Chapter 245 - Hard Truths

Nate sat down across from the Elders of the Depths Walker Temple before him, the air alive with the pressure of the Heart of the Sea all around them. Reciprocity pushed at Nate to repay the answer to his question.

“Do you understand what you do when you meditate on the nature of the Heart of the Sea?” he asked.

“We do not meditate on the nature of the Heart of the Sea, Ascendant,” answered Elder Seeking. “We meditate on how it relates to us, to our Path. To try and encapsulate all of the Heart of the Sea and its meaning… none have managed it. Even now, I cannot sense some of the things you describe. Water… yes, it is there, though faint. But Pressure? I feel nothing. Depths? I do not even know what you describe.”

Nate paused his explanation as he considered the words. Was he more sensitive to the nature of the Divine Energy because he contained significantly less of The System’s Divine Energy? The Elders before him had undergone not one but two more evolutions than he had. In addition, they also likely had higher level Skills resulting in pieces of their Class Core granted by The System and powered by its own Divine Energy. Would that interfere with their senses, making it harder to recognise Concepts that did not relate to their own paths? It was a working theory, but he would base his responses on that fact.

“Do you understand how mana takes on affinities?” he asked, going into lecture-mode as Frick sat nearby, staring greedily at the Heart of the Sea.

“We have records from the time before mana,” answered Elder Guardian. “Of a weaker world. Our understanding is that it empowers what it touches.”

Nate thought he could see the issue.

“Is there a Temple devoted to Alchemy?” Nate asked.

“There is, the Temple of Gloried Ascension. They do not have many Disciples and are highly selective, much like our own,” answered Jin’Kahn.

“What about formation mastery?”

There were head shakes indicating there was not, which likely meant the same for Enchanting.

“Do most Temples focus on combat?”

“Almost all of them,” answered Elder Guardian. “We defend the populace from the beasts that grow powerful with mana and would attack our cities.”

Nate nodded. The Calikex society was locked in a state of constant combat against their environment. Resources flowed towards the Temples who, in turn, protected the populace. That left little room or resources for more academic pursuits. Unless Nate missed his guess, the ambient mana was ever rising, bit by bit over the years, putting the Calikex constantly at odds with the rising tide of beasts. Dungeons might have been the ultimate balancer, but the attitude towards their ‘Sacred Trial’ begged a question of how much use the Calikex made of them. He could even acknowledge that the majority of them might be underleveled for the Dungeons themselves. If the Dungeons were all Mythic, the Legendary Class holders might struggle, robbing the Calikex of defenders.

“Very well, I will explain to the best of my knowledge, what I understand of mana and Concepts,” Nate began.

“Concepts are inherent to our Reality. Truths, you call them. They exist in the absence of mana. A tree would have many Concepts within it. Life, Bark, Leaf, Propagation, Reproduction, Water, Movement… the list goes on and on. Together these Concepts give rise to a singular Concept, that of a Tree. Then we have mana, which as you rightly pointed out, empowers these natural laws, these truths. Mana is, in many ways, much like water.”

Nate spun up two runes. Water Shaping and Air Shaping. With air he created two bubbles and into them he pushed water, with one bubble holding far more than the other. Then he connected them with a bar of air and water began flowing from the more filled bubble into the other.

“Mana flows from areas of higher density to lower density, unless controlled not to. When it does this, mana interacts with whatever it is flowing into and empowers the Concepts present.”

Nate paused to see the Elder’s reactions, noting they were all stared at him with rapt attention.

“Much like our Classes, Concepts also have tiers, or strengths. Remember, a Concept is a representation of an idea. Your Heart of the Sea has multiple Concepts embedded within it and has grown strong enough that Reality itself recognises it as a pillar of those ideas. Then mana touches upon it, both empowering those Concepts and being influenced by them. The mana around us is no longer simply mana, but mana with an affinity, mana with an associated idea, or in this case, ideas.”

“When you meditate, you are drawing that mana into yourselves. Mana with an idea of what it is. Your bodies are less powerfully aligned to the Concepts than the mana is to whatever idea it has taken from the Heart of the Sea, and so, like water, you take on these Concepts, incorporating them into your flesh and blood.”

Nate turned to Elder Seeking, “The idea you sought, Seeking, is not already present in the Heart of the Sea. But Concepts are ideas, and ideas are malleable. They can be adapted. Seeking is not the same as Hunting, and so you gain less from the Heart of the Sea. It is why you are a Legendary rather than a Mythic.”

Nate turned to Elder Guardian, “The formation around this room whispers of Protection. Guarding is similar but not the same, but it is closer to Protection than Seeking is to Hunting. However, the formation is only Mythic and so, like Elder Gin’Pol, you have changed less physically. That is why you also are Legendary rather than a Mythic.”

Nate turned to the last three Elders, “Hunting, Lurking and Hiding. All are present in the Heart of the Sea, but I suspect your Paths and Classes begin by emulating creatures. Because of this, and the presence of The Guide’s own Concept within you, you struggle to sense anything you are not already partially aligned with.”

Nate paused for a second, “I am not certain, but I think, to become an Ascendant, you must become more aligned with your Embodiments physically than your Class Core is aligned with The Guide’s Embodiment.”

“How can we do that?” asked Elder Jin’Kahn hungrily.

Nate turned away from them and felt a pang of sadness. He knew the answers. Both of them. But he doubted he could give them what they wanted. Their desire was too strong, what could they possibly offer him for creating a Divine material aligned to their Paths for them to ingest? Alchemy was perhaps their way forward. The alternative was to weaken their own Temple, with no hope of success. To slowly ingest pieces of the Heart of the Sea itself.

“You need Divine material that aligns with your Embodiment that you can imbibe and guide into your flesh. Into your bodies. You need to become one with mana,” Nate whispered and closed his eyes as the lesson from The System finally sunk in.

The look of horror on the Elder’s faces was in many ways a mirror of his own sadness. The Calikex were trapped. The very thing that let them subvert the normal progression and skip a tier was the same resource they would need to chip away at to Ascend, making it harder if not impossible for future generations.

Nate stayed out of the hushed and heated discussion among the Elders, his thoughts going to other options. Would a Mythic Dungeon reward a Divine Material if soloed? The debate continued and Nate could see three sides forming. Hunting and Jin’Kahn wanted to look into consuming pieces of the Heart of the Sea to try and ascend. Hiding and Guarding pushed to start developing alchemists within their ranks to try and push through the barrier using lesser materials. Seeking thought they should hunt the Depths for alternative materials or even other Divine Artifacts, though the other Elders scoffed at the idea.

“Do you use Dungeons?” Nate interjected.

“You mean Trials? The Temple of the Depths Walkers controls a single Trial. We send Senior Disciples into its depths as teams of around ten before they reach their fourth evolution and after significant exposure to the Heart of the Sea. Those who survive become Elders,” explained Elder Guarding.

“Do only Senior Disciples get access to the Heart of the Sea?”

“Yes. The mana in the room grows stronger over time so it is a limited resource. After our own coming in here today, it will likely be closed for a month before anyone is let back in. We cannot give such a resource to all our Disciples and must focus on those we are most confident are capable of progressing.”

Nate opened his mouth and felt the pressure of Reciprocity weigh down on him once more, “I have a solution. You will not like it, I think, but it may change the future of your Temple. The cost, however, is not small. It will cost what I owed earlier and more. Do you wish to pay whatever Reciprocity demands?”

The Elders grew closer as the discussion resumed, now with the added factor of Nate’s advice. While they debated, Nate closed his eyes to feel the way the Heart of the Sea influenced its surroundings. It was a new experience, as the Divine Artifact was filled with so many different Concepts and it gave him ideas for his own Divine Artifact. Plans that he hadn’t initially considered. As he waited, he continued to draw mana into Conceptual Insight, fueling the rise of his Paint and Art Sigils. They would form the base of the Divine Artifact he intended to create, but they would not be the end. Like a tree branching endlessly, he would incorporate more and more Divine-tier Concepts until his artifact was a tapestry of existence. The ultimate piece of art, a representation of Reality itself. 

He wondered how long it would take him to accomplish his goal. A hundred years? A thousand? In theory, he had that and more. With Life, he could likely heal himself from any injury, including aging. Immortality was never something he had considered before, but with the scope of this dream laid before him, the time required forced him to face the nature of his existence. He and Kiri, if they weren’t killed, could live to see a million dawns. He felt a sense of melancholic joy. To see and explore for eternity, but also to witness so much you loved and appreciated fade into the annals of history. It was a beautiful sadness.

“We will hear your suggestion,” said Elder Jin’Kahn, interrupting his morose thoughts. “And will do all we can to repay the debt.”

Nate nodded, “It should be your youngest Disciples that meditate in here. There is not enough time or energy within this room for any of you to progress fast enough to Ascend. You will need to seek alternatives. But your youngest Disciples are the least influenced by The System… The Guide’s own energies. They will likely be able to skip at least one tier. Maybe two. If they manage that, you may give rise to your own Ascendants without needing to subvert the Divine Artifact that is the cornerstone of your Temple.”

Nate saw flashes of anger, thoughtfulness, and despair appear on the faces of the Elders. For Jin’Kahn, he thought the look on her face was one of despair. A fear that she would fail in her goal of ascension. Elders Guarding and Seeking looked thoughtful, while Hunting and Hiding looked angry, though what the source of their anger was Nate had no idea.

Reciprocity began to press on him as Nate felt the debt owed and interrupted them with a cough.

“The payment,” he pressed when none of the Elders reacted.

Quickly, items began being laid out before him. Most were pearls, though there were bones and shells as well. All mythic, all containing affinities. After the pile was as big as two closed fists. Nate finally felt the pressure vanish.

“That is sufficient. I have given you much to think about. Do you still wish for me to instruct your Disciples?” Nate asked.

It was Elder Seeking who answered, “I am not sure we can afford more of your time, Ascendant Nate. You have given us much. Much knowledge. Much to think about and discuss. We will likely deliberate on your words for weeks, if not months. You are welcome to remain and partake in our hospitality, or we can have someone guide you back to the surface.”

Elder Seeking paused, glancing at their fellow Elders and the looks of anger and despair among them, “I… for one, am thankful for the gift you have given us. Even if it was not what we hoped for…shall I fetch a Senior Disciple to guide you?”

“That will not be necessary,” Nate answered, placing the materials into a room within his spatial home. 

“I am sorry I couldn’t give you what you wanted,” Nate said to Elder Jin’Kahn, not even mentioning the possibility of making her a material. Reciprocity told him it was impossible. “I will see myself out. Thank you for your time.”

Nate stepped through the barrier that sealed the room for the Heart of the Sea off from the rest of the building and then spent a single unit of Divine Energy on Conceptual Sight of The Runic Artist, expanding the range of his farsight sphere of awareness. Finding the surface was childsplay and with a flex of Conceptual Spatial Manipulation, he teleported out of the trench and into the midday air before arresting his momentum with a Gravity Control rune. Hovering above the ocean, he felt his mana slowly depleting from fighting against the empowered Concepts of the Wild Realm. Still, he had more than enough to see himself back to Pinoreth. Flying over the ocean was faster than swimming had been, but slower than his flying ship. Beside him hovered Frick, blue eyes wide and watching Nate.

“Ask,” Nate stated.

“Can you do it? Can I catch up?” Frick asked, hope filling his voice.

“You already know the answer.”

“What’s it going to cost me, Boss? We’re already tied together.”

Nate watched the city of Pinoreth grow in the distance as they approached.

“I…I don’t know. I don’t know what you can give. I don’t know what more I need from you. I just don’t. We can discuss it, go over all the options. We should include Kiri as well. But, you know what has to come first though.”

“After tomorrow then,” Frick agreed. “You shouldn’t do it in the City, though.”

Nate cocked his head in thought and nodded his agreement. Pinoreth might be fine, but who knew what using the amount of Divine Energy he was going to burn through could do. For all he knew it would draw the attention of Death’s Shadow himself.

“Alright, agreed,” replied Nate. “Tomorrow, on the cliffs overlooking Pinoreth, I will finally replace my robe.”