It was a curious dichotomy, the serenity of the forest. On the face of things, it was peaceful, a gentle wind, playing with the leaves of the trees, insects buzzing and birds singing their songs. But that was only on the surface, if one looked deeper, there was an underlying struggle for survival, the creeper-vines trying to choke the trees, the predators looking to make a meal of the happily chirping bird, maybe right as it managed to attract a mate and other predators, seizing us up before deciding that attacking a group of powerful beings was a quick way to find themselves prey, instead of predator.

We had been travelling for a few days, away from the dwarves, Adra and Rai mostly keeping an eye on things while Sigmir and I used the time to ponder our respective challenges, Sigmir the way to channel her feelings while remaining in control while I had one main project, figure out how to cross the second divide and one secondary project, digest what I had learned from the dwarves, link it with my previous knowledge and understanding and apply it in a practical manner. The secondary one would be a long term project, especially due to the constantly expanding nature of my magical knowledge, making the crossing of the second divide a priority.

By now, I was reasonably sure that the crystal that had formed in my chest when crossing the first divide was the key, I had meditated on the matter for quite a bit and even managed to travel the channels of Astral Power within my own body, gazing upon it directly. Viewed that way, it seemed to be a crystalline tear, glowing from within with a strange, cold light very reminiscent of Ice- and Dark-Astral-Power.

However, just thinking that I knew the key was a far cry from managing to grasp the key and overcome the divide, so I was still trying to understand. But, the more I pondered, the more I questioned, yes, the tear had formed when crossing the first divide but hadn’t I also experienced a strange journey, gazing upon the moon and the stars themselves, in the void of space? My class was called Lunar Sorceress after all, so some connection with the moon had to be there, that seemed to be obvious. Just not what kind of connection.

As the night was falling, I was sitting by myself, having climbed another tree to get above the canopy to see the stars. Lenore was nearby, I could feel her, but had asked her to keep a distance, allowing me to immerse myself into the Astral River and seek for further understanding. It was an auspicious night, especially for me, as the moon would be full in the sky, hopefully allowing me to understand more about my connection to it.

I felt more than saw the moon in the sky, a strange calm settling around me, as if my emotions were fading into the background allowing me to view things in a dispassionate manner. For a moment, I realised that it was quite similar to my default state on Earth but the notion vanished as quickly as it came, as I focused on the Astral River around me, letting Mundus fade into the background.

It was a sensation that would never cease to amaze me, the display of shifting colours, streamers of power winding through reality in a twisted flow, creating a spectacular sight of mesmerizing energies. I let myself bask in the Astral River, for just a bit, getting accustomed to the sensations and feelings before heading further out. My plan was to try to traverse the Astral, letting the call of the Moon guide me. Where I would end up I didn’t know but I had a feeling it would be a fascinating experience.

Keeping a tether to my Avatar, letting it anchor me to the physical reality of Mundus, I let myself go with the flow, in a manner similar to my visit to the Grandmother, but also different. Instead of trying to follow the normal flows, I was trying to follow the connection within me, the one that allowed me to harness my Ice-Magic with more ease, drawing out more power, whenever the Moon was full in the sky. I would have been able to try the same on a new moon, using the element of Darkness but somehow, I was more comfortable with Ice. In addition, I would have to wait another two weeks for a new moon, which I certainly didn’t want.

Moving with the Astral River was always a strange and mesmerizing experience, the reality of Mundus casting a reflection onto the surroundings, only a reflection that seemed to have gone through a fun-house mirror combined with a prism, the colours shifting and distances warping, creating a surreal effect. Some of the shifting colours were more vibrant, glowing with more than just light, radiating Astral Power that my senses were picking up, making me taste colours, allowing me to smell the scent of purple. It made me wonder if this was what some psychedelic drugs were like and if so, I could understand their appeal. Not that I would ever take them, the idea of having such an experience in reality was rather scary, but still appealing.

For once, I wasn’t moving with the main-flow of the Astral River, the power moving between the different Nexuses but instead, I was pushing myself forward, using the power coming to me from the moon as a Guideline, wherever it might lead.

At first, I was pulling myself in a direction I could only describe as up, away from the main-stream, the task of leaving the familiar flow a difficult one. Without the recent experiences of flying with Lenore, I might have faltered, the idea of rising into the sky too alien, too daunting, to keep my will strong enough to move against the flow. Flying without technological assistance was not something humans had never been able to, so our minds were not terribly adjusted to it, thankfully flying within my Hallow, experiencing it second hand from Lenore’s avian mind had prepared me somewhat. It was still a daunting idea, even if I wasn’t actually flying but travelling within the Astral, it didn’t matter, it was a strange experience.

Distance seemed to warp around me, shrinking and morphing, without any rhyme or reason, otherwise what happened next would have been impossible. Within minutes, the massive amalgamation of Astral Power that was Mundus itself faded from my senses, vanishing behind me, only the tethers I was holding, the one anchoring me to my body and the one I was following, towards the moon, remained within my perception, everything else was empty. Void. It was a scary feeling, making me clutch my tethers tighter, fearful what might happen if they got severed.

Pulling further, I thought I was moving but without outside indications time, distance and velocity were impossible to asses. It felt as if I had been moving through the void for mere minutes when I felt a change, a burning sensation coming from behind. For a moment, I was unsure what was happening but then I realised that the earlier Void wasn’t empty any longer. There was a burning heat, singing me with its power. Pain made me move backwards, instinct reacting before I could even fully understand what was happening.

Turning, to reorient myself, I realised what had happened, feeling like a fool. There was that massive source of Power, of pure, burning heat, and I had stumbled into its radiance. Before, I had been shielded by Mundus itself, sheltered in its atmosphere and later in its shadow but now, the Sun itself had burned. I was lucky that I only saw the barest edge of it, as I was moving out of Mundus’ Shadow, otherwise I was quite sure I would have quickly been reduced to spiritual ashes, without any cohesion. Maybe trying to reach the moon during full-moon wasn’t a good idea for me. Not unless I wanted to pit my powers against the scorching rays of the Sun, something I decided I would leave for another day.

Back in the dark shadows, I let myself relax, the empty darkness around me no longer scary or unpleasant but instead, I was relishing it. It was sheltering me from the blistering, painful heat, which I was grateful for.

Finally, I took the tether to my body firmly in my mental hand and gave it a strong tug, intend on pulling myself back into my body. There was an eerie sensation, as if I was stretching like a rubber-band and the Astral River seemed to shift for a moment, giving me an intense sense of vertigo, before I felt my senses return back to my body.

Holding on tightly to the tree I had been sitting on, I barely managed to stay on. Vertigo mixed with blistering pain, reminiscent of a sunburn, tried to make me succumb to gravity, plummeting to the ground. Maybe perching on trees was something best left to birds, for my next experiment, I’d put up my throne, that way, I had something comfortable to sit on.