All around him, there was nothing but white.
"Is this the Ancestral connection they spoke of?"
Grey wondered, taking some steps forward.
The Theo Race had a unique system and each time they held the coming of age ceremony, they brought the candidates over to the Ancestral Pool which was filled with Mentis—The spiritual energy tied to mental cultivation in the realm of Theo.
"What is this!"
A curious voice echoed in the space and Grey looked around trying to find it's source.
"Umm. Hello...Mr ancestor?"
"Ugh!"
The space suddenly became heavy as he uttered those words and he could barely move or even take a few breaths as he was forced to his knees.
The white light in the space around him dimmed a little as a figure condensed before him, a figure which he could only see an outline of.
No matter how hard he tried to, there was a sort of veil, something preventing him from seeing the true appreance of who stood in front of him.
Despite all this, he was sure that this was an ancestor of his. The weird feeling in his chest, like there was something linking him with the figure said it all.
'Damn, I thought ancestors were supposed to be nice to their descendants!'
"Watch your thoughts, chick!"
The figure suddenly spoke as if reading his thoughts, chilling the bones of Grey.
"That spear in your hand, I've see it before!"
"Belongs to my father. He's dead!"
"Hmm. The weapon of a warrior isn't passed down otherwise. So, you are his son?"
The figure asked once more, stopping it's advance right in front of him.
'Isn't that obvious. What kind of ancestor can't tell that. I literally said it was my dad's weapon!'
"Yes, great ancestor!"
Grey facepalmed internally, but still responded politely to him.
"You make shame of me, young one. But I don't mind! I find a character like yours rather interesting, a breath of fresh air after remaining in slumber for quite a while!"
The figure said, with a small chuckle. Each word it spoke seemed to contain something hidden, a subtle power that couldn't be hidden, expressing itself in each of his actions. But Grey could feeling something off beyond that.
"Smart child!"
The ancestor complimented with what Grey felt was a smile.
"Unfortunately, I cannot help you!"
The ancestors next words forced Grey to look up in surprise and alarm, the nervousness he had before this moment all turning into anger.
"What do you mean you can't help me??!"
He half screamed looking at the white figure in front of him. Even being that close, all he could see was am outline letting him know that something was in front of him.
"Calm yourself young one!"
The ancestor's voice hardened a little as it pressed a finger down and the force on Grey multipled, forcing him to go on all fours.
"You may be my descendant, but I will not tolerate disrespect!"
A terrifying aura washed over Grey for a spit second after those words, making him shove the words he wanted to say back down his throat.
Even his thoughts had suddenly become more sincere.
"Better!"
The figure's voice returned back to normal.
"I cannot help you because while being my descendant, you are already claimed by another. Your ancestry isn't mine to give nor decide!"
The figure in front of him resolutely said.
"Wha—"
"That's enough! I have had my fill of your company, but you do not belong here. Leave!"
The figure interrupted Grey with a few words and he could feel the force which held him down, suddenly pulling him out.
When he opened his eyes, he was still underwater and he swam up to the surface under the cover of the rocks protecting him from most eyes.
He had specifically picked this angle for a reason after all.
"What the hell!"
Frustration laced his voice as he thought about the weird but fruitless encounter with that ancestor of his.
"What the fuck did he mean my ancestry wasn't his to claim?"
Having come from a noble house, each of them already had an idea of what to expect when they got into the pool.
The pool filled with mentis, allowed them to connect to one of their ancestors of their dominant bloodline.
Since he had seen the ancestors of the Altharion house, that meant his dominant bloodline was that of his father. His mother was never in his life and hadn't shown any relevance so far either.
Everything he had passed through was according to what had been explained to them. Well, until his ancestor started spouting some bullshit.
At the point of contact with one's ancestor, their conversation and discussions with them were considered a private matter, but one thing remained the same. They received their blessing and a very miniscule portion of power directly from their ancestor which gave them the chance to unlock the Ancestral path.
Grey had just lost that opportunity and couldn't even walk the normal path because he lacked runes.
The Theo Race was a mystic race who had their culture built around those runes. Being runeless in a race like that was no different than being an outcast. It was unheard of!
Looking around, with the fog now gone from his vision, Grey spotted the others with their eyes still closed. He didn't know how long he had taken, having that pointless conversation with that detestable ancestor of his, he was faster than the others.
His eyes still spotted others who had stepped out of a meditative state just like him.
"Sigh, lucky bastards!"
Grey muttered seeing all of them step back into a state of concentration as a unique aura floated around them, something he assumed to be the ancestors blessing he had been told about.
'I might just have to fake it!'
He thought, knowing that it was completely impossible to pull something like that off. The others present might be too occupied with their ancestry and wouldn't be able to tell, but his uncle and the older generation would see through him with a single glance.
"We are fucked!"
He muttered thinking of what was going to become of the Altharion house and name after this.
They had slowly been losing influence, and going on a downfall ever since his father died. His uncle refused to perform the full duties that his father did, especially the long voyages, choosing to stay back for the sake of his nephew.
He never said that, but Grey knew. He wasn't blind after all.
'Hmm...'
While the others couldn't see, he could sense the presence of Grey behind those rocks and his aura was turbulent.
'Why is he like that?"
Nolan thought, his expression concealing all thoughts of worry. He could sense something faint around Grey.
It wasn't like the aura the rest had flowing around them, but it was enough to let him know that he had met with the ancestor of the Altharion house.
After a few hours, everyone had gone through the process, receiving blessings of various degrees from their ancestors and most of them bore excited expressions on their faces, as they tried to assimilate the blessings.
"Haaaa!"
Well, every one but Grey. He was bored.
The whole thing with the ancestor had gone out his mind in just a few minutes. What had happened had, had happened. There was nothing he could do. Rather, there was one thing he did. Shrug his shoulders and accept fate.
To pass time, he had spent the last few hours admiring and inspecting his father's spear. A delicate piece of art.
He had never had the chance of touching this spear. Just like the figure the white space had said. The weapon of a warrior was only passed down after death.
Whist memorizing every curve and rune on the weapon, Grey resisted the urge to swing the spear around and free his soul.
Fortunately for him, he didn't have to wait much longer as the voice of the instructor from before reached their ears again.
"The first stage has been completed. Now, we move on!"
He said, floating away from them.
His words brought every one back from their thoughts as they were reminded of the second and final part of the ceremony, a vast fighting spirit filling the pool whose shine had dimmed considerably.
After the first process which they had just gone through. They were sent home, given until evening to internalize whatever they could and at the end of the day, they would all be gathered in a fight against each other.
It was a culture that felt a little barbaric, but at the end of the day. The Theo Race was a warrior race and power was the most important thing when it came to battle.
Grey's expression was as relaxed as always as he followed the crowd out through a tunnel at the side. The figure of Alex coming into view as he swiped his thumb across his neck, sending a threatening gesture at Grey.