A Hand-Woven Universe 30 30. Zoning In

The sun just past its zenith s.h.i.+ning down directly onto the clouds at the end of the world.

Underneath the clouds Noone had just began to wake up, looking out at the horizon.

Last night after setting the bird up to cook, he had spent a long time looking up into the darkness. Despite still having some residual exhaustion, he had trouble sleeping past his thoughts.

Eventually though, he needed to get up. Noone went to his pack and grabbed a large cloth sheet, spreading it out on the ground in front of the oven. Inside the oven the creature had been reduced to a delicious smelling meal, already cooling off slightly.

Noone used the pike to spear the creature through the center, pulling it out of the hot oven. Some steam raised off the bird, but it quickly dissipated and Noone set it onto the tarp. Inside the oven itself, the stone glistened like crystal. Much of it had turned sharp and brittle from the intense and prolonged exposure to the heat.

Noone used a knife to carve some meat off the bird, before wrapping it up in the large tarp. After a whole night of unconsciously smelling the cooking meat, it had left him feeling very hungry.

…

Some time pa.s.sed and Noone was completely set up to continue climbing. He had his pack on, with all of his tools, and around his waist was tied a rope. On the other end was large tarp-turned-sack filled with months of rations.

Noone stared up at the cliff face discerning any part he should begin to climb towards next. He had a full half day of light left before the sun set. If worst comes to worst… he tied the sun stone around his neck so he could climb in the dark. He knew he could carve out a cave if he really needed to.

Eventually Noone started climbing without any direction in mind but up.
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…

The pack on Noone's back s.h.i.+fted around as he climbed up the cliff side, underneath him a large sack swayed with the slight breeze that flowed along the side of the cliff. The skin on Noone's body was slightly chafed from the weight of the pack, however his skin gradually adjusted to the friction.

After half a day of climbing Noone had learned much about the cliff face and how to progress. There were times when he would make progress, only to reach a shear unclimbable section and need to go around it. Other times, a strong gust would catch him by surprise and force him to readjust his body so he wouldn't get pulled off.

It had been a harrowing experience for Noone the higher he climbed. If he fell now, it wasn't like falling into the ocean from tapestry. Beneath him was dense stone and ragged rocks in shallow waters.

His body climbed as if by instinct, once Noone fell into a pattern, it opened his mind up to think about other things.

This is also how he spent three months working in the mines. His body moved on its own for the most of it, while his mind thought about other things.

It felt completely instinctual to him.

Another thing he knew about slipping into this automaton state was that his body didn't need to eat - at least, not as much as normal.

When he would fall into a trance, no matter how much time pa.s.sed, his body only got a little hungry. This went against everything Noone understood about himself. The people of Tapestry could go many months without eating should they so desire. And many often do.

The only reason Porose does so well is because apart from eating and drinking, there are not many other kinds of recreation to be had.

It is known that the reason they can do this is by relying on their attunements to supplement their energy usage. It was not a perfect system, they could not go on like this forever. But for a few months was no problem.

During the time Noone had been absorbed by digging out the mine, whatever state his body achieved allowed him to put aside the needs of his body with no discernable harm.

Eventually he was forced to conclude that even though he does not have any attunement, his body is still one that inherited some part of the Common Heritage. And it was because of this that at times he could put off things like eating.

Noone knew that if he could achieve this autonomous state, it would be greatly helpful to him. Not only did it allow him to stave off eating. But to Noone, it was the key which allowed his body to become infinitely stronger.

Whatever remnants of the Common Heritage were in his body, he a.s.sumed that it fed energy into him. This let him grow stronger. Despite being in the mines for a year, his muscles and his const.i.tution increased by a greater degree in the final three months, than the entire nine months before.

Thus, Noone only focused on climbing. He did not pay attention to any single thing about his body. He did not watch specifically where he was going, what his body was doing, where he was reaching. He did not look to see what was above, nor what was below.

Noone had gradually began to trust in his autonomous spirit, letting it take the wheel.

When his mind would begin focusing on what was around him, the weight on his back seemed to increase. His muscles ached with exhaustion. He was gasping for air.

This happened many times over the past half day, and each time he realized what a bad shape his body was in. But eventually he would manage to stop thinking, and his body would take over. Whatever exhaustion there was, he no longer felt or cared.

This was his secret. A secret he had not even told Liter.

He always seemed to find a foot hold, and not once did he stumble or slip up. Even when the wind would pick up, his body would adjust accordingly.

Finally, he reached the edge of another shelf. When his mind caught up to his body, he felt all the muscles in him prepare to revolt. He quickly scrambled over the edge and collapsed onto the ground gasping for air. The sack containing the bird was still dangling over the edge.

Noone's arms were thrown wide as he begged the oxygen to enter his lungs faster. They burned fiercely as though they were ripped apart inside.

Even with Noone's immense physical disposition, climbing the cliff with all the weight he had was nothing easy. If it weren't for his ability to disa.s.sociate the pain…

Eventually his body began to relax and his ragged breathing was reduced to deep breathing. He dragged the sack up onto the shelf just in time to sit and watch the sun set.

His body was still a bit shaky, so he sat back against the cliff instead of on the edge. The sun gradually showed itself between the sea and the clouds on the horizon, painting the world with a palate of colors that immersed Noone in its majesty.