Chapter 310: Proving your worth

"What?" Aiden froze on the spot, looking at the floating figure of the lordly spirit with a stunned expression. "What do you mean? I-I d-don't understand… H-how? W-who-" 

It took him a bit but it finally dawned on him. A single, loud thump could be heard echoing in the small room, as the realization hit Aiden for the nth time in short succession.

The obvious truth was right in front of his eyes. The only person that was with him ever since he could remember. His lips quivered as his mind tried to overcome yet another burden and process the weight behind such a piece of information.

However, the information seemed to be contradicting his first conversations, his very first discussion with his guide. She was an aide assigned to him together with the system that pushed him towards a predetermined direction, whilst ensuring he would have ample opportunities to gain the required power to achieve all he was meant to.

"Y-you can't possibly mean…" He muttered more to himself than to the guardian. 

The spirit didn't respond, at least not at first, but instead changed the topic after a while.

"It seems, all of this was still too much for you. Alas, no matter, you are aware of some of the truths related to your very self. However…"

Suddenly, his blurry figure began to clear out, gaining a solid, material form. The very same dragon-shaped set of armored warriors appeared in front of Aiden. In his right hand, the fearsome-looking, obsidian sword.

Behind the visor, a pair of bright golden pair of slits appeared, focusing his piercing gaze on the calm-looking youngster. Akin to a small whirlwind of breeze the air around the figure abruptly blew up, blowing a gust of wind toward the boy, startling him. 

There was no visible pressure of force, there was no struggle, yet, Aiden could feel a sharp battle intent, an aura honed through hundreds if not thousands of fierce clashes and bloodshed.

Raising his sword, he pointed the ebony tip at Aiden, his voice turning solemn, cold.

"Youngster, bearing my long-forgotten name. Revenant of the Voragons! Before you can gain the blessing of the Voragon Sanctum, the first of the Hidden Primal Shrines, you have to prove that you are worthy! You have to prove that you have the strength to carry on the burden that was unjustly placed on you! Show me that your mother's sacrifice was not in vain!"

Following his words, a notification appeared in front of Aiden, blocking his vision and informing him of a quest update.

[Main Quest: The Secrets of the Demon Grotto has been updated!

Objectives: - Find and Explore the Demon Grotto (2 / 2 - Completed!)

- Uncover its Secret (1/1 - Completed!)

- Earn its owners acceptance

Optional:  - Merge with the Guardian Spirit (Warning: The feat will require the simultaneous activation and use of the Primal Absorb racial skill empowered with the Blessing of Ioris effect. Caution: The strain on the host's core will be immense!)]

Although the update finally confirmed that he completed most of the objective, his expression still soured. As his eyes wandered to the optional section, the fact that he would have to absorb something, -either the spirit itself or probably the egg still resting on the altar-, dawned on him. He would effectively have to merge with his father's leftover spirit! How cruel was that?

His body shook with this realization, his state of mind that was already quite burdened, and his swirling emotions that were still quite chaotic, caused the boy to slowly lose his grip, his control over his own body. His eyes lit up once again, first with the usual bright golden color, but slowly from the far corners, the shade of vermillion began to gradually seep in, turning the single luster in a gradient tone, slowly gaining territory and domain.

Before he could go berserk once again, Aiden could suddenly feel the presence of the little white globe of light, his guide appeared in his mind.

'[Calm down, Aiden! He is only an echo, a copy of your father. He is merely the guardian of the sanctum, his only job is to pass the heritage and title onto you. The system correctly understands this and is simply shining its light on the best possible path you should be taking.]'

Her words, filled with concern towards him, managed to reach him, causing the dark red saturation to slowly recede from his eyes. Regaining the clarity of his mind, he matched the guardian spirit's gaze. He nodded, mostly to Enya's words, and whilst he had many questions he wanted to ask her, he understood that it was not the right time. He had one last test to do, one last hurdle he needed to overcome.

Without turning away from the spirit, he simultaneously activated all of his innate skills. His [Dragon's Wrath] the draconic heritage, assisted by his [Shapeshifter] caused a rapid transformation, changing and morphing his body. His wings, his tail appeared, the surface of his skin turned glossy, golden as his scales appeared all over his body. At the tip of his now much thicker fingers thick, curved ebony claws could be seen.

But this was not the end of his changes. The new, fused aura that he created through the unplanned fusion of skills in the spirit world exploded from within him with such ferocity that it caused the walls around the room to crack under the impossible pressure.

Following that, a dark smoke seeped from under his golden scales, the [King's Grip] the strange gaseous form of energy that he inherited from the perfected [Worgen Form] formed a dark cloud-like barrier around his body.

Finally, with the assistance of the [Mystic Martial Arts] skill, the end of his clawed hands and the base of his feet brimmed with a faint colorless light; the flow of his inner [Soul Power] was focused on his limbs to provide, even more, explosive strength and momentum for the inevitable clash between father and son.

Although the changes were substantial his transformation only took a couple of seconds to complete. In reality, it looked as if he was suddenly engulfed with a bright golden pillar of light, and as that faded, a new creature was revealed to the outside world. The strain on his energy reserves was tremendous, Aiden knew he couldn't keep up this enhanced state for long; he had to end this battle in a few hits, otherwise, he would surely lose.

"It's still hard for me…" Still, despite the pressure of time, he spoke with his changed, much deeper, draconic tone of voice. His powerful volume thundered across not just the small room, but across the large hall outside.

"...I still can't fully accept what you have told and shown to me. Even if I can feel that it is the truth, it's just too hard… There are so many confusing memories… If everything is true then what was the purpose of my previous life? Was it all just a dream?!"

Not waiting for a response, Aiden shook his head as he continued to speak.

"No. That can't be. It was real, I felt the love and care of my parents there. I had friends, I had a decent life before it was unjustly stolen from me!"

A distortion appeared, spreading like akin to a wave on the surface of the raging ocean, it rippled across the empty space crashing into the walls, causing further damage to appear.

"I had a decent life! I never asked for any of this! Why do I need to care about the struggles of this world?! DID ANY OF YOU ASKED IF I WANTED ANY OF THIS?!"

He roared, as he suddenly launched himself towards the armored spirit. As his entire figure blurred due to the otherworldly speed he inserted, it only took Aiden a fraction of a second to appear in front of the calmly standing guardian and punch forward with all the pent-up stress and raging emotions that kept causing chaos. 

The look on his face was fierce, he was clearly, visibly tormented by all the pain that accumulated in his heart throughout all he had learned.

However, unlike what he envisioned in his mind, didn't happen. His surprise attack didn't connect, as out of nowhere, the guardian spirit's obsidian blade appeared blocking his trajectory.  A loud bang blustered in the room, sending a sonic ripple to all directions, pushing both sides a few feet away from each other.

"Not bad, son. It was a decent first strike." Lowering his weapon, the spirit expressed with a calm but satisfied tone. "Just what I was expecting from my kin!" 

Whilst he fixed his grip due to the aching pain he could feel in his palm, he spoke with an expectant grin behind his closed visor.

"Now, let's see if you can block an attack from me! Show me if you are truly worthy Aiden Voragon!" 

Following up his exclamation, his body bolted forward with a speed that easily matched the boy's and even surpassing it by several folds. As his much larger body surged through the air, a still image of his figure was left behind, lingering in the air as an afterimage for a fleeting moment before it dissipated in the air.

The clash between the two has just begun!