**Brrringg brrringg**

Serah sighs. “What?” She asks.

“Hey there, little buddy. Are you at the Shadow Order hub?” The deity of war asks.

“Yes, mom. I'm at the Shadow Order hub. We're trying to decide what to do next. The organization gave us some Shadow Points for the jobs we've done, but they really aren't a lot. The jobs we've been doing have been pretty menial… I'm not exactly sure how one moves up in the Shadow Order…” Serah says, somewhat worried.

The deity of war lets out a chuckle. “Well, if you're worried about wasting time, you can relax. Organizations like the Shadow Order always have the future in mind. The jobs might seem unimportant, but all you really have to do to move forward is to not die. It’s just like in that mage’s college; they’re slowly filtering out the recruits, and since you are a baby, walking its first baby steps, they don’t expect too much from you. All they want is for you not to mess up. Which, in the grand scheme of things, can be pretty hard to do depending on your character. For example, there are two fruits in your vicinity; one is tastier than the other, but if you take that one, it messes the job up for the organization. The other one is also tasty but not as good, but there’s still some risk if you take it. What do you do?” The deity of war asks, gauging Serah’s tendencies.

The deity of war would never admit it, but she thought of Serah as somewhat like a daughter. The deity sees it within Serah, the raw potential; she sees what she could be if things turned out well. But the journey was so long from where she currently was, and the choices she would have to make to reach that stage could make her or break her. It wasn’t like there was no wiggle room for mistakes, but the deity of war would be lying if she said that she didn’t want to see Serah’s potential come to fruition in all its glory. But alas, nobody was perfect, and it wasn’t like what the deity of war sees is the end-all and be-all; there could very well be a suitable path for Serah that was outside the deity of war’s vision.

“Of course I leave the tasty fruit alone. But I gotta eat something right?” Serah says with a cheeky smile.

The deity of war lets out a laugh. “That’s my girl.” She says, satisfied. “Anyways, don’t worry too much and definitely don’t rush things. As you continue, you’ll naturally get stronger, and your life-span will increase to match your abilities. Well, if you don’t mess up too badly.” She says, somewhat comfortingly.

“Okay, I won’t rush things.” Serah says. “Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?” Serah asks.

“No, there was something else. It’s about those books I lent you. I wanted to give you an intro. Did you finally want to meet this big sister?” The deity of war asks with expectation.

Serah’s eyes widen. “Meet? Meet you? How?” She asks. Serah would be lying if she said she wasn’t curious about this so-called deity of war. She’s been around ever since Serah was transported to this world, so she was very curious about the deity of war. With her identity were a whole bunch of questions that came to mind, like what was a world administrator, what was a deity, and whether she could get back to her home world. These were all questions she could ask, but Serah wasn’t sure if they were appropriate. She would have to go with the flow; maybe one day she would be capable of asking these questions…

“I'm familiar with the Shadow Order’s location, but I doubt they’d just let me barge in. How’s your practice with the decryption method? Do you have the basics down?” The deity of war asks.

Serah’s brows furrow. “The basics… I think so… But honestly, I’ve tested it, and I don’t have anywhere near the amount of mana capacity that this thing requires. This technique sort of feels out of my league; I’m not even sure why you gave this to me.” Serah says, feeling that she was a little in too deep.

The deity of war lets out a chuckle. “No worries. With the Call Deity ability I can open a mana channel to let you use what you need. As for the future, you’ll have to get your hands on some mana stones, maybe mana crystals or mana juice. The amount you’ll need will differ depending on the world gate you’re trying to unlock. Anyways, I’ll give you the decryption key to a neutral world that's somewhat close to the Shadow Order’s base. You’ll just need to know the basics to open it, and I can provide the mana.” The deity of war explains.

Serah’s brows continue to furrow. “Hmm… Okay… If you say so…” She says, somewhat unsure.

“Alright, get ready for it. 1, 2, 3.” The deity of war says.

Serah’s eyes widen. A stream of information suddenly enters her mind. She couldn’t make sense of all of it, but she knew how to use it. Serah lets out a breath. “Okay, I’m going to start the decryption.” She says before taking a few more deep breaths. Don’t be nervous, Serah. Mommy’s watching. You can’t let her down. She thinks as she readies herself.

Serah pushes an open hand out and begins to channel mana out of it.

The deity of war smiles. “That’s my girl. Get ready for the mana stream.” She says before opening a mana channel and giving Serah access.

Serah feels a stream of mana opening itself to her and she lets out a breath as she begins to focus.

Serah quickly and carefully allows the decryption key to fall into place using the mana that she was pouring out of her hand. Pieces escaped her hand and settled into the air in front of her before disappearing. More and more pieces begin to fall into place before a click was hear. It was as if a door was unlocked and the fabric of reality began to separate and created a doorway. Behind the door way was a black and purple pool of energy, leading to who knows where.

“That’s my girl! Good job. Now just sit tight. Leave the motivation spell to me. Just relax and let it pull you in.” The deity of war says with a smile.

“Hmm… Okay…” Serah says, somewhat meekly. If she was being honest, she was very nervous at the moment and this whole experience was very new to her.

Suddenly, Serah felt a gravitational pull. Serah lets out a breath as she relaxes her body. Then, like Alice falling into Wonderland, Serah’s body was pulled into the world gate.