The Blessing of the Primordial (Part 1)
The Coliseum was enormous, with the capacity to hold thousands of people. This space, traditionally used for resolving conflicts in the Neutral Zone, was now preparing for the most anticipated time of the year: the festival season.
All interested parties gathered to witness the coming-of-age ceremony, a test proving that the child was ready to enter the Divine Domain and begin their journey of ascension.
The coming-of-age ceremony is the same for all races, but the rituals have varying levels of difficulty: the higher the difficulty, the greater the rewards. Not everyone is qualified to perform it at the Coliseum of the Ten Saints.
The ceremony consists of three stages:
Offering and Sacrifice – requires a sacrifice to the Primordial, involving living creatures whose souls are offered in the ritual.
Test of Courage – the young individual must face challenges that prove their bravery.
Combat Test – the final demonstration of battle skill.
The origin of the ceremony is uncertain. Some say it dates back to the earliest times, from the beginning of the Tower. Ancestors sought to present their descendants to the Primordial, attracting its attention. With the departure of the deity, the ritual of sacrifice and offering began.
It is unknown who started the tradition. Initially, few performed the ceremony. One day, during the ritual, a descendant of the angel race — the child of a powerful figure — received an unusual sign.
Normally, the ceremony follows a pattern: offering and sacrifice, followed by the hunt. A powerful animal is chosen for the junior participant, who performs the ritual, then the beast is released and the hunt begins.
During the hunting phase, twelve portals appear, representing the twelve floors of the Tower, each with an aura corresponding to its stage. The animal enters the portal it feels most comfortable with, and the young hunter follows to capture it. Within an hour, the beast must be caught, completing the ceremony.
In a special case, after the minister performed the offering and sacrifice, at the moment of releasing the beast for the second phase — the Test of Courage — something strange happened. A creature appeared out of nowhere in the center of the arena. Amazed, the minister concluded it was a sign from the Primordial, who still watched over them. The chosen animal became the new prey of the hunt.
Later, this event became a legend. The young participant who received the blessing became known as the Monarch of Light, the first to reach the 12th stage of the Divine Domain.
Throughout the ages, cases of what came to be called the Blessing of the Primordial were rare. Only seven managed to complete the feat. All became legends of the Divine Domain, leading their eras.
The arena was packed today.
Two ceremonies would take place:
The first, general, gathered all young individuals about to reach adulthood in the Intermediate Neutral Zone.
The second, special, was solo. The young individual with the highest potential was chosen, and the ritual occurred separately. The greater the potential, the higher the chance of being recognized by the Primordial.
It is said that on some occasions, the Primordial blessed the ceremony, but due to the large number of children, no one knew who the blessing belonged to. There were cases where the sacrifice was performed, but nothing happened, proving that the Blessing of the Primordial was meant only for the chosen one.
The first ceremony went smoothly. After millions of children completed their rites over a month and began their journeys on Earth, the most awaited moment arrived: the special ceremony.
The chosen one for the special ceremony was Nzinga Otchali, of the Otchali family, of the Black Crow race. Unlike the Golden Crows, who manipulate the power of the sun, the Black Crows command darkness. This difference in attributes often caused conflicts between the races, making coexistence difficult.
Nzinga was the youngest daughter of the patriarch of the Otchali family, a relatively new family, less than 300 years old.