A Young Wizard's Journey - The Lost Tomb

A Test of Acceptance

It was an odd sensation.

The moment his foot had crossed the threshold, the door had swung shut, knocking him inside. He staggered and slipped through one of the gaps, falling away into the infinite nothing that surrounded this corridor.

But he felt no fear, no concern for what may possibly be waiting for him at the end of this fall, the ground rushing towards him or anything like that. He just felt a sense of anticipation. As though waiting for someone.

A moment later, he realised he could stand. He wasn't falling anymore, he was sitting.

Gingerly, he got to his feet. The surrounding area was still black and empty.

Then, a voice spoke.

'Y/N L/N.'

Y/N turned. A figure stood right behind him, one that definitely hadn't been there before.

Whilst the voice itself was feminine, the figure was androgynous. The clothes covered many of what he would consider defining features. Billowing robes of gold and white floating and waving in a non-existent wind. The figure wore a hood pulled up, but it left a gap where the face should be. Though one was not there, simply an empty black void.

'Yes, that's me,' said Y/N, glancing over the figure. 'And who are you?'

'The Bastion,' said The Bastion. 'Here to guide you through your third trial and ensure that you are worthy to wield the power locked away.'

'And how do I prove myself worthy?'

'The how always changes,' said The Bastion. 'It is unique to each person, considering history and current events for them. For example, there is a great deal of turmoil within you. Unsure of which way to turn, and whether the ways you are turning are correct. You bear heavy burdens and even heavier conflict. Your "how" shall not be easy.'

'What do you know of my burdens?' asked Y/N.

'I know of the power locked within you that bursts free during moments of intense rage. I know of your current resentment towards your school's headmaster. But those are not the largest burdens you carry, you bear something even greater.'

Y/N wasn't sure what The Bastion meant. They weren't the greatest burdens? Certainly felt like they were to him.

'The largest burden lying on your shoulders...'

A face formed in the gap of the hood. Mopsus.

'A boy has been born... Born to a Dominator, and a Defier. This boy's name will be known to all, though the why, still remains to be seen...

He must be guided, or his power will overwhelm him. And he will send the world into a spiral, one from which it will not soon recover... his name shall be feared...

Should he be given this guidance, none shall be able to contest him. He will become that of legend and shall save the world from many a threat. He must... be... guided...'

Y/N's stomach tensed. No matter what "The Bastion" said, he'd forgotten all about those words.

'That Prophecy has been and done.' Said Y/N. 'It's tale long since told. Why are you bringing that up?'

The Bastion did not answer, but its silence was answer enough. But Y/N knew why, he's said much the same at the end of the previous year.

'You're not saying that it still hasn't come to pass, are you?'

'Are you saying that you are truly in permanent control of your emotions and power?' asked The Bastion. 'Can you truly say that there have been no moments where your emotions have taken hold?'