Following the Madame of the Rose Peach Bordello, Hannah walked through one or two halls before taking one set of stairs into the basement.
While going down those stairs, Hannah observed the two tails holding her mother exhibiting a steady grip, even when they flowed around slightly as if wading through some kind of current, her mother's Shell simply failed to come to any harm. Although, every time a bend appeared, the fear in Hannah’s heart resurfaced before going away a second later. Thankfully, there was an end, and the end came with them reaching the basement of the Bordello.
One thing was certain as Hannah glanced around it. The basement was nothing like the upper part of the building. Not that she had seen much of it anyway. Regardless, Hannah was certain that this part was not open for regular customers because everything her brown eyes witnessed presented wealth, from expensive-looking furniture to plenty of silk curtains covering and segregation areas of the basement into individual rooms.
On top of that, from the glimpses she witnessed as she passed these rooms, Hannah witnessed even more opulence. So much so that this became the very first sight of material luxury gathered for sheer debauchery.
“Is the sight bothering you?” Madame Ping inquired after noticing Hannah not following her. Naturally, since the girl had stopped, so had her nephew who followed behind her. Ignoring him she faced Hannah and poised a simple question. “Are you wondering if your mother had used these rooms before?”
“I… I…” For a second Hannah wanted to admonish the beautiful fox goddess before her for even mentioning her mother having been in this place. Unfortunately for her, the moment she tried doing so, something stopped her from doing so. Instead, Hannah simply steeled her resolve at what she witnessed, or at least the part of her mind that was imagining what usually happened within this basement. “It… It’s nothing.”
“Not nothing if you are hesitating to voice your opinion, dear.” Madam Ping reasoned with a slight mischievous tone in her voice. “But I digress, even without having to voice anything, I know where your thoughts lie. Luckily for you, in the near future, you will realize just how wrong one’s assumptions can be.”
“Regardless. Come. We are almost at the Gate.”
With that said, Madam Ping passed by the last silk rooms before arriving at a rather spacious hall decorated for a single purpose, a grand entrance that welcomed a deity inside it. Though, the way it was designed with an Eastern fantastical feel made Hannah feel as if she had just entered a new and foreign side of reality because a small stepped platform existed in the center of the basement hall, and in the middle of that platform she witnessed a gold or brass looking circular door set within a red brick wall supported with two pillars on the sides.
There was even a small segment above the circular door dedicated to a red tiled roof as if to protect somebody from rain despite it being built within a building.
Overall, it was something Hannah had never seen before, especially with the lamps providing an otherworldly theme that this gate was indeed something special.
“You know? Most people, who have need of this basement, assume this gate is a simple decoration to make everything more aesthetically pleasing to the eye.” Lee Ping who stood right behind Hannah commented. “Very few realize that there is more to it. Watch.” In the same second, Hannah saw Madam Ping wave her right hand and the circular door that had seemed to be made of gold and brass vanished. In its place a colorful shimmer manifested, and it was through that shimmer that Madame Ping vanished alongside her mother’s body. “Here, take my hand. We don't want you to get lost before reaching the other side. Actually, the same counts for your Summon as well, so store it back within its ball.”
Hannah’s sight switched between Lee Ping and Behold for a second before she recalled it as suggested and took hold of his left hand. Not a moment later Lee Ping pulled on it, almost forcing Hannah to follow along even before she felt ready to try this mysterious Gate thing. Thankfully, after having witnessed so much lately, and having been under Lee Ping's supervision for more than half a day, even if that time never happened outside the Emergence, Hannah only resisted consciously for a tiny brief moment before stepping after the man with the pretty face.
Though, the moment she was about to pass into the shimmer, she unconsciously closed her eyes and held her breath. However, when the sensations of passing through appeared and vanished almost instantly, Hannah felt slightly embarrassed that she had felt any apprehension of going through.
Nonetheless, when she did open her eyes, she once more faced a wild shift in her perspective because wherever she had arrived, it was not the base reality she had known so far because in front of her three stone-paved paths appeared. Moreover, around each of these three stone paths, a forest of trees could be seen. Additionally, on each stone path, a rectangular shape could be seen every ten or so meters, one made of wooden beams on the side defining the width of the stone path while more wooden beams were placed on top to designate the height of the path thanks to some strange symbols decorating everything.
“Hold tight.” Hannah heard Lee Ping say before he squeezed her left hand and once again pulled on it as he took the leftmost path.
“Wh… Where are we?” Hannah asked after absently walking for a bit as she stared at the passing trees.
“There are a bunch of names, but the most common ones are The Path and The Road.” Lee Ping elaborated. “You could say this place is the space between spaces. All Rifts have them, it is the main method of traveling between the different Layers of a Rift.”
“So we are going to a different layer now?”
“Not at all.” Lee Ping replied. “The Path leads to many places, including the other entrances within our current Layer, and right now we are going for one of those. If we had taken that central Path, we would have eventually arrived on a different Layer. However, before you even think about trying it, know that it is not as easy as it sounds.
The Path is a living and breathing thing, and while it welcomes all who enter it, not everybody leaves it. Had you entered without me holding onto you, you would have been separated from me and Aunty. Even if you took the same path as you do now, there would be a big chance of ending up in some other place.”
“Oh… Is that why there are only the two of us here?”
“Not exactly.” Lee Ping shook his head while still guiding Hannah to her destination. “The reason you would have most likely lost your way is because The Path loves separating Souls from their Shells. However, unlike a Shroud, its method of separation is so gentle that you don't even notice it while walking The Path until it's too late and you're completely lost.”
Glancing at the trees around Hannah instantly gained a dose of respect for this space between spaces. “So Madam is doing the same thing as you are doing to me? Wait… Can the same be done whenever a Shroud appears?”
“In theory?” Lee Ping thought for a second. “Yes. Although, you would need prescient timing and somebody to help you with it. Neither is likely to happen to you since it would be a stupid thing to do.
As for Aunty?
Well, I imagine she is already waiting for us on the other side because your mother is still under the Veil and hence immune to the Paths shenanigans. Not that it can't find other ways to deal with the Veiled. Come, I am sure you have heard of tales of people vanishing after entering old forests. Hold on… In your language, I think it's called being Spirited Away.”
Tilting her head to the right, Hannah did indeed hear these tales, but prior to Awakening those very tales were nothing but superstitions.
“Ah… We are almost there.”
Indeed, just as Lee Ping announced it, Hannah saw the end of the stone-paved pathway, and at its end, she found a similar construction as the one existing in the basement of the Rose Peach Bordello.
Nonetheless, after passing through the shimmer-like Gate, no basement awaited her.
Instead, a blue sky awaited her.
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“Welcome to the Ping Clan Residence, Miss Blackwood.” Madame Ping announced.
The greeting brought Hannah instantly out of her fascination of finding herself in some other place. “Th… Thank you for having me.” She said in turn, not that she knew of any special customs required for her current occasion. “Umm… Where are we specifically, if I may ask?”
“Curious are we?” Madame Ping tilted her head to the left slightly, yet the slight movement only made her seem that much more intriguing as she questioned Hannah. “I am sure my nephew elaborated a few things on the way here, so I won't go into the details but suffice it to say, you are nowhere near your old home. Once all the formalities between us are out of the way, you will be able to come and go from here all you like. Now, let us take care of your mother. This way.”
Nodding, Hannah followed.
Thankfully, Lee Ping had released his hold on her hand the moment they had reached this mansion, if in a different style of artistic expression not only because the Gate had brought them inside a carefully maintained garden with smaller paths leading to here and there, but also due to a pond and small river existing within said garden.
Indeed, if a residence held all that, it could only ever be a mansion in Hannah’s point of view.
Luckily, there was no time to ponder on every single detail as Madame Ping led them through the garden towards a separate building with slanted black tiled roofs and pointy endings. Nonetheless, when the wooden door opened on its own it was clear that this place held modern conveniences, though as Hannah passed through the door, she failed to recognize anything but simple wood construction.
Regardless, it was the insides of the building that were important, and what she found inside surprised her a great deal. It surprised her because inside she found many large glass bubbles present within. Additionally, each of these glass bubbles laid at least half a meter above the ground, almost as if they had grown out of the ground like fruits waiting to be plucked. Still, the true surprise lay in the fact that, of the ten glass bubbles four were occupied by women all curled up as if freezing and trying their best to prevent any more heat from leaving their bodies.
Narrowing her eyes for a second, Hannah realized that each of the four humans also floated within those bubbles, as if immersed within some kind of light green liquid.
Just as Hannah was about to voice her cluelessness, she noted Madam Ping’s tails swirling for a second before simply throwing their cargo at one of these glass bubbles.
The problem was that the cargo was her mother, so Hannah instantly cried in response. “MOM!!!”
She even rushed forth, yet without even taking two steps forward, Hannah saw her mother's body pass through the glass-like surface of the chosen large bubble before settling right in the center of it.
Indeed, just like the other four women, her mother’s body simply floated there for a second. Then, moments after her body stilled from the force of the throw and the sudden immersion of the present light green liquid, Hannah witnessed her mother’s Shell move on its own to settle into a familiar hunched pose, with her arms around her knees and her head resting on her arms.
Noting the similarities, Hannah switched her view from her mother to the other woman trapped within these transparent bubbles. That was when Hannah noted the first discrepancy, namely the other four women were naked, while her mother was not.
Urged by the discovery, Hannah rushed closer to her mother's bubble only to notice the pajamas she wore slowly dissolving into nothingness.
Having left Hannah a moment to discover things for herself, Madame Ping finally spoke up. “There… Now your mother’s Shell will be fine for as long as it stays within the Life Pod.”
Brought back from her intense emotions, Hannah absently voiced her intrigue. “Really?”
“Her Shell will be more than fine, girl.” Lee Ping suddenly involved himself. “By the time your mother wakes, her Shell will have fixed any and all problems plaguing it, including aging.”
“You mean?”
“Yes… If you can afford it, centuries can pass and your mother’s Shell will not age a single day.” Lee Ping pointed out.
“I quite liked your mother, dear. Let us hope it does not take even a fraction of that time for your mother to wake up.” Madame Ping reasoned. “If it does, you will have to foot the bill for it.”
“Okay!” Hannah simply added, though from her face it was clear she wished for something else. “Madame?” She voiced before directly looking at the breathtaking face adorned with fluffy ears on top of her head. “Is waiting for mother to wake really the only thing we can do to help her?”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“Yes.” The reply was both instant and heavy with meaning. “Gaia’s Rules forbid us from directly interfering with somebody's Awakening. Any attempt to do so causes backlash. Not only for those attempting the interference but also for those undergoing the Awakening by having the Tribulation scale in difficulty.
There is some wiggle room in the Rules for those close to Awakening yet not having actually completed the process for Awakening.” Ceasing there, Madam Ping refused to elaborate on the Rule-bending possible at the highest echelons of Dreamer Society. “For those like your mother? It is best to just leave it be and wait for them to wake up on their own…. Considering your mother being an Old One, at the very least, even with a Curse making things harder, she will succeed at some point.”
“Meaning, it is fruitless to worry about it.”
“Truly?”
“Naturally.” Lee Ping once again joined the conversation. “You don't become an Old One by being a sheltered flower in a garden. Remember how many Nightmare Spawns you killed today and you barely reached Level Six, well… seven if you included the backlog of experience waiting for you after your Summon helped with the Sub-Boss.
Yes… I imagine you will gain quite a few SAP’s.
Anyway… The point is this. It takes numerous defeated Nightmares, completed Quests, and overcome Challenges for a Dreamer to reach Level 60 and become a Master like my Aunt here.” Almost as if sensing the perfect moment to curry favors via other people's success, Lee Ping drew on some bottled-up courage to brag about his Aunt while in her presence. “Let me tell you something about Fox Shifters. For every ten Levels, a Fox Shifter grows they gain one tail. Because Aunty has six this makes it definitive that her Level is somewhere between 60 and 70, thus thereby making her an official Lower-Ranked Master, one of the few on this Layer of Gaia’s Rift.
Also, let me tell you something else. Each tail repres… Ouch.” Lee Ping suddenly bellowed out and grabbed his buttocks after one of the said six tails looped around Hannah to perfectly whip the only man in her presence on his behind.
“Less bootlicking, you brat.” Madama Ping declared, though deep down, she did not dislike it. In truth, none who reached her level of power did so for it stroked their Ego’s wonderfully. Less in her case, but it still did. No, the reason she whopped Lee Ping on the behind was because he was about to spill a tad too much. Not that it was that much of a secret, but who loved having one's secrets be spilled, especially with young impressionable youths being present? “Back to the main point, Miss Blackwood. Your mother Shell will be perfectly fine for now, and there is nothing we can do to change her current circumstances. What we could do, is actually talk about your own. After all… Many revelations have reached you on this day, and one of them no doubt is related to why you are here. Right?”
“Hnn.”
“Alright… Say goodbye to your mother for now and let us converse about your future.”
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Not long later, Hannah had found herself on the other hand of the huge garden. Particularly the side closer to the actual mansion than the building her mother now lay in. The actual place aside, Hannah seated herself on a wooden stool made for outdoor activities like drinking tea and eating cookies.
Both of which Hannah could see on the oval table right beside her.
As for Madame Ping?
She was seated on the other side of the table and enjoying a sip of said tea which had been brought forth by some women wearing much less stylized garments that seemed to cover most of her body, almost like a flowing dress without being one. Regardless, while Hannah was unfamiliar with the notion, the way the women addressed Madame Ping and quickly reacted to her orders, Hannah could only assume she was some kind of servant within this… residence/mansion.
The only thing more disenfranchising of her status compared to whom she sat beside, was the fact that only the two of them were seated there. Moreover, the way this Madame looked only made Hannah feel even less.
“Alright!” Madame Ping announced after putting down the cup of tea on the table. “Let us start simply. What is the first thing you wanna know?”
Nervous beyond anything, Hannah rolled her eyes left and right in search of the correct question. The truth, however, was that she searched for anything familiar that would steady her mind, but even the most dependable pillar gained through their adventure underground was nowhere to be seen since Madame Ping had tossed him aside with a simple glare.
“Umm… I… I am not sure what to ask.”
“I see.” Madame Ping glossed over the girl's behavior since so far said behavior seemed to be standard for her. “I will start then. You won't mind?” One head shake later, Madame Ping began with what could only be a banger in the girl's mind. “Your father is dead but not truly DEAD!”
“Wh… What?”
“Shocking, is it not?” The Fox Shifter chuckled for a single second. “Let me elaborate on it first because death to a Dreamer is not as permanent as it sounds. I am sure you have heard about reincarnation. About being reborn every time you die? Right?” Blinking her brown eyes, Hannah nodded before actually remembering a comment by Lee Ping early on in the Emergence. “Unlike Mortals, who go through the Reincarnation process, a Dreamer does not lose all memories. Meaning, that we do not start a new life completely blank as our Ego’s, our Sparks of Life whether the process of reincarnating much, much better.
The higher the Levels the more can be retained.
There is more to it naturally, but that is it in general. Now… Are you inferring the point I am trying to make?”
“Umm… My father is dead but he will live again and not lose any memories of me and mother? Meaning that… I… will meet him again in the future?”
“Definitely.” Madam Ping affirmed. “The point of me explaining this is to make you realize something important. The closer a Mortal is to Awakening the more likely they are to retain memories of a past life, and when they wake and undergo the transcendental phenomena known as Soul Judge, they will learn about those lives and inherit a lot of things.
Among those, the understanding of their place in the world is the first one, and that my dear, you have none of.
How about now? What do you make of this knowledge and how does it relate to you?”
Not saying anything before digesting the statement, Hannah remembered something. Namely, one of Lee Ping’s early advice. From there, she Logiced her way to an answer. “You… are saying that I… that I do not have… the knowledge of multiple lives from which to draw?”
“Go on!”
“You are saying that I… should use Soul Judge to look for that knowledge?” One fox ear flick later, Hannah continued. “Umm… Mister Lee suggested something like that, but I thought only during the next Nightmare Tribulation will it be possible. Is that not so?”
“No… I mean yes it is possible, but it is not advised since even bad things can be inherited from previous lives.” That pointed out, Madame Ping shook her head before finally laying down the fact she wanted the girl to realize. “What I am trying to say is that it will be a pointless endeavor in your case because you do not have a past life. There is only Hannah Blackwood and nothing more.”
“I… I don't understand?”
“You, my dear, are a Blank.” Madam Ping remarked. “A new Soul. An Original Soul to be specific. When you Leveled Up, among your notifications, you must have noted the term Genesis Soul. Right?” Remembering the term in question, Hannah nodded. “There are many connotations to being a Blank and you can learn about them later. However, the main one is that only powerful Souls can create Blanks like you and the minimum rank for that is being an Old One, or as you just learned, a Dreamer above Level 60.
Now, if you still do not get the point, I am saying that both your parents are big deals within Dreamer Society because it takes two Old Ones to make a Blank like you.” Seeing the point finally click with the girl, Madam Ping elaborated further. “The problem is that here on Gaia’s Rift, the present Veil of Ignorance prevents most Blanks like you from being discovered and therefore Awakened during their first lifetime.
The consequence of this is their loss of the Genesis Soul Modifier thus thereby degrading a Blank’s innate value for Sponsorship. You, on the other hand, retain the Genesis Soul Modifier due to your father being an exceptional individual.”
Much was said, and many revelations exploded inside Hannah’s mind. Still, it turned out that there was more to come. “Unfortunately, due to your mother’s situation and your father being Riftbound, your father came to me seeking a Sponsorship for your Awakening.”
“Uh?”
----------------------------------------
Seeing the girl needing a tad bit more mental space to process everything so far, Madame Ping took up her cup of tea and slowly slipped on it because, as experience had told her, this way the break in conversation seemed much more natural to both parties.
Then, when it was time for the conversation to pick up, it was almost as if nothing had occurred prior.
“What does a Sponsorship entail?” Hannah asked.
“Many things, but probably less than you imagine.” Madame Ping responded. “In your case, your Genesis Soul Modifier halves the requirements for all Experience Gain below Level 50 or so, thus making it that much easier to Level Up. However, if that was all it did, it would not be as valuable as it is because Experience is not something that is hard to acquire for a Dreamer.
No, what is hard to attain is the necessary Trauma prerequisite for overcoming the major stages. Imagine yourself as a sponge soaking in water easily. The same happens to your Soul because Trauma build-up for you requires half the effort for twice the results compared to other Dreamers.
To simplify it further, the second benefit of Blanks is related to Skills Growth.”
“OH… Father’s ghost mentioned the relation between Skill growth, Trauma build-up, and Ability Potential Assessment.”
“He did? Also, what do you mean by ghost?” Madame Ping asked out of curiosity.
Taking on the chance to be the one elaborating on stuff instead of being on the receiving end, Hannah told her tale in a similar manner to what she had told her mother, only this time she kept most of the gruesome parts to herself. Naturally, since she had gone through everything, there was more to reveal, especially the machinations her father had revealed during Soul Judge.
Divination anchored onto unformed Dream Gems with feedback translated into specific Spiritual Recordings?
Interesting… I knew from the beginning that Heinrich was an unusual Riftbound, but did not think he could employ such high-level techniques despite being restricted to the Adept Rank.
No wonder he was so certain of the girl’s Grand Awakening. This method would have been impossible without a Supreme Dream Gem to act as the focal point of Destiny needed for the Divination to actually succeed under Gaia’s Veil.
“Now as fascinating as that was to hear, I believe we should center back to the important parts. Namely your Sponsorship helping you achieve a Grand Awakening.” Madame Ping interrupted the girl when there was very little to learn from her tale. “I'll have you know that when your father and I talked about your potential, you being a Blank turned out to be but the entry bargaining chip for my help. I am sure, you can infer that the Ingredients used for your Grand Awakening are by no means simple.
Each of them was of the Supreme Grade, and to fish out such wealth for somebody outside the Clan took quite a bit more convincing on your father's side. I told him as such, so he went and threw bait that even my Clan Elders could not so easily resist.
Honestly, I have no idea how he got his fingers on it, but… Riftbound are known for getting into unusual situations which always result with unique treasures ending up in their pockets.”
“What is a Riftbound?” Hannah suddenly inquired because this would be the second time the Fox Shifter beside her mentioned it.
“Just as the name suggests.” Madame Ping remarked with an absent wave of her left hand as if there was little to say about it in her opinion. “There are different kinds of Riftbound, but one thing all of them have in common is that each and every one of them is bound to Gaia’s Rift and therefore to Gaia’s Will, whatever it may be. Imagine it as a draft of sorts, where you sign away your freedom until the terms of your Service are complete, or no longer required, and you regain your liberty from the Rift.
I remember your father mentioned that his Service will be over after completing two more Tasks for Gaia, though the specifics elude me. The only hint your father shared was that each Task sent him to some other Layer of Gaia’s Rift.”
“Okay… What was the treasure?”
“Now… That… is much harder for a newbie like you to grasp.” Madame Ping indeed at. “During the negotiation, your father proclaimed a hundred percent chance for his daughter to achieve a Great Awakening without any Ingredients.
Now that I know where his confidence came from, his boldness does not surprise me.
Anyway, with that as the bedrock he bargained for a Grand Awakening, a bet between him, the Ping Clan, and yourself, though you were unaware of it till this moment.
If you failed in achieving said Grand Awakening, the treasure would be ours thus offsetting a large part of our investment since individuals with Great Dreams are hard to come by. However, since you did succeed, you get to retain the treasure in question. However, to counterbalance the weight of our investment in you, the Ping Clan retains a stake in the promise the treasure holds.
As for the treasure itself? It should be in your possession. Why don't you bring it out.”
“I do?”
“Indeed, you mentioned it earlier.”
Not quite understanding, Hannah remembered everything she'd told the beautiful Fox Shifter. “The Envelope?”
“Indeed. Take it out.”
Nodding, Hannah almost instantly went for her D-Card before remembering that she could simply pull the item out of its Inventory. With a twirl of her right hand, the white envelope appeared.
“That is the one. Open it and see what it is.”
“Umm… How do I open it? I tried before but could not do it.”
“Ha… Silly girl.” Madama Ping smirked in a playful manner, only this manner would instantly increase many men’s blood pressure as their blood sought to pump their neither region. “You are a Dreamer, a Spirit not fettered to the mundane Rules you have known so far. Think, girl. What do you have now that you did not have prior to Awakening but could help you in opening the treasure box?”
Quickly going over everything, the answer became staggeringly obvious. “Power Points?”
“Yes. Use one on the mark and it should break the Enchantment preventing you from opening it up.”
Doing just that, Hannah instantly noted an obvious difference between before and after. It was like the Envelope gained an extra degree of impressionability on her with its desire to be opened up. Not denying it one bit, since she was truly curious about the supposed treasure, Hannah opened the Envelope and found within it a thin, hand-length rectangular piece of golden paper with many black markings and an unreadable script written on it.
Quickly taking it out, she got a much better look, only the more she stared, the more puzzled her expression became. Not only because the treasure turned out to be something extremely simple looking, but also due to Hannah somehow recognizing the nature of the treasure.
“A ticket?”
“Oh… No… That is so much more than a Ticket. A Ticket can be acquired relatively easily, even if it is somewhat expensive to get. That piece of gold, however, is an Invitation.”
“An invitation for what? The Champion’s Association as written on the back of the Envelope?”
“Not at all.” Madame Ping denied it with a wave of her left hand. “The Champions Association is but one part of the Invitation. Think of them as a Club of sorts. A Club where the strong and wealthy gather to appreciate the finest entertainment possible for one's Soul within EDIN.
Them aside… “ Madame Ping said before pointing at the treasure in Hannah’s hands. “That, my dear little bundle of ignorance, is a Gold Grade Invitation to the Champion’s Rift, also more commonly known as The Summoner’s Rift.”