[First Era – Year 9 of the Divinity War; Kapurn, command palaces]

  What remained of Elithir’s petrified body appeared as if it had been attacked by vandals. He was missing both hands, an entire arm, an ear, and half of his face. It seemed, for some reason, someone had tried to chip out an eye; it hadn’t gone well. Moraithe’s fingers rested lightly on the intact portion of Elithir’s shoulder, trying in vain to hold back his emotions. This had been Elithir, the hero, his mentor … his father. Now he was in pieces, fragments strewn about the universe.

  “You summoned me?” Moraithe asked, his voice thick with sadness.

  Elithir’s disembodied voice answered in his mind, calm yet strangely detached, as if he had grown used to being in so many pieces. Oh, Moraithe. Yes. I noticed that you’ve been missing some key elements of cultivating self-assurance. Meditation and journaling—these help you cultivate more self-assurance from every experience. It is an effective use of your downtime, for when training becomes too taxing. Oh, I know gratitude can heal your weariness—physically. But mentally …

  Moraithe nodded slowly, his brow furrowed.

  But you asked me why I summoned you here. In answer, the world around them warped. The chamber—dim, cold, and filled with the smell of stone—vanished into nothingness. Moraithe blinked, finding himself in an open meadow. Surrounding him were trees, their leaves swaying in the soft breeze, and far in the distance, jagged mountains cut through the sky. The shift had been so sudden that he was left momentarily breathless.

  Moraithe’s voice trembled slightly. “What is this? Where have you sent me?”

  This is the revenescent, Elithir answered, his voice resonating in his mind. I’ve pulled all these worlds together into this revenescent to protect them. But you, I’ve brought you here to teach you.

  Moraithe turned, scanning the meadow, confused. The place seemed ordinary, deceptively so. He narrowed his eyes, searching for any hint of the purpose behind this new realm. “Are there worlds here that would improve my cultivation?”

  Elithir’s voice echoed through his thoughts. Because I am entangled across time, I can use the revenescent differently from anyone else. I can bring you into this place, and then pull you back out while collapsing time, leaving you with the memories without it costing any time.

  Let me see if I can explain how this works. It is like when you sew a thread into one hole and out another the thread remains, but if you go into one hole and out the same hole the thread pulls free from the fabric. That is exactly what happens here, because I am present across all of time I can pull the thread out of the same hole. This causes the fabric of space and time within the revenescent to collapse back to the point where you’d entered, and all that remains are your memories, the self-assurance you have cultivated, and your knowledge of the future.

  Moraithe blinked, trying to grasp the concept. “Knowledge of the future?”

  Yes. Elithir continued, though there was a hint of hesitation. You will know the future, for the most part.

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Moraithe’s mind raced. “What do you mean ‘for the most part?’”

  Elithir explained, I mean things will be different because you are not there, and also random things will differ, it will be a new roll of the dice, if you will. But generally, things will be quite similar to what you experienced.

  Moraithe considered this. “That sounds … useful.”

  That is the power of prophecy, Elithir said. But there is a catch.

  Moraithe raised an eyebrow. “A catch?”

  While in prophecy, you cannot awake in your other body outside the revenescent. If you do, time will not collapse, it will be like adding another stitch. You must remain here or I can’t collapse time.

  Moraithe’s brow furrowed. “But what if another drackmoor comes with me?”

  Elithir's answer was quick. Another drackmoor can accompany you, yes. They can go to their other life and give you knowledge of the outside universe as well. But if they do, they will not retain the memories when time reverses.

  Moraithe took a breath, considering the implications. “So, since I don’t need sleep because my gratitude revives me, I could last in one body the longest? That’s what you’re saying?”

  Indeed Elithir agreed. But we won’t worry about prophecies, for now, this first journey will be for training. Your fighting style so far has been … relatively commonplace. But I want you to craft something truly your own.

  Moraithe tilted his head. “What kinds of styles are we talking about?”

  Elithir’s voice took on a thoughtful tone. You could focus on your gratitude shield. You’ve made good progress with it. But defense isn’t always the best weapon. Or perhaps the flames of the First Star? Powerful. The Severed are especially vulnerable to them. Maybe ice? Anger is a strong weapon of the Severed, but it can be used against them just as well. Fear? Or you could learn to entangle like that fortress lord did. To control the very fabric of the world around you. That takes … a lot of entropy.

  Moraithe considered for a moment, then asked, “Has anyone tried to weaponize entropy?”

  Elithir was silent for a long time before answering, his voice somber. Unsurprisingly, Barthum has also considered this problem. Why do you think Barthum stole all the spent entropy crystals from our vault? Why is he still stockpiling them?

  Moraithe’s eyes widened. “He found a way to unleash entropy on others, didn’t he?”

  Elithir confirmed. “The Amnesia Bomb—it’s not just amnesia, it’s an entropy bomb. That’s the threat we’re facing.”

  “The runic key you had me place upon those spent entropy crystals. That is why …”

  Indeed. That is how we will redirect its force, from one universe-destroying blast to the more mild Amnesia Storms that will occur at a time of our choosing. When the time is right. As for using your own entropy to attack, I do not think it would be wise to show Barthum what we have uncovered. Perhaps later, after we have already played our hand.

  Moraithe let the weight of that settle before asking, “So, how did the fortress lord manage to entangle the entire fortress?” He looked down at the stone dangling from his neck, the piece of Elithir. “How do you entangle entire worlds—separate them the way you do?”

  Be prepared for a great deal of struggle. You may have endless stamina, physically, but mentally is another thing.

  Elithir paused as if steeling himself. To entangle something this vast, you must first create an imagined space in your mind. This space must be under your complete control. You will be the god of that space. Your only limitations are self-assurance and how much entropy you can handle. Changing the world around you requires drawing entropy from it.

  Moraithe swallowed, feeling the burden of the coming task. “Alright … how do I start?”

  Imagine your space. Now, bind that image to the earth beneath your feet. Elithir’s voice took on a firmer tone. Now, alter your image.

  Moraithe complied, visualizing the world around him, and entangling his imagination with the earth as he concentrated on the space he wanted to control. But as he did, the earth trembled beneath his feet. The ground cracked, and a massive chunk of earth lifted into the air. The cost of entropy was immediate and overwhelming. Even with his growing self-assurance, he could feel the mental strain already beginning to take its toll.

  Elithir’s voice resonated in his mind once more. You will need to build stronger mental walls to contain this much entropy. But I have a technique … one I think you’ll find useful.

  Moraithe gave a mystic grin, his body trembling with the weight of the task ahead. But his mind—his will—was set. This was his training. And with Elithir's guidance, he would forge a style that was truly his own.