*Dung~*
As soon as Callon's first step made contact with the floor, almost like the air is vibrating, a low note that sounded similar to a piano resounded through the entire hall
Along with it, a grey light surged from the walls behind Callon and kept on going, dimly lighting up the interior of the hall bit after bit for a moment until the surge of light reached the end of the hall.
Even though that moment was brief, Callon was still able to brace the true splendor of the resonance hall for a split second before the light disappeared when it reached the end of the resonance hall.
(Wow....!) Both Callon's eyes and mouth widened in astonishment.
Feeling excited, Callon felt his bones tingle and his blood pump in anticipation.
It was then, Callon finally acknowledged that this is the moment; this is his moment, the day the his future will be decided
Callon felt giddy and without thinking, he unconsciously, lifted up his other leg, taking another step, like he was possessed
"Duang*
Another low note resounded through the hall, but this time, the note sounded slightly higher pitch. The surging light was also slightly different as well, as its color became lighter.
*Dueng*
Excited, Callon gleefully took another step forward, and subsequently, a slightly higher-pitched note rang, accompanied by a slightly more vibrant and brightlight.
Incredible impatience and wonder emanated off Callon, clouding his mind. Causing him to almost prematurely take another step before the effects of the previous step could vanished
Callon stopped right before his right foot touched the ground, inches away from making contact.
He barely managed maintain his balance, watching the light travel in anticipation. Callon begged for the light to quickly reach the end of the hall
Right when he finally couldn't maintain his balance anymore, the light coincidentally disappeared.
However, Callon couldn't be more glad to see the darkness again. Now that there weren't any obstructions, Callon allowed his next step to land.
*Duang*
After that, Callon began to take each step, following a rhythm. Every time he took a step, he waited for all the effects to disappear before taking the next.
In actuallity, Callon didn't need to wait for the effects to fully disappear before taking a step. It will be fine as long as the participant doesn't run, but because of the fear of the unknown, Callon chose the safest option possible.
*Duong... Dong... Doung... Doang...*
With each step, more and more of the Resonance Hall became visible as the light grew more vibrant with each step.
Around the pathway to the altar, white luminous flowers were strewn all over the ground like a field of flowers, or more specifically, a field of unbloomed flowers.
Now that the unbloomed flowers were revealed, it seemed like every time the light appeared after each of Callon's steps, the flowers would glow in tandem and follow the light's intensity. Strangely though, the light that emanated from the flowers were actually brighter than counterpart, so bright in fact, it leaves an imprint of their image in Callon's eyes even after the darkness returns; it's like the light from the flowers had burned their image onto Callon's retinas.
*Doend... Dang... Daeng...*
As Callon got closer to altar, the previously vague-looking interior of the resonance hall was finally fully revealed. Walls lined with beautiful textured patterns and architecture that looked like that of a royal castle's patio jolted out in contrast to the flat walls, creating an elegant and atmospheric sight.
*Deant... Deing... Ding...*
As the journey began to conclude, both the light and the notes reached their climax when Callon took the last step. But just like the numerous other times, the scenery came and went
(This should be the altar.) In the darkness, Callon pressed his hand on the altar.
It seemed like Callon had finally reached the conclusion to the story of his normal life, because after this, a new story will open, and the beginning of an uncertained adventure awaits him.
Callon stood in front of the altar with his heart racing. He knew that after this, his future and fate lay in the results of this very moment. Nervously, Callon lifted robotically, pulled back, and with one final motion... He clapped.
*PAAAAAAAACCCCCCCKKKK!*
The patterns on the altar lit up, and suddenly, all the unbloomed flowers that were surrounding the main pathway before subsequently bloomed, and glistening, glitter-like pollen was released from the flowers into the air, covering the entirety of the resonance hall.
When all of the pollen settled in the air, the whole resonance hall looked like an ocean of stars, with each individual pollen, carrying either a orange or light green glow
(W-What...!?) Callon stuttered internally as some of the glistening pollen wandered in front of him
Right as Callon turned around to examine what was going on. All of the pollen suddenly burst into two different elements, orange for fire and light green for wind.
*Wuung wung, fuuung fungfung*
When the pollen burst, the elements looked messy and jumbled up, but within a couple seconds, the once messy elements began to consolidate, condensing into distinct streams that properly displayed their domineering presence.
The fire blazed into shapes similar to a cyclone while the wind curled into visible gusts of wind, blowing and flowing like waves in the ocean. Occasionally the two elements would mix turn
With all this activity happening around Callon, the scene in the Resonance hall looked almost like painting when looked at fron afar.
Mesmerized by his surroundings, Callon didn't notice it, but a stream of fire and a stream of wind began to gather to his right and left, and before he knew it, both of these streams came charging at him.
(AHHHHHhhhhhh....?) Callon screamed internally as he closed his eyes and braced for impact
Noticing that he didn't feel any pain, Callon slowly opened his eyes. He checked his body for any injuries, but couldn't find any, after a moment though, he noticed something, not a injury but his clothes. The color of Callon's clothing was split into two halves; the left half of his clothing was colored light green while the right half was colored orange-red.
(Wooooaah, so that's how our clothes change colors!) Callon thought, astonished, as he grabbed onto the hem of his shirt.
The two elements still danced around Callon as he examined his shirt, and even after he was done, it took about a minute and a half before the elements started to calming down.
The elements quickly dwindle with each second that; it took only about 10 seconds for the elements to fully dissipate.
Flickering, the last embers of the two elements were extinguished. The last lights in the hall began to dim, but right before the darkness returned, the entrance started to open.
When the show finally ended, Callon couldn't help but utter a word in amazement, breaking one of the 4 rules.
"Wow!" Callon expressed
Strangely, even though Callon felt that he said the word in a fairly loud voice. Contrary to his expectation, he could barely hear his own voice. If not for the vibrations his voice caused, then he would've thought that he just imagined it
(Even my voice...) Callon thought in surprise.
As Callon made his way out of the resonance hall, he was giving the resonance hall one last look around since he knew that it'll be a really long time before he could see it again. Even though, it's still too dark to really see anything
The engravings in the walls that had nothing going on before now began to pulse and glow with two colors, green and orange; their colors were dim, but due to the darkness, the two colored lights were easily differentiable.
*Eeeeeee* When Callon finally made it outside, his ears began to ring, feeling like his senses were being bombarded.
Even though Callon had only experienced true silence for only 10 minutes, his ears, which had adapted to that environment, was suddenly repulsed by all the excessive sounds hitting his eardrums. It is kind of like turning on the lights after you wake up from a long slumber.
"You alright, bud..." A man dressed in a suit squatted down next to Callon and began to gently supporting him
The man had sandy beige hair just like Callon, but instead of amber eyes, his eyes were emerald green.
"That was amazing," Callon huffed out in breaths as he began to readjust to his normal environment.
When Callon's hearing returned to normal, he began to look around instinctively. Because, ever since Callon exited the Resonance hall, he felt like his eyes weren't working correctly until now.
As Callon analyzed his surroundings, he realized the man who was supporting him was actually his father, and he also noticed that someone he was deeply familiar quickly approaching him as well.
Approaching them was a woman with curly black hair and warm amber eyes that were similar to Callon's.
"Woop! Alrighty, up you go!"
Without waiting a second, the woman quickly lifted Callon up and placed him on her shoulders.
"Woah, Mom!" Callon muttered out in surprise as his mother picked him up.
"Really, Cille?! He just got out...." As Callon's dad finished his sentence, he turned silent, and his eyes widened in surprise when he finally noticed the color, or more specifically, the colors of Callon's clothing.
"He's fiiiinnne; you're worrying too much, Locce." Cille's black curly hair bounced as she turned her head around to smile at her husband.
While his parents were talking, Collen looked to his right and noticed the proctor was waiting for them to finish talking.
*Ahem*
When the man found an opening, he cleared his throat loudly to get their attention before they continued.
"You guys must go register your son's resonance path before you leave," the man in professional tone as he looked at Callon's parents.
Hearing this the husband and wife looked at each other for a moment before answering
"Alright then, let's go," Locce said after nodding to his wife, Celle.
Before they left, the man looked at Callon and his clothing, specifically its colors.
"I hope your resonance path will serve you well," the proctor said with a genuine smile and raised his fist for a fist bump.
"Yeah!" Callon bumped fists with the proctor as a toothy smile appeared on his face.
As the proctor was preparing to leave them, his eyebrows suddenly lifted, almost like he suddenly remembered something important.
"Oh yeah, I should also mention this before you leave.... It's kind of a tradition for everyone who has gone through the resonance hall to not talk about what happened, especially to the kids who haven't seen the spectacle for themselves, so try your best to keep that tradition going," the proctor said before waving goodbye.
After hearing that, a look of realization dawned on Callon's face as he connected the strings. Now he finally understood why his friends didn't tell him anything, though he still felt a bit irritated.
when he thought back to his experiences in the resonance hall though, that feeling quickly disappeared as he began to understand why this tradition was put in place.
"Alright, let's go to the registration building!" Cille said brightly as she gently bounced Callon to get his attention.
"Alright," Callon replied softly.
Smiling to one another, the family quickly arrived at the registration building, the only other building within the Resonance hall's land.
The registration building was almost just as magnificent as the resonance hall. Despite its smaller size, its exterior is like the complete opposite of what the Resonance hall. Vibrant and elaborate with an old-fashioned flair added to it.
"Hello, we're here to register our son's resonance path." Locce politely asked the lady sitting inside the registration building.
After reporting that to the lady, she gestured for them to walk over to their right. Looking at that direction, there was a fairly wide patio connected to the building
The area was pretty simple and minimal, it had a tablet-like device on a podium, and in front of it was an interchangeable backdrop.
"Just stand in front of the backdrop; once I take your photo, the tablet will automatically fill in all your details and file it into our database," the administrator explained as she exited through the side door of the building, leading directly to this area.
After saying that, the lady detached the top middle part of the tablet and held onto it with both of her hands like a camera, pointing it at Callon's family.
"3... 2... 1... Say cheese!" The lady raised three fingers and retracted them one by one.
"Cheese!" All three family members said together while smiling.
"Alright! We're done!" The lady smiled with her teeth glistening.
The three of them were kind of surprised it was done so quickly; contrary to their expectations, the camera didn't flash or even click. The only indication that their picture was taken was when the lady confirmed it; although they trust her, they were still somewhat disappointed by the outcome.
Not realizing how the family of 3 felt, the lady reattached the camera to the tablet and fiddled with the tablet for a moment
"Oh yeah, here you go," the administrator smiled and retrieved a glossy sheet of paper from a compartment below the podium, handing it to the family.
Seeing what it was, Cille jovially took it from the administrator's hands and shared it with her husband and son.
"Let's find something secure to put this in." Locce gently peeled the photo off Celle's hand as he gestured toward their car in the parking lot.
Following that, Cille nodded in agreement. With that, Callon thought that they were done, he glanced in the direction his friends were in and got ready to go back to them, but Contrary to his expectations, his dad still hadn't left for their car yet; instead, he looked like he was thinking about something while staring at the Resonance hall and occasionally glancing at his son.
"Dad?" Callon questioned
After hearing Callon, Locce stopped looking at the resonance hall and turned to look at him.
"I know I've said this thousands of times already..." Locce squatted down to get on eye level with Callon.
"You must use strength for good and protect those who are weak." Locce's eyes turned stern as a dignified air rose around him.
Callon looked shocked; he didn't know why, but even after being told the same thing countless times by his father. this time, the sentiment felt different, it felt heavier and far more assertive than the previous times.
Maybe it might be the influence of the illusionary power he now felt, but currently, he felt like this is a defining moment for him. As a sense of responsibility comes over him, Callon steeled and solidified his resolve
"I..."
Callon struggled at first to say with proper conviction, but after a moment, as he gathered up all the determination he can muster, he looked his father directly in the eyes and said
"I WILL!"
Now it was Locce's turn to be shocked. Although he purposefully accentuated his words in a far more serious tone, he didn't expect his son to match him in that regard.
(You are your mother's son after all) Kanum thought to himself cheerfully
Locce and Callon smiled at each other, and in that moment it looked like a spark was lit in Callon's eyes, a similar spark to his father's.
Locce felt all his worries about Callon's growth fade. There was a reason why Locce was so adamant to push that phrase into Callon's belief, because in a way it was like he was teaching his younger self about these values.
Locce has done many things he regretted when he was young, and he believed that if his younger self had respected and followed these values, he may have been able to mend what he had broken.
(Locce...) Cille smiled shakily as she silently thought
Cille, who was watching this scene from the side, knew exactly what Locce was thinking about when she saw his face. In fact, she was actually there for most of it.
"Callon, you must—" Locce was about to lecture Callon, but before he could, he was cut off by Cille, who sternly placed her hand on Locce's shoulder to stop him.
Even though Cille understands Locce's feelings on the matter, she doesn't want to condone this method of teaching too much. It is fine if Locce feeds Callon a healthy amount of this philosophy while allowing room for Callon to grow and discover himself. But if Locce goes any further and disrupts that flow, it will definitely cause a rift between them eventually. Especially when Callon finds out about his father's past
A tense silence fell between the family of three; Cille and Locce were brooding over what they did while Callon wandered around them, confused about what happened.
"Hey Locce, are you guys done yet?" A familiar man with black hair and dark amethyst eyes waved from a distance.
Luckily for Callon, their tension was suddenly broken by a familiar-sounding male voice.
"Kanum?" Locce stood up and looked toward the direction the voice came from, with a confused face.
Locce saw his friend Kanum waving from afar. Locce was about to respond to him, but before he could, he saw Kanum's wife, Shelt, drag him away.
"Shut up, don't interrupt them," Shelt said with gritted teeth.
Watching the banter between Shelt and Kanum, Locce and Cille couldn't help but laugh at their antics.
"Hahahahah! Those two are always a riot to be around." Cille laughed and tipped her metaphoric hat to the couple.
"Yeah, especially when they're together," Locce said as he smiled good-naturedly.
Even Callon couldn't help but find Shry's parents amusing, which says a lot about their reputation.
"Go back to your friends; your mom and I will go and find somewhere safe to put this," Locce said as he held up the photo he took from Cille.
"Alright," Callon said with a smile.
Almost like he was waiting for it, Callon immediately ran off as soon as he got the go-ahead from his father.
"Hey guys, I'm back—" Callon announced cooly after getting close enough to see his friends
As Callon got closer to his group of friends, they noticed and was about to greet him, when a familiar draft drifted by and made an announcement.
*Shry hhggjhj, I repeat, Shry shjshs, please make hdijhej way to sjksjks resonance hall*