Sigil: The City of Doors

"Okay... yeah.... yeah that's good," she said, keeping herself hopped up on the energy of having made the decision, "Should we meet here first? Make sure we're all on the same wavelength and... well, it'd be awkward to not at least have a conversation with my brother first. Still can't believe I have one. Well, a full brother that is, instead of a half-sibling."

"Just need to hop back over to Mt Celestial and grab him, so we could be tomorrow, assuming he isn't busy." She waves and grabs the mug and finishes the rest of her drink. "Yes....should be okay tomorrow to deal with our dad."

"Hmmm," She thought about it for a few moments, not really have a huge amount of insight on the subject or anything but still intrigued by it.

"Well, I'd like to see it for myself, figure out if I can ascend or if it's just the same as with you. Maybe it'll tell us something. But I suppose first we ought to see what dad has to say for himself. How soon can you get your... well, *our*, brother here, you think? I mean, I'm a little hesitant to go through with this, but we're not getting answers any other way I figure, so the sooner we do it the less time I'll have to worry, y'know? Would tomorrow work?"

"More like a way opens up and you're able to ascend a mountain. So, it's not someone in particular keeping me down on the first level..." She says it with a little hesitancy. "...Unless it's a god, I guess. Which would be crazy to think right? They have other things to worry about than my own ascension up the mountain. So, has to be something else. Something about us that is stopping it. "

"Hmm... okay, so how does it work? Like, say I went over there one of these days, find me a portal back there. I show up on the first layer, do I just go up the mountain, someone judges how enlightened I am, and then says go on up or not?"

"Yeah, I know; it sounds like I'm being arrogant, but there's a feeling you get. Something from within that you can feel the path your on has grown. Understanding what is around you and yourself. It's how I awoke to my abilities of sensing disease. So...it's there. The excuses are just 'find more peace' or 'walk the path a bit longer to find it'. Walked so much my feet are tired."

"Sounds sort of similar, yeah," she chuckled, "though uh, ain't it usually the case you're not supposed to call yourself enlightened and such? Sorry, that sounds a bit dismissive maybe. You say you've been trying and the excuses they give you for why you can't go up get worse and worse? Like, what sort of things are they telling you?"

"Well, on Mount Celestia, there are seven paths of self-discovery. Such as the Noble Eightfold Path, the Path of Valor, the Path of Renunciation, and the Path of Gnosis. Each one offer you the means of to understand yourself and reach a different layer. Lunia, Mercuria, Venya, Solania, Mertion, Jovar, and Chronias. You're said you're a Believer, right? Sort of like how you try to ascend into Godhood, you need to do certain tasks and go to achieve enlightenment along the way in order to reach the next level. I'm pretty enlightened and self-discovered. So, should go up to Mercuria, right? Nope. Not there yet. Still stuck on Lunia. For the first few times, sure, maybe I need to discover myself more. That's fine, I continue to follow the path. And...I now know I'm there, okay, and yet...nothing."

She nodded along for a few moments, pretending like she understood. Which she *didn't*. Realizing that it would become awkward if she just kept pretending to understand, she decided that it would be best to just admit it.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not really sure what you're saying. Never been over to that side of the celestial planes, 'member? There's ranks on a mountain?"

"I'm good at what I do, right? Can catch sickness easily. Should be a shoe-in to climb the ranks of the mountain, get more responsibility. Do more good out there. But no, I'm still stuck on the bottom level. I would think it's something like politics, but the excuses keep getting, and pardon my language, stupider. It's just not right that they should keep us down, not without a proper explanation, at least."