Jordan was sitting in his car, being driven by the automated machine to his next destination. With a start, he realized… he had no idea where that was.

He looked around and saw the city nearby, but it was indistinct and blurry. Bustling with motion it froze when he looked at it, but sped up when he turned away. Everyone had a place to be, but he slowed them down with his presence. Interfered.

So he turned aside, rolling over in the car before fussing and lowering the backseat down to recline. He had to fight past a few layers of dress to get to the controls on the bottom of the driver’s seat, but he eventually got settled and relaxed.

Looking back up, he stared at the sky through a sunroof he wasn’t sure had been there before. Clouds moved by, and the sun was rising and setting. He had to stop looking at it though, because it was arrested in motion by his gaze, and he was sure everyone would be mad at him if he stopped the sun.

Instead he stared at the empty seat besides him. The car was always empty.

While he was alone, he’d asked for that, hadn’t he? The only thing of note was the card that still sat discarded on the seat. He wanted to open it and look inside, but he never had in the Waking World so he figured there would be nothing in it here. If there was, it would only be a promise of love that he never responded to anyways.

He huffed irritably at it all. What was he supposed to be doing? Laying down in a self-piloting car, stuck hanging between dreams and the Waking World… for what? Everything was happening around him—without him really. No one needed him, so what was the point?

He closed his eyes and dreamed of a world where he could be important. Where he could be the one everyone followed, who led the way instead of always trailing behind. But it was nothing more than a dream. Strangely two-dimensional, like watching a puppet theatre. It didn’t mean anything.

But he wanted it to. Could he make dreams real? Could he ever have the strength to go outside and… live?

The lights flickered outside. It was nighttime, and the car was driving along a highway. Lights casting shadows that flashed across his face as he tried to sleep. Memories of backseat road trips.

There had been a time… the car hadn’t been empty. He was sure of it. That was important.

There had been a time… the car hadn’t driven itself. He was sure of it. That was important.

There had been a time… he wasn’t a girl? He was less sure of that, but it was important. Probably.

Sluggishly, Jordan sat up. It was day, and the car was driving along a beach. Over winding roads, with an ocean filling the horizon. But everywhere he looked the waves froze mid-crash, the cars driving stopped, and those behind swerved to avoid them honking. People cursed him for getting in the way. The world resented him. He agreed with their assessment.

After all, he should… just go back to sleep. He should just sleep, and dream, and never Wake. What was the point to any of it? Why should he try when all he did was upset people? Hurt people? If he closed his eyes, then it would be fine. No one would be upset. No one would be hurt. No one—

The car hit a small bump, but the jostling caused the glove compartment to pop open. Curious now, Jordan reached in and pulled out a metallic object.

A Colt. The barrel was still stained from its last use.

He could use this though. With this he could sleep. The car would drive forever, and everyone would be happier.

Wouldn’t they?

He aimed the barrel towards his face and looked into it. It was so dark, that little hole that led to oblivion. It made his heart race, and his hands shake. Was this the last thing they saw? This darkness?

Jordan tried not to cry. Even if he was a girl now, even girls shouldn’t cry as much as he did. It wasn’t his fault though! He’d been forced to cram forty years of suppressed emotion into a ten year old girl! Of course he was going to cry a lot.

But it would all be over soon. The void called, and his mouth opened to answer it. His finger began to squeeze until—

Until he saw the card he’d dismissed earlier, laying on the seat waiting. He was still convinced it wouldn’t say anything. This wasn’t the Waking World, he knew that even if nothing else made sense! But he wanted to know. He wanted it so much.

To not be alone.

How many times did he have to make this decision? How many times did he have to fight this until it would just leave him alone?

Until he lost? Until he couldn’t say no, any longer? How much further could he go?

He sighed, the action sounding strange with a mouth wrapped around the entrance to the longest journey. He could go… a little bit further, surely? What was… a little bit longer?

He could sleep later. Why not… read a little? Maybe he wouldn’t feel so alone then.

Jordan put down the Choice. Set it on the seat, and pushed it away with his small hands, with their stupid rose red tips. And he picked up the card.

‘Happy Birthday Brother! I know things have been tough lately, but just know that I’m still here for you if you need to talk! I always will be. —Love Anna’

But she wasn’t. She was gone. And he was alone again. Alone in a car. Alone in a game. Alone. He…

The sun beamed into the car. It reminded him of a little girl. If nothing else, she’d be sad he was gone.

He looked at the card. He’d… made a Choice, hadn’t he? A promise. To strangers, of all things, but… wasn’t this world supposed to be beautiful?

Wasn’t this world supposed to be… hers? Anna’s world. Could he really abandon it so easily? In some ways, it was all he had left of her.

But was it alright for him to live in it? To spend her dream here? He looked outside. He was parked up next to a convention. The only one he’d ever attended when he was young, gone there with Luke before the Choice took him away. People froze when Jordan looked at him, scowling in frustration, so Jordan…

Honked the car’s horn. The people jumped, looking sheepish, and Jordan rolled down the window and screamed at them to move. They did.

The world would hate him for being here? So what—was that new? Hell no! So did it matter? Not in the fucking least.

The sun shone and froze in the air and Jordan flipped it off and told it to go about it’s day. It sheepishly complied.

Why should what others thinking of him matter? And why should this car get to decide where he was going?

He didn’t have to be alone, not if he didn’t want to be.

Jordan grabbed the wheel, looked up at the rear view mirror to see a Brat giving a [Perfect Smile], and he nodded in agreement.

And he turned the wheel. He was in Control here after all.

He always had been.

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Jordan was screaming from the pressure shoving him down.

Hold on Aury! Pull it close and spin.

Stupid words from a senile old coot! Jordan’s world had spiraled in on itself, collapsing into a single point as all the Essence from the Storm crashed into him, waking him from his Dreaming World. It was battering him now, knocking him silly in the process, but he grit his teeth and twisted.

The world was beginning to shift. The Essence crashing through the silty layers between him and it, gouging the ground away in the process. It wasn’t stable, none of it was, but it didn’t matter. That would be addressed later. What mattered right now, was spinning.

So he did, twirling his Center in place, like a kid trying to helicopter. It made him feel dizzy, but the motion caught on. The gravely particles compressed around him began to shift with him, caught in the force of his momentum. The stratospheres of his Potato Core were rotating at different speeds, like a gas giant, but still… they were moving.

Essence from the rings surrounding his Core shifted sideways, pulled by the motions coming from the Center. The Mandalas were tugged along by the strands of Essence coiled around them like rip cords, and spun. In turn, that whirled the Storm’s Essence even more.

It stretched out, across the Solar System of his Inner Realm, pulling the larger, grander Mandalas that acted as the great buffers, entire planets orbiting the Sun his potato was becoming.

As the rotation reached the edge, the leaking Essence pouring into his Inner Realm from the Outside was caught in the pull. But now… the entire Solar system was spinning.

But something began to form in its wake.

Ah! Wha—frick! Hey, what? Ow! Er, HEY!

Calm down Aury, calm down! It’s fine. That’s Aura, it’s beginning to generate from the motion. One day when you’re a Powered Core you’ll love it, for now, don’t worry about it.

As Jordan spun, energy bloomed around his Core, like a magnetic field. It blossomed, flaring out past the golden hands of Rahm holding his Sun-Potato, and began to blast into the Solar System. Like a Solar Wind blowing through his Inner Realm. It looked like a flower, with violets and indigos dancing on its petals, shining with a brilliant dark light across the reaches of his Inner Realm.

Jordan wasn’t exactly pleased by the flowery imagery, but not really surprised.

This… I thought so. You really… Ah, I, ah…

Rahm went silent at the blossoming imagery, literal petals forming in the space between spaces, raining down gently around the Mandalas rotating his Core. Little asteroids of feminine wonder rushing about. I should have assumed girly crap was incoming, Jordan thought. He… tried to be accepting of it though.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Yes, I know Kioko. I’m alright. It just… hurts to see, that’s all. I’ve missed it. I didn’t expect Aury to have such similar Iconography, that’s all. I’ll be fine, just… just give me a rag. No, not the bloody one foolish girl. Yes, that’ll work.

Rahm… what’s going on? Are you… crying? Are you alright? Sofu!?

I’m fine Aury! Just… all Aura carries with it imagery. It reflects parts of ourselves. It’s rare for someone without a Class to show anything this detailed, but considering my ritual that we're using, I’m not surprised it's showing so soon for you. Your new Aura here is reacting with my own after all.

Oh… kay. Cool? W-what do I do to not die though?

Huh? Oh right. Sorry, yes let’s keep going shall we? Right now the Storm has been flowing through you to give you something to work with. We needed it because you were disconnected, and now we’re going to hook you back up. Kioko, get the Immaculate Prayer Drops ready. Now Aury—remember how I said we’ve technically been doing this backwards?

Ah, yeah?

Well, normally People start with their Meridians. Annoyingly, it’s a mirrored process. You have to awaken and reinforce the Meridians in your body, and then in your Core. Once you do, you cycle them all back to each other. That helps people develop the Control you’ve just formed. Are you following?

Not really. Just, ah, just tell me what to do though.

Hah! That’s the spirit. Well, not the Spirit. That’ll come last.

…Rahm.

Oh you’re no fun. Anyway, Kioko, would you be a dear and pour this down my grumpy Granddaughter’s throat?

Wait, what are you doing out there!?

Oh don’t worry. It’s just a potion.

What kind? What is it going to do? And don’t lie to me this time!

Well, er, what? Yeah, yeah, she’s getting mad. I don’t care if she’s trying to bite you, just pour the stuff down her gullet already. Ugh, Aury, please stop trying to tear Kioko’s fingers off, would you?

What? I’m not doing anything though.

Oh… well, good to know? She says she doesn’t mean to. Oh, just watch the teeth, okay?

Teeth? That reminds me…I’ve got a strange question, Sofu.

Hmm?

Why… aren’t my teeth black?

…Bwhahaahah!! Ahh… what? Oh no don’t worry, she just asked a question that’s all. She wants to know why her teeth aren’t black. I know, right? Hahaha…ah…

Hey! Stop ignoring me and answer the damn question! Er, please.

Aury, it’s called tooth enamel, and all People have it. Well except Gluttonyborn, anyway can you say enamel? It’s—Oh, for the love of! You should be paralyzed! How the blazes did you kick me?

Jordan had never been more pleased by Brat-Instinct.

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It turned out, the concoction they made him drink was, in fact, liquid Purity.

And boy did it do just that.

Oh wow it’s really oozing out of her isn’t it? We’re ah… we’re going to need to burn this Kimono when we're done.

Wait, what’s coming out? What’s happening? Why is the Storm gone?

Don’t worry girl, it's just impurities being expunged from your system, and that includes the Storms Essence. All things considered; this will be the easiest Attribute for us to work on. Normally it’s the opposite.

Can you, I don’t know, tell me why?

Hah! Sure, sure. The Immaculate Prayer Drops are purifying your Meridian paths. Once it finishes, I’ll walk you through reconnecting your Core Realm to the rest of your Pattern.

True to his word, for once, after a few minutes Rahm worked to create a series of five new Mandalas along the outer edge of his Inner Realm.

Normally, you do these one at a time. Obviously, that isn’t happening right now, and if you weren’t disconnected the shock of it would kill you. Still, as the energy comes in, make sure it travels like the Storm did, okay? No need to get fancy.

Jordan did as he was instructed, waiting on nervous Solar-Potato breath as power suddenly burst into his Inner Realm. While Essence scattered about the outer reaches, the new Mandalas Rahm had created swelled with energy, vastly dwarfing the patterns round them.

After a few moments the five points along the outer edge finished growing and became the main focal points of energy coming in, the other Mandalas aiding in the motion of the inside of the core and offering a place for excess energy in the Pattern to vent through.

As the stellar rivers of energy flooded in, they smashed into the planetoid Mandalas in their way. The clash broke them apart like rapids scattering and diffusing them. By the time the tumultuous rush made its way to his Core, the rings of Essence around him easily caught the stream, funneling down to his surface.

Once there, however, it unceremoniously wormed its way down before smashing into his Center, unable to go any further.

Okay Aury, go ahead and pull it into your Center. At the moment, only the Yin side of the Meridians has formed, and its, ah, kind of tearing your body apart.

WHAT!?

Just focus! Pour the energy through yourself to complete the Circuit. After that, I’ll work on stabilizing your Yang Meridians.

Jordan unhappily got to work. It was strangely difficult, he found, as the energy didn’t want to just go into him. It was like a magnet pushing against him, and he concluded as such after he accidently re-polarized it when he tried to shift his perspective. The flipped energy suddenly created a pull for the Essence as it disappeared inside his Center, vanishing like the Storm had.

But it made a huge difference. With it he could finally feel himself again, even if it were still heavily numbed and distant. He kind of wished he couldn’t though—he could tell he was caked in sweat as Rahm worked to finish whatever he was doing with Jordan’s ‘Yang’ meridians. Finally, with a snap, Jordan felt it all connect into place.

Wow, look at it go! Perfect. You’re stable, out here at least. We still need to finish crafting the Circuit in your Core but that will have to wait for now.

Wait, is that it for this one? There’s no… weird mental place?

Nope. Like I said, this is one of the easier Attributes to work on. Instead, it's normally the longest, requiring you to clear all five Yin pathways, followed by your Yang counterpoints, and then to also create a final Circuit in your Core itself. So no abstraction needed, just a lot more work. That’s why it’s known as the Foundation of Cultivation.

Okay… cool, I guess. So what’s next then?

Well until we stabilize your Core, we can’t very well form any Circuits through it. Which is why we’re putting that part on hold. Instead, we’ll get to work on your last Attribute—Spirit. So… this part will probably sting a little. Kioko, be a dear and grab the feather. Mind the flame, it will shoot out when you break the seal.

Feather? Oh, right you had that orange feather! Hey, by the way is that a phoenix feather?

Oh, you recognized it, eh?

Well… yeah, I guess. It’s a popular gam—er, thing for cultivators, right?

Popular? I suppose in the sense that everyone would want one. It’s a hell of a tricky thing to use, but thankfully I don’t have to worry about you burning up. Also, we need to burn that Kimono anyway, so this is a win-win. Kioko, stand back a bit further.

Wait, will I be naked after this!?

Er, well probably. That happens when your clothes burn off.

B-but…! Close your eyes then!

Hahaha… alright I will Aury. Er, Kioko if you try to block my eyes with your hands this feather will burn you to your bones. Yes I’ll close my eyes damnit!

Jordan was happy that at least Kioko had his best interests at heart.

It started with a spark. Heat building in his chest, that he felt flowing through his reconnected Pattern. It reminded him of when his adopted father had poured the Tyrants Flame through his body. He missed that fire, but this one… was strangely pleasant.

It burned, very much so, but Jordan’s perspective was still fused to his Core. The burning in his body was a distant sensation he watched, like gazing out the window of his Time-Out skill. He stargazed as the fire scorched through the new, bright Meridians that connected the different parts of his Pattern. It also helped him realize the definition they’d given his stary-riverbed form that it had lacked before.

The bright white lines of Meridian-Essence pouring into his Core Realm became tinged with an orange glow of heat. Imperfections that Jordan had missed—tiny frays or stray bands of Essence flickering off—were burnt away. The lines hardened as the flame came crashing down and his Pattern glowed with a renewed light. It finally didn’t look like it was dying!

The fire came for his Core Realm next, smashing along the outer edge of his Inner Reality, washing over the outside. A dome of fire that turned his Astral-Sky into glass, rippling in its light. Most of the flames came through the lines of his Meridians, but plenty more poured through the multitude of access points ringing his reality.

As the fiery Meridians came in they continued to crash around the planetoid Mandalas, but this time as they collided the energy didn’t just spin and slow. It began to solidify. It formed bodies of white hot energy, like tiny dwarf stars. Like glowing pebbles in a river.

Nodes in his Core Realm.

The Essence in his Inner Realm began to purify even more as the Mandalas properly sorted the energy, no longer overwhelmed like they had been. Jordan hadn’t even realized that.

The energy washed against the disk of Essence orbiting him, his little moons rotating around him in the debris catching and twisting it all. They too glowed, and the energy came down along the refined, beautiful strands of Essence to rain onto his Potato-Core.

And it stopped being a potato.

White hot, melting along every edge, the entire world began to liquify, turning into a molten mass. Truly the Sun to the System around it, as it no longer had any lumps or imperfections. Smooth, and seamless, it was a wonderful sight as he gazed back in on himself.

The fire won’t last much longer, so before it cools completely we’re going to start etching the lines of your internal Circuit. With that, we’ll reinforce your Core and… you should be done.

Okay, show me what to do!

Jordan followed along, directing the strands of Essence pouring through the body of his Core. In many ways, it felt like he was drawing a Mandala underneath the surface of his Core itself. Not just one set either, but one for each layer he’d smashed through earlier.

It reinforced his Core, and directed the flow of energy in and around it. As he did, he felt something odd pulling at his mind, and with a shock found himself diving through his Core to see that on the other side…

Was his Core, but black as it had been white moments before. This version spun in the other direction, and everywhere he’d etched lines in the Above, so too did it etch here, but mirrored. Below was above, and above was below. A shadow star to his Core Realm.

That’s the Yang to the Yin we’ve been forming. Don’t be fooled though, it's all, in truth, one and the same. Just different ways to look at the same thing. The negative to the positive that makes up the whole.

Jordan nodded his head—in the real world now as it was easy to do—as he went back and finished carving the Mandalas within the first four stages of his Core.

Okay, almost done. The last thing we need to do now is stabilize your Center. Focus on it, but try to see both sides of it. Once there, push on it with all your strength to solidify it. Don’t be alarmed by what you see, though.

More of that weird mental stuff?

Yup. One last time Aury!

Jordan jumped mentally with joy at being nearly there. It had been several hours since they’d started. Even if the old man hadn’t said something to the effect, Jordan could tell. While he didn’t feel physically tired, which was odd in itself, he did have a great deal of mental exhaustion—like he’d been driven to the edge of his spirit.

Shoving down into his Core, he focused like his Sofu had told him too, pushing with all his strength on both sides of his crystalline Center. A light, like images framing choices, began to form in front of him. Jordan reached for them, to see what they offered but found…

Only darkness that laughed as it greeted him.

Aury? Aury what’s wrong? Hey, focus! Don’t give up yet we’re almost there! Aureliana!

Consciousness faded completely as the images took him away. Something had waited, biding its time, and at the last moment, struck.

He’d almost forgotten he was ins—

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