He grasped the precious gem with care, like holding onto a baby, a baby he was about to squeeze to death, but still.
He went into deep thought.
The last chance... after a year of work, this was his last chance of obtaining some kind of power to survive the world outside.
He started to breathe unsteadily again. Nervousness took hold of him.
"Shit, why can't life be easier for the poor?!" he complained to himself, but there was no use in complaining. Orion closed his eyes once again and emerged in the dark room.
That unending paradise He had beheld before was gone, turning back into the pitch black void it was before.
Orion had learned a lot form using two of the Runix Cores, the sensation of absorbing them was still clear in his mind, doing the same thing with this third Runix Core would Prove to be easy for him, but he wasn't looking to do the SAME thing, he was expecting to do MORE with it, if he repeated the same process it would have the same result.
There had to be something, right?
Only then, in deep thought, did Orion notice a change inside himself. His presence... Became CLearer.
His Soul seemed to shine brighter!
I was hard to notice due to the pitch black environment that seemed to swallow everything, but now that he noticed it, it did seem brighter!
Was that the energy he absorbed?
Thinking more about it, how come in the second attempt at the Runix Core, He had managed to change the shape of his Soul Tendril? Maybe making it tinner was possible, but making the tendril stop vanishing, how come that happened?
Was it possible he had spent the Energy he absorbed from the first Runix Core to do that?
If that was the case... then
"With this much energy..."
He could certainly create a better channel for igniting his Soul!
But... should he do it? after all-
"NO!" Orion affirmed to himself.
"I already decided what to do, I will do everything I can to ignite my Soul on this Core, no matter what!" And with his words, his Soul stirred, the light of his Soul shone brighter, and ten tendrils shot from it in the direction of the Light spot of the Runix Core.
From his previous two experiments, Orion noticed the Runix Core didn't seem to have a "Limit of Output"; instead of running out of energy, it just seemed to shoot energy out for a set amount of time, then it collapsed because of its own energy in motion.
That's what happened to the first crystal: Orion made contact with it. The Crystal shot out its energy and destroyed itself.
So if he wanted to make the best use of the final Core, he had to give it as much area of contact as possible.
Orion's Body trembled, and he could feel his body sweating, and his skin became red again, and it was now hot, Scorching hot!
"Focus!! No Feeling, no feeling!" How counterintuitive, absorbing the Potential energy inside the Runix Core requires no feeling of the physical form, but by absorbing it, one would feel their body burn hot!
Orion used all of his Mental fortitude to put the feeling of his skin burning to the back of his mind, as his mind was assaulted by the feeling of liberation he had felt earlier.
Again, as the energies from the Runix Core flooded his Soul, slowly the darkness around him started to disappear, and the Everlasting plane of clouds was visible again. The majestic vision almost made the pain in his body worth it.
"WHAT PAIN!?!?! I AM NOT FEELING PAIN!! NO!! PAIN!!" Orion again used his mental fortitude to put the feeling of his body to the side and focused on what was happening in the Spiritual side
AS the scenery of the Neverending Clouds completely formed, the rest of the energy that entered Orion's body was assimilated by his Soul. But it was too slow.
"The Channels are too small!! I need... TO make it bigger!!" The thought appeared in Orion's mind suddenly, almost by Instinct, as his Soul Automatically absorbed the energy, it conveyed to Orion's mind that he had to be bigger!
Orion, moved by nothing but instinct, started to change the Shape of his Soul, making it bigger, taller!
Of course, that change didn't come naturally, as he grew, Orion subconsiously started to consume the Energy he had absorbed from the previous 2 Cores, energy he was using to maintain the tendrils attached to the Presence of the Runix Core, without even being aware of it, Orion put his entire Attempt at risk!! IF he ran out of Energy before he ignited his Spark, the Tendrils would fade, and he wouldn't be able to ignite anything!! He could even waste the energy absorbed by this attempt, turning the fourth or fifth attempt much harder!
But Orion didn't stop. His essence slowly changed, but it didn't feel strange; it felt... Natural, he was... At home, like it was always meant to be.
His Soul became long, then it bulged, bent, and solidified.
The earlier dot of light that occupied the empty black space had disappeared. Now in its place stood a behemoth of a beast, stretching far into a cloudy sky, disappearing into the clouds, only its ferocious Golden eyes visible.
Orion... Felt.... INcredible.
AS a person born in the back alleys, he knew nothing but struggle; maybe, in the life he lived before, this was what he was lacking.
He lacked... Freedom
Freedom to choose what to eat, freedom to choose what to drink, what to do, who to talk to, and where to go.
But as his Soul took another shape, all he could feel was how Free it was.
There were no shackles in him, no limitation, no boundaries.
That word resonated with him; it seemed to seek approval inside his mind.
Orion couldn't negate it, as it made its presence in his mind known; he muttered lowly.
"SO... LIberating"
It was like muttering that word changed his view of the world, as if he had his eyes closed before, but now they were Wide open!
Liberation... Freedom.... Wildness, these words started to become part of him, defining his being.
But another word slowly made its way inside Orion's mind.
"Huh?"
Orion assimilated the concept into his essence, but this one wasn't like the others; it seemed.... SInister
"Defiance?"
Orion wanted to investigate in more detail, but before he had the chance, something caught his attention.
"...-id"
"...-Can't-...."
Was someone calling for him?
"Come Do-... Plea-..."
Yeah, someone was.
"...-id"
"...kid"
"..KID!"
Orion stirred awake. He had changed positions; he was now staring at the sky, and he felt his body... Strangely light.
"Kid! Please come down, would you! It's now allowed to use Your ASpect inside the settlement!"
DOwn?
Orion then turned around, and just then, he noticed he was more than 20 feet off the ground, floating.
"AAAAHHH!!! HELP ME!!! I AM FLYING!!" Orion begged for help as he desperately flailed his arms around, trying to "Swim" in the air
"Kid, I am serious, come down, or I will actually get mad!" A woman who was on the ground called out for him with her hands on her waist.
"I DON'T KNOW HOOOOOOW!!" Orion screamed as he actually started going higher.
"Tsk, is this for real?" The woman then grabbed a dagger that was on her waist and tied a rope to the other end, then threw it towards Orion, "CATCH!"
Orion complied immediately, stretching his arms desperately to catch the Dagger. "I-I did it!"
"Ok! Don't let go," The woman told him, and slowly pulled Orion back to the ground.
What a terrible way to start his Journey towards Radiance.