<< Soulwheel manifestation successful >>
<< Absorbed: Elemental Rune x1 >>
Kael lay sprawled on the ground, his breathing uneven as he stared dumbfounded at the glowing message suspended before his eyes. Gradually, his daze receded, and he blinked himself back to reality.
"Wha... what is this?" he muttered, still disoriented.
Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Kael sat up, his gaze shifting to his chest. The orb was gone, and in its place, he felt an unfamiliar yet faint warmth. He glanced back at the floating message and read it aloud.
"Soulwheel Manifestation... Success? What the hell? Was that strange symbol called an Elemental Rune?"
Kael's voice trailed off as confusion clouded his mind. Propping himself up, he scanned his surroundings and the fish he'd caught earlier. Everything was as it had been—no damage, no sign of anything unusual beyond what he had just experienced.
"I've seen things like this in movies," he whispered, his voice carrying a mix of bewilderment and growing excitement. "Was I given some kind of power, or did I awaken one?"
He glanced down at his chest again, his thoughts consumed by the mysterious orb. Should he call it a Soulwheel, as the message calls it?
"That thing… came out of me. Has it always been inside me?" he asked himself, his tone laced with disbelief.
After a moment of contemplation, Kael decided to experiment. Instinctively, he focused his thoughts on his chest, willing the orb to reappear. For a few moments, nothing happened. Then, a familiar sensation spread through his body, beginning at his chest and radiating outward. Slowly, the Soulwheel manifested itself again, hovering just a few inches in front of him.
This time, Kael held his composure and studied it carefully.
"It's... beautiful," he whispered in awe.
The Soulwheel glowed softly, its core radiating a profound light. Surrounding it were concentric rings, rotating with a mesmerizing rhythm. Kael could feel an aura of power emanating from it, vast and unfathomable, like a fragment of the universe compressed into a single entity.
As his gaze lingered on the core, Kael noticed something—a faint symbol glowing within it. It was the rune he had absorbed earlier. Drawn to its mysterious nature, he instinctively focused on it. As he stared, his consciousness seemed to sink deeper into the rune.
The symbol shifted and morphed constantly, its patterns intricate and alive. Yet, despite its complexity, Kael found himself gradually comprehending its structure. Each line and curve etched itself into his mind and soul as though it had always been a part of him.
Suddenly, the Rune detached from the core and moved toward the innermost ring. It began rotating in sync with the ring, glowing faintly. Without thinking, Kael reached out with his hands, feeling an innate instinct take over. His fingers moved as though guided by an unseen force, helping the rune inscribe itself onto the ring.
With practiced precision, Kael etched the Rune onto the ring's surface, his movements smooth and deliberate. It felt natural, as if he had performed this act countless times before. Within moments, the Rune was fully engraved, deeply embedded into the ring.
<
The message appeared again, snapping Kael out of his trance. He studied the soul wheel carefully, noting the newly etched rune on the innermost ring. Nothing else seemed different, but as he gazed at it, knowledge of the rune's purpose flowed into him, unbidden and absolute.
Following this newfound understanding, Kael extended his hand. The first inner ring of the soul wheel lit up, and an exact replica materialized in his palm. The small, six-inch ring rotated slowly, the etched rune glowing faintly as it spun.
Focusing on the river, Kael felt the rune's structure appear clearly in his mind. The ring around his arm shifted slightly, almost like a bracelet adjusting itself. He realized, however, that one rune alone wasn't enough. The structure required three of such Runes to be completed.
His gaze shifted to the two runes still hovering above the fish. Determined, he moved closer and reached out, intending to absorb them. As before, the runes flashed in his hands and merged with his Soulcore instantly making him wretched in agaony.
<
After a while, the pain gradually faded and Kael repeated the process, sinking into each rune's structure, comprehending them fully before inscribing them onto his soul wheel. With each engraving, the soul wheel seemed to hum faintly, its aura growing slightly more defined.
<
Finally, with all three runes etched onto the innermost ring, Kael extended his hand again. The magic structure appeared in his mind, and the small ring materialized once more. This time, the three runes glowed symmetrically, evenly spaced around the ring.
Focusing intently, Kael became acutely aware of everything around him—the rocks, the wind, and even the water—giving him the illusion that he could manipulate anything in his surroundings. Fixing his gaze on the river, he summoned all his willpower to move the water. Energy surged through him from his Soulcore, illuminating the runes and intricate patterns on the magic circle. Slowly, a small blob of water, about the size of an adult fist, lifted into the air.
Kael's excitement grew, but he maintained his focus. He guided the blob of water toward him before redirecting it toward a nearby rock about five meters away.
"Go," he muttered, pouring his concentration into the command.
The water compressed slightly before launching forward with a sharp swish.
BANG!