Quite A Few Years Ago, On The Planet Ionadis
It was Aelfric's day to be introduced to the world at large.
He was wearing the customary white robes, which draped his small body and trailed along the ground as he went up the Steps of Infinity.
The Steps of Infinity were almost as old as the Empire itself, and they led to the middle of the altar housed inside the Temple of Solara. It was built, lined up exactly with Sol, the star that Ionadis orbited, and at high noon, the light would shine through in such a way, illuminating the altar and those surrounding it from behind. From down below, if one looked up, it was as if those standing at the top of The Steps of Infinity were practically glowing.
God-like, in a sense.
And that was exactly the intent of Mother Empress when she decided that she and all her children, even Aelfric, would have his Ascension ceremony at the Temple of Solara.
Aelfric was not shy.
He was not nervous.
He was terrified.
The robes were too big for him, as he was small for his age, and the ceremonial robes were intended for someone slightly older. His ability had blossomed early, at the age of nine. He could feel the stares of everyone of House Rex, Regis, and other noble houses behind him as he clumsily walked up the stairs in complete silence. As he rose, so did the sun, and he could feel the sting of Sol getting even brighter, the day humid and muggy.
But he persevered.
When he was finally near the top, where the High Priestess of Rex waited for him, he tripped upwards and fell right at her feet. The entire crowd tried to hold their laughter, but a few giggles escaped in the silence. Poor Aelfric scraped his hands on the ancient stone and tried to keep his chin up as he got up from the ground. The High Priestess gave him a wary look, sighed, and began the ceremony.
"Today we are gathered underneath the gaze of our loving First Mother, Mother Empress, and Those Who Know Better, to celebrate the end of childhood and the beginning of life. Today, your soul has opened up, allowing Solara to bless you with a gift, a gift rare amongst even Those Who Know Better."
The High Priestess removed the veil that obscured her bright blue eyes. Aelfric watched uncertainly as her eyes turned from cerulean to obsidian, looking deep into his soul as she asked the same question she had asked other nobility for roughly three generations.
"Aelfric a-Cian des Regalis, do you promise to defend the motherland and all the creatures that inhabit it," she asked.
Clutching the sides of his robes, he felt mesmerized by her gaze, and suddenly all his worries melted away. His hands went limp, his lips loose, and as if some other being was piloting him, he began to speak with such authority he never knew he had in his life.
"Yes," Aelfric said.
"Do you promise to uphold the traditions and to rid any impropriety to protect Those Of Us Who Know Better," she asked. "As ordained in the natural order?"
"Yes, forever and always."
"Do you accept the gift of life Solara has given to you, underneath her gaze, knowing that it cannot be returned once accepted?"
"Yes, I accept."
Feeling as if someone else was pushing him from behind, he moved to the center of the altar, got on his knees, and recited the lines he had been practicing all week.
"I swear to the gods above and below, to the goddesses in the seas and skies, that I will accept this gift unto mine own soul. When thyne own last breath escapes these lips, will be the last time I speak of praises unto thee, oh Mother. For this life is temporary, but neither are your gifts or love."
When the last word escaped his mouth, he suddenly felt dizzy, about to collapse. The High Priestess quickly covered her eyes, gently brought him up from the ground, and led him to the staircase.
"Be careful, dear," she whispered. "The fall down is harder than the walk up."
"I'll walk down slowly," Aelfric promised.
"That's not what I meant."
Aelfric's pupils shrank as the words settled into his chest. He wondered where that moment of courage came from. It seemed to dissapear the moment the High Priestess covered her eyes. He wanted to look upon her again, but all he saw was a small woman cloaked in all black, lacking any of the warmth he felt earlier. Looking down at the crowd below him at the bottom of the stairs, he remembered the second part of the ceremony.
He had to prove the gift was truly accepted, and to use it in front of Those Who Knew Better- the entire nobility of Ionadis.
It was an awkward moment for everyone as the small boy couldn't bring himself to use the gift he had accepted, and if the moment went on any longer, questions of his birthright would soon arise.
"What are you doing," the High Priestess whispered.
"The n-number.... it's too high," Aelfric said. "This wasn't like when we practiced. To move the number was only three. Now its fourteen!"
"What number," she hissed.
"The number of doors I have to open. I'm scared."
The High Priestess sighed. She already helped Aelfric by controlling his mind to speak the ceremonial lines. It wasn't the first child she had done the favor for and he wouldn't be the last. This, however, she couldn't save him from.
"You need to finish the rites, or else you will appear to have rebuffed her gift. You don't want to hurt her feelings, do you?"
Aelfric did not care how Solara felt. He did, however, see the disappointed face of his mother in the crowd, the embarrassment of his father, and those were people that he didn't want to disappoint. He swallowed a large gulp of air and bellowed out.
"I'm coming down!"
Everyone had a good chuckle as he ran down the steps. Halfway down, he tripped on his too-long robes; reflexively, he splayed out his hands. A large portal appeared before him, and in he fell. The entire crowd went into an uproar, as a child had disappeared in the middle of his coming-of-age ceremony. The only ones not surprised were his family. They had seen him accidentally teleport through walls, floors, his own bed, and once, to the other side of the province.
The Mother Empress covered her face in shame, and her chest went warm. Her eldest cackled three seats down, and she threw him a dirty look.
"Leofric, stop," Aeris said.
"He's still a babe, not a man," Leofric laughed. "Can't even walk proper, talk proper. Nothing proper about him!"
"We are a united front," she warned him. "Do not chastise one of your own in front of your lessers."
That got him to stop laughing. He turned to look around at the crowd that was now worried instead of amused. One by one, they all turned to look at Aeris for guidance.
It was like a cascade. First, her husband turned to look at her with pleading eyes. Then her daughter. The rest of her children. Then Everyone Who Knew Better was looking at her, expecting her to say something.
Aeris stood up from her wooden chair, walked over to the bottom of the steps, and opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She seemed to surprise herself, and her already arched eyebrows seemed to almost turn into crescent moons the longer she stood there. Her eyebrows went up even further when a small, tiny black speck floated in front of her.
It hovered for a moment and then slowly grew into an oblong disc. It turned sideways as it grew bigger, and when it finally stopped growing, one could look inside of it. A blizard roared into the cut out of reality, the snow practically churning sideways. Everyone slowly congregated towards the icy abyss, trying to get a good look as to what the young prince had done.
Aeris stuck her head in and saw her son.
Crawling on the ice-covered ground, shivering, pale, and sobbing he was a sorry sight to behold. When he gazed upon the light shining inwards, he found his own courage for the first time that day. He stood on his own, with no help from anyone. He walked on his own, then ran, and when he made it to the other side, the world exploded in color.
At the end of every Ascension Ceremony, the one who accepted their gifts was pelted with dyed powder packets on their white robes.
The crowd, all holding the color of their respective houses, showered Aelfric in a rainbow of adoration, for he deserved it.
He had finally become a man.