Divine Awakening

I expected a lot of things to be waiting for me on the other side of the portal, but I wasn't expecting to find a dimly lit cave whose only source of light was a chasm that ran through it. I wasn't alone, I could feel the presence of something monstrous nearby.

"So, you're finally here, Inheritor of the Primordial one."

I spun around so fast I was afraid I'd break my neck. I regretted doing so as soon as I turned back. A massive wolf, the size of a aircraft was staring down at me. It's claws cutting gullies into the stone and red eyes piercing through my own turquoise ones.

"Wh-wh-who are you?" I stuttered out. "Why did you bring me here?"

"You shall call me Noctis. I'm not here to harm you little one." The beast tried to calm me down, shrinking into a less fearful size, "Hmm, you haven't formed your core yet, a shame."

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter, I can work with that." Noctis shook his head. "In fact, this might work in our favour."

"What? Why did you bring me here in the first place?"

Noctis looked at me strangely, "I did not bring you here, you came of your own accord."

"Then why did the portal malfunction…"

"You're telling me you did not mean to come here?" Noctis asked, genuinely interested.

I nodded in affirmation, "Yes, there was this irresistible tug at my gut and I walked to the teleportation gate, the next thing I remember was being spat out here."

"Interesting…" Noctis mused, thinking silently. "There are fruits here, nourish yourself with those."

"Wait, how do I get back?"

Noctis glanced back at me, "Soon."

"That did not answer my question." I yelled at his back as he disappeared into the shadows.

I sighed, what had I gotten into?

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With nothing left to do, I spent my time meditating and trying to form my core, but I had no hopes of being anywhere close to finishing it before I got out.

"Tell me, have you ever tried to meditate while moving?"

And just like that my meditation came to an end and I jumped to my feet, "Wha-? No, I have not, I don't think it's even possible."

"It is, very much so." Noctis demonstrated this by absorbing the surrounding mana while pouncing from rock to rock, "Mana beasts learn skills like these quite naturally, but since your people awaken so late, it becomes impossible for them to learn this."

"It is a rather useful skill." I muttered, seeing how it could help me amass mana while fighting, theoretically giving me infinite mana.

"Which is why you will be learning it."

"I don't even have a core." I deadpanned. "How am I even supposed to learn that?"

Noctis grinned, at least that's what I thought he did, coyly, "Whoever said you need to have a core to learn that?"

"Uh, I'm pretty sure you can't manipulate mana without a core."

"And how do you reckon you make that core?"

"We pull together the fragments of mana in ou- Ohhh, yeah I see what you mean."

It was such an absurd idea that I had never thought of it.

"Shall we?"

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It was immensely frustrating at first, normally when I meditated I could feel the fragments of mana, but even a small movement would stop that. At first I still didn't believe it was possible, but once when I stumbled while meditating and my progress was not halted, I started believing.

Even so, it took me a few months to master this technique, my core was almost formed now. But I soon learned that we had no more time.

Noctis perked up when a dark presence made itself known. Instantly the cave darkened, the dim light from the chasm no longer enough to light it up.

I did not know who it was, but I could still sense its presence. I saw space itself warping around a humanoid figure. Whatever it was, Noctis could see it, seeing as he bowed down in respect. I suppose I should have done the same, but I was too shocked to move.

They seemed to be talking mentally, seeing as no words were exchanged but Noctis' facial expression kept changing.

In the end Noctis bowed once more, nodding at the being before the presence left us.

"Fayden," he called, "our time has come to an end."

"What do you mean? Who was that?"

"That was…someone you do not need to know about yet. It seems I have been called back." He sighed warily. "But before I go…"

He walked up to me, placing his snout over my torso. Now if it were about 6 months ago, I would have been scared shitless, but the wolf had grown on me. I was no longer scared of his mere presence.

His tongue pierced through my sternum, flesh and bones provided no resistance as his tongue reached the center of my half formed core. I felt a black smoky substance crawl through my body, fundamentally changing its components. I felt my bones grow denser, my muscles becoming stronger and my skin becoming tougher. And though I didn't know it then, strands of my silver hair turned obsidian black, and my turquoise eyes gained a tint of red, as if the two colours were swirling in a pot of water.

Red runes adorned my body, extending to all my extremities, I felt my teeth get just a bit sharper, and my hair get a bit wilder. The black wisps that remained near my core latched on to it, as if it knew exactly what to do, it yanked them together forcefully creating my core.

A massive implosion occurred, pulling all the mana and another purple mana like substance towards me, parts of them fusing into a blackness that strangely felt comforting.

Noctis looked surprised at the phenomenon, it seems like even he didn't expect this. Nevertheless he shook his head, my vision was distorted but I could still make out a black and silver blob materializing in front of his snout, right before it sped towards me and I could do nothing but watch as it passed undeterred through the vacuum field and pierced into my chest, right over my core.

My surroundings calmed down a few seconds later, and I could see Noctis creating a portal pit of thin air.

"Ho-you know what, I'm not even going to ask anymore." I sighed, I had seen a lot of impossible things these last 6 months.

"This rift will leave you near the teleportation gate for Elenoir, I assume you can find your way from there."

I had a feeling that question was rhetorical.

"Whenever you are in need of Celestial assistance, Fayden, call out to me and I shall come. Until then, farewell."

"Wha-"

But before I could ask anything, the portal moved through me, leaving me in the forests of Elshire.

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3rd Person POV :

Noctis sighed once Fayden was gone, his massive wolf form shrinking down to something humanoid.

"Something's changed, he wasn't supposed to come this early, much less as an elf."

Someone had tampered with reality to change the course their world would take.

"But, I suppose it could be advantageous. The boy now has more time to prepare for what's coming. Maybe things will go differently this time…"

With that morbid thought, Noctis brought out a black and blue adorned dagger, stabbing it into the air, cracking the very veil of space, he yanked down, opening a rift for him to pass through, back to his home.

He looked behind once again, "I can only hope they don't discover him yet."

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Fayden Eralith POV :

(Man it feels weird writing Fayden Eralith instead of Fayden Leywin.)

It had been half a year since my 'abduction,' I was sure my family had flipped every stone to look for me. I sighed, it would be difficult to explain what happened.

Before long I came across a search party, surprisingly recognizing the leader.

"Ajax!" I called out like an idiot. 'Shit what am I supposed to say if he asks where I have been?'

But instead of a flash of recognition, he gave me one of vigilance, his halberd pointed at me, "Identify yourself."

"What? Ajax, it's me Fayden."

"You dare lie, the prince has silver hair and turquoise eyes, not whatever abomination your eyes are!"

"Rude." I muttered, a bit hurt that my personal trainer would call me an abomination, then again he wouldn't be entirely wrong.

"Wait what happened to my hair and eyes?!" Without thinking I conjured up a sphere of water, looking at my poor reflection.

'Ah, I can see why he doesn't recognize me.'

"H-How can a kid like you use magic?!" He seemed shaken at my show of magical prowess.

'Oh I just conjured the water…'

'I just conjured…'

'Holy shit, I can use magic!'

"Uh, I really am Fayden, I don't know how to prove it to you. You could always take me to the King and Queen, they'll recognize me, I'm sure."

I didn't know Ajax well enough to have any information that would guarantee it was me, so I had to resort to such measures.

Ajax begrudgingly agreed, clasping mana cuffs over me so that I could not harm them. I scoffed, as if I would even dream of harming my new family.

I won't lie, it was a tad bit humiliating to be dragged to the castle in chains when I'm literally the prince of this nation.

But it was worth it. One look from my mother and I knew she recognized it was me. Although with the bags under her eyes and hollow cheeks it seemed like she hadn't been eating or sleeping.

'I'm sorry mom…'

Her look of concern soon turned to one of pure unadulterated rage, and I was thankful it wasn't directed at me. Hah, look at me, once the most fearsome warrior earth had seen, now scared by one woman. Mothers I tell you…are a different breed.

I was pretty sure Ajax pissed himself trying to undo my bindings, my mothers glare boring holes at his back. I prevented a chuckle from escaping my lips.

My father looked as worried, it seemed like he hadn't slept or eaten either. Only my grandfather seemed fine, although I saw him smile for the first time.

'It seems I caused them a lot of trouble. Again, I'm sorry.'

My mothers gaze moved to me, the anger in it dissipating into a mix of both it and worry. I wasn't completely out of the woods yet.

"Why did you run off?" She asked sternly, and I knew I couldn't lie my way out of this.

So I gave up all pretense of childlike innocence, "I was tired of being watched everywhere I went, it's suffocating. I mean if they are going to tail me anyways, why not just hide their presence from me. Even without a mana core, I could sense them."

Virion raised an inquisitive eyebrow, "Are you meaning to say that you have a mana core now?"

I nodded, conjuring a ball of water for demonstration. Virion stood up form his chair, wide eyed, "Awakening at only 3…"

He snapped his neck to my parents, "I'm going to start training him from tomorrow."

"But fath-" My dad tried to protest, but Virion cut him off.

"Do you realize how much potential he has? He could outpower the Lances naturally. I know you want to protect him, but if he is to be king, he needs to have the power to back that up. You have seen how the human king relies on his queen because of his weakness."

"But he's only three." My mother added.

"I'm down for training, I mean I'm already being trained in the physical aspects of combat."

Virion chuckled, "The brat's smart. Let him do what he wants, he knows what he's asking for."

I held my gaze unfaltering, looking straight at my mothers eyes.

And so, my training in magic began.