While still living at the Pir, Garet wanted to one day visit the Thornspire. In fact, the Thornspire was not exclusive to the Awakened. Much of the functionality of the Thornspire rested on the common people regulating missions, managing the problems of the city and regions, and granting rewards set by the city's authorities.
If a common man had information about something important, he could come to the Thornspire and report it, expecting a reward if the information was valuable. Also, people could set up their own requests that the Awakened could then take and fulfill.
In a way, the Thornspires acted like the adventurers guilds in the novels popular with the younger generation. Aside from many details, the difference was that the survival and status of the city largely depended on the Thornspire.
The Pit fell in just one night, and their weak Single-Peaked Thornspire was a major reason for that. If Garet's city had the Dual-Peaked Thornspire, the Awakened would be able to hold out long enough for help to arrive from the other cities.
The Iron Gate's Thornspire was powerful enough to stop this Monster Wave. That's why the Iron Gate continued to exist for over a hundred years, and the Pit only a few decades.
For the Awakened, the Thornspire was the most important place, especially for newcomers.
Crackle.
The door opened as two men eating sweet berry buns entered the bustling hall. Several people recognized Xir and nodded deeply in respect. They were Awakened like him.
On the wall to the side was a large board with a variety of missions that immediately caught Garet's attention. He realized that if he wanted to learn all the secrets of the Genesis Core and never run away from his home again, he had to go a long path.
Along the way, the rewards and valuable experience he could gain on missions were just as important as his evolution as an Awakened.
"Hey, it's too early for you to look there, yet." Xir squeezed his shoulder, guiding him forward.
Standing at the counter was a girl in a black and gray outfit special to the Iron Gate's Thornspire. Her red hair was tied up in a bun, and gold-rimmed glasses rested on the bridge of her nose while her green eyes ran thoughtfully over some document.
"Khm." Xir coughed.
The girl reluctantly looked up as her eyes went wide in disbelief.
"Commander Xir! I didn't expect to see you so soon, didn't you set out just yesterday at the Pit?"
Xir scratched the back of his head.
"Yeah, but I ran into something interesting there."
Then, he pointed to Garet and the girl.
"Melisa, this is Garet." Xir waved his hand. "Garet, this is Melisa. She's the chief agent of our Thornspire. Aside from a myriad of tasks, she's one of the few who has the authority to register new Awakened."
Slowly, Melisa's eyes traveled over Garet, a predatory glint filling her gaze.
"Oh, what a sweet boy. Did the Monster Wave happen right after you became an Awakened at your Thornspire?" Melisa said without a second thought.
"Hmm?" Garet raised an eyebrow. "This is my first time at the Thornspire, overall."
Confused, Melisa glanced at Xir.
"He is a Wild One, a rarity these days, isn't it?"
The surprise on Melisa's face gave Garet nothing but questions. He never heard anything about the Wild Ones.
"What does that mean?" Garet asked.
Melisa leaned forward. "Oh, it means that you have reached Zenith beyond the Thornspire. It will be recorded on your profile, but that information will be secret between you and the Thornspire. Most Awakened reach Zenith at the Thornspire, I think you know that."
Garet nodded, then his eyes sparkled, sensing the benefit.
"Will this give me any bonuses, or maybe special opportunities at the Thornspire?"
"Oh, so young and already an opportunist, but no. And, you'd better not say that to everyone you meet, am I right, Commander Xir?"
"Yeah, Garet, it might draw more attention to you than necessary. People will wonder what monster you killed and what your Dusk was, what urge awakened Zenith in you. There are some among the Awakened who will even say that all your successes are only because you're a Wild Awakened, because of your unusual Dusk, even though it's not true."
Garet lowered his gaze, pondering Xir's words.
He knew that the two most common urges were fear and pain, and his Rapture was clearly not on the list of the usual ones. Though most of the Wild Awakened were similar in that.
But, like Xir said, a non-standard urge did not give the Awakened any advantage over the others. The variables that made up the power of Awakened were too many for just one of them to drastically change everything.
Still, Garet wouldn't get his Zenith without the Rapture. The Crimson Blight was born considering his past and present, and the Rapture played an essential role in that.
"Got it."Melisa smiled. "Good. You should get an emblem at the entrance, hand it to me."
Garet did as Melisa said, answering her questions. From time to time, he was helped by Xir, explaining some things unique to the Awakened and their Thornspire.
At the very end, when the document was filled out, there were only two blank spaces left.
"Alright, give me your hand," Melisa said, and Garet did so without question.
A sharp glint reflected in Garet's eyes when Melisa took the heavy needle and, without any pity, jabbed it into his finger.
A wave of pain ran through Garet, making his eyes go wide.
"Shit! What are you doing?" Garet jerked his hand away, staring at the drop of blood coming out of the cut.
Melisa giggled. "Sorry, I didn't expect it to scare you. Here, put your finger on your emblem."
She handed him the shield emblem, which now had a circular rune on the back.
Garet nodded and did as she said.
On contact, the rune flashed as his blood drop came into motion.
"Think about what's close to you. Maybe some memory, a weapon, or your Zenith? It will become your seal. It's like a signature only the Awakened have."
He didn't have to waste much time, Melisa's words caused a spark in Garet's mind.
The drop of blood accelerated, creating a pattern on the back of the shield emblem - the burning sun with a dark, filled center.
The black sun, the same as his Zenith.
"Good, now there's only one thing left to do." Melisa clapped her hands together with a slight smile. "The test!"
Garet turned to her.
"A test?"
"Ughum."
Melisa nodded and licked her lips predatorily.
"Perhaps it's nothing out of the ordinary, and I'll let you go in an hour, but maybe you'll fight a monster. It all depends on how you show yourself, on what power lies dormant in you, young Awakened."