The origin planes are planes of existence yet to be explored or understood completely, but we do know that only the planes of elements directly affect or breach our world, and the Amorack ruins still bear the scars of destruction that the origin plane of flames left behind.
Understanding origin planes [Revised]
Professor Corian Tilinus.
Yildirim, Year 2274.
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“This is your fault! You did this! You killed all these people."
The words echoed in Aodhán’s mind, repeating themselves like a mantra as he helplessly took in the destruction around him. Guilt tore through him like a tidal wave, crushing him in its embrace even as nausea threatened to overwhelm him.
He heaved again, spilling the contents of his stomach. His strength left him, and he fell to his knees. The voice screaming in his mind was right; he’d foolishly connected his mind to the storm and had indirectly attracted its attention, thereby putting all the passengers in danger.
“Aodhán!”
He’d foolishly thought he could absorb all the lightning. He had been wrong. Greed had clouded his mind to the extent that he had failed to think things through.
He heaved again, but he’d emptied his stomach already, so nothing came out. His actions had been taken with the intent to save the passengers and also absorb a large amount of energy to advance his class, but all he’d accomplished was the destruction of the ship as well as the deaths of the same people he'd wanted to save.
“Aodhán!”
Wails of pain and terror filled his ears, even as whispers of guilt filled his mind. Chaos and madness surrounded him as most passengers hurriedly jumped out of the sinking ship and into the sea.
Others screamed in terror as they desperately searched for their loved ones amidst the wreckage, while others just stood helplessly, frozen in shock, as they stared at the destruction with wide eyes.
“Aodhán! Oh, thank Raol; I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
Aodhán turned to Daruk, and in a broken whisper, he cried. “I caused all this. It’s all my fault.”
“It’s not your fault,” Daruk began, but Aodhán cut him off. “I doomed all these people; they’re dead because of me.”
"Okay, Aodhán, this is not the time for a mental breakdown; you need to pull yourself together.”
“I can’t—
“You can, and you will—look at me.” Daruk said firmly, forcing Aodhán’s gaze away from the death and destruction that surrounded them. “I’m not doing so well either, so you need to pull yourself together for the both of us.”
It took a while, but Aodhán gave a shaky nod in response, and Daruk replied. “Good, now we need to get off this ship before it sinks.”
They made their way out of the rubble a moment later, passing distressed mothers or children as they clung desperately to their loved ones. The smell of blood, smoke, and burning flesh filled the air, but it was so much worse when they made it to the deck.
Blood covered the entire floor, and Aodhán turned to see a blackened husk of flesh whose skeletal fingers still gripped the wheel. He stumbled as nausea overwhelmed him, and he emptied his belly once more.
Daruk was shivering and severely pale, but he seemed to be doing much better than Aodhán, whose guilt choked him, refusing to let him breathe, but he pushed through it, and a moment later, they jumped out of the sinking ship and into the freezing waters.
A modicum of clarity retuned to him as his body hit the cold waters, and the roar in his mind subsided. Aodhán followed behind Daruk, swimming towards the forest island in the distance.
As they swam forward, Aodhán saw one of the Gishan girls helping a group of old women swim through the freezing waters with her abilities. Immediately she saw him, though, an expression of hatred and anger took over her features, and Aodhán flinched, bumping against the severed body of a man in the process.
It was at that moment that he realized that the scent of blood didn’t just hang in the air; it filled the water too.
“Oh God, we need to get out of the water now.”
“What’s wrong.” Daruk inquired in confusion, and Aodhán shouted.
“Blood. Monsters—”
That was all he managed to get out before the screeching sound of fish reached his ears and a shark-like creature tore a man in half.
Cries of terror filled his ears as he read the line of text floating above the monster’s head.
[Juvenile Vorax, Tier 11]
Without thought, multiple bolts of lightning condensed and formed into a massive spear that shot towards the vorax with incredible speed. The spear tore through the vorax’s snout and embedded itself in its brain.
It exploded a moment later, and an entire half of the monster's body was instantly destroyed. It wasn’t over though, and a moment later, the screeching of hundreds of vorax’s rang out.
Aodhán pushed his guilt to the back of his mind and focused on saving those who had survived the ship.
Ten storm boats suddenly appeared on the sea, and Aodhán shouted at the panicked survivors to get in. They rushed in, hurriedly piling themselves into the boat in a bid to get out of the waters before the voraxs arrived.
Somehow, the boats managed to contain everyone, and Aodhán immediately sent them towards the island while he rode on a circular storm platform.
The voraxs were determined, though, and their screeching got even louder as they pursued the fleeing boats. Multiple lightning spears shot into the water and exploded, causing the voraxs to screech in pain and retreat slightly.
Unfortunately, they weren’t out of the woods yet. A second later, a screech, many times louder than the others, rang out, and Aodhán saw a large vorax, the size of an entire building, with razor-sharp teeth and bulbous eyes.
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Above its head was a line of text that identified it as a Tier 27 vorax matriarch. It let out another piercing screech as it dove forward and, in one smooth motion, swallowed the boat nearest to it, along with over a dozen people.
Horrified screams rang out from the survivors at the sight, and Aodhán knew that if he did nothing, the matriarch would take the next boat and then another until it killed them all.
Immediately, he willed a storm cloud into existence, and it expanded to a size of about 180 feet. Screams of terror rang out from the survivors as some of them relieved their recent experience, but the sight of the storm had an even greater impact on the voraxs, and with terrified screeches, they dove back into the sea, rushing away in fear.
Aiden dispersed the storm cloud an hour later, when they finally reached the island, and injured survivors stumbled onto the island with trembling feet and terror-stricken expressions.
Cries of distress and gratitude rose up to the sky as many fell on their knees in prayer, but the whole scene only caused his guilt to resurface.
If he hadn’t caught the attention of the storm, perhaps the ship would still be intact, and the passengers and crew members would still be alive. But it was very likely that the outcome would have been the same even if he hadn’t intervened.
It was likely that the ship would have been struck, and a greater number of people would have perished from such a direct attack. His actions had probably saved the passengers considering the fact that he’d absorbed more than half of the storm’s attack, but it was also possible, somehow, that if he hadn’t caught the storm’s attention, the ship could have escaped or survived that last attack.
Now, he would never know. It was possible that he’d saved these people, but it was also possible that he’d doomed them, that he’d caused the deaths of dozens, that—
No. You can’t think like that, Aodhán. He thought to himself. You saved them; otherwise, they would have died. If you hadn’t done anything, All of them would have died.
His thoughts failed to erase the guilt bubbling in his chest, but they helped him summon a wisp of courage, and he moved to help the wounded survivors, but many of them flinched and stumbled away from him while others glared at him with accusation burning in their eyes.
One of the Gishan girls rushed towards him with fury burning in her gaze, and in a choked voice, she cried. “This is all your fault, you—you did this.”
“No, I didn’t,” he tried to explain and deny her accusations, but she cut him off with an agonized expression. “You did something that drew the attention of the storm! You’re the reason so many are dead. You’re the reason why we’re now stuck on this ascendant, forsaken island with nowhere to go.”
Aodhán winced as each statement stabbed into him like a stake through his heart, and worst of all, a part of him agreed with her. Before the girl could continue, Daruk grabbed Aodhán and growled at her. “He’s the reason why we’re all alive right now, including you.”
“We wouldn’t have needed saving if he hadn’t destroyed the ship.” The girl shot back, and many of the passengers began to gather around them with malicious intent. Before things could escalate beyond the current level, Aodhán grabbed Daruk and turned to the only place he could find solace at the moment.
With a heavy heart, he made his way into the forest behind them. For hours, he walked without direction or thought, without aim or destination; he just kept moving, seeking the peace and quiet that only a forest could grant him.
His mind flashed back to the days he’d spent in the forest before he’d been found and taken to the monastery. He had no memory of his life before the monastery, save a few broken pieces that only painted a blurry picture filled with fire, smoke, and the tortured wails of one whom he suspected to be his mother.
The monks had tried several methods to help him regain his memories, but all to no avail. He’d finally given up and accepted his fate around the time of his sixteenth birthday, but now as he aimlessly traversed the forest, it felt like he could grasp the memories if only he could just push hard enough.
He tried pushing, but was only a little disappointed when the memories failed to surface. With a weary sigh, he continued his trek, but after about three hours of walking, he finally rested and leaned against the rough bark of a giant tree.
The guilt that raged through him has subsided a little, and he’d finally gained a semblance of peace. The turmoil in his mind had calmed, and he was finally able to carefully sort his thoughts.
Daruk had followed quietly behind him and hadn’t said a word even when they’d almost fallen into a ditch an hour ago. Now, he leaned against the bark of an opposite tree, and after an extra moment of silence, he asked. “Are you ready to talk about it?”
Aodhán shook his head but replied anyway. “The Gishan girl is right; I did something.”
“Tell me what happened.”
Aodhán explained the entire occurrence and how he’d inadvertently drawn the ire of the storm. “I keep thinking that if I hadn’t tried to manipulate the storm, maybe the Raventhorn wouldn’t be at the bottom of the sea right now, and maybe all those who died would still be alive.”
After a long pause, Daruk replied. “Maybe you’re right, but have you thought of the alternative? What would have happened if you hadn’t tried to connect with the storm?"
“That’s the problem.” Aodhán replied with a shake of his head. “I can’t say—I’m not—I’m not sure.”
“Okay, calm down.” Daruk replied with a placating gesture. “From what you explained to me, that last attack was extremely powerful, and the lightning would have arced out to cover a large surface area. How likely was it for the Raventhorn to have survived?”
Aodhán paused, thinking, and after a moment he sighed, “It was very unlikely for the Raventhorn to have survived the attack, but perhaps—"
“Perhaps nothing, Aodhán.” Daruk cut him off. “The Raventhorn couldn’t have survived without a miracle, and I would have been dead by now. All those people at the shore would have died.”
“Still—” Aodhán began, but Daruk cut him off again. “We were the only ship on the sea; from the moment that storm appeared, we were its target; it even struck us twice and damaged the enchantments. Whether you’d drawn its ire or not, the storm would still have attacked the ship.
Your actions caused it to attack you, and if you’d managed to absorb all that energy, you’d have been hailed and lauded as a savior. Unfortunately, you were unable to do so, but that doesn’t make you a murderer, not when you were acting with intentions to save us all.”
Aodhán scoffed. “I was acting out of greed.”
“Two truths can coexist, Aodhán. Yes, your actions caused a disaster, but they easily prevented a catastrophe.”
“I’m not sure catastrophes are worse than disasters.” Aodhán replied with a small smile, and Daruk chuckled. “I’m the scholar; trust me, it’s worse.”
Aodhán turned to the canopy as the sun rose, and he sighed. “You’re probably right.”
“Of course I am.” Daruk scoffed. “This is that moment when you tell me that I have your eternal gratitude or something.”
“Pfft, never.” Aodhán replied with a smile, and Daruk shook his head in mock despair. “Why do I even try?"
Aodhán chuckled, and after a moment, he said, “Thank you.” In a softer tone, he added. “You had to be the strong one today; I know it’s not easy for you either. You have my eternal gratitude.”
Daruk gave a single nod in response, and after a while, they resumed their walk through the forest.
With a thought, Aodhán finally reviewed his status. He’d made some big gains, and he knew he’d gotten stronger, but it was always better to see it.
….
[STATUS]
Name: Aodhán Ashoka
Title: Neophyte, Stormborn.
Class: Evolved storm awakened: 99.9% (PENDING)
Tier: 13–17.2%
Skills {Innate}: Storm creation and manipulation, lightning creation and manipulation.
{Other}: Lightning surge, Lightning beam, Absorb Lightning, Lightning descent, Create constructs.
Bloodline: Nil
Glimpse: Increases elemental control by 1%
Stormborn: A title given to one who has undergone a tribulation of the origin plane of storm and survived its wrath.
…
Aodhán came to an immediate halt, shocked by all the changes on his status screen. The first change was the title, Stormborn, and what it meant. His mind flashed back to the moment when storm clouds had bled into the night sky, and he remembered the plane he had glimpsed through it.
He shuddered at the memory, and Daruk paused. “What’s wrong? Why have we stopped?”
“I just went through my status, and there are so many changes; I now have a title called Stormborn.”
“Because of the storm?” Daruk asked, but Aodhán failed to respond as he read through the change in his class. He had evolved his class from 2% to 99%, a feat that required an enormous amount of energy, yet he had failed to advance to the next class, and he wondered what the pending tag meant.
He’d also gained a total of six tiers, but compared to the other changes, it wasn’t too surprising as he had funneled a great deal of energy into his core. The last change was the glimpse perk, and although the effect it had on both his affinity and control was slight, it wasn’t insignificant.
He read through the status again, but rather than answers, he only had more questions. What was the origin plane, and why had it suddenly appeared? Also, why was his class still pending?
He clasped the necklace thoughtfully; the glow was gone and it had returned to its normal state, which begged another question.
“What sort of magical item was the necklace?