[---Verse is Unraveling---]
[Death is the only truth, for in its silence even the tongue cannot weave a single lie]
***
Lucien woke up with a bright ceiling light shining on his face and the sounds of shouting directed towards him
"IDENTIFY YOURSELF!"
groggily he looked down and responded "What?"
"WHAT IS YOUR NAME!"
turning towards the source of the sound, he saw a slender young man with beige skin, who seemed to be in his 20s with blonde hair and striking emerald eyes.
"Lucien", he responded
Lucien swiveled his head and looked around the room, it was extremely meek, a few crates of synthetic food at one side, some weapons on another, A large mirror on one end and a sturdy looking door on the other, in front of which the young man stood, facing the medical bed in the center of the room, where Lucien laid.
"Nice to meet you Lucien, I am Resonant Blanc, you can call me Warden Blanc, do you know where you are" he replied
"Not really." Lucien stated-still not at terms with the previous events.
"They almost tossed you out with yesterday's Echo trash. Congrats on not dying, you seem to have been transported to a Vestige of Selection."
'So I truly was in a Vestige.. That Means!'
Suddenly Lucien's hand shot up from his side as he brought it close to his face to inspect, there he could visibly see it, the Mark, he tried to form a smile but a pained grimace escaped him as fatigue washed over him.
Blanc's body calmed and he said "You were out for a few days, which doesn't usually happen, the officials were even considering pre-emptively disposing of you in-case you brought back an Echo".
"Wait what?" Lucien's eyes darted towards Blanc
"Don't you know that? If you die in the Vestige of Selection, an Echo takes your place in the real world."
"In any case, allow me to congratulate you on successfully making it through your first ever Vestige, I'll also give you some helpful advice" Blanc said calmly, walking towards Lucien.
"Firstly, never reveal information about your Mark, Revelations or Verse to anyone unless you completely trust them or unless it's absolutely necessary."
"Second, you should enroll in the Bearer's Institute to learn more, because by the looks of it, you don't know much, and it's free."
"Finally, make some friends, you can't survive in this world without them."
"I'll go fill out some paperwork to let you go, in the meantime, sit tight."
***
'So I guess this is it, I am now one of the select few'
Slowly Lucien brought his left hand which had the mark close to his face to once again inspect, it had a unique pattern, kind of like a dodecahedron-if it was flattened out-with a cracked marble in the middle of it.
"Huh, curious."
He then closed his eyes and touched the Mark to his face, to enter his mindscape
His eyes were closed, he could feel them, yet it was as if he was looking at something, above him there was something akin to a planetary system, however instead of a bright star there was a shadowy black star in the center with a mote of darkness orbiting it, below him was what seemed to be glass that stretched out for eternity in every direction, when he focused on the tenebrous star, a string of unreadable runes popped up in his mind, they slowly morphed into something he could understand.
[---Rank: Nascent---]
[---True Calling: Prince of Death---]
[---Mark Attribute: Bastard of Fate---]
[Where ever you go, fate stirs, either ruin follows, or grace lingers]
[---Fragment Type: Void---]
[---Innate Revelation: Where Light Ends---]
[---Innate Revelation Rank: Ethereal--]
[---Innate Revelation Description---]
[The Void recognizes you as its true heir. You possess the absolute authority of the Void. Its complete revelation grants you mastery over oblivion itself – the power to inflict total existential erasure, command inescapable darkness, and sever any connection, be it physical, spiritual, or conceptual. Your will is the will of the void]
'What even is all this?' Lucien had never had formal education and as such was extremely uninformed when it came to being a Bearer since things were mostly reserved for the elites of society.
[---Verse: Death is the only truth, for in its silence even the tongue cannot weave a single lie---]
[---Verse Description---]
[As the Prince of Death, you can not lie]
'That's not bad, it's not like I had any connections to begin with however as for my Innate Revelation, I'll need to do more research at the institute to learn more', Lucien Focused on the next image of information that formed in his mind.
[---Revelations---]
[---Void's Favoured---]
[---Revelation Description---]
\[You possess a natural affinity to darkness,
it is as much a part of you as you a part of yourself, you **********
***********************************************************
***********]
'Why's it like that...? Bah, Guess I'll figure it out later'
He continued reading the rest of the runes
[---Relics---]
[---Name: Gate To Darkness---]
[---Type: Utility---]
[---Rank: unknown---]
[---Description: unknown---]
Pulling his hand away from his forehead, Lucien noticed Blanc standing close to him, looking intently
"You done?" Blanc asked
Lucien nodded in response, he did know what most of it meant for now, but he had a feeling that he soon would
"Let's go then, I'll take you to the Bearer's Institute where you can learn more. They'll also provide you lodgings for as long as you are there"
***
"I understand that you've lived a tough life out in the suburbs, however do try to make friends, because like I said before, you'll need them to survive out in the Threshold"
Blanc talked as he drove Lucien towards the Bearer Institute
"You don't need to take all those advanced classes in the institute, just do the basic course and read up some books on the history of the world, especially the past fifty years, the rest of it is all a complicated mess for the elite"
"But aren't you also a-" before Lucien could finish his response the vehicle suddenly came to a stop
"An elite? Me? Gods No, I'm a suburban kid like you, go on now, we're here, I have important things to do."
With that, Blanc drove off leaving Lucien alone at the entrance, looking at it, it was nothing grand, but also nothing to be scoffed at, it was easily larger than some of biggest houses Lucien had seen, but that didn't mean much since he was a suburban kid.
Walking inside the Institute, he noticed a tall—but no quite as tall as him—slender figure of a girl who was probably no older than him, she had long platinum, silky hair and an ivory skin that contrasted heavily against her dark gray eyes, she was sitting on a bench, reading what seemed to be a book.
He walked up to her and spoke, "Hey"
She turned around, looked at him for a bit without saying anything
"My name's Lucien, I just joined… Well I'm about to join." He said
"Hello Lucien"
"Sorry to bother you but could you please guide me to the library" He said in a polite tone
"Sure, follow me," she replied as she got up
"So, do you study here?" he asked while walking a few steps behind her
"I joined a few days ago after I got my mark" she said as she held up her left hand with the book still in it
"Cool" Lucien responded
Eventually they reached the library which was deep in the Institute
"Thanks for bringing me here, oh, and I don't think I asked for your name" Lucien said as she turned to him
"No problem, I was just about to come here either way, and my name's Luna"
***
Although he was a suburbs kid, he still knew how to read. So, he picked out a book on information regarding the Fragments and their history. It read:
*Disclaimer: The information inside this book has mostly been from inside vestiges and is backed mainly by claims and credibility.*
Lucien raised a brow. "Nice way to say we think this is true but don't blame us if it's not."
> Fragments are believed to be the remnants of a divine will which has long been snuffed out of existence. They are believed to be the source of the defilement, the echoes, and the vestiges. They are also believed to be the source of **Celestial Essence**, a form of energy harnessed and used by Bearers.
He leaned back in his chair
> There are 6 distinct Fragments, each unique in their own way:
> Strife – growth and conflict
> Reverie– dreams and possibilities
> Radiance– illumination and purity
> Veil– illusion and perception
> Resonance– memory and recurrence
> Void – the most obscure fragment, which has never been seen before. No records exist. Believed to be tied to death and darkness.
Lucien stilled. His eyes lingered on the last line.
'Wait… doesn't that mean I'm the first to get it?' He tapped a finger against the page, thinking. 'I should probably keep this to myself… unless I want to become a lab rat, that is.'
> The source of the Echoes is unknown. They are believed to be mindless creatures, destructive by nature. Based on information from a Vestige in the Northern Sector, Echoes can be categorized into 6 ranks:
> Whispering → Hollow → Dirge → Mythic → Primordial → True Echo
He paused, rereading that last one. True Echo. That didn't sound like something you walked away from.
> They are further split into 7 different classes:
> Ash → Shroud → Rift → Imprint → Grave→ Grown → Null
> The higher the rank of an Echo, the stronger it is. The higher the class, the more intelligent. Echoes of a higher class have been seen commanding lower-class Echoes in the same rank. There is no known information on Primordial and True Echoes; however, it is assumed they would be cataclysmic, if ever unleashed.
Lucien shifted in his seat. "Good to know we've got walking apocalypses just waiting in the wings."
> The Fragments grant a Mark and an Innate Revelation to the challengers of a Vestige, every single one being unique in its own way, and every single one granting a different power.
> The Mark allows Bearers to enter their Mindscape to understand their abilities.
He instinctively rubbed his dorsal, where the strange warmth still hadn't faded.
> The Innate Revelation is granted directly by the Fragments and directly influences the growth of a Bearer. Innate Revelations are ranked by strength and rarity, same as Bearers:
Nascent → Anchored → Resonant → Attuned → Transcendent → Divine → Ethereal
*The existence of Ethereal rank is known; however, no information is available since no Bearer has ever possessed an Innate Revelation of that rank. Throughout history, only a few have had Transcendent Revelations, and those with Divine ones are even rarer.*
'Ethereal… huh.' He tilted his head.
> The difference between Bearer ranks is exponential. For example, going from Attuned to Transcendent is approximately equivalent to going from Nascent to Attuned.
> There are two kinds of Vestiges:
- Vestige of Selection: where a Fragment chooses and tests you before bestowing a Mark. This usually happens to teenagers and is more common if you are from a Bearer's lineage
- Regular Vestiges: categorized by rank, allowing Bearers to challenge them and rise in rank.
> When a Vestige forms, it leaks out Celestial Essence, which is measured by the Wick Scale and used to categorize the Vestige.
> Celestial Essence can also be harnessed by Bearers. This is done through absorbing it from Echoes. Although there is no definitive quantity for Celestial Essence, it can be observed that Echoes of higher ranks possess larger quantities of essence in comparison to lower-ranked ones.
> When a Bearer engages with a Vestige of equal or greater rank, they ascend—gaining a Revelation and advancing in rank proportionally to the challenge faced. Vestiges of lower rank, however, remain inaccessible. Should a Bearer attempt to breach such a threshold, the structure of the Vestige may destabilize, resulting in the emergence of uncontrolled Echoes.
He squinted at that part. 'So power-hungry idiots get everyone else killed. Got it.'
> Vestiges do not have a fixed challenge. They may be mental or physical depending on the Fragment and the Bearer's aptitude.
> Note: This information is subject to change as new discoveries are made.
Lucien closed the book slowly. His mind was spinning, but one thought remained annoyingly clear:
'What the hell did I get myself into?'