Garron's tone grew more serious. "All of this, every nation, every race, once stood alone. Then came the Shattering of the Veil. The Rifts tore through the skies and brought things that shouldn't exist. Beasts, relics, corruption. That was the end of peace."
He let the words hang before smiling again, softer this time. "The Aetherion Academy was the answer. A pact between the races. Train the next generation, master Aether, and keep the world from falling apart."
Lucien found himself listening more intently than he expected. He'd read fragments of that history in old scraps of parchment, but hearing it like this, seeing the man's conviction, made it feel real.
The wyvern banked slightly, catching the rising wind. Below them stretched vast forests and glimmering rivers that reflected the light of the fractured sky.
As the calm wind brushed against him, something stirred inside his chest — a soft pulse, familiar and mechanical.
A notification flickered quietly at the edge of his vision.
▓▒░ [Quest Completed: Aetherion Awakening] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Objective Complete: Travel to Aetherion Academy.] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Rewards (Pending Activation):
• Full Soulbinder System Tutorial — AI Assistant Unlocked.] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Next Quest Available.
Would you like to continue the Chain Quest?
Yes / No.] ░▒▓
Lucien almost smiled.
Of course it was a chain quest. Games never stopped at the first step.
He answered silently, Yes.
The window unfolded like a blooming sigil.
▓▒░ [Soulbinder System: Quest Unlocked] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Chain Quest — Path of the Binder (2)
Main Quest: Division Assignment] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Description: To grow stronger, you must secure a foundation. Proceed to your assessment and attain placement within the Summoner's Division — the path most compatible with your evolving resonance.] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Objective:
• Pass the Division Assessment.
• Achieve placement in the Summoner's Division.] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Rewards:
• Summoning Conduit].░▒▓
▓▒░ [Penalty:
• Growth rate reduced.] ░▒▓
▓▒░ [Quest Accepted?
Yes / No] ░▒▓
His heart thumped once, steady and sure.
The Summoner's Division… in his old world he had spent years playing summoner classes, minion builds, beast-bond roles, the ones that let his imagination run wild despite being stuck in a weak body.
Trusting the system felt natural.
He accepted again.
And the interface dissolved into motes of faint light.
After hours of travel, Garron pointed ahead. "There it is."
The murmur of conversation faded as everyone craned their necks.
The Aether Cradle floated in the distance like a piece of heaven torn loose. Massive spires of white stone rose into the clouds, connected by bridges of pure light. Beneath it, vast Aether currents shimmered like ocean tides, holding the island aloft. Dozens of smaller platforms drifted nearby, training arenas, dormitories, and research towers that sparkled against the open Rift sky.
Lucien stared, quietly awed.
The world he'd known in Veyren suddenly felt small, insignificant even.
As they approached, he could make out details: the academy's central tower glowing faintly, banners of each race fluttering from the walls, and students of every kind moving about below. The sound of laughter and spellfire echoed faintly even from here.
"That," Garron said proudly, "is where you lot will learn to control the talent you awakened. Or die trying. Depends on how hard you study."
The laughter that followed was uneasy, but it helped.
When they finally landed at one of the docking platforms, Lucien waited for the others to disembark before standing. The moment his boots touched the polished stone, he felt it, the difference in the air. The Aether here was alive, sharper and cleaner, like breathing lightning.
Students milled about, most in uniforms marked by color and crest. Humans in white, elves in green, beastkin in brown, dwarves in gray. Mixed-bloods like him were rare, yet he counted two others, both avoiding eye contacts.
Whispers started again as he walked through the crowd.
"Is he really one of the new Awakened?"
"He doesn't look like much."
"Probably some experiment from Veyren."
Lucien kept his gaze straight ahead. He didn't need to prove anything to them.
Not yet.
A voice called out from the distance, firm and commanding.
"All new Awakeners, gather at the Hall of Resonance for assessment. You will be evaluated and assigned divisions according to your affinity."
The others began moving quickly, some nervous, some excited. Lucien followed quietly, falling in step with the flow of the crowd.
As they walked through the academy grounds, he glanced around at the sprawling courtyards filled with glowing glyphs, at the towering crystal obelisks pulsing faintly in rhythm with the sky above. Everything here hummed with power.
He could feel it too.
The Aether around him stirred, faintly responding to his presence.
A whisper of potential waiting to be shaped.
The system pulse beneath his ribs echoed that feeling, like a second heartbeat aligning with the world.
He touched the side of his chest, where the faint echo of the Soulbinder lingered.
Elara… I made it.
When the hall came into view, his steps slowed for a heartbeat. The building was enormous, its arched ceiling etched with silver runes that pulsed like veins of light. Inside, dozens of instructors waited, their eyes sharp and assessing.
Lucien took a quiet breath and stepped through the threshold.
The first quest had brought him here.
The second would begin the moment they called his name.
Whatever awaited him, tests, judgment, rejection. it didn't matter.
His story had already begun the day he refused to die.
Now, it was time to live it.
The Hall of Resonance was wide enough to fit a small fortress. Tall glass arches lined the walls, glowing faintly with silver veins of Aether that pulsed like a heartbeat. Hundreds of newly awakened stood across the marble floor, murmuring among themselves.
Lucien stayed near the back, away from the clusters forming in the center. The stares came, as they always did, sharp and quick like thrown stones. He didn't flinch. He'd had worse back in Veyren. A few humans whispered to each other, one even smirking as he muttered, "Mixed bloods shouldn't even be here."
Lucien ignored him, folding his arms as he waited. The voices around him began to fade when a sudden wave of Aether rippled through the air.