As the darkness divides, I return to an all too familiar sense of wakefulness as I'd shifted through consciousness far more times than I'm comfortable to admit.
Searching my environment, I see my parents, still embracing me as we'd been balled up.
Lost for time, I look at the sky, seeing it was already light out.
To think so much happened in one night; it was scary, but refreshing. We're past it now, and things will surely return to normal.
"You're finally awake, huh?" Father remarked, a smile apparent in his expression. "You sure were out. We got scared you died for a second." Letting out a smidgen of laughter, father held back a laugh as he'd waited for the confirmation that what he said was funny.
Letting out a small 'ha', we all laughed as a way to alleviate the past stress of our altercation with the Primordial.
To think that such powerful beings existed... it was scary, but it woke me up.
This may be a new world, but that doesn't mean I have less responsibilities as my last life, and it certainly didn't mean life was going to be easy.
With my newfound knowledge gained from my time with Terminus, I'd now felt confident I could continue to grow, maybe reaching this level of strength someday?
"But you know, we really do need a place to stay. We can't make it a habit to sleep out in the wilderness," mother mentioned, leaving me to reflect on what brought me on in this forest in the first place. "And don't think we forgot about you walking off like you did Nash. Your punishment will wait until we get the house again." She said, pointing her finger at me as she poked me in the forehead repeatedly.
Dropping my face, I hid myself in my chest as the guilt washed over me. "Sorry..."
"But first, a place to stay!" Father yelled, getting up as he raised his fist in the air. "Don't worry. Papa's got this!"
"Hey, don't do anything rash now..." Mother remarked, father feigning ignorance as he began to chant.
"Spirits blend, bones entwine, Shadow steeds, arise and align." He enchanted, soul energy materializing in the form of a manifested dark carriage with undead steeds, spiritual still-blood leaking out its sides. "Hop on!" He said, hurry in his voice.
Hesitance in my body language, I found myself uncomfortable riding on such an unclean carriage, mother grabbed my hand, reassuring me with a smile.
Being unable to do anything but do as she wants, I walk with her as we step onto the horseback carriage ride, acceleration hitting me as dad immediately started the horses.
My head and torso being whipped back, I hold on tight as we begin to move at significant speeds, the air burning past us as the environment blended into one color palette.
"Whaaa~t i~s thi~s" I say, the sides of my mouth flapping each time I opened to enunciate my words.
"Cool, huh! This is my trusted undead horseback ride, one you'll get in due time!" Father said, pride slipping through as he patted himself on his back.
"Tristan, stop it!" Mother said, fear leaking through both her expression and her tone.
Letting out a sigh, father slowed down the ride, disappointment visible. "You guys are such wusses!" He exclaimed, agitated at our lack of ability to find such a dangerous ride fun. "Well, either way, we'll get there pretty soon," he added again, almost calming himself down instead of us.
Whipping them again, they accelerate at a much more manageable speed, making the ride more tolerable.
As we passed through the forest, I observed still, frozen animals locked in position on the floor.
"Are they dead?" I asked.
"Yes, from the Primordial's death mist." Father answered, seriousness in his tone as he replied.
To think this much destruction was caused... these Primordials are dangerous, unhinged creatures...
Settling down, I wallow in silence as I hold back tears, feeling for all the dead animals who'd been unfairly killed in a fight that wasn't theirs.
Though, I suppose that is the way of nature, and they would die at some point in the future, so what's the point in ending it early...?
That's one thing I learned in my previous life.
Letting the time fly by, I idle away as we create distance, making slow progress as the horses had to travel slower to accommodate for me and mother's horseback anxiety.
Letting hours pass, we finally reach a huge wooden gate.
Being as large as a building, it soared high into the sky, leaving no room to climb over, though I suppose someone could if they amplified themselves.
In front of the gate were two men, skimp in clothing but still being armored. It was revealing yet not at the same time.
The gaps that were seen exposed their abdominals, heavily muscular in build with blood vessels trekking all throughout their body like sand dunes in a sea of desert.
Below was their calves almost made entirely of muscle, showing the great anatomy of the human specimen.
Almost being left speechless in awe of their perfect bodies, I managed to utter the most basic of words. "Is this our destination?"
Father, turning around to look at me, answered me with thrill. "Yes, we're here."
Curious of what could be so great as to excite my father to this degree, I simply watched as he got up to approach the men, waving a hand out.
Instantly, they raised their weapons, most likely being defensive as a result of never seeing us before.
Unable to hear them, I only watch as father muttered some words, causing the men to instantly lower their guards and bow down in appraisement.
Returning with a smile on his face, he waved for the horses to continue, the gates slowly beginning to open as the men worked a rope that slid the doors open, a very basic mechanic.
To think they could open such a large door though, these men must be quite impressive.
As the horses began to walk forward, father motioned us with his hands. "Welcome to Ardentia, Nash."
Looking on in awe, I learned why exactly they used such a large defense for this place.
Spanning tens of kilometers, all I could see was building after building, all modern-looking.
It was incredible...
Despite the ancient era, its skyline boasted towering structures of stone and marble, intricately carved with tales of bygone heroes and gods.
Beneath these monumental edifices, the streets teemed with life, a mosaic of merchants, artisans, and laborers weaving through the cobblestone pathways. Aqueducts, marvels of engineering, crisscrossed the city, delivering water to its inhabitants.
Encircling Ardentia stood formidable walls, a testament to its strength and resilience against external threats. At the heart of the city lay the majestic Grand Plaza as described in a billboard sign, adorned with sculptures and fountains, a gathering place for both celebration and contemplation.
Holding back my awe, I followed father as he escorted mother out of the cart, curious of something.
"If there were such a great city near by, why did we live out in the middle of nowhere? I thought we were a greatly high-standing family?" I inquired, snoopy for answers.
"You needn't know why just yet, but please understand that we can't live here, or any city..." father stated solemnly, regret in his eyes.
Mother looked on with sorrow as well, refusing to add anything as she simply turned around and continued to observe the city. "It's been so long since we've been here, honey! Why don't we try some of their spaghetti!" Tatania yelled, fiddling like a little kid as she'd attempted to hold back her excited.
"We can later, but first, we have to find a place to stay." Father said calmly.
Wow, to think father could be so rational.
Pointing into some direction off to the left, we look to see a hotel called 'Aetherion Retreat', rather bland in appearance.
"That's a good one." Father stated, talking from a place of experience. Both me and mother pouted in response, feeling the condition of the place had been far too poor. "Trust me, the food is just... extravagant." Father added, a shutter crawling up his back as he thought back to his previous experience.
Walking over, we came over to the door which had been metal in constitution, cold to the touch.
Slamming the door open, Tristan asks, "Hey, could we, the Azraels, get a room?"
The receptionist, a lady with long sleazy black hair and formal attire, quickly bounced up to bow down to us as she immediately directed us to the staircase. "Room 117 on the 4th floor, sir." She said in complete monotone.
As we approached the stairs, I could sense the number of souls inhabiting the hotel.
While none were remarkable, I came to be aware of the fact that nobody in the hotel had flowing soul energy.
Perhaps this is what it felt like for me to feel the unawakened?
The receptionist was the only one who had any semblance of soul energy, and it was by far the weakest I'd seen as of yet. Even the animals in the forest surrounding my house had more soul energy than her.
With this in mind, I'd come down to the conclusion that soul energy is a lot rarer than I thought.
Firstly, even though I'd been born with the ability to interact with magicules, it still took quite a bit of energy and focus just to unleash a single soul vein, and the action of doing so left me with little focus for quite some while.
Now that I'd finally gotten a grasp on the nature of magicules, I'm sure I could open up even more soul veins if I tried...
Shelving the idea, we move up towards the fourth floor, anticipation rising as I fail to suppress my desire to lay in a nice, fluffy bed.
Right after a nice shower, of course.
Stepping on the top floor, the rooms had been much nicer than the ones on the previous floor, all being gold plated with sprinkles of what resembled diamond.
With excitement rising even further, I immediately run down to the right, listening the sign that directed as follows:
'<--- 101-110 | 111-120 --->''
Seeing 117 in sight, I slam the door open, peering inside to see a grand four-poster bed, draped in rich velvet and intricate lace, taking the room's center stage. Ornate tapestries lined the walls, depicting scenes of mythical conquests and royal feasts, while a roaring fireplace cast a warm, inviting glow. Perfumed air lingered, carrying hints of exotic spices and freshly cut flowers, adding to the room's ambiance of luxury and indulgence.
Floating over like a moth to a flame, I linger at the fireplace as I warm up, fighting the cold that had been dancing around in my body ever since I got stuck in the forest.
Finally reaching a comfortable temperature, the urge to urinate increases as my body acclimates to the environment, feeling as if I'm in a comfortable spot to let natural biological processes occur.
Turning around, I frantically search for a bathroom, seeing one door to the side with the writing 'restroom'.
Instinctively, I vitalize my legs and dash towards the bathroom, leaving the air behind me in the dust as I reach the door in an almost-instant.
Kicking the door down, I see a wooden toilet with no top, instead just being a bowl-shaped hollow flask containing a hole at the bottom.
Disregarding the oddity of its structure, I immediately let loose a day's worth of wizz, shooting out like a geyser as it uncontrollably unleashes.
"Ahhhh~"
Turning to my right, there's a window shooting out into the road, giving quite the room.
'Weird place to put a window.'
-Hahahahaha!
Spotting laughter, I reposition my focus downward, honing in on children playing.
However, it wasn't innocent horsing in any way.
There was a boy, ears pointing out as they rolled around crying out their woes.
-Stop, stop!
Surrounding them were 4 more boys, splashing mud and small stones as they continued to laugh.
-Hahahaha!
-Haha!
-Keep rolling around like a pig! Hahahaha!
-Aw~ they're gonna cry! Boohoo!
Anger raging within me, I kick the window down, haste entering my body.
"No you don't!"