Silas figured that he had sat around long enough.

The disillusionment from his first round with his Shadow had kept him down for over a month. He had been out of the fight for so long that a sense of dread had settled over him. Something dangerous was afoot somewhere, surely. The feeling was both vague enough to be worrying and concrete enough to make him feel that something was definitely around, and the building anxiety made him want to get off his behind and get ready for a rematch. He had to do something; surely Cornelius would have some sort of solution. Granted, that solution was probably “fight your Shadow and win,” but that was part of the plan anyway. The one surefire way to settle himself would be to show his darkness that he was ready to accept it, that he had a clearer understanding of what he was doing. Both Eden and the people at Olympus had shed some light on possible avenues for him, and he hoped to be able to carry out his tasks to the best of his ability.

After the usual routine to go to his Wonder, Glitnir found Cornelius idling in the lobby. “Welcome back. How are you feeling now?”

Glitnir shrugged. “I’ve had my ups and downs, but I think I’m just about back on my feet. There’s one more thing I have to do, and then I think I’ll be…” What would he be? It was hard to find the word for how he would feel after confronting his Shadow. “Ready.”

Cornelius nodded. “Ready sounds about right. I assume you’re talking about facing your Shadow?” At Glitnir’s noise of agreement, he added, “Yes, that definitely sounds right. Facing yourself is a vital component of your Knight training. I’m sure there will be some reward for you if you succeed, even if it’s just a sense of readiness.”

“Mm.” Glitnir took a few steps towards the hallway. “Are you coming with me? I don’t know how to operate the Shadow Box yet.”

“It’s just pushing some buttons,” Cornelius said, following with spectral footsteps.

Upon arriving in the Shadow Box chamber, Glitnir grasped the chain of his scales tightly. “Let’s do this. Is everything set up?”

Cornelius nodded. “Yes. Open the box, and we’ll begin.”

Glitnir did so, and the same beam of light from before shone on his face. A dark mist poured out of the box, gathering at once spot, and he waited to face his Shadow once again.

Sure enough, the Shadow formed in front of him. “Back for another beating, Page?” his doppelganger said in his distorted voice.

Glitnir shook his head. “No. I want to talk to you.”

The Shadow scoffed. “Talk? Really? You’re just gonna blow more smoke up my a**, aren’t you? Actions speak louder than words.”

“That’s true, but… I’ve done some thinking about what you said.” Glitnir felt himself falter a bit at actions speaking louder than words. How could he show his Shadow right this instant that he had received inspiration on how to guide? “I was wrong when I said I wouldn’t say those things. I wasn’t being true to myself. I’ve made some decisions.”

“Yeah? Lemme hear it.”

“I will not kill unless there is a genuine threat to me or mine. A threat is classified based on the danger it poses, not necessarily the power level. My place in this war is to teach and guide; if someone decides they wish to be the shock troops and use what I have given them against Chaos, I will not interfere. I may not be able to provide an answer to the ultimate goal of the war myself, but I will lead people to make their own decisions.” Glitnir paused, looking for a reaction. He got none. “I’m going to give people the tools to succeed. Just watch.”

The Shadow stared at Glitnir for a good few seconds before bursting out into uproarious laughter. “Yeah right, okay! You were expecting me to accept that and just disappear, weren’t you? Too bad! You don’t have the confidence to accept how much you really flounder. Even if you say you’re going to devote yourself to guiding, you’ll never truly accept me. You’ll still lock me and all your uncertainties away and pretend I don’t exist!” Long chains flickered into existence at the Shadow’s back, and they shot forward, wrapping around Glitnir’s arms and yanking him close. “You can’t do it! You know we can’t do it! We’re not going to be able to live up to these expectations we’re setting!”

Glitnir knew better than to struggle against the chains. That would not be indicative of acceptance. “You might be right,” Glitnir said. “Some part of me will always lack confidence and have doubt in myself, and some part of me will always flounder when it comes to using my information.”

Before Glitnir could continue, the Shadow wrapped one chain around his neck, making him yelp. “But that doesn’t matter, does it?” The Shadow’s inflection had become slightly less menacing, more questioning. “Aren’t you going to say it? That I’m not you? Come on, quit bullshitting me.”

Glitnir tried to shake his head the best he could with the chain around his neck. “No… you are me. I know this. Everyone, even the best guide, has moments where they falter and doubt themselves. I’m not going to tell anyone that they’ll ever have themselves fully mastered. Those moments where we lack confidence make us seek answers and help us grow. There’s no such thing as being perfectly confident. We are constantly growing, changing, learning about ourselves. I accept you, all of you, from the bottom of my heart. You are what drives me to improve myself, and I was wrong to deny you.”

For a moment, there was nothing. Then the Shadow nodded once before being surrounded by a blue aura. Slowly, the Shadow faded away, and Glitnir felt a warmth come over him. Once the Shadow was completely gone, the Shadow Box beeped, and the blue aura vanished as well. Once again, there was a spell of silence until it was broken by the sound of clapping.

It was coming from Cornelius. “Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! Would have brought a tear to my eye if I could still cry.”

“Th… thanks,” Glitnir mumbled, overcome by a sudden fatigue. “That was exhausting. I don’t know why, but it was.” He was distracted from his fatigue by a sudden tingling sensation. “Wait, are you supposed to feel tingly after this, or…?”

“Tingly?” Cornelius darted out from behind the Shadow Box’s podium.

Before he could say anything, Glitnir’s armor began to glow, spreading to the rest of his body. His silhouette changed; another shoulderplate seemed to appear, and something cape-like billowed out behind him. His scales glowed as well, and as the glow receded, it revealed a marvelous golden cast. When the glow on his body began to fade, he could see that he had indeed sprouted a cape and an extra shoulderplate, along with thicker leather bands around his belt. His shoes and bracers had changed, and he had gained gloves too. The last step was almost comical: his hair band disappeared, causing his hair to flow out all around.

“You’ve done it!” Cornelius said, beaming with enthusiasm. “You’ve fully earned the Wonder’s trust. Welcome to Knighthood, boy.”

“Wait,” Glitnir said. “I… don’t think it’s done.” Sure enough, it wasn’t. The tingling centered on his arms and neck, and red, glowing chain markings coiled around them. Only when they ran up his arms and neck did the tingling stop. He gazed at his new markings in awe. “This is…!”

“What is this?” Cornelius said. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of markings showing up on new Knights.”

“Transcendence,” Glitnir said, almost savoring the word. “It’s for people who show great devotion to their Wonders or, in the case of senshi, planets. It makes it so that you can’t be corrupted by Chaos.”

“I see,” Cornelius said, his tone indicating that he didn’t really understand it. “You must have really impressed the courthouse to be given such a gift. I know I’m certainly impressed. You really prepared well for this rematch.” He went back over to the podium with the Shadow Box and gestured for Glitnir to come over, continuing when he did. “Before you go, I have a small gift for you as well. Now that you have conquered yourself, you are allowed to help others face themselves too. I am going to teach you how to use the Shadow Box, so that if you encounter someone who wants to test themselves, you can bring them here. That is another way you can guide them.”

Glitnir followed Cornelius over to the podium, fiddling with his cape as he went. “I understand. Thanks, Cornelius.”

“Let us begin… and let us move forward into an age of growth.”

Glitnir visited his Wonder on January 16th. Due to Transcendence, he may visit one more time this week. The counter resets on January 23rd.