Chapter 25 The Choice of Separation

Chapter 25 The Choice of Separation
Jorren sat in his corner in the Keeper’s small room, staring at the last letter he was supposed to give his sister with twelve copper coins, but failed to because some guard who would help him, sometimes without asking for anything in return claimed he was being watched. 

He recalled the grimace on the guard’s face and how he was near to trembling, just by standing with him. He didn’t think that was normal, and he was sure the guard’s tremble was not from the cold.

His gaze was pinned on the ceiling, but he was looking at nothing in particular. He wondered what must have gone wrong with the guard. Did he do something in the lower tier five that made him go under some scrutiny radar? There was no way he could tell. 

The guard was scared. He could see the fear in his eyes. He wasn’t a low ranking guard, but he wasn’t a high ranking guard either. What scared the guard that much to stop him from offering help to him was something he couldn’t understand.

In that moment of thinking, the Keeper walked in and headed to the workbench where he normally would converse with Jorren. He did invite Jorren to join him, but Jorren thought he should talk to the keeper about it.

He walked up to the work bench, as as the Keeper plucked an ancient book from the shelf behind him, Jorren sat down on a stool before the workbench and waited.

The Keeper didn’t turn, he simply pucked the book he wanted to look at, a dark tome whose black had faded with age, and flipped it open. Jorren waited. He didn’t call the Keeper to let him know that he was waiting.

“I have not called your attention, Thale,” the Keeper murmured. “You should be focusing on resting. Your next task, required for your Third Ascension would be quite tasking.”

“I do have a concern,” he said. “And I wish to address it.”

The Keeper didn’t reply immediately. It was as if he was waiting for Jorren to say more. It also appeared as if he didn’t want to have the conversation. Jorren didn’t know which, and didn’t want to apply his tactical intelligence with the Keeper.

When the Keeper wouldn’t reply, Jorren pushed on.

“I can’t access my sister.”

The Keeper hesitated, slapping the book he was holding shut and looking up. 

“I believe the fate for your third ascension is already working to prepare you for the task required of you.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Jorren said.

The Keeper turned. “That is exactly the point. Nothing about being a variable in a system designed to be perfect makes sense. Yet you’re here. You’ve made the first Ascension, making the guards at the Soulwell chamber believe that a deadly shadow in set on the loose.”

Jorren watched, his face void of expression.

“You’ve made your Second Ascension, making the guard who attacked you think that you’re nothing more than a ghost of renown. None of that is suppose to make sense. If you must continue ascending, you must keep subscribing to more things. It’s not about the understanding tha you get at the end of the day. It’s about becoming one who is independent from the system.”

“Yet the system depends on me,” Jorren added.

“Exactly,” the keeper said. “For that to happen, you have to sever every tie that still links you back to the system. You must thread a lonely path. The top is not a place filled with people, and if you have a lot of weight, you might never make it there.”

“But my family—”

“Do you have the codex?” The Keeper stopped him before he could finish. 

Without an answer, Jorren brought out the Codex, holding it tightly in both hands. The book trembled lightly with a soft hum, and Jorren held it still. 

“You should not push back the inevitable,” the Keeper said.

Jorren looked at the codex, a soft, silver blue light glowing around the edges. Jorren loosened his grip on the book, and the cover flipped open to the page that had his soul architecture.

Beneath the silver drawing, the initial text rearranged, forming new words that he could read.

Third Ascension: Imminent.

First Requirement: Sever ties with every connection to old life.

Primary connection detected: Family

Connection: Paternal

Demand: Must be Severed.

Jorren couldn’t look away from the page. This seemed to be the most difficult task of all. How would his sister cope? He was the only family the girl had, and she was going  to face trials in the next two years. Until then, how would she cope?

Jorren looked up from the book to nothing in particular, unable to move. The guard told him that he was being watched, and then it hit him. Could his sister be in danger?

If the guard was being watched, then it had to be either something about him, or about his sister. Jorren from his own end, believed that he had done everything possible on his end to keep his head low. That only meant one thing. He needed to be sure his sister was safe.

He slapped the book shut and stood up.

“Where are you going?”

Jorren hesitated with his answer. It wasn’t because he was scared. It was because he was going to make the decision that the Codex required, but he needed to know the risk and the reward. He didn’t tell the Keeper that.

“I do have unfinished business,” he said. “If I am going to sever ties with my old life, I need to do it properly.”

The Keeper looked at him for one long moment, then he nodded. 

“Whatever you do,” he said. “Make sure you keep your head low.”

Jorren didn’t nod. He didn’t smile. He shoved the codex back into his coat and moved. The dark streets of the night received him. The number of people on the street have reduced, and that was exactly want he wanted. 

He was going to find out what the guard meant by “being watched.”