Discordant Note | TBATE

Chapter 64: Insight of Millennia

"It is not known how far back the Asclepius Clan's knowledge has been passed from leader to scion," Lady Dawn replied. The age in her eyes would grind any mortal man to dust. "It is a nigh-infinite library of condensed understanding, waiting at your fingertips. But to allow you to slowly assimilate that insight, you must activate the Will in stages depending on your mastery. And my own insight guides you through the process. My mind, still holding lingering attachment to my Will, pushes you along safer paths. You do not break under the strain because I carry you through the shallow currents, as a mother shows her chicks the safest routes to fly."

I looked at my hands, clenching and unclenching my fists. That level of power... It was hard to fathom. How many millennia of understanding were condensed into the Will nestled in my core?

"I think I understand," I said slowly.

"No, you do not. You can not, not without experiencing it further," the phoenix cut across my words sharply. "But you will understand in time."

I chewed on that thought, sparing another glance at the trees around me. They unnerved me to no end. "So, do I simply... embrace the Will?" I asked. "Draw it to the surface?"

"It will come to you naturally," the asura said, standing in front of me. "The Will desires to be used. Always remember that, Contractor. It is not some mindless force, like a storm or an earthquake. The Will of countless Asclepius asura desires to be learned. It wants to fulfill its purpose."

"You speak as if the Will has consciousness," I said hesitantly. "As if it can make its own decisions."

"The Will is a force, Contractor. But it is also a beast. Through assimilation, you tame that beast. You show it your worth. But it is still a beast."

I closed my eyes with a shuddering breath, my mind brushing against the Will in my core. It was an alien thing, but I could almost... feel it agreeing with my Bond. About its desires. About its force.

About its beastly nature.

"But do not let yourself sink too deep, Contractor," Lady Dawn said, drawing me back to the present. "For you may not be able to pull yourself from that ocean. Your mind is but one of the many the Will has been a companion to. It does not know restraint. Only you do."

I let myself drift back toward my core, my mind feathering against the Will's. It eagerly rescinded my contact, like a curious child touching something new and interesting.

It has probably never interacted with a human mind before, I thought with wonder as the Will slowly drew itself up to me. And then we intersected.

I felt the power, the knowledge, suffusing me in an instant like a shot of caffeine. It was as if all the cells in my body had been laid in a warm bath, the heat suffusing them and speeding up their function. My muscles felt loose and mobile, unseen tensions releasing as my mind brushed against both Lady Dawn's and Will's. As the connection solidified, Lady Dawn and the Will seemed to become one and the same, the experienced phoenix taking the reigns.

But there was something else in there, too. Where Lady Dawn was a brilliant light banishing my ignorance and lack of insight, this thing was dark and beastly. It was... dormant. Sleeping. But the light of the Will irritated it, crashing against its eyes and burning its pitch-black scales.

My basilisk blood. It loathes the light. It hates the way Lady Dawn scours away the shadow.

They could not exist together. Not for long.

I opened my eyes, about to ask a question. But what I saw shocked me to the core.

For miles upon miles around me, small red fires burned in the heart of every white tree. Those fires should consume the wood, some part of me thought. But another part, the one that almost understood, knew that was not how the fire of life worked.