Something flashed in the Commander's eyes, and for a moment, Elias thought she was about to cry, but that was ridiculous to even think about. Where were these weird thoughts coming from?
"Great choice, Elias. Power is given to the bold. Now, since we are running out of time, this is what you should know. This orb of darkness is a tunnel to enter a Fragment of Divinity, and inside that Fragment are monsters and sometimes treasures, but do not be distracted by those; there will be opportunities in the future if you survive this Tribulation. Your goal is to claim this Fragment for yourself. This is what is most important."
The Commander looked at the tunnel, an unknown look in her eyes, "The Fragment of Divinity every prospective Angel would obtain is different; some are as small as this castle, while others are bigger than this city, the power given is roughly equal in the end, and all that matters is how the Angel utilizes their Fragment, however, the method to claim it is roughly the same. Find a stable structure within that Fragment and plant the Seed of your Lumina inside of it. Don't worry, you will be guided during this process."
Elias remained quiet as he devoured all the words from the Commander, seeing no reason to ask any questions to delay her speech. She was speaking quite quickly, and he needed to focus so he would not miss out on anything she was saying.
He would repeat this a thousand times if necessary; he did not believe in luck, only preparation, and whatever dangers he was going to be inevitably facing inside this Fragment, only deep understanding and full awareness of his situation would save him.
"What you are going to be facing in there would be stronger and faster than you and possibly smarter than you, yet your greatest weapon would be your mind. The most powerful monster you would see inside the Fragment would be at the Mist-Phantom level, so you must be careful; the slightest brush from them would kill you. In the ftutre all of these monsters would be the essential resource for your elevation, so it would be a shame to die by their hands before you begin to reap the fruits of your advancement."
She paused, that brief flash of anger lighting up her silver eyes, and made Elias's heart shudder,
"My advice to you is obvious: while inside the Fragment, root your Lumina first to bind yourself to the Fragment, and if you cannot avoid the monsters inside, then use the power I have given you to kill them. It is a single-use ability; push it out of your body with your mind, and then run. Make sure you are at least a hundred meters away to be safe, but be aware that the longer you keep my Lumina inside you, the more seals are broken, the greater its power."
Elias's thoughts were going around in a frenzy; he could feel his body becoming more accustomed to the weight of the blood inside him, and it was a weird sensation, but he wondered how long he could hold this drop of Lumina, and if he could use it at the right time for the most results. Meanwhile, Commander Yseult continued talking,
"If you can kill some of the monsters inside the Fragment, it would aid you to gain your first surge of vitality to grow your Lumina, and you can quickly ascend as a Wisp. Depending on what you find in there, this might be your only chance for survival. Use my power as quickly as possible, or it will kill you before any monster even gets to you. But do not be greedy for quick progress; killing a single monster will help you build your foundation. Ultimately, use your discernment, don't think too much about it, and follow your instincts... You do have good instincts, Elias." She paused, "You have been taught all the theories on the best methods of Vitality Absorption, yes?"
Elias nodded, years of lectures and readings flashing past his mind. He had studied more than any of his teachers here in the Asylum knew about, and he believed he knew enough about this subject.
"Then remember to use everything you have been taught. The moment you enter this tunnel, it will stop shrinking, and you will have a week to find the right place to seed your Lumina. This time is not absolute; in fringe cases, some Siphons remain inside the Fragment of Divinity for years." She paused, "I was one of those cases, but I don't expect that to happen to you. My situation was, well, let's just say it was unique, and the possibility of this happening to you is next to impossible, but I say this so you can be prepared for all eventualities."
Placing a hand on his shoulder, she smiled, and Elias felt his mind freeze for a moment. This sensation both amused and annoyed him. This was the wrong time for his body to begin recognizing the allure of a woman, especially one who could kill him with a wave of her hand; however, the Commander was a being that no mortal could see without falling.
"Survive, Elias," she said and then shoved him into the orb of darkness.
There was no buildup, no warning. One moment, his mind was still recovering from the fatal allure of her smile, and the next, he had been thrown into the darkness.
Elias felt his body was wrapped by a cold embrace, and suddenly his motion ceased, and his body that had been flying into the darkness came to a stop. His eyes had been open all through the encounter, and so he had been looking directly at the commander before he was swallowed by darkness.
He had barely come to terms with this change when he saw himself inside a tunnel, and Elias recognized this tunnel; how could he not? He had worked here for four years, and the same statues that he had been creating of Asulon lined both sides of the tunnel.
Elias blinked, trying not to believe that the Fragment of Divinity that he was going to be getting would be the tunnels where he had spent so much time hating his weakness, as an Alchemistry Crystal accomplishes in mere hours what he knew he could never do in years.
However, all of these were observations by a small part of his mind. Elias knew that he was so many things he was not aware of, and the way forward was not to dwell on what he could not understand but focus on what he could control. Only from this point of control could he begin to unravel the mystery around him.
What was the one thing he could control? His [Status]. Lumina was now inside of him, and for him to understand this new world, he would need to start from this point.