# Myth 1 — Shooting Stars: The Gladius Ceremony

> Xavier undergoes the Gladius Ceremony — a solo trial to slay the Wanderer at the heart of Starfall Forest. He discovers the Wanderer is his own mother, and that the forest conceals a hollow artificial core kept alive by feeding humans to it.

- Branch: Myth
- In-universe: Philos — centuries before Earth
- Released: Myth 1
- Characters: Xavier
- Locations: Starfall Forest, Philos
- Page: https://ladsarchive.com/events/xavier-myth-1-gladius/

## Description

Xavier's royal coming-of-age trial, the Gladius Ceremony, sends him alone into Starfall Forest to slay the Wanderer at its centre. He succeeds — only to discover that the Wanderer is his own mother, transformed by sacrifice. Behind her lies the planet's literal heart: the artificial core, hollowed out, its energy long since exhausted. He returns home broken. When he confronts his father, the King reveals the dynasty's secret: for generations, humans have been quietly fed into the core. Those sacrificed people become Wanderers. The Protocores extracted from Wanderers — the energy source that now powers Linkon — are, in a very real sense, the hearts of the dead.

## Story cards

- [Shooting Stars](https://ladsarchive.com/cards/xavier-shooting-stars/)

## Related events

- [Myth 1 — Shooting Stars: The Titulus Refusal](https://ladsarchive.com/events/xavier-myth-1-titulus-refused/)
- [Myth 1 — Shooting Stars: Abdication and Queen MC's Reign](https://ladsarchive.com/events/xavier-myth-1-abdication/)