Veritas Elrod

In the dreamscape, vivid and horrid, and a landmass of desolation. 

The Kingdom of Elrod is devastated, disintegrated to dust. At first it was fire, then came loudness, then came darkness, and then... loss. Nothing was left in its place, rather a landscape devoid of anything. No castles, no houses, no buildings, no anything. 

Once a beauty, capital of trade, and a pillar of humanity. Now, a desolate land.

The news of this event shocked the world, even the world leaders struggled to face the truth. Yet came the rain that washed away the devastation of Elrod. 

In this vivid dreamscape, Veritas gazed upon the desolation. With fear in his eyes, terror began to fill his soul. 

"...so this is ruin."

A foreign word for a prince of nobility. Having experienced greatness all throughout his life, he never thought for a second of facing ruin.

Pampered and egotistic he was, yet now he had come to face reality. 

He fell to the ground, and bashed his head on it until it bled. Blood spurted around him, his head busted from the impact. 

Then he lay unconscious in his own pool of blood, looking up at the gray sky. 

The long arduous journey and growth is all for naught. I failed, I failed, I failed, I failed, I failed. I'm useless. The gaze of the gods is nothing to a mortal like me. If it hadn't been for-

Suddenly, runes appeared in his vision, it wrote:

[Your path has been determined]

[Veritas Alpas Elrod, you are a-]

Then it all turned black.

Darkness.

*

I see the peaceful landscape of my kingdom, to serve as a Prince is to see everything around me. I see the people socializing, I see the knights training, I see the horizon enveloping in greenery. Ah, alas- I am home.

As Veritas drowned in his peaceful thoughts he was suddenly awoken by a sense of dread. Cold sweat formed on his temples, and his eyes widened. 

"A dream?.. This!"

Seeing the dreamscape formulated in his vision made Veritas sense a terror within his soul. 

He told himself to calm down and consult his Father about the dream. Meanwhile, he reached the depths of his soul to activate something. 

With that, runes appeared in front of him. These runes are written in an ancient slab, appearing as if illusory to the minds of those that haven't gazed upon their soul. 

It wrote:

[Veritas Alpas Elrod]

[Path: Untouched]

[Soul Rank: Untouched]

[Attunement: Untouched]

Veritas sighed yet felt hopeful because today was his ascension ceremony. His Path was finally going to be revealed along with his Soul rank and Attunement. 

After completing his rite of passage and defeating the Gargoyle Knight of the South. He was finally determined to be worthy of becoming a Pathbearer. 

The Pathbearers are individuals that transcend human capability. Depending on their path is how their souls are determined. One could gain a Path of Solitude, sealing one's fate to be on a journey of eternal loneliness.

The ranking of Paths are as follows: Mundane, the lowest ranking of paths, commonly obtained by normal people. Noble, pretty self-explanatory as these are more common amongst the Nobles. Sacred, blessed by the holy, only a few manage to gain this. Uber, those Heroes that are recorded in History tend to have this. Gazed, only those noticed by the Gods have this. Seraphs, which are reserved for the demigods and Angels. Lastly, nothing is known about the final rank yet scholars say it's Godly or Celestial, it is speculated to be something related to the Gods. 

In order, the Paths are ranked from Mundane, Noble, Sacred, Uber, Gazed, Seraphs, and Godly or Celestial.

Veritas was excited to know what his Path would be. Objectively, he should obtain Sacred, as a Prince with royal blood running in his veins, it is only normal for him to get this path. However, subjectively, Veritas wanted Uber, it is near impossible for humans to grasp Seraph or even Godly or Celestial! 

Therefore, in the back of his mind he had hoped to atleast get Uber. 

With those thoughts in mind, he slowly arrived in his Kingdom. 

The Kingdom of Winds, Peace, and Freedom.. Elrod.

*

Royal Trumpets echoed in the halls. Wearing his pure white mantle and his marble armor underneath, his shiny white hair moving with every step he takes, and his deep gold eyes staring with nobility at the throne where his father and mother resides. 

As he got near the throne, he kneeled to show his respects to the King. 

"Father, I am home. I have defeated the Gargoyle Knight of the South and proved my honor." Veritas bowed and revealed the stone eye of the fallen Gargoyle Knight, offering it to the King.

Julius, the king gazed upon the offering of his son. He nodded in approval and said,

"Very well."

He smiled wholeheartedly at his son and declared the words of success!

"From this day forth, Veritas Alpas Elrod, you are worthy of being a Pathbearer. Come and we shall gaze upon your soul and unlock your Path!" 

"To Veritas!"

The knights followed with the King's roar and screamed "To Veritas!".

Veritas, still kneeling, smiled with respect and glory. Finally! A new power was to be unlocked.

*

After the scene, Veritas, walking behind his Father, gazed on the bright hallway. Marble walls, royal ornaments, clean surfaces, and many more! How he had missed this scenery, after spending 6 whole months in the South preparing, planning, and defeating the Gargoyle Knight, he had longed for his home where he felt most comfortable. 

While walking, the King slowed down his pace and turned back to Veritas. 

"Welcome back my son."

The King looked proud of his Prince, they shared the similarities when compared based on looks. White hair, deep gold eyes, chiseled face, the only difference was the age and the beard.. The King was already middle aged yet still looked young. And Veritas was only 16 yet already looks distinguished.

"Father, how I've missed you. Has my brother come home?"

"He is serving his final year at the academy." Julius retorted.

"I-I see."

With that exchange, they arrived at a private room only used by those that share the blood of Elrod. This was a room that led to the underground chambers of the castle. 

After walking for a couple of minutes, the pair finally arrived at the chamber where Veritas was gonna unlock his Path. 

It was a white marble room, filled with nothingness. Empty could be a word to describe it but empty is not a word that could explain it. 

"You have already learned how to gaze upon your soul, yes?"

Julius said with confirmation, he himself taught the young Veritas on how to gaze upon the soul.

"Yes, Father."

"Good. Now, for the next step you must touch your soul, firstly gaze and then reach. This might be different from me and you but the first time that I've touched my soul, I felt winds coming from all directions. "

"To reach your soul is to feel your soul within yourself. You must not only touch it by using your hands rather, you must touch it with every single part of your body."

With the information revealed by his Father, Veritas assessed the situation with a calm mind. 

To touch is to reach, and to reach is to feel. He thought.

"Now. My son, reach and unlock your soul."

Veritas walked toward the middle of the empty room, then he sat as if meditating. He closed his eyes and pondered, then gazed towards his soul. 

What he saw was an illusory body, an astral projection wherein it envelops his entire being. It was everything and nothing at the same time. 

His soul was white and pure, an expression of freedom, a sign that he was a pure blooded Elrod. 

Then, he reached, the illusory body seemed to waver yet the soft touch of his arms calmed the soul from breaking. 

"Reach with your body"

The voice resonated with his soul, after he touched the illusory body he calmed his own and felt the winds striking every part of him.

"This was the same as Fathers!" he thought. 

Soon, the soul was enveloping his body. Now he felt it, winds were touching his body. It was furious yet gentle at the same time. 

He breathed heavily, the reaching stage of the soul was finished now it was to feel. Even though he felt the physical consequences of the soul, he had not experienced the spiritual aspect yet. He had to feel his soul. 

He focused and meditated, breathing in order and calculation. A few moments passed by and he was now feeling a little bit of his soul. It was like the wind, at first he felt a breeze, then it got stronger. It was as if a summer afternoon breeze on a windy day, it was warm and gentle. Then, he felt storms, a cold breeze enveloped his soul, and loud, fierce winds covered him. 

Bliss. All he felt was Bliss, even though the storm was loud and vicious, all he could feel within his soul was Bliss. 

"So this is how my soul feels."

His soul was finally complete and it now resonated with him. It was as soft as the morning breeze and as loud as a typhoon. 

He had finished achieving the last stage. Now was to come back to the physical reality and look at his runes. 

"I should com-"

Suddenly! His soul went quiet, it felt empty as if his soul was gone. He could not feel it, he could not see it, nor could he sense it. 

"Did I fail?"

Questions lingered in his mind and doubt washed over him. Yet he remained calm. After a few minutes had passed by he felt a tinge of pain. He saw his soul deep within him. 

Veritas tried to reach again for the soul. His hand slowly crept up to the illusory body within him and then..

His soul erupted and everything turned black.

Darkness, once more.