Elara Vane walked among her peers, a silent procession of boys and girls her age, guided by a single guard towards a colossal, dark blue glass cube shimmering in the sunlight. She kept her gaze lowered, focused on the ground beneath her feet, her mind lost in contemplation. She was on her way to achieve StreamState, to undergo the Fuse.
The herd reached a glass bridge leading to the entrance of the immense cube, a structure that dwarfed the surrounding mountains and sat perched atop a vast lake. Elara raised her head, marveling at the sheer size and perfection of the glass cube. To her, it seemed like something out of a dream, beyond the realm of human construction. It was as if it had always existed, a testament to an unknown power.
She focused on the massive triangular entrance, her mind still reeling from the awe-inspiring sight. She glanced down at the calm, crystal-clear waters of the lake below the bridge and then continued forward. Minutes later, they crossed the threshold into the cube, their footsteps echoing as they walked deeper into its heart. They reached a large hall where two women and a man stood waiting at its center.
The hall resembled a smaller version of the glass cube, and the three figures, clad in dark blue uniforms, appeared to be floating above the lake due to the transparent glass floor. Elara noticed intricate black circles, twice the size of a man, etched onto the glass, each containing the same symbol.
Once the entire group had gathered, the brown-haired, dark-skinned man at the center of the trio surveyed them with a scrutinizing gaze. He listened to a hushed report from the guard and then addressed the younglings. "You Unawakened were initiated through choice. You have been selected by our assets to be part of our nation," he declared, his words clear to Elara thanks to Sena's gift of understanding Aetran. "But you still mean nothing to us. Don't get ahead of yourselves; you must first survive the Fuse."
Murmurs and whispers rippled through the group, but Elara remained silent. Despite her limited understanding of the situation, she knew why she was there, why she was willing to risk her life.
"I know many of you are unfamiliar with how our world works," the brown-haired woman on the man's right said. "But we're not here for that. Just know that your bodies will undergo a transformation, granting you the ability to absorb and process StreamBreath, and to withstand the strain of wielding it according to your will."
Four black marks, enclosed within ring-sized circles, materialized on that woman's body. The first appeared on her left forearm, while the other manifested on her right forearm. The third, and the fourth, appeared on her right wrist, one above the other. Simultaneously, a black, circular rift in space, half her size, opened beside her, spewing forth fist-sized white stones. Hundreds of them emerged, floating above the awestruck younglings, forming a perfect spiral in a matter of seconds. Then, the third and fourth marks vanished from the woman's body, along with the rift in space, leaving only the first two marks behind.
"We will now commence the Fuse, fusing your hearts with the WhiteStones you see above you," the blonde woman on the man's left explained. "These stones will grant you StreamState, making you LastBorn."
The murmurs among the younglings intensified, but Elara struggled to comprehend their whispers, let alone grasp their meaning.
"Silence!" the guard commanded, and the whispers ceased.
"Before you proceed, know that you may die during the process. You still have the choice to withdraw from the Awakening," the man in the center stated. "If you choose to stop now, you will be allowed to return home unharmed."
Everyone heard his words, but no one spoke. Not even a whisper. They were all determined to continue, including Elara. She knew that turning back would disgrace the one who named her. The LastBorn Riders who had chosen them were confident in their resolve.
"Very well," the man said. "Now, stand within the circles you see around you. We shall begin the Fuse."
Elara and the others obeyed, each taking their place within a circle. Elara chose one in the first row, closest to the three figures.
Once everyone was positioned, a group of ten individuals entered the hall, dressed in the same dark blue uniforms as the first three but wearing bleak white masks. One of them approached Elara, stopping a couple of feet away, the mark appearing on his left forearm. He reached out and caught one of the floating white stones, the mark vanishing as he did so.
At that instant, Elara lost consciousness, collapsing to the ground.
She awoke within the giant glass structure, lying on a glass crib in a glass room. Her body felt heavy, her limbs unresponsive. She managed to turn her eyes slightly to the right, where she saw the brunette woman standing beside her. She tried to speak, but her throat was dry, her strength gone.
"I know you have questions," the woman said gently. "But all you need to know now is that you're alive. And to stay that way, you need more rest." She placed her hand on Elara's forehead, a reassuring smile gracing her lips. "You're lucky, you know. You survived the Fuse."
Elara longed to speak, but her consciousness faded, and she drifted back into slumber.
Time passed, and Elara awoke once more, still lying in the same bed, in the same room. This time, she felt her strength returning. She sat up quickly, her voice a surprised cry. She touched her throat, marveling at the return of her voice. "My voice is back!" she chuckled. Hey! I can move again! She thought, examining her hands and moving her legs. She was dressed in a dark blue shirt and pants.
She jumped off the bed and looked around. The room was empty, but she could see through the glass walls into the adjoining rooms. In the room to her left, a girl lay asleep on a similar glass bed. To her right, another girl slumbered. Above her, a boy slept soundly, and below, another girl had just woken up, her eyes filled with confusion. Elara looked out and saw hundreds of such rooms, each housing a youngling, some asleep, others awake.
Where am I? Am I still inside the cube? How long have I been asleep? She wondered, observing the survivors as they attempted to communicate through the soundproof glass walls. She tried to open the sliding door of her room but found it locked.
They will come soon, she thought, patiently waiting. Hours passed, and she sat in a corner of the room until the brunette woman returned. The sliding doors of all the rooms opened simultaneously, and the woman's voice echoed from the walls, instructing them to follow her.
The younglings, now all awake, filed out of their rooms as if guided by an unseen force. They converged in the hall above the one they had first entered.
The man, the blonde woman, and the brunette awaited them. A sense of déjà vu washed over Elara. "Out of four hundred twenty-one Obtains, two hundred thirty-five survived the Fuse," the man announced once they had gathered around him. "You are now LastBorn Riders, and you deserve to know who we are."
Every eye was fixed on him as he continued, "My CallSign is LingeringSight."
"My CallSign is BlueArrow," the blonde woman said.
"My CallSign is MarkDispose," the brunette added.
"You'll understand the importance of CallSigns later," LingeringSight explained. "But for now, we will begin your initiation. Listen carefully, as I dislike repeating myself. Customarily, only those who survive the Awakenings are taught about Runes. However, I'm sure some of you already know about them. Customs are customs, and as a man of tradition, I adhere to them."
Silence greeted his words.
"BlueArrow will help you connect to the Akashic Records. There, you will receive basic knowledge about Riders, the Akashic Records, the Nexus, and, of course, Runes. Once you have acquired that knowledge, be prepared, for I will then dedicate myself to instilling everything I know into your very being, until you master them and become full-fledged Riders," he declared, turning his gaze towards BlueArrow.
BlueArrow raised her right arm, pointing it at the survivors. The mark appeared on the right side of her face, between her eye and ear, along with others on her forehead and on the back of her neck, unseen by Elara.
In the blink of an eye, Elara found herself standing alone in an endless white void, facing a giant, hovering black cube.
She felt no wind, no scent, and no temperature. Only absolute silence surrounded her. Her confusion and fear grew as she struggled to comprehend the situation. Then, a black haze materialized beneath the cube, rapidly taking shape and forming into a man dressed in an elegant white suit and a black shirt.
The man, seemingly in his mid-twenties, was of average height and slender build, with pale skin, disheveled brown hair, and mismatched eyes – one brown, one blue – that radiated intelligence, cunning, and a hint of mischief.
Elara remained frozen, her gaze fixed on the stranger as he approached. She sensed a strange aura emanating from him, a mix of wisdom and enigma. He continued towards her until he was about six feet away.
At that moment, she snapped back to reality and began to hiccup. The white void around them transformed instantly, engulfed by darkness. It was as if a storm had suddenly descended, shrouding them in its black clouds.
"Easy there, girl! I don't like it when it's dark," the man said in a deep voice, his tone lighthearted yet laced with a hint of concern. "You're not physically present here; only your mind is. And that mind is creating this representation of the space based on your current state. Darkness stems from ignorance, which leads to fear. So, I suggest you lighten up and calm down. You need to find what you came here for."
His words, however, only intensified her fear and confusion, causing the darkness to deepen. "Who are you?! Where am I?!" she cried out, her voice trembling.
"The Who and the Where, eh?" the man sighed. "The most common questions I get from first-timers. I thought you'd ask something more interesting! Elara Vane."
"How do you know my name?!" Elara exclaimed, her voice still shaky.
"Now it's the How!" the man chuckled. "I'll start with the Who. My name is Logos. Unlike this space, which is a representation of your mind, I am different. For now, consider me the embodiment of the Akashic Records' will to communicate. I'm here with you and everyone else who seeks this place, simultaneously."