Panic clawed at Raiden’s throat. Those ancient, fading eyes locked onto him, spanning the distance with an unnerving clarity. Every instinct screamed flee. He was prey exposed, a tiny mammal caught in the gaze of a dying god. He scrambled backwards, turning to sprint, to put as much distance as possible between himself and the impossible scene, the dying titan, the lingering aura of the vanished portal. Survival surged, primal and absolute.
But as he risked one last glance back, his feet stumbling on the loose rock, something shifted within him. It wasn't a sound, not a word, but a feeling – a profound wave of weariness, sorrow, and strangely, a gentle insistence emanating from the crumpled rainbow form. It wasn’t malicious, held no threat. It felt like a desperate plea, a final request resonating directly in his mind, bypassing his ears entirely. The raw terror warred with this inexplicable connection, this silent call. He stopped, halfway turned, frozen in indecision. The creature was dying. Whatever it was, it wouldn't hurt him now. Its fight was over. Curiosity, that dangerous northern trait, mingled with an unexpected surge of empathy for the magnificent being bleeding out its life on the ravaged earth. Taking a deep breath, heart still hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird, Raiden turned fully and began to descend the tor, moving not with the frantic speed of escape, but with a cautious, deliberate pace towards the fallen behemoth.
He approached slowly, the sheer scale of the creature becoming more apparent up close. Each remaining feather was as long as his arm, shimmering faintly even now. The wound on its flank was horrific, a gaping tear oozing not blood, but fading light and dissipating energy. The air around it crackled softly, the last vestiges of its immense power leaking away. Raiden stopped a respectful distance away, awed and intimidated.
The creature’s great head rested on the ground, its breathing shallow, intermittent shudders running through its massive frame. It watched him approach, its eyes holding an ancient, weary intelligence. Then, with a final, rattling cough, it opened its beak slightly. Something small and intensely bright rolled out onto the scorched ground before Raiden.
It was a Beast Core, but unlike any he had ever seen or imagined. It wasn't merely blue, red, green, yellow, or dark blue. It pulsed with all those colours simultaneously, swirling and shifting within its crystalline structure like captured nebulae. It radiated a power so immense, so multifaceted, that the Rank 3 cores integrated into his body felt like mere pebbles beside a mountain. A rainbow core, born from a being that commanded all elements.
Then, clear as a spoken voice inside his head, yet utterly alien, came the beast’s thought:
Raiden flinched back, eyes wide with alarm. "Absorb it?" he stammered aloud, forgetting the creature likely didn't understand spoken language. "But… I can't! I have no affinity! A core like this… it will kill me!" The laws of Core absorption were absolute. A Physical Core user could only gain physical attributes. Attempting to absorb elemental energy without a corresponding affinity, especially from a core radiating all primary elements at such an overwhelming grade, was suicide. His body would be torn apart from the inside out by the conflicting, uncontrolled energies. He instinctively shifted, ready to dodge if the core was somehow launched at him.
A wave of understanding, tinged with urgency, washed over him from the dying beast.
The meaning was unmistakable. The legendary creature, in its last moments, was offering not just its core, but its assistance, a temporary bridge to allow the impossible: for a non-elementalist to absorb a multi-elemental core of unimaginable power. But the offer was fleeting. Its life force was the only thing holding the volatile energies of the core stable and preventing its disintegration into nothingness. Raiden stood at a precipice, the impossible choice laid bare: seize this unbelievable, terrifying gift, trusting the dying words of an alien mind, or let potentially world-altering power vanish forever. The rainbow core pulsed faintly on the ground, its light already seeming a fraction dimmer than moments before.
The pulsing rainbow light of the core seemed to call to a part of him he never knew existed, a deep-seated hunger for something more than just physical prowess. The risk was colossal, oblivion the likely outcome. But the potential… it was cosmic, world-altering. To command the elements like the dying god before him, even a fraction of its power… it was a lure too potent to resist. This was a chance born from impossible circumstances, a gift from a being beyond legend. To refuse felt like a betrayal, not just of the creature's final wish, but of his own hidden aspirations.
Taking another shaky breath, Raiden knelt before the core. Father, Mother… forgive me if this is folly. I hope to see you again… but if not, know I reached for something magnificent. He closed his eyes, picturing their faces – his father’s stern but proud gaze, his mother’s gentle smile. Steeling his resolve, he reached out, his hand trembling slightly, and placed it firmly upon the rainbow core.
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The moment his skin made contact, the beast’s mental voice surged, louder, more focused.
An explosion of sensation detonated within Raiden. It wasn't pain, not exactly, but an overwhelming flood of raw energy, pure and terrifyingly potent. It surged up his arm, bypassing flesh and bone, connecting directly to something deeper, his nascent core matrix perhaps, or something more fundamental. He felt the distinct signatures of all five primary elements simultaneously – the crushing weight of Earth, the soaring freedom of Wind, the fluid power of Water, the searing intensity of Fire, and the sharp, electric crackle of Thunder. They didn't tear him apart as he’d feared; instead, guided by the fading consciousness of the rainbow beast, they began to weave together, integrating into his being in a way that felt utterly alien yet strangely natural.
His existing Physical Cores resonated, humming fiercely as the new power washed over them, augmenting them, changing them, infusing them with something far greater. But the most profound change was in his perception. It was like shutters being thrown open on windows he never knew he possessed.
He could feel the mountain beneath him, not just the rock under his knees, but the deep strata, the veins of ore, the flow of hidden water (Earth & Water). He felt the wind swirling around the peaks miles away, tasting the moisture it carried, sensing the subtle pressure changes (Wind). He felt the latent heat within the rock, the memory of sunlight absorbed hours ago (Fire). He felt the static charge building in the high atmosphere, the distant potential for lightning (Thunder). The entire environment unfolded around him, a tapestry of interconnected energies he was suddenly, intimately, a part of.
Beyond the immediate surroundings, his senses reached further, touching upon the life force, the core-signatures, of distant Crystal Beasts. He could feel the sullen, Rank 4 anger of a Stonehide Behemoth slumbering in a cave miles to the west, the nervous energy of a pack of Rank 3 Volt Foxes hunting far below in the timberline, even the faint, flickering signals of Rank 1 creatures scattered across the plains. The stronger the beast, the brighter its signature burned in his newfound awareness. It was like a new layer of reality had been unveiled, a map of power overlaid onto the physical world.
The process felt like an eternity compressed into moments. As the last vestiges of the rainbow energy settled within him, integrating seamlessly, the guiding presence in his mind faded, like a candle flame guttering out. He opened his eyes.
The magnificent body of the rainbow beast was gone. It hadn't decayed or rotted; it had simply… dissolved. Where it had lain, only scorched earth and the lingering scent of ozone and exotic energies remained. The creature had poured its entire remaining essence, its very being, into the core and the transference.
Raiden pushed himself to his feet, feeling strangely light, yet grounded. Power thrummed beneath his skin, a symphony of elements waiting to be conducted. He flexed his hand, and instinctively, pebbles near his feet trembled and rose slightly (Earth). He focused, and a small spark danced between his fingertips (Fire/Thunder). He felt the potential for wind, for water, churning within him. He was no longer just Raiden Maru, the Rank 3 Physical Core user. He was something… new. Something impossible. A hunger, not for food, but to use this power, to understand its limits, surged through him. He needed to test it. Now.
Reaching into the sturdy leather pouch at his belt, Raiden’s fingers closed around a smooth, cool crystal – the Rank 2 Water Beast Core he’d taken from a Deepmire Serpent yesterday. He’d planned to absorb it later, hoping for a minor boost to his stamina or maybe improved underwater tolerance, the typical gains for a Physical Core user processing an elemental core. Now, holding it felt entirely different.
Before, it would have just felt like a lump of inert crystal, maybe slightly cool to the touch. Now, as he held it, he could feel the distinct energy signature within – a gentle, flowing pulse, cool and adaptable, unmistakably the essence of Water. It resonated with a specific part of the power now humming within him, the aspect linked to the blue hues he'd seen in the rainbow creature and its core.
With a surge of anticipation, he pressed the core against his palm again, mirroring the process he’d used just moments ago, though this time without the dying god’s guidance. He focused his intent, willing the core’s energy into himself.
The absorption was startlingly smooth, far easier than any core he’d processed before. The Rank 2 Water energy flowed into him like a gentle stream merging with a vast river system. It didn't just enhance his physical being – although he did feel a subtle increase in his body's resilience and perhaps flexibility – it flowed directly into the 'Water' channel established by the rainbow core. He felt his connection to the element solidify, deepen. It was like adding fuel to a newly lit fire.
More than just raw energy, knowledge bloomed in his mind – an instinctual understanding, a fragment of the Deepmire Serpent's own abilities. He suddenly knew, without being taught, how to draw moisture from the air, how to shape a small amount of water, how to sense nearby liquid sources. A specific skill surfaced in his awareness: [Lesser Water Whip]. He felt he could now conjure a short tendril of water and lash out with it.
It was confirmation. The rainbow core hadn't just given him raw, undifferentiated power; it had fundamentally altered his nature, granting him affinity, or at least the potential for affinity, across the elemental spectrum. Absorbing this simple Rank 2 Water core wasn't just a minor physical boost anymore; it was the first step in actively cultivating the Water aspect of his newfound power. He had truly become an Elementalist, albeit one with a foundation unlike any other known in Ashuran. A grin spread across Raiden's face, sharp and excited. The world had just opened up in ways he'd never dared to dream.
Late Afternoon, 15/04/3150 AE