for any rank above ‘Earthly’. The unofficial rank below Novice.
He remained seated, as the visciuous potion did it’s job to heal his burns. “Never honestly thought I would need to use that potion.”
Agnox nodded, “For someone who prepares a lot, you sure do take risks.”
“Calculated risks Agnox. All of them were calculated. Even if it’s only a moment's worth, I do brash things because I know, right now, Earth is volatile. There is contant change. I need to stay ahead.”
“Hmmm, if you say so. So, what’s your calculated plan now?”
Mathew rolled his eyes. “Rest. Recover. Go over my rewards and meditate. I need to finish understanding the vision I saw. I have a new Axiom, but it’s different than the others. I wasn’t in control the whole time. I felt as if I was given it, rather than understanding it.”
“That’s possible? Be given an Axiom?”
“You don’t know what I saw. It was a contract between two entities. The entire area felt like pure order. I can’t being to describe it. However, there were emotions tied to it. Absolute tyranny. Someone who controlled everything made that thing. His emotions seeped into mine for a moment there.”
“Or my own desires came out…” Mathew thought to himself. “Either way, I need rest. You are going back to being Unsummoned by the way.”
“Fine fine. I can continue being bored and useless.”
Mathew replied by unsummoning his familiar. “Come on Jeffery, let’s get out of here. I’m sure Beth will be excited to see I made it out. I’ll have to lie about my rewards however.”
A portal had been sitting in the corner waiting for Mathew to leave. He walked through and his eyes adjusted to the light. He saw everyone was sitting down, and either tied up or had a weapon aimed at them.
The area was quiet except for a single booming voice. “-and your daughter. Come alone or I start killing people one at a time. Your life, or theirs. Deliver that message, the longer you take the more people die because of you and not that fucking murderer!”