Connor stepped out of the spatial tear and landed with the grace of a ninja. Or at least that had been the plan. The long-awaited moment was here, and he had been practicing his entrance for weeks. He had even gone so far as to train himself, turning around for a minute or two to get dizzy and then jump down some steps. In his mind, he could have gone with a flip, or even a cartwheel should the need arise. But the reality was that he had landed face first.
"Argh!" he grumbled. He hadn't expected the disorientation of the passage to be so intense. Whaaaaat? he thought I got in the right foot first and then ... I kind of fell in?
Still trying to make sense of his less-than-stellar performance, he sat himself upright massaging his head. He knew that the Seal Room, as his Master had named it, was a safe place, at least to begin with. So he wasn't in a hurry and took his time sorting himself out. "At least I didn't puke," he concluded, a bit ashamed.
He sighed, "Right, anyway, let's get this over with." He stood up, removed the dust from his clothes, checked his backpack's latches, and his weapons and gears were all fastened. Then looked around. Just like his Master had described, the room was shaped like a large hexagonal kiosk, without walls. The floor was made of some dark stone veined with silver. There had been some carving once, but time had worn it down and only left a few lines here and there. The domed ceiling was supported by six sculpted columns whose details had also faded. The ceiling showed a starry sky where dozens of shooting stars appeared and disappeared. Beyond the room itself, there was nothing but a dark sky and a few clouds brightly lit by a yellow and a purple moon. Right in the middle of the room stood a meter-high pillar above which floated a large silvery liquid in perpetual motion. It was a Seal, in its purest form. Beyond the pillar, on the other end of the room stood the three stone Doors. Neither was lit right now, as he needed to complete the Room's Challenges to activate them.
Despite his eagerness to get started, Connor turned around and approached the border of the room to look beyond and below. He knew perfectly well that there was no chance he'd get to witness the Crystal City, Home of the Holy Ascender. But still, some pretended that it happened. After all, even if two new Pathers entered at the same time the Door, neither would reach the same place. So he looked down. Vertigo took him for a second as he gazed downward. There was barely a stone step outside the room and then hundreds if not thousands of meters of nothing but air.
Below, bathed in the strange moonlights, he could see some time frozen sea or a very large lake giving birth to a wide river that flowed toward the horizon. The river's delta was populated, as he could distinguish some sort of constructions. The details were fuzzy and obscured by the distance but he could guess the shapes of boats. Something he never had witnessed as Sandford's exterior was mostly a desert. So much water was a strange sight to behold.
He felt a slight pinch in his heart. He really would have liked his Seal Room to be the one. He sighed again and turned around. While he wasn't in a real hurry, he still had an appointment with his friend. He took out a small wooden box, his timepiece, and checked how much time he had left. Time had a subjective meaning in the Realms, as there weren't any set parameters. Some Realms could have a day lasting ten hours, others a hundred. Thankfully some smart guys had come up with a mechanical way to get the sense of time. One bound to the Realms, and one not.
Right now, he had still a bit less than three hours before he had had to jump through the Hero's Door. Of these, a good twenty minutes would be required to activate the Seal. And then two and a half will be left to face the challenge. Thankfully, it should be an easy one, he prayed. According to their Master, the trial took between ten minutes and a day but averaged around thirty minutes. Had they taken the Sovereign's Deal, they would probably have joined a caravan or a group of Pathers that would have waited the whole day for them. But they had refused, and now they had to make it on their own. The problem was, if they wanted to rejoin each other despite using the Hero's Door, they had to go through the Door at the same time, according to the Priest. Hence the timepiece, and the month of toiling they had had to get through to afford one.
He readied himself and stepped closer to the pillar. His Master had explained that this wouldn't be a pleasant experience and provided them with pieces of advice. Like for example they should undress themselves, bite some leather, and stack their belongings away from the pillar, as things tended to be ... messy. Connor had followed them religiously and was now standing in his underwear, with his backpack and clothes neatly stacked on the side.
"Be a good one, okay?" he pleaded the silver globule. "Not some shit, like Master Cook, or Sewer Diver, right?" Like every child, he had dreamed of legendary Seals, such as the Holy Ascender's "Twilight Sword" or those of his three companions. His parents, as per Tradition, tried to keep him obedient by stating that otherwise, he'd get some "Broommaster" Seals.
He wasn't a child anymore. He was sixteen as of a few days ago. But he still hoped for some night-related class. Assassins and Rogues were often decried, but he loved the challenge they posed. Of course, walking the Path meant that he wouldn't probably use his skills against fellow Pathers, but some Challenges required a defter hand and a sneaky mind. Besides, Xander will be the meat shield, he snicked at that, as his friend's shield was so disproportionately small it bordered on ridicule. But it's knowing how to use it that matters, not the size. And he did know how to use his shield. During their training, they often had to meet each other's blades. And in a frontal assault, he would almost always lose to Xander. But his Master had encouraged him to sneakily ambush his friend, whenever the opportunity arose, albeit with a blunted blade. Both had learned a lot from these exercises.
He stepped forward. He could feel the power radiating from the silver thing, like a cold radiation mixed with some pepper. It made him giddy. He extended his right hand, slowly, almost solemnly. "This is it."
He pushed through and the glob froze. Blazing pain followed as the silver liquid rushed the boy's body. He fell back and remembered to bite the leather. He could feel his body being torn apart, his bones being crushed, his skin being burned. He screamed, but the leather muffled the sound. Thankfully he blacked out quickly enough.
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Xander woke up with a start and got blinded by the morning's sun for his trouble. He cursed and rolled over. His body was sore, and he felt like he had been run over by a cart. Yet his eyes couldn't miss the large tattoo that had appeared on his right hand and forearm, along with four rectangular gems, also known as Ability Jade, inlaid on his skin. He had done it. He had obtained a Seal! He was a true Pather now.
The Seal itself depicted a long curved sword, with a black blade, a silver hilt, and a long flowing scarf, weaving as if in a storm. The blade was engraved with the eight Jade slots, with four already filled. Some fire seemed to be coming out of the blade, and the whole thing was surrounded by a black aura. The flame itself was dotted with thirty round slots, where he would be able to set some Orbs. It was a beautiful Seal only marred by a heavy chain that was wrapped around the blade and the hilt to his wrist.
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With his left finger, he traced the Seal's outline. It was strange, foreign yet his own. He didn't feel that much different from before, but he knew that he was. In the back of his mind, he could feel the four slotted Jades shining like some otherworldly beacon. While he couldn't parse yet their meaning, he was already more than excited that one of them was Black. "I am an Ascender!" he shouted and then winced. His throat was dry, and his voice was hoarse. He had been screaming for a while, it seemed.
Black Jades were rare, just by being Black. But, more than rare, they were very powerful, as they hosted a Spirit Guide. It was theorized that the Spirit Guide was the remnant of a previous Ascender that left an inheritance behind, in the form of a Jade. The Spirit Guide would then assist the new Ascender on his path toward the mastery of an Energy. Black Jades were the ones that beheld Qi Masters and Martial Artist. Xander felt truly blessed. He had been training for years, and now he had a Seal that would help him go further on his Path. The two reds Jade meant that he would have Offensive Abilities, and the last one was green, the color of Movement Abilities. He wasn't unhappy but he'd have preferred to earn a brown, for Survivability. But as his Master always said, "A good defense begins with a good offense." So he'd take it.
He couldn't wait any more, and dashed to his backpack, and took out the Analysis Talisman his Master had offered him. It wouldn't tell him much, but it should give him sufficient hints as to how his Seal would work. The Talisman itself was a work of art. It was a small piece of paper, with a golden border and a silver center. The silver was engraved with a complex pattern, and the whole thing was covered with a thin layer of lacker. Now that he was a Pather, he could activate it. He took a deep breath and pushed his Will within. Not that he knew what he was doing, but supposedly, that should be enough to get the Talisman to work. And work it did.
The Talisman glowed with a soft light, and the pattern started to move, then disappeared. From the silver surface emerged a few lines of text, slightly burning a white flame and hovering above the Talisman.
Seal: Damian's Path
First Jade: Sword Mastery
Second Jade: Fiery Strike
Third Jade: Extended Force Slash
Fourth Jade: Seven Steps of Damian
Xander had enough time to read the text three times and commit it to memory before the Talisman consumed itself in a small flame. He cursed as it bit his finger, but he didn't care much. Named Seals and Abilities were rare, according to his Master. But rare didn't mean good. He had heard of some Seals that were so bad that Pathers had to abandon them and live the life of a recluse. Thankfully that wouldn't be the case with his. He just hoped the Black Jade would be a good one. His Talisman only got him the name of the Ability, not its description. He'd have to wait and get a Reader to perform a full Reading to know more because there are many kinds of swords.
Still, he grinned, "That will be a good beginning!" He stood up and took a few steps to stretch his legs. He needed to get himself geared up. The first Door was already lit and waited patiently, but their goal was the Hero's Gate so he would have to complete the Challenge with enough gusto! He checked his timepiece and saw that he had a bit more than two hours left, which was plenty enough.
When his hand landed on his sword he felt something. Like a gut feeling. He looked at his hand, and then at the sword. He had never felt anything like that before. He made a few practice swipes in the air. Something was wrong, No, not wrong, just different? He looked at his Seal and wondered. "Guess it's not the right kind of sword..." he muttered. His forms were fine, according to his Master, but the Black Jade was like a second set of instincts as if he had some old swordmaster in the back of his head. He did several more series of swipes and slashes. Stepping left and right, and then back and forth. He was beginning to get used to the feeling when he heard something. He had been so focused on his sword that he hadn't noticed that he wasn't alone anymore. Somehow he had triggered the Challenge of the Room. Some kind of orange-stripped bear lunged at him from the right, while another was barely a few meters behind.
Relying on his years of training, he shifted his body, leaning on the side and letting the paw sail past him. His sword was too long to be used in such a close quarter, so he used this moment to reposition himself and strike the bear's head with the pommel. As it was already off balance, the blow was enough to send it crashing to the ground. He didn't wait for it to get back up and turned to face the second one and Stepped.
He had never used a Movement Ability before, but he knew the principle behind them. He just needed to Want to be somewhere else. Depending on the kind of Ability it was the effect would be different of course. His Jade somehow made his step reach longer. He had been standing a few meters away from the bear, but with a single step, he was now right in front of it. He hadn't been ready for such a distance to be crossed and couldn't capitalize on it right away, he dodged the bear's overly large mouth and slashed at his neck.
Unfortunately, the damnable beast had a very thick fur or hide. He cursed as his sword barely cut a handful of hair out of it. The bear roared in anger and tried to bite him again. Again he Stepped, this time to get away from both bears, as the second one was rushing him as well. He was breathing heavily, and his heart was racing. Their Master had put them in real fights, where their lives had been at risk, but this was the first time he was facing real opponents alone.
He needed to center himself and focus on his opponent's strengths and weaknesses. "Know yourself and your enemies and you shall fear no defeat." He had heard that a thousand times. This is a Challenge tailored for his Seal. He had to use it to his advantage. He looked at his Seal, and then at the bears rushing at him. He couldn't hope to use his Qi actively without training. But he could try to activate his Offensive Abilities. The problem was, each of those had their proper activation sequence. But by the name of them, he could take a guess.
Burn! he shouted in his mind, and the sword obliged. The blade was suddenly covered in flames, and he could feel the heat radiating from it. He slashed at the first bear, it was still a few meters away but Willed it to reach. A white crescent extended itself from the blade and zoomed toward the beast. Its impact marred the bear's face with a nasty scar, but it didn't stop it. A shame the fire didn't join the fun...
Yet his blade was still ablaze, so he made use of it. Now at an appropriate distance from his foes, he began his dance. He followed the steps his Master had taught him, a rhythm he had grown used to over the years. He slashed, he stabbed, he parried, he dodged. He could feel the Black's hand attempting to guide him on some other steps, on another tune, but he wasn't ready for this. The two monsters' fur was burning hot which in turn crazed the already aggressive foes. And despite their newfound speed and vigor, the young swordsman managed to land a decisive blow to the first bear, its crispy hide cracked under a powerful thrust. Stepping his sword away, he left the sad barbecued animal lying in a pool of blood.
The second bear, now alone didn't stand a chance and perished quickly enough. Xander set himself on the floor, exhausted.
"Stupid!" he shouted at himself in recrimination. He had known, he had been told what to expect, and still fell for it. "Idiot!"
A few breaths later, he was back on his feet, found his backpack, and took out a pouch filled with several bright Orbs. "I should have done that right after getting the Seal," he whispered, dejected. "Would have made the fight much easier."
Thankfully he hadn't been hurt, and if he was honest, he had dominated the fight. Still, it had been an unnecessary risk. He had been lucky, and he knew it. He had to be more careful. One by one, he pushed nine little Jade Orbs onto his Seal. Some he had been offered by the Sovereign of Sandford, the rest he had bought. By the time all nine were set, he felt better. He was pretty sure he could have slain both beasts without the fire effect now.
Now done with the Challenge, he gathered his stuff, took his Reward that had appeared by the Doors, and slipped another pair of Orbs in his Seal with a distinctly happy grin. Then pulled a Seal-glove on his right hand, completely hiding the Seal from the outside. He poked the dead bears to see if they had anything to give him. He found two dim red Jade Orbs, which he pocketed, compared to his Reward these were nothing. He'd liked to have been granted an appropriate sword as a Reward, but he had been given a full set of Energy Orbs instead, which would come in handy.
He checked his timepiece. "I guess I can still practice a bit more before going through the Door," he took a few steps back and began his sword forms again.