Sylas had always had this one problem at the back of his mind. The issue was that it didn't really matter until he figured out Spacetime first. He had a feeling that he would eventually, but brewing in the background all this time was this much larger, looming issue.
What was funny is that as opposite as Spacetime and the Void were to one another, their problems were also just as opposing.
Spacetime was far too plex and it was hard to find a starting point of simplicity for it. Because of that, it was hard to build toward anything without first chopping it at the legs and ruining what it fundamentally was.
At least, that was what people who chose just one path or the other to follow ended up doing. This was how they ended up with bastardized versions of space and time, not to mention a fundamentally poor understanding of what they were.
The problem with the void was that… it was too simple.
How do you even begin to build toward plexity with nothing? There was no step forward to take. How much more simple could you get than nothing at all?
As rare and unmon as Runic Paths of Space and Time were, they at least still came up from time to time. In fact, basically all of the Thryskai Demi-God Clans had some strong aspect of time to them in some sense, and because of that, many of them likewise chose similar paths for themselves.
Whether the true geniuses amongst them chose this path was another matter. It didn't seem like Vaelith, for example, was building out a path all that related to Time at all. Though, that was also hard to say.
She may have only been trying to learn from the Illuminist so that she could build out her own path as well.
However, when it came to the Void…
None.
There were no examples of such a thing.
There was a reason why this aspect of Sylas' Rune Path Mastery was so often forgotten, too. Even he didn't really know how to cast Void Runes.
As much effort as he made in learning Space and Time Runes, when had he ever learned any Void Runes?
How could he learn any Void Runes in the first place when the Void was, quite literally, the absence of Runes?
What Sylas had done, though, was learn how to creep aspects of the Void into his methods. This became quite useful when he needed to navigate the void, for example. Like the very day he learned of this path, the day he was almost trapped in the teleportation world of the Weaver Guild.
As useful as navigating the void was, though. How often was he going to need to do that?
No matter how you looked at it, it was a plete dead end. And yet, Sylas had already built up to the D-tier of Rune Creation with it present.
It demanded the least of him. As such, he could do this, diming and nickeling his prehension as he slowly moved forward.
But Sylas was quickly realizing that this situation was untenable. It only became more obvious after he mimicked the C-tier of Rune Creation.
It just wasn't… nearly as powerful as it should have been.
Sylas should have been unstoppable. Yet while he felt strong, it almost felt…
Empty.
Almost like the Void was slowly creeping into his other abilities, handicapping them, and swallowing them whole.
It was as though he had dug himself his own grave and then chose to jump in with two feet.
The only way back was to destroy his Rune Seed and start from scratch. For Sylas, this probably wouldn't even be all that great an issue.
The reason this was dangerous for others was because those that chose to destroy their Rune Seeds fell into two categories.
The first were those at the start of their journey, like Sylas. And the second were those at the end.
The problem with the latter group was that they had traveled so far that making it back felt like an impossible mountain to climb. Sylas wasn't in that category.
If he rebuilt his Rune Seed with only Spacetime, with the prehension he had now, he felt like he could reach the C-tier of Rune Creation within the month. As for returning to the D-tier?
Maybe it would only be a matter of days to weeks… if that.
The problem with the former group was that their Wills were too weak. Rune Seeds were practically their own ingratiated layer of the body. Destroying it would cripple their Wills and their ability to ever cast Runes again.
But… Sylas had True Infinite Will. His Will could be infinitely regenerated from the smallest of dregs and scraps. Destroying his own Rune Seed, assuming little outside interference, was a very viable path.
Was it a path Sylas would take, though?
Absolutely not.
Wouldn't that be as good as saying he wasn't good enough to figure it out? That he had made a mistake, yet again?
He refused. He would never allow that.
However, if things continued like this… there would eventually e a day where the Void would bee so all-consuming that Sylas wouldn't even be able to cast Runes any longer.
He would have all the prehension in the world, and yet nothing to show for it.
The irony was that this was all because he hadn't realized that Void Mastery was simply meant to be a tier of understanding of Runes, not a Rune Path in itself.
It was meant to be a step toward Rune Creation, a level where one emptied their mind of all things, all influences of the world, in order to let their Rune Path bloom and burst forth.
It wasn't meant to be prehended in the way Sylas had prehended it.
All because he had had no guidance but his own.
However, there would be more Sylas didn't know in the future, more he couldn't rely on someone else to tell him.
If he stumbled in what he was most talented in… he stood no chance of protecting his family, of returning Nosphaleen to his side… Of breaking beyond that ceiling.
A rush of might came from Sylas as he sat there, continuing to stare at the old man.
And then his lips parted.
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