b.u.m-b.u.m.

Double-time. Two percussive beats and then a pause which seemed to stretch into an eternity. Until another two beats filled its place. Slowly it strung out into a rhythm and blood began to course gently through newly formed veins.

This was the beat of life.

At the center of this commotion a brilliant flame burned within the core of the being. It had become a gentle smooth and contained light, like that of a candle s.h.i.+elded from the wind in the night.

This was the flame of life.

Time stretched on uncertainly, an unchanging equilibrium had been reached. The plant-like existence continued a gentle flow of energy into the core like a life-support system. Instead of needing to breath, Noone's body simply consisted off of the energy fed to him. Roots around the cavern continued to spread, collecting small waves of universal energy which flowed through the stone. All energy would be transferred into the pod and then into Noone. There was just enough left over to maintain the life of the plant-like existence.

It was a perfect equilibrium. The two lives used up exactly as much energy as the plant could gather. Not even an iota was left over. All spare energy was needed to fuel the gentle fire at Noone's core.

In a relatively short time, the plant became uneasy at this development. Uneasy as a plant could be, anyways. Without the ability to gather more energy, how would it ever proceed to the next stage? It needed to collect an immense amount to build upon the core and create the seed.

It realized that if it tried to spread its net farther, it would use up more energy than it could replenish. This would lead to the death of the core… and itself.

If it tried to stop feeding the core even a little, the core would most likely decay and perish. Leading to a failure of rebirth.

And if it chose to forego the energy needed to maintain itself, it would also fail rebirth.

Nothing. It was at a loss and there were no instinctual right moves to make as there had been until this point. For the first time since it had become slightly aware, it felt helplessness. It could wait millennia, that was no problem. Time posed no stress to it. What did stress it though, was the idea of failing rebirth.

"You will live forever. And should you ever lose your edge, you will be reborn."

It needed to be reborn. But… it failed to see what to do next.

Gradually though, it chose to just wait and see. There was nothing else to be done, so it just maintained the perfect equilibrium and sank back into the memory of its past. Imagining the grandeur that was its parent tree. And picturing the stranger, who had turned it into a sword renowned through the worlds.

Quietly, slowly, without disturbance, another awareness began to form in conjunction to the plant-like existence.

A month pa.s.sed silently.

A consciousness floated silently within the plant, unaware of its own awareness. While drifting helplessly within the plant's soul, it came to bear witness to something spectacular.

Similar to the illusory feeling one gets when they are aware of their own dreams, the consciousness became attentive to the memories beginning to inhabit it. A world! Filled with billions of beings it failed to recognize… And months pa.s.sed.

A tree larger than the world itself! Floating! Flying through a cold void…. And more months pa.s.sed.

It saw stars and planets and worlds upon worlds. It saw life forms unlike anything it could comprehend…

And more months pa.s.sed.

The sheer magnitude of experience quickly became painful to the young soul - but it felt no urge to look away! And more months - unknown to the existence - continued to pa.s.s.

It saw a budding flower… that looked… familiar? What was familiar it could not tell. But it just felt that it had seen something similar before.

It saw some budding flowers pop open at a speed that left it bewildered, sending seeds flying into the universe. s.p.a.ce itself rippled under the forces at play.

The sheer majesty was heart-stopping to the consciousness, and yet it still could not look away...

What it saw next though, caused its heart to shake for unknown reasons.

A stranger sat on a twig of immense size, staring at a budding flower. Colors raked through the leaves and floated in the bulb, casting brilliant lights onto the stranger.

Just laying eyes on the stranger caused the cores heart to speed up - the consciousness's heart to speed up – Noone's heart.

Something about this being felt immense, like the majesty of everything he had seen just moments before wrapped up into a human-shaped G.o.d.

As the stranger stared at the budding flower, Noone's heart beat increased and strengthened slightly, leaving harsher ripples inside the bud which his body was sustained in.

Slowly, over the course of many more months Noone's awareness s.h.i.+fted from being a quiet observer, to melding within the consciousness of the plant itself. It left no room for observations, and Noone did not realize the s.h.i.+ft. After a period of time Noone realized he was now being stared at by the stranger. Noone's soul had become the seed in the memory.

There was a trembling and a pressure building. Noone was now feeling the changes within the pod. It would be soon… the seed within would burst through like an arrow and pierce through the universe in search of a final resting ground.

A subtle ecstasy began to form at the thought of being flung out into the void of s.p.a.ce. Like a child looking for adventure – Noone's awareness and the plant's consciousness were growing restless.

Fly. He would fly! Through the void and the stars and the planets and worlds and everything would be within his grasp in that moment.

The pressure built within, and miniscule trembling began to spread from where the pod connected to the world sized tree. Time slowed to a crawl within the memory.

Now!

With speed immeasurable, the seed was exposed to the void and erupted towards the vast universe. In that moment excitement overtook conscious thought and he had forgotten completely about the stranger. Every atom of his being yearned merely for the universe in front of him. For the sights… For rebirth.

That lasted for less than a moment, however. It took no time at all for the stranger to intervene and grasp the seed from the pod - transport away - and package the seed. But for Noone's frail consciousness… the whiplash of the difference between expectations and occurrence was too severe. His already fragile awareness threatened to crumble completely

What happened next was even more severe though. The sudden contact with the stranger who had caused his heart to palpitate before… now tripled in intensity. Something about the energy of this being - even through the ancestral memory of another existence - caused the blood and life energy within him to boil.

Suddenly, everything which sustained the memories he was traversing collapsed. Like a mirror shattering and then blowing away in a gale, Noone's consciousness became clear but fractured. It seemed to process everything a million miles a second. And everything led to one word.

Ancestor?

The Ancestor which gave The Common Heritage?

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He was a she?

No! that's not important. Where am I? What happened?

His consciousness and awareness, still infused with the plant, looked inwardly for answers. Through the roots, to the bulb, past the petals and inside the pod he saw himself.

Perhaps it was shock. Or mental exhaustion. But before any reaction could occur, his awareness blacked out, going back to rest.