Read Online Spheria by Cody Leet - Free Book Online Page B

certain nights, you can see them inside as flickering dots, moving about. What they’re actually doing there nobody knows, since a Polyan has never set foot on the opposite side of the world. As large as that triangle is, however, it's tiny compared to the formation we came here to see.”
    Le∙ma turned her focus to the Rift, looking over the edge into nothingness. She traced its path with her eyes as it curved upwards. From this position, she could see the entire chasm going off in two directions and circling the world. It divided it into two halves. It was insurmountably wide, about twenty times wider than the red river they’d crossed.
    “Every time I see it up close, and I've seen it hundreds of times, it takes my breath away,” said Sa∙ma.
    “I've never seen it up close like this. I heard many stories about the Rift, but none prepared me for its actual size. It makes me wonder how large the world is, and how small we are.”
    “These are typical feelings. This journey is one of learning and self-discovery. It’s to help you come to know yourself. Only by knowing oneself may you focus on helping others.”
    Sa∙ma fell silent. He watched as Le∙ma mulled over his words, knowing this was part of the process. She said nothing more. He’d given her a ton of information for one day to think about. Yet, they still had to perform the ritual they’d journeyed to complete.
    After what seemed like an eternity, Sa∙ma broke the silence. All he said was, “It's time for the offering.”
    Le∙ma, who’d become entranced by the yellow crystal, looked up. She nodded, rose to her feet and picked it up, as she had rehearsed. She walked to the edge of the Rift, and without hesitation, tossed it in.  
    Sa∙ma appeared next to her. Together they watched the crystal fall, illuminating the walls below as it did so: brown rock, as far as the eye could see. It fell for a long distance, visible but getting smaller. It became just a dot, after which it grew too small and dim to see any longer. As far as Le∙ma could tell, it hadn’t reached the bottom.
    Sa∙ma began to hum. Le∙ma joined him. Then together they intoned the ancient verse:
    Deep into the Rift I go
    Lighting the path to nothingness
    Deep into the Rift I fall
    Shining like a spark of hope
    Deep into the Rift I plant
    A seed of yellow, sprouting
    Deep into the Rift I sprout
    Bringing forth a bubble of charge
    They were silent, staring down into the darkness as if expecting something to happen. Nothing did. Eventually, Sa∙ma turned to Le∙ma and said, “You're now a Lumen Seeker, bringer of life, counselor to others. The seed you planted will bring forth a yellow bubble, the rarest kind. It’ll rise until it reaches the Source, thus turning it yellow for that day. When it radiates yellow light, all life crystals in the world will begin to fill from within. For that day, no creature will need to hunt or forage, and they can rest without having to fight for survival.”
      Le∙ma shivered in the cold night, their source of comfort lost in the depths.
    “Is it bottomless?” she asked. Le∙ma imagined the crystal exiting their physical world, and in doing so, releasing a yellow bubble from the world without substance. Then it would begin its ascent toward the Source.
    Sa∙ma repeated the answer he’d been given long ago. For neither he nor any other living Polyan had any direct knowledge of what lay in the Rift. A few had fallen in, but none had ever returned. “It doesn’t have a bottom for us, the living. But when a Polyan dies, her structure journeys below to dwell with all those who have left us. This place, which we call ‘Qubessence,’ has an endless supply of violet energy. The lands are violet, the mountains are violet, even the sky looks violet. Everyone dwells in peace, never needing to find food for survival. There, everyone spends their time doing what they enjoy: playing, talking… and making statues.” He smiled at her.
    “It sounds