Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Awakening (Part 1)

A sigh escaped Ralf’s mouth. Slumped over his desk, the youth’s soft face pressed against the hardwood. A gloomy cloud shrouded the thirteen-year-old. Thinking of what he could be up to instead of being cooped up in his room made him depressed.

‘Mom’s too much, really. The flame in my heart can’t be confined like this…it’ll die out.’

He released another sigh.

Ralf was an adventurous spirit. Always on the move, always in search of the interesting, the fun and to his mother’s dismay, the dangerous. Only recently was he out and about, adventuring with the local youths.

He always made sure to hide his activities from her, but the incident three days ago had made that impossible. After finding out, his mother, Hana forbid him from leaving the house entirely, thus resulting in his current melancholy.

Letting out another sigh, Ralf lifted his body. His eyes moved in search of that which could alleviate his boredom.

The room was filled with items: books, toys, trinkets as well as wooden weapons, which could be seen on the shelves or hung up on the walls.

Chronicles of the True King, Caelus Bucculeius Bellus.

The Zenki Era.

The Great Scramble.

The War of the End.

Tales of Raven Tail.

Ralf’s eyes skimmed past the book titles. Lingering on the books for a few seconds, he shifted away. By now, he had read each one several times. They wouldn’t scratch the itch he was currently suffering from. In the end, his eyes stopped where they always would.

Getting up, he drew the sword from its sheath, and then another. He moved to his usual section and shut his eyes. Once dark, his imagination spurred into action and an epic scene began playing in his mind.

Swoosh!

Transported to a battlefield, Ralf’s two swords swished through the air, dispatching the foolish hordes of foes that dared to rush his way. ‘That, take that and that…ahaha.’

In a manner only a child could, he slashed at his imaginary foes, illustrating his peerless skill and dominance.

Ralf sank deep into the fantasy, moving his body with great vigour, slashing, parrying and blocking seriously. He worked up quite a sweat.

But in his frenzy…

*Tok*

“Ah?”

An overzealous swing caused his left sword to go flying. The error caused the scene playing in his head to falter, but a second later, it was back on track.

‘I see, you’re different from the rabble.’ Eyes forward, he stared at the red-eyed shadowy humanoid monster who had ‘just disarmed him’.

‘But you’ve met the wrong opponent. My name is Ralf,’ pausing, he thrust his left hand forward and howled out, ‘Fawkes!’

Fwooossshh!!!

In an instant, a torrent of flames flowed from his palm, filling his vision with a bright light. The sea of flames was unleashed upon the horde, vaporizing them to ashes.

‘Haha burn! Ahaha…’

With the addition of his fire power, Ralf’s frenzy increased.

‘He’s at it again,’ Hana thought.

Hana, who had come due to the sword collision, heard his intermittent laughter from the corridor and smiled wryly. ‘He didn’t get your hair, but that craziness…that’s all you, Robert.’ Not wanting to interrupt him, She turned around and returned to the project she was working on.

Two minutes later…

‘Aaah, curse this weak body aaa aaa…’

While his spirit energy was without limit, his stamina wasn’t. His thirteen-year-old body wasn’t up to scratch. Wet with sweat, Ralf took gulping breaths.

Seeing the monsters rushing up to finish his weakened self, he quickly opened his eyelids, returning to his own world. Sheathing the swords, Ralf plopped himself on the bed.

Taking deep breaths, he sank into his thoughts. Very quickly, a certain topic rushed to the surface.

‘Hmm, I wonder if he’s still here. I want to see him again.’

Ralf’s mind drifted to a memory from three days ago. He had just returned from the forest where the incident had happened with Rudolf’s group. He roamed the streets of Kladek, head hung low. With Rudolf and the others sustaining such heavy injuries, he knew that the jig was up. His mom would surely find out about his involvement. And so, not wanting to head home and be scolded, he moved around town aimlessly, procrastinating the inevitable.

Each step was heavy for the youth. Just imagining his mother’s angry face tore at him. To the youth, it was akin to the sky collapsing. Ralf’s mood was at an all-time low. But as he passed by a bench, his mind was washed away of all thought. The monochrome world was assaulted with vibrant colours at a certain sight.

Beautiful.

This description naturally arrived in Ralf’s mind as he captured the young man’s form.

Fair skin, ocean blue eyes, a face chisel to perfection, and long blonde locks that flowed down to his shoulders. Donning a white robe, the man exuded an eloquence and esteem that didn't match his age. His entire being seemed to let off a translucent glow.

Ralf was instantly mesmerized. At that moment, his mother lost her number one ranking as the most beautiful person he had ever seen.

At that moment, Ralf joined a long list of people who had fallen for the young man’s stunning charm.

Still, Ralf was Ralf after all. Realizing the awe he was feeling, his immense pride shattered the charm spell affecting him.

Once clear, Ralf was met with pause again. Examining the young man’s expression, he was left lost. As sharp as he was, he couldn’t unravel the Gordian knot that was the other’s expression. The distant gaze the stranger wore swam with an indecipherable light. His thoughts, incomprehensible.

Staring at him, Ralf's own troubles all but dissolved. While he was unable to decipher the thoughts running through the mind of the other, he could sense the downtrodden feelings smothering the young man. And so, he approached.

“A frown ruins a handsome face…that’s what my mom always says.” He naturally plopped himself down on the bench. The trance the stranger was in broke at Ralf’s remark. With slightly widened eyes, he turned to the thirteen-year-old.

Ralf continued after making himself comfortable. “I agree,” he said, nodding sagely before turning to the stranger. “Mister you’re ruining your good looks.”

The stranger quirked a brow and showed a bitter smile. “Mm, I suppose you’re right.”

Ralf nodded, then tapped the young man’s shoulder. “Don’t worry mister, that’s why I’m here. I’ll clear away that frown away with my amazing story.”

“Amazing story huh. Okay, fire away, I’m all ears.”

Ralf smiled. “Buckle up, this is really amazing, I dare say at the level of Raven Tail.”

“Oh.” The stranger’s face showed amusement at the remark. “You’ve set the bar high, don’t let me down.”

“Okay, here goes…”

Ralf proceeded to tell the story. It was a retelling of his trip to the forest earlier. Needless to say, it didn’t come close to reaching the level of Raven Tail, still, it did its job in clearing the cloud above the stranger’s head.

“...Jane ran out of Psi and a goblin sprang at her. Rudolf dashed in at the last second and slammed the monster off course. He then aimed his palm towards it, looking to fire a Psi projectile but was interrupted as another goblin came flying in. He wasn't able to react in time and the goblin’s claws cut into his shoulder. It was shallow, but he still had a chunk of flesh taken from him."

“Oh, that’s bad.”

Ralf nodded. “Injured, he couldn’t use his Psi properly. The goblin managed to land another swipe with its claws, worsening the situation. He tried to flee, but in his panic, he accidentally crashed into a tree. The goblin saw an opportunity and sprang at him. This was when it happened.”

Ralf’s lips curled up as he recalled the exact moment. “While everyone was panicking, I remained cool. Time suddenly slowed in my vision. Then, in my tree, armed with my crossbow, I fired my last bolt. It cut through the air, faster than any bullet and pierced the goblin’s temple, killing it instantly.”

“Faster than any bullet,” the young man repeated the shocking claim with a raised eyebrow.

Ralf's nod came briskly causing the young man to smile wryly. He began questioning the other 'facts' the boy had spun.

“Where’s your crossbow now?”

“Unfortunately, I had to drop it. With all the bolts fired, it was just extra weight to carry.”

“Hmm, really?”

Sensing the other’s scepticism, Ralf shook his head with a smile on his face. He pulled up his right sleeve and showcased his proof. “Look, that’s still fresh, I got this during our escape.”

“Hmm…” The stranger’s eyes focused on the nasty gash. ‘It seems there is some truth here.’ His hand moved over the wound briefly before he pulled away.

“…what are you talking about? There's nothing to look at.”

“What do you mean, its right- ah, where is it!?”

Initially baffled by the contention, Ralf was thrown for a loop when his eyes returned to his arm. The gash from a second ago was nowhere to be found, even stranger, the pulsating pain in his arm vanished as well. Ralf's gaze snapped back at the stranger; the way he looked at the young man was different from before.

“You used psionic power just now, right. Did you heal me or am I under an illusion?”

The stranger smirked. “Both.”

The claim rocked the young Ralf’s world, but this would only be the beginning.

“Mister…who are you?"

Since first catching sight of the young man, Ralf had a strong suspicion about the other's identity, and with his arm being healed up, that suspicion transformed into nigh certainty. Excited by the possibility brewing in his head, Ralf couldn't help but ask.

"Me? Hmm, perhaps you know me already, my name is…Micheal Ascania.”

Ralf's eyes beamed as his thoughts were confirmed. ' It's really him, that Micheal Ascania,' he thought, a touch starstruck.

Micheal Ascania.

Ralf knew the name well. In fact, it was rare to find someone who hadn’t heard of the name. Micheal Ascania was a legendary figure, who had been alive since humanity welcomed its first batch of psionics some three hundred years, and was a member of Raven Tail, a legendary band of psionics, once responsible for saving all of humanity.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Ralf recovered. And when he did, he turned into a machine gun. Presented with an opportunity to speak with a Raven in person, he didn’t hold back. Questions were fired Micheal’s way in rapid succession.

Michael humoured the young Ralf, answering his questions without reservation. He watched with amusement as Ralf’s delicate face would light up after each successive word.

The conversation lasted for several hours. Only when the sun was visibly setting did Micheal cut him off.

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“It's getting quite late. You should head home. I’m sure your parents are getting concerned.”

“Uhh, yeah…but-”

Micheal tapped his shoulder. “I’ll be staying here for a few more days; we can continue our discussion tomorrow or the day after. Go on for now, okay.”

Hearing this, Ralf’s spirits lifted. Saying his farewells, he headed home. There, he met with a furious Hana, who dished out his punishment. His claim that he had met Micheal Ascania was promptly discarded by the angered Hana. In her mind, there was simply no way.

“Haaa…”

Remembering the ordeal provoked another sigh from Ralf. He looked toward the window and considered making a daring escape, but quickly discarded the idea. He had already tried and failed.

‘I won’t be able to sneak past her Psi Scan undetected. And if I try, who knows how long she’ll extend my sentence haa. The only thing I can do is wait for her to calm down enough. After she’s done with the sculpting, I’ll bring up Micheal again. Hopefully, she relents. I never even got to talk about Dimitri and his betrayal…I must know.’

The minutes passed by and Ralf’s mind moved onto another topic.

‘It's been four days already, come on Great Aether, stop delaying my psionic awakening.’

Psionic awakening.

Since the Zenki Ripple first passed by the planet some three hundred years ago, humanity had gained the ability to wield various magical abilities. Those who could use these powers were called psionics or Psi users.

Psionics all started as normal humans. Then somewhere between the age of thirteen and eighteen, they would undergo a special awakening process that would determine their Psi class. There were seven Psi classes or types. Going from most common to most rare, they were: Telekinetic class, Telepathic class, Clairvoyant class, Natural class, Onic class, Mimic class, and Unique class.

Not everybody was destined to awaken Psi powers though. Those that didn't were called norins. The psionics to norins ratio was basically fifty-fifty. It looked like a coin flip, but in reality, it wasn't as fair.

While a psionic could emerge from two norins, there was a higher likelihood of a psionic emerging from two psionic parents. In this regard, Ralf was lucky. Both of his parents were psionics. They were the most common type and not anything special power-wise, but the fact that they were both psionics increased his odds of awakening his own power.

But this fact wasn't what made Ralf as confident as he was.

Just as immediate lineage and 'bloodline' was important, so too was distant. And in this regard, Ralf was blessed to be part of the Fawkes bloodline, or as it was also known, the 'Bloodline of Fire'.

The Fawkes lineage had dozens of powerful psionics among its ranks, with Kai Fawkes, a legendary fire Mimic considered among the strongest psionics to ever live, often put on the same pedestal power-wise as those from Raven Tail. Boosting such an impressive bloodline, Ralf was confident in awakening magical abilities. There was no doubt in his mind. Instead of worrying about the dreadful possibility of not awakening powers, his mind was busy fantasizing about which power he would be wielding in the future.

‘What powers will I get...fire would be nice.’

Ralf’s eyes swirled with desire as he imagined himself wielding the deadly element.

Naturally, his thoughts drifted to his distant ancestor, Kai Fawkes. No Fawkes that followed after him had even come close to reaching the heights he had reached in his short life. Ralf was looking to change this fact. He wanted to be big, so big that the only one to compare him to, would be himself.

The more he thought about it, the more fidgety he became. He was in the age range after all. Anticipation and excitement burned hot in the young man’s chest as he awaited the day - the moment it would arrive.

Ralf tossed and turned on his bed. To disperse his energy, he grabbed his wooden dolls on his pedestal and began playing with them.

‘Right high kick’

‘Block’

‘Punch’

Ralf did a play-by-play on the fight. At his manipulation, a fierce engagement erupted. His active imagination added to the fun, overlaying his vision with flashy effects. This was one of his favourite pastimes, and also part of what he called training.

Bam!

The two fighters' fists met with a heavy clack. Pausing for dramatic effect, Ralf then pulled his left hand back. The left doll, now on his knees, slowly got up, his posture was wobbly. The hit seemed to take a lot out of him.

Meanwhile, the right doll had his chin to the sky and his arms folded before his chest.

‘You stood no chance against me fool. Return in a hundred years, maybe then you’ll be able to stand before m- ah?’

Ralf’s role play faltered as he was struck by a queer sensation. It was like no sensation he had ever experienced before. His mind worked to analyze it, but before he could, he felt his consciousness being tugged at by an irresistible force.

*Plop*

Ralf’s body, like a puppet whose strings got cut, collapsed onto the bed.

***

‘Ah!’

Coming to, Ralf found himself in a completely different environment. However, upon taking everything in, he realized where he was, and an unparalleled excitement bloomed in the young Ralf’s heart.

‘This is it, psionic awakening, yes!’

The grey void, the giant gate, the starry heaven on the other side of it…everything fit with what he had read in those books.

In the void, Ralf floated. The form he was floating in was different from his usual self. Instead of his humanoid form, he was a beach ball-sized blue sphere.

Far ahead, a circular gate floated in space. Ralf recognized this to be his Soul Gate. Observing the white ring for a bit, his senses moved to what lay beyond.

The Great Aether.

The starry heaven on the other side was called by this name. Only by connecting to this place and drawing on its power could psionics wield the magical powers they did.

Observing it, Ralf’s soul shook.

‘Ah, they weren’t exaggerating.’

Ralf had read the descriptions of those who had observed the Great Aether. All without fail spoke of the awe and fear that it provoked in them. Ralf squinted when he read those descriptions, thinking they were a bit too weak-willed. Now facing it himself, he could understand those feelings perfectly. It was overwhelming.

‘Come on already, where’s the spear-ah, it's starting!’

As if hearing his insolent thoughts, a dim star flickered with activity. Its light grew brighter and brighter. Reaching its zenith a few seconds later, it took off.

‘Here it is!’

Ralf was excited, he couldn't wait for the spear's arrival. After all, one awakened by having this light spear pass through the gate and pierce one’s Soul Core - the blue beach ball Ralf was currently.

But then something unexpected happened.

The spear passed through the gate without any obstruction and pierced him. This wasn't in his mental script and for good reason. What was happening was an abnormality.

The spear contained an absurd amount of Aether Zenki, an amount that if absorbed would rupture an ordinary person's soul. The Soul Gate’s duty was to prevent this possibility. It was to act as a great filter and shave off 99.99% of that energy from reaching the Soul Core.

But in this case, it didn’t.

The result was…

BOOM!

***

Minutes before…

Micheal was blankly staring at the ceiling. He was lodged in Owl’s Inn, the best accommodation the town of Kladek had to offer. The Raven slouched over, moving his eyes to the window. Twilight was on the brink of ending, the night’s shadowy hand began moving across the skies.

Watching the transition, Micheal fell into his usual daze.

In this world, no one shoulder’s carried more weight. While Atlas carried one, Micheal bore the weight of two worlds on his back. The grim expression on his face reflected this reality clearly.

A tiredness had seeped into him that even his power couldn’t do away with. Negative thoughts poured in, gathering up to form large clusters, which spawned deeper and darker thoughts.

In others, these thoughts would be paralyzing, despair-inducing even, but to Micheal, it was a regular fixture. Being the old hand he was, he quickly and easily dismissed them. He knew not to get himself bogged down. Once he entertained one, a path downward would follow. His mind moved to happy thoughts.

His companions' faces naturally arose. And then memories from the last few months. Micheal was on a vacation of sorts. In his three centuries of life, this was an extreme rarity. However, at the behest of his companions, he was forced to take one, and a lengthy one at that.

The vacation was fun, but truthfully, he wished to get back to work. His companions were capable, but there were many things only he could do. Luckily, he was at the end of his mandatory vacation. Tomorrow would mark its end.

‘It's perfect timing. I’ll look into what Sigurd sent me. I can blow off some steam by destroying them. Hopefully, there’s a lot of them.’

On his travels, Micheal had received word from the Psionic Association about the increased activity of the Shadow Ravens in Zudrad’s Great Ocelot Forest. With Micheal already planning to go that way to meet up with his old friend, he had sent word that he would check it out.

While others trembled in fear at the Shadow Ravens’ mere mention, Micheal’s mouth watered. To him, they were just prey. From Feather to Black Feather to their leader, all were nothing but targets for elimination to him.

‘I’ll leave first thing tomorrow.’ Thinking of his time here, a youth’s face popped up. ‘Ralf Fawkes, a pity I didn’t see him again. I had an interesting story to tell…oh well.’

Thinking back to their conversation, a smile formed on Micheal’s face. ‘Ah, just remembering his questions is making me tired. Guess I’ll go to sleep.’

With this intention, his golden Psi moved to the edges of the room and formed a defensive array.

Satisfied with its formation, Micheal's thoughts decelerated and a calm washed over him. His consciousness relaxed, and tiredness began invading his being.

He closed his eyes, expecting to fall asleep within moments but fate had different plans as three seconds later…

BOOM!

An immense amount of Psi struck his barrier.

“What?!” Michael couldn’t help but exclaim out loud at the sudden and unexpected occurrence.

His eyes burst open violently. Jolted awake, his heart thumped loudly in his chest, threatening to jump out entirely.

‘What was that?’

Exhaustion now erased, a sharp and alert mind took over his body. Micheal’s experience kicked in. He steadied his heart and calmly analyzed the situation. Running through his many memories, he tried to get a reference for understanding the situation. When a certain thought passed through his head, the aura around him shifted drastically.

His mind sharpened to their limits. Focusing, he dove into his memories. The Psi emission was over in a matter of moments but with his exceptional Psi sensitivity, he managed to pinpoint the explosion's source in that brief window. Moving to the balcony, he orientated himself in the right direction, then launched forth at sound-shattering speeds.

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