The Mystic Book

 Caesar Valerius says, "Ehhh. A man called Keeper of the Knowledge or something destroyed me when I got sent to the spiritual realm or something something."
Caesar Valerius says, "I don't know the details, man, but it hurts."
Glasya Labolas says, ". . ."
Glasya Labolas says, "Keeper..."
Glasya Labolas asks, "Of the knowledge?"
Caesar Valerius says, "He has no name, that's how I would call him."
Glasya suddenly becomes quite giddy, clapping her hands together while sitting on a throne lovingly crafted from the rolls of her own lower body and tail.
(Glasya Labolas)
Glasya Labolas asks, "Oh goodness me, how can I meet such a keeper?"
Caesar Valerius says, "Uh."
Caesar Valerius asks, "Talk to... that man over there?"
Caesar points to Atla.
(Caesar Valerius)
Glasya snakes her way over to aforepointed Atla.
(Glasya Labolas)
 Imra'el looks at the one the white-haired man is pointing at. Atla?
(Imra'el)
Caesar Valerius asks, "But hey, snakey. You're cool! What's your name, before you leave?"
 Glasya has 'eyes' as wide as saucers, totally engrossed towards this man. Knowledge was a powerful drug.
(Glasya Labolas)
Glasya Labolas says, "Glaaaaasyaaaa..."
Caesar Valerius says, "Aaaaaalright."
Atla stood by the tree just watching the movement of Ezmara when he notices Caesar speaking of him, suddenly a Yokai approaches him.

"Glasya? That's your name?" Atla was a bit scared at the start because of the shape of the Yokai, but since he was among the Ezmarans there was nothing to fear.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Atla-Cuauhtli."
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Glasya sways her tail back and forth, he body lowered. Eventually she breaks her silence and curls up her body with an untouchable grace, forming into a 'throne' of sorts for her upper body to rest on top of.

She taps the tips of her fingers together from both hands. She 'smiles' in that unnerving way, bone shifting magically to make a strange 'grinning' snout. It was only really unnerving because that was most certainly not how bone works.

"Greetings and salutations, Atla-Cuauhtli. That boy over there referenced someone called the 'Keeper of Knowledge'. He said you would know more."

Even from the bottom of her 'throne', her tail swished back and forth like that of an excited dog. If that boy wasn't being hyperbolic with his titles, she would be greatly wealthy indeed in information if such a person was willing to share.
(Glasya Labolas)
Ajax says, "Mm I do wonder if we will ever meet that thing again, but I am not so sure that is what it was.."
 Imra'el pays deep attention on the talk to his right. Did something happen he wasn't aware of?
(Imra'el)
Atla looked curiously at the Yokai, creatures so different biologically, certainly he was interested in finding out more about them, but focused on the question for the time being.

"Ah, that..."

He looked at Caesar for a second and gave a small smile, how could anyone be so crazy to go back to face that being? That was why he was all screwed up now. His attention then returned to the Yokai.

"Well, I do not know much about him specifically, but we found him after crossing a portal to the spiritual world in a ruin of an ancient civilization of Agartha, unfortunately it is impossible to return to that place now, but that creature was extremely strange and powerful, was someone important or at least unusual even in the spiritual realm. "

His crossed arms and furrowed brows showed how much the subject still intrigued him.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Glasya Labolas asks, "And he was called the 'Keeper of Knowledge' because?"
Imra'el says, "..."
The young dryad sighs, and keeps his eyes closed for a few seconds, thinking. He was hoping to hear a good story, or maybe some way to go into that ancient place he mentioned.



Imra'el starts walking away.
(Imra'el)
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "Because he was the Keeper of Knowledge... He did know a lot, there was also a library."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "He could even read our minds and intentions somehow"
Ajax says, "He did indeed have access to quite an infinite amount of knowledge it seemed."
Glasya grumbles a little. It would be bad enough to know that she had misunderstood the level of information that was out there, but to know it was real and currently impossible to go after? ... Particularly annyoing.
(Glasya Labolas)
Ajax thought about it for a moment as he scratched his chin. "I am sure there are plenty of other access points. Now that we have found one perhaps we should aim to find more Atla."
(Ajax)
He uncrossed his arms and then looked at Ajax.

"Perhaps, he is certainly somewhere in the spiritual realm, but that place is simply too big for us to try to find something specific."
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
She tapped her claws away at her bone mask, thinking for a while. She had stayed away from many of the old ruins herself for her entire life. Not usually worth the effort really, given just how comprehensive the old security systems were.

Funny, you stick an immortal, paranoid, sadistic, and cruel species on an island for a few centuries and many of them become societal rejects who live in remote, hidden, and highly defended fortresses stacked to the brim with traps, magic, monsters, and countermeasures.

It must have been fun on the rare occasions they had to go outside, she was sure.

One more thing to dislike about her kind. She rolls her eyes at their strange predilections. A lot of good their protections did them, dying and such.
(Glasya Labolas)
Ajax says, "Mm indeed I meant the ruins however. I think I may have a theory about them, and how they might be able to take us to certain places like that library in the spirit world."
Ajax says, "There must be more than one ruin containing what we saw."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "Hmm, interesting."
Glasya Labolas says, "The idea that Agarthans would share things, particularly the sort who build deathtraps of hidden vaults to protect their things is..."
Glasya Labolas says, "Somewhat unlikely of a thing."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "But since we're talking about this, would you mind following me Ajax? There is something I intend to do now."
Ajax says, "Mm of course. I will try to assist in anyway I can."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "It was nice to talk with you Glasya, but i have to go now."
Glasya Labolas says, "Mhm. It was nice to meet you, dear."
 Glasya Labolas says, "Try not to die before your lifespan ends."
Glasya Labolas says, "It is tragically short as is."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "Haha, bye."
Glasya Labolas says, "Farewell."

They headed toward the beach and then they entered Atla's house, he stopped in the middle of the corridor and then turned to Ajax, his eyes showing anxiety and his smile showed joy.

"Well, since we came back from those ruins I feel something different, mana itself looks different to my eyes, it feels so good, my body feels lighter than before, I do not know exactly why, but it makes me want to more read this book soon. "

He drew the book that emanated a blue glow and lines of mana from the cover of the book.

"But I feel it is not best to do this without a company, maybe something bad happens, or maybe not, but it's good to have a guarantee, do you mind just watching while I read the book?"
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax looked at the book which emanated energy. He knew that it was best if he remained by Atla's side during the process. After all he had the best attunement to energy besides Atla, at least that Ajax knew of. So Ajax nodded and grinned.

"Of course! I have no problem doing so. I will stay just in case. Mm also I know what you mean. Afro's energy and mine has completely fused by this point I can feel it, but for some reason I can still only access the energy I had before. It's like it is there but I must figure out one more thing. I suppose I can take a look through the book I got while I watch over you. See if it has any useful information for me. Do you mind if I take a seat?"

Ajax pointed towards the chairs Atla had set up in her home.
(Ajax)
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "Let's go for my meditation room, i guess it'll be better here"
"I see, well, yes, you can read the other book while you want."

They then headed to the meditation room.

They positioned themselves on the carpet.

"There are no chairs here, but there is no problem sitting on the floor."

He then began writing runes on the rug, that book was too different, and Atla was very cautious, so that was necessary.

"I'm just warning myself."

After finishing writing the runes on the floor he sat in the middle of the circle and held the book in both hands.

"All right, let's go ..."
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax positioned himself before Atla on the ground. With his legs crossed. He decided to wait for the process to start before he would pull out his book. Making sure the process started smoothly was probably the biggest part of it all.

"Indeed that is perfectly fine. I will be right here."
(Ajax)
The cover of the book seemed to have some symbols he did not understand, and blue leylines around it, a small piece of leather prevented the book from being opened, Atla then removed the seal and opened it.

At first glance the book seemed to be blank, but at the same time there was a soft energy from the book, slowly unfolding like waves in the sea and beginning to connect in Atla, Atla's energy aura began to emerge instinctively, the energy Atla and the book began to unite, and then his eyes began to get even bluer, and suddenly the letters began to appear to him in the blank pages.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax watched as the energy flew out in waves and began to connect with Atla. Suddenly the letter began to glow and appear around Atla. Disappearing from the pages of the book. It was an interesting matter and Ajax wondered what the process felt like. However he had his own information to dig out from the History of Gehenna. He was specifically headed to the section marked in the table of contents as Ancestors of Gehenna.

The book seemed thicker than before, almost like the information in it was expanding, but Ajax could not quite tell. He finally found the section he was looking for and began to look through it for information about an Ancestor that might have shared a similar power to his own. As he did so, he looked up every now and then to check and make sure Atla was okay.
(Ajax)
It made sense, somehow the energy of the book connected him to the spiritual world, his vision now crosses the astral plane and he could see and understand the letters that were in the book, but this was only possible because his body had already completely crossed the world spiritual life on the farm.

At first the first part of the book seemed to have information about the spiritual world and its kingdoms, contained the name and a summary about each of the kingdoms:
Yggdrasil, Tree of Convergence
Vanaheim, Realm of the Exalted
Joruheim, Realm of the Brave
Helheim, Realm of the Lost
Alfheim, Realm of the Meek
Uraheim, Land of Water
Ifraheim, Land of Flame
Terraheim, Land of Mountain

These were the realms the book described, at least halfway through it, Atla's eyes grew accustomed in a surprising way, his reading seemed faster as the energy of the book converged with his.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax noticed the speed of the energy converging upon Atla at a faster rate. It seemed like everything was going smooth for now. After scrolling through the pages Ajax began to get lost in the amount of records kept in the Ancestors section of the book till finally Afro shouted telepathically in his mind.

"Stop!" Afro shouted and Ajax did so instinctively. It seems they had become more so connected as well since their trip to the Spirit Realm. Almost as if they were becoming one just like their energy.

"I feel a similar energy to ours coming from these two pages."

When Ajax looked he could see the name written on the pages. There were in fact multiple names for the one man written in the book, one was Psycho Fagos. The largest written name was Mla Roho. Which the book said roughly translated to Soul Eater. Suddenly Ajax began to feel a chill as he began to read what was related to his ancestor.

Apparently he had been one of the Warriors among the Way of the Blood who had attempted to become a Strigoi through alternate means. He too had possessed the ability of harnessing energy and in doing so he had found a way to consume others energy in an efforts to making his stronger.

It was a processed that dealt with killing his fellow warriors and then tying their souls to his through the spirit realm by entering a meditative state at the same time of the warriors death. While the warrior died Mla Roho would activate his energy and allow it to combine with the energy in the surroundings to him. This would create a tether to the recently deceased and enable him to eventually fuse their energy with his. By housing it all in his Spirit Palace. Eventually the spirit would submit to his will by sheer force. Ultimately allowing him to access the newly formed energy that is housed in his Soul Palace. It becomes a completely separate energy than his own once it has completely fused.

Ajax could not believe what he was reading and he was not sure how Afro would take it. If what Ajax was reading was correct it meant, the only step left in Ajax obtaining the power would be Afro's acceptance. Did that mean Afro did not accept him yet after all this time? Obviously Ajax did not have the same intentions as Mla Roho, but he wondered what would eventually become of Afro's will if he continued down this path for the power.

"Mm well it seems all along it was me holding you back..Well I apologize. I guess I guess I did not quite trust you or know your intentions at first, but now I see you aim to do the same I once aimed to do. Bring the Atl to glory, and I promise you Ajax. I am yours to command for eternity if it is from here on out. I will offer you all of my power. It is yours to command.
(Ajax)
When he reached the middle of the book he noticed a difference, the letters seemed a little more different, though they were still understandable, the energy emanating from that other half of the book was different, the energy link of the book to that of Atla became more strong.

Then he heard Renata's voice.

These pages have something different in them, read carefully, feel something very similar to what I felt near the Keeper of Knowledge.

Renata then appeared in her spirit form, it was much easier for Atla to see her spirit and feel her energy now, she stood behind Atla as he read the rest of the book.

The title of the other half of the book was called 'The Next Mystic Step', the book told of a skill called Mystic, apparently it was manifested in users of Energy and Spiritmancy, the book told about the means of using it, apparently it was an advanced manipulation of mana, the technique wasbased on making the Magi's raw energy into something dense, and mostly rich in mana, making the energy a turquoise hue.

Atla was surprised, this was ... basically what he had already done, he turned the pages one by one, seeing that all this time he was manipulating the mystic without calling himself that he was doing it all the time, but there was still something missing .

It is then that he arrives on the last page, and that's where the last piece was, the last words of the book were: 'What is magic power for you?'

Magi's eyes flashed and then closed, he began to ponder those words in his mind.


'When I use magic, I strain my eyes
And then I can see the light dancing, kidding
This is what they call magic power.
In a moment, it takes on the color of the night stars
And then, it's blue as the sea, green as the forest
Sometimes white as the morning glow
Together as a crib, intertwined

With flowers blooming in spring water
of the old submerged coins, an incense is made
A day on the full moon, and then a day in each of the compass directions,
is bathed in the light of the sun and the moon'

Atla's mind, body, and spirit seemed to have united, the energy around his body flowing like a sweet breeze at dawn, the tone of his energy turning into the purest blue of the sky, the rune on his shoulder would begin to shining, the mana of his spiritual palace began to appear, to form and to condense, his energy was now powerful, rich in mana and dense, but still light and soft, his wing of energy had formed again on his right shoulder.

He imagined the spiritual world in his mind, the book shone, it was as if the energy he emanated was testing the energy of the reader, and when he saw that Atla had passed the test the book closed and began to disappear, then the body of Atla began to beswallowed up by his own energy.

In a blink of an eye he had disappeared along with Renata, he was now in the spirit world again, when he opened his eyes a new world appeared before him.

The energy flows of the spiritual realm itself were no longer so brutish with Atla, he now merged and became malleable in the very will of man, he was now there in physical body, he now knew, in his own heart he could feel, that could travel between the physical and ethereal planes, he had attained mystical power, he was now aware of his power and could manipulate his own will.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax felt lighter now, and the energy around him had changed from his usual light blue aura to a dark blue energy. As if Afro's assurance had finally given Ajax the ability to access the energy that had been forming inside his Spirit Palace. He wanted to try out his new power but he decided to check on Atla instead. When he looked he was shocked. The shock accidentally disrupted his concentration, and suddenly the energy he had finally accessed reverted back to Ajax's original energy. It seemed this would take time to master.

Ajax had been so consumed in his conversation with Afro and the information the History of Gehenna that he had forgotten to check on Atla to see if she was alright. He had noticed a shift in the surrounding energy, and when he looked to check on Atla, she had disappeared. How had that been possible. He had felt a great surge in energy one moment and the next it was all gone as well as Atla. Ajax quickly closed his book and put it away in his pack standing up and looking around the room for Atla.

"Atla! Atla where are you?" He then looked to Afro and Afro nodded his head. Suddenly Afro had disappeared off to the Spirit Realm. If anyone could find Atla it was Afro. Moments later he could hear Afro in his mind.

"Mm I am not quite sure where, but he currently lies in the Spirit Realm. I can feel his energies somewhere here. I am sure he will be alright. If Atla was able to traverse physically into the Spirit Realm it means she definitely gained more power just now."

Ajax scratched at his chin and replied out loud knowing that Afro would be able to hear either way.

"If that is the case then it is fine. You may leave the matter be. We will wait for his return."
(Ajax)
He watched the spirit world now with new eyes, to the horizon he was able to see Yggdrasil, from the book information that place he was was actually Yggdrasil, he could feel the great energy and the lifestream itself.

It was perhaps the best feeling he had ever had, the same calm as a night with stars, and the same force of a stormy sea, his bond with the mana was to a new plateau, then he hears the voice of Ajax, he looked around and could perceive something similar to a portal behind him, but it was a one-sided road, portal led to the physical world again to where Atla was, but in the physical world it was not possible to see the portal, at most a light change in energy.

He saw through the portal that Ajax seemed worried that he had disappeared suddenly, Atla turned again, taking another look at the spiritual world and the Yggdrasil before returning to the portal.

Two steps and he had crossed the portal, it seemed so easy now, he could go through the plans at his own will now, maybe this could even be used in battles.

There he was returning to his meditation room, Renata had already dematerialized, Atla put her hand on her head and gave her best smile to this day.

"Hahaha, I saw Yggdrasil on the horizon, that was amazing."

He then realized that his wing was still there, he then only with his will made her disappear, returning massive energy to his spiritual palace, the energy in his body slowly slowed down, he had control over all that now.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax gave a sigh of relief as he saw Atla return from the Spirit realm. Noticing once Atla had stepped through the portal that he almost seemed like a new man. He could not believe that Atla had control over such energy. It made Ajax interested to see what would happen if their two energies were to class. He grinned and welcomed Atla back.

"It is good to see you are alright friend! I became worried for a moment, but it seems you had it all under control. The mighty tree Yggdrasil...it must have been quite a sight!"
(Ajax)
Certainly Atla looked like a new man now, his own eyes reflecting a more mature man, he then replaced his cape to cover the rune on his shoulder.

"As I thought the book was gone, apparently it was not just for information, but rather another test, and what it contained in it..." Atla spoke all that he had read in the book about all spiritual realms, their names and summaries about them.

"And this is it, and your book? Am I disturbing the reading?"
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax had put his book away by this point and simply chuckled at Atla.

"Ah no no do not worry. I have learned enough for today! It seems this book I have contains a huge amount of information about Gehennan's past. As well as it's ancestors. I too have learned today what was holding me back, but it does not matter. We won't hold back anymore!" Ajax final sentence was more of an inside secret between Afro and himself.

Ajax stood from his spot once again and began to stretch.

"I can't believe that book was another test, and all that you learned from it. Do you think you can travel there freely now if you please?"


(Ajax)
Atla shifted his shoulders, as if they were heavy, it was as if he needed to take some weight off himself.

"Yes, I can pass between the physical and ethereal plane now, that enormous energy that I keep in my spiritual palace, I feel I can control it now, I can understand the raw and dense mana now, but... there is still something I need to do. "

He straightened his own clothes and headed for the door.

"I need to leave for now, you can continue here if you want, you're already one of the closest people I have here in Agartha."

Atla's face grew more serious, he would now go in search of Nochte, the only thing that bothered his mind now.
(Atla-Cuauhtli)
Ajax says, "Ah it is fine. I will head out I must return to my tribe and continue to study my book. Mm well i believe Nochte is one of my own but I will not stop you from having a battle of honor with him,"

Ajax moved to head out of Atla's home as well. He figured it was time he headed back home as well. He still needed to do some reading in his book. There was still much more to learn from it.

"Mm it is fine. I must return home to my tribe for now. There is much I still need to decipher in this book of mine. Spirits protect Atla! I hope one day I can traverse the Spirit Realm as you can now do so. It would be great to be able to have that feeling of control of the mana and energy around you in general. I still need work in that area." Ajax chuckled as he followed Atla out of his home.
(Ajax)
Ajax says, "Spirits Protect Atla. I hope to see you soon my friend."
Atla-Cuauhtli says, "Same, goodbye"