Red is an easy target. Passion, fury, revenge. Red walked the path of blood and claimed destiny as its own. Red demanded of the people as a tyrant does, as a slaver. Quick to anger. Orange was no match for Red, and while Blue looked away, Red laid waste to Orange’s dominion. People forget that Red was also quick to love. Red built more than all other Color Gods combined, and it is without doubt, that Red laid the foundation of modern society—built civilization from anarchy.
– Valyra Twice, secondborn of the first Twice tyrant, Book of Twice
Chapter 24 – The Third Trial
The massive door groaned on its ancient hinges as Toki slipped into Kristina’s library. A peculiar melody drifted through the air—a whimsical tune that seemed to dance among the towering shelves like an audacious meadow melon sprite. Toki paused, her eyes widening slightly at the sight that greeted her. Kristina, known for the poised gravity of her words, was singing.
A broom in hand, the spider swayed with an unexpected grace, her movements fluid and carefree, like a playful breeze after a storm. Dust motes pirouetted in the torchlight, accompanying her song. The echo of her voice was soft but clear, reverberating off the ancient walls and bookshelves lined with vellum tomes that held countless secrets.
Toki's gaze lingered, caught between fascination and the pressing urgency that clawed at her chest. She had never expected this side to Kristina—the philosopher spider queen—engaged in such an ordinary task with what could only be described as joyous abandon.
Edgar, unconscious and slung over her shoulder, shifted and reminded Toki of why she was here. With a reluctant pull away from the mesmerizing scene, Toki stepped forward, her boots echoing softly against the stone floor. She stretched out her hand, fingers grazing the entryway gate. With a decisive push, the gate clanged shut, the sound slicing through the air and severing the melody that had filled the room moments before.
The spider ceased her tune, the abrupt end hanging unfinished, like a promise unkept. Silence fell—the books themselves were leaning in, awaiting the spider's response.
"Kristina," Toki called, her voice steady.
The spider turned, her multitude of eyes catching the dim light, betraying none of the surprise one might expect. Kristina regarded Toki with an inscrutable gaze, the previous serenity of her face giving way to the familiar mask of composure. The atmosphere, once lightened by song, grew dense with anticipation.
"Tokyo, love," Kristina finally spoke, her tone calm as ever but layered with an unspoken query. "What shadow looms behind your eyes?"
Toki's fingers trembled as she tenderly lowered Edgar to the cold, marble floor of the library. "Kristina, please, you must save him."
The arachnid, Kristina, moved with an unsettling grace, skittering closer to Toki and the prone figure of Edgar. The chains that bound her clinked softly. As she reached out with one delicate, shimmering leg, the chain pulled taut, halting her advance. A low hiss of frustration escaped from her ethereal form. "Bring him near," she commanded.
With a nod, Toki picked Edgar's limp body and moved him closer. She watched, heart pounding in her chest, as Kristina inclined her head over Edgar, examining him with all her eyes and circling him. One of the spider legs, covered in mana, prodded, but then retracted.
"How curious… his bloodline... has stirred," Kristina murmured, more to herself than to Toki. The air grew thick with unspoken implications. Her many eyes lifted to meet Toki's gaze, piercing and sharp. "What have you done to him?"
Toki's breath caught, a knot of fear forming in her stomach. She had hoped for answers, not more riddles. Yet, in Kristina's presence, all truth seemed veiled.
Toki recounted the tale of Edgar's plight. "We were ambushed while fighting the cow crabs…," she began, her words wrapped in the gravity of remembrance. "…Edgar... we fought bravely, but people are down here to hunt us…" She swallowed hard, the memory casting a pall over her features. Toki explained the circumstances of the mana-borne injury. Finally she recalled her desperate attempt at healing him, "…In desperation, I fed him a [Minor Manabreak Phoenix Tincture]—the elixir was meant to heal him, at least that’s what the system said."
Kristina's multitude of eyes remained fixed upon Toki, reflecting the flickering torchlight. With each nod, Toki felt her absorbing her story itself, every nuance of the tale.
"Continue," Kristina urged, her voice a susurrus echoing through the chamber.
“That’s it.”
“Hmmmm. Never trust the system text, love.”
Kristina's form seemed to ripple, as if the air around her teemed with unseen currents. "The phoenix tincture is not merely for healing; it's meant for rebirth. For breakthroughs," she intoned. "When his projection perished, Edgar must have met the criteria for the phoenix tincture to mutate his bloodline. I suppose he is avian, after all. A forceful awakening is on the rare chance possible. Quite perilous in this case—that he was already wounded."
Uncertainty gnawed at Toki's resolve, her gaze locked on Edgar's still form. "Did I save him?" she murmured, the question laden with a heavy dread. "Or did I kill him?"
"Such alchemical gambits are double-edged," Kristina replied, her tone devoid of judgment yet fraught with implications. "Your intentions were pure, but the outcome remains shrouded. If he dies, you have only sped along his demise, but perhaps you have changed his fate with this gambit. He is on a precipice, but the rest is up to him." Her otherworldly visage conveyed both empathy and an inscrutable distance.
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“Can you help him!? I’ll do anything!”
The echo of Toki's plea had barely faded when Kristina’s voice, filled the chamber. "I will lend my aid to Edgar, love," she said, her eyes moving from Edgar to Toki, "but only under one condition."
Toki did not pause to consider the weight of any condition that might be set before her. "Anything," she breathed, the word escaping her mouth.
A subtle tilt indicated Kristina's stance, a silent testament to her surprise at the readiness in Toki's vow. She nodded once, approval radiating from her. "Very well. You will take my trials," Kristina chittered, her voice carrying the faintest hint of satisfaction.
“Done.”
"Before us lies the third trial," Kristina began, her tone shifting to one of instruction, as though she were imparting arcane secrets to an acolyte. "It is entwined with your bloodline, Tokyo Twice, and it shall test the mettle of your resolve."
Confusion knit Toki's brows together, marring her otherwise determined expression. "Third?" she echoed. "Have I already completed the first and second?"
"Ah, but you have, love," Kristina asserted, the corners of her mouth curling into an enigmatic smile. "Escaping my illusion was your maiden trial—refusing my trial was a cherry." Her words forced Toki to recall the disorienting enchanting session. “That you have your own path is precisely why the second trial was so important.”
"And the second?" Toki pressed.
Kristina's gaze roamed over Toki's form, assessing, appraising. "Red looks good on you," she stated simply, the cryptic phrase heavy with unspoken meaning.
A shiver crawled up Toki's spine, the chill of comprehension nipping at her senses. Red—the color of blood, of fire, of passion—it had marked her path in ways she had yet to fully grasp. The trials, it seemed, were as much about self-discovery as they were tests.
"Retrieve the lizard's core," Kristina continued, outlining the task ahead. "Should you succeed, not only will you have proven your worth, but you may also find the means to tip the scales in Edgar's favor."
"His life for a lizard's core," Toki murmured.
“No darling. His life will depend on what you can learn from that core and what you can learn about yourself.”
With those words, a foreboding silence fell upon the library.
Toki's gaze did not waver as Kristina’s slender legs started weaving strands of thread that shimmered with a ghostly luminescence. The web took form around Edgar, encasing him within a spectral cocoon that pulsed faintly, as if echoing the fragile beat of his heart. With meticulous care, the spider lifted her creation, and the chrysalis swayed gently from the crystals of the chandelier.
"Will he be safe there?" Toki's voice cut through the quiet, roughened by the edges of her worry.
"Safer than in the jaws of death," Kristina replied.
“Then what’s the trial?”
“The jaws of death.”
“Hmph. Details, Kristina.”
“The monkeys will not be easy opponents like those humans. Show me the skills you have learned.”
Toki assumed Kristina was referring to her newest abilities, so she pulled up the system listing and projected it for Kristina to see.
[Lessons, Dearly Departed]
[Chronicle Cascade]
“Hmmm… OH… Oh my! Were both skills Ascendant?”
“Just [Chronicle Cascade].”
”Hmph. The system was always impartial to you Twice. Perhaps it is because you grasped an edge of such a complex Dao, that the skill is so overwhelming. This [Chronicle Cascade] is quite marvelous as well. Have you used it yet?”
“No. I haven’t collected enough fragments.”
“A shame. This is quite an opportunity for you. Especially as a mortal.”
“Why?”
“Because Dao-seeds are hard to acquire. Perhaps… perhaps you could acquire a second Ascendant skill.”
“By collecting Dao-seeds?”
“By merging Dao-seeds and mutating them. Do you know why becoming an [Elite] is so important as a mortal?”
“No. I didn’t know about [Elite]s until I became one.”
“That damned spirit has ruined this planet attempting perfection… across the galaxy, you will find people hovering at 50-cap to accomplish several feats.” Kristina paused, “The first is to become an [Elite]. It is one of the few ways to acquire an ascendant skill. Having one is the easiest foundation and often comes with plenty of other benefits. It sets you up for a powerful transcension into stage-one. An evolution some call it, because it refines your path.”
Toki nodded her head, aware of how much her skills had added to her combat ability and enchanting.
“The second is to form a Dao-Bound skill.”
“I still haven’t formed mine, but I can use my fire.”
“Love, that is not using it, but it is too soon to be frustrated. Many of this world have it easy because of the Spearbreaker, but across integrated space, you must find your Dao-Bound skill with great effort.”
“Why?”
“The why does not matter, love. But the implications do. If you proceed upwards without it, you will no longer be able to compete for the grand tapestry. Like physical wavefunctions, such as electrons, your Dao-Bound skill has orbitals.”
“…”
“I suppose science was lost to the civilization above as well? At the mortal level, you have a single (s)-Dao-Bound slot. If you proceed to stage-one, you have three (p)-excitations for that ability, either manifesting as a new ability altogether or an adaptation. If you skip your opportunity at the mortal level, you have to fill it at stage-one.”
“It wasn’t lost. And that means if you don’t fill your Dao-Bound slots, you have to make up for them in the next stage?”
“Yes and no. Acquiring the third (p)-excitation is challenging, and so is the fourth and fifth (d)-excitation. Some skip them altogether. But it is too early for you to think about this.
“Hmmm, ok. Why are you telling me this now?”
“Why; we have karma now, love. Don’t we?”
Toki shuddered.
“The third is to form as many Dao Seeds as possible. Also less meaningful after the first. Many are unable to grasp a concept that resonates with their own Dao until stage-one. For this, you are lucky, Tokyo. Your ascendant skill is exceptional in that you can force many Dao seeds, and then mutate them to fit your path.”
“Why don’t I already have the Dao of Fire or Hammer? Why was Sentience my first?"
"Dao seeds are the quintessence of being, unique to each soul that takes breath in the infinite expanse of creation. To wield them is to converse with the ancient rhythms of the universe itself and to be true to yourself. Perhaps you are still following another’s path?"
Toki mused, a flicker of frustration igniting within her.
"As for fire, you hold your flame with the innocence of a novice. Your hammer... it resonates with echoes of those who came before."
“Hmmm. I see. But what’s the point of the Dao-Seed in the first place? What do I even do with it?”
“Perhaps you will find out when you learn your Dao-Bound ability. Enough chitter-chat. Be quick. The lizards should be arriving in orbit soon.”
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