ARCEUS PENDRAGON

Two years had passed since I read that guide for Ascendants. The curiosity and yearning to become an Ascendant grew inside me, until one day I could no longer contain myself.

— Mom, can you teach me how to become an Ascendant?

Mom observed the excitement in my eyes and, after a moment of reflection, responded with another question: — What talent do you think is the most necessary to learn?

I meditated for an instant. The question was subjective, but after considering several options, I responded:

— Effort, knowledge is so vast that one cannot expect to learn everything in a lifetime. That's why effort is crucial.

My mother smiled with a touch of mischief and responded:

— Money. You would need to buy many books to learn, even if just a little.

I couldn't help but laugh at my mother's unexpected response. I pouted and asked:

— If it's not effort, nor knowledge, nor money, then what talent is needed most to become an Ascendant?

Adelaide, adopting a more serious tone, finally revealed:

— The most important talent to become an Ascendant is perspicacity, more simply known as perception.

— What is perception? —I inquired, intrigued.

— Intuition is more precise than knowledge and faster than effort —explained my mother with a kind voice—. All skills that exist in the world began with an intuition. Let me give you an example. Do you know how much one plus one is?

— Of course they are two —I responded without hesitation.

— I see. Can you explain to me why one plus one equals two?

I hesitated for a moment, my initial confidence slightly diminished. — Because if you add 1+1 it results in two, right?

Adelaide nodded.

— That's right. However, that strange sensation you are experiencing now is a revelation. Long ago, there was a moment in history when it was not known that one plus one equals two. But it has been demonstrated with much combined knowledge and effort. But don't we now perfectly understand that one plus one equals two, without going through that process?

I nodded, beginning to understand my mother's point.

— Skills are not a phenomenon that arises from nothing. It's like when you know the answer is two, even when you didn't know that one plus one equals two. The way someone puts effort and knowledge to find out, and the way someone can come to understand it and realizes it naturally. Therefore, intuition is the fastest way to understand the rules that govern our world.

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She paused, allowing her words to settle in my mind.

— Intuition is not something that can be acquired with a snap of the fingers. The reason why one plus one is two is because scholars have demonstrated it over many years. Of course, there are cases where someone can realize the correct answer without going through that process. Those people I would call... geniuses.

— Geniuses... —I murmured to myself, savoring the word.

— I am sure I am not mistaken —she continued—. Every living being was born with talent and, if perfected, anyone can become a genius.

I reflected on my mother's words. Was it really true that anyone could be a genius?

Adelaide, noticing my thoughtful expression, decided to share a deeper perspective, — You know, my son —she began, her voice seeming to pierce through the walls of the house, getting lost in the infinite—, what we are today is nothing more than stardust. The earth you walk on, the nitrogen in our DNA, the iron in your blood, the calcium in your teeth, the carbon inside you and me, were born inside the core of stars. When these stars explode in a supernova, they release into space the elements formed within them. Over time, the elements clump together to form new stars, planets, and other celestial bodies. Every time we look at the night sky, we contemplate a fragment of our own history. All the elements that compose us were created in the heart of stars that shone long before the world existed. What you are and what you touch, is stellar matter, we are essentially... Children of the stars.

My mother's words opened a new world to me. A lump formed in my throat and for a moment, I felt overwhelmed by the magnitude of what I had just heard. The idea that every atom of my being had been forged in the heart of a star made me feel both insignificant and transcendental.

After a moment of contemplative silence, I formulated the question burning in my mind:

— So, how can I become an Ascendant?

My mother smiled at my enthusiasm. — To become an Ascendant, the user's consciousness must match and resonate with the world. A deep mental state, for example.

— What is a deep mental state? —I asked as a child my age would.

— When the individual concentrates, their mind becomes deep enough to perceive everything around them. We Ascendants call this the «Awakening Zone». At the moment they enter the awakening zone, the individual can perceive the outside world with extrasensory perception, being able to see beyond what the eyes can see.

— Can I do it too?

— Anyone can do it.

Glimpsing the Awakening Horizon was something everyone could do, but at the same time, not everyone could enter. Many remained at the door, unable to take the final step.

— First you have to feel yourself and then let it go —explained my mother—. If that happens, a different world will open. Do you understand what I'm saying?

— Okay —I responded, closing my eyes to concentrate.

At that moment, I faced a fundamental question: How much did I really know about myself? Who was I really? I realized for the first time how difficult it was to clearly define myself. There was too much of me to summarize, and none of it was precise.

«I, what am I really?»

At that instant, I felt that a very simple truth was emerging like a fish in crystalline waters. A mental state in synchrony, my mother's previous statement was terribly accurate.

I realized that I did not know the world beyond my brain. The concept of the brain, the truth was that all the senses and realities I saw were actually arbitrary and incomplete. There was no absolute reality, reality was linked to perception and, therefore, was part of each person's inner world.

I understood that there was no need to define it, only to feel it. Only an acute mind would remain. Instead of trying to define myself, I erased everything I believed myself to be. Because if I erased it like that, in the end nothing would remain. And finally, even my thoughts disappeared.

Suddenly, my eyes opened wide.