The Covenant Seal

Walking through the barrier that surrounded Everhearth University brought with it an unexpected torrent of energy. Some mana was undoubtedly getting through the barrier, the evidence of which was found in the slowly transforming flora on campus, but outside was a totally different story. 

Luke was overwhelmed with the sheer weight of mana in the atmosphere. The moment he crossed the barrier, it hit him like a tidal wave. His vision blurred, his balance wavered, and for a terrifying moment, he felt like his own body was vibrating—like every cell in him was trying to sync with the flood of energy around him.

"Whoa," was all he could manage, staggering as his knees threatened to buckle.

Lila inhaled deeply, stretching her arms as if she'd just stepped into sunlight after a long winter. "Refreshing, isn't it?" she asked, glowing brighter than before.

Luke squeezed his eyes shut, willing his breath to steady. His mana fought to stabilize, slowly syncing with the new environment. His mind cleared, the sensations fading from overwhelming to merely disorienting.

"I don't know if 'refreshing' is the word I'd use," he muttered.

Lila laughed melodically, "Well it's refreshing for me." 

"Must be nice," Luke muttered with a slight grin. 

He refocused on his surroundings and found himself in awe. It hadn't really been that long since he was last outside the barrier, but already the landscape had changed beyond recognition. The trees, once stately and well manicured this close to campus, had grown by at least fifty feet, and now shone with a coruscating kaleidoscope of colors, and appeared to have an almost metallic sheen.

A whisper floated through the mana-rich air, passing between the trees as if they were quietly conversing with one another. Along with this whisper, the breeze carried sweet scents unlike anything Luke had experienced before. It was both intoxicating and invigorating at once. 

"What is that fragrance?" Luke asked Lila, eyes wide.

"I'm not sure exactly," Lila said. "I know many of the plants native to Earth and Anima Terra, but this could be any number of them, or a mix of more than one. Whatever it is, it smells quite pleasant."

"I agree," Luke said. "This is going to sound weird, but it feels almost like I'm inhaling a drug."

Lila narrowed her eyes at Luke, "Be careful," she warned. "If you start feeling your mind being impacted you should flush out your system with mana."

Luke watched her for a second before replying, "Okay. I didn't know that was something I could do. I'll keep that in mind."

Lila nodded, then motioned toward the wilds stretching out before them. "Are you ready to go? We've got a long trek ahead of us." 

Luke thought for a moment, then said, "Are we sure we don't want to find an alternate means of travel?"

Lila shook her head, "Yes, we're sure. Trying to take a car into the Riftwilds is a death sentence. It would attract beasts from miles around straight toward us. Things are going to be way different than when we went to your family's estate. There were already extremely dangerous beasts then, but now there's been even more time for the landscape to change and for people eating monsters to show up. Plus, the terrain is sure to be changing constantly."

Luke crossed his arms, frowning. "Alright, but what about flying? I mean, I can't, but you can. Couldn't you just carry me?"

Lila's expression turned amused. "Yeah I don't want to carry you for hundreds of miles. Besides, what happens when a creature ten times stronger than you and I put together decides they want us for a snack? These beasts have extremely keen senses and will be able to track us and pluck us out of the sky with ease. Flying's an option in short bursts, but over long distances? Too risky."

Luke sighed. "Okay, fair. But surely there's a faster way to do this."

Lila gave him a knowing look. "There is. But not one that lets us stay under the radar. Echelon has eyes everywhere, and I guarantee they're monitoring every major road, trail, and air route leading in and out of the Riftwilds. And the closer we get to our destination, the heavier their presence and surveillance will be. Fortunately for us, they also have to deal with all of the dangers of the Riftwilds. We stick to foot travel, and we control when and how we're seen."

Luke exhaled sharply, tilting his head back to stare at the rustling, mana infused tree tops. "So we hike."

Lila grinned. "We hike. And besides," she added, her golden eyes glinting with excitement, "this way, we get stronger. We'll run into things that will help us grow. We're going to need all the strength we can get if we have to face off against Echelon. Right now, the Riftwilds are exactly where we need to be."

Luke smirked despite himself. "So this is training disguised as travel, huh?"

"Training. Exploration. Survival." Lila gestured to the untamed landscape stretching before them. "The Riftwilds will test us in ways nothing else can."

Luke exhaled, rolling his shoulders. "Okay. Let's do this."

Lila floated ahead, her glow pulsing with energy. "Now you're talking. Stay close, partner—things are only going to get weirder from here."

With that, they stepped forward, leaving the safety of Everhearth behind and vanishing into the wild unknown.

The first leg of their journey turned out to be rather uneventful. Luke looked around constantly, taking in all of the new sights, sounds, smells, and colors. There seemed to be new flora and fauna everywhere. 

Luke saw strange small animals tittering about across the ground and through the trees. A small bird with delicate, branch-like antlers growing from its head; a squirrel with glowing, ember-like fur along its tail and paws; a sleek, dark-furred hare with mist-like wisps trailing behind it; a moth with translucent wings that shimmer like liquid silver.

The squirrel's ember-like tail flickered as it darted through the trees, leaving tiny motes of fire in its wake. Luke watched, half mesmerized, half wary. Was it just an animal? Or something more?

He caught sight of the bird with branch-like antlers, its head tilting as if it were studying him just as much as he was studying it. The longer he looked, the more he swore he could feel… something. A presence. Not hostile, not friendly—just aware.

He swallowed. Everything here is different. Everything here is alive in a way I don't understand.

Luke was in awe at how quickly everything he knew about the place he lived had changed into this land of magic and mystery. 

"Is this what Anima Terra is like?" Luke asked Lila after walking in amicable silence for around an hour through the forest.

Lila thought for a moment before answering. "I've never actually been to Anima Terra, but I imagine it is somewhat like this. Anima Terra, the whole Aetherion Universe, is a special place. It's rich with mana and the laws that this universe obeys don't exactly apply in that one. Not in the same ways, at least."

Lila paused, watching another shimmering moth flutter by on the breeze. She wore a small smile, her golden eyes glittering. Luke couldn't quite wrap his mind around what exactly the Aetherion Universe was like, or how it worked. He supposed he'd have to just go there if he really wanted to know for himself.

Lila looked at Luke after the moth disappeared and continued talking as if she'd never stopped. "Do you believe in the soul, Luke?" 

Luke furrowed his brows, not expecting the conversation to take this turn. He continued walking, over roots, and around massive trees, through low shrubbery, as he thought. Lila floated over all of the obstacles in his way. 

"I think so, why?"

Lila tilted her head, her glow pulsing softly. "Because the Aetherion Universe is to this one what a soul is to a body."

Luke frowned, stepping over a thick root as they continued forward. "Okay… you're going to have to explain that one to me."

Lila nodded, then motioned toward the shimmering landscape around them. The trees swayed gently, their leaves catching strange, prismatic light. Every now and then, a ripple would pass through the air, distorting reality ever so slightly before settling again. The Riftwilds were alive, shifting, never quite still.

"Think about your body," Lila began. "It follows rules—structure, movement, limitations. You can train it, push it, even enhance it with mana, but at the end of the day, it's bound by physical laws. Gravity, time, decay. It exists in this world and obeys its rules."

Luke nodded, listening carefully.

Lila gestured vaguely upward, as if indicating something far beyond what he could see. "But what about the soul? It's not physical in the same way. It exists beyond flesh and bone. It doesn't rot, doesn't break like a body does. It carries who you are—your will, your emotions, your essence. And yet, it's not separate from your body. They're tied together. When they align, you live. When they don't…" She trailed off.

Luke understood what she meant. He'd seen death before.

"The Aetherion Universe is like the soul of existence," Lila continued. "It's just as real as this universe—more real, in some ways—but it doesn't obey the same constraints. It moves differently. Time is fluid. Space doesn't have the same hard edges. Mana flows there like air does here. Everything is interconnected in ways that are impossible to explain until you experience it."

Luke glanced around at the Riftwilds, at the way mana bled into the world, shifting the landscape, creating creatures that defied logic. He was starting to understand.

"So what happens when the body and soul fall out of sync?" he asked.

Lila's glow dimmed slightly. "They break. Or worse, they become something they were never meant to be."

Luke exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. "You're saying that's what's happening here? The Shatterstorm didn't just tear open portals—it messed up the balance between this universe and the Aetherion Universe."

Lila nodded. "Exactly. The rifts can't be closed. That's not even an option anymore. They've already become part of this world—just like how your soul is part of you. But if the balance isn't maintained, if the worlds keep bleeding into each other without control, things will spiral into something unsustainable."

Luke stared at the sky, watching the mana-thick clouds drift in unnatural spirals. The weight of it settled heavily on his shoulders.

"So if we can't close them, we need to figure out how to live with them."

Lila smiled slightly. "Exactly. The rifts are here to stay. But if we can understand them—if we can bring some kind of harmony between the worlds—maybe we can make sure this new reality isn't one of chaos and destruction."

Luke let out a slow breath. "Alright. Then we figure out what's really going on. And we make sure this balance doesn't tip the wrong way."

Lila's glow brightened with something close to pride. "That's the spirit."

They continued forward, the Riftwilds unfolding before them—a land caught between body and soul, between order and chaos, waiting for someone to guide it toward equilibrium.

Luke slowed his pace, frowning. Something felt off.

The usual background noises of the Riftwilds—skittering creatures, rustling leaves, the distant hum of mana—had faded.

The air thickened. Heavy.

A prickling sensation ran down his spine. The same feeling he'd had before, when he caught the bird staring at him. But this time… stronger.

He exhaled, trying to shake the sudden sense of unease—

Then he heard it.

A growl. Deep. Guttural. So low it rumbled in his bones.

"Lila?"

"Yeah, I heard it," she said. The pair of them were suddenly on guard, looking for the threat they heard and sensed nearby.

The air grew dense. Heavy. Mana itself twisted unnaturally, warping the light between the trees.

A low, menacing growl echoed through the forest, raising the hairs on the back of Luke's neck.

"Whatever that is, it sounds like it has a lot of sharp teeth," he said.

Lila chuckled despite herself. "Leave it to you to make jokes even in dire situations."

Luke shrugged, "I am who I am."

Then, the shadows moved.

Something vast shifted within the gloom, its form blending seamlessly with the Riftwilds' unstable reality. A pair of luminous, liquid-starlight eyes ignited, locking onto them with an ancient and unreadable gaze.

The Rift itself seemed to breathe.

Then it stepped forward.

A beast of impossible design, neither wholly material nor entirely spirit. Its body was sleek yet jagged, its blackened scales etched with glowing fractures of blue-white mana, like veins of molten power beneath the surface. Smoke curled from its nostrils, but it was not the smoke of fire—it was the residue of dimensions bleeding into one another, a reminder that this creature did not fully belong to this world.

A dragon. Or something close to one.

Its wings flickered in and out of sight, existing in two states at once, like an image struggling to stay fixed in reality. Its claws, long and curved like obsidian blades, sank effortlessly into the earth as it took another step forward, the ground trembling under its weight.

Then, it spoke.

"You carry the scent of the veil."

Its voice was neither fully a sound nor a thought, but something between. Ancient, layered, as though a thousand whispers converged into one.

Luke stiffened. "That's...new."

Lila floated a fraction closer to him, eyes narrowed. "You're not just a beast, are you?"

The dragon's head tilted slightly, its expression unreadable.

"I am Riftborn. I am beyond what your kind understands. And yet..."

Its eyes narrowed, the swirling stars within them flaring with recognition.

"You. The boy with the seal. And you..." it turned its gaze to Lila, its words now laced with something deeper—perhaps wariness, perhaps curiosity. "The first of your kind to walk this cursed land since time immemorial."

Luke clenched his fists, feeling the Covenant Seal on his forehead pulse faintly.

This wasn't just a mindless monster. This thing was old. It knew things.

And it was watching.

Waiting.

Judging.