The Fey Atavism Platform looked like a solid block of rectangular stone carved with runes and rugged by time.
Ashton stood in front of it, feeling a sense of familiarity deep in his bones which he knew was coming from the Fey Bloodline coursing through him.
The platform was pitch black and covered in a dark golden sheen. Its surface was smooth, there were no bumps whatsoever. The runes were golden in color, making a beautiful contrast with the dark color of the platform itself.
There's a sense of nobility in this platform which he found inexplicable. It's probably because this was once a sacred item to the Fey which is why it has this kind of aura.
Underneath the obvious awe he held for the platform, Ashton could also feel a strong pull from it.
It's as if it was calling out to him. Which would be normal, given that he's part Fey, and this is the sacred artifact of Fey.
Ashton had already vacated his schedule for today. He made the same preparations he did during Aria's bloodline evolution but now it's for himself.
If he were to be honest, he truly has no idea how long this was going to take. The system didn't give him anything at all, so it's up to him to figure it all out on his own.
He wasn't feeling scared or anything. He just felt peaceful, strangely enough. He had been looking forward to this so he was expecting to feel a little more excited or nervous but that's not what's happening right now.
And he's perfectly fine with that...
'Alright...let's get this over with.'
Ashton decided to delay this no longer. And just in case, he took off all of his clothes and his belongings, placing them far away from him. This is just to prevent any unforeseen incident from happening.
Down to his birthday suit, Ashton stood on top of the platform.
The moment he did, he felt as if his entire body was set ablaze. His blood thrummed in his veins, he felt dizzy and hot.
An unknown force pressed down on him and made him sit down. Due to how intense how he was feeling at this very moment, he had no choice but to acquiesce.
He sat down there and crossed his legs. He closed his eyes and his consciousness was immediately pulled into another realm.
Here, he wasn't able to sense it properly. His senses were dulled to the point of numbness. He could feel something touching his arms and legs, and whatever was happening in there was penetrating deep into his muscles.
He didn't feel any sort of pain, he just felt it happening.
Ashton couldn't see shit properly either. Everything was a blur to his vision. He could see some kind of a shadow looming or fussing all over him, it would also seem that this shadow was telling him something, but just like his other senses, his ears were also not working properly at this point.
This happened for a while it would seem since his perception of time was going all over the place as well. After that though, he began feeling a sense of discomfort occurring to his whole body.
It started weak and negligible, but as time passed, it turned into a burn that seeped through his soul.
This gave him some mixed signals actually. He initially thought that his senses were numb but why is he feeling a great deal of pain now? What exactly was going on here?
The pain became the sole thing he could think of at one point since it was incredibly agonizing. It was like someone was roasting him alive, it was awful.
Then, visions started flashing past his eyes.
At first, they were blurry thanks to his numbed senses but as time passed by, they became clearer and clearer but he still can't make out the faces he was seeing.
The visions seem to have been snippets of memories. From who? Ashton had no idea. But one thing's for sure, these memories came from someone incredibly powerful.
In those visions, he saw a beautiful, vast, and peaceful kingdom. He felt the harmony of this kingdom with its environment. The Environment provides them with what they need and the people protect it. Vice versa applies.
The most eye-catching thing about his visions was the incredible tree they worshipped.
Ashton was cognizant enough to catch what they were calling it; El Holy Tree. This is probably this world's version of Yggdrasil.
He didn't see it technically, he only saw it from the scroll that he saw from the vision and its massive roots that could put the Dragon Vein to shame.
Ashton could feel a strong and intimate kinship between him and that tree but it confusing for him since he didn't know if he was the one who was feeling that connection or if it was just the visions affecting him in ways he couldn't understand.
The visions kept coming and going until they arrived at an apocalyptic scene. There, he saw how that same kingdom got reduced to mere rubble. He had seen tons of lives being wasted thanks to the great disaster that occurred.
There were fires everywhere, he heard the agonized cries of loss and grievances and it was profoundly affecting him. It was heartbreaking.
The owner of these visions chose to sacrifice their very life to ignite the roots of that majestic tree. Burning it from there. He didn't understand why this person made that decision but he wasn't in control so he had no say.
The last visions he saw were ashes flooding the entire kingdom, burying it deep underground until no traces of it were left. Then, it ends there.
Ashton felt his consciousness returning to his body, he felt his senses returning to him and he could feel the pain receding.
Slowly but surely, he opened his eyes.
From the moment he did, he felt the world spinning around him. A flood of new insights swarmed him mercilessly, wanting to drag him to the depths that might overwhelm his brain.
Thankfully, 'Concentration' was triggered. His mind went into overdrive and his rate of comprehension was massively boosted, allowing him to digest everything that was being force-fed to him.
What Ashton hadn't discovered yet since he hadn't had the time to do so, was that his appearance changed a lot thanks to the activation of his bloodline.
Now that he's half-fay, he got taller.
Ashton was already taller than most people his age but even more so now after the transformation. Before his hair only had faint traces of verdant but now, they turned completely into a deep verdant color.
His left eye turned hazel, forming an incredible contrast with the Right Eye of Purity which was blue. He was slender and fairer, his features became sharper as well.
His ears didn't get pointy unlike what he was expecting, but that was fine. In fact, it's better that way. At least he doesn't need to worry about this at all.
Sensing deeper around him, one could sense how attuned he was naturally to his surroundings effortlessly. He just blended in, he also had this refreshing atmosphere around him, making it look like he was easy to talk to.
Mana adores him, not just because he's the Child of Mana. It's that and many others things. Even more so now that he had transformed. They seem to be dancing around him as if they wanted to catch his attention.
To top this all off, even the Laws adore him.
Flowers bloomed around him, each flower was unique and swayed left and right as if they were singing to him.
Tiny golems made out of the earth, fires that shaped various creatures, and tiny whirlwinds surrounded him, acting like children and guards at the same time.
It's as if they're celebrating, welcoming the arrival of their wise ruler.
Then, the System Prompts flooded in...
[Fey Atavism, achieved. Your Fey Emperor Bloodline thrums in activity and nature rejoices at your glorious awakening.]
[Synergy Detected: Providence — Fey Emperor's Blessings reacted to your Atavism! Changes applied.]
[Providence: Fey Emperor's Blessings (Reworked)]
• Nature's Blessings: You will receive a scaling increase in your power depending on how much vitality nature has around you. Current Boost: 10%
• Empyrean Fate: Your Rule attracts the blessings of the Laws themselves. The more prosperous your nation is, the more powerful you are.
• Ruler's Privilege: Your Luck is massively increased.
Ashton woke up shortly after the Concentration State was over. Once he opened his eyes, a vibrant verdant glow exploded from his body. Flora and fauna grew at an unprecedented rate around him, and before long his seclusion site turned into an indoor greenhouse with the sheer vegetation around.
He looked at this all with a pacified expression. With a swipe of his hand, his belongings flew to him and he changed into a new set of clothes.
An otherwordly aura rose from him, he stood amongst nature and felt a deep sense of belonging. A silhouette of a jeweled crown appeared on top of his head, and his subjects knelt before him.
This brought a deep sense of satisfaction within him.
