The firelight of the Early Sacred Flames flickered low and steady beneath the Wok, casting shimmering golden hues over the pearlescent sand.
Noah sat cross-legged beside it, bare-chested and lean, the flickering glow playing across his skin as if marking him as the axis around which this entire consecrated land turned.
Each bite of the seared meat that passed his lips pulsed into his body with waves of energy so dense and clean, they seemed to rearrange the very lattice of his being.
The meat of the Crownscale Glimmer was unlike anything else. Every mouthful was a hymn of complexity, each bite rewriting something deep within him. And he had given only a sliver to Liora. Just a single, insignificant piece.
And even then... it had made her an Originus Venerant in moments.
He tilted his head as he regarded her from the corner of his gaze- still trembling faintly, her hands glowing, her figure aglow with threads of golden light. The Living Origin Tower behind her swirled and rose like a newly grown tree, pulsing gently like a second heart.
She was still recovering, eyes wide, jaw set with focus as she tried to steady herself amidst the unfamiliar power.
Her father had done this.
Noah slowly chewed his next bite as he thought of Bob.
Little Bobby! As Thauron had referred to him.
Bob, the broken father who had devoured in desperation, became bound to an Inevitability, reversed such an action to shockingly go against Thauron due to a Living Seed of Existence he gained from Noah..
He then went further and gifted away half his blooming self to resurrect a daughter who had watched him suffer for lifetimes from within a Dead Wheel.
A man consumed by his own singularity.
Now, the ripples of that obsession had shaped Liora... and echoed here.
Noah’s thoughts lingered only briefly as his gaze shifted to Ruination.
She sat with her knees drawn up, tendrils of crimson gold light laced around her figure like a spiraling cocoon. Her brows were furrowed with fierce concentration. Then, with a breath that trembled the air, her eyes opened and the Glyph shining gloriously bloomed to completion- glowing faintly on her forehead, carved of fire and ruin.
The sea breeze stilled as the prompts flashed before Noah’s eyes.
|The Living Origin, Ruination, has condensed a Basic Early Living Existential Glyph of Ruination.|
|The Basic Early Living Existential Glyph of Ruination draws upon the source concept of Total Collapse. It emanates Living Origin Ruinous Authority at all times, allowing the bearer to unravel the weavings of opposing sources, hasten the decay of Lattices, and affix minor Ruination Traits to Actions, Speech, and Movement. Weavings of Ruination are simple but absolute. Destruction. Unmaking. Collapse...all from mere words, gaze, or simple actions.|
...!
Noah let out a soft exhale as he observed her. She stood calmly after, the Glyph shimmering like molten metal on her forehead. Her presence was darker now, deeper, more settled.
"There are more avenues opening now, Master." Ruination said without preamble, her voice quieter than before, the gleam in her eye more lethal. "My existence is aching to enact Living Existential Affixes... but I want to confirm a few things first."
She looked at him like a child asking for permission.
Noah gave her a simple smile and nod, a motion that carried all the weight of his attention.
"Take your time," he said. "Nothing here is going anywhere."
His voice trailed off as he turned toward the Infiniverse Body.
She remained seated beside the waves, her knees resting in the sand, her hands open and glowing. Her form shifted through colors like liquid refracting starlight. Lattices blinked into and out of existence across her skin, and Noah could feel the weight of her Glyph still forming. Like him, she had too many threads. Too many sources vying for expression.
She simply needed a little more time.
And then, slowly, his gaze drifted back to Liora.
She was kneeling now, the storm of her transformation finally waning as the Tower behind her solidified into radiant, golden-white columns with shifting halos of Origin authority. Her skin shimmered with health and exhaustion, her eyes wide and watchful.
A pause followed.
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