Jormir Reach

"It's strange, at first I thought it was a neurotoxin; something to slow an enemy at worst, but it's definitely not that." Awakened Wain raised his open palm, flexing muscles Arino didn't even know existed. A short mass of thorn encrusted vines slowly emerged from the center of the guards palm, wrapping around his fingers and his forearm like an armored gauntlet.

Arino was confused about what the emergence of Awakened Wain's second ability accomplished, but didn't interrupt the explanation given.

"Your daggers spread a poison which eats away at essence. Were I to not neutralize it, my ability would continue to act as they do now."

A tinge of discoloration Arino had not noticed until then was dispelled, prompting Wain to deactivate then reactivate his Awakened Ability.

This time however, the vines spread outwards from his palm like wildfire, spreading to the Awakened's shoulder before he cut off the ability's flow of essence, and the vines began to slowly wither away.

'A poison which eats essence, does it spread with essence?' Ideas about how exactly the poison might do what it does flashed through his head, but since he didn't know enough to feel confident in them anything but guesses, he made a note to read up on poisons when he returned.

"Thank you Awakened Wain, Awakened Plares. I owe you a ribcage upon my return, and I should have plenty from my assignment."

"Bold words for a newly Awakened, Arino, don't let your success against the creatures between us and the Soul Tree blind you. They are nothing like the horrors which lay beyond it's branches."

The sudden seriousness in Plares' words was concurred with a nod from Wain as well, leaving Arino somewhat shaken by the words.

He didn't let it show, but he knew it was meant to shake him. Prepare him for what could go wrong at the outskirts of the Wanderer's Domain.

With weary muscles well saturated with essence, Arino pushed open the gate and was immediately flooded with the feeling of being watched. The flood was not of fear however, but the presence of the Sacred Wanderer's Domain detecting and flooding his Soul Core.

Elder Iranea had told him the day before that he would be able to sense it now that he was of their ranks properly upon receiving a brooch he had on his right pauldron.

The [Silver Guard] he wore only pieces of was missing the chest plate, the thicker pauldron from the left side, and the pieces that had covered the left arm except for the bracer. His hands weren't armored this time but still had the same undercoat from his chest comprising gloves.

It was comforting, knowing his soul was as protected as he was, even if it meant it wasn't the most effective at either. Especially after encountering a Nightmare Creature capable of spreading corruption in the Nightmare.

On the topic of nightmares, Arino hadn't given much thought to what came next in his path of ascension, since clearly the Spell did things differently from his people. They absorbed so much essence from the Soul Tree's fruit that there was enough to condense a Soul Core immediately. It lead to a poor circulation of essence, but the people of Acoria had no idea there was a better option.

Arino knew it wasn't the best to let his mind wander whilst outside of the village, but he had yet to exit the Wanderer's domain so he wasn't especially worried. He also had not yet called on the power of the domain, but when he did, so much entered his mind at such a fast rate that it simply stopped.

The flow of information was agonizing, but it imparted in him an intimate understanding of the ecosystems surrounding the Soul Tree. The areas beyond it's branches were still unknown to him, but the area under it was mapped out in his mind.

Arino knew not to waste time now that he had connected his mind to the Wanderer, as every minute wasted in the domain was more and more information being deposited in his head, various pathways across the realms. For now, he just had to find a Stymphae, some kind of little Noble Beast he had never heard of.

There was no drawing of the beast in the Hunter's Guide he had been given, but it described it as a quick to retreat flightless bird. Specifically, one with six razor sharp wings that were sure to cut through bone

It was intimidating for sure, but Arino wasn't especially worried since Noble Beasts weren't usually very aggressive, nor did they have that uncanny sense for uncorrupted souls that most Nightmare Creatues had.

It was listed as living in the Jormir Reach, a region in which everything seemed to just be larger. Experimentation with the region had led the Elder's to conclude that despite having an equal density of essence in the area, it produces it at a faster pace which the inhabitants eat up as fast as they can.

Of course, this would mean everything there had powerfully dense cores, maybe even Fallen or Ascended creatures could reside there. Luckily, the outskirts of the region were much safer than the center or the waterholes of the Jormir Reach.

Arriving at the edge of where his mind said the Reach must be, he took a cautious step forward and felt the Domain of the Wanderer retract from his head. The pathways he had planned out under it's influence remained clear, so he wasn't worried about not being able to get home after reaching this point.

As long as he could make it here, he would make it home.

Arino didn't let excitement dull his edge as he examined his surroundings. According to the stories the Elder's told, the Reach was formed by a section of roots from the Soul Tree that withered away after being severed.

He had no trouble believing it, as a vast canyon originated from the same direction as the tree, sprawling out into thousands of twisting gorges. From his vantage point he could see the bottoms of a few of them, but a pull at his mind warned him not to look too deeply. He listened and brought his gaze to the sky.

'No clouds, the reach must be beautifully lit at night. Perhaps I could try to invite Master Gird's daughter here some starry night…' The old man's daughter, Aline, had brought Gird and Arino water once during their training the previous day and caught his eye.

He truly didn't have the words to describe the girl, and it had brought about a feeling urgency towards furthering his education and vocabulary upon his return. How else was he to convince Master Gird not to toss him in the forge upon their return?

The thought sent a smile to his face and a shiver down his spine, prompting him to summon both of his daggers and begin his descent down the cliff. He stabbed, dropped a few feet, released, and repeated several dozen times before his feet reached smooth reddish dirt.

Some distance into the gorge he started at, he began to encounter large thick vines and roots encasing the edges of the gorge. The brown roots had hints of green shining through the thinner areas, like they were pulsing with energy.

Arino felt no urge to test fate with the high energy areas, so he stepped between the roots very carefully. The vines hanging from the curved top edges of the gorge didn't seem to be an issue since they weren't over the area where he was stepping, but he kept his mind on the fact that they were there just in case.

He really didn't want a repeat of what happened with the Silver Lotus.