Awakening: I Ascend Alone-Chapter 30: Crimson Moon

"Before the Crimson Moon finally appears, I would like to show you all something you have to know."

At those words, the murmur inside the vast hall slowly died down. Almost instinctively, the Climbers turned in a clockwise direction.

There, standing on a short stone platform beside the massive slab known to Melvin as the Stone of Names, was Instructor Vale. The platform was not very tall, but it was enough to elevate him above the sea of students so that everyone inside the Circular Dome could see him clearly.

His calm eyes swept across the hall before he gestured toward the enormous stone slabs beside him.

The Climbers followed his gesture.

The stone of names stood tall and ancient, just like Melvin had remembered it from his previous arrival. Hundreds of glowing runes flickered faintly on it, burning like a tiny flame against the gray surface.

And by the side of the ancient stone was still the smaller one that bore his name.

"This," Vale began, "is called the Stone of Life."

Instead of the expected whispers, the hall only remained whole in silence. But the tension that filled the air was worth the while.

"The Academy calls it that because this stone tells us something very important." He paused, letting the tension settle. "It tells us which of our students are still alive."

Melvin’s gaze sharpened as Vale continued calmly.

"Every name engraved on this stone represents a Climber who has entered the Silver Spire. The position of the name indicates the step that Climber has reached. As long as the name remains bright, that Climber is still alive."

Melvin stared at the glowing inscriptions once again. His eyes moved across the different rows of names until they landed on one in particular.

Ruven.

The name still burned steadily beside the symbol of the fifth step. Melvin blinked in disbelief.

’He’s still alive...’

It wasn’t that he wished the boy or girl, whoever that name belonged to, to be dead. It was just that being able to live alone for a long time was...

’Well, since I did it, why can’t that bearer?’

Then his eyes dropped lower, toward the section that represented the second step. A strange feeling crept into his chest as he saw that none of the names were fading.

It was a good thing to know, but Melvin continued to have this strange feeling about it.

Instructor Vale’s voice shattered his cloud of thoughts.

"Once you are transported to the Silver Spire, your names will automatically appear on the Stone of Life. From that moment onward, the Academy will be able to monitor your condition."

He let the words sink in. It could have been general knowledge, especially among Climbers who visited the library, but he needed to fulfill his duty regardless. Then, he clapped his hands softly.

"Now, return your attention to the dimensional counters."

The Climbers obediently turned back toward the towering devices, and a collective gasp erupted from the crowd.

Behind the dimensional counters, the smooth stone wall suddenly tore apart, splitting open like a curtain peeling away to reveal the chamber hidden behind it.

Melvin’s eyes widened.

Inside the newly revealed hall stood row upon row of transparent chambers. They resembled glass coffins, though far more refined and eerie in design. The material was clear like crystal, but faint streams of energy flowed across their surfaces like veins of light.

Inside each chamber... lay a human body. Dozens, even hundreds of them.

The Climbers watched this in dismay. They all froze where they stood.

"These are Stasis Reliquaries."

Instructor Vale spoke again, his voice echoing through the stunned silence.

"When you are transported to the Silver Spire, the dimensional counters automatically create a space for your physical body here."

He gestured toward the endless rows of crystal chambers.

"Your bodies will remain inside these reliquaries while your consciousness journeys through the Spire, until you return."

A few students visibly shuddered. Melvin, however, was giving a different reaction to the situation.

’Does that mean my body was once here too?’

Oblivious of the thought raising in Melvin’s mind, Vale folded his hands behind his back.

"Trust me," he said calmly. "This is how it has always been. The Academy has no control over the process, nor do we fully understand how it works..."

He was still speaking when a sharp sound echoed through the chamber.

Everyone turned toward the source and saw that one of the Stasis Reliquaries had suddenly fractured. Thin lines of light spread across the crystal surface before the entire chamber shattered into fragments of energy.

The body inside it vanished instantly.

"Gone. Just like that," one of the Climbers unknowingly said out loud in fear.

However, the feeling was general. A wave of dread swept through the hall.

"It appears," Vale said quietly, "that one of the Climbers had just died."

Almost immediately, dozens of eyes shot back toward the Stone. And there it was.

One of the glowing names had begun to fade. The letters dimmed slowly like a candle being extinguished.

Fear gripped the crowd in the hall like a vice. The meaning was unmistakable.

Death in the Silver Spire... was death in the real world.

Uneasy whispers suddenly replaced the unsettling silence that had filled the hall.

Instructor Vale raised a hand.

"Calm yourselves."

His voice carried the firm authority of someone who had seen this many times before. And one more thing, Hope.

"Yes, the danger is real," he admitted. "But that does not mean your fate is sealed."

He looked across the mass of Climbers, and his eyes halted at the sight of Melvin.

"As long as you cooperate and work together inside the Silver Spire, your chances of survival will increase dramatically."

But before he could continue, a deep vibration rippled through the hall.

The circular dome had begun to tremble, causing gasps and shouts to erupt among the Climbers. Yet strangely, despite the intensity of the tremor, nothing broke... or was affected.

It was as if the structure itself had been built to absorb the force of this exact moment.

"The Crimson Moon!" one instructor shouted.

Immediately, orders began flying through the hall.

"All Climbers, move toward the dimensional counters!"

"Stand on the platform carriers!"

"Quickly. Quickly!"

The climbers scrambled forward, climbing onto the circular platform beneath each counter.

Melvin stepped onto one of them, his heart pounding. A strange sensation crept up his spine.

So, the crimson moon had finally appeared, and when they weren’t keeping time.

A blinding beam of red light suddenly pierced through the shadowed ceiling of the dome, flooding the dimensional counters with its crimson glow.

At the center of each device, the swirling core of light erupted outward. The circular vortex expanded rapidly until every Climber was engulfed by the spiraling radiance.

In their eyes, the world began to dissolve.

The last words Melvin heard before everything vanished were spoken faintly behind him.

"...good luck, pals."

***

Cold.

That was the first thing Melvin felt; then came the suffocating weight.

His body jerked violently as icy water rushed into his mouth.

His eyes snapped open upon realization.

Melvin was drowning.

All around him stretched a frozen wasteland of white snow and dark, murky water.

He had appeared in the middle of a swamp, its surface half-frozen and buried beneath thick layers of snow.

Melvin struggled desperately, his body sinking deeper into the freezing sludge.

Just as panic began to claw at his chest, a familiar voice echoed in his mind.

[Welcome back, Climber Melvin.]