Andrew found himself floating. Not like floating above his house or anything, but floating in a dark place. There was no light anywhere and the reason he knew he was floating, was because he could feel it. That sensation when your body was in the air filled his mind. For some reason he wasn’t afraid, and even a fleeting thought filled him, that maybe he had died. He was relieved that the pain was gone. He very clearly remembered the incredible tearing sensation when he had asked the core to assign his points. They had only been one point. His ability scores were so low, so of course he had chosen to increase the two abilities he thought would help him in his life first. He really didn’t expect it would be such a big deal.
He couldn’t quite remember what had caused the pain exactly, was it adding to strength, or was it adding to intelligence? Perhaps because he had added to both? Nevertheless he was relieved the pain was gone. That pain had been next level stuff. His very veins had burst into flames, and a pack of giant bats had exploded into his brain making everything excruciating. Was this what it was like to be in a coma? Was he stuck in a coma, inside his own head?
For some reason, he couldn’t nail down his thoughts. As they happened, they seemed to drift away, and things he should be concerned about just wouldn’t matter.
Out the corner of his vision, he began to notice a little brightness, and so turning his head he saw a flickering light. It was that soft golden light that he was becoming familiar with. Was it the egg? He tried to focus, and as he did so, he seemed to move towards it, the light getting brighter. Not like a torch shining in your eyes kind of bright, but like a lamp in a dark room, gentle and comforting. He moved closer and closer, the light became more and more pronounced. Not brighter, but more clear until at last he could make out the shape of the egg.
“There you are” Andrew voiced the words, but heard nothing in the vast blackness. There was a gentle thrum as the egg pulsed in response to his acknowledgment. He could feel it reaching out towards him. He did the same. Not with hands, but with his mind.
As he did that, his consciousness, his whole being sped ever faster towards the lonesome egg and he felt like he was a meteor propelling itself to crash against the egg, because as he got closer and closer, the egg became larger and larger in his sight. Taking on planetary proportions from his point of view. The sensation of speeding towards the egg didn’t diminish in the least when he got closer, in fact he seemed to speed up and he was really getting worried that if he didn’t slow down he would crash into it. Perhaps that would bring the pain back and he really, really didn’t want that.
While he perceived the egg as a massive planet, he also noticed that the egg itself was not simply one color, or even one dimension, It appeared to swirl and pulse with different portions increasing in brightness, a kaleidoscope of rainbows intertwined. The intensity ebbed and flowed, while aspects of the surface became subdued then flared to life again the very next instant. It fascinated him.
The shell of the egg wasn’t a shell at all, but a layer of energy, of mixing energies. Perhaps he was going to be absorbed by the egg.
Just when he thought this must be so, he reached what could only be the outer atmosphere. An area of thickened substance. It slowed him appreciably and his sensation of speed diminished rapidly until he reached an equilibrium of sorts. A point of solidity. A place where he could see the entire Egg, at least the part that faced him at any rate.
On some level, he was glad that he wasn’t crashing into the egg, because even he knew that if he did that, it would mean he had died. Instead he was here to observe and a sudden fleeting thought filled him. Perhaps he would find his father here. Maybe his father was part of this egg. Perhaps it was a conglomeration of souls? But it was so big. How had he even gotten here?
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Andrew tried to blink, but found he could not. He then tried to call out. “Dad!, Daaaad!” His mind cried out for the father he loved and missed so terribly. He so desperately wanted to make contact again. If this egg held some part of his dad, he wanted to know why and even more importantly why had his dad chosen to be with this egg instead of with him and mom.
“Daaaad!” His cry never left his mouth, never became a voice, but even so, the emotion he had bottled up over months was finally coming out. It carried accusation, hurt, anger and frustration. It carried love and pain and hope most of all.
The egg seemed to throb in response. A pulse of comfort. A golden stream of motes emanated from the surface of the egg, reaching out like a filament from a sea anemone caressing a clown fish. Andrew, as the clown fish, just watched as the tendrils encompassed him, soothing, protective and caressing.
The warmth and comfort they emitted filled him with joy, because within that stream of thought, was something magical. He couldn’t put words to it, but it carried the sense of his dad with it, and he felt more than heard a comforting touch, and an acknowledgment of his hurts and also a demand.
The demand required that he put his emotions aside for now and focus on the now. He never quite knew how it communicated what it did, but he again knew what to do. He stared at the egg in all its glory. Huge and imposing. He looked at it. Really looked at it and with an act of will extended his mind outwards, and he reached to encompass it all so there would be no ambiguity, no misunderstanding.
“Teach me!” he said to it, and it was as much a plea as the call for his father had been, it was as much a command as he had ever given in his short span of years and it was filled with the fuel of pure hope.
He felt now the golden motes swirling through him, into him, around him and he felt complete. He also felt a small part, a tiny part of himself leaving his consciousness to swirl back towards the massive egg, as if he was part of it, and it was part of him and they were becoming one.
After a while. Perhaps a long while, or perhaps even a short while, he felt satiated. Fulfilled. Unable to take or give more. With it came a sense of drowsiness upon which he grabbed on to, then with a satisfied smile of contentment, he broke contact with the core. Whatever he was meant to accomplish here he had done it and it was now time for him to go back to his body, time for him to heal from the changes made.
Andrew had witnessed something miraculous this day, and with an understanding beyond his years he realized he had taken a trip inwards. That he had journeyed within himself and that the egg, once a construct in the real world, a physical item, had now merged with his soul and lived inside him.
This journey he had experienced was all internal and what he was witnessing was his core. A place where all the magic of his forebears lived. A place he was to nurture, refine and cherish, and a place that would guide and council and sustain him in return. He would gain access to its many benefits through achieving and from those achievements he would find success.
His life from hereon out was just beginning. He was now very much a part of the Custodian Knights and would have to live up to the name. He now also knew that those points he distributed so carelessly to increase his abilities would change him irrevocably. That each point represented by tables and numbers was so much more, and the changes weren’t just an illusion of power or ability. They weren’t just a neat trick for powers. They were given to him from his core such that he could grow. A set of steps that required him to strive to take the next one. His core enhanced him, and in return he had to refine it, so it could enhance him even more. This was the path to greatness.
There would be pain yes, but the pain was gain and that was way more important for his future tasks. He had to also make sure that it was balanced and suitable for whatever challenges those tasks may bring.
Andrew finally drifted off into a peaceful and nurturing sleep, not entirely dreamless, but certainly filled with wonder.