Akamori stood in the aetheric construct, awestruck at what he saw. “Well… I always wanted to travel…” Before him lay a path. He wasn’t sure if he should follow it or not, but since he couldn’t see anything distinct beyond a certain distance, it felt like a good idea to follow the course laid out. But who laid the course for him? Was he in control? Or was someone else just presenting him a false choice? This didn’t exactly come with a lot of guidance. Just a “good luck chap” and a pat on the ass to send him on his way, hoping not to get fried by the air mother.
“I think too much…” He complained quietly. His voice had a surreal echo here, and it made him chuckle slightly. A terrible choice was better than no choice at all, he figured. With an annoyed sigh, grumbling about his luck as he stepped off, following the path. As he walked, he shivered, feeling a sudden cold. His mind tingled, and his body felt like it was waking up after being numb. He hated that prickly feeling. A quick glance down and he realized why. Aetheric energy was pulsing from the ground of the plane into him and washing over him.
He knew little about magic and lacked training in its use beyond some of its basic concepts. If he had to guess, he was absorbing it. He watched as white motes of energy swirled around him, phasing in and out of his body. It was beautiful in a surreal way. They floated like translucent snowflakes of light that melted into his skin. The motes of energy followed him, and his movements. He slowly waved his hand, and aetheric afterimages of his hand traced by the motes left him almost disoriented. It made him wonder if this was what hallucinogenic drugs were like that some priests used.
Movement quickly became an ordeal, with it feeling as though he were moving through knee high mud. Still, he pressed forward, straining with each step. He grunted with the exertion, building into a strained growl. He would not let this world hold him back. There was a distinct pull in his chest, a yearning to remain. But the prickly feeling in his body was a warning. He understood that at an instinctual level. If he remained, it would be his end.
“No,” he growled. This place was not his grave. There was much left he had to do yet. He knew that instinctively. He couldn’t explain how or why, much less the what he needed to do yet. Just the certainty that this isn’t where he ended. So he pressed on. Determined to find his way out. As he did, he could progressively feel a resistance, like a wind. Pressing against him, making it more tempting to give up and stay.
He came to a halt facing himself, of all things. His doppelgänger looked at him, annoyed. Other Akamori folded his arms. “Why are you doing this? You didn’t even want to.”
That was a good question. Why was he doing this? Eventually settling on a shrug, he responded. “Because I felt like it.”
“No, you let them bully you into it. Always the dutiful son. But what about what you want or need? Has that ever been considered?”
“No. Why should it start now? This isn’t exactly the safest place to be going my own way.”
“This is exactly the time to go your own way!” Other Akamori hissed.
“Why?”
“Because. I’m tired. We do this every cycle. Some variation on the theme, sure, but the bullet points usually go something like a System threatening danger. Kill it. Rest. Come back. Rinse, wash, repeat. It’s getting tedious putting down ambitious gods and troublesome civilizations. They were supposed to keep the system stable so we could focus on the real problem. It’s exhausting.”
“Ok, I feel like you’re dumping a lot of important information on me here, but I’m gonna be honest. I got no clue what you’re on about.”
“System threatening danger? Kill what? Who is the real problem?”
Other Akamori pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh and shook his head, deciding against something. “Nevermind. We lack the time to properly explain it all. The bottom line is this. You always have a choice, and you’re allowed to say no.”
“A choice about what? You still haven’t really explained anything at all except for sounding vague and ominous. Either tell me what I need to know, or get out of my way. I’ve got places to be and gods to see.”
“So you’ve finally made your choice, then.” Other Akamori said, bowing his head and fading away into smoke.
“WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING?” He shouted into the surreal expanse, but there was no response. This place was so confusing. The wind picked up again, gusting so heavily it blew him off his feet. He fell back with a grunt and scrambled back to his feet, pushing against the wind and pressed forward.
Clenching his teeth, he held his arm out in front of him to shield his face from his hair, which whipped about wildly. Several times he felt himself waiver, and he flailed his arms for balance. Eventually he drew the sword his father had gifted him, stabbing its tip into the whatever the ground was. His body ached, and the prickly feeling had intensified to feeling like hot needles. And then, in an instant, it relented. Something seized him, and he could feel a loss of control. And then it all went white. It was like being disconnected from his body in every way his senses were accustomed to. Yet he was still conscious, still aware.
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“What is this?” he asked with no mouth, just a disembodied voice in the white void. “Am I dead?”
No. You have faced yourself and made the choice. A deep feminine draconic voice crooned to him. He’d never heard what a dragon sounded like, but instinctively knew this was it. Her words were alien, but he understood her language, his mind restructured the words into understandable English.
“What choice?”
To face the unbearable. To become more than what you are. To struggle to save all that matters.
“Can I even do that?”
Not as you are, no. But that is correctable. But first, you are due some context on why you’re here.
The white void slowly faded, resolving itself into a dragon wing gathering in space. They set the location in a large solar system between a planet and its twin moons. A super massive golden Amphiptere with white stripes that ran the length of its long slender wings, surrounded by younger amphipteres of varying types and colorings. He automatically understood that Amphipteres were long serpentine dragons with front legs that also doubled as wings. The largest was giving out assignments to its younger children. Like a noble giving land to his vassals.
Yesss. You are witnessing the apex of our Wings epic. These are her children. Look closely and you will see our Wing, and my mother issuing her last orders. A disembodied voice purred to him deeply.
“Your mother? The big one?”
Yesss. Anazzi. The Air goddess.
“Wait, so you’re not her?”
No. My instructions were to take my wing and travel far from the prime world. Away from Sauridius. We were to be the last if the worst came to pass.
“She sent you away just in case she fell.”
Yesss.
“So we’ve been praying to the wrong goddess?”
Not necessarily. I am linked to my mother, so a prayer to her through me is the same as a prayer to me. That is our covenant. I was not as powerful as mother, but powerful enough to impart a fraction of my strength to you and your riders over the centuries. Your coming, however, marks the beginning of a new epic.
“What? Why? I have so many questions.”
The memory continued playing during the conversation. Anazzi giving her blessing and a portion of her power to the smaller air dragons and then dispersing them. Akamori somehow understood where they were being sent and recognized the positions like a military troop deployment strategy. Akamori didn’t understand magic very well, but his father had ensured he understood swordsmanship and combat very well.
“She was deploying you to slow down and wear out Sauridius’ forces. To build time for some kind of ritual?”
Yesss. Mother sought to slow down her younger brother so she could cast a complex spell. One that has eventually brought you here.
“I don’t understand. Why me? She clearly beat him, didn’t she?”
Sauridius’ physical body was destroyed, but not his aetheric essence, and it was far more vast than the Wings realized. His return was inevitable. Stopping him then was only a delaying action. She needed the key to his actual defeat.
“Key? Let me guess, me?”
Innndeed. You will be an instrumental role in defeating him. But you are not properly…. shaped yet. Grand Mother’s mark on you has restricted you. Made you a shadow of your former self. You must be…. remade.
“This sounds deep and all, but I’m not sure I’m up for any of this. I hate the idea of not being in control of myself. I hate puppets.”
There was an amused chuckle that rumbled over him in waves. Oh, little one. You are no puppet. You are a weapon. A great one, with a grand purpose. You simply don’t remember it. You will in time, when your mind and body are ready. But for now, I will provide the next piece you will require on your journey.
The memory zoomed in on a smaller dragon mother and her wing after she’d received orders. A massive portal was opened, and the dragon mother and her spell mech riders all navigated into it. The memory rippled, and the surrounding space changed. The stars here looked more familiar now, and an exit portal appeared, disgorging the dragon mother and her wing into orbit above Hoshun. Time went into high speed now. The Dragon wing descended on the world. A temple was built, then a small settlement. The settlement grew into a colony, and they brought the local flora and fauna to heel. Many solar cycles passed. Then it stopped on the current day.
“So you’ve judged me as worthy?”
Oh, little onnnne. The eloquent, feminine draconic voice crooned. You were always worthy. Your worth was never in question. Only when you would begin your march towards your destiny.
“What if it's a destiny I don’t want? All of this is so much bigger than me… I’m not sure I want any of this.”
Another amused laugh. Mother warned you were rebellious. I regret that you’ll not remember any of this. It’s also unfortunate you lack any of your previous memory. It would have been nice to get to know you more, grandfather.
“Wait. What?”
Everything went white again as supreme confusion set in. With the white void, his memory, knowledge, and connection to this place dissolved. Like a spell that had reached its conclusion. His conversation with his granddaughter, his confrontation with his self. The waking knowledge bled away, but the feeling remained. Determination. Resolute will. Something had shifted within him. Deep inside, he felt a great weariness, like he’d been hiking since birth and never stopped to rest. It was with him, but not intrinsically a part of him.
Within the dream plane, a black robbed figure observed from a distance wearing a red mask. His robe whipped about him as he watched the human with the red hair embark on his journey and leave. Curiosity and sadness banged through him. As the leader of the council, losing Xanofex was perhaps his second greatest loss. Fighting against his best friend never sat well with him, but the System, and even more important, their very people, needed him to do anything to save it all.
That’s why they selected him. The willingness to confront anyone or anything to see the task done. The others would need to know. Xanofex was among living mortals again. How long would it be before he ascended and began openly confronting them again?
“You never were one to waste time.” Zeretheus said with a wistful smile that eventually dropped into a frown. Fate was marching them all towards each other, eventually. Why try to skip ahead? Best to let things develop as they will. A black and purple void gate cracked open reality behind him and he fell backwards into it, leaving no hint of his presence at all.