《Bestial Ascension: Hunting the Divine》 1 - The Flame of Ixhalda The sound of the hammer on metal echoed dully in Ash''s ears. Impassively, he looked the half-finished blade over before tossing it into the pile beside him. On any other day he''d have spent the rest of the evening sharpening and polishing his stack of rough blades, but today wasn''t ordinary. Today''s the day I rid myself of this shackle. He was about to gather the unfinished weapons in his arms and move to the building across the street when he heard the door crash open. "Where is he? I want to see the wretch that''s producing nothing but failures!" A loud and obnoxious voice yelled into the smithy. Several of the other slaves around Ash flinched in fear, but Ash only sighed in resignation. A pair of hands grabbed the collar of his raggedy shirt and lifted him into the air. [Morion Vain - Level 7] Ash''s disdain for the portly man grew every time he was forced to lay eyes on the fat pig. But he didn''t dare express that hatred, as he knew it would only result in a beating. Or worse. "Is something the matter, honorable master?" He asked, using every sliver of willpower he had to keep himself from spitting on the disgusting face next to his own. "I want to know why the Rare crafter I paid for is only producing garbage!" "I''m sorry, sir. I never learned how to make anything complicated-" He didn''t get to finish his statement before he was thrown into his anvil. As he winced in pain and steadied himself against the iron lump Morion spat on him, "You have a Rare class. That should be more than enough to produce quality!" I can only produce junk when all you give me is junk, you fatass pig! Despite spending a large sum of money on a slave with a Rare crafting class, Morion Vain was too stupid to realize that the quality of a crafted item was tied more to the quality of the materials used to make it than the rarity of the crafter''s class. And the worst part was that he was far too arrogant to ever take a slave''s words to heart. "I''m sorry sir. I''ll try harder." "Hmph. What a waste of money. I can''t believe I let that bandit rip me off like this. Last time I trust unruly filth¡­" Morion walked out of the workshop, and Ash couldn''t help but feel his eyes gravitate toward the pouch at his waist. The key to Ash''s freedom was in that pouch. He''d heard the fat pig boasting of it one night when he''d been forced to serve dinner to a guest. No, don''t get distracted. Don''t allow yourself to seem like you want anything. If they suspect something it''ll all be over. Ash took a minute to catch his breath and check his condition. Morion didn''t bother pulling his punches with anyone, so Ash needed to be sure the buffoon hadn''t accidentally cracked or broken one of his ribs. Despite the oaf not having worked for a single one of his levels, he was still 5 levels higher than Ash. And being thrown into an anvil hurt. Ten minutes later he felt like he was ready to get back to work. He picked up his blades and headed for the door. His plan for the night was simple. He''d discovered a gap in the camp''s defenses that he could exploit. All he had to do was get to Morion at night and nab the key to his escape and he''d been good to go. Maybe I can stick the pig too while I''m at it. Pushing the door open with his shoulder, Ash stepped out into the pathway between ramshackle huts. He tried to push his way into the line of slaves but stopped when he realized the line was standing motionless. "Excuse me," Ash tried asking the slave next to him to move. He didn''t care for another beating on such an important day. "Look," The malnourished slave said, pointing to the dark evening sky. Ash looked as instructed, though he didn''t expect anything particularly noteworthy. Slaves tended to be wowed by the most inconsequential things. Except the thing in the sky wasn''t inconsequential. It was Death, and none of the poor fools around him knew it. No. Not again. How could it possibly have found me? You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. What looked like a red comet streaked through the sky, leaving a dazzling trail of what looked like dazzling crimson fireflies in its wake. But unlike a comet it didn''t follow a straight path. It veered at sharp angles like a hinge, following a guidance nobody on the ground understood. But with every second that passed the light of the comet grew brighter, closer. Ash forced himself to turn away from the impending doom in the sky. He''d come too far, experienced too much sadness and suffering to simply give up now. He survived before, he''d survive again. This time without anybody to help him. He bent down and jiggled the weighted shackle that kept him and every other slave from being able to get very far if they ran. Something clicked on the inside and it fell away, leaving him free of its weight. If I hadn''t already been prepared¡­ No, don''t think about that. Move. He grabbed the slave next to him and shouted, "The master! Where did the master go?" The slave dumbly pointed down the pathway toward the fat pig''s residence. Ash released him and started sprinting. He ran as hard as he could, desperate to catch up to the only chance he had of survival. He turned a corner and saw the fat man, evidently too slow to have gotten home, staring dumbly at the sky like the slaves around him. Ash tried to make a break for the man, but the comet fell from heaven at that moment. The light of the fading sun was still barely visible in the west. The comet fell to the east, and when it impacted the earth below it created a red glow as bright as three sunrises. Light illuminated both ends of the sky, an unnatural occurrence that heralded the descent of something this world could not possibly bear the brunt of. The divine beast Ixhalda had come to play. At the beast''s impact the world lurched out from under Ash before coming back up to slam into him. He tried to get back to his feet, but the intense rumbling of the earth beneath made it nearly impossible. A wave of sound shattered the windows of the compound and burst Ash''s eardrums as Ixhalda''s shriek rolled over the world. Glass rained down on him as he desperately tried to stand, but a flare of light from the east distracted him. In that space between breaths he accepted that had was about to die. A burst of crimson energy plowed through the compound faster than an arrow released from a bowstring. It took a few seconds for Ash to return to his senses and realize he wasn''t dead. The burst of energy had missed him by a hair''s breadth. Only meters away from him the world was a burning wasteland. Half of the compound was simply gone, reduced to flame and ash in an instant. Ash felt despair grip his heart. Though he''d survived, the blast of energy had evaporated Morion Vain and the street upon which he''d stood. Then amid the red flames, black charred wood, and white ash and bone, he saw a tiny flash of blue. And he felt he could see the thread that could maybe, just maybe, save him from this cruel fate. With reckless abandon, he got to his feet as best he could and pushed himself forward. Into the fiery hellscape he leapt, and even as the fires of damnation burned away his skin he ran. The small glimmer of azure light sat next to the obliterated remains of what Ash could only assume had been Morion Vain. Even as the scent of burned flesh, both his own and his former master''s, filled his nose he held up the key to survival. [Rift Seed] The dormant seed of a rift. Saturate with mana to cause the seed to germinate. Mana absorbed: 0/1500000 Ash felt his heart drop. Nobody had told him the seed required so much mana, only its wondrous uses. He felt a tear roll down his cheek before it evaporated to steam in the hellish environment around him. Pushing the little mana he had into the small orb, he prayed upon a miracle. [Notice] Mana absorbed: 150/1500000 Rift seed saturation incomplete. Risk of instability: Extreme. Approximate time before rift dematerializes if allowed to germinate in this state: 14 seconds. Germinate the seed? (Yes/No) He''d wanted a gateway to another world, but his insufficient mana made that an impossibility. What use would a rift that collapsed almost instantly be? There would be nothing of value, no other gateways to flee to and escape this living nightmare. A memory returned to him unbidden. ''Be careful not to fall off. Those who fall into a rift''s abyss are usually ground to mincemeat and tossed into space.'' ''Usually?'' ''You catch onto everything, don''t you? These are only rumors, mind you, but I''ve heard stories that people very rarely survive the ordeal, and that those who do find themselves trapped in a place halfway between this life and the next. A place of lost souls, shattered dreams, and broken worlds.'' Germinate the seed? (Yes/No) Yes. The seed shattered into motes of light that coalesced into a gateway beside him. He took one last look towards the crimson horizon. Ash almost thought he could see the form of that living calamity, the astral dragon''s black scales and seven burning eyes. The hallmarks of desolation. But no, he could not possibly see the divine beast from this distance. It was simply another memory returning to him unbidden. A gathering of energy on the eastern horizon signaled Ash that it was past time to step through the gate. Taking a deep breath, he stepped through the shimmering portal into the unknown. He found himself in a void of hazy light blue matter on all sides. Behind him was the gate, still shimmering as though it would sputter out at any second. Ash looked down and realized the only solid feature in the entire rift was the small platform he was standing on, barely large enough to fit both of his feet. All he had to do was step forward. It took a great deal of willpower to steel himself, even knowing he only had one choice. Back through the gate was certain death. Waiting would cause the rift to collapse in on him, which meant certain death. And taking a step forward was almost certain death. Even knowing his will likely made little difference, he resolved himself to survive. Ash took a step forward and fell into the space between dimensions, leaving the world of Vorillion IV to be wiped from the sky. 2 - The Fragmented Wilds Ash opened his eyes to soft cushions and an unfamiliar wooden ceiling. Where am I? As he sat up and examined the room around him he could immediately tell he wasn''t in Morion''s slave compound. It looked like the room of an inn, and a quite nice one at that. What happened? Did I get the seed and make it out? The seed¡­ Suddenly the memories of the previous day came crashing through his mind. Ixhalda. The rift. The sensation of what seemed like an endless eternity feeling as though he was trapped in the space between dimensions as the forces of reality deconstructed his essence. Something had latched onto him and pulled him out. That was the last thing he remembered. He pulled back the sheets to look at his body. Gone were the burns he''d suffered walking through the ashen hellscape. Either I died and this is some kind of afterlife, or this is the place my father told me about all those years ago. But why heal me? In the ten years since being orphaned Ash had experienced the phenomenon known as goodwill about as often as he won the lottery. Vorillion IV had just been that kind of place. And he, a dumb kid with a Rare class, had not been ready to experience the brunt of its cruelty. There was a small pile of clothes next to the bed that he assumed were for him. His previous clothes were nowhere to be found. Oh yeah, they probably got burnt up in my mad dash for the seed. Not like they were anything more than rags anyway. He donned the outfit, a simple tunic and shorts, before he tried the door. To his surprise, it was unlocked. What''s their game? Ash wandered down the hallway he found outside his door, passing several identical doors on his way to the end. Past the door at the end of the hall was a spherical room with a pedestal in the center. Upon the pedestal was a crystal orb, and Ash''s blood ran cold at the sight. When he''d finally been released from the orphanage he''d immediately gone to the nearest guild to sign up. He''d been young and stupid, and hadn''t been nearly cautious enough. The crystal orb was an aptitude sphere, a device used to display a person''s displayed name, class, and stats. In his ignorance, he''d thought that since it used his current name and didn''t show anything beyond those simple traits he''d be fine. On his fifth quest he''d been kidnapped and enslaved. He realized only later that his information had been sold. Ash shook himself out of his thoughts. Also in the room was a larger door and a desk with a woman sleeping behind it. Moving as quietly as he could, Ash tiptoed over to the door. But when he tried opening it he found it locked. The sound of the door rattling woke the woman up, "Huh? Oh, you. Oh! You''re awake!" Ash desperately looked around the room for a way out, a weapon he could use to defend himself, anything. But the room was plain. He debated running back to his room to look for something, but he knew there was nothing there either. He''d already checked. "Please calm down. Nobody is going to harm you." His gaze focused on the woman. [Alicia Norin - Level 28] "How am I supposed to believe that?" "You were a slave, right?" Her gaze was soft, but her tone held a certainty that made it clear her statement wasn''t really a question, "I saw the marks around your ankle. I don''t know what kind of life you''ve lived, and I know there''s likely nothing I can do to make you trust me. However, I hope you at least take some measure of solace in this." The woman named Alicia placed her hand against the aptitude sphere, and a status screen appeared in the air. Or rather, only a single line from a status screen appeared. Class: Sworn Healer (Uncommon) He''d heard of that class. It was a healer who was bound by the system to never engage in violence except self-defense. "Whether it''s you I need to be wary of or the guards you can call in, it makes no difference." "Honestly, if we wanted to hold you against your will couldn''t we have just chained you to the bed?" That''s¡­ actually a fair point. "Well while you''re over there waiting for an ambush that isn''t going to come, let me at least tell you about the place you''ve found yourself in." She walked back over to the desk and pulled a lever on the wall behind the desk. Four cracks appeared in the ceiling that Ash quickly realized was an opening being revealed. And beyond that was a sight Ash would never have been able to imagine in his wildest dreams. The night sky of Vorillion IV had been nothing compared to the canopy of stars from his true homeworld, Ascadion. But even his memories of Ascadion utterly failed when compared to the sight above him. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Instead of stars, it was as though there were galaxies. At least a dozen of them that he could see through the small porthole in the ceiling. Not as small dots of faraway star systems, but right in front of him. All displayed as though he had the front row seats to a thousand miraculous sights. "Welcome to the Fragmented Wilds. This place, this city we''re in, lies at its heart. And it will be your new home for quite a while." Ash''s gaze snapped back to Alicia, "So I am being held here, in this place." "Yes, but not by us. Those clusters of light you see are the wilds, the memories of worlds that were one way or another destroyed. To leave would require plotting a path through those dead worlds and finding an exit. There is no other way out." "I''m assuming that''s easier said than done." "I don''t believe it''s been accomplished by anyone below level 60." Level 60? That''s crazy! Reading his expression, Alicia said, "Yes, so as you can imagine, people don''t leave very often and we don''t get very many guests. If you have family or loved ones you left behind it is possible to send out a message. It''s extraordinarily costly though." "So how did I end up here?" "The Fragmented Wilds is a unique place, as you can likely tell. It''s like a magnet that pulls together all kinds of things from across space and time. We use a highly specialized rift to take advantage of that unique property and pull people out of the space between dimensions." "Trapping them here in the process." Alicia raised an eyebrow at him, "Would you rather we left them to die?" Ash didn''t have an answer to that. Despite his hatred of captivity, he couldn''t deny being stuck in one place was better than death. And yet he still had to voice the thought, "There are some fates worse than death." He could still feel the ring of blisters that never had a chance to heal around his ankle. Despite the healing he''d been given the scars remained. "This place is populated by people cast into the nothingness of the rifts. Do you think you''re the only slave that''s wound up here? We get all kinds. Careless adventurers. Foolish nobles. Slaves that need to be discretely disposed of. Perhaps the most common are criminals who were tossed off the edge as a form of execution. I assume it''s so the authorities don''t have to deal with the body." "You''re painting a very concerning picture. I can''t imagine anything but a lawless society outside that door." "Yes, I can see why you''d think that. And yet when everyone shares something with one another they somehow seem to find a way. At least half of us have been pulled from the rift, given a literal second chance at life. Somehow I get the feeling you can relate." Ash felt the weight of those words, and he found himself without a response. So instead he moved to what currently concerned him, "What''s with the aptitude sphere?" "My job is to take note of people''s class and personality to recommend a path to take." Ash looked back up at the clusters of stars he could see, "Are all those places filled with life? With danger and beasts?" "Indeed." "So there''s probably also a guild system or something similar in place, right?" "If that''s the kind of work you desire then you''re certainly free to pursue it. There are three major guilds within the Fragmented Wilds. Each of them has a different style and temperament. But before we get that far, may I ask you to put your hand on the sphere?" "I refuse." "May I ask why?" "I don''t see the need to when I''m telling you I want to work at a guild." "Regardless, I still have a job to do. Even if you''ve decided on that path I''d still like to present alternatives in case you find yourself unsure in a day or two." "...And you won''t open that door until I do?" "We can do a personal information transfer if you''d prefer." A personal information transfer allowed for someone to directly share their status with someone else. Unlike the aptitude sphere, it would let him choose specific pieces of information to obscure or conceal completely. For class, it would obscure the specific class details while displaying what category of class it was. I could simply make my class appear as Crafter, but since you can''t falsify status information it''ll be obvious that I''m hiding something. Then again, it''s probably already obvious. "How many people hide the specifics of their class?" Alicia smiled sadly, "Most of them. Honestly, these days the aptitude sphere is mainly for the ones who are too jumpy to get close enough for a personal transfer." Ash nodded. Stepping up to the desk he held his palm out towards Alicia. After a moment she placed her palm against his. As the transfer started Ash chose which information he wanted hidden before passing it over. [Status] Name: Ash Health: 300/300 Mana: 150/150 Level: 3 Class: [Crafter] (Obscured) Strength: 8 Agility: 8 Vitality: 8 Endurance: 8 Arcane: 8 Burden: 0/40 (Additional information has been concealed.) Alicia''s eyes softened again as she saw his class type, "Are you sure you wish to work at a guild, as a hunter? It is possible to buy your way out if you save up enough, so advancing as a crafter is a perfectly valid path to escape. There''s a person-" "I''m sure. Tell me where the closest guild is. It doesn''t matter what kind of place it is, so long as they leave me alone and I''m allowed to fight monsters." Alicia regarded the look in his eyes before taking a piece of paper out of a drawer. She spent about a minute scribbling across the page before she handed it to him. Looking the paper over he realized it was a map of the city. Alicia had circled and numbered certain locations, with the names of businesses on the side, as well as the guild they were associated with. "I''d recommend visiting any of these places first. Since you won''t share what kind of craftsman you are I listed a variety of shops that specialize in different professions." "I didn''t ask for-" "And at the bottom is the guild I''d recommend if you truly won''t take anything else. Ash¡­ I don''t know where you''ve come from or what you''ve experienced that has made you so distrustful. But if you believe anything I''ve said, please believe this. Too many people come to us with the desperate need for strength, and far too often it costs them their lives. "I won''t say this place is perfect, but it''s our home. And we always welcome newcomers. Please don''t throw your life away because of something that happened in the past. What happened before we found ourselves lost among the stars no longer has any hold on us." Ash felt a pang of guilt as Alicia got up from the desk and moved to the door. She was right, of course. If everything she''s said was true then he was basically spitting in the face of her generosity. But even as much as he wanted to believe her words, he alone knew they weren''t true. I''d thought I was free of the past on Vorillion IV as well. But now I know the truth. No matter where I run or what I do, that thing will follow. It''ll hunt me to the ends of the universe, and if I don''t get stronger I''ll end up just like- A spike of pain shot through his head at that thought. He pushed that line of thinking out of his mind and followed Alicia to the door. "Be careful out there," She said somberly as the door opened. 3 - The Hunters Lodge As Ash walked out of the building he was almost overwhelmed by the sight that stretched out above him. The small glimpse he''d gotten of the sky had only slightly prepared him for the full expanse of beauty that expanded before his eyes. Incredible. So this is what it''s like to be inside of a nebula, huh? It''s more beautiful than I could have possibly imagined. A thought occurred to him as he looked down at the city around him. He immediately took note of how it was far larger than any town he''d ever been to. But that wasn''t what truly caught his eye. It was the soft light that filled the streets, bright enough to see by but nowhere near as bright as a sunny day. It begged the question, "Does this place have a sun? Or a day-night cycle for that matter?" "There''s no proper day or night, no. We use the clocktower to keep track of time. Most of us abide by the artificial cycle, but there are also those who prefer the quiet of the slow hours," Alicia said from behind him. Ash saw the clocktower in the distance, a massive structure that could be seen from practically anywhere in the city. He looked down at his map and took a mental note of the location, as well as where he currently was. Plotting a course through the city in his head, he almost wandered off before realizing he was forgetting something. "Uh, thanks." When was the last time I had reason to thank someone? "I hope you can find it within yourself to call this place home. Good luck." Walking through the streets was a strange feeling. It was nostalgic, and it really hammered home to him that he was no longer bound in that horrible compound he''d spent the last three years in. He passed a motley mix of businesses as he made his way into the city. It was shocking how normal most of them seemed. He''d assumed based on Alicia''s explanation of the Fragmented Wilds that it would be a place where adventurers dominated. How could it not be, with the prospect of leaving requiring such a high bar of strength? But the city he walked through was astoundingly ordinary. He imagined there were more restaurants and workshops of various crafts than normal, but a lot of it was very plain. He even saw a shop that specialized in baby products. She did say that around half of the city''s population came through the space between dimensions. I guess the other half were born here, descendants of others who previously got sucked in. The guild building was massive. It was by far the largest structure he''d ever seen. The building made the guild he''d joined on Vorillion IV look like it was run out of a shack. Alicia said there were three guilds like this. I guess I wasn''t wrong that is an adventuring town. It just has everything else alongside the adventuring. I guess a lot of people think life here is okay enough to settle down. In truth, I''d have probably been fine with that if it wasn''t for- Another shot of pain ran through his head before he viciously shut down that line of thought. Thinking of the past wouldn''t do any good. He needed to keep moving, keep himself occupied. As soon as he opened one of the large double doors of the establishment and walked inside he was met with a cacophony of voices. The space was dominated by what looked like the largest tavern he''d ever seen, with rows upon rows of tables set up throughout the hall. On the other side of the room he could see what looked like a reception desk. There was more variety among races in the room than he''d ever seen before. He supposed it made sense considering people from every corner of the universe got dumped here. The vast majority were humans or variants of humans. He did spot a table of strange insect-like people with natural chitinous armor. As he walked through the tables there were some people who raised their beverages to him as he passed, though he had no idea why. When he reached the other side of the room he stood behind a demibeast woman with what seemed to be the features of a cat. The only real reason she stood out to him was her pearly white hair, similar to his ashen gray. Idly, he inspected the woman while she argued with the receptionist. [Aria Black - Level 3] Black, huh? Taking the last name Black was pretty much a universal sign that someone had cut ties with their family. "Oh, can we put a lid on this for the moment Aria? We have a newcomer." As the demi-beast girl stepped to the side with a look of annoyance, she spotted Ash standing behind her and seemed surprised to see him. Aren''t you part cat? I thought beast people had better spatial awareness than to not notice someone standing right next to them. Maybe it''s just the noisy room. "Welcome to The Hunter''s Lodge! You can call it the lodge for short. I was wondering if my sister was going to send you over here." With a start, he realized the handsome young man before him did share some resemblance with Alicia. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. [Brent Norin - Level 37] "Uh¡­ Hi. Is there a process to join? I was hoping to be able to fight monsters and hopefully have a place to sleep." "Mind if I see that sheet of paper you''ve got there?" Brent said, pointing at the map. Ash handed it over and the man looked over it, musing to himself. "Ash, huh? Are you really sure you want to do this?" Ash''s gaze sharpened, "What do you mean?" "My sister only recommends people places she thinks they''ll fit in well. The fact that she listed exclusively crafting workshops means you have a crafting class. So I''ll ask you again. Are you absolutely sure you want to fight monsters? We have gathering roles as well that are much less dangerous if it''s a matter of getting your own materials." "I want to fight monsters. If I could have a place to craft as well that would be amazing, but I want to hunt more than anything." Brent examined Ash''s expression for several seconds before nodding sadly, "Alright. I''ll walk you through the introductory quest. We''ll start you out with foraging one of the wilds for mushrooms." "Mushrooms? I said I want to fight monsters, not gather fungus." He was fuming. Such a task was beneath him. Even the shoddy guild back on Vorillion IV had let him pair up with a party for his first quest, and they''d hunted monsters in the woods nearby. "I know. But the wilds aren''t like any other place you''ve ever known. We send everyone new on this quest, even the ones that come to us already at a high level. Rushing into the unknown is a sure way to get killed." That helped settle Ash''s indignation. He supposed rushing blindly into something wasn''t smart, and the fact that they made higher levels do it suggested that this place truly was something entirely unknown. Even so, he felt the burning need to throw himself into the process of getting stronger. "Fine." "Alright. Then let''s get started with the onboarding process. Sis, can you watch the counter for me?" Alicia walked into Ash''s peripheral view as she came up to them, "Sure. Been itching to get back to it." Ash stared at her with a deadpan expression, "Somehow I get the feeling there was a bias when you recommended a guild to me." "Haha," Brent laughed at that, "No, the other guilds wouldn''t take it kindly if we fleeced out all the good talent. It''s much more about what each guild wants in their applicants. Syndicate doesn''t usually take anybody below level 3, and they''re much less picky about someone''s ah¡­ criminal tendencies. Meanwhile, Strongfist is a group of roided out barbarians. They''re generally pretty amiable though, so we usually get along well with them." "And the lodge? What makes it stand out?" "We take anybody that doesn''t fit or doesn''t want to fit into those roles. Frankly, we''re the only guild that would allow a crafter to join as a hunter. Everywhere else would have simply directed you to their associated workshops. Though frankly, I''d sleep much better tonight if you chose that route instead." Ignoring Brent''s attempt to divert his course, Ash asked, "Associated workshops?" Brent took the dismissal in stride as he led Ash to another counter, "If you''re fully set on your path then we can leave that question for later. For now, take this." The man fiddled with a strange device before stamping it on a plaque twice. Ash took the small plaque, about half the size of his hand, and looked it over. At the top was his name burned into the wood above the symbol of the lodge, a spear, sword, and axe arranged in a triangle around some kind of wyvern. "That''s your badge. It does a couple of things, but mainly it serves as an identifier. Come, follow me." Brent led him through a pair of double doors with a guard who nodded to Brent. The man quickly shut the doors behind them as soon as they were through. Ash immediately understood why this room remained closed, the amount of mana in the atmosphere was almost enough to make him gag. Arranged in a grid were rift gates sitting atop unbelievably complex arcane circles. Most of the rifts were a nice blue, but some of them were a concerning red or even black. Some of the arcane circles didn''t have a rift gate above them at all. "So many rifts¡­ Surely you didn''t create them all, right?" "Ah, you refer to the rift seeds. No, those don''t work properly here. These are all naturally occurring rifts, our gateways to the wilds." Ash turned to the man in awe, "You mean that all those lights out there in the sky¡­ Those are rifts?" "Yep. There are so many of them they distort space around them. It''s why nothing can get through by simply taking a starship. Anything that passes through in the physical realm gets sucked into the space between dimensions and ripped apart." "But if they''re all naturally occurring then how did you manage to collect them into this room?" Brent tapped his foot against one of the arcane circles at the base of a gate, "Don''t ask me about the specifics of it, but these circles basically latch onto the signature of a specific rift as it''s about to be born and forces it to put a gate down here." "Born? Is there something out there creating rifts?" "Maybe reborn is a more accurate term. Usually, rifts appear in random places and have a random interior. The rifts in the wilds are always created based on what we like to call the memory of a world. But these memory rifts only last for about a month. Once they fade it takes a few days for the rift based on the memory of that world to be created again." "Are there truly entire worlds within them?" Brent smiled, "Maybe it''d be better to show you." The man stepped up to one of three circles with the words ''reserved'' across the floor in front of them. Brent took an identification plaque of his own out of a pocket and motioned for Ash to do the same. The man slid open a compartment on the back of the plaque Ash hadn''t noticed before, and a glowing blue light spilled out. Brent took the glowing rectangular prism out and motioned for Ash to do the same, which he did. He noticed his name had been stamped on this too. [Waystone] This is a soulbound item. Do you wish to bind it now? (Yes/No) "This is a waystone, it serves as your marker. It''s half of a set, the other is buried inside the badge. We use these to declare our presence within a rift and they serve as markers for whether or not we''re still alive in said rift. Go ahead and bind it." "But waystones don''t work across rift gates," Ash said as he binded the small blue stone. He knew about waystones from when he was a child. They were stones that glowed brighter the closer the stones were to each other. Brent smiled, "I should have known I wouldn''t need to explain how waystones work to a crafter. But it''ll be hard to show you how it works without a demonstration. Come, it looks like you arrived perfectly on time to experience my favorite rift to start off with." The man placed the waystone with his name on it on a stand next to the portal before stepping through. And just like that, he was gone. Ash looked at the other portals around the room. Each had a pedestal next to it, several of which had waystones similar to his own. He noticed each stand had eight indentations where the stones would fit perfectly. Turning to the portal before him, Ash took a deep breath. His last experience with a rift hadn''t been very pleasant. Well, nothing ventured nothing gained.