Fulcrum of Light (Catalyst Book 2) C.J. Aaron (unputdownable books .TXT) 📖

matched the others as they filled the gentle sloping hills around where he stood with startling speed.

Their approach halted at the border of the circular stone floor. They remained silent as their numbers continued to multiply. Ryl rose to his feet, ignorant of the foreign feeling that came from the use of his legs. He rotated slowly, watching in fascination as they packed into a single, tight group. The bowl he stood in was nearing the verge of overflowing, when the last of the green specters arrived. For a moment, he watched in fascination as they took their places with the others. The apparitions stood like statues, motionless save for the gentle movement of their cloaks.

The silence stretched on as Ryl surveyed the masses that surrounded him. The details of the ghostly figures were strikingly clear; each man and woman wore a similar impassive look across their face. To an individual, all looked familiar, as if he’d known their faces, yet never knew their names.

In unison, the phrenics spoke. Their lips remained locked, sealed in the same expression, yet their voices resonated from within. The sound came from all sides at once. Ryl could hear the distinct voices of the countless thousands that surrounded him. He could make out the slight differences in their inflection, yet they spoke in perfect unison.

Though startling in numbers, the combined voices came as nothing more than a whisper.

“It is time you understand the true power, the knowledge that lives inside of you,” the sound echoed in his ears, reverberating through his body.

The waves of sound highlighted the absence, the supreme loss he felt from the disappearance of the alexen. It was in that instant, that the realization dawned on him. The force of the impact the knowledge imparted caused Ryl to fall backward a step.

The alexen had returned.

They now stood a matter of meters away, gathered in a mass around the edge of the stone circle.

With perfect unison, the impassive looks on their faces morphed into a knowing smile.

“It is time you answer your true calling,” the voices rose in volume, taking on a song-like quality. “There is unbalance among the scales of light and dark. It is time that you take your place among the ranks of phrenic before you.”

“Enlightened.”

“Let our combined knowledge guide you.”

“Empowered.”

“Let our united strength flow through your arms.”

“Enhanced.”

“Let our speed radiate from your veins.”

“Awakened.”

“Let the marks on your skin be a reminder to all.”

As the apparitions finished speaking, Ryl felt the air around him shift, followed by a sensation that made his stomach churn. He felt the stone beneath his feet drop away as his body lifted into the air. Though he only elevated a matter of a few meters the sudden change was alarming. From the group there came a sudden wave of anticipation.

He turned his head to the side, in response, his body spun slowly in the same direction. One at a time, individuals from the gathering of the translucent specters of the phrenic surrounding him rose to meet him.

As the first cleared the heads of those standing beside it, the figure darted forward. The phrenic closed the distance between he and Ryl in a flash. Dropping its shoulder, the apparition barreled into Ryl at full speed. With little warning, he clenched the muscles in his core, flinching as he braced for the impact.

The expected force of the collision between their bodies was absent. Ryl felt a hint of warmth radiate throughout his body, followed by a tingling feeling in his right arm, just above his wrist. His eyes grew wide. At the epicenter of the sensation, a tiny patch of black appeared on his skin.

Following the first, the specters slammed into his body with increasing speed. From all directions they assailed him. Every impact spreading the warmth that brewed within his veins. He could feel the alexen that had been absent increasing piece by piece. He watched with rapt attention as the individual black dots tattooed his body from within.

Beginning at his right wrist, the individual points formed designs that snaked their way up his forearm, passed his elbow, covering it to his shoulder. Ryl rotated his arm watching as the patterns formed before his eyes. It was of little surprise that the foundation of the design was treen in nature. The markings were textured like bark with the leafy vines that crisscrossed over his arm. The winding vines were eerily reminiscent of those surrounding the heart of the Erlyn. Even the most minute details of the designs were evident, yet they seemed to move with a blurring speed distorting the image. His eyes could never focus on the same point again, as if the image was in a constant state of flux. The sturdy tree and its vines appeared to be swaying, as if caught in the grasp of a powerful, unseen wind.

Over his right shoulder the final pair of leaves at the pinnacle of the vines deviated from those below. They crossed over each other, one point touching the inside, the other the outside of his shoulder. They were instantly recognizable to Ryl. The leaves radiated waves of heat as they burned with fire.

Ryl admired the beauty of the masterwork on his right arm. His eyes traveled to his opposite arm. He couldn’t help the feeling of alarm as the pinpoints of black continued spreading down his left arm. Ryl scanned the surrounding phrenic apparitions; their numbers had diminished significantly, though thousands remained.

His left arm filled rapidly, as the apparitions continued to flow into him. The familiar warmth grew steadily into a fire within his veins. Ryl watched as those remaining grew fewer and fewer, their impacts grew more sporadic. He counted the last remaining phrenics.

Three.

Two.

One.

The last collided with an unexpected, jarring impact that sent him plummeting to the ground. He struck the circular stone flat on his back with a force that stole the air from his lungs. The golden sun in the distance flared, drowning his vision in white.

Chapter 41