On Astral Tides: From Humble Freelancer To Astral Emperor

Stifling a yawn, I greeted Shiro as she appeared in the Boundary. There was no need to be concerned about the protection of her Material body, with Haru, Ginneka and my sis there, but she must have been thinking along similar lines, as she stretched lazily, arms above her head, and grinned. “You know, I’m damn envious of you Aki. Being able to be in two places at once is pretty awesome. If I could do that too, we could go on two dates at once.”

Laughing, I disagreed. “Maybe physically, but it’s not like they’re clones. If I was cloning myself I’d never trust them. It’s just perceiving two things at once. So it’d still be one date, just in two places at once and much more stressful on the mind.”

“Yeah, I don’t think any of us would like clones either.” Shiro smirked, sitting down and crossing her legs. “There’s only one Aki, thank all the Gods. But it’s kind of cute how predictable you are. Wouldn’t want to let another version of yourself get close to us. But I think it would still definitely have its perks, being in two places at once. Oh well… time to get down to business.” Her black eyes lit up with excitement. “So what’s the verdict? We can speak freely here.”

“Yeah. So it’s like this…” I explained about the Favours I had obtained, and Shiro nodded.

“Yeah, setting aside that last one, Tan has something to say regarding Jarovid’s Blood. I’ll let her take the stage.” Her eyes and hair burned red, tongues of flame licking at her long locks. “Yes. I do indeed have a matter to discuss. However…” Tan hesitated, which was unlike her.

“Is it something you can’t say? I don’t want to get you into any trouble, though of course we are endlessly grateful for your help up to now.” I flattered her, but it was the truth. Sometimes what Tan didn’t say and how she refused to say it allowed us to get information she claimed she wasn’t prepared to provide.

“It is… complicated.” She said at last. “I find myself in quite a quandary. I did not expect things to fall into line this way. I believed I could seize this world with the strange Fate I encountered here in the princess. I do not believe I was wrong. Now it surprises me that my surest path to victory here seems to be triumphing in a simple wager.”

“It’s not a win or lose thing.” I said, though I admitted to being rather troubled about the agreement, even if I understood it. Tan’s an ally, and one I trust, especially with Shiro’s safety. But we have some conflicting goals, so turning her into a true comrade, one following our lead, would offer reassurance. And if we lose… she will do her best for us, and even if it ties us into following the lead of Tan and her Pantheon, at least we’ll still have a good chance of helping Earth survive. Even so… “The winner won’t forsake the loser, right? We can’t, can we?”

“True.” Tan said, after a long pause, and seeing her melancholic expression on Shiro’s face was odd, yet somehow fresh. I had seen a gloomy Shiro many times, but seeing Tan’s take on the emotion was a rather intriguing experience. “However, while this certainly does touch on a matter I cannot speak of nor explain properly, both because I am forbidden by our compacts and also you would not be able to comprehend it anyway, I am more conflicted because it has some influence on your side of this wager.”

“Wow…” Shiro suddenly spoke, aping my sister. They’re already starting to copy each other’s quirks a little. That gives me a headache. “…Tan, you’re so confident you are going to win, but… you do think highly of Aki, I see. You worry giving him some ideas might help him succeed, even though what Aki wants to do is if not impossible, the province of a very few skilled individuals, in your mind. Damn, that’s almost cute.”

Tan actually flushed, dyeing Shiro’s face a faint red, before curling her lips into a wicked smile. “You think you can tease me, mock me, princess? Then know, if I am to offer my aid, I will need to descend once more.”

“Oh shit. Damn, hoist by my own petard there, I see.” Shiro rattled off a British idiom, and I wondered where she got it from. Mom maybe? She really likes Shiro, and no wonder… “I’m already so damn tired and aching after before, and I know you want me to hand out buffs like candy, and now a second Divine Possession too? Damn, you pair are ruthless. Hmm, I need compensation! Eri’s getting her holiday, right? I’m not so greedy, but at least a date night like Kana got seems fair.”

“Fine.” I conceded happily. “But it might have to wait a while, as we’re going to be busy. Anyway, Tan, if you think you’re disadvantaging yourself, we can amend the terms of the wager…”

“You think I… Taṇhā the Thirst, daughter of great Mara, a Divine being from far above, should be intimidated by you?” She sounded offended, and I could almost hear Shiro commiserating me. “You think very highly of yourself, I see. Though I do concede you have several unexpected advantages, and have unprecedented growth. So I shall not be careless. But do not insult me. I am not one of these Fae, unable to break given word and tell lies… nor you.” She noticed shrewdly. Of course, I avoided lying to Chae Cho-Hee as much as possible, especially when it came to promises. As a Faeduine it doesn’t sit well with me, and leaves me physically uncomfortable. “But to do so would be to admit I am beneath you. And you may have impressed me a number of times, again this day, but I am not ready to concede unless I must. My sisters would mock me endlessly, just as they did when the Buddha walked on by. So if you wish to pity me, first subdue me, Akio.”

Akio, huh? Tan rarely used anyone’s actual name, so that surprised me a little, but I guessed it was a declaration, of sorts. Nodding to show I understood her intent, I apologised. “Sorry, yeah, if I’m going to beat you I can’t be stupid enough to refuse charity. So, what did you want to discuss about Jarovid’s Blood? It’s kind of broken at the moment…”

“Indeed, I felt the corruption when we confronted the feeble brat who was misusing it.” Tan agreed. “But more to the point, the underlying gift… it is perfect for you, yet also not. But also perfect for the princess here, and also not.”

“I see. You mean… we have no compatibility, but we would be able to use the power effectively? I get it. I use a lot of Body Enhancement, and Shiro is basically a buffer…”

“Hey, I’m badass DPS too when Tan takes over.” She interjected, only for Tan to silence her.

“This is not the time for jokes, princess. This is a time for… ambition.” Tan was deadly serious. “Your perception is keen, and your Eye, that sweet, delectable Eye, it shows you much. I still can hardly believe the foolish Valkyrie who brought down such a thing. If the leaders of the World Tree discover that, I expect her to be soundly punished. Yet perhaps she was right to risk a treasure upon a bold strategy, much as I did. Perhaps we are kindred spirits, and would have much to talk about over food and drink.”

That would be quite the restaurant bill, I’m sure. Occasionally, Tan would take over Shiro and gorge herself, and she could eat as much as twenty or thirty people, easily. Though Shiro didn’t like me to be around when that happened, feeling embarrassed. “What you’re saying is, if we can repair it, either Shiro or I could use it? But then…” With all my Split Thoughts, including my newly acquired threads, now concentrated here in one body, I rapidly churned my brain, sorting possibilities. With my high Intellect, I was able to simulate things well, and while it didn’t help with emotional intelligence much, being as I was still the same me I had always been, much to my embarrassment at times, when it came to computer-like calculation, modelling and so forth, I was a supercomputer. Hell, I’m even running multi-threaded right now.

Realisation dawned on me, and I said to Tan what my conclusion was, sparked by her words from before. If it can help me with my wish to replicate my Eye for my sis… and honestly, when it works once, Shiro, Tan, the others… “You mean to split the Favour apart? Each of us taking the part that we are suited for? Is that… even possible? Wait…” I ran more simulations, and realised I perhaps had one of the keys to unlock this massively difficult problem.

“Possible?” Tan snorted. “Of course it is possible. The Favours are created, are they not? It is hardly a stretch to assume they can be changed, manipulated. For you? I am almost certain not. Even I cannot create a Divine Favour of my own, I brought the Favour of my father with me. It requires a great deal of talent and skill, honed over long years and centuries. You have but what… months? No, just as to be Divine requires a suitable League, and to be called a true God would also require great control of and focus of an adherence that was suitable… you cannot make a Favour with just that, though without ether and adherence you can craft nothing, of course.”

“The missing element.” I surmised, getting a hint from her words, and also the mess of a Favour that was Akoman’s Well Of Blood, Water And Despair. Even holding it was causing me a lot of discomfort, and made my Eye labour to perform properly. The description itself was fragmentary and garbled, question marks, strange symbols, letters in various Earthly and likely unearthly alphabets all in a tangle. All I can really decipher is … Increases strength of the bearer by… erodes the mind of those afflicted by the Blood and Water… gathers the Adherence of Chaos and converts it to… plus the odd word here and there. Not nearly enough to make guesses based on my Eye alone. But…

“Indeed. Surely you see bestowing abilities on others is the province of those with great power and authority. It is not like granting someone armour, or a sword.” She tapped Shiro’s Brigandine-clad chest. “And it does more than merely that.”

“Yes, the Anchor. I did wonder. Most of the lower-level Territories and even some stronger ones seem to have no Anchor.” I agreed. “Yet from the start we can create one. Every Chosen seems able to do this.”

“Indeed. An Anchor is not just the fulcrum of a Territory in this case, but also of the spirit of the owner.” Tan said, and that made me frown, eyes narrowed. Okay. I see.

“So, looking at the Favour…” I studied Jarovid’s Favour while splitting my thoughts and examining Morana’s and Akoman’s at the same time, my Eye shining amber brilliantly. “…I can see that the adherence in Akoman’s seems largely cribbed from Morana’s. It has the same… resonance… or frequency, maybe? No, that’s not quite right either, but it’s close enough. Then there’s some of Jarovid’s crammed in, and what I assume is Akoman’s, but that stuff resists understanding.” Sharp needling pains ran through my eye and brain as I tried to decipher all this.

Tan let out a long breath. “You should not understand that. Not so.. simply!” Tan sounded almost offended. “Worlds such as yours are rare, those that progress technology so far, for their League is insufficient in the end. Yes, against some invading forces, your weapons of war would easily subdue and destroy them, but against spiritual beings of power… the finest of arrows will not pierce one of your tanks, no? The reverse is clearly true when it comes to a mighty League. And worlds where technology grows unchecked often rebuff the more nebulous interactions of ether, aether and adherence.”

“Yes, it’s painfully unscientific at first glance. Though I honestly think the principles are all entirely consistent, if we go deeper.” I agreed. “But I think you’ve been with Shiro long enough to know one answer. Us humans, we’re lazy creatures, who seek escapism and entertainment. I’m no different. So even though we didn’t believe in magic and fantastical creatures…” I paused, grinning ruefully. “…even though it turns out they did exist in hiding… we dreamed of it, made stories, anime and games about it, so it became accepted and understood. Sure, it’s not the same, but a lot of the concepts we can grasp without too much difficulty. Ask any kid how to cast a fireball, and you might get a dozen different answers, and science will give you another one, but… it’s not like we don’t understand the concept.”

“Yes, I will not say your world is unique, but it is certainly abnormal, in a number of ways, as I have complained about before. But that makes it all the more tantalising a prize. A prize we contest.” Tan said proudly. “I am arrogant, but with good cause. Your strength, the might of the princess here, and even my own glory, limited as it is here, becomes more freely accessible, and not only that, but you gather and empower others too. Now, there are great dangers, such as the might of the One True Throne, who will have left many poisoned thorns behind, as they always do. More than just that woman and her false Angels. This predator from the higher Astral is a great threat too. And…” she paused. “…I have listened to the Chinese girl, and tales of her country. Unity is strength, the same strength you seek. And there are always those with great talents or great Fortune that grow strong unexpectedly. But…”

“…but we grow stronger all the time too, and hopefully faster. We started on the back foot, but now we’re sprinting.” I agreed. “And I think… even if I can’t do this, I can at least salvage the Favour for a breakdown, strengthening myself at worst. But then…” Would it be better to strengthen Shiro? Her buffs are basically the difference between us taking several years and a couple of months to properly enhance ourselves and the Territory…

“Yeah.” Shiro spoke up again. “You take it, Aki. I heard what Aiko said, and she’s right. You first, and then those that don’t have what we have. I can wait my turn. I have Tan, anyway.”

“No. It’s not about who, it’s about the right piece at the right place at the right time. Like Chess or Shogi, right?” I disagreed. “But anyway, we aren’t defeated before we even start. Sorry to do this, but…”

“You want a buff, right? Which one?” she asked, and I tapped my Eye.

“Don’t worry, I can handle the uptick in Rank, at least to Rank five, I’ve endured it before. But above that…” No point worrying about it, although is would be at the first bottleneck… “…after my Eye is done, I’ll need you to switch it to Chirurgery.”

“A girls’ work is never done, is it?” Shiro sighed. “Everything aches right now, I just want to lie down, but… you’re doing this in part for me, so… let’s go for it.” I felt a surge of aether and a little adherence, as I was straining so sensitively for it. My Eye flared and the message saying I had received Anesidora’s Blessing From The Box burned in my vision, and I had my skill reach Rank 5. Suddenly the information blurring affect of Akoman’s Favour had diminished, and I could see a little more information. …Increases strength of the bearer by mirroring existing… and gathers the Adherence of Chaos and converts it to an Adherence of Strengthening and Maddening, fortifying the…

I see. So that’s how it works. It’s a guess, but… “Hey, Tan, do you know how you measure the form of something you can’t see, feel or touch?”

“No, but… from the princess I read the answer you are seeking.” Tan answered. “You are talking of magnetic fields and iron filings, no? Or… some concepts I do not understand. Gravitational waves? Neutrinos?”

“Yeah, I don’t get them either. Arisu loves that sort of thing. She’s actually oddly nerdy, though not an otaku like us. The gap sure is cute though… uh, forget I said anything.” Shiro clammed up, looking nervous, but I set that aside. “So, your point, Aki?”

“Simple. I know there’s a gap in Akoman’s favour, and I know there isn’t in these others, so… I want to probe what’s not there. It’s like high-energy physics.” I know a bit about these things, but I wish I’d studied these things now… “Unless I understand more, there’s no way I can split it.”

“And for that, you need?” Shiro pressed, and I bowed politely, surprising her.

“Sorry Tan, this is impudent, but I have no adherence to spare, I’m burning my reserves. But if you could release some as I direct?”

Tan let out a long sigh. ”I said you should not reject my good intentions, but now you are simply greedy, Akio. Do you wish to win so desperately? No, I am being unfair. You wish to strengthen the princess and the others, and this is a sure path to power, one none other here is surely taking, though the odds would require miracle stacked on miracle. However, I do not wield my adherence lightly, for it is strong, and difficult to replenish for me, away from the Pantheon.”

“Yes, I guessed that.” I agreed. “But you are the only one I can ask. If there’s a price you need?”

“I will instead have you owe me.” She declared finally. “I suspect that will be more valuable, in due course. Besides…” Shiro’s lips curled into a smile as Tan spoke boldly. ”I do wish to see if you can achieve this. And perhaps I may even learn something myself. Now. I Descend!”

Shiro groaned as her skin darkened and her features slightly shifted. “So much heavier this time, and I’m already sore… go easy…” The Boundary around us trembled, but it held.

“This is as much as her body can bear. Even if the princess could hold more of my Thirst, this fragile Boundary would suffer. So… explain. What am I to do?”

I used my slowly recovering light element to shape some images, and explained. Tan nodded, beautiful ruby eyes distant, as she pondered. Finally she bowed her head a final time, having understood. “I see. I force my adherence and the surrounding ether into these packages, that which you call quanta. Like light. I believed light was simply light, not… these waves and particles, yet both and neither at the same time.”

“It’s even more confusing when you discover light element can act the way we thought light used to, before all that. After all, I’m creating stationary images, which should be impossible with a fixed speed of light, without constantly refreshing it and having the light scatter.” I pointed out. “Again, knowledge helps shape power. So that’s why I think we have a shot here. Because we have ways of gaining knowledge others may lack.” Though of course, the Pantheons can draw on multitudes of worlds and their knowledge, as well as beings who have lived for hundreds, thousands or hell, maybe even millions of years. Just because what I do here is unprecedented for Earth, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen elsewhere. After all, the Favours were made by others to start with. But that means if we want to protect Earth, we have to go beyond the rules of this game, the Kodoku ritual they’ve set up for us.

“I shall begin. Watch carefully, for I cannot abide wastage of my precious strength.” Tan warned, and a shimmering, near-invisible cloud of adherence like a hungry flame formed, before splitting into a thousand small particles, then ten thousand. The manipulation she was displaying was far beyond my skills, and as ether around us responded too, forming similar numbers of tiny probing particles, I watched on in eager awe. No matter how good my skills, I’m still no match for Tan. Nor would I expect to be, honestly. But when you see a higher peak, as Daiyu would say, then you know you can climb it if you only have the will and put in the effort. She’s the highest peak I’ve seen, so it’s only natural to want to look down on her in triumph from on high.

“This is… intensely challenging.” Tan managed. “Such fine control would be unnecessary in battle, but perhaps for tasks I am unsuited for, such as creating a Favour… it is, perhaps, excellent training as you might say. I have been corrupted, but whatever happens, at least I wish to return to my father stronger, so he will not scold me.”

“No kidding.” I managed. Most of my Split Thoughts were running calculations, while my Eye observed what I could. One was directing my remaining elements to etch a perfect copy of what I was seeing in the solid rock of the ground, preserving it for later. I’ll get Ginneka to move it to the Material once we’re done… It was fascinating, and the Favours I was holding, while not being tangible, existed attached to me, drawing on my adherence to sustain them, and therefore I could present them for Tan.

There’s three distinct patterns. Morana’s and Jarovik’s Favours are showing a response in places similar to Akoman’s, which is completely abnormal compared to Aergia’s Favour and Jumong’s. As I suspected, just as ether gathered into a condensed form, as evidenced in the times my Silos had overflowed, leaving great clouds of silver and prismatic material behind, adherence had form too, it was so thick as to be visible under the Tower of London. And while that didn’t mean it would react with things, just as Neutrinos could pass through a planet without stopping, there were the rare instances where contact would still happen. And it seemed that ether and adherence were not as ghostly as Neutrinos, more like cosmic rays, energetic and active.

“I feel great chagrin that I am learning much from this.” Tan declared, though her tone was weary, and silver sweat beaded her beautiful, chocolate-skinned face. “How disappointed you must be in us.”

“Hardly. It’s the Elf dilemma, sometimes called the Immortal’s Paradox.” I shook my head, concentrating still, absorbing every detail of the pattern, feeling the differences, and more importantly, the areas where ether and adherence reacted with something I couldn’t perceive or conceptualise. “Any long-lived species should be impossibly wise and knowledgeable, but there’s reasons they aren’t. Lack of urgency, for one…”

“The princess thinks the same.” Tan admitted. “Elf dilemma. I see. How very… apt. Yes, I have lived far in excess of your years, and I have learned much and grown strong, but… compared to the endless hurry you are all in, your progress… I have lazed around in my own bitterness, and pursued my own enjoyments. Though now we have some troubles to motivate us all. Perhaps that will change.” She continued to deftly manipulate the energies around us. “Yes, with endless eternity, motivation is hard to grasp, for what can be done today can also be done in one of the innumerable tomorrows. That makes me curious.” Her eyes met mine. “You are not mortal now, your lifespan is indeterminate, but will be perhaps in the thousands of years, even without further growth. Will you too lose your drive? Your passion?”

“I can’t say for sure what the future holds. But no, I don’t think so. Not for now, anyway. For as long as everyone I care about has a finite, short human life, I want to grasp every moment. So I still have goals that I need to achieve. And sure, today I’d rather be on a date with Shiro rather than having to see this horrible school and push her through this Divine Possession, but… I’ll do today what we must, so that we can enjoy those leisurely tomorrows.”

“I see.” Tan snorted. “I am indeed a fool.” She refused to elaborate at my questions, and her adherence surged, magnified, and more of it was striking the Favours.

“I see. So, disregarding the centre, Tan, your adherence is thirst and flame, right?”

She agreed, and I asked my next question. She looked at me in shock, before her eyes narrowed. “Yes, I can indeed taste the difference. I am quite the gourmet. As you well know.” She licked her lips, which were now cracked and dry. “But to think that could be a method of discrimination. Very well.”

The frequency of her adherence changed, and we were now probing something slightly different. The images I was carving changed, and soon, we had the answers I sought.

“Akoman’s Favour is a jumble, but it has pieces of the adherence from the other two Favours within, and they too have his dirty crap mixed in. Though I don’t think that Akoman’s Well can be considered an actual Favour. Not without the missing piece. All it is seems to be a linked receptacle, passing crap both ways. Then it accumulates adherence, of a flavour of chaos, I guess… and sure, this Academy was the epitome of chaos. And then it uses that to strengthen Cho-Hee, but in exchange, erodes her sanity. Hmm…” I frowned, and Tan pinched me sharply, the pain making me look up, shocked.

“Do not think what you are thinking. The princess advised me you would be musing on pointless foolery. That girl was committing atrocities before she was ever tainted, such is clear. And a fake, fragmentary piece of garbage like the Akoman here would not be able to achieve much without her enthusiastic agreement. So feel no sorrow for her.”

“It’s hard, but you’re right. In the end, what matters is her victims. Shit, those two working together could have been a real force for good in Korea, for the world. So… we have to make their failure matter, and the sacrifices of the dead and traumatised worth it.” It was arrogant of me to say such, but to be Astral Emperor was to carry that weight, and the more I saw, the more I was sure I could only trust myself to take that role. Although… Tan is not nearly as bad an option as I first feared, I think. But I won’t lose.

My perception was sharpening. I could now see shades of green and blue on the ether, and even some flashes of darker indigo and violet. Ether was not created equal, I already knew that, but just like Etherites, there were flavours, and while ether was ether, I tried drawing in the scattered purple motes that didn’t meet resistance as Tan probed, and attempted to feel the differences. Yes, like that. Unlike Etherites, which contained a greater density of ether as the colour shaded towards blue, the darker ethers seemed simply more reactive, eager to break into aether that would obey my will. Fascinating. It’s so much easier to tell when you have red and indigo to compare… so logically, adherence…

Tan tilted her head, seeing I wasn’t examining the Favours as closely. “I am not willing to waste my efforts. Please concentrate.”

“Oh, I am.” I agreed. “But… adherence has flavour too, though unlike the more regimented colour type of ether and Etherites, it’s…” Contrasting the adherences I had collected, looking at Tan’s in comparison, I started feeling the difference. Pouring only the finest of ether to my Eye, I tried to extract the maximum possible information on each flavour. No… actually I’m wrong. Adherence has an underlying colour too, I think. Does it depend on the flavour, or the purity, or the strength? I can’t quite grasp it…

Your skill, Mystic Eye Of The Tree Of Knowledge, has increased from Rank 4 to Rank 5. Your Eye sees deeper into the fundamental forces that govern the Material and Astral Worlds. You can perceive all flavours of Ether, and control it and the Aether created from it with greater ease and dexterity. You have the ability to perceive the underlying principles behind Adherence. Due to the temporary strengthening of Anesidora’s Blessing From The Box, your Mystic Eye Of The Tree Of Knowledge has reached Rank 6, and the first bottleneck has temporarily been breached. The weight of the Tree of Knowledge is…

Suddenly I could see so much more clearly, and the adherence and aether was revealed to me, and I could even see a shadowy something within the voids of the favours. Yet at the same time I was connected to such an overwhelming weight of knowledge, I could feel my consciousness crumbling, and my perception being pulled upwards. Desperately delaying with my Split Thoughts, each one lasting merely moments before shattering, I unleashed my elements, searing my thoughts and insights into the ground as quickly as I could, before only a single thought was left…