Step after step, I climbed.
The pressure, of course, didn't ease—it increased... and by a fucking lot.
It pressed into my bones, crawled under my skin, and whispered at the edges of my soul.
"…So this is the Divine Stairway's true nature," I murmured quietly.
"Every step… is a conversation with the heavens themselves."
At least, that's what other people used to say when talking about their experience of climbing it.
The air around me shimmered faintly with golden mist.
I could feel fragments of something ancient stirring in it, tiny threads of divine energy, so pure they almost hurt to touch.
"If the rumors are right…" I said under my breath, pausing for a moment, "…then the higher steps should hold fragments of divinity themselves. The pure essence of creation."
A faint smile crossed my face.
"For most gods, that'd be a lifetime's dream."
Clack.
Another step.
"But for me…" I exhaled slowly.
"It's just a stepping stone."
