On Astral Tides: From Humble Freelancer To Astral Emperor

The moment Urðr opened her mouth to speak, the palatial sitting room had gone as silent as the grave, not even breathing could be heard. The nine Valkyrie sisters were all watching, each face displaying different emotions, from worry, hope, resignation and… yes, even love, I think. Whata strange series of events this has been.

Back down in the Fae Realms I couldn’t help but glance at Tan, remembering she had scoffed at the thought of Valkyries giving me a second glance as a lover, and now there were two who had become my brides. Though… there’s also… that whispered conversation. Though perhaps it’s just playfulness, but… I’m not so dense as to fail to see women’s feelings anymore. I’m getting rather good at it. Best not live in denial…

Tan snorted, but it was a weary exhalation. The vast difference in pace between the flow of time in the higher Astral as compared to the lower Astral was somewhat mitigated by the fact Lovers’ Link seemed to defy vast distances that likely couldn’t even be measured in Material concepts, but it was still stressful to the mind. Fortunately, Tan was… well, Tan, and thus had the Resilience to cope, and Shaeula was mentally strong too, and could share a fair portion of my own stats, so was managing.

A test of questions… I get that by the rules we outlined, there’s no way it could be a contest of strength. Even were the Territory to exempt us from its oppression, and Tan to be at her full strength, unburdened by being tied to Shiro… even Skuld would probably finish us in a few swipes of her shears…

It was amazing how much wisdom there was in manga, I had read a number of stories where the hero could only tell how much stronger someone was than him when he reached a certain power level of his own. I had definitely become far stronger, and before, while someone like Mae, Nurarihyon or his wife Seirei seemed as far out of reach as the distant moon to me, now I was at a level I could vaguely tell the gap between us, certainly with Mae. And that allowed me to see that there were, as Daiyu would put it, peaks beyond peaks, and above that, Mount Tai still towered. If Skuld was a peak beyond anything I could hope to face, then Urðr, an Astral Empress and Goddess both, according to Tan’s words, was Mount Tai, above all. And beyond even that would be other Gods, such as Odin, their Allfather, who controls Yggdrasil and this entire domain…

It was both enough to make me tremble in fear, and also in excitement. Obviously, me as I was before would have broken under the weight of all these expectations, but my mental strength was impressive now, and I wasn’t alone, drawing strength both tangible and emotional from my bonds. It also raised some very interesting questions. Just what is an Astral Emperor? There seems to be more to it than just the master of a world… they said this world here belonged to Sigrún… and seemed to imply she was an Astral Empress too, but Skuld doesn’t seem to be, and I’m not sure about Verðandi. That means there’s surely less Astral Emperors than Gods and Goddesses… which has been implied by some things Tan has said. I mean, she herself only claims a Rank Five Territory…

Yet Tan had also said the worlds of the Pantheons were numberless. At least thousands, likely more, I imagined. The numbers didn’t add up. But then, if I considered it, what would be the point of having a Rank Five Territory within a vastly more powerful one? Sure, Tan would get benefits, but would they be enough to justify the effort from both parties?

My rapid musings were banished to the back of my mind in a moment, as the time had come, and Urðr, the eldest Norn, the one mediating the Past, voiced her question. What she asks… that might give clues as to the oddly wrong feeling I get over this whole mess… we need to pay attention. But we have to win too… else it’s all pointless…

“All comes from the Past.” Urðr intoned, her voice containing an indescribable note that evoked both charm and worship. I struggled to resist her obviously obscene Charm and Majesty, wincing as Tan was once more burning me and even Shaeula down on the Material. That made me remember Lin, and the four scars on her face, still faintly flickering with Foehn deep within, and that gave me something else to focus my thoughts on. Silly woman. I don’t need grand gestures, but… I’m happier to see her bold and resolute than so uncertain. It suits her far better…

“From the past, all things and all places are born. From nothingness is spun the threads. Threads coalesce and worlds are born. Threads fall, and words are populated. Threads are cut, and yet what is beyond the threads, intrinsic to the threads, goes on. As the worlds increase, life increases. And the nothingness itself is split. The threads know themselves. The worlds know themselves. The threads grow brighter, more brilliant, but even the most luminous threads, the thickest, in the end, they have their destiny.”

Skuld’s shears clacked, as if to illustrate the point, but nobody interrupted Urðr, nobody could dare to.

“All threads are spun into a tapestry, growing and expanding. Threads are cut, but new threads are born, faster and faster. The split nothingness gives birth to threads of new colours, new textures, brighter and more brilliant strands. The tapestry grows. But what has come before cannot be altered, the pattern is woven.”

I nodded at her words. Sounds a lot like a creation myth. ‘Nothingness itself is split’ doesn’t seem to track with the usual though, if I relate it to… the Big Bang, perhaps?

“What value the Past, when it is already woven into existence? Does the eternal Present, or the inevitable Future, not matter more to the weaving of the Tapestry than what is already immutable, unchangeable? Prove with your words that the Past is as meaningful as the Present and affects the destiny of all things as the Future does. Speak to me of a Past that even now can change the Present and upset the weaving of the Future, without disrupting the harmony of the greater whole.”

I had thought when she said she ‘demanded an answer to a question regarding the past’ it would be about a specific event. But she didn’t lie. Though she’s asking about ‘the past’ in a general sense. But…

Shaeula was frowning, eyes narrowed, thinking it through. Tan leaned back in her chair, as we were now sitting back down below in the Fae Realms, the maids taking care of the sleeping Aine and fallen Wanderer and Christina having brought us seats, as we needed to focus our minds, every little advantage mattering.

“I suspect the answer you seek is not simple.” Tan remarked. It seems we must each answer a question, three against three. She communicated via Haru, one advantage we had. Do you wish to take this challenge?

You sound confident. Ideally… I’d like to take Verðandi’s Trial, as I think the answers to the Norns’ schemes lie with that. And… whether we are ahead or behind at that point will determine my strategy.

I am more than happy to concede. I have little fondness for puzzles of logic and twisted words. I would find it far easier to speak of what fate should befall threads that disrupt the harmony of their damnable tapestries…

With Shaeula’s grumbled approval, Tan grimaced. “Very well, Divine Urðr. I shall satisfy you.” She put on her most arrogant expression, her flaming locks framing her perfect face, which was not truly her own, as it still carried shadows of Shiro’s, despite the rich, chocolate brown skin and crimson eyes. But I could see that Tan’s real face was undoubtedly beautiful.

She flinched a little, perhaps I had shared my thoughts reflexively, and her angry rebuttal came back to me, even as she fixed her glare on Urðr, careful not to look at me. This is not the time for distractions, Akio. Do not unsettle me now, I need to be sharp to defeat her here, for I see the obvious trap in the most suitable answer. Be silent too, princess. Unless you have aid to give, remain asleep. Your teasing will only aid our foes.

Silently apologising, I leant back. I think I know what Tan means by the obvious trap. At first, I was shocked the question was so easy, but… yeah, it’s like an iceberg. Seems harmless enough, but most of it is hidden below, just waiting to sink our hopes of victory… and there are surely other, less obvious traps hidden behind the one easily seen…

“The past is gone and what has happened has happened and shall not change.” Tan began her answer, her tone cold. “Not me, not my father, not your mighty Allfather…” The way she said that title was lacking a little respect, and the Valkyries shifted uncomfortably, but they still made the effort to remain silent and still, afraid of disturbing us. The Norns seemed unbothered, Urðr merely staring at Tan solemnly from atop her gorgeous black throne.

“…not even the one that claims to be Omnipotent, the one who sits atop his Throne upon his Ninth Heaven… can decree it to be not so.” There was even less respect in her voice now. “Just as the Buddha walked on by, nothing I, nor he, nor any of the Pantheons can do will change that. You know this. However, something gone can easily affect the now, and the future. However…” Tan’s crimson eyes narrowed, and I knew she was going to sidestep the first, obvious trap in Urðr’s question. “…I know what you will answer to my musings. The actions of that foolish Buddha, who disdained me, they change my Present, for I consider those past actions, his past thread… and compare it to the now, and my Fate shifts, the course of my future now not what it was. But you would argue, correctly, perhaps… that it is not the Past that changes me, but my Present, merely acting on what has already come to pass. The Past informs the Present, which flows into the endless Future, but it does not, cannot change it.”

Urðr inclined her head. “You admit defeat? Unable to satisfy me?”

“Hardly.” Tan scoffed. “I am merely being… thorough. As I should be, for our Past actions put us at a disadvantage, agreeing this Trial with you. If I had known this would be my Present, then I surely would not… no, you cautioned there be no speaking of falsehoods here.” Tan let out a bitter sigh. “You force me to admit something unpleasant. For good, or for ill, I would have come, and allowed the same wager. I am proud, but also shaped by my own past. And I feel a burning thirst to drink deep of what I was denied before and prove he who walked on by a fool.”

Shaeula snickered at Tan’s admission, which while sharp and harsh… seemed to be one of affection. Once more she’s very tsundere about it. I can almost hear “I didn’t agree for you… stupid, stupid, stupid!’ in her words.

“No…” Tan continued. “Now, I could certainly offer you a rather more… mortal… perspective on such matters.”

Yes, that’s an advantage. It’s not three of us against three of them, we have five on our side… and what isn’t forbidden is allowed, after all, this is a Fae Trial. Us three must answer, but they never said we couldn’t get help… though they knew of Haru, and likely Shiro too. That means they were either confident regardless, or…

“They call it the delayed-choice experiment. I will not bore you with all the rigorous details…” Tan waved a hand imperiously, but I suspected it was more that Shiro, who was surely giving her the information, didn’t know much beyond the basics, likely having heard them from Arisu-san at some point, seeing as Physics was her passion. “…but under Material Law, are you aware of the nature of light?”

“A question?” Skuld muttered, clicking her shears open and shut idly.

“Light. The radiance of all things.” Urðr answered. “That which illuminates. The positive.”

“Yes, quite.” Tan agreed. “All that and more. Though I meant more of its physical properties, not the spiritual. A photon is both a tangible thing, and also a wave, such as ripples on water. But just as all things can only be themselves, it is surely impossible for it to both be discrete and continuous simultaneously. It is either a point or a wave.” Warming to the subject, Tan’s smile was now more arrogant.

“But humans on their little world discovered that depending on how they measure it, it will always be appropriate. So… if they delay the measurements, by careful trickery and cunning, since apparently these photons can be paired up somehow, and use a fresh photon to pair with an already affected yet unmeasured companion… it always shows the correct result, therefore the now shapes the past. Though I am not sure how a wave can spin.”

Yeah, I think particle spin isn’t actually about movement…

“Incorrect.” Urðr declared. “Their methodology is flawed. The Past is immutable. Their premise is faulty. Material Laws are subordinate to higher Laws, though they are stubborn.”

“I think so too.” Tan agreed. “But mortals can be amusingly clever, and… it brings me closer to our answer. Even if this was possible, it does not satisfy you, does it? After all, you wish the Past to shape the Present, not the Present to change the Past. But answer me a question first, Norn. As one who measures the Past. Why? I cannot fathom your intentions.”

“My intentions? I was called here by Skuld, she who prunes the threads I have woven. The tapestry is in disarray… you seek a Trial, we offer a Trial.”

“I see. Yes. It is clear to me now. Then let me answer you. I cannot provide an answer. Because the Past has already changed this Present. I need no answer.” As Tan conceded, my eyes widened in understanding. The only way to win is not to play. All the easy answers are by definition wrong, and even harder ones, that I might have considered, like Tachyons, which may or may not exist, or even the timeless nature of massless objects… they don’t change anything. Because to be timeless is to be in the endless Present, not the Past…

“Speak to me of a Past that even now can change the Present and upset the weaving of the Future, without disrupting the harmony of the greater whole.” Tan parroted back Urðr’s earlier words. “You also asked me first to ‘Speak no falsehoods, and show me the will that has moved these, our children, to rebel so…’ and I have spoken no lies. I am Taṇhā, I do not need to stoop to such a level. As for showing you their will to rebel… again, I have no answer. For they have not rebelled, at worst, they were misguided in honouring the intent of their roles.”

“You concede defeat? Or do you not?” Urðr asked, and Tan burst into rich, scornful laugher. “I concede defeat. And yes, I also do not. Just as the experiment I spoke of… something can both be true and false, but not both at the same time. Again, your words, Urðr… ‘The past is already written so Prices have already been spun and paid. Those that Fate favours will know it and have received it already. But… Fate is both kind and cruel. So the losers will suffer, and the winners rejoice.’”

Urðr nodded slowly, and Tan now stood, her illusionary image standing with her. “I may be nothing compared to your might, but… I reshape the past in this moment. I was not wallowing in bitterness, shutting myself away. I was reading, learning, thinking. Redefine the Past and the Present shifts, and we have a new Future, even without anything actually changing.”

“You think that answer satisfies me?” Urðr asked, and Tan waved a had dismissively.

“The Trial was to satisfy you indeed, but you yourself said the Past is written and the Price paid. But therefore the Past does affect the now, for just as the photon spins one way or the other or is a point or a wave… if I concede, then you have your treasure from us. But then that is my answer which proves I am right. Thus… the question was never about what you asked at the end, attempting to trick us.”

Tan threw back her head, laughing haughtily. “Oh how good it feels. Since my humbling at Akio’s hands, I have had many joys. This one most of all. I shall tell my father of the day I defeated Wise Urðr of the Fates. Though you also defeated me. How… amusing. The Future and the Present and the Past are not discrete, but each event is both a point within the threats woven to make your tapestry, and the thread itself. Point and wave. Up or down. Likewise, the answer to your question is meaningless! You are satisfied or not, but that is the Past changing the now. Because either you are unsatisfied, which changes the Present and the Future based on what treasure we gave you in the Past, or you are satisfied, and again, the Past informs the outcome of the Present. And before you repeat my argument that it is the answer now that affects the future… any answer I give now quickly becomes the Past. So like a wave, it propagates in both directions, while simultaneously occupying a fixed point in time.”

Yeah, that’s… surprisingly complicated reasoning, yet the idea is simple, I suppose. But… it supports my hypothesis. Something is very wrong here.

“You think that answer true?” Urðr asked after a long moment.

“Does it need to be true? You told us to tell no lies. Genuinely held beliefs that are wrong are not lies. Just as your Valkyrie’s actions are not rebellion, even if wrong. Taking the Fruit… consider it a loan, just as the shears were. I believe several Seeds have returned to those who serve the World Tree already. The shears… tell me, Skuld. I am far from wise in the workings of Favours, but… I doubt your treasured scissors…” Tan couldn’t resist a little mockery. “…are so fragile to chip on a Valkyrie’s Truesoul, even when your hand is not fortifying them. Even so, it is hardly rebellion to borrow something and later return it, once the need for it has passed.”

“Do you think that will satisfy me?” Urðr’s black dress was shimmering with a billion points of light, and her long, elegant nails painted black also glowed, as she tapped at the armrest of her throne, as if contemplating.

“I am not you. How am I supposed to know what thoughts fill that head of yours, you past-obsessed annoyance.” Tan turned to us then. “Goddesses of Fate and Fortune are always the most aggravating. Vasudhārā, Benzaiten, all equally irritating. It is their sense of fatalism. When one seeks to control the uncontrollable, know what others do not, it leaves them rather… odd. Though it seems you have quite the affinity with them…” Tan was displeased, and I wasn’t quite sure what I had done to upset her. Seeing that, her ruby eyes were unfocussed for a moment, and I suspected she was having a long conversation with Shiro.

“Oh, quite-quite.” Shaeula laughed suddenly, breaking the tension. “I see. The question has no answer, and the question asked was not-not the question itself, but what-what lies behind it, implied, and actually the first question you asked-asked, just obscured by later musings. A Trial that I do-do approve of. If you try-try to engage with it, you will lose. The winning move is not-not to play!”

“Yes. So, have I satisfied your curiosity?” Tan pressed, and after a long moment, Urðr inclined her head.

“The Past, though it is set… is not akin to a place that none can visit. Something that cannot be changed, can still change other matters, used properly. Your words move me, Taṇhā, Thirsty One. That you would defend those not your own so… passionately.”

Tan crossed her arms defensively again, tilting her chin so as to glower at Urðr. “Do not mistake me. I simply… do not care for the injustice. I am not the Buddha. When thirsty, I drink. When hungry, I eat. When I have needs, I wish them satisfied. I do not overly concern myself with morality. But… I also have no objection to leading a life that those who did not walk on by me would think worthwhile. And… if it is rebellion to give of yourselves to those you wish to protect, then… I pity this Pantheon, and it will meet its doom soon enough. Let it become the Past, and inform the Future of what ignoring the Path they chose to walk on leads to…”

“I am… unsatisfied by your insolence…” Urðr smiled, and suddenly I cried out. Tan had ground a flaming fist into my guts, and even my insides were steaming and smoking, the sudden agony clearing my mind, eyes filling with tears. It was damaging enough even to make Urðr’s illusion of me waver, and she glanced at me with her gleaming eyes, only for Shaeula’s small hands to cover my face, blocking my sight for a moment.

“At least try and leash your Charm, unless you are trying to steal his heart.” Tan spat. “But it would be bad taste, considering. That you would condemn them for a deed you would aspire to yourself.”

“I am unsatisfied by your insults. I am Urðr, the one who spins the threads of each’s Fate. He is beneath my notice, except as a colour in the tapestry Verðandi weaves. One day, Skuld shall sever his thread.”

“I shall take great pleasure in reminding you of that, one day.” Tan scoffed. “Now answer, you tiresome hag.”

Urðr’s golden eyes flickered at the insult, but she remained calm. “Very well. I am satisfied you are not as foolish as you appear, unwanted one.”

Okay, maybe she’s not as calm as she appears.

“I may be a fool, but hardly unwanted.” Tan couldn’t help but glance over at me, even as my body was still burning with her flames. “Not like some, who do little but their pretty knitting.”

“I think that’s enough. Tan answered your first question, which was about the past, the will the Valkyrie showed. And she answered it without falsehoods.” I insisted. “Their spirit is noble, and they were prepared to face the consequences. But… I don’t wish for that. As for the rest of your questions, about the Past… well, we only agreed to one question, but honestly, I think Tan’s answers were close enough anyway. It depends on who is observing and where you’re observing from, as to what’s the past or the present, and what changes the future. There is no universal answer, and… with the Prices of this Trial, that’s already a valid answer…”

“Very well.” Urðr reached out, and I shuddered. A brilliant string was drawn from me, like my Silver Cord, but shining in myriad colours. Tan growled, suddenly angry, but wasn’t physically present so couldn’t stop her.

“I see. Your thread is… Connected… to many here.” Her gaze swept over the Valkyries, who trembled, but Lin and Rose held their ground, Lin now standing proudly, scarred cheek presented pridefully, her golden eyes, similar in shade to Urðr’s, showing no hesitation. Rose was shaking, but her teasing smile was on her face, and she traced several Runes to fortify her mind, her posture recovering, pushing out her ample chest with as much pride as Lin had displayed.

“…The Past flows to the Present. Verðandi … you shall weave this thread…” She passed my strand over, and the Goddess took it, her spinning-wheel loom suddenly drawing it in. I felt strange, not harmed in any way, or helped, just… odd. For a moment it disrupted what my other Split Thoughts were doing, but I quickly forced myself to continue, despite the twin distractions of the pain of Tan’s flames, and the allure of the Goddesses.

“Before that…” Shaeula was insistent. “You do like to ask-ask questions, but you do not-not answer any! Do you concede?”

“I am satisfied by the answers provided. It is… instructive… the thoughts of… lesser beings.” Urðr was clearly still annoyed at being called a hag by Tan, as well as their work being dismissed as knitting, and I once more marvelled at how petty and human the Gods could be. Though perhaps they’d ignore it if it came from me or Shaeula, but as Taṇhā is also technically a Goddess, she’s a peer, I suppose…

As the watching Valkyries sighed in relief, all attention turned to me and Verðandi, since I would be answering her question, and she mine, assuming I could please her first. Since Tan won, that gives me an option.

Shaeula, are you confident you can answer Skuld?

Of course. I am utterly convinced. It is quite the idiotic question. But I should not need to. You will surely defeat this… show-off…

Show-off… oh… Verðandi’s dress, eyes and fingernails on one hand were cycling through an array of colours, and now they were a pale, gauzy, almost transparent white. I couldn’t see anything lewd below her dress, obviously, she was a Goddess, after all, but the illusion was there I could, and tantalising hints of her body were presented.

“Don’t burn me…” I croaked at Tan and Shaeula back in the lower Astral. “I don’t trust you not to go too far…”

Shaeula snickered at that, and Tan shook her head. “While I would be… sorely tempted… to do so, I am most certainly feeling the urge at this moment, as long as you maintain your reason…”

It was difficult, certainly, but… I’m all business now. “All right. Shaeula, I’m going to try and take a chance at getting some extra benefits out of this Trial. But to do so puts a burden on you.”

“It is my birthday. Your trust-trust in me is another gift I shall cherish.” Shaeula puffed out her chest pridefully. “Do as you see fit. Now-now… I am curious as to what she will ask, and what-what trick she will use.”

Upon Fjallahöll, Verðandi was spinning my thread, curious. Her dress had fortunately changed colour once more, matching the yellow glint in her eyes and nails tapping the wooden frame of her loom. “I see. I seek to know your Present. How best to spin the thread…” Her concentration was intense, and we paused, watching her, waiting for her question. When finally she was done, her dress had changed again, now a vivid cyan blue.

“I have seen your now. So, a question. I shall speak clearly, no deception. For the Past is a mystery, truths unknown and merely half-remembered. But the now is incontrovertible. None can dispute it, nor shall I. So, my question is thus… and thus alone… I have a matter that weighs upon me. And I would seek a solution that my heart can accept, and wisdom can come from… unlikely sources.” She glanced at Tan, who scowled back, though she too stood proudly, having seen through Urðr’s trickery. If it was a trick at all, of course…

“The tapestry I weave, from the myriad threads of the worlds beneath the World Tree, has of late been dull. Even at this moment…” She raised a hand, and again the sudden pressure of her League was intense. I knew even if she let me attack her for a week straight, throwing everything I had at her, she wouldn’t even feel it, the gap between us too great. Nuclear bombs might turn this place to glass, but she and her two sisters would simply walk out of it unharmed.

“…this Present… threads that should not be cut by my sister Skuld…” More clicking of her shears as she emphasised Verðandi’s point.

“…the brave that shall never be carried by the Choosers of the Slain to Valhalla…” The Valkyrie reacted at that, expressions knowing and mournful.

“…are removed, and it aches my heart. For a pattern must have a beginning, stretch long, and have a proper ending. So, answer me thus. How can even a single thread untimely severed in this moment be saved?”

That’s… quite the ask. “I really don’t think you’ve given me enough information to make that a fair question. If you could clarify…” I began, only for her dress to have changed colour again, the white now shimmering with the rainbow glow of aether, coursing with adherence and soullight as well, so bright as to blind my senses…

“Clarify? Then…” Upon her richly decorated golden throne, she leaned forwards, and I saw she wore bracelets of gold too, and earrings studded with precious gems in a myriad of colours. “…Elder sister, lend me the might of your world, your Urðarbrunnr. For with the Water of Seeing and Knowing, all moments can be glimpsed, that are, or have come to pass.”

Urðr nodded, and a single droplet of water appeared before her, and in that droplet, I felt a weight, an oppression, as if it had League itself, that the contents of a great lake were forged into one drop, like a neutron star, unbearably dense, yet in this case with power. The droplet floated over to Verðandi, who poked a finger into it, and used it to scribe a series of Runes, the water seeming to flow more like mercury than a simple fluid. “Laguz! Othala! Othala! Kenaz! Through the water of the Three Goddesses who control Past, Present and Future, may knowledge be seen, and inspiration granted!”

The Runes shattered, and the glittering water strokes that formed them coalesced, falling like rain in front of me, becoming a shining silver film of water on the carpet. Ignoring the marvel that it wasn’t soaked up, but instead was like a liquid mirror, I felt my vision drawn to it, and suddenly I was somewhere distant, high in the sky, wind rushing around me. No, I’m still… All my senses were disconnected from the lower Astral and even Fjallahöll, but what wasn’t cut were my bonds, Lovers’ Link and Haru’s Telepathy still intact, and they assured me I hadn’t gone anywhere, merely… fallen silent.

That’s a relief. Knowing that, I decided to focus on the task at hand, and the issue in front of me, which was… I’m falling towards the ground below at an alarming rate… this might just be an illusion, but… it does feel awfully real, and I don’t think I’d enjoy hitting the ground. It might not kill me, but…

As the array of black dots below me started to resolve into recognisable shapes under my acute vision, I realised I was absurdly high in the sky. On Earth I’d already be in the mesosphere, and if an ordinary person, likely both freezing to death and suffocating, but here, the sky was blue, and I was falling through clouds, feeling even the dampness replicated. Just how big is this damn planet I’m seeing?

I tried to slow my fall by flapping my arms and making myself wider to maximise air resistance, only to realise I wasn’t actually a physical form. I could see, hear, smell and taste, and I could feel the dampness of the clouds, but it was as if I was just a dot, able to perceive around me. As I willed it, my rate of descent slowed, and I drifted towards the plains below…

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!