The Firstlings

Aaron walked around the Mother Tree, with a look of astonishment. It had only been a week, and a descent settlement was already coming together. But it was far different than anything he would have previously imagined.

They hugged the tree, building around its trunk in a spiral of terraces using makeshift bridges to connect them. The scene was breathtaking and showed that Mother’s legacy had given them new inspiration and purpose.

He headed to the cavern with excitement in his steps as Cornelius and Nara thought they may have found something interesting. They were interacting with the core, trying to understand its origins and believed they had found something.

Aaron stepped into the cavern, seeing Nara talking excitedly with Cornelius as Ciel stood to the side, appearing somewhat distant. She had been acting odd lately, sometimes holding a sad look in her eyes. He didn’t want to pry, so he left her alone, not knowing how to help anyway.

They were all adjusting.

Nara perked up as Aaron came closer. “Aaron, it’s responding!” She exclaimed, practically bouncing with enthusiasm.

“Wha...” Aaron fumbled as Nara started chatting excitedly, leaving him speechless. Whenever it had something to do with nature, she was completely different.

“Ciel was able to get a response and from what we can tell, it’s because of her blessing from Mother. We think it’s trying to communicate!” She squealed.

Cornelius stepped forward with a gleam in his eyes, almost as excited as Nara and tried to explain, “We want to try and commune with the Mother Tree. Ciel was able to get the core to react, so we will use the Bond and both your blessings to connect with the core.”

“I will attempt to sing a song that will lure us into a type of dream state,” Ciel said, stepping closer.

“A dream?” Aaron looked at her, confused. He didn’t see how dreams could help anything.

“This will be closer to a deep meditation, hopefully allowing us to connect with Mother's core,” She explained. “We will need you to guide us, as you have full control of the Bond and hold Mother’s greatest blessing.”

Aaron thought it over and figured it was worth a try so he agreed, “Ok, let's do it.”

They began to prepare as Aaron sent ripples through the Bond, summoning all their siblings. He watched as some came from the deeper tunnels, working on their earth insights and looking for precious minerals. They had tried interacting with the crystals surrounding the core, but were unsuccessful.

There wasn’t enough room for all of them in the small space, so some sat outside the cavern entrance. They would be pulled into the spell with the rest so long as they could hear Ciel’s song. Sitting in meditation, Ciel began to sing in a slow, alluring voice as the crystal surrounding the core began to thrum with energy, causing the air to ripple.

Aaron forced the Bond to strengthen using Mother’s will as he reached out, placing his hand on the crystal. Golden sparks danced across his fingers as the crystal responded, and his eyes glazed over. Ciel’s song swept them away as a golden aura spilled from the core, washing through the cavern.

Mother's core began to glow brightly filling their vision. He could see their core's responding, connecting through the Bond, pulsing in sync with Mothers. Aaron could feel their souls being pulled from their bodies as if Mother was luring them in before the world shifted.

And a massive light towered before them.

It was the soul of the Mother Tree shining brightly as Runes of white radiance spread around its trunk and swam in its depths. Its branches of light reached high as if grasping for the heavens as the aura washing from its surface wrapped around them, hugging them in a loving embrace.

Aaron could feel his siblings around him as their souls trembled at the majestic sight. His soul fluttered as if a strong wind would blow him away, and he knew that without Mother’s protection, it would. The soul was never meant to leave the body and could easily be swept away.

Mother pulled them in as if leading them to where they needed to go as Aaron held the Bond firm. They fell gently, like falling leaves, as the roots slowly came into view, and their souls shivered in awe. They were as grand as the branches reaching high above.

The roots reached through the world as they twisted and interconnected with something even greater. Nestled below them was another light, even more brilliant than the Mother Tree. White radiance, with golden sparkles twirling within, rolled from its center, spreading waves through the world.

It was the world’s core.

Appearing in every way...

Like Mother's beating heart.

They were still tethered to their bodies, and could feel tears flowing down their faces. They basked in Mother’s loving caress, until slowly, their view shifted, feeling as if they were rising high above.

Their souls fluttered as they watched ripples of Mother’s essence, reaching far into the cosmos. Aaron could feel Cornelius’s soul clench as he eyed the heavens, and they all trembled at the sight of countless other lights.

A multitude of beating hearts.

Wherever Mother’s essence weaved its presence, other nodes had formed, and Aaron knew they were other worlds. They were all connected as they beat and thrummed in synchronicity, dancing in Mother’s embrace. The scene of serenity soon passed, however, as Mother continued to lead them, looking even further.

Then they saw it.

And felt it.

Dark tendrils of chaos were reaching through the cosmos, latching on to the fabric of reality. It was spreading through the planes of existence, consuming all in its path. A sense of foulness spread through their souls as they reeled with horror.

Aaron knew what it was.

The corruption he'd seen in the labyrinth and what was affecting the horde. He looked closer, seeing the wretched tendrils reaching through the realms as spots spread slowly, latching onto nodes and snuffing out their brilliance.

Aaron felt Mother’s core shiver as nodes were consumed.

They watched horrified until they were slowly pulled back in and once again nestled against the Mother Tree, their souls quivering. Aaron looked below, knowing that spots had already appeared, attempting to corrupt Mother’s core as well.

A blight on existence.

Small seeds of chaos would bloom, feeding the dark tendrils crawling through the realms. They rested against the soul of the Mother Tree as their forms shimmered from the trembling of their hearts. The vision slowly faded as the dream crumbled, and reality came crashing in.

Aaron fell forward and slumped on the cave floor, gasping for breath. His body shook from exhaustion as he tried to pull himself off the floor. He could hear pants and cries as everyone struggled to adjust. Looking over, he noticed one form slumped over, breathing shallowly.

Ciel had put the most effort into allowing their journey and had collapsed from exhaustion. Aaron knew she would be fine, so he didn’t rush over, but he was a little worried, as he was also aware of his sister's Insight. He knew she felt the songs from the other nodes being consumed by the blight and could only imagine the horror.

Clearing his mind, he regained control of his tired body and rose slowly from the floor. His legs trembled in protest as he walked the cavern. They helped each other recover from their terrifying yet breathtaking journey and placed Ciel on a mat before the core. Worried murmurs slowly began to fill the cavern as everyone recovered, and fear consumed them.

“What… will we do?” Nara whispered, clearly shaken by the horrible revelation.

Cornelius tried to console her as she sobbed softly. “It’s coming,” he stated, looking at Aaron. “There’s no way we can fight that!”

Aaron shook his head. “It’s already here.”

Looking around the cavern at all their worried faces, Aaron decided they had no other option. “Training starts immediately! I want everyone's cores saturated and your Insights pushed as far as they can go.”

He called through the bond as Jessie stepped forward. “Rest up, then begin to secure our surroundings. The Mother Tree seems to protect us from the forest, but I want to know the land around us.”

Jessie nodded as she took her group and left the cavern. He had Damien and Roman back her up, so they trailed behind her as she exited. Garin would go as well, even if he did hate the forest, as they needed all the beast cores they could get.

Aaron turned back to Cornelius, “Finish your experiments. We need all the power we can get our hands on.”

Cornelius nodded, turning to leave with worry in his eyes. He was working on Runic magic gained from the humans, attempting to create talismans and enchantments. His ideas, if realized, would be a huge boon for their dwindling forces.

Aaron watched Nara as she began to care for Ciel before turning to the side passage and heading to his cave. Holding the Bond together had taken everything he had, and he could feel his body trembling, ready to collapse at any moment.

Moaning, he fell atop his rock as his snores rolled through the tunnels. He woke to a faint song echoing and rose, knowing that Ciel had recovered. Walking to the main cavern, he saw her sitting before the core, singing softly as tears welled in her eyes.

Aaron walked forward slowly and placed his hand on her shoulder, comfortingly. “Sister, are you well?”

“I’ll be fine, Aaron,” she sniffled, wiping her eyes. “The death of other worlds isn’t something I thought we would see... It was so horrifying...”

She put her head down as she trailed off, and Aaron could feel her body shivering uncontrollably. He tried to comfort her and reassure her that things would be fine, but he knew how hollow his words were.

“There were others, Aaron,” She looked up as she spoke, her eyes shimmering with the glow from the core. “I could feel their song.”

“Others?” He asked, confused.

“There are more life forms out there on other worlds and here on ours. They were flickering as if being strangled.”

“The humans?”

“No,” She answered firmly. “Well, maybe some, but... there were others as well. They were struggling, and their song was weak...”

She trailed off, looking away, clearly still troubled by it all. He assured her they would try to find them, knowing it would be impossible. They had seen the world and knew how absurd the idea of traveling such a vast distance was. Their small corner was only a speck compared to what they had seen.

Sighing, as Ciel left the cavern, he opened his Gift, looking over the Runes.

[Greater Core]

Beast Shards: 997/1000