Trey leaned back in his chair as the Amaran council went back and forth. They had been debating for the last three hours and hadn't gotten anywhere.

  "The Young Master was very clear that his apprentice should receive the fruit once he was of age for the System." Azariah repeated for what had to be the fifth time in the last half hour.

  "I am aware." Desbera began. Trey let out a groan and interrupted the conversation.

  "Its my fruit and my opportunity. Amari said that doing certain things before the System arrived might provide better benefits. I have enough credits and points to get the fruit."

  "We are well aware. It is a difficult decision which is why I say we wait until he gets back. It would be within three weeks anyway why not wait a bit longer?" Christopher replied.

  Trey gritted his teeth as he glared at the man. "My birthday is next week. This is the last chance for any improvements before then. If I wait then I might as well just follow through with the plan."

  The council devolved into another round of complaints until Azariah banged her fist against the stone. "I am not going to pretend to know what he would want. I will say that we can't run around like lost children. Beast attacks have only increased since he left. You all know what that other lunatic is doing. Trey has to make his own choices sooner or later."

  She turned and stared at Trey. "You are aware that we don't know what the fruit will do? It might be too much for you to handle before you break through. There is also no guarantee that it will provide you anything new. Amari never mentioned getting any titles for eating his."

  All eyes in the chamber fell on Trey. He nodded and stared back in defiance. He held out his hand just before a ball of orange and red flames appeared. "I've already gotten a Tao strand. So I want to do it. If there is even a chance that it will help me then I want to try. You all might be willing to wait around but I want my own power."

  The council fell silent at that before they nodded their agreement. Azariah stood up her tail fidgeting behind her. "Alright, come on then. We will have to explain to the Young Master what happened when he returns. I hope there will be good news."

  Trey nodded. His stomach twisted into a knot of nerves and excitement as he followed after her. His mind worked a mile a minute as he mindlessly put one foot after another.

  "Are you listening?" Azariah's slightly annoyed voice broke through his thoughts. When he looked up he realized they had already arrived in her office.

  "I am sorry what did you say?"

  She sighed and placed her hand gently on his shoulder. "I said that you should take your time to absorb the fruit. Even he took a few hours to deal with it from what I heard. There is no need to rush. Desbera has provided one of the academy's chambers for you." She handed him a small black box. "I wish you the best of luck."

  Trey swallowed and took a breath. He grabbed the box and nodded. "Thank you. Can't wait to show off what I get." He gave a only partially forced grin before bouncing to his feet and leaving the office. He made his way to the academy each step forming up his resolve. He ran across a few members of the "Elite Squad" that Amari ordered. They all looked different ever since they returned from the underground. It was a bit like people in war movies only instead of sadness there was an aggressiveness in there eyes. Like they were ready to fight at a moments notice.

  None of them had become as strong as Amari though. Most of them weren't stronger than Aaliyah or that Romulus guy. I let them pass by before I continued on. Despite what everyone said there was a clear difference between the warriors and the guards. That was on top of the problems between cultivators and noncultivators. It felt like we were all about to start fighting. I needed to be strong enough for that.

  I entered the academy and placed my contribution card on the counter. "No need." The worker started. He was a portly man who lost his right arm during a beast attack a few weeks ago. "Your chamber is already reserved. Its the one at the far end of the hall."

  Trey grinned and grabbed his card. "Thanks wish me luck." He darted down the hall until he was outside the right chamber. He stepped up to the door and it opened. The chamber was sparse with an array the only source of energy. There was a podium where you could put treasures but I've never had anything to go there. The kind of treasures he had require you to consume them directly.

  Trey let the door shut behind him and then activated the lock. The array came on and it was like the outside world didn't exist anymore. He made his way over to the center of the room and sat down. He took a moment to calm his beating heart and to prepare himself. If he were being honest with himself this was terrifying. The thought of being ripped apart by rampant energy or popping like a balloon didn't sound pleasant.

  This was the only way forward. Cultivators had to be willing to stand on their own and push forward. Even if it meant marching to your death. That was the only way to get stronger. That was the only way to make sure you didn't have to suffer. Trey took another deep breath and opened the box. The fruit inside was ugly. It was misshapen and looked like it shouldn't exist. It was the size of dragon fruit but was orange and red in color.

  It was oddly cold to the touch like it had been refrigerated before this. He brought the fruit to his nose and gave it a sniff but there was nothing to smell. There was a vague sense of desire from his body. Like he was hungry but it was nothing like Amari described. For a moment he wondered if he had been tricked but that seemed unlikely. It might be because he didn't have the System. He could only vaguely sense his dantian which further supported that idea.

  He shrugged his shoulders and chalked it up to something to think about later. He brought the fruit up to his lips and took a bite. He had to fight against the urge gag. It tasted nasty and sweet. Kind of like medicine that was supposed to taste like candy or bubblegum. Still he kept going. Each bite sent another wave of power through his body. It felt every cell had opened up and greedily swallowed every bit of energy.

  By the time the fruit was gone it felt like his body was on fire. He bit back a scream and fell forward onto his hands and knees. The heat slowly condensed at a spot just behind his shoulder blades. The heat grew more and more intense until he was screaming in agony. Fear sprouted in his stomach as dozens of what-ifs threatened to drag him down. He shook his head. His fingers dug into the stone at his feet.

  The pain intensified and his skin began to tear. Warm blood ran down on his back. He scrambled to remove his robes. He reached for his bag and the healing pills inside only to be thrown forward by a wave of pain and a muscle spasm. He screamed as something ripped itself free of his back. The sensation nearly enough to make him lose consciousness. Once again his back spasmed and he was forced forward. This time something ripped its way through his back.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  His vision swam as his spiritual energy rapidly drained. Trey reached a hand behind him half afraid of what he would find. When his fingers passed right through a current of spiritual energy he froze. What was that? What's going on? He reached for his bag and sent a thread of spiritual energy inside. He quickly retrieved a mirror and held it up behind him. What he saw nearly made him collapse. Laughter surged up from the pit of his stomach as his shoulders spasmed. Pain and elation blurred together. "Wings. I got wings. That was so much cooler than an eye."

  He sat there on his hands and knees until a hum spread through the room. "Come in." He tried to call out but his voice was closer to the whisper. Still whoever it was must of have heard it because the door opened. Suddenly there was a hand on his shoulder and he was guided to his feet.

  "Are you alright? You have to get rid of your wings. They are draining your spiritual energy." A voice called out but it was distant and dream like. Suddenly he was smacked across the face. Something that made the world explode into focus. "Your Wings! Young Master."

  "How do I" He concentrated and tried to form a connection with them but it was so hard. It would be so much easier to sleep. Why couldn't I— Another slap and he was brought back. He tried to withdraw all of his spiritual energy. Pull it into his body but it was like trying to pull water that was already flowing out of a hose. Slowly he managed to stem the tide until it was barely a trickle. "I did it." He mumbled before the darkness claimed him.

  He came to sometime later to muffled voices arguing.

  "He wasn't ready. We should have waited until he had increased his level. Master Jackson had already had his class when he consumed the fruit." The first person scolded.

  "It was his decision and according to the doctor he should be fine once he regained his energy." The second voice replied.

  "I am supposed to trust your doctors? They aren't even proper healers. We haven't even verified if the medical tomes you people have are worth anything when you take into account spiritual energy. Let alone whatever changes the divine fruit would cause. What will the Young Master think if he returns and his disciple hasn't awoken?"

  Trey groaned and sat up. He was in a bed and from the looks of it he was in the main building and a room on the upper floors. He pulled his feet to the edge of the bed and was about to stand up when his memories slammed into him. His hands shot to his back and shoulders in search of the wings. When he felt nothing his confusion only intensified. He could vaguely remember getting them and then getting rid of them.

  "Wings? Appear? Please?" He tried a few commands but nothing worked. He was about to call out when he remembered a bit more. Instead of trying to force the wings to appear he tried to release his spiritual energy through his back. It took several tries before a sucking sound and then two gorgeous wings shot out behind him. His wingspan was around ten feet and the wings were both corporeal and not. Like they drifted between being solid and real. They were a deep red and blue color like the mix of a flame and the depths of the ocean. They were beautiful.

  "Holy shit!"

  A moment later the door on the far side of the room was thrown open and three people walked in. Aaliyah, Azariah and Desbera. Each one with a different look on their faces. Aaliyah looked like she had just seen something unbelievable while Azariah and Desbera looked like they had just seen a ghost. "Look at what I can do!" A second later the world seemed spin around and Trey stumbled forward.

  "Young Master you can't handle the consumption of the wings. Withdraw them until you have more energy!" Desbera practically screamed.

  I grimaced as I stopped the flow of energy. The wings disappeared and I dropped to a knee. "Is that what running out of spiritual energy feels like? That sucks."

  "Yes, though its a bit worse since you don't know how to cultivate and you don't have access to your dantian. You are relying on the small amount of energy in the rest of your body."

  "Do I have to wait? I mean I can pull the energy inside my body right? I just did that."

  Desbera slowly nodded. "Technically yes but the System makes the process easier and more efficient. Ordinarily you would use your cultivation technique to form a connection with your Dantian. After that you would just cycle the technique to form your channels and that would be it."

  Trey grinned and rolled his shoulders. "Great I should have some contribution points saved. Why can't I buy a manual and get to work?"

  "We don't have anything better than the most basic of manuals. You might be able to buy something directly from the System shop but they wouldn't be very good and would be much more expensive. Further we don't know what the Young Master would want for you. If he has plans than I don't want to ruin them."

  Trey shook his head. "I am free to do what I want. Come on lets get me a manual." He didn't bother waiting for them to make up their minds. He dashed out of the room and to the contribution store. When he arrived he was disappointed to say the least. There were three manuals available. They were all just first realm basic manuals. One was designed for melee focused people another for mage or general energy manipulation and a third for crafting. None of them sounded thrilling but there was nothing to do.

  He decided not to make purchase. Instead he checked out what was available and the System Hub. The options there were even less useful. The manual was the basic one from the Tutorial and was good all around. He considered all three options before pulling the trigger on the tutorial one. The deciding factor was its general use and that everyone else would have gotten it. He would have gotten it if he was old enough.

  He grabbed the crystal and then started back to the academy's cultivation chambers. He was almost there when Desbera and Azariah stepped in front of him. "I understand your excitement but it would be best for you to rest. At least for a day or two. The fruit likely caused a lot of changes to your body and it will take time for you stabilize your foundations."

  It was Desbera who spoke up but based on the look Azariah gave both women were in agreement. Trey was about to complain when another bout of dizziness hit him. "Fine, I will start practicing in two days. Can I go out and fight some monsters at least?"

  "You can after you sleep for a few more hours. There is a incense stick that you should burn just before you go to sleep. It will help with your recovery."

  Trey nodded and shifted course. "Do either of you know anything about wings? Is there a way for me to control the amount of energy that they cost to make?"

  "I am afraid I can't be sure. There are skills and spells that let you grow wings. If they function similarly than yes you should be able to do so. Of course your wings came from a Divine fruit so its possible they function very differently." Desbera replied.

  "Should I keep them hidden? Should I avoid telling people that I have them to begin with?"

  Both women nodded and it was Azariah who offered a reply. "Information is just as valuable as treasures and credits. I would limit the amount of people who know the details of your ability. It is unlikely that you will be able to hid them if you intend to use them often." She then looked him up and down. "Which I assume you no doubt will."

  Trey laughed and interlaced his hands behind his head. "I imagine having wings is pretty rare and its probably something the ladies will love." When the two women glared at him he burst into a fit of laughter. A fit that didn't stop until they were in front of his house.

  "Go inside and get some rest. I will have someone come to get you in a few hours for training. They will be very upset if you aren't ready to go."

  Trey grinned and nodded. His excitement clear on his face. "Do you think Amari will be jealous? I don't know what his eye does but it can't be as nice as actual wings."

  "Uh well it is hard to know. The Young Master is a rare talent and it is believed that the fruit provides what you need or truly want. It is better not to compare what you've received with other people."

  Trey shook his head and opened the door. "Thanks for helping me." He then stepped into the house and closed the door. He stepped into the room and let his smile fade away. He looked down at his hands and shook his head. "I wish I could have shown them to you." Her voice was softer than a whisper. He still looked around in search of anyone that might have overheard him.

  He didn't think anyone would be upset about it but he didn't want to be ungrateful. He had more resources and was undoubtedly in a better position than the majority of people. Just being able to live here was a boon that many would fight for. He shook off the complicated emotions brewing in his stomach and focused on the moment. He made his way over to the incense stick and lit on fire. He waited for the smoke to fill the air before he turned to his bed. It was time to get some rest.