TEN YEARS AGO.
SOLARIA NORTHERN JUNGLE.
"We are here in attendance to witness the first and one of the most significant moments in the life of every cultivator," Elder Rhole announced, his deep voice sweeping through the whole auditorium.
"This moment...one that every cultivator must cross when they're to begin their path. This moment...which shall forever live in the minds of these children as an unforgettable event, no matter where their different paths eventually take them." He continued, this time, facing the group of fifteen year olds sitting on the auditorium grounds.
Damien gulped the moment the man's eyes passed him, nervousness sinking in.
Elder Rhole looked like a middle-aged man, with brown hair and black piercing eyes. He looked to be in his forties, but everyone knew him to be far beyond that, surpassing a century.
As far as the village's history went by, the man was a living relic of the history of the village, one of the village's first settlers and founders.
They were in the village auditorium, if it could even be called that, only capable of sitting up to a thousand audiences.
Normally, an ordinary event in the Auditorium would have had people sitting anywhere they want, with only the front row reserved for the elders; But today was special, an event which took place only annually.
The setting was tiered in three sections. The first tier—the one closest to the grounds—was reserved for the village elders and the mayor, including other people who took up important leadership positions in the village. The second was occupied by the guests of honor—people whose children were partaking in the ceremony, and the other important families, mainly the families of wealthy merchants, the farmers' council, and the village hunters, those who protected the village from roaming beasts. Damien could see Keilan's mother, Mara, sitting there with his sister, Leira, next to her. Their father wasn't anywhere in the auditorium, likely keeping watch on the village borders along with other hunters.
The third section and the largest by far was filled with the lower class village members, those that did the menial labors and grunt work, like the common farmers and petty traders.
Sitting cross-legged on the auditorium grounds and in full view of the entire audience were Damien and the other kids his age participating in the ceremony. Beside him sat Keilan, his nervous fidgeting not doing any good to Damien's.
Down the line to the left and right were other kids, their nervousness showing in different ways, including Borvin. Damien smiled at that small mercy.
While the Elder kept talking, Damien looked behind, his nervousness not letting him sit still. His eyes quickly found Mara and Leira, to which he was rewarded with a heartwarming smile and a little thumbs up from the little munchkin, which abated his nervousness, a little bit.
Over the many months since he'd started living with them, they'd become more than just an adopted family and into something more real, like he was one of their blood. Anyone who didn't know them would have thought Damien was one of their own, just with strange gray hair. And when he finally got to realize how lucky he was to be found by them, he thanked whatever being out there that made this possible.
Elder Rhole finally finished his speech, which was a large relief to Damien and clearly, the others. He didn't think he could stand another minute of the old man repeatedly announcing how important this ceremony was.
When the Elder was done, he beckoned for Healer Salem to approach, the old woman stood up from her seat amongst the other elders and began walking towards them, the echoes of her walking stick in the quiet auditorium sounding like the inevitable approach of death. On her hand was a leather pouch, in which she dipped her hands, bringing out a leather necklace tied to a fist-sized gemstone which she began passing around to all the participants, going from one person to another.
"On your hands are your awakening stones, which will be used to kickstart you on your journey," Elder Rhole spoke, looking at each of them. "Everyone can manipulate cosmo, but these stones will determine your true aptitude going forward."
If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
Getting his own, Damien studied the gemstone, which looked so unassuming he would have thought it an ordinary gem had he not been told otherwise. Looking at it with his spiritual sense, he finally saw what made it different. The inside was somehow hollowed out and within it was a pool of Cosmo energy, dense and unadulterated.
Damien shivered in fear, a thought crossing his mind. If this was as he'd thought, this ceremony was partially a death sentence.
When the healer was done, moving on to stand on one side, Rhole continued. "It saddens me to say this, but some of you just won't have the required mental strength to go further than the basic Cosmo you have been taught to control. These stones will test you all to determine the able ones and the... unfortunate." He finished, looking at them and seeing mostly terrified faces, he immediately moved to assure them. "Do not despair. It would be sad, no doubt, but don't forget that no matter the results, you'll always be part of the community."
Yeah, right, Damien thought, like anybody would ever believe that. His anxiety mounted.
Every child in the village grew up with the dream of one day being amongst the special ones—the ones who wielded mighty powers. Even the games the children played were made to imitate the different powers people like the hunters wielded; and they always fantasized of one day having such powers for themselves, of one day being able to crush a tree with a punch.
But deep down, they all knew that not everyone was cut out for it. Some people just couldn't take the weight that accompanied those powers. But that didn't shake down their dreams, as they still thought of themselves as one of the lucky few, able to surpass the basic Cosmo wielding and truly step into something specialized, wielding the more flavored energies, like every true cultivator.
Listening to the Elder's speech only elevated Damien's fear, he didn't want to be among the unlucky ones today. Beside him, he could also feel Keilan's fear and nervousness, it was almost blasting out in waves.
Yearning for shared comfort, he stretched out his hands, taking Keilan's. The other boy calmed somewhat and gave Damien a grateful look.
"As we begin, for safety reasons, we will go through all of you one by one," Rhole nodded towards the healer who was standing nearby. "Healer Salem will make sure to heal you before you incur any fatal or permanent damage.
"I will begin calling your names, and when you hear it, you will come forward and begin." Damien gulped, his anxiety reaching new heights. He almost panicked, squeezing down on Keilan's hand, the other boy too nervous to complain."
He looked down the line, seeing different signs of nervousness from the other teenagers. One even looked about to run, his eyes jerking around, like a thief about to be caught and looking for the quickest excape route.
The tension was so thick Damien could feel it on his skin.
"....Bente." Elder Rhole called, the others perking up and audibly breathing out in relief as it wasn't their name being called.
A small mousy girl moved out of the line, her nervousness showing as she fiddled with her dress. As she stepped towards the Elder, he motioned for her to sit in a cross legged position on a single mat which was placed a few feets in front of the other participants.
The girl sat, facing the others and the entire audience.
"Put on the necklace." The healer said. The girl, too nervous, had already forgotten about the necklace, as she first looked at the elder questionly before her mind caught up. She quickly did as commanded, the other participants quickly following behind when the healer looked at them all with a raised eyebrow.
"Now, slowly, I want you to focus your mental energy on the gem. Make sure you have a full grasp on it. Are you done? Okay then, slowly, while focusing on the gem, draw in the pool of energy from it. To make it easier, breathing in as you try to draw in the energy helps..."
Slowly, he could see the girl follow the instructions of the healer as she breathed out, her chest widening, and then she slowly breathed in, and Damien watched in awe as energy from the gemstone, tiny tendrils of Cosmo energy snaked out of it, trailing their way into Bente's body.
When the energy had almost been completely drained away, Bente began shaking, her body going from small fits to almost a violent shake.
"Take it slow. Don't rush." Salem calmly said, seemingly unworried.
At first, Damien thought she couldn't hear, since all her concentration was focused elsewhere, but gradually, her body began to calm, returning back to normal; but by now, sweats was beginning to rise from her face.
They watched in terse silence as Bente finally settled into a still motion. She stayed like that for a long time, and when Damien began thinking maybe something had gone wrong, her eyes snapped open, wide with excitement. A deep Emerald gleamed from her eyes, before settling down.
Wind swept thought the auditorium, bringing with it the smell of flowers and fresh cut grass. A Nature Affinity.
Elder Rhole helped the girl back to her feet, her legs jittery. He raised her hands up. "We have our newest Nature Cultivator!" He shouted, and the crowd roared in approval, the auditorium shaking as nearly a thousand feets stomped in the ground, with whistles and screams of approval being heard from most audience, the reserved ones nodding calmly.
Looking at the girl, her eyes gleamed with joy as the people showed their loud signs of approval.
Elder Rhole nodded, waiting for the noise to die down a little before he spoke. He pointed at the little girl standing at his side. "She shall go on to make sure we're never hit with famine. Wherever her path takes her, know that hunger shall flee at her approach!" The crowd roared again, this time higher than the previous. Damien feared he'd get deafened from the noise, raising his hands to cover his ears.